Listening comprehension of foreign languages is receiving increasing emphasis in language instruction. It is important therefore to consider some divergences between spoken and written language, together with their implications for language learning and teaching. This article analyzes some such differences in French. (CHK)

To study the adequacy of the brief oral examination format as a basis for assessing oral skills, the study compared samples of 15-minute oral exams with 3-hour written exam results by the same students. The resultant average size of oral samples was about 77% of that of written samples, with good comparability, leading to useful conclusions about…

Discussion of Gal'perin's theory of step-by-step formation of mental actions includes descriptions of experimental applications of this activity approach to teaching foreign languages. Constructing and understanding sentences are discussed, and activities for the construction of a sentence and the orientation base of action (OBA) for German,…

Understanding spontaneous speech is a very difficult task for many foreign students. They must be taught to use all the ethnographic cues available to enable them to predict the likely content of a text. They must predict not only the factual content of spoken language but also the interactional structuring. (Author/CFM)