This report describes the first year of a two-year experimental, transitional kindergarten program for children whose mother tongue is Italian. Begun in Toronto, Canada as the result of pressure from both the ethnic community and from educators, the program is designed to run for the two years of kindergarten (junior and senior). The bilingual…

Analyzes changes that have occurred in language and culture teaching in Spain, Italy, and France in each country's specific context and discusses the scientific and pedagogical implications of each country's early bilingual education developments. (Author/CB)

Describes a specialized authoring system known as a template, which usually targets only one subject and one format at a time. A template called DICTATE, which allows teachers to use the dictation format to practice auditory discrimination, aural comprehension, and orthography is discussed in detail. (SED)

Examines the behavior of university students of Italian in Australia as they study the meanings of new Italian words. Repetition of the new words and their meanings was the primary learning strategy employed. Results indicate a need to distinguish between the use of context for "generation" of a new word and the use of context for…

Describes the origin and reason for a survey conducted by questionnaire of pedagogical software use in Italian as a foreign language; analyzes each of the aspects surveyed; and ends with an overview of the current situation, including suggestions for the future. Describes projects respondents have developed or are developing. Findings reveal that…

Recent activation of a 1940 Italian law allowing equal amounts of elementary school subject area instruction in French and Italian in the Valle D'Aosta (Italy) are described. The plan uses paired bilingual teachers who alternate both languages and grades during the school day. Extension of the program to higher grades is discussed. (six…

Research that informed an intergovernmental colloquium on the teaching of Italian in the United Kingdom in 1992 is described. Concern about long-term provision is discussed in light of current reform outcomes, and recommendations are offered for improving foreign language policies. (17 references) (Author/LB)

Discusses the migration of Italians who left Italy to search for work and migrated in multiple directions around the world forming a global network of social connections to their homeland. Explains that Italian men migrated much more often than women to work in construction, mining, industry, and on plantations or do other forms of agriculture.…

When the faculty members for study abroad programs invite student affairs professionals to accompany them abroad, they combine skills and talents to ensure that students' holistic needs are met. The authors were partnered in an Italian Studies summer program in 2001 and 2002,in which the student affairs professional was available to help the…

This paper describes a language-for-specific-purposes test development project designed to assess both general language proficiency and classroom communicative competence for the purpose of accrediting teachers of Italian as a second/foreign language. A rationale for test design is presented that draws in a review of the second language…

The CAPISCO Bilingual Program at New Utrecht High School in New York is designed to offer bilingual instructional and supportive services to predominantly 9th and 10th grade Italian students. The target population consists of approximately 150 Italian language dominant students receiving intensive instruction in English as a second language…

This report focuses on the ninth year in which the Centre for Language and Communication Studies (CLCS) at the University of Dublin Trinity College offered foreign language modules to students who were not studying a foreign language as part of their degree program. The modules are designed to develop students' communication skills for purposes of…

Discusses what constitutes adequate language proficiency on the part of the language teacher for the classroom and the problems associated with defining and measuring the language skills of language teachers. Considers these issues in the context of an Italian language proficiency project undertaken at the University of Melbourne, Australia. (39…

Illustrates how to use ethnographic techniques to acquire a better understanding of classroom dynamics. The article focuses on the characterization of "success" in an Italian class through analysis of interaction patterns and purposes of the participants. Findings reveal the need for a continuity of teacher and students' goals, methods, and forms…

Argues that teaching about Italian dialects ought to form an integral part of the Italian curriculum and offers ideas on what could be included in such a course. Points out that the study of these dialects can teach students about the history and synchronic structures of standard Italian as well as the role of Italian sociolinguistics as it…