This dissertation examines the principles of two current theories of first language acquisition and from them synthesizes a second language methodology. As a background to the problem of second language methodology, it is stated that the basing of second language methodologies on first language learning is currently being questioned and that the…

This thesis presents the results of a field study of code-switching in K-3 level classrooms of an experimental Spanish-English bilingual education project in Los Angeles. The goal of the project, based on a pluralistic model of bilingual education, was the maintenance of Spanish by means of continued language-development in both the students'…

This work proposes to show that second language acquisition can take place when adults surround themselves with a target language and have ample opportunity to participate in its use. The hypothesis tested is that methods and strategies utilized in the acquisition of a second language for adults should be essentially the same as those manifested…

In this dissertation the author has surveyed reports of experimental studies comparing discovery-oriented instruction with expository instruction. The studies analyzed focused on retention or transfer and were concerned with five subject matter areas: mathematics, science, language, geography, and vocational education. The author reports that no…

This essay deals with the use of cartoons and comic strips to teach English as a second language. It illustrates, through past professional literature written on the subject and through specific lessons, the various instructional uses to which cartoons and comic strips lend themselves. Cartoons and comic strips can be applied to the following…

This study examines the changing role of the paraprofessional as viewed from the vantage point of the English as a Second Language (ESL) Bilingual classroom. The difficulty in encountering material on the role of the paraprofessional has led to some confusion in the minds of teachers as to how these assistants in the classroom are to be utilized.…

This paper presents arguments for the consistent use of modern audiovisual aids in English classes, not as a complementary device, but as a fundamental aid. The intention of the thesis is to: (1) show that the overhead projector can be used to help students develop the four language skills; and (2) encourage English teachers, particularly in…

Twenty-five Spanish-speaking English as a Second Language (ESL) students in a California high school were the subjects of a study to determine the effectiveness of an audiovisual as opposed to an audiolingual method. After pretesting, to ensure that the subjects had approximately the same proficiency level, the students were divided into a control…

Teachers of English as a second language need classroom communication activities to help students develop communicative competence. A procedure which uses a group-learning approach and which ensures real communication is the "Strip Story," an adaptation of scrambled story exercises in which each student is given one sentence of a story…

The purpose of this study was to develop and test the effectiveness of a program in which activity-based science was used as a conceptual basis for language instruction. A series of four instructional units were adapted for bilingual use. Students' written and oral observations were used in experience charts and other language development…

This thesis clarifies the role of the applied linguist in the language and language teaching sciences with particular application to advanced language learning that takes place after five years of study. Students' deficiencies identified at matriculation together with the psychological and practical needs of the students and their society identify…

The questions investigated in this study concern the adequacy of the current comprehensive English as a Second Language (ESL) programs, the need for a separate but complementary reading program, the relative merits of a classroom-based or an independent reading laboratory method, and the relationship between native language reading proficiency and…