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Abstract

Four-year colleges and universities were surveyed to determine their foreign language policies and procedures. Survey questions dealt with precollege and within-college foreign language requirements, foreign language petitioning processes, foreign language waiver/ course substitutions, teaching methods, and instructional alternatives. Results showed that 60% of the respondents require a foreign language in at least one program area; 18% require foreign language study in all program areas. At 74% there is either a formal policy (25.4%) or informal policy (48.4%) for waiver/substitution of the requirement; 95% either require or recommend the identification of a handicap before permitting students to waive or substitute an alternative course for the language requirement. Tutoring is the major option for helping students at 74%; 25% provide an individualized learning pace; and a few (8%) provide special classes. These and other findings are discussed in terms of their implications for students with specific learning disabilities and special educators who work with these students.

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Foreign Language Policies and Procedures for Students with Specific Learning Disabilities

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