Lexical frequency benchmarks have been extensively used to investigate second language (L2) lexical sophistication, especially in language assessment studies. However, indices based on semantic co-occurrence, which may be a better representation of the experience language users have with lexical items, have not been sufficiently tested as…

This paper explores the development of an intelligent translation system for spoken English using Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) models. The fundamental principles of RNNs and their advantages in processing sequential data, particularly in handling time-dependent natural language data, are discussed. The methodology for constructing the…

The 13th iteration of the International Conference on Educational Data Mining (EDM 2020) was originally arranged to take place in Ifrane, Morocco. Due to the SARS-CoV-2 (coronavirus) epidemic, EDM 2020, as well as most other academic conferences in 2020, had to be changed to a purely online format. To facilitate efficient transmission of…

Investigates an automatic method for Cross Language Information Retrieval (CLIR) that utilizes the multilingual Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) Metathesaurus to translate Spanish natural-language queries into English. Results indicate that for Spanish, the UMLS Metathesaurus-based CLIR method is at least equivalent to if not better than…

The history of grammar instruction in second language education is traced, focusing on the evolution of grammar's role from a central place in instruction to its current peripheral, almost problematic role. The objective is to provide background information so that second language educators can redefine grammar's role in language instruction. The…

This paper reports on the process of modifying the ModelCreator item generation system to produce output in multiple languages. In particular, Japanese and Spanish are now supported in addition to English. The addition of multilingual functionality was considerably facilitated by the general formulation of our natural language generation system,…

This brief report describes the Rosetta Stone Language Library, a set of multimedia second language instructional materials. These materials emphasize comprehension of spoken language as the first step to acquiring fluency, sometimes referred to as the "comprehension approach" or "natural approach." The materials are designed…

Essays on Spanish linguistics and related topics are dedicated to linguist Tracy D. Terrell. An introductory section gives a brief biography and a list of his publications. Essays include: "The Natural Approach to Language Teaching: An Update" (Tracy D. Terrell); "Two Mad, Mad, Mad Worlds: Notes on Natural Approach and the Writing…