This article discusses the impact of internationalisation on the strategy and language policy of the Portuguese University of Aveiro. In addition, it analyses how the Department of Languages and Cultures of the University contributes to the language policy. For the University of Aveiro, internationalisation is a priority and a distinctive feature…

With the increasingly significant role that English language teaching (ELT) is playing in Asian contexts, it is important to gain a better understanding of the use of English as a medium of intercultural communication in Asia. In doing so, ELT practices may be better able to adapt themselves to the intercultural communicative needs of local…

These are exciting and challenging times for English language curriculum development for school-age learners. The global reach of English has spurred a rethinking of its role in education and, consequently, a rethinking of how to teach it. The accounts in this volume represent differences in educational systems, language teaching traditions,…

Semiotics is the scientific study of signs and sign functions. While semiotics has most often focused on human phenomena, it has been suggested that the field should be broadened to include elements of the system of signs from the entire continuum of living reality. Such an approach is to make explanatory in a relatively "universal" way…

This book discusses, in non-technical terms, how language contributes to and expresses discrimination in relation to race/ethnicity, sex, and disability. It provides guidelines and practical suggestions on how to avoid discriminatory language in relation to these areas and is primarily addressed to writers, editors, and public speakers who are…

This paper discusses the theories of Jurgen Habermas, one of the most influential and prolific constructive philosophers of the past quarter century, with the purpose of showing why Habermas' goal to uncover the inherent aspects of language which make possible communication is unattainable. The paper argues that the very self-referentiality…

This paper argues that, while Kenneth Burke may be placed by some writers squarely in either the modern or the postmodern tradition, Burke participates in both but is marginal to each, and thus "beyond" them. The first section briefly traces the outline of Burke's philosophy of rhetoric. With that framework as a backdrop, the second…

Describes techniques employed in public doublespeak and suggests that graffiti is a response to these techniques. (DD)

Discusses six crises of verbal language which are imminent due to our reliance on the mass media and our separation from the phenomenal world. (DD)

Discusses the best known modern theory of argumentation, that of Perelman and Olbrechts-Tyteca, which follows from classical rhetoric and contains a monological view of argumentation, concentrating on effectiveness with a passive audience. Argues that it is at least a partially incorrect interpretation of the classical rhetorical theory of…

Analyzes the major types of metaphors used in the political news reports of the 1985 U.S.-Soviet summit talk in Geneva. Notes that of the three major metaphors--war, business, and sports--war metaphors were used most frequently, reflecting the tensions between the two countries. (MM)

Literacy education concerns itself with assessing student needs and determining the appropriate methods for meeting them, without considering the ethical framework in which those "needs" find meaning. This paper argues that a notion of reflective communication, based on Jurgen Habermas's theory of "Discourse," provides an…

This paper focuses on one of the central concepts of Mikhail Bakhtin's philosophy of language: his theory of the utterance as speech genre. Before exploring speech genres, the paper discusses Bakhtin's ideas concerning language--both language as a general system, and the use of language as particular speech communication. The paper considers…

Offers several reasons for a renewed interest in language instruction in the United States. (RL)

Critical review of Frederick J. Newmeyer's article, "Linguistic Theory, Language Teaching, Sociolinguistics: Can They Be Interrelated?,' in "The Modern Language Journal," v57 n8 p405-10 Dec 1973. (RL)