Discusses what contributes to success in second-language acquisition, focusing on how cognitive and cultural styles affect a person's ability to study and learn a second language. (81 references) (GLR)

The notion of critical linguistics is examined, and it is argued that the diverse objectives usually given for Language Awareness programs appear to be given desocializing weightings in actual materials. Ways that Critical Language Awareness can be incorporated into a family history writing project are described. (20 references) (Author/LB)

The proposed 1991 reforms to French spelling discussed in a previous issue of "Babel" have been abandoned. This article notes the history of other efforts to rectify French spelling and reviews the French Academy's decision-making process in the current effort. (LB)

Examines the different meanings of the term discourse, comparing the common use of discourse analysis in applied linguistics with its use both in critical discourse analysis and in a Foucauldian use of the term. An attempt is made to show how these different approaches imply profoundly different understandings of the relationship between language,…

Selected examples of the independence of and interaction between language pedagogy and theoretical and applied linguistics research are presented. It is noted that those involved in language pedagogy still function too independently and that interaction must occur to make progress in language pedagogy and linguistics. (23 references) (Author/LB)

Several different conceptualizations of applied linguistics are evaluated, ranging from "applications of linguistic theory" to alternative models for studying language that extend and complement generative grammar as a theory of language. It is shown that they imply substantive differences in goals, methods, and priorities of language study. (30…

Responds to a previous article on research in second-language learning, challenging the need for discussion on the promises and problems, and asserting the need to report definitive results. (Author/JL)

By organizing the research reference game as a mirror, educational video feedback contributes toward creating a new pleasure. The representations of teaching arouse reflection on the action among novices; joint viewing of sessions shot in classrooms are called stimulated recall sessions, case studies, or reflective practice workshops. They allow…

Puts forward a theoretical frame for analysis that allows for different lines of research within a perspective of comparative didactics. These lines of research are productive of clarification of a multidisciplinary kind about matters of teaching and teacher education. (Author/VWL)

Offers a concluding summary to a special issue of the journal on applied linguistics as an emerging discipline. Raises concerns and discusses future directions. (Author/VWL)

Public opinion research is not an area that has received much attention from applied linguists. But language lies at the heart of the procedures used to define, elicit, and report opinions, whether through such methods as polling, interviews, and focus groups, or through the less obvious channels of vox pop interviews, letters to the editor, radio…

In philosophy, authenticity has been used with two meanings: one entails the notion of correspondence; the other entails the notion of genesis (Cooper, 1983: 15). As in certain branches of philosophy, language teaching has perhaps clung too long to the first of these notions of authenticity at the expense of the other. This paper reviews four key…

Eight essays in ethnolinguistics were compiled for this monograph. "Functions of Speech: An Evolutionary Approach" represents an introduction to the application of linguistic knowledge to the historical and sociological study of peoples. "Speech and Language: On the Origins and Foundations of Inequality among Speakers" expands on the theme of…

The natural process of learning language is to concentrate on what we mean, not only on how we are saying it. What we mean is dependent upon the context in which we speak. This context in turn depends on the society or the speech-community in which our speech act takes place. To be a member of a speech community is to know what language behavior…

Discusses the polarization between the linguistic and the communicative approaches to foreign language teaching, and suggests a compromise. Illustrates this with the treatment of English verb tenses in teaching beginners, and outlines a teaching plan. (IFS/WGA)