A study analyzed patterns in one speech act, that of refusal, in 60 native English speakers (responding in English only) and 120 native Spanish speakers (60 responding in English and 60 in Spanish). Native English speakers were college students in the United States and Spanish speakers were students in Spain. A questionnaire was used to elicit…

Discusses the teaching of derivatives of irregular Spanish verbs in order to reinforce irregular patterns and increase the students' active vocabularies. (NCR)

It is proposed that explicit explanations of grammar concepts in the first language can be useful in teaching the related structures in a second language. The example used is that of the subjunctive mood, taught first in English and then in Spanish. Specific procedures for presenting the concept in English are outlined, including a set of…

A study investigated whether markedness relationships within a target language influence the degree of difficulty in acquisition. The Intralingual Markedness Hypothesis was developed, stating that if structures in the target language differ from those in the native language, and if those structures in the target language are in a markedness…

Addresses the issue of vocabulary in the English as a Foreign Language classroom and introduces a technique for interlingual lexico-semantic comparison: the lexigram. This technique is based on restricted word-association data gathered from native speakers of English and Spanish and gives insights into vocabulary development. (Author/PJM)

This study presents direct observation of a 7-year-old, native Spanish-speaking female learning English in a mainstreamed first and second split classroom. Subject is described in the school setting, and it is shown how she worked, what she did during the mornings, how she responded to commands and directions, and how and with whom she…

A study of communication anxiety in second language learning investigated: (1) the role of four factors (sex, language learning experience, language studied, and confidence) in student apprehension about speaking in the classroom; and (2) students' stated reactions to speaking. Subjects were 101 college students in 4 intact French, Spanish, and…

Previous research on Spanish vocabulary for second language instruction has focused primarily on word frequency in a variety of print sources, and has the added disadvantages of being outdated and having too complex a format. A new, computer-based analysis of spoken Spanish from different dialect regions of the world was undertaken to provide more…

This anthology of sociolinguistic/anthropologically-oriented articles on ethnic bilingualism and bilingual education seeks to understand bilingual education outside of the methodological-pedagogical issues involved, that is, from a theory and research, rather than classroom, perspective. Bilingual education is seen as the result of societal…

A study investigated the perceptions of native English-speakers concerning the spoken grammatical and phonetic (accent) errors of non-native speakers. Speech samples were collected from three non-native speakers of English of varied linguistic backgrounds (German, Spanish, and Arabic) and one speaker of North American English. Each of the four…

This collection of articles related to language issues and literacy and bilingual and multicultural education include the following: "Three Processes in the Child's Acquisition of Syntax" (Roger Brown and Ursula Bellugi); "Pre-School Children's Knowledge of English Phonology" (Charles Read); "Stages in Language Development and Reading Exposure"…

Articles in this volume of the journal on English as a Second Language and applied linguistics include: "The 'ng' Challenge: Five Simple Rules for Pronunciation Prediction" (Carol A. Buss); "The Effect of Markedness on Epenthesis in Spanish/English Interlanguage" (Robert S. Carlisle); "Proficiency-Based Instruction:…

A comparison of the salient characteristics of Canadian and United States bilingual education programs suggests various settings where it would be desirable to introduce children to schooling in their home language. These settings include: (1) the various ethnic communities in the United States, (2) multilingual developing countries, (3) parts of…

Papers on theory, technology, and public policy in bilingualism and bilingual education are collected in this volume designed to fill the need for systematic, high quality research related to bilingual populations in the United States. Part 1, "Language and Culture," contains five papers that discuss first and second language…

The three numbers of the new journal contain these articles: "Content-Related Teaching Through Distance Learning: A Viable Alternative?" (Zoe E. Louton); "Teacher as Researcher: Motivating an Eighth Grade Spanish Class" (Emily Francomano); "Traveling to South America on the Internet" (Margaret Reardon); "U.S.…