This study investigated the effects of interference of a native dialect in the acquisition of a second dialect. Four groups of subjects were used: Five white preschool children from an intergrated nursery school, five Black preschool children from a Head Start program, five white, middle-class 16-, 17-, and 18-year-olds, and five Black 16-, 17-,…

The need to adapt or modify the use of given textbooks and other language teaching materials to fit the requirements of particular learning situations, and even particular students, is widely recognized. This volume presents a systematic approach to adaptation useful for methods courses as well as for the experienced teacher or curriculum planner.…

Strategies are developed for understanding how language variation limits communication. Methods of measuring communication are discussed, including an intelligibility measure used in the Solomon Islands. The analysis of data gathered using communication measurement is discussed. The result of the analysis is a determination of the number of…

This paper draws from a number of sources, from Muhammad Ali to TV commercials, to demonstrate the quite different conceptions that black and white Americans have of the meaning of boasting and bragging. For blacks, boasting and bragging are two distinct ways of speaking and communication. Boasting is a joking, playful verbal bahavior, not to be…

Progress in the teaching of oral comprehension depends partly on the isolation of factors which block comprehension. Research in conjunction with an experimental course in English as a second language led to the definition of errors due to: (1) insufficient knowledge of the language and the cultural context of its use, and (2) a failure to…

Dialect analysis should follow the procedure for analysis of a new language: collection of a corpus of words, stories, and sentences and identifying structural features of phonology, morphology, syntax, and lexicon. Contrastive analysis between standard English and the native language is used and the ethnic dialect of English is described and…

The approach characterizing this study of bias in tests of educational achievement is stated to be reflective and philosophical rather than experimental and statistical. Its concern is with operationally definable areas of learning and indicators of achievement rather than with the hypothetical latent traits that are presumed by some to influence…

This report summarizes the proceedings and outcomes of a working conference of experts, scholars, and educators in bilingual education held at Stanford University on February 12-13, 1976. The goal of the conference was to discuss and improve five tests constructed as part of an effort to improve teaching in bilingual (Spanish-English) education…

Portrays the effects of demographic, social, and cultural dislocation experienced by members of the Australian Strelley Aboriginal community on observed shift in languages, such as Nyangumarta and other Western Desert languages. Examines changes in code mixing and the need for English as the language of formal education. (23 references) (Author/OK)

Investigates Greek and English language use among second- and third-generation bilinguals living in the Australian urban social context of Adelaide, where the dynamic process of code interaction has created a sociolinguistic continuum used to define in-group memberships on the basis of which part of the continuum is shared by whom. (40 references)…

Papers from the conference on the occurrence of verbal constituents in series in certain languages, particularly pidgins and creoles, include the following: "What Are We Talking About When We Talk About Serial Verbs?" (Arnold M. Zwicky); "Serial Verb Constructions" (Pieter Seuren); "On the Definition and Distribution of…

Papers from an international conference on the interaction of languages and dialects in contact are presented in this volume. Papers include: "Quelques reflexions sur la variation linguistique"; "The Investigation of 'Language Continuum' and 'Diglossia': A Macrological Case Study and Theoretical Model"; "A Survey of…

The debate continues about regional norms for English usage around the world, although the discussion has become more realistic and less didactic. Educated non-native varieties are increasingly accepted, distinctions are being made between national and international language uses, and localized varieties are no longer considered as necessarily…

The aim of this article is to analyze the nature of the historical and contemporary social contexts within which applied linguistics in Africa emerged, and is currently practiced. The article examines the challenges "local" applied Linguistics in Africa is confronted with as it tries to amplify applied linguistic programs emanating from…

From a consideration of variability in language-learner and language-user data, the concept of proficiency is considered in relation to models of second and foreign language learning. Proficiency is defined in relation to four separate dimensions: grammatical well-formedness, speech-act rules, functional elaboration, and code diversity. This…