Models such as Eckman's markedness differential hypothesis, Flege's speech learning model, and Brown's feature-based theory of perception seek to explain and predict the relative difficulty second language (L2) learners face when acquiring new or similar sounds. In this paper, we test their predictive adequacy as concerns native English speakers'…

In this study, non-French participants learned gender-appropriate adjectives for 24 French nouns. Findings indicate that learning the same set of feminine French nouns could be made more or less difficult when the nouns in the masculine category created more or less competition. (45 references) (Author/CK)

Tested the hypothesis that phonological mediation plays a critical role in the early development of reading and spelling in French. The findings corroborated predictions regarding performance involving pseudowords of different syllablic structures except for the failure to find differences between open and closed syllables. Results confirmed the…