This monograph contains papers on research work in progress at the Department of Applied Linguistics and Institute for Applied Language Studies at the University of Edinburgh (Scotland). Topics addressed include general English teaching, English for Academic Purposes teaching, Modern Language teaching, and teacher education. Papers are: "Cultural Semantics in a Second-Language Text" (Carol Chan); "The Concealing and Revealing of Meaning in the Cryptic Crossword Clue" (John Cleary); "Learners' Perceptions of Factors Affecting Their Language Learning" (Giulia Dawson, Elisabeth McCulloch and Stella Peyronel); "Japanese Learners in Speaking Classes" (Eileen Dwyer and Anne Heller-Murphy); "Manipulating Reality Through Metaphorizing Processes in Wartime Reporting" (Noriko Iwamoto);"Basing Discussion Classes on Learners' Questions: An Experiment in (Non-)Course Design" (Tony Lynch); "Participant Action Plans and the Evaluation of Teachers' Courses" (Ian McGrath); "Deixis and the Dynamics of the Relationship Between Text and Reader in the Poetry of Eugenio Montale" (Rossella Riccobono); and "Constructivism, Optimality, and Language Acquisition. The Shapes We Make in Each Other's Heads" (Chris Whincop). (Contains chapter references.) (NAV)