Use of a directed creative writing exercise to assess intermediate language students' skills is discussed. The technique was developed for second-year college Spanish instruction as an alternative to conventional writing tests in which anxiety or lack of motivation may inhibit performance. Differences in the nature of language skills (listening,…

The curriculum guide for a Spanish two-way partial immersion program in the Francis Scott Key Elementary School (Arlington, Virginia) is designed as a reference for parents and teachers. It presents information, instructional objectives, and activities in the form of integrated instructional units for grades K-4. Introductory sections outline: the…

Articles in this volume of the journal on English as a Second Language and applied linguistics include: "The 'ng' Challenge: Five Simple Rules for Pronunciation Prediction" (Carol A. Buss); "The Effect of Markedness on Epenthesis in Spanish/English Interlanguage" (Robert S. Carlisle); "Proficiency-Based Instruction:…

The fundamental importance of basic mathematics to daily life is emphasized in this teacher's guide for special education teachers in Puerto Rico. While it is necessary for the teacher to determine the needs and abilities of each student and adapt the curriculum accordingly, this guide presents, in Spanish, a set of lesson plans, each with an…

The assessment portfolio is a collection of materials and forms for testing and recording student progress at F.S. Key Elementary School, Arlington, Virginia. The materials are designed for use in an elementary school two-way partial immersion program. Introductory sections discuss the use of portfolios for monitoring student performance and…

An Evergreen State College (WA) community outreach program was designed to serve the dual purposes of providing (1) needed English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) instruction to Hispanic community members, and (2) teaching experience for students in a master's program in education. An ESL laboratory was established, about 25 undergraduate and graduate…

This report provides evaluative information regarding the effectiveness of Project Aprendizaje, a New York City program that served 269 Spanish-speaking students of limited English proficiency (LEP). The project promoted parent and community involvement by sponsoring cultural events, such as a large Latin American festival. Students developed…

Instructor materials are provided for an assistant chef program intended for English as a second language (ESL) or bilingual (Spanish speaking) students. A curriculum outline includes a listing of the tasks to be mastered in the program. Other contents include key terms from the production and service area of food service in the areas of…

This curriculum guide for the Bilingual Microcomputer Business Skills Course reflects modern office practices and technology. This volume, third of three, contains five competency-based joint lessons, the focus of which is on mastering specific tasks needed to accomplish the job of the occupational cluster of clerical worker while also learning…

This Spanish-language manual was developed to train Peace Corps volunteers and other community health workers in Spanish-speaking countries in oral rehydration therapy (ORT) and the control of diarrheal diseases. Using a competency-based format, the manual contains three training modules (organized in seven sessions) that focus on interrelated…

A comparison of the salient characteristics of Canadian and United States bilingual education programs suggests various settings where it would be desirable to introduce children to schooling in their home language. These settings include: (1) the various ethnic communities in the United States, (2) multilingual developing countries, (3) parts of…

This unit was created and first taught by the author in the children's demonstration class that was part of the 1995 Teacher Educator Partnership Institute sponsored by the National K-12 Foreign Language Resource Center (NFLRC) at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. The mission of the NFLRC is to improve student learning of foreign languages in…

Interviews with two college faculty in linguistics and two in Spanish over three years probed attitudes about the nature of pedagogical content knowledge of new faculty. In each discipline, a core concept around which knowledge of teaching revolved was found: in linguistics, argumentation; in Spanish, production. It also emerged that direct…

Utilizes a computer program to search for legal terminology in Concepcion Arenal's 1861 treatise "The Woman of the Future." Arenal appropriated two different types of legal discourse in her work. Discusses the problems this presented for linguistic analyses. Includes fascinating details on Arenal and her work. (MJP)

As a profession language educators are paying more attention to teacher-driven research to help clarify and explain those phenomena occurring in our classrooms. The purpose of this paper is to explore the following question: What happens when teachers apply a teacher action research (TAR) strategy for improving their classroom practice? I will…