The Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) field continues to experience increased valuing of experiential practitioner knowledge. A welcome result of this evolution has been the broadening of research perspectives. The 16 practitioner narratives in "Insights on Teaching Speaking in TESOL" are written by…

Describes oral tests for different teaching levels that can be used by regular classroom teachers with normal size classes. At the beginning levels, oral assessment is done through role playing or "talk cards," and at the advanced levels, an oral interview is the major part of a mixed skill task. (EKN)

Methods to contextualize tests in the four skill areas of listening, reading, writing, and speech are described. The roles of grammatical and lexical cues, recording semantic details, cloze adaptation, comprehensive questions, logical continuation items, global classification, and sociolinguistic factors are examined in relation to test formats.…

This document is intended to assist curriculum developers in the review and revision of ESL curricula to ensure alignment to the overarching goal of teaching English language learners to use English to achieve academically in all content areas. This document is organized around the goals and standards of the New Jersey language arts literacy…

The purpose of this document is to spell out clear objectives in reading, writing, listening, and speaking for all students in Boston, Massachusetts, elementary and middle schools. The objectives include all of the Massachusetts Basic Skills; these are directly linked to competency tests and teacher observation at each level to measure students'…

The assessment packet presented is a draft of a test designed for use with beginning level students of a second/foreign language in the Columbus (Ohio) public schools. It focuses on speaking skills and attempts to test only what students can be expected to say, realistically. The packet consists of: nine mini-tests for use at regular intervals…

Speaking a second language is probably the most difficult skill to test in that it involves a combination of skills that may have no correlation with each other, and which do not lend themselves to objective testing. In addition, what can be understood is a function of the listener's background and ability as well as those of the speaker. Another…

The construction, administration, and scoring of the Teachers Oral Proficiency Interview for South Africa (TOPISA) are described, and issues in its use are discussed. The test was developed to help standardize English proficiency levels of teachers in the post-apartheid, multicultural society. The rationale for a standardized test in this context…

Class activities for developing Spanish proficiency in third- and fourth-year high school students and first- and second-year college students are presented. Activities include a discussion of teaching for proficiency, drawing on recent research, and notes on the design and intent of the activities. Sample exercises for listening comprehension…

A study investigated how non-native speakers of English used linguistic and non-linguistic skills to manage interaction in an interview-style verbal test of English proficiency. Subjects were eight international teaching assistants, four native speakers of Spanish and four native speakers of Chinese, who took a standardized oral interview…

A guide to setting objectives for foreign language instruction provides a model for specifying comprehensive objectives and a discussion of their nature and educational implications. It follows up on the suggestions made in the "Threshold Level" series begun in 1975 with more complex specifications. Chapters define aims and objectives, examine the…

In response both to interests within the foreign language teaching profession and to a new Texas law mandating oral proficiency standards for foreign language teachers, Tarrant County Junior College developed a number of curriculum changes in French, German, Spanish, and English for Speakers of Other Languages. The primary first-year emphasis and…

This guide to Spanish language proficiency standards is intended to aid the University of Minnesota's staff in developing curricula and tests for the university's language courses, and to help foreign language teachers outside the university understand the university's language programs. The standards are geared toward the language skills expected…

This guide to French language proficiency standards is intended to aid the University of Minnesota's staff in developing curricula and tests for the university's language courses, and to help foreign language teachers outside the university understand the university's language programs. The standards are geared toward the language skills expected…

This guide to German language proficiency standards is intended to aid the University of Minnesota's staff in developing curricula and tests for the university's language courses, and to help foreign language teachers outside the university understand the university's language programs. The standards are geared toward the language skills expected…