Considers the nature and types of questions that are asked on English as a second language grammar in various undergraduate examinations of an Indian university and shows that many questions are vague, ambiguous, ineffective, and occasionally couched in ungrammatical language, thus defeating the objective of the tests. (Author/CB)

Reviews several software packages that analyze text readability, check for spelling and style problems, offer desktop publishing capabilities, teach interviewing skills, and teach grammar using a computer game. (SRT)

Investigates why graduates of Arabic courses in English-speaking countries are so few in number and why they so often compare poorly in spoken language performance with graduates of other language courses. The most important factor in this phenomenom is the gap that separates written Arabic from spoken Arabic. (SED)

Addresses the question of the degree of importance which accuracy of form has for the second-language learner. Effective techniques for focusing on form and correcting errors are discussed. The techniques are based on a grid that matches learner variables and instructional variables. (SED)

Describes a study designed to discover how community college students enrolled in algebra and English grammar courses used the available learner-control features of the TICCIT (Time-Shared Interactive Computer-Controlled Information Television) computer-assisted instruction system. Results indicate learner-control options were utilized but no…

A typology of classroom exercises according to the functions they serve in teaching textual and discourse competence and focusing more on the text than on the sentence is proposed. (MSE)

Describes principles for designing a proficiency-based course to prepare students for the ACTFL/ETS Advanced Plus/Superior level according to Interagency Language Roundtable guidelines. Proposes ways to combine grammatical and "functional/notional" syllabuses with a proficiency approach. Examines the implications of these principles for…

The communicative approach has brought second language instruction a long way from strict grammar-oriented pedagogy, carrying with it a return to meaning, less repetition, emphasis on the learner, and attention to the social and pragmatic aspects of communication. (MSE)

Examines the techniques and strategies that have been found helpful in making the transition from heavily structure-based English courses to a more communicative approach in Sri Lankan schools. Stresses that the teachers throughout the system need to be reoriented, citing that however strong their knowledge of structure, the students are unable to…

Describes two experiments which assessed the ability of adult second language (L2) learners to produce and comprehend real, unreal, and past unreal English conditional sentences. Developmental differences are analyzed in relation to distinctive features. The analyses lend support to the explanatory power of markedness theory in explaining L2…

An approach to teaching grammar that combines an understanding of the error patterns of nonnative speakers and a theoretical model that describes that language is better suited than most to the actual audience of that instruction. (MSE)

Stresses that teaching writing is a very difficult task because of, among other things, the problems in changing students' lifelong habits, their general lack of reading and summarizing skills, the intuitive nature of grammar use, and the lack of instruction in logical thinking. (CRH)

The effects of a free-time contingency on the grammar skills of nine mildly handicapped students were investigated in this article. Use of free time was correlated with improved skills by all students. Problems and benefits of the procedures are discussed. (Author/DF)

Attempts to show that the linguistic aspects of structural exercises are not compatible with the linguistic theories underlying the exercises; and traces the history of structural exercises. (Text is in French.) (AM)

This bilingual text by Zhou Youguang (in Chinese) with English translation by Zhang Liqing makes it easier for English speakers to gain advanced level skills in East Asian languages. It also exposes learners at or above intermediate skill levels to the vocabulary and discourses of academic disciplines and provides entries into discussions with…