Discusses the potential value of contrastive analysis (CA) in second language teaching. Describes the psychological basis of CA, briefly reviews the linguistic developments and some of the criticisims of CA, and concludes that both CA and error analysis are useful in understanding the second language learning process. Discusses the classroom…

Argues that sufficient adaptivity in computer-assisted language learning materials for individual study can be achieved only if such programs are able to perform meaningful error analysis and fit the needs of individual learners. Other effective elements of the program include collecting information on learning and performance histories of…