The conventions inherent to language are explored, and demonstrations, engagement, and sensitivity are discussed as factors present in all learning situations in which a person learns to master these complex conventions. (HTH)

Literacy education in Jamaica lacks an officially accepted policy and methodology for teaching creole speakers. This has led to a low literacy level across the population. The distinctive features of Jamaican Creole are highlighted in this article in order to give theoretical and pedagogical insights to literacy teachers. (VM)

Traditionally, reading disabled children have been characterized as suffering a performance or process deficit that prevents them from acquiring the knowledge and skills underlying proficient reading and comprehension. Such explanations raise some logical problems. Process oriented theories do not adequately explain the specificity nor address the…

Surveys recent research in language acquisition, emphasizing the views of M. A. K. Halliday. (RL)

This concluding article of an issue focused on the interaction of phonology with other aspects of language and language learning discusses findings that indicate the importance of considering these aspects when devising remediation strategies for a single domain. The need for future research is emphasized. (Contains 7 references.) (CR)

Anaphora, a linguistic structure that refers to previously mentioned or implied text, has been implicated as a possible cause of reading comprehension difficulty among children. Reading research has focused on the surface structures of anaphora (pronouns and noun demonstratives, for example) and has viewed comprehension of anaphora as a language…

Linguistic and cognitive assessment of children whose home language is not English involves numerous complex issues: criteria for labeling minority children cognitively deficient, relationship between bilingualism and cognitive development, acquisition of Spanish and English by bilingual children, and design of programs for non-English speaking…

Presented is a review of linguistic research on children's acquisition of more/less, same/different, big/little, long/short, and similar relational and dimensional terms. The review illustrates that children's meanings for words differ from adult meanings. The nature and findings of several research projects are discussed and it is concluded that…

This article highlights the link between lexical and phonological acquisition by considering learning by children beyond the 50-word stage and by applying cognitive models of spoken word processing to development. The effects of lexical and phonological variables on perception, production, and learning are discussed in the context of a…

Using a comparative and historical approach, this paper examines linguistic perspectives on minority education, specifically language-based explanations for the reading problems of working class minority group students. The paper first discusses the ways in which competence and performance theories of language treat the relation between language…

Intended for teachers and others having responsibility for shaping language policy in the schools, this collection of invited, original articles is based on the belief that a teacher's task is not to "teach" children language but, rather, to create an environment that will allow language learning to occur naturally. The book is divided into four…