This study investigated the relationship between student motivation, both extrinsic and intrinsic, and learning strategies for English as a foreign language (EFL) students. Subjects were 46 Taiwanese undergraduate and graduate students of advanced EFL at a public university in the United States who were administered motivation and learning…

This paper asserts that a gap is developing in English for Special Purposes (ESP) between theory and practice, between received wisdom and grassroots activity that are important to understand when considering the future of ESP. Evidence for these gaps in ESP are discussed in detail in the context of course design, academic input, and the…

Traditional methods of both first and second language teaching have commonly relied on simplification, restricting the range of language forms and functions to be learned and then practicing those forms to achieve mastery. These methods, however, fail to consider seriously the questions of how language develops in natural contexts, what language…

The working papers contained in this volume include the following: "Creating Successful Learning Contexts for Biliteracy" (Nancy H. Hornberger), which focuses on characteristics of linguistic minority students in two classrooms situated in contrasting communities, programs, and language contexts; "Narrative Skills and Literacy…

The problem of lack of information regarding the relationship among second language students' language ability, metacognition, and reading materials is examined. The study investigates how reading strategies transfer from the native language to the second language within an interactive and compensatory processing model framework. It examines the…

The 1988 issue of the journal on second language teaching and learning contains six articles in French and two in English, including: "Production orale: Comment mettre en place des strategies d'enseignment/apprentissage (Oral Production: How To Put Teaching/Learning Strategies in Place)" (Francis Carton, Richard Duda); "Trois jours pour parler…

This study examines the use of teacher and student humor in the English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) classroom. A summary and synthesis of previous research on theories of humor, humor and its use in society, and applications of humor revealed its importance as an object of study. An analysis of audiotaped transcripts of samples of ESL classes…

Foreign language instruction and related research on second language acquisition in the United States can be understood only in the context of the role of English, of American education, and of speech and language research. Any part of an educational system is both a result of historical processes and a response to current needs and values. The…

Based on results of a project undertaken in Finland over many years, this definition of transfer is offered: Transfer is both a facilitating and limiting factor which provides one basis for the learner to form and test hypotheses about the second language he or she is learning. Theory and research on transfer are discussed as they relate to item…

An overview of the research literature reviews studies on the effectiveness of sentence-combining (SC) exercises in helping English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) students integrate their knowledge of grammar into their writing. In the 1960s, Kellog Hunt published a series of articles that explored the relationship between SC and writing skills.…

A comprehensive six-year longitudinal study of the development of reading skills during the primary grades for a large sample of bilingual (Spanish-English) children and smaller samples of monolingual (English or Spanish) children is outlined at its midpoint. In this natural variation study, approximately 350 children taught by 200 teachers in 20…

This paper attempts to identify some of the reasons for problems in American-British communication, particularly in the use of intonational contours by male and female speakers. One major contrast between British and American speech is found in the use of heads. Rising heads seem to be more frequent in British English, whereas a neutral head is…

Several recent reports on the untutored second language acquisition of English have suggested that the same developmental sequence holds for the acquisition of the interrogative structures irrespective of whether English is acquired as a first language (L1) or a second language (L2). These studies have been conducted within the Klima & Bellugi…

The acceptability of a sentence is dependent on context: some sentences look awkward in isolation but improve in an appropriate context, whereas other sentences look all right in isolation but fail to fit certain types of context. Of particular interest is the degree and specificity of textual fit of different thematic (theme-rheme, topic-comment)…

This paper examines the relationship between linguistic and communicative competence in terms of the student's acquisition of French as a foreign language and the interface of testing for each competence in the context of achievement testing. Reaching an acceptable level of communicative competence requires practice and guidance in understanding…