TEACHER, STUDENT, AND CURRICULUM ARE ALL SUBJECT TO EXAMINATION IN THIS REPORT TO DETERMINE EACH ONE'S ROLE IN CREATING THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE UNDERACHIEVER, DEFINED AS A STUDENT WHOSE LANGUAGE GRADES DIFFER MARKEDLY FROM HIS OVERALL GRADE-POINT AVERAGE. THE IDEAL SETTING FOR THE INVESTIGATION WAS KING CITY, PSEUDONYM FOR THE ACTUAL CITY, WHERE SUBJECTS FOR EACH EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM WERE SELECTED FROM 12 SCHOOLS, 7 JUNIOR HIGH AND 5 HIGH, CONTAINING TWO-THIRDS OF THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE CLASSES IN KING CITY. THE STUDENT'S VIEWPOINT, OFTEN OVERLOOKED, IS OFFERED IN CHAPTER TWO WITH THE FREQUENTLY STATED PROBLEMS OF ADAPTING TO TEACHER DIFFERENCES FROM YEAR TO YEAR, ADJUSTING TO THE GRADING POLICY OF EACH TEACHER, AND WANTING THE MOTIVATION THAT CAN BE DERIVED FROM THE PLEASURE OF SPEAKING THE TARGET LANGUAGE. MOTIVATION, AUDITORY ABILITY, PERSONALITY, AND OTHER INDIVIDUAL ATTITUDES ARE DISCUSSED IN CHAPTER THREE AS FURTHER FACTORS RESULTING IN UNDERACHIEVEMENT. THE CONCLUDING CHAPTER IDENTIFIES STUDENT AUDITORY ABILITY (BEING EAR-MINDED AS OPPOSED TO EYE-MINDED) AND PROGRAM ARTICULATION AS TWO PRINCIPAL CAUSES OF UNDERACHIEVEMENT. SUGGESTIONS ARE MADE FOR DEVELOPING TECHNIQUES SUITABLE FOR STUDENTS OF VARIOUS LEVELS OF ABILITY, INCLUDING THOSE OF LOW AUDITORY ABILITY. APPENDIXES INCLUDE VARIOUS TESTS ON APTITUDE, MOTIVATION, ATTITUDE, AND PERSONALITY, TABLES OF DATA BASED ON THESE TESTS, AND CLINICAL INTERVIEWS. (SS)