Addresses the application of corpus resources and research methods, through concordance programs, to vocabulary study in second-language programs. The article attempts to demonstrate that a corpus linguist's use of his access to large quantities of data to observe the relational and distributional properties of linguistic phenomena can be usefully…

Examines trends in second language (L2) communication strategy (CS) research. A comprehensive review is included of the relevant literature from the last two decades, with particular reference to the different ways in which CSs have been defined and to the corresponding influences on the organization of strategy taxonomies. (92 references)…

Presents research on second language learning strategies, including both those with a general application and those relating to computer assisted language learning (CALL). Findings reveal that the issue of learning strategies looms as an important topic and that a detailed consideration of them in CALL is feasible. (37 references) (Author/CK)

Reports on a project in which an English and a French student teacher work collaboratively to develop their personal knowledge and understanding of grammar and its role in teaching both subjects to 11-year-old learners in an English comprehensive school. Ways in which the cross-language focus beneficially influenced their classroom practice are…

Describes English learners' views on the acquisition of the phonetic component of English by focusing on (1) their awareness of the difficulty and importance of English pronunciation, and (2) their beliefs about influential factors in the acquisition of pronunciation and their attitudes towards English accents. Examines differences in phonetic…

A study carried out with Sudanese secondary school students on different approaches to grammar instruction indicates that an approach that attempts to approximate learners' strategies can be more effective than the traditional technique based on metalanguage and elaborate analysis. (Author/VWL)

Proposes questions teachers can use to structure language activities that encourage students to analyze their own use of language. The questions arose from a workshop that focuses on assisting teachers and learners to explore language function together. Teachers can use these questions to exploit language in English as a Second or Other Language…

Argues that in the initial stages of learning a new form in a foreign language and its associated functions, communicative needs and learning needs are fundamentally opposed. Suggests that what is needed is an orientation to language that is based on prior familiarity with specific forms and meaning that can be used in discourse as anchors to…

Examines picture naming latencies for predicted effects of two word retrieval factors: onset complexity and number of syllables. Results comport with evidence from speech errors and metalinguistic tasks and with predictions of the Node Structure theory of language production, but do not support production theories that do not predict special…

Describes some of the inequities and obstacles faced by speakers of creoles termed "nonstandard" or minority dialects in formal education. Outlines proposals for dealing with these problems and describes initiatives that have already been taken--such as developing resources for teachers, running public awareness campaigns and using the students'…

Draws on experience with a transdisciplinary literacy project in writing development at the secondary level to address the sub-field of "writing-literacy," writing as a linguist working across an applied versus theoretical frontier. (Author/VWL)

Arizona State University promotes linguistic and cultural awareness throughout the campus and the community. By involving nearby Hispanic culture, it integrates its programs into the community's social and cultural concerns. Faculty members of all languages may gain a wider audience by teaching courses in film, women's studies, or the culture of…

Examines the effect of knowledge about language on the learning of foreign language skills and grammar. Students (n=252) completed a questionnaire, metalinguistic awareness test, Raven's Progressive Matrices Test, a linguistic creativity test, and English tests. Hypothesized that students' knowledge about language would have a significant effect…

The effect of second language experience and vocabulary ability was investigated in a semantic priming experiment with weakly related English word pairs (e.g., "city"-"grass"). Participants made lexical decisions to targets preceded by unrelated or weakly related primes or to nonword targets preceded by words. Reliable priming was found for…

The role of metalinguistic knowledge in learning a foreign/second language is the subject of continuing debate. In this paper we report on a study which explores this issue further with reference to undergraduate students of Chinese as a second/foreign language. The first part of the paper describes the process of developing and validating an…