Addresses the accessibility of texts produced by the Overseas Development Administration. This research analyzes a corpus of texts and shows that factors making the texts difficult include poor linguistic structure, contextual structure, conceptual structure, and unclear operationalisation of the reader-writer relationship. (18 references)…

Examines why learners of Mandarin use overt nouns and pronouns to a greater extent than native speakers. Findings indicate that no single syntactic structure is a significant contributor to the different rates of optional ellipsis but that some learners use ellipsis only in syntactic contexts permissible in English and most use it in a narrower…

Challenges the assumption that contextualized vocabulary learning invariably leads to superior retention. The article compares two different instructional treatments in a university classroom experiment in China in the teaching of English as a foreign language: the study of contextualized versus decontextualized English word lists. (40 references)…

Examines the processes involved in language planning and policy and the role of English language teaching professionals in deciding and promoting language policies as well as how these professionals affect changes in their local contexts. Conclusions indicate that linguistic self-determinism is viable and desirable because it promotes social…

Considers the formal education of a group of Native American students who have not traditionally done well in school and suggests a cultural mismatch between the home culture of these students and the culture of the Western school. Findings indicate that culture influences discourse styles, expectations for classroom behavior, and classroom social…

Discusses conversations between tutor and student in British and Japanese culture, concentrating on face threatening acts such as criticisms, suggestions, and requests. The article distinguishes the attitudes of the "conciliator,""negotiator,""defender,""resigner," and "nonelaborator" and concludes…

Investigates whether children ages 1;6 just beginning to learn words can learn new words in a variety of nonostensive contexts. The results of two studies involving adults interacting with children in games of searching for objects suggest that from very early in language acquisition, children learn words through active attempts to understand…

Studies of persistent poverty in rural Texas, Mississippi, and Appalachia illustrate how political economies that rely on low wages and extreme control over labor generate rigid stratification. This structure of inequality determines social interaction and allocation of opportunities in rural communities, blocking upward mobility, and undermines…

Describes a mispronunciation detection task, in which listeners' sensitivity to deviations in speech is measured by their pressing a button upon hearing a mispronounced word in lists or sentences. Notes that reaction times and miss rates indicate the effects of position of a misplaced phoneme in a word, the size of the phonemic deviation, lexical…

The Adjustment Scales for Preschool Intervention (ASPI) was developed and tested for use in preschool programs serving low-income children, as a measure of emotional and behavioral adjustment problems observed within routine classroom situations. Validity of behavioral dimensions measured was supported. Dimensions of problem behaviors varied as a…

Observed home interaction between parents and 2- and 4-year-olds at Time 1 and 2 years later. Found that parent mental state talk to children varied by child's age, context of talk, and parent gender. Four-year-olds with older siblings produced and heard more cognitive talk and less desire talk than children without older siblings. Time 1 family…

Discusses careful planning, enlightened leadership, informed and enthusiastic teachers, and continuous evaluation as prerequisites for successful interdisciplinary teamwork. Suggests that interdisciplinary teaming allows better use of faculty members' skills, and provides better strategies for dealing with diversified populations, better…

Examines an in-service training session developed for use in the state sector in Thailand that aims to help teachers come to terms with some of the problems inherent in large classes. The article is based on the author's previous experience in Thailand and his continuing involvement there in teacher development. (11 references) (Author/CK)

Seeks to link the rapid pace of societal change in Hong Kong over the past 50 years with changing patterns of language use there. Shows how the country has changed demographically, economically, politically, socially, and technologically. (16 references) (Author/CK)

Studied discrepancies between Canadian first-graders' home and school literacy contexts regarding the contexts' potential to promote self-regulated approaches to reading and writing. Examined the extent to which differences were reflected in the children's attitudes toward and engagement in reading and writing at school. Found some discontinuity…