Discusses the issue of the use of signed language dictionaries in the standardization of signed languages with reference to the Australian Sign language (Auslan) dictionaries. Details the structure of the Auslan dictionaries and argues that bilingual, bidirectional dictionaries of this type must be produced if communities are to encourage language…

Standard English has long been the unquestioned choice of a model for all language instruction, whether in native or non-native speaker countries. Fanned by the recent interest in new varieties of English, especially those in the Third World, there have been increasing claims that it is best in such English-as-a-Second-Language countries to set up…

Examines the likelihood of the dominant position of English coming under serious challenge as a world language. Discusses factors such as writing systems, standardization, and modernization.(Author/VWL)

French Creoles are spoken in many different parts of the world, including the Indian Ocean, United States, Caribbean, and South America. These Kweyol speech communities are described, in the Kweyol Project, which examines Kweyol language issues and the establishment of a Kweyol Literacy Scheme. (Contains 15 references.) (LB)

Addresses problems that arise when literacy education is brought from national and international centers to people whose identity is with local languages and literacies. Local literacies are defined with respect to different languages and writing systems, invented local literacies, and vernacular literacies. (Contains 33 references.) (Author)

The 1986 report by the Canadian Task Force on Aboriginal Languages, which recommended that the writing systems used for the northern Dene languages be standardized within 10 years, resulted in the 1987 Dene Standardization Project. The mandate for the project was to make recommendations on orthography standardization as the first step in the…

The purpose of the symposium was to exchange experiences in the standardization of national languages in different socio-cultural contexts. Examples of the strategies and results of such experiences in Africa, Latin America, and Europe were presented for discussion. Papers presented at the symposium include the following: "Language…

This anthology on languages and standards was designed to serve two main purposes: (1) to provide an academic forum for linguistic scholars and language educators within and outside the region of Southeast Asia whose contributions would add substantially to an understanding of this important subject; and (2) to make relevant aspects of current…

Drawing from the study of efforts to revitalize Quichua in the Southern Ecuadorian Highlands, this article describes what may be some of the common language corpus and language status transformations that threatened languages undergo during the process of language revitalization. (Author/VWL)

Analyzes the major linguistic and sociopolitical factors responsible for the underdevelopment of written languages based on non-Mandarin dialects. Explores language planning efforts in Taiwan to standardize a written language based upon the local dominant dialect. Argues that the social and political costs of the success of dialect writings may be…

Suggests that use of grammatical and lexical features of non-standard English varieties may contribute to the confusion of international students at Australian universities when discerning the intended meaning of written words. Suggests that the establishment of assessment criteria may simplify assessment difficulties and urges that efforts be…

It took 25 years to develop and arrive at a consensus for a standard orthography for the language of the Innu, or Montagnais, who live in Quebec and Labrador. The principal obstacle to standardization came from dialect diversity. An effort at standardizing the spelling system in the 1970s failed because speakers were not ready to let go of the…

American students are exposed to many different romanization systems when learning Chinese. The most important systems include Pinyin, Zhuyin fuhao, Wade-Giles, Gwoyeu Romatzhy, and the Yale system, to name just a few. The Pinyin system, which is built on the English alphabet, is the official transliteration system of mainland China. The Zhuyin…

Papers from the conference include the following: opening remarks (Lorne Laforge and William F. Mackey); a position paper on the written language of the world (Grant D. McConnell); "An Overview of the Practical and Theoretical Implications of the 'Written Languages of India' Survey Regarding Language and National Development Strategies"…

The Aboriginal Language Standardisation (ALS) Project's task is to develop quality literacy materials in order to help preserve aboriginal languages of Canada. The Canadian Assembly of First Nations, a group of tribal leaders, recently called for the establishment of standards for written and oral languages by approving terminology, developing…