Learners of a nonnull subject language (e.g., English) whose first language (L1) is a null subject language (e.g., Spanish) can show some optionality in the interpretation of overt subject pronouns in the second language (L2). By exposing L2 learners to nativelike interpretations of pronouns in discourse, we aim at understanding how exposure can…

Recent research on the effects of processing instruction (PI) have incorporated online research methods in order to demonstrate that PI has effects on cognitive processing behaviors as well as on accuracy (e.g. Lee & Doherty, 2019a). The present study uses self-paced reading and a moving windows technique to examine the effects of PI on second…

This article uses the clitic left dislocation (CLLD) construction in L2 Spanish to investigate whether generative SLA has valuable insights to contribute to language teaching. Although CLLD is a structure that is commonly used by native speakers, as reported anecdotally and in at least one corpus, we found that native-Spanish and native-English…

This article reports the findings of a study in which we investigated the possible effects of word order on the acquisition of case marking. In linguistic typology (e.g. Greenberg, 1963) a very strong correlation has been shown between dominant SOV (subject object verb) word order and case marking. No such correlation exists for SVO (subject verb…

In this article, we examine whether the effectiveness of processing instruction (PI) is limited to forms targeted in the instructional treatment (primary effects) or whether it also extends to other forms (transfer-of-training effects). L2 Spanish learners (N = 123) received either PI or traditional instruction (TI) targeting third-person…

This volume contains a selection of papers presented at the 2014 International Conference of Pragmatics and Language Learning at Indiana University. It includes fourteen papers on a variety of topics, with a diversity of first and second languages, and a wide range of methods used to collect pragmatic data in L2 and FL settings. This volume is…

In this article we present the results of a qualitative research study on the pedagogical factors that influence English teaching in four public schools of Medellín, Colombia. Twelve teachers were interviewed regarding three linguistic principles: communicative competence, native language effect, and interlanguage. The data analysis led to the…

Ways to overcome difficulties in mastering the subjunctive in Spanish are described, using a travel analogy and a passport as memory aids. The passport reminds students of grammar rules, including trigger verbs and "que" clauses. (LB)

Paper read at the Second International Congress on the Teaching of Spanish held February 1971 in Madrid, Spain. (DS)

Discusses an easily-learned pair of mnemonic devices that have universal applicability for the position of object pronouns in Spanish sentences. (Author/VWL)

Excerpts from the publication El espanol actual'' (Contemporary Spanish). The five-part series will be continued in the October-November 1972 issue of Yelmo''. (DS)

Discusses ways of teaching complementary pronouns in Spanish, includinq pronouns of direct objects, reflexive verbs, and indirect objects. (NCR)

Transformational grammar is briefly defined in this paper, and some of the key literature on the subject is indicated. Examples of transformational operation on Spanish sentences are used to demonstrate how this approach makes the teaching-learning process easier and more efficient. (SS)