Describes some stable syntactic features of Swazi English. Discusses, among others, the use of the modal auxiliary "must," the use of "as to," the conflation of the emphatic "do" with the simple past tense, and dangling modifiers. (Author/JL)

Previous investigations of the variable marking of past time by the L2 learner have given rise to a number of hypotheses which predict the patterns of acquisition and use of past time markers in interlanguage (IL). However, given the complicity between their predictions, it has been previously noted that hypotheses such as the aspect and discourse…

This paper presents patterns of accentual alignment in two varieties of Spanish spoken in the Basque Country: Lekeitio Spanish (LS), with speakers whose other native language is Lekeitio Basque (LB); and Vitoria Spanish (VS), with monolingual speakers of Spanish from the city of Vitoria. These patterns are compared to those of Madrid Spanish (MS),…

In traditional classifications of languages by inflectional subsystems, both creole languages and the results of untutored SLA (interlanguages) are classified as isolating. We focus on remnants of verbal inflectional morphology in French-related creoles and ask: (a) Can the properties of verbal morphology be attributed to SLA, and (b) what does…

The main assumption in this article is that the pragmatics of the variety of South African English commonly referred to as black South African English (BSAE) have been shaped, over time, by educated bilinguals, through a transfer of features from African languages. Transfer of syntactic forms, now firmly established in the variety, is evidenced…

This brochure explains in lay terms what an accent is and how it occurs, focusing on how learners of English-as-a-Second-language come to have what is perceived as an accent. It begins with an explanation of two kinds of accent: that of a non-native speaker and that of a speaker from a particular region in which a language is spoken. The second…

This booklet outlines the content and activities of two workshops aimed at improving the teaching of children who speak Black English. Its goals are to supplement research reports on test development in the area of Black English and to serve as a useful starting point for those who rely on the workshop format to inform teachers about Black English…

This document presents some of the issues involved in deciding on a national language for the Philippines. It is noted that the Philippines needs a national language which would be accepted by most of the forty-five million Filipinos. If the trend continues for the next five years and if the trend in the Philippines to shift Pilipino (the national…

Considers the evolving pedagogical dilemma surrounding the teaching of "New French" and discusses the various options foreign-language teachers will eventually have to choose among when teaching French. (CB)

The vocative use of the Chinese term of address "tongzhi" ("comrade"), is analyzed. It was found that in its unmarked form it is a neutral term, but marked, its use becomes a negotiation to change the social distance between speaker and addressee, possibly explaining how certain such structures evolve and are maintained. (MSE)

Describes the teaching methods of the Yazigi Institutes of Brazil, which offer Portuguese instruction to foreigners. (JB)

Considers the role of native-speaker English language teachers in Hong Kong. First, the article examines the concept of native speaker and offers five criteria that determine whether a person can be classed as a native speaker or not. Second, it focuses on the use of native-speaker English teachers in Hong Kong, with particular reference to a…

Discusses the feasibility of Basic Variety (BV) principles proposed by Klein and Perdue, arguing that some of them need clarification with learner varieties and that they are not part of Universal Grammar (UG) as they exclude phenomena (e.g., psych verbs) that cannot be excluded from the core of natural language. (15 references) (Author/CK)

Hebrew-speaking fourth and seventh graders from lower middle-class backgrounds were tested on gender markings of numerals in two situations involving monitored and unmonitored situations. Results indicated the disappearance of gender agreement in Modern Hebrew numerals and a re-analysis of numeral suffixes by speakers. (Author/JL)

Discusses globalization and diversification within four language issues for adult literacy: (1) the spread of a small number of world languages, (2) development of the varieties of language, (3) choice of language for education and official life, and (4) disappearing languages. (JP)