Analysis of an intonational contour generally used to convey uncertainty about the appropriateness of some evoked scale or scalar value (as in "Anna may marry Manny") is extended to accommodate both uncertainty and incredulity interpretations. This paper proposes a more general account of L*+HLH%, based on an acoustic and pragmatic…

An instructional program was designed to improve the oral language skills of kindergarten students. The target group consisted of 10 students who, according to their scores on the Yellow Brick Road Language Battery, were in need of a strong language development program. The instructional plan was based on the Shared Book Experience and other…

Within the field of linguistics there are several very different approaches to discourse analysis. Sociolinguists look at the structure of social interaction as manifested in conversation. Psycholinguists are concerned with aspects related to language comprehension. Philosophical and formal linguists are interested in the semantic relationships…

A study investigated the exophoric function of the pronouns "it, they, he, she" and related forms in four English conversations. It analyzed the frequency and characteristics of the occurrence of those exophoric pronouns and found that they were much less frequent than endophoric pronouns. It also found that the exophoric pronoun groups…

The presentation examines information on the issue of language-reading dependency and the roles that speech language pathologists (SLPs) can play to address both skills. The relationship of oral language and reading development is examined in terms of models (such as the Top-Down/Bottom-Up model) and hypotheses and research etiology. Studies on…

The use of rhymes in a reading program can result in improved listening skills, increased vocabulary, improved spelling, and greater proficiency in comprehension. A rhyme can be improvised and/or adapted for every skill in the reading hierarchy. In order to make knowledge about rhyming words useful for improving reading skills, the teacher must…

The report describes a federally funded study of the application of language proficiency concepts, developed for commonly taught languages, to less commonly taught languages. It summarizes the project's background and origins and the activities of the project, including four separate studies on the feasibility of proficiency-based instruction and…

Different conceptions of literacy and its relationship with oral communication are examined, and a new approach that separates literacy and orality rather than representing them on a continuum is criticized. The methodological and theoretical assumptions underlying the work of proponents of the new approach are questioned, including: (1) a narrow…

This report discusses issues having a major impact on "Study Talk," the Queensland component of an Australian language development project. After first outlining the procedures and organizational structures used to set up and conduct "Study Talk," the report briefly describes methods used to evaluate project operations and…

This annotated bibliography contains references to articles and books that provide teachers with specific techniques to use in class to develop their students' oral proficiency. The items cited can be obtained from any good college or university library. Most of the publications have appeared since 1970, and the works cited pertain directly to the…

Discovering pleasure in words should begin at a young age. But the discovery can continue among college students if oral communication courses offer parallels to the art and music appreciation courses which are part of most collegiate curricula. Some class activities which can enlarge appreciation of oral language are: (1) students may be assigned…

A study was conducted to describe and compare the oral responses of three adolescents to two short stories and two textbook selections and to identify their general expectations for reading and responding to fiction and exposition. Three tenth grade girls were interviewed about their family lives, interests, preferences for and experiences with…

Examined in a longitudinal study of children were correspondences and correlations between early language development on the one hand, and the manipulation of objects and play development on the other. There were developmental correspondences between the onset of five language landmarks (the emergence of first word, referential word, demonstrative…

The influence of graphic expression activities on kindergarten children's oral language expression was investigated. It was hypothesized that, regardless of the sex, race, or socioeconomic status (SES) of the subjects, children provided with an opportunity to express themselves graphically would talk more about a prior experience than children who…

Unproven beliefs about the process of reading and its instruction and about the effects of maturation and social structure on learning have obscured the question of what children know about how to read. An alternate conceptualization proposes that to learn to read children must obtain experience in three reading contexts: the use of print and its…