We expect that word knowledge accumulates gradually. This article draws on earlier approaches to assessing depth, but focuses on one dimension: richness of semantic knowledge. We present results from a study in which three distinct item types were developed at three levels of depth: knowledge of common usage patterns, knowledge of broad topical…

In 2000, voters in the US state of Arizona passed Proposition 203 "English for the Children," effectively abolishing bilingual education services in favor of a submersion approach termed Sheltered English Immersion. In this discussion, I use an ethnographic lens to highlight the logistical complexities involved in the negotiation of…

An inquiry into how language functions in the life of a bilingual minority group in process of cultural change, this study investigated the acculturation and assimilation of individuals of Mexican descent living in Tucson, Arizona. Specifically, the language usage and interpersonal relations of individuals from representative families in the…