Discusses and defends the innateness hypothesis - that a component of the human mind is a species-specific language learning mechanism--and discusses some implications of that hypothesis. (RM)

The points of similarity between the language and music of a given language are discussed as a theoretical justification for the use of songs in language teaching. (Author/RM)

A study of the acquisition of interrogative forms in children of high socioeconomic status reveals that utterances belong more to the colloquial than to the standard range. It is concluded that disadvantaged children would show similar usage, leading to the suggestion that teachers teach language as they use it. (Text is in French.) (CDSH/CLK)

Children who come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and speak in nonstandard dialects should not be made to feel inferior but should be listened to. (JH)

DESIGNED FOR USE IN SECONDARY CLASSES FOR THE DEAF, THIS DICTIONARY LISTS OVER 4,000 IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS. FOR EACH IDIOM, THE ENTRY MAY INCLUDE VARIANT FORMS, PART OF SPEECH LABEL, STYLE LABEL, DEFINITION, USAGE NOTE, ILLUSTRATIVE SENTENCES, CROSS REFERENCES, A SYNONYM OR CONTRAST, AND ETYMOLOGY. AN APPENDIX LISTS ESSENTIAL IDIOMS. THIS DOCUMENT…

A computer program for measuring the complexity of syntactic structures in different levels of graded reading materials and in children's oral and written language is presented. (RW)

Describes a literature-based oral language program and its effects on Black children's ability to reproduce standard English structures. (ST)

This paper discusses the nature of language knowledge and the manner in which children come to acquire this knowledge. Among the topics discussed are language production and the ability to understand sentences never heard before, sentence formation, children's construction of rules, children's language creativity, language acquisition and age,…

This dissertation examines the principles of two current theories of first language acquisition and from them synthesizes a second language methodology. As a background to the problem of second language methodology, it is stated that the basing of second language methodologies on first language learning is currently being questioned and that the…

Children's language abilities develop in a predetermined order, one stage necessarily preceding the next. The rate of this development remains relatively the same for physiologically normal human beings. Through research it is becoming possible to identify critical periods in linguistic development. Teachers could utilize and exploit these growth…

In addition to the communicative end served by language learning, there is another objective: the discovery, by the student, of the system and the workings of his native language. The values of this objective include: (1) formative value: the possibility of achieving a better understanding of the fundamental and uniquely human phenomenon which is…

Solving methodological problems of language instruction lies in analyzing the dynamics of verbal behavior and the process of language acquisition. The glossodynamic model of language learning is based on the recognition that language behavior is basically a stratificational and hierarchical system of dynamic structures. An integrated view of…

THE AUTHOR CHARACTERIZES THIS BULLETIN AS A MESSAGE ON LANGUAGE. THE MESSAGE IS FACILITATED BY (1) A FLUID AND IMAGINATIVE USE OF TYPESETTING, (2) A NARRATIVE-FORM STORY, AND (3) A STORY-PLOT THAT INVOLVES SEVERAL LANGUAGE PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS. ALTHOUGH THE STORY COMPRISES THE ENTIRE BULLETIN, THE PURPOSE OF THE BULLETIN IS NOT JUST TO TELL A…

This paper presents some thoughts on teaching listening and speaking skills in second language learning. Both teacher and student roles are discussed along with learning devices. Teacher and student share active and productive roles in the development of listening and speaking skills; the breadth of each of their roles encompass both self-analysis…

The amount of time that should be spent on explicit teaching of language patterns and structure is an issue among second language teachers. Those who believe that language learning is a developmental process feel that there is no sense in teaching grammar and syntax explicitly since the learner can be expected to acquire these skills as he…