I define the "literacy autobiography" as a reflective, first-person account of one's development as a writing being. In this article I share a classroom practice that invited language learners to consider and compose their literacy autobiographies (LA). The context was a university credit English as a second language (ESL) classroom. The purposes…

It is proposed that language acquisition improves if beginning students are allowed to experience three stages of acquisition: comprehension (preproduction), early speech production, and speech emergence. Each stage requires a different kind of activity building on the previous stage's development. (MSE)

Specific student attitude problems in compulsory language courses are described and solutions to them are presented, including first-day pep talks, teacher approval and positive attitudes, use of interesting topics, props, provision for student creativity, skillful use of questioning, and use of novelty. (MSE)

Meaningful, comprehensible instructional materials that take into consideration the student's proficiency level are recommended for teaching communicative skills. Formulae developed for teaching various language functions (forms of socializing, showing emotion, judging, and getting information) and functional language rhetorical strategies are…

Combines studies in cognitive psychology and language acquisition with observations of pedagogical materials and student performance to analyze foreign-language teaching from the perspective of what students and teachers need to understand about language learning and language before meaningful debate over methodology can be undertaken. (Author/MES)

Proposes theory that the learning processes of first- and second-language learners are fundamentally the same, differing only in kinds of information used by both kinds of learners and the degree of automatization attained. Suggests designing second-language learning processes to simulate those occurring in natural settings. (Author/BK)

Challenges basic assumptions underlying the claim that reading is the major source of vocabulary acquisition in a second language, including the noticing assumption, the guessing ability assumption, the guessing-retention link assumption, and the cumulative gain assumption. Reports on three experiments in which vocabulary gains from reading were…

Discusses a learning module on Acadian history used in a French immersion setting that focuses on a theatrical arts approach. (Author/VWL)

Discusses two Internet activities called Postcards and Talking Heads that can be used by second and foreign language teachers in the classroom. Theoretical justification for using Internet technology is provided, and learning outcomes of Internet activities are discussed. (Author/VWL)

Discusses literature circles (LC), and describes a variety of LC techniques for helping teachers coordinate classrooms to include linguistically and culturally diverse students. Provides a description of differentiated instruction and Flippo's (1998) best reading instruction practices, relates typical LC methods, and focuses on how LC can be…

Proposes that classroom studies in the Teaching English as a Second or Other Language (TESOL) field tend to subscribe to either of the following two normative orders: Progressive liberalism or cultural relativism, without reflexively recognizing and meta-analyzing these normative frameworks and their social, historical, and political situatedness.…

The structural and practical sources of inefficiency in the second language learning and teaching environment are analyzed, and sources of efficiency are proposed. It is concluded that interaction or communication is a primary condition for efficiency, especially if efficiency is an objective. (MSE)

An interview with Wilga Rivers focuses on advances in language teaching over the last 50 years, changing student needs and teaching methods, the differential success of teaching methods, program design, student immersion, teacher training, and technological advancement in relation to language teaching. (MSE)

Concerns and trends in immersion instruction are identified and recommendations for the future are presented. Issues include language teacher education and qualifications; administrator role; accountability; junior, kindergarten, and special education; methods for encouraging nativelike language; and the definition of immersion. (Author/MSE)

Examines how educational, cognitive, and developmental psychology can contribute to the renewal of second-language (L2) teaching and learning. The premises of these fields indicate that teachers of foreign languages cannot rely solely on rote learning of the rules of the language, but must engage their students in active discourse. (37 references)…