A study applying schema theory to the teaching and learning of second language linguistic structures is reported. Subjects were students in the English language program of an Austrian university's school of business administration. The experimental groups received 8 hours of instruction in the schematic attributes of learning processes and then…

Outlines sample exercises developed in a program designed to teach minimal (threshold level) competencies based on students' communication needs and the concept of a notional syllabus. (AM)

Describes the functional/notional approach to language instruction, discussing key features, misconceptions, and practical applications of the model. (AM)

Discusses and critiques the notional/functional syllabus and the concept of "threshold level" as elaborated by the Council of Europe. (AM)

This article discusses the value of the notional-functional approach to language teaching and considers some sociolinguistic, psycholinguistic, and linguistic features of the notional-functional syllabus. (CFM)

Explores various aspects of the functional-notional textbook or syllabus. This is a concept originating with the Council of Europe that involves the organization of a textbook or syllabus according to the notions or functions that a learner hopes to be able to express. (RM)

This paper traces the development of a function-based module, TELEFUN, produced to teach telephone English to Francophone public servants in Canada. Telephone discourse is analyzed, and a number of techniques, including Function Frames and Function Dials, are described. (CFM)

This article discusses the various linguistic and psychological theories from which language teaching has drawn, and their application in certain instructional materials. (CFM)

A notional syllabus places the greatest emphasis on the use of the language, unlike most foreign language syllabuses, which emphasize its structural form. Each entry defines a type of purposeful communication. When the student has mastered the syllabus, he has thus acquired a communicative competence. (CFM)

This paper discusses the selection and ordering of language items, one of the central issues in foreign language teaching. Three approaches to sequencing are considered: the communicative competence, the linguistic stem, and the notional approaches. (CFM)

Discusses methodological implications of a proficiency orientation focused on speaking, placing proficiency in the context of grammar, communicative competence, and functions/notions. Discusses repercussions in foreign language teaching of the varying emphases on these contexts. Asserts that a proficiency orientation allows tailoring of teaching…

Addresses the question of understanding a foreign culture and its link with vocabulary acquisition in the second-language classroom. Problems in current research and classroom practice are examined. A synthetic approach to culture and vocabulary through modification of a notional/functional syllabus is proposed as a solution to the problems. (SED)

Speculates on the language teaching scene in 10 years' time. Suggests that the fundamental description of language in terms of functions and notions will not be replaced by any new concept and that innovation, therefore, will come more in the form in which this description of language is presented to the learner. (SED)

Pursues the argument that grammar teaching in a second-year university degree French course should be in line with the functional/notional communicative aims of the "Lyon a la une" project. Discusses the study of the pragmatic dimension of language as an essential prerequisite to the functional skills fostered by the project. (SED)

Argues that a truly learner-centered approach in second language teaching should be concerned with allowing learners a greater role in the management of their learning by providing opportunities for learner choice in the method and scope of study. Reports on experiments in this approach at the University College of Bahrain. (SED)