The effectiveness of individualized feedback on rater behavior has been investigated in several previous studies (e.g. Elder, Knoch, Barkhuizen, & von Randow, 2005; Lunt, Morton, & Wigglesworth, 1994; O'Sullivan & Rignall, 2007; Wigglesworth, 1993). The findings of these studies are somewhat inconclusive. However, all of these studies investigated…

We compare learning of two inflection types--obligatory noun plurals and optional noun possessives. We tested 107 Hebrew-speaking children aged 6-7 on the same tasks at the beginning and end of first grade. Performance on both constructions improved during this short period, but plurals scored higher from the start, with improvement only in…

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the efficacy of a new preschool oral language and early literacy curriculum package ("Teaching Early Literacy and Language" ["TELL"]) for children with developmental speech and/or language impairment (DSLI) either as a primary (e.g., specific to speech and/or language) or…

This paper introduces and discusses issues related to the challenge of obtaining more valid and reliable assessment and positive backwash of direct spoken English language performance of students in real-life situations. For this purpose, the paper is divided into four sections. The first section is the introduction to the article. The second part…

This dissertation examines how the Japanese particles "nado", "toka", and "tari" which all may be translated as "such as", "etc.", or "like" behave differently in written and spoken discourse. According to traditional analyses (e.g. Martin, 1987), these particles are assumed to be Exemplifying Particles (EP) used to provide concrete examples to…

Research and services continue to expand to community-based programs serving individuals diagnosed with autism. A focus of great interest in those efforts is that of language acquisition and functional usage. For the purpose of this evaluation, language acquisition interventions are grouped into two broad categories, contrived and naturalistic.…

This paper addresses the current resurgence of interest in classroom talk and its place in pedagogy; in particular the role of teachers in shaping students' learning through the design of classroom interactivity. The importance of teacher agency with respect to pedagogic design is highlighted in recent studies of pedagogy in the UK (Alexander,…

We investigated whether access to a sign language affects the development of pragmatic competence in three groups of deaf children aged 6 to 11 years: native signers from deaf families receiving bimodal/bilingual instruction, native signers from deaf families receiving oralist instruction and late signers from hearing families receiving oralist…

The authors discuss the 19 individual studies included in chapter 4 (shared story reading interventions) of the report of the National Early Literacy Panel (NELP) and offer more nuanced conclusions than the report's authors do. They also emphasize the need for more comprehensive approaches to shared story reading in preschool than those found in…

Purpose: Over the past 50 years, language sample analysis (LSA) has evolved from a powerful research tool that is used to document children's linguistic development into a powerful clinical tool that is used to identify and describe the language skills of children with language impairment. The Systematic Analysis of Language Transcripts (SALT; J.…

"Ladders to Literacy" is a supplemental early literacy curriculum composed of more than 70 activities designed to develop children's print/book awareness, metalinguistic awareness, and oral language skills. The curriculum, published in the book "Ladders to Literacy: A Preschool Activity Book, Second Edition," can be used in a…

This article investigates the contribution of maternal mediation in storybook reading, socioeconomic status (SES), and home literacy environment (HLE) to children's literacy level in kindergarten and first grade in Israeli Arabic-speaking families. A total of 109 kindergarten children and their mothers participated. Children's literacy level was…

Two approaches to grammar instruction are often discussed in the ESL literature: direct explicit grammar instruction (DEGI) (deduction) and indirect explicit grammar instruction (IEGI) (induction). This study aims to explore the effects of indirect explicit grammar instruction on EFL learners' mastery of English tenses. Ninety-four…

At present, Whole Language (WL) teachers DO teach reading as a part of their curriculum. However, the new common core learning standards set the stage for Foreign Language in Elementary Schools (FLES) teachers to take a more active role, if not lead the way in developing important reading skills in children. Although this new challenge may at…

Within the Australian education system, Aboriginal students' use of non-standard English features is often viewed simplistically as evidence of non-attainment of literacy and oral-English milestones. One reason for this is the widespread use of assessment tools which fail to differentiate between native-English speakers and students who are…