A theoretical basis for a first-/second-language link is presented along with an explanation of why current global theories of language are incomplete. Implications for foreign language (FL) methodology and instruction for students with FL learning problems are addressed. (123 references) (LB)

In a study of the application natural language processing to second-language instruction, two versions of the Nihongo-CALI (computer-assisted language instruction) system were developed. Empirical data support the possibility/effectiveness of intelligent CALI to facilitate second-language acquisition. (19 references) (LB)

Provides a brief history of the empiricism-nativism issue, considering present-day intellectual roots of nativist and empiricist inclinations. A schema is proposed for explaining the ontogenetic origin of an innate attribute or principle relevant to language. An attempt is made to explain the origin of primitives as derived by learning. (Contains…

Synthesizing theoretical and empirical insights from second-language acquisition, cognitive psychology, information processing, schema theory, and parallel distributed processing, this paper proposes an interactive framework of intake processes. It identifies intake factors and intake processes and argues that these factors and processes…

An experimental study examined the comprehension of sentences containing concessive connectives, considered from an argumentative-conclusive point of view, in 8- to 10-year-old French children (n=24). Two tasks were used: (1) subjects had to choose between opposite preceding contexts of sentences and (2) conclusions that could be drawn from the…

This paper constitutes a response to Lust and Mazuka's (1989) defense of the Principal Branching parameter and their critique of O'Grady, Suzuki-Wei, and Cho's (1986) experiment, which purported to show that even children learning left-branching languages exhibit a preference for forward patterns of anaphora. (Contains 16 references.) (JL)

This article discusses how the syllabus for language teacher training in German has evolved and considers what direction foreign language teacher training might take if it were to follow the cue of "Deutsch als Fremdsprache" and appropriate the research agenda of second-language acquisition studies. (Contains 51 references.) (JL)

Thirty-two theoretically grounded reports of research and discussions of central issues in second and foreign language writing and writing instruction are presented in this annotated bibliography. The items, all dated 1992-93, are categorized as follows: writers; processes; texts; readers; context; instruction; reading and writing; and general.…

Explores how children's performance on picture description tasks in French, their limited-use language, compares to their performance on the same tasks in English. Investigates whether home language environment has an effect on performance. (SR)

This article reviews the history of the neuroscientific study of language, examining research on three main issues: (1) the neurofunctional differences between primary language acquisition and second-language acquisition; (2) the critical period issue; and (3) the role played by the right hemisphere of the brain in language acquisition. (140…

Examines the emphasis in the literature on the influence of culture on English as a Second Language. Excessive weight has been given to the profiling of regional traits. Greater attention should be paid to the influence of education, institution, and student cultures, which often possess international dimensions. (59 references) (Author/CK)

Bilingual education research methods should incorporate a multilevel model of pupils, classrooms, and schools and consider various cognitive and noncognitive outcome variables focusing on progress rather than attainment to determine not whether bilingual education is more effective than monolingual instruction but which aspects of bilingual…

Evaluated the development of temporal location within a cross-linguistic experimental design. The research focused on the transition from a temporal system based on absolute temporal relations involving speech time and event time to a more complex system involving relative temporal relationships and reference time. (48 references) (JL)

Explores the state of the art in communicative language teaching from an international perspective, focusing on its multidisciplinary perspective that includes linguistics, psychology, philosophy, sociology, and educational research, and detailing current implications and promising trends. (32 references) (CB)

Some of the articulatory, theoretical, instrumental, and psycholinguistic evidence concerning the validity of the notion of ambisyllabicity in English is examined. Applications of the concept, including the notion of syllables being "half-closed" by ambisyllabic consonants, are considered. A set of rules is presented. (76 references) (Author/LB)