The first institution-to-institution undergraduate academic exchange between a Soviet institution--Moscow's State Pedagogical Institute of Foreign Languages-M. Thorez--and an American university is reported. The four-month exchange program began in 1974 and has expanded each year since. (LBH)

Frequently, universities prepare philologists of Russian for future careers as researchers, when most of them will become teachers of Russian as a foreign language. This article suggests a course of studies more suitable for future teachers. (Text is in Italian.) (CFM)

Examines the implications of the ACTFL Provisional Proficiency Guidelines for the writing curriculum. Argues that the functions identified in the guidelines should be practices in writing as well as in speech. Discusses error correction techniques and presents examples of writing assignments in Russian that elicit advanced-level functions. (SED)

Reports on the results of two surveys of college-level instruction in Russian, conducted in 1980 and 1983, designed to measure to what degree phonetics is included as an integral part of the program. The majority of the schools in both surveys indicated a casual attitude towards teaching pronunciation and an overall downward trend in the role of…

Examines the general challenge of proficiency-oriented methodology as applied specifically to beginning Russian-as-a-Second-Language teaching. (Author/OD)

Discusses the "Russian Dynamic Hand," a working prototype for introducing the Russian writing and sound system that has been available to students at Louisiana State University since September 1988. The project's evolution is discussed from an initial graphics-centered IBM prototype to a Macintosh version enhanced by an audio component.…

Discusses an article written by three Soviet teachers who analyze studies conducted in the area of foreign language teaching, particularly the teaching of Russian. Their focus is on the methodological principles of an approach that integrates the teaching of the four skills (listening, speaking, reading, writing). (CFM)

Describes a multimedia-based Russian language course developed at Colgate University (NY) and a multimedia authoring system that makes the creation of such courses technically feasible for language instructors. The use of movies, foreign language instruction, principles of design, development frameworks, and future plans are discussed. (Author/LRW)

Focused on whether differential item functioning (DIF) is related to item type in translated test items and the causes of DIF using data from an Israeli college entrance test in Hebrew and a Russian translation. Results from 24,304 college applicants indicate that 34% of items functioned differently across items. (SLD)

A student questionnaire at Augsburg University revealed that students overwhelmingly favored continuing to study foreign languages begun in school, but also beginning Italian, Spanish or Russian. Speaking and auditory understanding were rated higher than reading and writing. Over two-thirds favored English as a common European language. (Text is…

A survey is reported which examines the overall, current status of graduate programs in Russian in the United States, with emphasis on fluency, practical training, and hiring. Responses were obtained from 85 percent of all departments in the United States that have graduate programs in Russian. (RM)

The Center for Slavic and East European Studies at Ohio State University conducts outreach programs with area high school Russian departments. Workshops and programs deal with teaching materials, methods and techniques, public relations, goals, and articulation with colleges and universities. (CHK)

This article discusses the need for considering student attitudes towards a foreign language and the country whose language they are studying, and their motivation for learning. Students at the University of Belgrade studying French, Russian, English and German are discussed. Available from: Liviana Editrice, Via Altinate 31, 35100 Padova, Italy.…

Discusses an experimental project with a prelim group of students of Russian undertaken in order to incorporate various skills into the teaching environment. These skills include keyboard competence, time management, group interaction, and personal presentation. The project was a success; all participants improved in their Russian. (five…

Reports on a reading-discussion program of the Vermont Reading Project. Describes the origins, development, and operation of the program. Includes titles of literature works used in the project. (CFR)