This article reports on a study exploring the differential effects of immediate and delayed corrective feedback (CF) on the acquisition of the English past tense. One hundred and forty-five seventh-grade EFL learners were assigned to four groups: Immediate CF, Delayed CF, Task Only, and Control. Each experimental group performed six focused…

This article investigates the learning of two syntactic structures in Italian--Pre-possessive Determiner Article (PPDA) and Differential Object Marking--that each pose specific learning difficulties for Spanish-speaking learners of Italian (SSLI), resulting from the asymmetrical relationship with corresponding structures in the learners' L1…

Variability has been the subject of recent debate in the study of learner interlanguage. Empirical evidence from a longitudinal study suggests that learning follows a systematic route. A grammaticality judgment test is appended. (Contains 19 references.) (Author/LB)

Reports on the first attempt to develop an observation procedure based on the "profile analysis" approach to assess the syntactic and morphological development of adult learners of English as a second language. Problems with criteria assessment are described, and suggestions for refinement are given. (Author/DJD)

Present results of a longitudinal study of vocabulary development as it takes place in a classroom setting involving elementary-level Swedish-speaking learners of English. The study used spew tests requiring pupils to write down as many words as they could in one minute that began with a given letter. (Author/LMO)

Proposes a framework for foreign language testing that consists of several different types of speech interactions. The interactions are assessed with rating scales whose criteria vary according to the intended use of the test results. The framework is evaluated in terms of reliability and validity. A sample oral test is given. (Author/DJD)

This article discusses how research on language transfer in the field of SLA can help to explain the origins of substrate influence in creoles and provide answers to more difficult questions concerning the distribution and verification of substrate features. First, it argues against the view that both SLA and transfer are not involved in the…

Data from responses to a grammaticality judgement test by 26 learners of English as a second language at two proficiency levels were used to investigate syntactic acquisition. Four syntactic structures were examined. Results suggest that less proficient subjects use syntactic strategies, while more proficient learners use semantic-based…

Fifty-one adult Spanish speakers at three levels of ESL ability were tested in both their elicited imitation (production) and act-out (comprehension) of complex sentences that were structurally identical. Analysis of variance results indicate that production tests, not comprehension tests, principally evaluate a learner's structural knowledge.…

A study of the interlanguage pragmatics of learners of Hebrew and English (L2s) focuses on pragmatic indicators used in requests and apologies (situations in Appendix). Deviations from native-speaker norms in the speech of non-native speakers are discussed. Results suggest L2s' misuse of pragmatic indicators can have serious interactional…

The background of word association tests is described, their potential relevance to second language (L2) research considered, and the history of their use as L2 measuring instruments reviewed. A computer-controlled word association test is described. The test was not established as a valid indicator of language proficiency. (Author/LMO)