An important component of second language programs is the skill of understanding and using the graphic structure of language involved. Inadequate handwriting, poor layout, and difficulties in reading are primary symptoms of students with a weak grasp of the graphic structure. (CB)

Analyzes intermediate English-as-a-second-language learners' (N=63) written responses to high and low cognitive level questions. Results indicate that although the degree of linguistic inaccuracy remained stable, the higher order of cognition increased both the amount and the order of syntactic complexity of written English responses. (Author/CB)

Reports a case of a native speaker of Spanish with reading and spelling difficulties in both English and Spanish. Argues that the regular Spanish spelling system prevented these difficulties from becoming apparent and discusses the connections between writing systems and second language learning. (Author/SED)

This handbook offers a detailed description of the structure and rhetorical effects observed in various genres of Japanese discourse. Drawing on Japanese "bunshooron" and incorporating results of Western discourse studies, the book covers principles of overall rhetorical organization, including"ki-shoo-ten-ketsu," topic structure, "danraku," and…

English language learners may bring linguistic knowledge in the area of cognates to their learning of new English words, but they also will have special vocabulary learning needs that English speakers will not. They need to learn basic, survival words that English speakers begin school knowing, words such as house, school, walk, and eat. They also…

Classical Japanese refers to the language used from the Nara Period to the Edo Period; suggests using classical expressions which have been retained in Modern Japanese as a familiar point of departure for learning the classical language. (DD)

Advocates a curriculum in which students are taught to use standard "k'ai" forms passively in reading, while learning to use cursive forms actively in writing. (FWB)

Ten objective measures of writing proficiency were used to evaluate advanced ESL students' compositions. Only those objective measures taking the absence of errors into account discriminated among holistic evaluations of the compositions by experienced ESL teachers. (PMJ)

Suggests that for improving syntactic fluency and the overall quality of compositions, exercises should be based on generative rhetoric. These exercises in which students supply the content of the sentence from a list of suggested structures are superior to sentence-combining exercises that provide the student with all the information. (PMJ)

Discusses a paragraph-centered approach to the teaching of reading in a foreign language. (CFM)

Reviews 15 publications on teaching French (1972-1975). Encluded are books on: spoken vs. written French, linguistic grammar and teaching grammar, minimum French grammar, error linguistics, text collections for Secondary Grade 2, a stylistic exercise book, a collection for dictation, and literature. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Investigates three important issues in kanji learning strategies; namely, strategy use, effectiveness of strategy and orthographic background. A questionnaire on kanji learning strategy use and perceived effectiveness was administered to beginner level, undergraduate students of Japanese from alphabetic and character backgrounds in Australia.…

Investigates the relationship between redundancy and transposition in scientific texts. Highlights different traditional and discoursal theories of redundancy. Analyzed 20 self-contained scientific texts; results show that most of the sample texts follow similar organization. (Author/VWL)