Discusses the Piedmont Export Expansion Program that was formed to establish a cooperative program between businesses engaged in foreign commerce and regional institutions of higher education. The purpose is to further develop, through a series of seminars, workshops, and regular academic instruction, international trade for the Piedmont area of…

A course designed to establish interpersonal communication as the context for learning French and focusing on rhythm of communication as the course's primary objective is described. (MSE)

Describes two research assignments designed to develop business skills in a college commercial French course. The assignments required students to use reference works in the business section of the library and to do a project on one corporation doing business in France. An annotated bibliography on multinational corporations is included. (SED)

What is wrong in the American parochialism about foreign languages is the assumption that language acquisition is a cosmetic gain, without any immediate or forseeable practical use. Languages will only be learned effectively when Americans learn that they can be used in getting tasks accomplished. (MSE)

Reports the findings of a nationwide survey of U.S. students majoring in a foreign language who study, work, and travel abroad. Presents a profile of these students which includes demographic characteristics, a description of motivational characteristics, the nature of intended international experience, the length of intended experience and its…

There are many indications that campuses consider the improvement of international education to be of paramount importance. Proposals reflect an interest in an infusion of international perspectives into curricula, the enhancement of competencies for business and teaching, and instruction in foreign languages. (MLW)

Describes an elementary school foreign language program in Oklahoma. Classes are taught before and after school by parents, and costs are borne by individual tuition payments. Students learn to correlate words with actions and take part in foreign language games, songs, and dialogues. (TE)

Argues that problems with English as second language programs in Arab world stem from failures in policy planning, rather than from failures of implementation of these plans. Some crucial considerations previously ignored are sociolinguistic setting of the foreign (English) language and fit between department goals, programs, and curricula on the…

Contending that the recommendations of the Commission on Excellence in Education cannot apply to all schools, the author argues against requirements including computer science, foreign language, and additional mathematics and science courses for all students. The quality of United States education is concluded to be higher than recent publicity…

This guide provides a road map for Connecticut school districts as they develop and implement a world languages program appropriate for the 21st century. It describes what students should know and be able to do at various grade levels and stages of language learning. The five chapters include the following: (1) "Introduction" (overview…

This report by the American Association of Community Colleges summarizes the results of a nationwide year-long study on foreign language education. Programs, called Improving Foreign Language Education projects at Community Colleges, were implemented at a total of 36 American colleges to enact proposed changes in curriculum and foreign language…

A study of school effectiveness for language minority students, authored by Virginia Collier and Wayne Thomas, is criticized as having two serious flaws. The first is that its methodology is a simple descriptive cohort analysis, seen as unscientific and producing misleading results because: each grade consists of different students; the number of…

This book describes 7 successful foreign language programs that start in preschool or the elementary grades and continue through high school, including both foreign language in the elementary school (FLES) and immersion programs. Written in clear and nontechnical language, this book is designed to be of use to anyone developing an early foreign…

Integration of extracurricular activities into the second language curriculum is supported in the context of culturally oriented communicative second language teaching. After methodological approaches in the literature are analyzed, various extracurricular program provided at the University of Toronto are described. (MSE)

The design and content of a required, fourth-year course in Soviet culture are proposed. The course has three distinguishing characteristics: basis in a broader, social sciences definition of culture; the Soviet Union as a frame of reference; and instruction in Russian. Its objectives are both cultural knowledge and language proficiency. (MSE)