Disfluent phenomena such as pauses, hesitations, and repairs are investigated in 42 short samples of spontaneous speech of native French speakers and learners of French. It is found that native speakers attend to the construction of the referent, whereas learners are more concerned with syntactic construction. (Contains 14 references.) (Author/LB)

Hypnotic language can increase the transference of learning from an adventure activity to a therapeutic goal by absorbing the client in the experience, ratifying that absorption, and eliciting the client's resources to address problematic situations. Provides examples of using this approach in adventure therapy to enhance a client's experience and…

Uses theories of social cognition and verbal communication to analyze how an experienced fourth-grade teacher blends teaching skills in language arts and reading with hands-on science to stimulate classroom inquiry. Discusses implications for elementary science instruction. Contains 41 references. (Author/JRH)

Based on the idea that pharmacy students need to develop effective verbal communication skills, a study looked at successful verbal communication, communication breakdown, and communication repair behaviors in pharmacy classes and practice settings and in the perceptions of students, professors, and preceptors. Common deficiencies and recommended…

Discusses using what students already know about taking away objects when teaching subtraction and gives six lessons to develop language for discussing and recording subtraction situations that give meaning to the subtraction algorithm. (MKR)

Six young children (ages 25 to 40 months) with delays in language comprehension were presented with stimulus items in 3 conditions: (1) object cue and speech, (2) movement cue and speech, or (3) speech alone. All children identified referents with fewer trials when object or movement cues were used with speech compared to use of speech alone.…

The use of creative dramatics in the library media center allows children to bring characters and stories to life, and encourages verbalization, experimentation, improvisation, and problem solving. Dramatic play activities are presented for grades two through six. (Author/AEF)

Issues affecting the perceived competence and credibility of children's courtroom narratives are considered, with attention to the communicative contract and common communicative assumptions such as sincerity. The effects of children's development of comprehension monitoring skills and a theory of mind on their ability to give competent eyewitness…

A Polish study of foreign language (FL) interactional discourse concludes that strategic competence, consisting of the use of communication strategies in interactional discourse, plays a relatively unimportant role in the performance of low proficiency FL learners who are not used to taking part in interaction. (27 references) (LB)

Describes a study that addressed the problem of predicting pertinence of documents from citations. The difference between pertinence and relevance is discussed; the use of eye movement monitoring and verbal reports is explained; and citation viewing is discussed in terms of extensity, intensity, and motility. (20 references) (LRW)

The verbal interactions among pupils engaged in problem-solving tasks were studied in an attempt to explore the effectiveness of small-group learning in science. Interactions were predominantly task related, but their content rarely rose above the level of "factual information" interchange. Information exchange at higher cognitive levels…

Analysis of mealtime conversations of 37 families revealed qualitative differences in mothers' use of internal state words to children with Down's syndrome, compared to speech to nondisabled children matched for adaptive functioning. Results suggest that speech to Down's syndrome children calibrated to mean length of utterance may underestimate…

Examines adults in postliteracy programs in Northern Tanzania, focusing on reading and writing abilities after five years of training; the role of radio, rural newspapers, and libraries in literacy; and adults' interest in postliteracy materials. Points to the continuing importance of the oral tradition and lack of adequate reading material as…

Young (n=80) and older (n=71) adults evaluated speakers in taped conversation of secondary baby talk or neutral variant addressed to elderly resident in nursing home by nurse or volunteer. Caregivers who used baby talk were rated as significantly less respectful and competent than peers in neutral condition; no differences were observed for…

Lectures of two first-semester teaching assistants, one native American English speaker (NS) and one Korean (NNS) whose discourse was perceived as difficult to follow, were examined. It is argued that the NS's hypotatic constructions provide explicit signals of logical and prominence relations that are missing in the NNS's discourse. (51…