Explores the labels "native speaker" (NS) and "nonnative speaker" (NNS) from the perspective of seven nonnative-English-speaking Teaching English as a Second or Other Language (TESOL) professionals. Contends that these terms are related to issues such as the order of learned languages, language competence, language-learning environment, cultural…

Considers the ecological validity of tests in predicting the effects of speech and language impairment on communicative performance in real-world settings and the need for systematic observation of communicative behaviors, particularly of individuals from other cultures. Discusses whether standardized testing and systematic observation are…

Discusses a new test of English language proficiency for international medical graduates. The test, the Clinical Skills Assessment, consists of a series of encounters with "standardized patients" who have been trained to portray various medical conditions. (Author/VWL)

Investigated the effects of pragmatic constraints on the acquisition of the binding of English reflexives by adult Turkish second-language learners. Pragmatically-biased and pragmatically-neutral sentences were compared to determine whether pragmatic bias towards a non-local antecedent overrides the parameter setting of English and causes learners…

Focuses on the strategies that adolescent learners use to discover the meaning of new words in a second language and to consolidate their knowledge of such words. A questionnaire is used to probe the perceptions of students in two content-oriented French second language classrooms at the secondary school level. (Author/VWL)

As schools realize that every international school teacher is an ESL teacher, interest is focusing on helping subject-area specialists cope with their second-language students. Describes a Language Through Learning course designed to help subject teachers facilitate nonnative speakers' access to lessons, develop and improve students' language…

The paired-learner interview, in which learners take both the role of the interviewer and interviewee, has been used as a variation of the oral-proficiency interview since the 1980s. The purpose of this article is to show that the paired-learner interview is an effective means to reduce communicative stress for the nonnative learner and one that…

Describes the preliminary findings in the Basque Country of a project shared by four European countries to teach a second language or a foreign language to preschool and school-age children. The method used to teach the foreign language--English--is based on the use of dramatized formats. Examines level of language proficiency achieved with each…

Explores episodes of classroom interaction in which there is unplanned attention to form. Data consist of periodic recordings of learners in intensive English classes over a period of 8 weeks. Analysis of data points to a strong connection between attention to form and subsequent use of those forms and indicates that this connection is affected by…

Examines how differences in point of view influence the story production of Japanese English-as-a-foreign-language students with different levels of English proficiency. Students wrote two narrative stories based on the same series of pictures, one in the first-person perspective and the other in the third-person perspective. Sample writings were…

Identifies the language learning strategies associated with the achievement of higher levels of oral proficiency in German for 100 Irish students about to complete their second year at Dublin City University. Investigates the way in which these strategies are used by those with higher and lower levels of proficiency. (Author/VWL)

Describes the Chinese-language program at Portland State University. Elements of this program include newspaper and classical courses; textbooks from China, Taiwan, and English-speaking countries; the use of characters on the first day; and a diverse student body. The university's goal is to make a solid Chinese education available to anyone in…

This article presents a replication of a study by Chaudron and Parker (1990) on the effect of discourse markedness and structural markedness on the development of noun phrase use. The study analyzed the language usage of 55 young adult Spanish learners of English, finding that only intermediate and high-level learners used zero anaphora. Contains…

Examines two teachers' approaches to the management of writing workshops for English-as-a-Second/Foreign-Language students in an English proficiency course. Discusses the different approaches the teachers use and how these different approaches affect the interactions between teachers and students that take place in these workshops. (Author/VWL)

Reports on the development of a learning package for a newly introduced test in Hong Kong, the Graduating Students' Language Proficiency Assessment (GSLPA)-English. Examines reactions of teachers and students to the learning package during piloting of the materials. (Author/VWL)