What syntactic patterns emerge in students' use of articles and modals? What are the reasons for these patterns? What implications do the findings of the study have for English language instruction in Botswana? Exactly 1556 essays comprising class assignments, written seminar presentations, test papers and examination scripts from 514 randomly…

Punctuation contributes substantially to the effectiveness of a piece of writing, and its successful use calls for an awareness of the sound of written language. For centuries, debates have existed over whether punctuation is determined by grammar, or whether its primary function is to signal the "prosody"--the patterns of pitch and…

A formula for assessing style is described and applied to compositions written by adult students of English as a second language. Style is defined as the total effect of what is done by a writer in the composing process, including choice of words, organization, and sentence and paragraph strategies. Earlier attempts to quantify style are reviewed.…

The freshman composition courses at a southwestern university were originally designed with detailed and explicit standards for the first course, which emphasized grammar, while the standards for the two rhetoric courses were general and left much to the judgment of the teacher. No penalties were exacted for rhetorical or logical lapses, while…

TO IMPLEMENT THE PHILOSOPHY THAT GOOD WRITING STEMS FROM GOOD THINKING AND THAT PRACTICE IN PRODUCTIVE THINKING IS A PREREQUISITE FOR WRITING INSTRUCTION, THE ELEMENTARY TEACHERS OF LOS ALTOS, CALIFORNIA, PREPARED THIS GUIDE FOR TEACHING WRITTEN EXPRESSION IN GRADES KINDERGARTEN THROUGH EIGHT. THE OBJECTIVES ARE TO HELP CHILDREN (1) THINK…

THE PROBLEM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO SEARCH THE WRITINGS OF RECOGNIZED LINGUISTS, PARTICULARLY THE STRUCTURAL LINGUISTS, TO DISCOVER WHAT THEY OFFER WHICH CAN BE APPLIED IN THE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TO IMPROVE THE TEACHING OF THE READING, WRITING, AND GRAMMAR PORTIONS OF THE LANGUAGE ARTS CURRICULUM. THREE PROJECT CONFERENCES WERE HELD - TWO WITH…

Representing the work of an elementary school staff, this language arts curriculum guide presents a philosophy and definition of language arts, the program development sequence, and a discussion of the purpose and place of language arts in the total elementary curriculum. Within each grade level the outlined educational objectives are grouped…

This book reviews for both the experienced and the new teacher essential developments that have helped shape new content in the teaching of English language and composition. The materials contained in the book are designed for independent study, for informal study in workshops or conferences, or for formal study in in-service courses. The chapters…

The teaching of grammar has been in sad decline since medieval times, when it included the whole skill of creating in language. Our textbook community has moved through a series of ineffective fashions, from those of Fries to post-Chomsky. All have presumed to replace prescriptive rules with realistic explanations. But all have fallen, like the…

Examines four common student misconceptions in grammar and punctuation, suggests the reasons for these misconceptions, and argues that teachers need to help students develop a thorough understanding of the English language system. (MM)

Describes in diary form the process of reviewing new composition and grammar texts and noting their deficiencies and compares the offered material to what students actually need in composition instruction. (CRH)

It is often taken for granted that speaking a foreign language is more important than writing it. Writing is, however, important and paradoxically we can only improve our spoken language by writing. Vocabulary and structures are more important than pronunciation and these aspects are, by and large, common to both speaking and writing. (Author/CFM)

This textbook book is an English course intended for use during the seventh and eighth grades and provides for study along both lines of language work, grammar and composition. The book includes a section on dictionary use. The final chapter is devoted to word analysis and was designed especially for the benefit of that great majority of grammar…

A discussion of how one perceive YsI form versus formlessness in discourse." (Author/RD)