The Whole Language Approach provides a learning environment in which the student participates in meaningful language experiences. Through the process of constructing language for communication purposes, the student develops the ability to listen, speak, read, and write in a natural manner. In the FLES program, where there is limited exposure to the foreign language, the adaptation of whole language strategies can be an effective tool for instruction. This article will discuss the development and implementation of an instructional unit that applies selected whole language strategies to teach reading and writing in the beginning stages of literacy in French. The unit details how an authentic folktale can be used as the focus of instruction for integrating topics from the elementary curriculum to form a well‐designed L2 curriculum that meets the needs of the FLES program.
This article discusses the components of a FLES methods course in a state where K‐12 certification in second languages is now mandated. Special emphasis is placed on Integrated or Content‐based Instruction, second language acquisition, and a unique practicum incorporated into the methods course which enables the participants to demonstrate such techniques as Total Physical Response, storytelling, and dramatization. Finally, the course evaluation procedure is presented as a means of assuring that teachers' needs are being met as their second language programs expand to upper levels.
Fulfilling the national technology expectations for educators has become an important issue for many U.S. teacher‐training institutions. This article presents the foreign language education program at Wake Forest University as an example of how a content‐focused curriculum can be enhanced by a supportive technology program. An emphasis on content, research, and practice supported by integrated, state‐of‐the‐art technology prepares graduates of the foreign language education program to lead twenty‐first century classrooms.
The role of grammar in the communicative classroom has yet to be determined. This article examines several recent views on grammar, then revisits some of the perpetual problem areas in teaching grammar such as the deductive‐inductive debate, the use of L1 or L2 for grammatical presentations, and the explicit‐implicit controueny Examples of contextualized exercises, a guided inductive lesson using the target language, and the use of “many instances of the same structure” to suggest ways of introducing grammar into the communicative classroom. Since much of the current research favors more explicit teaching of grammar and since textbooks remain grammatically oriented, it seems clear that grammar and communication must join together in order to produce more pmficient language users. The use of the target language for grammar explanations by the teacher and in the textbook may facilitate real communication in the classroom.
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