The goal of integrating coping skills into the English as a second language (ESL) curriculum is to enable adults to use language in the real world. To accomplish this goal, two kinds of input are needed: (1) comprehensive knowledge about the workings of American English, and (2) accurate information about the language contexts in which adults need…

A study was conducted in Ireland of the mechanisms of linguistic change and the effects of a politics of linguistic irredentism on the language behavior of the population. The objectives of the study were: (1) to discover the nature and the importance of people's attitudes toward the Irish language and its restoration, and (2) to ascertain the…

Lwo is the name given to a group of dialects spoken by Northern Ugandans. This Lwo textbook contains 95 lessons, and was designed for Peace Corps volunteers. Lessons include pattern drills, conversations and some notes on grammar and usage. Eight model conversations are distributed throughout the text at regular intervals. The lessons are followed…

This book deals with the pedagogical, personal, and theoretical contexts of foreign language teaching. Part 1, on the pedagogical context, discusses the psychology of language learning, individualized language instruction, new directions in language teaching, and the role of pattern drills in language teaching. Part 2, on the personal context,…

The relation of the linguistic sciences to language teaching and language learning is explored. Part 1 discusses linguistics, phonetics, and their place in the description of language. Relations between language and the people who use it are examined, as well as the place of comparison and translation in the acquisition of a second language. Part…

Despite similarities between Hindi and Urdu and mutual intelligibility, at least on the spoken level, slight grammatical differences between the two languages do exist. The treatment of gender provides an example of such differences. Explanation of the actual differences in gender usage can be based on a synchronic, linguistic level as well as on…

The most basic and simplest act of communicative competence in Spanish involves the appropriate decoding and selection of the pronominal address forms "tu" and "Usted." Their selection and semantic value are not, however, determined by linguistic criteria alone. Since "tu/Ud." mark the relative status of each speaker in a given context, their…

Metalinguistic knowledge, or linguistic awareness, involves the ability to focus attention upon the form of language in and of itself, rather than merely as the vehicle by which meaning is conveyed. This ability to analyze language structures lags behind spontaneous speaking and listening performance because of the additional cognitive skills…

Communicative competence often remains the aim rather than the product of language instruction. One cause may be the fact that language learners tend to need "knowledge of second language use" more than "knowledge of a second language" in their oral communication situations outside the classroom. This results in low transferability of…

This collection includes twenty-one papers, a book review, and a bibliography of English-Polish contrastive studies in Poland, and is the fifth volume resulting from the Polish-English Contrastive Project. The overall purpose of the project is to prepare a Polish-English contrastive grammar and to develop pedagogical materials. Topics covered in…

The purpose of this learning activity packet is to acquaint students of Spanish as a second language with letter-writing in Spanish. Upon completion of the packet, students should be able to: (1) identify some of the major differences in mailing customs between the U.S. and Hispanic countries, (2) read and write mailing and return adresses, (3)…

Landes (1975) reviewed research studying adult-child linguistic interactions. Evidence that the language which adults use in addressing young children is different from that used in addressing adults and that parent-child interaction patterns change with the increasing age and language skills of the child has important implications for the study…

Summarizes some preliminary findings from research into the nature and effect of various discourse modifications by a native speaker to a language learner. These modifications include (1) idiom avoidance; (2) comprehension checks and pauses; and (3) selection of information. An informal experiment gauging foreign students' impression of…

A study investigated how native Korean-speaking children living in the United States tell stories in English, focusing on structural characteristics, cultural constructs, and second language development. Subjects were three children born in Korea and attending American elementary schools; two had been in the United States for less than a year.…

Reports on an eight month study examining the development of turn-allocation devices in children acquiring English as a second language. The role of prior language experience in second language learning is explored. (Author/AM)