A study investigated the effect of pausing, a component of speech speed, on the listening comprehension of second language learners. Groups of subjects at two ability levels listened to taped versions of two brief lectures recorded with four different combinations of speed and pausing conditions. Comprehension was measured by means of cloze tests…

A survey among Indochinese refugee household heads in Illinois investigated (1) relationships among indicators of socioeconomic, psychosocial, and sociocultural dimensions of adjustment; and (2) the effect of length of residence in the United States on these indicators. The indicators included measures of feelings of alienation and self concept in…

This paper describes the development of a new language laboratory program for advanced students at the English Language Center on the Michigan State University campus, which is designed to bridge the gap between manipulative classroom drills and the demands of the lecture halls. (Author)

Presents the methodology and organization of a course in scientific and technical French. (Text is in French.) (PP)

Report of an investigation which examined the relationship between measured English-language proficiency, years of English-language study and the use of English as a medium of instruction for samples of Arabic-speaking Egyptian and Lebanese university students. (Author)

Presents empirical data concerning the use of the cloze test as a measure of proficiency in English as a second language. (Author/PMP)

Describes a research study into this pronunciation problem. It was found that: (1) the subjects tended to substitute stops and affricates more readily than sibilants and fricatives; (2) there was considerable /s z/ substitution, but no/f v/ substitutions; (3) the pattern of subsitutions proved independent of the level of English proficiency. (RM)

The Language Proficiency Assessment Committees (LPACs) authorized by Congress were given the responsibility of assessing limited-English-speaking students within a school district and making placement recommendations regarding these students to the local school board. This manual provides guidelines and procedures for the establishment of tasks,…

Features of connected discourse that have been identified by discourse analysis may be applied to the evaluation of oral proficiency in a second language. For example, in the area of semantics, a speaker's control of the cause-result relationship involves, among other things, the ability to produce the different grammatical and lexical…

A case is made for the use of "banding" as a method of assessing language progress. In a banding system, the range of language proficiency from beginner to native speaker is divided into bands, each one representing a distinct, discernible, and describable level of ability. Banding seems to be most useful in circumstances when the specific purpose…

The Australian Second Language Proficiency Ratings Scale (ASPLR), a performance-based instrument, is described. The origins of and rationale behind the Scale are discussed. The construction and use of the Scale are detailed. It is hoped that the usefulness of the ASPLR extends beyond the "on-arrival" English as a second language program…

This guide is intended for the use of the interviewers who determine the oral proficiency ratings of candidates for the Foreign Service. The following materials have been collected: (1) "The Measurement of Speaking and Reading Proficiency in a Foreign Language," (2) "Definitions of Absolute Ratings," (3) "Factors in…

This study is based on three years of experience on the university level and addresses the questions of how to engage in play production and why it is valuable. The "how to" question considers the following: choice of a play, production of scenery, public relations and publicity, financing, rehearsal scheduling and time needed, how to direct the…

This speech-communication examination is a "dyadic" test in which students, issued a set of cards to be marked according to directions, are assigned partners with whom they communicate and respond to in turn. This latest version of dyadic tests has been administered in rural and urban public schools in Hawaii, to speakers of nonstandard…

This paper provides background on the procedures currently used in the language interviews conducted by the Peace Corps in testing Peace Corps Volunteer/Trainee performance in host country languages. The purpose of these face-to-face interviews, which are based on the interviews used by the Foreign Service Institute, is "to give the student…