English is the most widely used language for commerce, industrial expansion, diplomacy, science, and other fields. As speakers of other languages adapt it to their purposes, educators must adjust their perceptions of how the language is used. This idea, and related ones, are discussed in this article. (JL)

Describes a synonym exercise--composing an essay without using the verbs "be,""have,""go," or "get"--which increases students' awareness of at least six different language features. (MM)

A study of how children acquire language suggests that schools and their structured classroom situations offer few opportunities for students to develop linguistic competence. Four approaches to increasing classroom communication are offered. (CB)

Catalogs a variety of common grammatical errors that have entered the English language and become entrenched during this past generation, primarily through the fault of the mass media. (NKA)

Supports the assertion that pedagogical grammar must be a marriage of syntax and pragmatics through consideration of the different characteristics of "yes/no" questions and of how input from both syntax and pragmatics is needed to explain these characteristics. (Author/CB)

Discusses Mikhail Bakhtin's vision of the continuous affluence of language and claims it celebrates the polymeric nature of discourse as opposed to the traditional triangular paradigm which proves hopelessly inadequate.

Explores the advantages and disadvantages of microcomputer text editors and spelling checkers and implications for their classroom use. (SRT)

Examines the opinions of Fred Newton Scott concerning language usage and asserts that Scott was on the side of the scientific descriptive linguists in asserting that questions of usage cannot be legislated. (SRT)

Discusses glosses, that is, formulations which, on their occurrence, are adequate but which turn out to have been incomplete, ambiguous and perhaps misleading. Examines the ways in which a coparticipant's activities may result in a speaker either maintaining or revealing the gloss. (SED)

Describes the use of a small set of linguistic variables in different types of radio programs from Radio Cymru (the Welsh language radio network), to see whether variation does correlate with style as it does in the community. Results show that broadcasters followed community norms for these variables. (SED)

Discusses the status of the Same (Lappish) language which is distributed into six different dialect groups. Earlier research into the problems relating to the linguistic behavior of a Same group living in Finland and the position and use of their minority language is analyzed in terms of demographic, social structural, and political-legal factors.…

Using acid rain as a metaphor, discusses the status of the Frisian language and culture as one which, though apparently thriving, is really threatened. Examines the sources of this threat, i.e., the education system, the church, mass communication and transportation, and the demise of the Frisian village community. (SED)

Discusses five "rules" of language use that can be broken: (1) don't use contractions in formal writing, (2) every paragraph should have a topic/clincher sentence, (3) never end a sentence with a preposition, (4) Avoid "I" and "you" in formal writing, and (5) never begin a sentence with "and" or "but." (EL)

Illustrates the existence of meanings in conversation that are not based on the listener's interpretations by analyzing the conversations from a family therapy session. Transcripts of the conversations are appended. (HTH)

Focuses on language use of Mexican-American adolescents (N=20) whose families were formerly migrants. Data revealed distinctive language patterns that appeared to be determined as a matter of individual choice. Discusses the underlying role of language as a cultural symbol. (JAC)