Discusses reading as a culturally conditioned and situationally sensitive activity. (FL)

Contends that the organization of comments made by one discourse participant on the contributions of another reveals a hierarchy of relevance and informativity. Illustrates this with discourse samples subjected to a particular method of analysis. (FL)

This article reviews the cultural and linguistic background of Asian Indians in the United States. It highlights some of the phonological, grammatical, semantic, and vocabulary usage peculiarities of the variety of English called Indian English spoken by immigrants from the Indian subcontinent. (Author/DB)

Incorporating an understanding of different varieties of English (particularly Cajun English) and the appropriateness of their use into the language arts curriculum can help speakers of dialects understand the origins of their language and the significance it plays in their lives. Educators who work with students who use Cajun English need to be…

The first part of this essay argues specifically that legal speech acts are not statements but question/answer constructions. The focus in this section is on the underlying interrogative structure of the legal decision. The second part of the paper touches on significant topics related to the concept of legal speech acts, including the philosophic…

This book explores the nature and purposes of formulaic language, examining patterns across research from the fields of discourse analysis, first language acquisition, language pathology, and applied linguistics. There are 14 chapters in 6 parts. Part 1, "What Formulaic Sequences Are," includes (1) "The Whole and the…

This is a reflection on certain aspects of sociolinguistic and linguistic problems of French in West Africa, particularly in Senegal and the Ivory Coast. The sociolinguistic section discusses the role French has played in Africa and still plays vis-a-vis African languages and English. Conditions in which French is used and attitudes both of…

A discussion of what functional linguistic research can offer teachers of composition and English is presented in this paper, which provides examples of different levels of analysis (phonology, morphology, and syntax) for the language of a variety of populations (including traditional freshmen, basic writers, English as a second language (ESL)…

Taking the lexicogrammatical resources (i.e. the vocabulary and syntax) of English as a starting point, this report explores the demands those resources put on the design of the part of a text generation system that supports the process of lexicogrammatical expression. The first section of the report notes that a reason for using the lexicogrammar…

The first of four documents assesses the state of the art in the area of speech and language intervention for preschool handicapped children. It is explained in an introductory chapter that the report is designed to furnish an overview of existing programs and procedures which exemplify the field and identify critical issues which currently exist…

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…