A study examined the production of three speech acts by a small group of Korean learners of English at a high beginning level. In comparing disagreements, requests, and suggestions, it was found that although the students demonstrate the ability to increase the level of politeness used, their disagreements tended to be direct and unmitigated. It…

Research has demonstrated that second language learners benefit considerably from form-focused instruction within the context of a communicative language program. Thus, it is suggested that second language teachers should provide guided, form-based instruction in a meaningful context. Instructional strategies based on three dimensions of…

A study examined the development of pragmatic competence in second language learners, focusing on the requests produced by adult non-native speakers (NNSs) of English across three settings (a university public administrative office, the private office of a university program officer, and an English as a Second Language classroom) and nine levels…

This study examined the ways in which adult, Korean, English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) learners performed the "request" speech act, with particular attention to deviations caused by negative transfer. An oral discourse completion test with six request situations was given to three groups of learners; situations varied in terms of the…

The term "ethno-lingual relativity" is defined as a perspective that is not limited by one's own cultural and linguistic experiences, but rather is open to the contrasting cultural and linguistic patterns of other peoples. It is hypothesized that having an ethno-lingually relative perspective can facilitate one's ability to learn a new language.…

The study described here investigated the refusal strategies of intermediate-level second language learners and the potential for developing sociolinguistic competence in nonnative speakers (NNS) through classroom instruction. Subjects were six college students of English as a Second Language, divided into treatment and control groups. The…

A study quantitatively analyzed the frequency of English article deletion by Korean learners of English as a foreign language (EFL). Subjects were 49 freshmen in a South Korean university. The absence of an article system in Korean induces usage errors in which learners ungrammatically either omit or add an article. The study especially focuses on…

Four papers on linguistics include: "The Teacher-Research Relationship: Multiple Perspectives and Possibilities" (Teresa Pica), on the research relationships of researchers and language teachers; "Politeness in the Speech of Korean ESL Learners" (Nancy Bell), focusing on the speech acts of disagreeing, requesting, and making…