The controlled and free speech of 15 Jordanian male and female children with cleft lip and/or palate was analyzed to account for the different phonological processes exhibited. Study participants were divided into three main age groups, 4 years 2 months to 4 years 7 months, 5 years 3 months to 5 years 6 months, and 6 years 4 months to 6 years 6…

Individual differences in nonword repetition are associated with language and literacy development, but few studies have considered the extent to which learning to read influences phonological skills as indexed by nonword repetition performance. We explored this question using a latent variable longitudinal design. Reading, oral language and…

The alphasyllabary of Kannada comprises more than 400 symbols called "akshara"; each symbol is visuo-spatially complex with a consistent representation at the dual levels of the syllable and the phoneme. We investigated reading difficulties in Kannada among 8-12 year old children by conducting a between-groups followed by a case series…

The dopaminergic system is implicated in depressive disorders and research has also shown that dopamine constricts lexical/semantic networks by reducing spreading activation. Hence, depression, which is linked to reductions of dopamine, may be associated with increased spreading activation. However, research has generally found no effects of…

This article reports on a study that investigated whether the extent to which learners benefit from recasts on two Turkish morphemes differ depending on communication mode--i.e. Face-to-Face Communication (F2FC) and text-based Synchronous Computer-Mediated Communication (SCMC)--and/or the salience of the target structure (i.e. salient and…

This paper reviews the evidence on sight word instruction as a method of teaching students with autism and significant cognitive and verbal limitations to read printed words. Nine single-subject studies were rated using Reichow et al.'s ("J Autism Dev Disord" 38:1311-1319, 2008) evaluative method for identifying evidence-based practice, and…

The present study is concerned with the upper limits of SLA--specifically, mastery of the syntax-discourse interface in successful endstate learners of second-language (L2) French (near-native speakers). Left dislocation (LD) is a syntactic means of structuring spoken French discourse by marking topic. Its use requires speakers to coordinate…

This study examined the change in complexity of kindergarteners' writing after implementing writing instruction based on story elements. Writing samples from six students of three ability levels were collected over a 6-week period. Writing samples included students' oral language, pictures, and written text and were analyzed using two rubrics…

This experimental study investigates event construal by early Dutch-German bilinguals, as reflected in their oral depiction of everyday events shown in video clips. The starting point is the finding that the expression of an aspectual perspective (progressive aspect), and its consequences for event construal, is dependent on the extent to which…

This study investigated the impact of supplementary video presentations in supporting young children's emergent literacy development. Videos were produced by teachers using prototype software developed specifically for the purpose of this study. The software obtains media content from a variety of resources and devices, including webcam,…

The validity of speech act data taken from different kinds of elicitation instruments has been widely discussed in interlangauge and cross cultural pragmatics literature. In this study an attempt is made to evaluate and investigate data taken from two of the most popular speech act instruments namely, written DCT and closed role play. The…

Does participation in the Wildlife Habitat Evaluation Program (WHEP) help develop life skills? 4-H members and coaches who participated in the National WHEP Contest between the years 2003-2005 and 2007-2009 were asked to complete an evaluation at the end of each contest. A portion of the evaluation asked participants and coaches to determine if…

The research project reported in this chapter consists of three studies in which syntactic complexity, lexical variation and fluency appear as dependent variables. The independent variables are task complexity and proficiency level, as the three studies investigate the effect of task complexity on the written and oral performance of L2 learners of…

This study focuses on a distinction between process- and object-oriented discourses when characterising the discourse of university students' summaries of lectures and examining connections between students' discourse and the discourse of lectures. Results show that students' discourse in general tends to be process-oriented, by their use of…

This study investigates the differential effects of two learning contexts, formal instruction (FI) at home and a study abroad period (SA), on the oral production skills of advanced-level Catalan-Spanish undergraduate learners of English. Speech samples elicited through an interview at three data collection times over a 2-year period were…