Four papers address trends and issues in Hispanic linguistics. "Recent Trends in Hispanic Linguistics" (Frank Nuessel) gives an overview of benchmarks in research on diachronic, sociolinguistic, and applied aspects of Spanish phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics. "African Influence on Hispanic Dialects" (John Lipski)…

The children of Appalachia, a region characterized by a strong oral tradition, are constantly defining their roles in their society through language. In so doing they are contributing to the maintenance of the patterns of life in that society. Children observe the functional uses of story at a very early age, and narratives emphasize group…

Three major stages in the development of language testing have been identified and correlated with corresponding stages in teaching. These are: (1) the pre-scientific stage associated with the grammar-translation method; (2) the psychometric-structuralist stage concomitant with the audio-lingual method; and (3) the integrative-sociometric stage…

The effect of schooling on the acquisition of an additive type of bilingualism is examined, focusing on additive bilingualism's relation to the ethnolinguistic vitality of linguistic groups and contributions of individual networks of linguistic contacts. A special and regular education merger without domination by a single cultural perspective is…

Highlights the danger of using already constructed typologies implying permanent relationships between elements and monolithic categories to analyze real examples of language conflict. A specific case of an established bilingual secondary school in Wales illustrates this danger. (Author/CB)

This paper presents a very comprehensive overview of the communicative language teaching (CLT) approach, presenting the views of critics as well as supporters. CLT views language as a vehicle for communication, and it recognizes as its aim the teaching of communicative competence, which includes grammatical, sociolinguistic, discourse, and…

Repudiates the theory that black dialect has African origins. Supports the British Isles influence theory. (FL)

Maintains that linguistics has great potential value for historians. Contends that the pidgin and creole languages of the former colonies of European nations provide avenues for examining the histories of "people without history." (CFR)

This book introduces the general reader to the mosaic of American Indian languages and cultures as they exist in time and space, and supplies limited technical linguistic orientation to encourage further exploration of language interrelationships, cultures, and other ways of knowing. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the status, diversity, and…

A discussion of teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) focuses on principles and techniques for the development of one form of communicative competence, i.e., sociolinguistic competence. First, the concept of sociolinguistic competence is explained, drawing on research in this area. Sources of problems in development of second language…

This volume of the annual review includes introductory remarks by G. Richard Tucker and these papers: "Current Issues in Bilingualism: An Update of Directions in Research" (Braj B. Kachru); "Psycholinguistics: Application. The Writing System as a Native Language for the Deaf" (Danny D. Steinberg); "Sociolinguistics: Theory" (Monica Heller);…

This paper reviews selected findings from two traditions of educational research--process-product research and sociolinguistic research. The first research method generally focuses on the teacher and identifies teacher behaviors (processes) that correlate with student outcome measures (products). Sociolinguistic research focuses on communicative…

The fact that some people learn a second language more easily than others has prompted numerous studies designed to link one factor or another with successful language learning. This work examines a large number of these studies to assess the importance of various factors involved in language learning. The influencing factors suggested are grouped…

This is a reflection on certain aspects of sociolinguistic and linguistic problems of French in West Africa, particularly in Senegal and the Ivory Coast. The sociolinguistic section discusses the role French has played in Africa and still plays vis-a-vis African languages and English. Conditions in which French is used and attitudes both of…

Considers the culturally patterned set of analogic renamings found in Huli baby talk, nursery rhymes, and children's verbal games. An analysis of socialization activities shows a marked concern with body motifs and appellations and inter-adult behavior involving talk about the body, and showing that such language sensitizes children to cultural…