This report is an attempt at revising the 1961 Fife-Nelsen report's list of priority African languages. In making decisions regarding priorities, the following kinds of data are considered most useful: statistical data on the languages involved, such as where the languages are spoken and how many people speak them; data on the cultural role of…

This paper reports on an experiment in mathemagenic behavior ("Student inspection and processing activities that give birth to learning") as related to second-language vocabulary learning. The experiment was designed to determine whether visual mnemonics are more effective than unelaborated rehearsal technique for learning FL vocabulary, and…

Metalinguistic knowledge, or linguistic awareness, involves the ability to focus attention upon the form of language in and of itself, rather than merely as the vehicle by which meaning is conveyed. This ability to analyze language structures lags behind spontaneous speaking and listening performance because of the additional cognitive skills…

Landes (1975) reviewed research studying adult-child linguistic interactions. Evidence that the language which adults use in addressing young children is different from that used in addressing adults and that parent-child interaction patterns change with the increasing age and language skills of the child has important implications for the study…

A partnership between Cold Lake First Nations and the University of Alberta, the Daghida Project, aims to revitalize Dene Suline--the local dialect of the Dene language--and the culture that depends upon it. Residential schools had a devastating effect on the Dene language and way of life, disrupting normal linguistic and cultural transmission…

This paper presents suggestions for writing and publishing articles in second language teaching journals, focusing on three areas: getting started (appreciating the benefits of writing for publication, starting with good ideas, efficiency, considering options beyond the typical article, choosing a good topic, replicating research, cooperating with…

Ways in which the field of applied linguistics is evolving in the changing global context are examined. After a brief review of the field's history in the late twentieth century, and of the development of a number of related professional organizations, the emergence of applied linguistics as an interdisciplinary endeavor is discussed. Major areas…

A study investigated the effects of question type (multiple-choice, wh-questions, and cloze items) and question preview on assessment of English-as-a-Foreign-Language (EFL) listening comprehension. Subjects were 90 freshmen at a Chinese university, randomly assigned to two groups. One was administered a question preview before listening to a…

An assessment of the English-as-a-Second-Language curriculum at International Christian University (Japan) looked at: (1) the kind of English language study perceived by students as important for their success; (2) how students' perceived needs compare to the professors' assessments of required academic tasks, as measured by a previous task…

This study investigated the effects of phonological processing on vocabulary development of learners of English as a Second Language. A list of 30 relatively unfamiliar academic English words of from 1-4 syllables was developed. A control group of 28 subjects, first-year students in a University of Hong Kong English enhancement course, were given…

A study compared the rhetoric of letter-writing in English and Japanese, focusing on: (1) relationship between degree of cultural awareness and writing behavior of Japanese students of English as a Second Language (ESL); and (2) relationship of cultural awareness and English proficiency in ESL student writing. Subjects were 120 Japanese college…

An analysis of classroom discourse proposes four frames, modeled as concentric circles. The inner most circle is the lesson frame, removed or sheltered from outside influences and most likely, in a language class, to maintain second-language usage. The next frame from the center is the lesson-support frame, an intermediate layer of classroom…

This study analyzed scaffolding techniques in the context of symbolic or pretend play in the case of a child with developmental learning disabilities (DLD). Interactions in four situations were examined and compared: the DLD child in interaction with her mother and with the speech therapist; and a child of similar age, without DLD, in interaction…

This paper argues that second language instruction that aims to foster speaking skills and natural spoken interaction should be based upon the grammar of the spoken language, and not on grammars that reflect written norms. Using evidence from a corpus of conversational English, this examination focuses on how four grammatical features that occur…

Issues unique to survey research among limited-English-proficient (LEP) populations are discussed, with illustrations drawn from one recent doctoral study. The research in question was on language, culture, and ethnicity in five Chinese-language schools in northern California. Its aim was to investigate the role of the schools in maintaining…