A study of the language used in the dialogue journals of beginning students of English as a second language (ESL) focused on the acquisition of English morphology. The study used two methodological approaches: a comparison of journal language with that used in speech and other written samples, and a longitudinal look at change patterns that also…

Many teachers feel that the primary goal of language education is the development of communicative rather than linguistic competence. This shift in focus has affected syllabus design. However, no single syllabus appears satisfactory by itself. The grammatical syllabus is effective to instill in learners automatic production of accurate structural…

This research study explores the concurrent and predictive validity of the English language proficiency screening test used by the University of Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) and the relationship of this measure to academic performance. It is concluded that (1) evidence of the predictive validity of the test supports its use for efficiently…

Based on results of a project undertaken in Finland over many years, this definition of transfer is offered: Transfer is both a facilitating and limiting factor which provides one basis for the learner to form and test hypotheses about the second language he or she is learning. Theory and research on transfer are discussed as they relate to item…

A study of the verbs used in the management sections of nursing texts looked at the use of verbs as lexical items and grammatical forms and at their form-function relationship. The analysis of verbs as lexical items attempted to establish whether or not there was a common core vocabulary among the four texts studied. The examination of verbs as…

Comics are a powerful medium in the way they combine the verbal and the pictorial. Since they are widely used by the school-age audience, and by many adults, better use could be made of them by students if they learned how the comic conveys its message. The similarity in techniques used by creators of movies, television, advertisements, and comics…

In recent years, a number of articles have been written concerning the value of instruction in second language acquisition and the type of instruction that is most valuable for second language learners. Consequently, the place of the teaching of grammar in the second language classroom is being questioned. Generally, much of the research seems to…

Several years ago, the English faculty at the Schuylkill Campus of Pennsylvania State University entered into a cooperative venture with the campus learning center to use computer-assisted instruction in the basic rules of grammar as part of the remedial English course. The software used for the lab is the Houghton Mifflin English Microlab…

To learn correct grammar, developmental students must practice writing correctly. However, the traditional exercises offered in handbooks, workbooks, and textbooks not only fail to provide habituation in correctness, they actually provide practice in "wrongness." Instead of isolating individual problems, they promote confusion by linking them.…

The instructional techniques and materials for classroom use presented are based on a three-tiered model for the practice of grammatical structures that avoids the common problem of trying to elicit normal, spontaneous conversation. Situations are devised that by their nature tend to evoke only particular structures. The first tier of the model…

A booklet intended for classroom use in beginning and intermediate German instruction provides students with a series of authentic McDonald's fast food restaurant placemats with which to review and reinforce adjective endings. Specific objectives are for students to: read and discuss each of the German McDonald's trayliners, complete a series of…

A collection of suggestions is presented for ways in which second language students can be encouraged to express real feelings, opinions, and judgments within their level of linguistic competence. Sections are included which focus on dialogue, grammar, vocabulary, narratives, and culture as content areas for which lesson plans can be devised to…

The view that foreign language study contributes significantly to literacy in the native language is discussed from the perspectives of a foreign language teacher who also teaches English composition. It is suggested that there is a need for research and publications on the benefits of second language study on native language growth and on…

A beginning-level class in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) using the natural approach (NA) was conducted experimentally at the Institute of North American Studies in Barcelona, Spain from April through June, 1985. At the end of the ten-week term, the class of 17 students was given a communicative test and a structural test. A parallel…

This paper attempts to show the relationship between variable rules and more widely used psycholinguistic constructs such as amalgams and schemas, and to point out how variationists' methods can be useful in the study of language acquisition. The traditional rule, the rule for forming the past tense of regular verbs in English, is discussed as it…