Distributional learning is a proposal for how infants might learn early speech sound categories from acoustic input before they know many words. When categories in the input differ greatly in relative frequency and overlap in acoustic space, research in bilingual development suggests that this affects the course of development. In the present…

Analysis of data derived from an earlier study of Japanese-English interlanguage shows that discourse-pragmatic markedness conditions on the subject position combine with central aspects of a configurational syntax in the generation of sentential forms, creating a module interface distinct from the native or second language. (38 references)…

The purpose of this study was to identify factors that predict the first- and second-language proficiency of ethnic minority children at the age of six. Results of the study show two dimensions that underlie children's proficiency in either language: communicative skills versus cognitive/academic skills. (45 references) (JL)

Reports on a multivariate study that examined the contribution of two independent variables--cognitive/academic proficiency in first language and attitudes and motivation toward English as a foreign language--on success in English as a foreign language in culturally different learners. (27 references) (Author/OD)