The possible relevance linguistics could have for curriculum development in native language teaching is explored. The discussion focuses on three question: (1) Does the study of linguistic theory in school contribute to the development of the students' language competence? (2) Is the study of language a subject worth teaching? (3) Can linguistic…

This is a preliminary report on the testing of two hypotheses related to the acquisition of Spanish phonemes, namely that in the nasal series, production of the labial is acquired before the dental, followed by the velar; and that the liquid series, containing "l", "r", and trilled "r" (rr) will be the last class of sounds to be acquired. These…

A study was undertaken to determine how much knowledge children have of grammatical systems before they evidence the systems in their spontaneous speech in a productive way. A child aged about two and a half years was examined over several months through elicited imitation causing him to repeat a model sentence immediately after the researcher.…

This paper reports on a study conducted to determine the abilities of children to make optional transformations in sentences conjoined with "and." The subjects were 35 middle-class children between the ages of five and eight, who demonstrated average school achievement, spoke standard American English, and had normal speech and hearing. A…

Language samples of 15 young normal children actively engaged in learning base syntax were compared with samples of 15 linguistically deviant children of a comparable linguistic level. Mean number of morphemes per utterance was used to determine linguistic level. The two groups were matched according to five linguistic levels previously…

This paper reports on a study of two girls about one year of age, part of a longitudinal study of the development of consonants by children learning their first language. Data are compared with a third child whose progress has been previously documented. Phone classes were grouped and phone trees analyzed for each child. A high level of…

This paper argues that Mexican-American bilinguals are in danger of becoming victims of a double-deficit theory, i.e., they are erroneously considered by some to be deficient in both their languages. An article by Joseph H. Matluck and Betty J. Mace that takes the double-deficit viewpoint is refuted as being damaging to Mexican-American children.…

This paper discusses the interpretation of data on two types of phonological change: change in language over time in the culture, and change in the development of the individual speaker; and examines the position that these two sorts of change interact in a certain way in relation to phonological structure. If one conceives of phonology as a…

Two groups of 5-year-old children were evaluated using several measures of language and concept ability: Stanford-Binet, Form L-M; Preschool Inventory (PSI); Boehm Test of Basic Concepts; Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test, Form B (PPVT); and the Auditory-Vocal Automatic, Motor Encoding, Auditory-Vocal Association, and Vocal Encoding subtests of the…

Goodman's hypothesis, that the task of learning to read is made more difficult as the divergence between the dialect of the learner and that of the material increases, raises three questions considered by the author to be central to the dialect/reading issue. The first asks what influence dialect has on acquiring reading ability; the second asks…

While the increased availability of specific materials designed for language arts curriculums offers teachers convenience, it is important to continue to evaluate materials according to their usefulness as tools to aid the teaching-learning process. Language arts materials can be classified according to function: (1) those that encourage imitating…

Addressed to parents, the guide considers children with communication disorders. Information provided covers the nature of such disorders, the function of sound in talking, and the development of speech through the first 7 years of childhood. Factors that may be involved if the child has trouble learning to speak are explained, including hearing,…

The purpose of this study was to determine (1) whether disadvantaged children using the Peabody Language Development Kit (PLDK) language lessons for 7 months performed significantly better on tests of intelligence, reading, listening, and writing than did similar children not experiencing these lessons, and (2) whether the performance of boys…

This is an individually administered test designed to evaluate programs that teach English as a second language, specifically the Southwestern Cooperative Educational Laboratory's (SWCEL) Oral Language Program for children in the primary grades. A major goal of the test is to elicit responses in as "spontaneous" a manner as possible in order to…

To determine the effectiveness of the Peabody Language Development Kits over an extended period (2.5 years) with educable mentally retarded (EMR) children, daily oral language stimulation lessons using Levels One and Two of the kit were given to 27 classes for the EMR in schools with culturally disadvantaged populations. Results showed the…