Discusses research in semantic processing and narrative discourse by psycholinguists, applied linguists, and speech pathologists. Focuses on children's comprehension of the language of instruction and contrasts normal and disordered comprehension and performance. Presents excerpts from two language evaluations that utilize some recent approaches…

Compares the processing of English words by Chinese-English bilinguals with that of monolingual English speakers. Subjects read and rated English words for their contribution to sentence structure and meaning. It was found that bilinguals generally rated English words as contributing more to sentence structure and meaning than did monolinguals.…

Presents and discusses the results of an exploratory study seeking to determine the effects of an intervention program on aging on children's perceptions of elderly persons. It was found that classroom interaction with older people and exposure to media with accurate information about aging positively changes preschoolers' attitudes toward aging.…

The value of using more than one data collection procedure to investigate an educational question is illustrated. A semantic differential instrument provided an index of the direction and intensity of teachers' attitudes, but an unstructured interview provided a more detailed portrayal of their opinions. (RM)

Argues that the process of learning to write should be recognized as a process of learning how to construct different kinds of written texts, each representing a different way of making meaning. (HOD)

Since polysemy narrows down the semantic autonomy of the isolated word and increases the importance of the surrounding context, teaching children this concept is critical in order to prevent ambiguity and confusion. Concerning socially disadvantaged children, it is particularly essential to convey the idea that one phenomenon can have different…

Psycholinguists feel that the reading process and reading instruction should be reviewed in light of language and learning theories. (JH)

A Case Study is presented in this article, where there is a contradiction between pre-algebraic language semantic and syntax used to solve word problems through a negative integers subtraction. Appendix includes answer key. (Contains 1 figure.) [For complete proceedings, see ED500859.]

The apparent difficulty of students of French as a second language to acquire French vocabulary is examined, drawing on experience with teaching Irish university students and the structures and stylistic traits peculiar to French. It is noted that while certain kinds of words (noun, verb, adjective, adverb) occupy little space in text, they take…

This paper considers the importance of teaching "register" in the Spanish as a second language classroom. Generally speaking, register means "variety according to use." A register is what you are speaking at the time determined by what you are doing (the nature of the social activity being engaged in), and an expression of…

Argues for language tests based on a view of linguistic competence broad enough to recognize the importance of social-psychological factors in the use of language. Paper prepared for a conference on language testing at Idyllwild, California, November 7-8, 1968. (FWB)

Three- and four-year-old children were tested in their comprehension of locative prepositions. Results showed that those prepositions characterized as positive were comprehended less well than their ostensibly negative counterparts, contrary to theoretical predictions. An explanatory hypothesis concerning children's developing spatial…

A method used at Bradley University to assess the institution's public image consisted of a series of paired descriptive phrases through which potential students could compare the school with their ideal college in academic factors, location, size, campus, costs, and career placement. (MSE)

A model of language abilities in matrix form is described in which areas of language ability are defined in terms of the effects of receptive and expressive language processes on four linguistic levels: phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics. (Author)