Surveys research on formal and informal second-language learning strategies, covering the effectiveness of research methods involving making lists, interviews and thinking aloud, note-taking, diaries, surveys, and training. Suggestions for future and improved research are presented. (131 references) (CB)

An assessment of the substantive progress made regarding the study of language contact and bilingualism in the Hispanic world explores research concerning language contact and grammars, the bilingual speech community and linguistic structure, and bilingual discourse. (45 references) (CB)

Volapuek, an artificial language that preceded Esperanto and was the center of a short-lived movement, is undergoing an attempted revival spearheaded by Esperantists. Volapuek is recognized as the first successful international language in the history of planned languages. (Author/MSE)

Preschool children's early understanding of letters was explored. Five tasks were designed to elicit information about children's conceptualizations of letters in their own names, and the children's responses were analyzed descriptively to determine general patterns. (Author/VWL)

This article compares three models of morphological storage and processing: (1) the dual-processing model of Pinker, Marcus and others; (2) the connectionist model of Marchman, Plunkett, Seidenberg, and others; and (3) the network model of Bybee and Langacker. Type frequency of a morphological pattern is shown to be important in determining…

A formal reading of word groups and a same/different listening test revealed that Hungarian Americans in South Bend, Indiana, exhibit a continuum in a short front unrounded low vowel phoneme, showing important differences between the informant's perception and production. The Hungarian-American and metropolitan Hungarian data were compared to…

French Creoles are spoken in many different parts of the world, including the Indian Ocean, United States, Caribbean, and South America. These Kweyol speech communities are described, in the Kweyol Project, which examines Kweyol language issues and the establishment of a Kweyol Literacy Scheme. (Contains 15 references.) (LB)

It is argued that "unplanned" language policy and planning are an important but underexamined aspect of the field of language planning. Planners must consider the problems raised by "unplanned" aspects and scholars must document their effects on language planning. (Contains 15 references.) (LB)

The development, use, and initial evaluation of a prototype computer system is described that enables nonspeaking persons with severe disabilities to engage in conversation on broad topics. Features include speech acts selected from a prestored menu and facilities for switching conversational perspectives between speaker and listener. (Contains 53…

Examines recent trends in phonetics and phonology and their influence on second language instruction, specifically grammar and lexicography. An annotated bibliography discusses nine important works in the field. (99 references) (MDM)

A detailed study of the developing intuitions of English-speaking adult learners of second-language French was conducted. One finding, that English-speaking learners of French can use nonparametrized properties of Universal Grammar to handle surface syntactic English-French differences, supports an emerging view about the role of parametrized…

It is argued that typological markedness rather than sonority distance per se better explains second-language learners' knowledge of English clusters in syllable onsets. Further, markedness alone suffices to account for the observed interlanguage patterns. (Contains 19 references.) (Author/LB)

This article discusses what constitutes a good vocabulary notebook by first deriving 11 principles from language memory and language research that can serve as a guide in the creation of a pedagogically sound notebook. A design for vocabulary notebooks is presented that emphasizes the incremental learning of vocabulary and different aspects of…

Examined whether the use of superordinate terms in 206 children's definitions is predictable by relevance theory. Children (ages 5-10) gave definitions for 16 basic-level words and 4 superordinate words from natural kind and artifact semantic domains. Superordinate terms were used more frequently when they supported more inferences. Findings…

This paper examines contemporary trends in the error correction literature. Emphases are on types of errors and methods of correction that affect second-language acquisition. (54 references) (JL)