Total Physical Response Storytelling (TPRS) has enjoyed a tremendous increase of interest in recent years because so many teachers in high schools and colleges are finding that it reinvigorates their German programs. Some even claim that it has saved them. TPRS actually consists of two complementary pedagogical methods: (1) Total Physical Response…

Since the publication of "Standards for Foreign Language Learning: Preparing for the 21st Century," the development of communicative competence both within and beyond the confined walls of the language classroom has become a national priority for the foreign language (FL) teaching profession. The literature on standards and proficiency suggests…

Discusses perspectives on the teaching of German grammar, with insight from the Genfer-DiGS research project. (Author/VWL)

Describes a new reading and writing intensive course developed for college level intermediate German. Discusses reasons for developing such a course, its theoretical underpinnings, course content, teaching methodology, and assessment mechanisms. (Author/VWL)

Definitions of culture of 212 first-, second-, and third-year German students are presented and discussed. Results sow that--in terms of the national standards--students overall prefer practices and perspectives over products. Students views on the teachability of culture and its appropriate place in the foreign language classroom are explored.…

Examines the debate over the text or media that best enable second-year learners of German to increase their active vocabulary. Suggests the novel "Der Richter und sein Henker" can be enriched by the film adaptation. Classroom tested activities incorporate care fully-sequenced visuals and culminate in analysis of both the book and the film. Sample…

Examines ways that word search puzzles can be created and modified for use in the foreign language classroom. Examples show how word search puzzles can focus on a wide variety of vocabulary, grammar topics, and skills. (Author/VWL)

Describes a curriculum for teaching writing with computers. The approach is process-oriented and employs low-end technology, requiring only computers equipped with word processing programs, and follows an assignment structure that can be executed by high schools or universities. (Author/VWL)

Highlights the use of novice-level books produced from or for the Internet in the beginning level German as a foreign language classroom. Such books can be used for pleasure reading, for learning content, and for the development of vocabulary. Techniques for such use are provided. (Author/VWL)

Reports findings of a questionnaire administered to high school German teachers that sought their views on the current state of cooperation and collaboration between secondary and postsecondary German programs. Also elicited ideas on how to facilitate communication and collaboration among these programs. Recommendations are provided for post…

Updates previous compilations of this survey, which are published in this journal. Contains references to 102 dissertations in German language or literature, comparative literature, and foreign or second language education with applicability to learning and teaching German. (Author/VWL)

Reports on data gathered in an AATG-sponsored national survey of U.S. high school students enrolled in upper-level German courses, investigating why students select German, continue learning German, and plan to take German in college. The results are discussed and recommendations with regard to affective motivators are made. (AS)

Examines to what extent, if at all, grammar instruction fosters or accelerates language acquisition. Presents a study investigating the acquisition of syntactic or morphological structures in 340 students learning German as a foreign language. The results are discussed. (AS)

Outlines the research leading to Total Physical Response (TRP) and later Total Physical Response Storytelling (TPRS) methods. Discusses the day-to-day use in the German classroom of TPRS by an experienced practitioner and explains the reasons for its success. Presents student evaluations of the method and the material available for its use. (AS)

Presents ZOOMANIA, the see-hear-and-do approach to foreign language teaching and learning. Suggests ways for sequencing and tailoring advanced-level characteristics to lower-level learners, details the four hierarchical phases of the approach with clear examples and suggestions, provides recommendations for expanding its use, and includes helpful…