A study was carried on to analyze a data set in order to determine whether evidence can be found to support or refute the unitary factor hypothesis of language proficiency, which asserts that there is a single language dimension or factor underlying different language tests. The subjects were 50 advanced adult learners of English as a second…

This newsletter reports on a project concerning the linguistic development of immigrant children in Sweden in upper secondary school. The project is part of an extensive program on immigrant children's schooling and attainment of bilingualism conducted by the SPRINS Group at the University of Goteborg (SPRINS in Swedish represents "linguistic…

Materials to be used in workshops to teach language teacher trainees the communicative approach to language testing are presented. The materials were developed from a 1985 Council of Europe workshop held in York, England. They include preliminary notes for workshop organizers, an introductory "ice-breaker" activity, and six content…

A model for adult language learning is developed based on the postulates that language is semiotic, contextual, communicative, and cultural. Research in psycholinguistics has discovered that a cognitive and recognitional knowledge of language underlies and is greater than performative language. The move from the first level, the semantic base, to…

This paper focuses on an important aspect of second language acquisition, namely, the complex set of modifications in the rules governing the forms and functions of the new language that are required by specific sociocultural contexts. These adjustments in language, or shifts in register, play a crucial role in interpreting utterances for social…

A statistical analysis was made of the most productive term-formation processes in English, German, French, and Russian in the field of chemistry. The study deals with (1) the morphological aspect of term-formation, that is, the most productive affixes involved in term-formation in the four languages; and (2) the syntactical aspect, that is, the…

The effect of evaluation method on English as second language (ESL) learners' revisions of their compositions was investigated. Teacher comments, peer evaluations, and English-speaking peer reformulations were compared. Judges rated the revised compositions of 9 advanced and 14 intermediate college ESL students using the ESL Composition Profile.…

This booklet is designed for eleven-to-fifteen year old students who are in, or who have just completed, a French immersion program. It addresses two concerns of students and their parents: (1) how well students are achieving in French, in English, in other subjects, and in their overall intellectual development; and (2) what possibilities exist…

The second language learning methods of Southern Baptist missionaries in Zambia are described. Instead of studying the new language in a school setting, the student receives a week of orientation and is then placed in the community and expected to practice communicating with the native speakers at every opportunity. The student follows a course…

A study is presented which attempts to clarify the notion of communicative proficiency in a foreign language and which outlines an instructional model that incorporates the insights of the study. Communicative proficiency is defined as fluent mastery of the foreign language in different contexts. The definition was operationalized into discourse…

Studies of age differences in second language learning ability are collected along with commentary on the results. The 12 papers describe long and short term studies of children and adults that focus on the optimal age for second language acquisition, the effect of different teaching methods and environments on age differences, and theories that…

The place of poetry in teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) and the role of linguistics are considered. It is suggested that poetry teaching has a place in advanced EFL learners' progreams as a means of extending the learners' knowledge of the language and increasing their sense of appropriateness and sensitivity to language use. The value…

The implications of family communication styles for teaching English as a second language (ESL) are explored. Family interaction types differ according to culture and social class. Factors in family interaction influence the way a second language is learned and the way it can best be taught. Two basic family types are distinguished: the personal…

A study of the possible transfer of reading skills from a first language other than English to English, called script-carryover effects, focused on two aspects of the written language: (1) the manner in which the script represents information about sound and meaning, and (2) whether or not the script uses the same graphemic characters as English.…

Ten commonly-held positions concerning language learning and teaching and counter-positions for each are presented with the counter-positions supported with experiences from a first-year French classroom. The positions challenged are: (1) it is inappropriate to mix English and the target language in the same spoken sentence; (2) students cannot…