Appropriate uses of "des" and "les" in the description of individuals' physical attributes are outlined according to a grammatical model of sentence structure. Several examples of each usage are provided. (MSE)

Discusses syntactic and stylistic errors in the language of advertising and the reason for these linguistic irregularities. Suggests ways of dealing with the problem. (EL)

Urges extended and broadened use of error analysis in school activities because observing how children perform during varied literacy activities can allow clues to their linguistic rules for using oral and written language and the sociolinguistic rules children are discovering in the classroom. (DF)

Investigates the nature of threats and their responses as collaborative units in children's discourse. Research indicates that girls prefer withhold-object or action and harm-threats while boys focus exclusively on harm-threats. Younger children produce more threats than older children, and threats occur more frequently in child-directed settings…

The report of a sociolinguistic study of language usage in Montreal describes the historical and current roles of French and English, discusses Montreal's current linguistic situation in terms of two sociolinguistic concepts (code switching and the speech community), and outlines a survey examination of language use in retail transactions. (MSE)

Questions whether the emphasis placed on the teaching of grammar in the American school curriculum will yield more than modest benefits. Suggests that literacy cannot be attained primarily through analyzing sentences and memorizing rules. (RBW)

Explains how to involve students in teaching poetry. (FL)

Discusses examples of peer social interaction and language play among fourth through sixth graders. Suggests that these sub-rosa skills be taken into consideration during classroom assessment of language competence and development. (HTH)

Four versions of several paragraphs had the same second sentence and were referentially coherent, but they differed in causal relatedness of the two sentences. Results showed that despite referential coherence, recognition and recall memory for the causes was poorest for the most and least related causes and best for causes of intermediate…

Surveyed company executives to discover whether their attitudes toward business slang expressions, or "buzzwords," were as negative as attitudes generally encountered in academics and journalists. Results suggest that buzzwords are useful, can sometimes be expressive, and add precision and comfort to everyday business communication. (PD)

It is argued that, contrary to some theories, there can be considerable creativity and thought brought to the use of a second language. Examples are drawn from authors who have made full use of the stylistic resources of their second languages. (MSE)

Analyzes what counts as knowledge in social studies education and the power relations that structure discourse and discursive practices in this field. Argues that knowledge and power interpenetrate and act to produce and reproduce each other. Shows some of the ways this works in social studies education. (CMG)

Discusses strategies involved in learning the languages used in technical areas. (FL)

Examines the effects of speaker sex, socioeconomic status, ability, communication apprehension, ridigity, and question type on the incidence of 16 style markers and on verbosity in simulated job interviews. (EKN)

Raises questions about the possible effects of the language of computers--which is impersonal, technical, specialized, formal, unemotional, and precise--on the naturally emotional, imprecise, informal, and inclusive language of people. (MM)