Proposes a language teaching methodology based on experience and theory in second language instruction and applied linguistics and characterized by practicality in the classroom. (MSE)

Proposes an approach to teaching grammar that calls on the student's imagination and frees the learning process from classroom routine. The technique uses examples of specific constructions in French poetry to illustrate principles of grammar and discourse. (MSE)

Discusses and compares the syntactic features of free relative clauses found in Castilian and Aragonese dialects of Old Spanish. The role of clitics (nontonic pronominals) and the lexical innovations of the wh-question compound-type clauses are highlighted. (TR)

Describes an in-house technical writing course that can test theories about the teaching of writing, reveal factors within the workplace that affect writing tasks, and define objectives for future research in organizational communication. (SRT)

Measured high school students' use of Black American English (BAE) via three different data collection techniques: actual conversation, conversation simulations, and self-report questionnaires. Found significant differences in BAE usage according to type of data collection technique used. (PD)

The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages' Provisional Proficiency Guidelines are criticized for their narrow view of language use and the inadequacy of their construct of "proficiency." The appropriateness of the guidelines as a basis for developing a syllabus or designing a curriculum is questioned. (MSE)

Explores the problem of implicit and explicit knowledge in a second language. The theoretical characterizations of Bialystok and Krashen are shown to be unsatisfactory in addressing these two problems. Some characteristics of explicit knowledge that any improved theory should be able to explain are considered. (SED)

This study compared the effects of programed-test instruction and computer-assisted instruction on achievement in 11 areas of English grammar. In contrast to the findings of previous research on the subject, significant differences in achievement were found favoring the programed-text method over the computer-assisted method. (Author/CT)

Ideas for using entire comic strips or parts of cartoons to teach coherence, cultural information, vocabulary, semantics, grammar, syntax, discourse, and other elements of language in the French language classroom are presented and illustrated. (MSE)

Deals with lexical derivation as it is manifested in the oral and written production of anglophone learners of Italian. Assumes that lexical derivation belongs to that linguistic competence which is based on creativity and that no essential differences exist between the ability of native and nonnative speakers to utilize this competence. (SED)

Analyzes some salient features of nontraditional methodologies in foreign language teaching focusing on four areas: (1) the provision of as stress-free a learning environment as possible, (2) the emerging role of silence in foreign language learning and teaching, (3) the role of grammar, and (4) the development of students' speaking skills. (SED)

Describes an attempt to build a computer-assisted language instruction program which can trap and comment on grammatical errors such as subject/verb agreement by a purely syntactic analysis, that is, without recourse to word meanings. The program aims to increase educational effectiveness and to reduce the number of separate stored answers.…

Supports claim that linguistic and psycholinguistic accounts based on study of English may prove unreliable as guides to sentence processing in even closely related languages such as German and Italian. Results of a test of sentence interpretation indicate that English-speaking Americans rely overwhelmingly on word order, Germans rely on both…

Investigates interaction between application of communicative strategies and narrative discourse features. The data draws upon research in narrative discourse collected from one student of Moroccan Arabic. The study suggests that the subject resorted to a number of strategies to compensate for her linguistic deficiencies and that application of…

Proposes an experimental computer-based curriculum in foreign language which focuses on reading and is designed to take the learner from no reading proficiency through intermediate reading proficiency. The material presented would include alphabet and sound/symbol correspondence, morphology and syntax, vocabulary, and exercise material to develop…