An introduction to the theoretical bases of communicative language teaching and a guide to building a second language program consonant with those theories are presented for classroom teachers and teachers in training. After examining the issues underlying recent developments in second language teaching, an overview is presented of the research field of second language acquisition and potential classroom applications. Additional topics include: teacher and student attitudes and ways of assessing learner needs in different contexts; approaches to syllabus design (structural, notational-functional, and situational), and guidelines for materials development and evaluation; learning activities based on the principles of communicative language teacher; learner errors and their treatment; and the fundamentals of language test theory, including examples of test items and suggestions for ways in which tests can be made more reflective of communicative language use. The collection of learning activities is organized into the following components that correspond to different factors of the language acquisiton process: language arts, language for a purpose, personal language use, theater arts, and beyond the classroom. Each chapter includes an annotated list of recommended books and articles for further reading and a series of questions and projects for further discussion and exploration. A glossary of specialized terms is also appended. (SW)