Priorities for Intermediate‐Level Language Instruction

Harlow, Linda L.; Muyskens, Judith A.

doi:10.1111/j.1540-4781.1994.tb02025.x

Cited by 54 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Harlow and Muyskens (1994) surveyed more than 1,300 university-level Spanish and French language students about various goals and preferences in their FL classroom. Students rated speaking, listening, and self-confidence in use of the language as their top three goals in their FL study.…”

Section: Studies On Attitudes Toward Fl Instructionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Student Perceptions of Foreign Language Study: A Qualitative Analysis of Foreign Language Autobiographies

Tse

2000

The Modern Language Journal

111

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Students' perceptions of their foreign language (FL) learning classroom experiences have important pedagogical and programmatic implications and have been theorized as having an effect on linguistic outcomes. This study uses a unique form of data collection, the FL autobiography, to explore the perceptions of a group of adult FL learners (N ϭ 51) toward a broad range of issues related to classroom atmosphere and instruction. Qualitative analysis of student writings revealed 3 categories of data: classroom interactions, perceived level of success, and attributions of success and failure. In general, students believed that their instruction focused too little on oral communication, they reported low estimations of their level of proficiency, and they tended to attribute their failures to their own lack of effort in the FL classroom. Possible implications for instruction and placement of FL students are discussed.TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO, WALKER (1973) conducted a large survey study to discover students' perceptions of their foreign language (FL) 1 study. The comments of over 600 students at one university revealed serious concerns over how FL classes were conducted. Since that time, FL education has undergone significant changes in pedagogy, at least in theoretical orientation and published recommendations for teachers.

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Section: Studies On Attitudes Toward Fl Instructionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Student Perceptions of Foreign Language Study: A Qualitative Analysis of Foreign Language Autobiographies

Tse

2000

The Modern Language Journal

111

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Previous studies that have looked at this type of foreign language learner have yielded some insight over the years as to how to a p proach these students in terms of a basic instructional design. Harlow and Muyskens (1994) found that intermediatelevel students of French and Spanish at twelve different universities felt that success in the skills of speaking and listening comprehension represented the most important outcome to them in the language classroom. This would tend to indicate that a communicative approach to language study be favored.…”

Section: Review Of Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

The Student View on Effective Practices in the College Elementary and Intermediate Foreign Language Classroom

Conrad

1999

Foreign Language Annals

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The majority of foreign language learners on our college campuses today are those that are engaged in such study in order to fulfill an institutional requirement, a common example being successful completion of the fourth‐semester course. Once the requirement has been met, formal foreign language study tends to cease. What does this particular type of foreign language student think of the foreign language‐learning experience? From their point of view, what activities or strategies are seen as being effective for their teaming? This article brings to light their opinions on some learning issues, notably those of expressivity and accuracy of target‐language production. The picture that emerges from the data suggests a blend of two leading considerations: using a structural approach involving corrective feedback and grammar, as well as a communicative approach where language is used for real communication purposes.

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“…Helgesen (1987) describes HB students' can-do abilities considering that "false beginners understand the meaning of a great deal of language and are able to engage in controlled, form-based (accuracy) activities, but their skills are very limited when they get into meaning-focused (fluency) situations" (p. 24). In the particular case of Spanish, this description mostly includes secondlanguage learners (Collentine, 2007;Frantzen & Magnan, 2005;Gascoigne Lally, 2001;Harlow & Muyskens, 1994). These students have taken two or three years of Spanish at high school and are therefore familiar with basic content of the language.…”

Section: High Beginners In the College Spanish Classroommentioning

confidence: 99%

Moving forward: Revisiting the Spanish for High Beginners course

Belpoliti

2015

E-JournALL

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This paper presents a case study on the redesign of a Spanish for High Beginners (SHB) course at a large metropolitan university in Texas, USA. The first section presents a discussion on the diverse nature of students who can benefit from an intensive first-year Spanish course and the challenges that these learners’ mixed abilities pose for instruction. The second section describes the redesign process of the SHB course, including placement procedures, the Spanish Language Program sequence, and changes in the syllabus to integrate communicative and transcultural competences by implementing a combination of focused instruction, collaborative learning and task-based approaches. The last section introduces a short presentation of four activities implemented in the redesigned course, which provide paths for future development of advanced beginners’ integrative tasks. The final section focuses on the results of an exit survey measuring students’ perceptions of the course. The successful implementation of changes and its outcomes demonstrate that this course could be a relevant solution for Spanish programs at tertiary institutions with diverse populations, helping to solve challenges of placement, articulation, and time-to-graduation effectiveness.

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Priorities for Intermediate‐Level Language Instruction

Cited by 54 publications

References 31 publications

Student Perceptions of Foreign Language Study: A Qualitative Analysis of Foreign Language Autobiographies

Student Perceptions of Foreign Language Study: A Qualitative Analysis of Foreign Language Autobiographies

The Student View on Effective Practices in the College Elementary and Intermediate Foreign Language Classroom

Moving forward: Revisiting the Spanish for High Beginners course

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