The article by Amaral and Roeper (this issue; henceforth A&R) presents many interesting ideas about first and second language acquisition as well as some experimental data convincingly illustrating the difference between production and comprehension. The article extends the concept of Universal Bilingualism proposed in Roeper (1999) to second…

Monolingual speakers of a national language continue to be the ideal figures on which national identities and senses of community are built. Yet this longstanding equation between nation and language is being contested by other ideologies. Alternatives are emerging from such disparate social locations as the European Union, now advocating for…

In view of the apparent successes achieved with Labovian quantitative methods in the analysis of phonological variation, it is not surprising to find these techniques being extended to include the study of syntax. Sankoff suggests that the extension of probabilistic considerations from phonology to syntax is not a conceptually difficult jump.…

Appraises R. Kaplan's "contrastic rhetoric" in the light of a multilanguage research project on discourse structure. Concludes that Kaplan's specific analyses are in need of substantive revision. (FL)

Discusses various problems concerning the island of Corsica, including economic decline, underdevelopment, emigration, and insularity--all problems which have affected and influenced its linguistic and cultural identity, as well. The dynamics of Corsican relations with the new, socialist France are questioned in reference to a hoped for…

The characteristics of the standard and non-standard varieties of English as spoken as a first language in Britain are discussed. The discussion focuses on 20 comparisons made between the standard and non-standard varieties. It is suggested that many of the local forms of English and the international standard English constitute a potential…

An examination of the social psychological basis of style shifting suggests that, contrary to Labovian theory, many style shifts are not a function of shifts in attention to speech and that there are other more explanatory ways of analyzing style shifts. Some reasons for this view are: (1) attention to speech is sometimes negatively correlated…

Examines and contests the claim that all language tests are in reality testing the same underlying ability which is very similar to the Spearman g-factor for intelligence. Conclusions indicate that the argument for the existence of a g-factor in language tests is not tenable on statistical grounds. (SL)

Discusses similarities and differences between structured program design and instructional design, suggests that use of structured programing by instructional designers would help them communicate with programers, describes structured program design techniques, and presents a sample application of structured programing to design an educational…

Describes a study concerned with distinguishing certain phonological and morphological features of the three dialects of Occitan, a language spoken in the south of France. Results indicate that variations in pronunciation seem to depend on sociolinguistic, as well as geographical factors, and in fact, related dialects and language cannot be…

Recently, a number of quantitative studies have explored systematic relationships between sociocultural organization and patterns of language use, based on the assumption that speech behavior reflects the basic categories of the community's social structure. Such systematic links were arrived at by correlating average group scores for…

Examines the variable presence/absence of third person plural marking on French verbs in the speech of French immersion students. Considers both linguistic and social factors that condition variation and compares results with those found for native speakers of French. (Author/VWL)

Suggests that the notion of near-native language ability, as currently used in the language teaching profession, should be re-examined. The concept of native speech is complex and often idealized, involving not only a teacher's language skills but also sociocultural norms, peer perceptions, and attitudes about ethnic or regional usage. The concept…