Discusses some principles to keep in mind in facilitating learners' literacy development: recognize linguistic variety; facilitate authentic discourse; contextualize instruction on language structures within composing and comprehending; and design literature-based lessons with linguistic benefits in mind. Argues that, for acquiring English…

Examines a representative World Wide Web page about India to determine ways in which it addresses the "ingroup" of diasporic Indians and "outgroup" visitors to the site. Identifies several textual strategies including modes of formatting, use of language, specific selection of images and multimedia elements, and specific links…

Analyzes specifics of computer-mediated communication. Finds features and attributes inherent in oral and written forms of speech in dialogs, monologs, and polylogs (telelogs). Finds a particular kind of "pidginized network English" being formed by "netters" for whom English is not their native language. (RS)

Points out that the use of discourse markers by speakers of Anglophone Montreal French shows great variation in individual repertoires and frequency of use. Argues that mastery of the appropriate use of discourse markers reveals the speakers' integration into the local speech community. (28 references) (Author/CK)

Discusses Mary Augusta Jordan's "Correct Writing and Speaking," a rhetoric text authored for women who studied writing and speaking outside of the formal academy. Suggests that the text's attention to the history of the English language and the evolution of arbitrary standards imposed by cultural forces makes it subversively feminist.…

Suggests that students will not automatically make use of grammatical concepts, syntactic constructions, and language conventions no matter how they are taught such concepts. Argues that teaching "grammar" in the context of writing works better than teaching grammar as a formal system. Offers three examples of extended grammar minilessons. (RS)

Presents the comments of six English teachers concerning grammar instruction. Finds that teachers seldom think of grammar as a description of the structure of the language but rather as mechanics and usage, subject-verb agreement, and spelling. Suggests that researchers do not always clearly distinguish between the formal study of descriptive…

Describes "Grammar in a Nutshell"--a visual-auditory-kinesthetic approach to traditional textbook grammar, usage, and mechanics concepts. Notes that the idea behind Nutshell is that as the students slowly mature in other writing skills they can also grow in their understanding of how to use, how to handle their language, not only correctly but…

Analyzes aspects of language in three novels and their film adaptations. Gives examples of how the films reshaped the novels; speculates about the relationships between language, content, and media; and offers suggestions for instruction. (SR)

Examines a representative text corpus to gain insights into language structure and use and to open new areas of linguistic inquiry. Various illustrations are presented that provide a glimpse into the value of corpus-based investigations for increasing one's understanding of language use and imparting insights important for designing effective…

Examines why the relationship between plagiarism and collaboration seems so inherently problematic and suggests that it may have a great deal to do with the concept of "voice." (TB)

Examined classroom discourse at a southern cosmetology school, noting African American students' language socialization. Highlighted freshmen's and seniors' engagement with formal/textbook scripts about proper communication, analyzing how teachers and students made sense of official metacommunicative scripts about proper salon communication.…

Investigated public officials' use of subtle exclusionary language regarding immigrant-related issues. Data were collected from mainstream U.S. Newspaper articles from 1995-2000, focusing on unregulated pharmacies, food vendors, and housing. Results suggest that while public officials discuss immigrant problems with seeming empathy to avoid being…

Presents a novelist's discussion of the roles that controversial subjects play in her novels and in the literature and lives of young readers. (TB)

Determined the degree to which a sample of one child's creative utterances related to utterances that the child previously produced. Utterances were intelligible, multi-word utterances produced by the child in a single hour of interaction with her mother. Results suggest the high degree of creativity in early English child language could be…