The social, economic, and educational upheaval that has been occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic, the concurrent and stressful conversation about race and racism in the United States, and domestic political turmoil has turned the world on its head. In these so-called "unprecedented times," traditional higher education appears to be on…

The bibliography consists of three parts: (1) an introduction, with a rationale for teaching Hispanic culture in Spanish language courses; (2) a description of one model for organization and implementation of cultural materials; and (3) the bibliography itself. Suggestions are also made on how to use film material in a conscious sequence, and how…

After a brief discussion of discovery writing, several types of writing activities are suggested that can enhance learning and critical thinking. They include free writes, journals, electronic dialogue, collaborative writing assignments, and class newsletters. (LB)

Discusses the task of finding appropriate materials for the beginning levels of language instruction, and presents a cogent rationale for employing a combination of authentic materials and on-campus production that, together, closely follow and reinforce the course syllabus. (Author/OD)

Departments of Spanish can play a significant role in the multicultural movement by teaching a course on United States Hispanic Cultures. An introductory course is described, including its organization, approaches, materials, and class activities. (Contains 15 references.) (Author/LB)

Videotaping student skits is described as a means for accommodating communicative tasks into curricular and time restrictions of college and university second-language classrooms. Suggestions for preparing and performing the tasks are provided. (four references) (LB)

A modified Natural Approach was applied to the instruction of a beginning business Spanish course in which students are assumed to have had at least one year of Spanish instruction. In the Natural Approach, three stages of language acquisition are hypothesized: comprehension (pre-production), early speech (one- and two-word responses), and speech…

Examined the differential role of comprehension and production practice in second language learning. Discusses the results of a study of 82 first-year students of Spanish as a second language that indicated that relative effectiveness of production versus comprehension practice depended on the morphosyntactic complexity of the structure in…

Students in two university classes (n=12, n=22) of Spanish as a second language were surveyed concerning the effectiveness of the communicative approach to second language learning, particularly in relation to class size. Written reports were elicited on this topic, and written reactions to nine in-class communicative activities were also…

Examination of the cultural content in grammar exercises in recent college-level Spanish textbooks suggests a trend toward integration of cultural content with grammar, in accordance with recent research on form-based practice within a communicative context. Teachers can supplement their texts' offerings by creating form-focused activities with…

Suggests classroom activities for improving listening comprehension skills in beginning and intermediate students. A passage of connected discourse from a native speaker of Spanish is provided as a model for realistic monologue. Sample test items and suggestions for suitable testing techniques are also given. (LMO)

256 undergraduate students of Spanish responded to questionnaire concerning their: (1) experiences with Spanish and other languages in and out of the classroom; (2) comfort level in various aspects of using Spanish; and (3) motivation for taking Spanish courses. A significant relationship was drawn between student's outside experience and his or…

Comparison of the listening comprehension of second language learners completing three different prelistening activities after one and two exposures to a passage shows that scores for subjects completing the question preview activity were higher than for subjects completing the filler activity and that additional exposure improves comprehension.…

Examines whether and to what extent differences exist between learners of French, German, and Spanish with respect to range of motivational or motivation-related factors and whether the factor time has any significant effect in this. Concentrates on general or institution-wide language programs in universities. (Author/VWL)

A course in Commercial Spanish at West Chester University in Pennsylvania is described that incorporates computer networking and a writing emphasis. Students use word processing and electronic mail to facilitate writing assignments, with the E-Mail function managed through the university's computing center. The 20 students in the class included…