Three experiments were designed to test preschool, first, and second graders' understanding of the term "word." A modified aural discrimination task required children to discriminate word from nonword stimuli. Results indicated that children's word concepts have been underestimated. (Author/BS)

The ability of computers to understand phrases and sentences has implications for future trends in counseling. Examples of computer-person interaction are given. (Author)

Highlights ways in which standard information processing models of language, and specifically of reading, are deficient. Deficiencies are considered under four headings: (1) theoretical rigour, (2) the interaction of different levels of information during reading; (3) the parallel nature of much of human information processing, and (4) reading…

The recognition of teaching as a special relationship among individuals is currently being overlooked in much contemporary educational research and policymaking. The author examines the philosophy of rationality in teaching and relates it to the educational vision presented in George Orwell's novel, "Nineteen Eighty-Four." (CB)

Explores the processing implications of bi-scriptalism. (EKN)

A study of individual patterns of usual and unusual phonological process occurrence in nine phonologically disordered children revealed that a small, basic subset of phonological processes accounted for the majority of errors made, with frequency the distinguishing characteristic among individuals. Unusual processes were primarily changes in word…

Discusses the effects on native speaker comprehension of familiarity with: (1) topic, (2) nonnative speech in general, (3) a nonnative accent in particular, and (4) a particular nonnative. Results indicate that the most important variable is familiarity with topic, although the others all have a facilitating effect in comprehension. (EKN)

For the whole of the last half-century, most theoretical syntacticians have assumed that knowledge of language is different from the tasks of speaking and understanding. There have been some dissenters, but, by and large, this view still holds sway. This book takes a different view: it continues the task set in hand by Kempson et al (2001) of…

This paper is an exploration of the conceptual issues that have arisen in the course of building a natural language generation (NLG) system for automatic test item generation. While natural language processing techniques are applicable to general verbal items, mathematics word problems are particularly tractable targets for natural language…

When preschool children think of objects as organized into collections (e.g., forest, army) they solve certain problems better than when they think of the same objects as organized into classes (e.g., trees, soldiers). Present studies indicate preschool children occasionally distort natural language inclusion hierarchies (e.g., oak, tree) into the…

Assumptions about comprehension of utterances are challenged in two experiments using as an example the verb phrase "to do a Richard Nixon on a tape" (i.e., erase it). It is argued that creating meanings, as with this phrase, works differently from selecting senses for utterances and that many require a mixture of the two. (MSE)

Discusses children's comprehension of complex sentences as measured by a picture selection test. Concludes that the interplay of both syntactic factors, such as active vs. passive, and nonsyntactic factors, such as expectation, must be considered in any characterization of children's sentence comprehension ability. (EKN)

Surveys modern language and cognitive theories and their implications for the teaching of undergraduate composition. (JL)

Examines whether four- to six-year-old children are sensitive to the contextual influence of previous discourse on judgements of adequacy of referential communication. Findings show the children could discriminate between the functionally informative and ambiguous communications. (EKN)

Reviews studies on language loss in individuals rather than groups in three categories: research on optimal age for foreign language learning; studies on cognitive aspects of language loss; and investigations concerning attitudes toward language learning, maintenance, and loss. Believes such research may ultimately tell foreign language teachers…