To investigate the linguistic knowledge of Minnesota English teachers, a 100-item questionnaire based on nine basic language concepts was given to 647 elementary and 786 secondary teachers. The concepts were that language is (1) symbolic, (2) highly personal and social, (3) crucial to man's humanity, (4) dynamic, (5) learned, (6) oral, (7) used…

Several obstacles to social and intellectual growth confront the disadvantaged student whose nonstandard dialect is unacceptable to many users of standard English. To help him develop a bidialectalism that minimizes these obstacles, the English teacher needs to guide the student to explore the ways in which language conveys meaning; to experience…

Two parallel and complementary studies of Language Modelling and its relation to the development of communicative competence in the young child are reported. Over a 6-month period, Study 1 involved weekly naturalistic observations (in the home) of the nature and quality of the linguistic stimulation offered by mothers to their children between 2…

To measure attitudes toward language and language habits, a "Language Inquiry" of 100 items covering several language areas was developed, incorporating the judgments of 10 linguists. The "Inquiry" was sent to three groups: 597 college students in Illinois, predominately English majors; 202 public school teachers working with…

The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of a tutoring program and a traditional program in improving achievement, as well as interest, for students registered in low-achiever English classes in reading comprehension, language usage skills, and spelling. Thirty-two seniors tutored 32 freshmen in high schools in Gresham, Oregon. A…

Ninety-six fifth-grade children--representing all combinations of male and female, low and middle socioeconomic status, and Negro and white characteristics--were arranged in pairs with peers of the same sex, economic background, and race. The pairs were observed in a two-party communication situation which involved the exchange of descriptive…

The language in which we discuss public issues and public officials subtly evokes problematic beliefs about the nature of social problems, their causes, their seriousness, our success or failure in coping with them, which of their aspects are remediable, which cannot be changed, and what impact they have on which groups of people. Social cues…

The approach to the study of black English usage that is based on a theory of linguistic differences between blacks and whites is inadequate, because it ignores the socioeconomic aspects of dialects. It does not resolve the problems that exist in schools for students who use black English regularly. The issue is made more complex since linguistics…

In this course the student expands his aural-oral skills by talking about school, food, and clothes, and at the same time he develops his reading and writing skills. The student manipulates the stem alternation e-i (pedir), the irregular verb (decir), the present progressive, negation (using nada, nadie, ninguno, nunca, tampoco, ni), possessive…

Although the controversy surrounding beginning reading instruction has often centered on the age at which it should be begun, i.e., at the ages of 5, 6, or 7, the position was taken in this study that by the time the child reaches these ages, it is too late for optimum development of reading readiness. As a part of a larger study, groups of…

A journalism writing course which trains students in techniques of newsgathering and reporting, emphasizing objectivity, accuracy, clarity, and journalistic style, is described. The objectives of the course include: (1) recognition of nonverbal cues transmitted by a speaker; (2) description of conveyed meanings of emotive language in news articles…

This is the first of seven interrelated volumes comprising "Contemporary Cambodian". Other texts in the series include introductory lessons, four topic-oriented textbooks, and a comprehensive Cambodian-English English-Cambodian glossary. This volume is a description of aspects of Cambodian grammar and usage. Chapters concentrate on phonology,…

These language materials were first prepared at the State University of Utah in connection with Peace Corps language programs in Persian. They are reproduced here with only slight modifications. This text is divided into seven main chapters: (1) Persian Vocabulary and Expressions for History, Law and Government (this section contains dialogues…

This textbook is used for a one-semester course in Spanish for law enforcement officers at Eastern Kentucky University. The course responds to the need for the law enforcement officer to have a basic knowledge of Spanish in order to eliminate the communication barrier between himself and the members of the Spanish-speaking community he serves.…

This paper examines the differences between second language learning and pidginization to better understand the mechanisms involved in each process. Current research suggests similarities between the two. Both are characterized by reduction and simplification. Grammatical transformations tend to be eliminated, along with inflectional markers of…