The interaction hypothesis of second language acquisition and associated work by Gass (Input, Interaction, and the Second Language Learner, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers, Mahwah, NJ, 1997), Long (The role of the linguistic environment in second language acquisition, in: W.C. Ritchie, T.K. Bhatia (Eds.), Handbook of Language Acquisition,…

The experimental research of two linguists studying the grammaticality judgments of second language learners, in which the researchers tried to find evidence that second language learners can discriminate between grammatical and ungrammatical sentences on principles of universal grammar, is examined and compared with the results of studies arguing…

An introduction to the conventions of research design and statistical analysis is presented for graduate students of applied linguistics. The chapters cover such concepts as the definition of research, variables, research designs, research report formats, sorting and displaying data, probability and hypothesis testing, comparing means,…

The articles collected in this special issue of "Reading"offer a response to and elaboration of the report of the Bullock Committee on reading. An editorial introduction describes the focus and implications of the report and outlines the committee's main recommendations. Included in the discussion are the following articles:…

Translation may be compared to a cable composed of many simultaneous strands of transfer. In translation, there is replacement which involves general hierarchical organization, grammatical constructions and constituents, mapping of deep onto surface structures, classes, ordering, lexicon, phonology, concordance, points of ambiguity, and…

Survey responses of 121 professionals in applied linguistics indicated a range of knowledge of the concepts and procedures associated with empirical research. Respondents also showed differing attitudes about the usefulness of statistics and techniques in research methodology and the need to be informed about such procedures. (Author/CB)

A study of English as a second language students' generalization of second-language learning showed that maximal generalization of learning took place from structures that were typologically more marked to those structures that were typologically less marked, and not the reverse. (Author/CB)

Examines the concept of washback as an instance of the consequential aspect of construct validity, linking positive washback to direct assessments and the need to minimize construct underrepresentation and construct-irrelevant difficulty in the test. The article explains washback as referring to the extent to which test use influences language…

Highlights the concept of discourse communities, which are used in applied linguistics to analyze written communication. Discusses how the concept developed. (Author/VWL)

Describes the ethnography of communication as a viable, context- and culture-sensitive method for conducting research on classroom discourse. Provides an overview of the method and its role in applied linguistics research and then presents a study of discourse in mainstream high school classes with a large proportion of students who speak English…

Examined the effect on lexical acquisition and retention of first language (L1) multiple-choice glosses, second language (L2) text reconstruction with opportunities to recheck input, and combined treatments. Findings suggests that the multiple-choice gloss treatment resulted in significantly deeper productive and receptive word gains immediately…

Data are presented on some aspects of metalinguistic awareness in Dutch adults who emigrated to Australia at least 25 years ago. The findings show that the migrants do not differ significantly from a control group in the Netherlands, suggesting that first-language metalinguistic skills are extremely resistant to attrition. (Contains nine…

A bilingual child's development of word order in German and English subordinate clauses was followed between age 3 and 5, and a number of diversions from the development of word order in such clauses by monolingual children was noted. (Contains five references.) (Author/LB)

Reviews the reasons for the discourse problem in language study, examines the nature of this problem, and suggests ways in which applied linguists and foreign language teachers can engage in intellectual dialog. It is suggested that applied linguists and language teachers can understand one another by exploring the forces that have shaped their…

Demonstrates the value of proverbs in developing the cross-linguistic understanding of professionals involved in intercultural situations. It is proposed that proverbs can provide insight into the symbol systems of English, Malay, and Arab cultures. (17 references) (Author/CK)