Summarized findings from experimental and quasi-experimental investigations into the effectiveness of second language instruction. Comparisons of average effect sizes from sample studies indicated focused second language instruction results in large target-oriented gains, explicit types of instruction are more effective than implicit types, and…

Investigates the hypothesis that a more field-dependent cognitive style may be adaptive for certain components of second language proficiency. Native English speakers or students of English as a Second Language (ESL) completed measures of language proficiency and field dependence-independence (FDI). Native English speakers performed better than…

Describes how one middle school French teacher spent six weeks in Normandy, France, and England on an NEH fellowship, researching William the Conqueror and the Bayeux Tapestry (which depicts the conquest of England by William, Duke of Normandy). From her research she developed integrated lessons for her students and other students in the school.…

Discusses major issues pending in the Second Session of the 104th Congress, noting the impact on language education and focusing on educational reform agendas, recissions, the budget process, appropriations, and English as the official U.S. government language. Individuals in related professional organizations are urged to take steps to influence…

Presents Atlanta's Superintendent of Public Schools' views on national standards for foreign-language learning. He suggests that all educators promote national standards for foreign-language learning and assessment, despite the resistance they will meet. He states that all children can learn multiple languages, but they must start young, and that…

Describes one school district's experiences setting standards for foreign-language learning. The district was one of six pilot sites involved in standards development. Participants gathered information on how the standards interfaced with state and local frameworks, items missing from the standards, and implementation of the standards.…

Discusses the importance of appropriate proficiency-oriented testing for students studying foreign languages, explaining that grammatical accuracy is of no value if it cannot be used to carry out real-life tasks as an inherent and natural activity. Presents guidelines for designing and administering tests and provides an example of a…

Discusses what is known and done about bilingualism in early childhood education, highlighting Australia's language education experience. Notes that bilingualism can enhance child development, but the needs of bilingual Australian children are often ignored so their potential bilingualism is lost or underdeveloped. Their language-learning programs…

Presents examples of how computer-mediated communication (CMC) affects language learning, describing a successful CMC project involving a Minnesota middle school and a school in France. Students exchanged electronic mail over two years and eventually produced a student-written, bilingual, multicultural play. Though students differed in age and…

Investigated reasons for student choice in foreign-language study when moving from 8th to 9th grade. Eighth graders from districts that varied in how and when they offered foreign languages completed surveys after registering for ninth grade. Their main reasons for language selection were utilitarian, including the desire to satisfy future college…

Summarizes efforts by members of the National Network for Early Language Learning (NNELL) to curtail federal funding cuts in foreign-language education. It also introduces members of the NNELL Political Action and Advocacy Committee and discusses NNELL's recent advocacy efforts. Recommendations for making similar advocacy efforts are presented.…

Presents a Web-based, cross-cultural, curricular initiative entitled, "Cultura," designed to develop foreign language students' understanding of foreign cultural attitudes, concepts, beliefs, and ways of interacting and looking at the world. Focuses on the pedagogy of electronic media, with particular emphasis on the ways the Web can be used to…

Examines the nature of peer exchanges in two partial network-based classes and the conflicts learners face in this situation where all information is text-based and archived. Provides a picture of how learners used the available technology to interact with peers and their comments on how this mode of delivery extended their traditional notions of…

Examines whether electronic mail writing will improve academic writing abilities. Nonnative students in an intermediate pre-academic English-as-a-Second-Language course responded to writing prompts using electronic mail and word processing. Their writing was examined for differences in uses of cohesive features, length of text produced in each…

Discusses 16 well-reviewed software products designed for elementary grade students--those products that make explicit claims about developing students' lexical knowledge and those that do not. Also examines the potential of technology to enhance vocabulary learning. (Author/VWL)