Examines differences in oral narrative discourse of adult second-language learners of English on narrative tasks simulating the ability to describe events in the Here-and-Now versus the There-and-Then. Results indicate that complex tasks elicit less fluent, but more accurate and complex narration than do simpler tasks. (90 references) (Author/CK)

Examined syntactic development in acquisition of Swedish as a first language in normal (L1) and specifically language-impaired (SLI) children, and acquisition of Swedish as a second language (L2). Similarity between SLI learners and L2 learners is evidence against the hypothesis that there is a fundamental L1-L2 difference. Some data are appended.…

The current study examined the provision of corrective feedback and learner repair following feedback in the interactional context of child-to-child conversations, particularly computer mediated, in an elementary Spanish immersion class. The relationship among error types, feedback types, and immediate learner repair were also examined. A total of…

This document contains the 1994 edition of a publication designed to share information in the field of linguistics that is of practical, theoretical, administrative, or general interest. Articles in these issues include: "Ethnography Vs. Questionnaire" (Thomas E. Murray); "Differences: A Diary Entry"--concerning structuralism…

The workbook is designed for teaching Melanesian Pidgin English (Tokpisin) sentence structure to Peace Corps volunteers. It addresses sentence structures that are common to most languages, and uses listening, speaking, translation, and other grammar drills and exercises to reinforce learning. The approach used assumes that a native speaker is…

The collection of papers on linguistic experiments includes: "Discourse Functions of Pitch Range in Spontaneous and Read Speech" (Gayle M. Ayers); "When Is a Syllable Not a Syllable?" (Mary E. Beckman); "The Relationship between Syntactic and Semantic Processes in Sentence Comprehension" (Julie E. Boland); "The Influence of Orthography and…

Papers in phonology, psycholinguistics, and syntax include: "Discriminating between Syntactic and Semantic Processing: Evidence from Event-Related Potentials" (Kim Ainsworth-Darnell); "The Syntactic Structure of Chinese Formal Focus" (Qian Gao); "Employing a Multimodal Logic in an Approach to German Pronoun Fronting"…

This study looks at natural syntactic processes in the development of verbal mood in first- and second-language acquisition, language change in progress, history, and creolization. Correspondences are examined in the development of the subjunctive vs. the indicative mood. The study presents an integrative perspective, taking into account seemingly…

Taiwanese college students have significant difficulty in reading technical texts in English. Based on information gathered from students in freshman English classes in Taiwan, and on previous research, three significant areas of student confusion are: (1) frequent use of prepositions, particularly when an English preposition with multiple…

This paper discusses the development of a criterion-referenced assessment measure for both written English and American Sign Language (ASL) that can be used with deaf elementary through secondary students. The measure is presented as well as the results of a trial use. Developed by the Cleary School for the Deaf, the Cleary Language Assessment…

Renewed interest in the connection between black English and reading difficulty warrants a summary of the groundwork laid in the 1960s and 1970s. Linguists have established the fact that black English is a legitimate language, that its speakers are not language deficient, and that the basic difference in black and standard English pertains to…

With the rapid and dramatic influx of Asians of widely varying background to the United States, more comprehensive planning for literacy education will be increasingly important. Most research on literacy in English as a second language, particularly on transfer of learning from one language to another, focuses on groups with European language…

A curriculum unit on English for mathematics students at the University of Haifa is presented. The text content concerns mathematics while integrating language principles. Exercises are included that involve comprehension of geometric diagrams, reading comprehension, word meanings, and restructuring sentences. The 12 sections cover: projective…

The language community of urban Hispanics in the United States and educational strategies that are appropriate for teaching English as a second language (ESL) in a bilingual/bidialectal language situation are considered. Within the New York City Hispanic community of Puerto Ricans, several varieties of English have been noted: standard English,…

The past 20 years have seen research on language acquisition in the cognitive sciences grow immensely. The current paper offers a fairly extensive review of this literature, arguing that new cognitive theories and empirical data are perfectly consistent with core predictions a behavior analytic approach makes about language development. The review…