Purpose: To date, research on effects of prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) has focused on a broad range of cognitive impairments, but relatively few studies have examined effects of PAE on development of reading skills. Although PAE has been linked to poorer reading comprehension, it remains unclear whether this impairment is attributable to…

In the digital age, technology-assisted language learning (TALL) has emerged as a pivotal approach to enhancing English linguistic skills among college students. This study explores the effectiveness of TALL innovations in enhancing English linguistic skills among college students. Employing a mixed-methods approach, data were collected through…

The theory underlying L2 oral fluency has focused on cognitive processes, particularly proceduralization (Anderson, 1983; Levelt, 1989, 1999) and linguistic constructs, especially vocabulary and grammar (Segalowitz, 2010). Towell, Hawkins, and Bazergui (1996) argued that development of formulaic language enables automatic speech production.…

This study reports on how project-based language learning in which L1 Japanese EFL learners created short videos affected L2 oral proficiency. Students took short speaking tests before and after the class, and the fluency, complexity and accuracy of the pre- and posttests were measured to see which, if any, of these three aspects of proficiency…

The present study investigates integrated writing assessment performances with regard to the linguistic features of complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF). Given the increasing presence of integrated tasks in large-scale and classroom assessments, validity evidence is needed for the claim that their scores reflect targeted language abilities.…

Given the growing importance of English as a lingua franca, this study examines which context (classroom instruction in the students' home country vs. studying abroad in an English-speaking country) better facilitates the acquisition of English by learners of different ages: children, adolescents and adults. Participants (N = 197) completed…

This paper deals with two experiments whose purposes are to investigate the linguistic competence of young children and their receptivity to adult speech. In the free response experiment, imperative sentences were presented to 1 1/2- to 2 1/2-year-olds. The sentences were minimal (a single noun), telegraphic, or full adult sentences. The youngest…

This article examines the question: Do lexical, syntactic, fluency, and discourse measures of oral language collected under narrative conditions predict reading achievement both within and across languages for bilingual children? More than 1,500 Spanish-English bilingual children attending kindergarten-third grade participated. Oral narratives…

A study of the language usage of 80 middle school students revealed no significant difference between the sexes on any measure of syntactic maturity; however, boys deviated from standard usage somewhat more frequently than did girls, and boys produced more words in oral language while girls produced more words in written language. (ET)

In an epilogue to the 1967 research report, "Transformational Sentence-Combining" (See ED 018 405.), John Mellon considers the significance of the sentence-combining experience and answers the charges of critics--Wayne O'Neil, James Moffett, and Francis Christensen--regarding his original research findings. Mellon points out, for example, that…

This book is designed for teachers of children whose first language is other than English, in particular, teachers who have had little or no formal training in the teaching of English as a second language (ESL). Although the emphasis is on the Spanish-speaking student, the same techniques and tools apply to speakers of other languages. The first…