Describes diverse aspects of the speaking proficiency of novice-low to novice-mid level foreign language in the elementary school students and to identify the syntactic knowledge underlying such behavior. Data were collected from students who had been studying Japanese continually for 6 and 7 years on a variety of oral production tasks.…

Using frequency findings from corpus linguistics, explores the relationship between the information presented in English-as-a-Second/Foreign-Language (ESL/EFL) materials and what is known about actual language use based on empirical studies. Three aspects of materials development for grammar instruction are discussed. (Author/VWL)

Examines the acquisition of the inflectional system by a Turkish child learner of English. Results from longitudinal data collected over 18 months are reported, presenting counterevidence for recent hypotheses on early second language acquisition according to which missing functional items reflect missing functional categories. (Author/VWL)

Explores the relationship between teacher feedback and student revision in two academic writing classes. Adopts a case study approach and looks at all the feedback given to six students over a complete course. Examines the extent to which teachers focused on formal language concerns when they gave feedback and the use that students made of this…

Describes a reactive focus on form task that was part of a university English-as-a-Foreign-Language oral presentation course. Students in the study were encouraged to focus on their oral output by taping and transcribing a rehearsal of their presentation. Describes the effect of this treatment by comparing the language of the rehearsal transcript…

Explains the differences between constituency and dependency theories for structural linguistics. Reasons are provided for why the former has been indirectly responsible for the neglect of lexical acquisition in language acquisition research and for proposing a notation based on dependency theory for describing learners' segmentation of initially…

Theory and research suggest three ways grammar instruction might assist second-language acquisition. These include the following: as an advance organizer; as a meaning-form focus in communication activities where there are many examples of a single meaning-form relationship; and through monitoring, if learners can acquire their own input. (41…

Reviews research on and recommends the use of computer-assisted instruction for remediation of grammar and punctuation skills. Gives recommendations for journalism schools planning to begin such a program. Presents guidelines for suitable computer software and reviews appropriate and inappropriate software. (SR)

Fourteen specifically language-impaired children, age four to seven, pointed to pictures in, and acted out, semantically reversible sentences that varied in thematic content and in the order of thematic roles. Compared to children matched on language age and chronological age, subjects' comprehension was significantly lower. (Author/JDD)

More foreign-language professors are stressing speaking rather than grammar in their courses. They are encouraging their students to talk as much as 90 percent of the time. At the heart of the new approach is the concept of "proficiency"--what the student can do with the language. (MLW)

Uses illustrations from the history of Germanica to explain the concept of exaptation when dealing with language evolution, i.e., the reuse of language material that has been coded by morphology but has since lost its grammatical distinction. (46 references) (GLR)

Teachers are encouraged to learn to codify student errors of selection and usage and to promote use of dictionaries and other lexical tools so students can achieve proper pronunciation and identify colloquialisms, misuse of idioms, and lack of grammatical logic in complex constructions. (MSE)

Onomatopoeia is overlooked in many French grammar courses but plays a key role in everyday speech. Classification according to the feelings communicated stresses their importance. Students enjoy learning the sounds produced by animals in a second language and discovering the abundance of onomatopoeia in songs, commercials, comic books, and slang.…

The comparison of languages can be an effective instructional technique if used well. The comparison of isolated elements is less effective than the examination of languages at several levels: system, norm, and usage. (MSE)

Explores Ritchie's research supporting the hypothesis that universal grammar principles are available to adult second language learners. It is concluded that the experimental principle is not an innate grammatical principle, that methodological problems are inherent in the experimental design, and that results are due to effects of processing…