This study investigated whether "avoidance" is an appropriate term to describe the linguistic behavior in which the learner with a particular first-language (L1) background tries to underproduce or underrepresent a particular second-language (L2) structure. The first section seeks to establish the general psycholinguistic principle that…

A two-volume resource book addresses the particular needs of English as a Second Language (ESL), English language center, and transitional skills teachers. The volumes are designed to help meet the language and educational needs of ESL students in British Columbia. Volume I provides a framework for the design of language instruction as part of…

Supported is the argument that cognitive development should not be studied alone, in isolation from wider questions about the history of thought in the scientific community. Interest in the topic resulted from dissatisfaction with British secondary school Language-for-Learning movement assertions that learners' active use of their own speech and…

This set of five papers, written in German with abstracts in English, was collected by the Institut fuer Didaktit der Mathematik (Institute for the Teaching of Mathematics) at the University of Bielefeld in West Germany. In the first paper, Bauersfeld used a transcript of a videotaped scene of group work out of school as a basis for analyzing…

Theories of human cognition and language suggest that there is a gap between the phases of perception and the phases of production of language. Unfortunately, this is often forgotten in language teaching, so that beginners' courses too frequently contain simplified and non-authentic linguistic input to assure that output does not lag too far…

A discussion of the use of songs to teach French as a second language focuses on the value of songs in teaching aspects of pronunciation. An introductory section describes the benefits of songs as instructional material, particularly to impart cultural information about Quebec to Canadian anglophones. Three sections outline justifications for the…

A computer-assisted language learning (CALL) software evaluation form that looks directly at important aspects of language teaching approaches is presented. Examples of typical evaluation checklists are described to illustrate how they fail to address the appropriate questions for language teaching software. Three major categories of language…

This study examined transitional knowledge during literacy development, hypothesizing that there are times when the integration of reading and writing knowledges into literacy knowledges is problematic for children because these knowledges are out of synch with one another. Data were gathered from 46 kindergarten pupils, each of whom wrote and…

A study examines differences in lexical processing in first and second languages through error patterns in speech. The investigation assumes that although the internal planning of speech cannot be examined, it is manifested in output errors, such as slips of the tongue, writing errors, aphasic speech, and some temporal properties of speech, and…

To determine the relationship between oral and written language conventions at the macro and micro levels, a study analyzed various elements of stories generated by children. Subjects, nine above average readers between grades 4 and 9, were asked to tell a story and then to write a story. Sources of stories, overall plot organization, and number…

The nature of children's communication processes of listening, speaking, reading, and drawing/writing that occur during story time is explored in this paper, which describes story time as a literacy event. The framework that children develop during story-time can serve as a vehicle for language arts instruction. In helping children cultivate…

The eight articles in this focused journal issue are concerned with integrating reading, writing, and thinking, with varying attention to other language processes such as listening and speaking. The titles and authors of the articles are (1) "Does What You Read Influence How You Write?" by Dennis Adams; (2) "Dictation: Building…

Communicative proficiency, defined as native-like ability to use the language as a medium of two-way communication, is most effectively and efficiently achieved through instruction emphasizing development of listening and reading comprehension skills, and virtually excluding training in production. The comprehension approach avoids the teaching of…

A study was undertaken to determine the feasibility of research on individual variation in translation performance. Three translations produced by 20 students in their second year of an advanced English translation program at the Dutch State School of Translation, were analyzed for variability in the translation of Dutch modal verbs. It was…

Two studies investigated: (1) aspects of the language of native-English-speaking (ES) and non-native-English-speaking (NES) parents of children learning English and (2) the demands made on the listening of young children learning English from native-speaking parents and non-native-speaking parents. Information in the parent study was drawn from…