Elucidates the psycholinguistic mechanics of the "output hypothesis" and argues that output serves an important role in second language acquisition because it generates specific input the cognitive system needs to build up a coherent set of knowledge. The article hypothesizes that the locus of the effect of output is in the transition of…

Reconceptualizes a cognitive apprenticeship method to provide foreign language teachers in charge of beginning language levels with the knowledge necessary to acquire the strategies of reciprocal teaching. The article gives teachers an example of a set of lesson plans that embeds the teaching of prerequisite declarative and procedural knowledge…

Presents a literature review seeking to answer four questions: (1) What is washback? (2) How does washback work? (3) How can we promote positive washback? and (4) How can we investigate washback? A model is proposed that identifies participants, processes and products which may influence or be influenced by, washback. Strategies for investigating…

Examines conversational arguing style of three groups of language learners: students from a Hispanic background (G1); those who lived for a year in a Hispanic country (G2); and those who were in contact with the language only as part of their tertiary-level education (G3). Findings reveal that G1 and G2 students exhibited a similar argumentative…

Discusses the need to use the "communicative approach" to teach French grammar in French immersion classes in Canada. Emphasis is placed on the value of using a "needs-based syllabus" that considers the immediate and long-term employment needs of each individual, as well as the psychological and developmental needs. (18…

Argues that an educational perspective is required for examining how second language acquisition (SLA) can contribute to language pedagogy (LP). Different models of application are considered, reflecting different ways of viewing teaching. It is suggested that SLA constitutes a source of "provisional specifications" that practitioners can evaluate…

"Language for business" programs, well established at universities, could be expanded to include beginning language courses. It is argued that "language for business" courses at the beginner's level can attain some of the goals of business language study at an early stage and usefully complement their more advanced…

Examines the reading and writing strategies of one student over a three-year period and traces the process she went through to acquire college-level academic literacy in English, her second language. Suggests that the student's educational background shaped her approach to United States academic discourse practices. (TB)

Describes the origin and reason for a survey conducted by questionnaire of pedagogical software use in Italian as a foreign language; analyzes each of the aspects surveyed; and ends with an overview of the current situation, including suggestions for the future. Describes projects respondents have developed or are developing. Findings reveal that…

Presents a case study of the business Japanese program for intermediate and advanced students at the University of Utah. Notes that when offering courses in Japanese, colleges are challenged on how to cope with diversification for the purpose of study, specifically in business Japanese courses. Concludes that it is imperative that American…

Analyzes the incorporation patterns of well-educated, but low proficiency, Chinese immigrants (n=4) to Spain and of high-proficiency Chinese university students (n=4) with extensive formal training in Spanish. Findings reveal that whereas the university students showed awareness of error and successfully incorporated native speakers' corrections,…

Describes an intercultural e-mail exchange at the college level. Students in a beginning Spanish class in the United States and an intermediate English-as-a-Second-Language class in Mexico corresponded weekly for one semester. Suggestions for implementing electronic exchanges are offered. (Author/VWL)

Points to the power struggles in the teaching of Englishes and the training of language professionals in expanding, outer, and inner circle contexts of English use. Argues that these conflicts are ethical in nature and that a framework for addressing them must be incorporated into the theory and practice of language teaching and teacher training.…

Proposes that an analysis of academic letters provides insight into the variety of language forms used both formally and informally in academic writing and into the entire process by which knowledge is produced, evaluated, and published. Analyzed a sample of letters to the editor. (Author/VWL)

Examines how selected research articles reporting empirical investigations in applied linguistic proceed from first presenting results to eventually offering final conclusions or some other form of closure. (Author/VWL)