The question of standards of language and attitudes toward language is discussed in this set of conference papers. In the initial paper, a short review of language teaching practices in the United States since 1900 is presented. At that time, both grammar texts and books on language written for the general public displayed a rigid and unyielding…

There is justification for the study of black language to help improve language self-concepts in the black community and to assist in reducing the oppressions of black people. Research literature has generally centered on these approaches: (1) black language is an unsystematic, childlike linguistic system; (2) it is basically an extension of…

This programmed teacher-training kit in applied linguistics for elementary and secondary teachers is designed for both individual and group in-service training. The kit consists of a workbook divided into four programmed workshops (attitudes affecting the image of the English teacher, language acquisition and testing; classroom methodology;…

A rhetorical question is an interrogative statement made under circumstances indicating that the speaker or writer does not seek a reply. It is used as a persuasive device or occasionally as a transitional phrase, but there has been little attention paid to the manner in which listeners perceive or categorize rhetorical questions. In an…

Given the rather sparse and somewhat confusing literature dealing with the topic of metaphor and metaphoric usage, this study attempted to (1) determine the basal level of metaphorical usage in grades 3, 4, and 5; (2) evaluate a series of books ("Making It Strange") designed to promote and augment figurative usage in these grades; (3) determine…

A description of the linguistic characteristics of casual conversations of Los Angeles Negro K-3 school children was recorded outside the classroom in small groups with two to five participants. Analysis of phonological, syntactic, and lexical characteristics discloses considerable variation in the children's speech, exhibiting both a significant…

To investigate the validity of language usage as an indicator of identification with the Mexican American subculture, this study hypothesized that greater use of Spanish than English would be correlated with characteristics consistent with the ideal, typical, Mexican American family in terms of family of orientation and aspirations for future…

"What is Language" is a course involving the study of the origin of language, language misconceptions, linguistics, semantics, communication, symbols, persuasion, and word manipulation. With the major concept of how language works in mind, the course includes the following: word order of English sentences; word classes and structure…

This study examines the lexical and phonological features in the speech of 27 native informants of Tuscaloosa County, Alabama which show distinctive regional or social distribution. The questionnaire used in the study is based on the short work sheets of the Linguistic Atlas of the United States and Canada, and the methodology is similar to that…

After discussing the relatively recent nature of research on women's language, and the lack of an integrating framework for such research, the studies in this field are reviewed. Specific topics considered include the use of standard or prestige forms, phonology, syntax, lexicon, discourse-level rules and usages, and attitudes toward women's…

Among Mexican-Americans today, not only native speakers of Spanish but also many native speakers of English speak the language with a notable influence from Spanish phonology. This paper reviews a series of studies concerning reactions of Anglos and Mexican-Americans toward accented English. The unifying goal of these investigations has been the…

Efforts to better the school Leaving Exams in English of a large African state lead to the belief that schools should do away with them completely. Where this cannot be done, a thorough, systematic evaluation of reading comprehension, structure, and usage should be combined with productive integrative evaluation. (SCC)

The article shows six ways in which communicative competence can be increased. The six sections show how the foreign language student can acquire competence in expressing (as an example) the concept "irritation". For each definition of "irritation," many examples are given. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Calls for a language-centered view of composition instruction, illustrating that view by comparing and contrasting two recently published books about teaching composition. (RL)