Highlights how fables can be used in English-as-a-Foreign-Language classes. Fables offer the opportunity for learners to speak and teachers to reinforce the simple past versus the past continuous or the simple present versus the present continuous. Fables are also useful for teaching writing.(Author/VWL)

This study focuses on changes in listener ability to identify a language after brief periods of exposure. Specifically, it looks at whether minimal exposure to spoken samples of a language improve identification of novel samples and in what ways exposure materials affect listener performance. (Author/JL)

Examines the composition of the early productive vocabulary of eight Korean and eight English-learning children and the morpho-syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic characteristics of their caregivers' input in order to determine parallels between caregiver input and early lexical development. (Author/VWL)

Examines the effect of the use of French as a second language on the performance of subjects in receptive skills (listening and reading comprehension) and productive skills (speaking and writing). Results establish a link between the use of the language after learning has occurred and the difference between pre- and post-test measures. (Author/VWL)

Analysis of the first 4 months of word combinations recorded for an Estonian-English learning child suggests that meaning-based generativity may play a role in this important transition in that mixed language utterances, sequence reversals, and errors revealing early attempts at analysis provide clear evidence that distributional learning alone…

A review of research on second language (L2) speech looks at four issues of process and product: whether speech is different from writing; whether oral discourse patterns differ from one language to another; whether L2 speaker oral skills differ significantly from native speakers'; and how L2 speech develops. (MSE)

Focuses on traditional oath forms--those reflecting the value system of African traditional society in general and Rundi-Rwanda society in particular. The empirical research reported is based on approximately 20 hours of taped conversation among speakers of Kirundi-Kinyarwanda living in Burundi. Oath forms in Kirundi-Kinyarwanda provide…

Argues for a more rigorous application of accommodation theory in sociolinguistics, presenting an example of how such rigor might be pursued in an analysis of conversational Bislama, a creole spoken in the Republic of Vanuatu. Focus is on the link between speakers' identities and their linguistic behavior. (MSE)

Three experiments are reported that showed effects of "structure priming," the tendency to repeat syntactic structure across successive sentences. These effects were demonstrated in Dutch, a previously untested language. All experiments studied spoken sentence production. (Author/JL)

Reports data from the initial stage of a large-scale, multi-method survey of the current use of Chinese and English in the professional workplace in Hong Kong. Results indicate that reading and writing in English are demanded frequently in the professional Hong Kong workplace, but that English appears to play a less important role in workplace…

Examines comparable speech and writing samples in the British and American components of the International Corpus of English (ICE) to study properties of coordinate structures in English. Findings indicate that "and" is a primary coordinator, that "but" and "or" are more peripheral, and that the concept of…

Discusses the Graded Objectives for Adults Learning (GOLF) Russian program. The aim of the GOLF program is to have four levels, with Level Four being considered equivalent to a good GCSE pass, at which stage students will have a good working knowledge of the language and a wide vocabulary. (CK)

Postage stamps provide second-language instructors with colorful and appealing materials to emphasize the four language skills and to introduce cultural topics. The use of visual materials in the classroom increases student interest, bestows a sense of the context of the language, and provides a specific reference point of stimulus. (41…

Offers suggestions for drawing attention to form and content in both introductory language courses and upper-division content courses. By implementing strategies for revising traditional speaking and writing tasks through "creative personalization," students can enhance critical thinking skills across the language/literature curriculum…

Examines the speech communities associated with computer-mediated communication (CMC). Summarizes results from research and adds a critical perspective by questioning who is advantaged and disadvantaged by CMC. Brings these concerns to bear on the application of CMC to distance education, raising questions about its use in teaching English as a…