The status of the Italian language in Australia, particularly in the educational system at all levels, in Australian society in general, and in trade, technology, and tourism is discussed in this report. It begins with a description of the teaching of Italian in elementary, secondary, higher, adult/continuing, and teacher education. Trends are…

This paper describes the first phase of a project that applies multimedia and hypermedia technology to the study of modern languages. The approach differs from taditional ones in that language is not viewed from a conversational or grammatical perspective but through scenarios imitating the contexts of natural language use. In this phase, the…

A discussion of the role of developmental psycholinguistics in second language instruction begins by examining the nature of communicative intentions, their classification, and their role in the language classroom, drawing parallels between first language acquisition and second language learning. Stages in the progression from single words to…

In 1981-82, the bilingual program of New York City's Auxilliary Services for High Schools served 1335 out-of-school youth (mostly between the ages of 16-22) from Spanish, Chinese, Greek, Italian, and Haitian backgrounds. The program provided educational and support services to a variety of students including actual or potential dropouts, older…

Data from a national survey of colleges and universities with foreign language programs revealed an increase of 4.5% in total foreign language registrations between 1980 and 1983, the first general increase noted since 1968. Registrations increased by over 10% in Chinese, Italian, Japanese, and Russian. French, Spanish, German, and the aggregate…

In 1982-83, this program provided instruction in English as a Second Language and bilingual instruction in four content areas to 1,690 Spanish, Chinese, Haitian, Greek, and Italian students of limited English proficiency (LEP) at eight daytime and eight evening learning centers located at 15 different sites throughout New York City. Created in…

A survey of the status of language usage in Somalia begins with an overview of the usage patterns of Somali, the official language, and three languages previously used officially: English, Italian, and Arabic. The cultural context that for many years has supported the usage of a single native language for communication and administration is also…

Essays that consider the way that women are portrayed in foreign language textbooks are presented. The selected essays were submitted to a competition sponsored by the Federation Internationale des Professeurs de Langues Vivantes, which requested that language teachers assess such concerns as: (1) whether women were described in a stereotyped way;…

The report explains how the federal Ethnic Heritage Studies Program was created, gives an overview of the 1974 program, and makes recommendations for future development of the program. Summaries of the 1974 projects, bibliographies of replicable materials produced by the projects, and ethnic and regional indexes are included. The overview…

This report summarizes a study published in 1967 by Harvard University which assessed foreign language proficiency of U.S. college seniors majoring in French, Spanish, Italian, German, and Russian. The measures used were the following: the MLA Foreign Language Proficiency Tests (Form A): Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing; the Modern…

Advocates national policy of multiculturalism and multilingualism, acquired through cohesive use of a common language (English) spoken by all Australians, yet retaining and incorporating the more than 20 major languages presently in use. Suggests provisions for efficient teaching of English and encouragement of all other community languages,…

This paper examines efforts to save rapidly declining indigenous languages around the world. The entire process of language preservation and revitalization is a massive undertaking that requires immense long-term planning and support. These problems extend well beyond the linguistic concerns of the language itself. Language policy is inherently…

Examines growing acceptance of the concept of adolescence among Italian immigrants in New Haven, Connecticut before and after World War I. Notes changes in young people's ideas about their obligations to parents as high schools become popular institutional space for adolescence, and modifications of parents' views of education. (DLH)

The series of articles in this volume were selected from among those presented at the 8th Annual International Conference on Pragmatics and Language Learning in April 1994. Articles include: "The Right Tool for the Job: Techniques for Analysis of Natural Language Use" (Georgia M. Green); "Sinclair & Coulthard Revisited: Global-…

Based on an Australian study creating sociolinguistic profiles of nine languages other than English (LOTE) commonly used in Australia, the report examines implications for public language policy and planning. The languages are: Arabic; Chinese; French; German; Modern Greek; Indonesian/Malay; Italian; Japanese; and Spanish. The report begins by…