Examination of case studies of four learning-disabled college students experiencing severe problems learning a foreign language suggested that all subjects had deficiencies in listening comprehension and concomitant difficulties with the audiolingual teaching method. Other characteristics of these students which may have caused learning…

Three Tzotzil-speaking Mexican sisters were interviewed about their attitudes toward their Indian schooling. They enjoyed school and felt it was important to attend school to learn Spanish, though they had not acquired few linguistic skills. (BW)

Reviews the relationship between pedagogy and interaction by analyzing extracts from second-language (L2) classrooms using a conversation analysis methodology. Points out that the relationship between the two is necessarily reflexive and concludes that it would be preferable for pedagogical recommendations to harmonize with the interactional…

Examines the reading and writing strategies of one student over a three-year period and traces the process she went through to acquire college-level academic literacy in English, her second language. Suggests that the student's educational background shaped her approach to United States academic discourse practices. (TB)

Presents a case study of the business Japanese program for intermediate and advanced students at the University of Utah. Notes that when offering courses in Japanese, colleges are challenged on how to cope with diversification for the purpose of study, specifically in business Japanese courses. Concludes that it is imperative that American…

Presents the results of an investigation into the value of using drama in a Brazilian university classroom. Drawing on research on the advantages of using drama in language learning, the importance of reflection for promoting meaningful learning, and the effectiveness of portfolios as a tool to promote reflection, presents a case study of the use…

A study revealed two problems that influence Australian students' attitudes toward the learning of Indonesian. Internal problems related to use of teaching facilities. External problems included (1) lack of knowledge about Indonesia in Queensland, (2) lack of awareness of importance of learning Indonesian, (3) marginal position of Indonesian in…

Studies the case of a religious group of German immigrants, whose German-American descendants attended German-language parochial schools but received secular instruction in English. Although the situation resulted in English-dominant children rather than the intended German-dominant bilinguals, recent sociolinguistic, psycholinguistic, and…

Reports a case study which reveals that children use the knowledge they hold about what writing is for, how writing is created, and the conventions of writing in their first language to help them write successfully in the second language. (MM)

Styles of thinking and learning are relevant for understanding and testing foreign-language aptitude. This article emphasizes one particular theory of styles, the theory of self-government, and discusses the nature of styles, gives some history of the concept of styles, describes styles in theory, describes measures of styles, and discusses the…

Key definitions, assumptions, and research concerning learning styles related to culture are presented with six case study examples of cross-cultural conflicts in tertiary education settings. The optimal management of teacher-student style disparities in the multicultural classroom is discussed. (38 references) (Author/LB)

A young man with hydrocephalic brain injury was found to be an able linguist and received normal scores on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test in French, German, and Spanish. His performance intelligence was tested separately and found low. His linguistic talents are discussed as an intelligence quotient-independent linguistic talent. (Author/PB)

Describes the author's experiences and eventual success of teaching Spanish as a Second Language in Puerto Rico. Notes one student's success in eradicating his self-imposed barriers to learning a second language. Discusses three key principles for building a safe learning climate for students. (SR)

Examines the role of output, especially of speaking, in a foreign-language-learning environment. While speaking English, Japanese high school students' performances were videotaped, and they were asked to reflect on their cognitive processes. Students' think-aloud protocols were then classified according to their cognitive processes. (Author/VWL)

This case study is an exploratory investigation of the learning opportunities provided by a Web-based Master of Science program in TESOL. Begins with a description of the course and its components and aims to evaluate the potential of the Web for delivering graduate level programs. Also compares this delivery with both classroom-based and…