The normative ideals of democracy, trust and respect are under threat from the forces of populism and extremism. I argue for a recalibration of some basic ideas in the moral and social domains in which each person sees her/himself as one among others. I defend 0093The Principle of Personal Worth0094 which asserts that persons are more valuable…

Reverend Father Professor Amechi Nicholas Akwanya is one of the towering scholars of literature in Nigeria and elsewhere in the world. For decades, and still counting, Fr. Prof. Akwanya has worked arduously, professing literature by way of teaching, researching, and writing in the Department of English and Literary Studies of the University of…

In the previous issue of "LLT", I commented upon Stockwell (2010), suggesting that the learning activities investigated limited the scope of his research on the effects of the MALL platform. Professor Stockwell responded in the same issue with a spirited riposte. However, it became clear that much of the disagreement lay in a matter of definition.…

There is evidence that semantic prosody, a novel linguistic theme, should attract much attention in ESL/EFL (English as a second/foreign language) vocabulary learning and teaching. Research suggests that inappropriate word choice arising from ignorance of semantic prosody is common among ESL/EFL learners (Wei, 2006; Xiao & McEnery, 2006). This…

This article argues that a clear division between two sources of information--one oriented to world knowledge, the other to linguistic semantics--offers a framework within which mechanisms for modelling the highly flexible relation between language and interpretation necessary for natural discourse can be specified and empirically validated.…

Describes semantic relations which are thought to provide underpinning of all coherent stretches of language and are concerned with ways in which one clause, sentence, or series of sentences is interpreted in light of another. Suggests implications which semantic relations might have for EFL syllabus design. (Author/BK)

This paper is a narrative experiment inspired by Deleuze and Guattari's (1987) figuration of the rhizome. It is a textual assemblage of popular and academic representations of cyborgs that might question, provoke, and challenge some of the dominant discourses and assumptions of curriculum, teaching, and learning. Emboldened by Deleuze's penchant…

Reviews concepts from discourse analysis and translates them into instructional techniques that can be used in the classroom to improve reading comprehension. (FL)

Discusses the principle of lexical functions to demonstrate its applicability to the problem of word collocations in the acquisition of German as a second language. Presents sample exercises, focusing on the lexical combinability of words and utilizing constant meaning relations which are expressed through the principle of lexical function. (MES)

Surveys the main results obtained in a study of syntactic ambiguities in English, and discusses their most important implications for general and applied linguistics. Concludes that awareness of the linguistic treatments of ambiguity can be of great help to the teacher in developing students' competence. (MES)

Asserts that Thomas's atheoretical posture is not realistically possible. Makes three counter-arguments: humans may naturally be theorizing creatures; Thomas uses theory to argue against theory; and the problem is not "theory" but particular theories. (SK)

Diverse definitions and connotations of terms in language pedagogy are examined, and their uses by segments of the teaching community are discussed. The focus is on the term "functional," but other terms are looked at: speech act, communicative competence, system, and others. (MSE)

The modal "should" can be taught by first delineating its meaning of "good advice," then proceeding to its meaning as expressing the speaker's sense of duty, propriety, and expediency, and finally dealing with its meaning of "reasonable expectation." The elements of "must" implicit in "should"…

Second language learners must acquire a generative system of grammar. There is, as yet, no way of describing notions in generative terms. Long-term syllabuses will have to continue to be syntactically based, but the incorporation of notions from a checklist is acceptable. (Author/JB)

The purpose of this paper is to operationally define four components of a mental set and describe how students can be taught to be aware of and control their mental set. Parameters of mental set include affect, attitude, focus, and meaning. It is argued that many factors essential to the success of a given task are at least partially, and perhaps…