The present study compared L2 and L3 learners of the same additional language in two parallel case studies framed within a Vygotskyan SCT perspective to examine how foreign language learners' background knowledge impacts on the path of their development. Interactive data were collected on the development of interrogative formation by four Persian…

In Skinner's (1957) conceptual analysis, the process of self-editing is integral to the dynamic complexities of multiply determined verbal behavior, but the analysis has generated little in the way of an experimental analysis. The majority of scientific work on self-editing has taken place within linguistics and cognitive psycholinguistics. Here…

Examined strategies that students reported using in the comprehension and learning of new information while listening to two radio broadcasts in Spanish. The findings have implications for both the use of authentic listening materials in instruction and for listening strategy research. (51 references) (LB)

Investigates the metalinguistic ability of monolingual or bilingual children between five and nine years of age on two language tasks (grammaticality judgment and correction). (HOD)

The problem of lack of information regarding the relationship among second language students' language ability, metacognition, and reading materials is examined. The study investigates how reading strategies transfer from the native language to the second language within an interactive and compensatory processing model framework. It examines the…

The idea that bilingualism causes cognitive damage to children is no longer held by researchers, but it lingers in popular belief. It is based on the assumption that language is central to cognitive development, which is not held by all theorists. Another theoretical issue is whether the mind is a limited-capacity container or can accommodate two…

A study investigated the effects of instruction in metadiscourse on composition students' writing skills. Subjects were students in two 100-level college composition classes. A Control Class (CC) was taught using a process approach, and the Experimental Class (EC) had direct teaching of metadiscourse. The CC students worked on the propositional…

The range and characteristics of learning strategies used in studying foreign languages were studied in a 3-year project involving 67 high school students of Spanish and 34 college students of Russian. This final report reviews second language acquisition theory and learning strategies, research in learning strategies, and a cognitive model of…