Discusses a five-point plan for assessing and rewarding college and university language faculty, covering the use of student assessments; videotaped classes for evaluation and for future job seeking; informal faculty sessions for discussing teaching methods; and required submission and evaluation of course outlines and reading lists. (CB)

Explores the comparative importance of scholarly research and effective teaching among college and university language faculty in gaining tenure and promotions, suggesting that there be more tangible recognition given to faculty whose language instruction serves to attract and retain students in foreign language study. (four references) (CB)

After a brief review of trends in language labs, the history of Wisconsin's Learning Support Services (LSS) lab, which grew into an independent department serving all foreign languages, is traced. Its evolution included the development of an extensive library, audio studio, video service, and special cataloging and outreach system. (11 references)…

The University of Mississippi's modern language department chairman discusses the chair's role in achieving faculty diversity and offers guidelines for hiring minority faculty, including realistic self-examination and portrayal, targeting all minorities, developing a working relationship with counterpart departments in other institutions, visiting…

Discussion of the role of literature in the college second-language program, and in liberal arts education in general, argues that it is an ethical obligation to teach literary competence, or literary sensitivity, in the language of the author, because the "great books" are those that combine stylistic refinement with deep insight into the human…

Shows how an English for academic purposes language curriculum emerges, how it develops, and how it continues to evolve and be redesigned. Uses the Center for English as a Second language (CESL) at the University of Arizona as a paradigm. (Author/VWL)

Surveyed students at Arizona State University to find out why they had chosen to study French, whether they planned to continue studying French, and what courses they would like to see offered. Responses indicated that the students plan to visit France or a French-speaking country, that they are interested in gaining fluency in French, and that…

Investigating students' needs in three foreign language departments in a liberal arts college setting, the study discussed in this article aims to find similarities and differences in language needs among students enrolled in French, German, and Spanish and the extent to which students' perceived needs match the mission the departments have…

Expectations regarding teacher-student relationships, classroom interactions, testing and evaluation, and academic integrity vary widely around the world. Understanding these differences can be critical to enhancing the academic success of ESL (English as a Second Language) college students. Faculty working with ESL students often ask: "Why won't…

There is a dearth of research involving advanced second language (L2) learners in the USA [Brantmeier, C., 2001. Second language reading research on passage content and gender: challenges for the intermediate level curriculum, Foreign Language Annals 34, 325-333; Young, D.J., 2003. Workshop on overcoming anxiety in the foreign language classroom.…

A study investigated the effectiveness of a Salem-Teikyo University (West Virginia) program of English-as-a-Second-Language conversational tutoring for a cohort of 185 Japanese students and a similar but smaller Japanese-as-a-Second-Language tutoring program for the English-speaking cohort. Data were gathered through surveys of faculty (n=4),…

A model for undergraduate programs designed to integrate foreign language instruction with training for an international public service occupation is outlined. The language component and professional training, taught separately at first, are brought together at the end of the program in an internship in an international public service…

A McGill University (Quebec, Canada) continuing education program of French language instruction for specific professions currently under development is described. The program is designed for non-native-speaking Canadians and international students, and emphasizes complete functional control of language skills rather than acquisition of conceptual…

The University of Hull (England) has a 2-year commercial French course within its language program. The first-year of the course is required of all undergraduates. Materials are largely written by faculty. All faculty have additional training in French economy and culture. Testing occurs twice a year, with four written skill areas from the French…

A discussion of the current direction of second language instruction looks at the decline in college language enrollments, possible reasons for the decline, and efforts to adapt course offerings and curriculum format to current educational goals. Three factors in re-directing second language teaching are highlighted: establishment of standards for…