This paper presents the effects of using digital games on improving language learning in Tanzanian preschools. A gamified learning prototype system was developed for making alphabetical sound articulation more engaging and fun. The study was conducted with twelve preschools in Tanzania. The results revealed that preschoolers' learning performance…

The existence of a developmental sequence for the acquisition of specific complex syntactic structures in English was investigated through an analysis of eight studies of Danish subjects. The studies involved Danish speaking subjects acquiring English as a second language at ages 7-10, 13, and 18. The evidence from these studies demonstrate a…

A Spanish/English oral-proficiency test battery was administered to 40 Spanish-surnamed pupils equally divided by sex at grade levels 1, 3, 5, and 7. (Author/NQ)

A case study investigating the effect of grammar instruction on formal accuracy in spontaneous and monitored second language performance indicated that formal instruction appeared to have very little effect on spontaneous production but was very beneficial for controlled performance. (CB)

Argues that the emphasis of writing instruction in ESL classes should be on writing as a creative process, not on syntax, vocabulary, and rhetorical form. (EKN)

Reports a study of native Spanish speakers' acquisition of the ability to discriminate lexically in English between similar items with different characteristics. The study also examined the role of first-language interference in the process. (MSE)

Spanish and English versions of an oral proficiency test were administered to Spanish-surnamed pupils at grade levels K, one, three and five in a bilingual education program. The results indicated that achievement in English appears to be unrelated to the maintenance of Spanish for bilingual children. (Author/ND)

Five first-grade English as a Second Language children who had been labelled nonverbal were put in a more loosely structured, tension-free situation and were encouraged by the teacher to talk freely under a variety of circumstances. The new conditions aided teachers in eliciting a great deal of speech from the students. (Author/PJM)

Describes how using American Sign Language can facilitate the development of skills in spoken English for deaf and hard-of-hearing students. Discusses factors influencing how well a child with deafness will develop spoken language and the need to teach the two languages separately. (CR)

To more thoroughly analyze and compare the types of dictionaries being used by Japanese college students in three college engineering classes, two kinds of surveys were designed. The first was a general survey about purchase, use and preferences regarding electronic dictionaries. The second survey asked questions about how various computerised…

Discusses academic writing as it is learned by Chinese students of English as a second language (ESL), and critiques Kaplan's claim that ESL students writing expository prose in English will show organizational patterns different from those of native speakers. Developmental factors in second language learners' writing are discussed. (SED)

Spanish-speaking preschoolers learning English in a bilingual preschool program were videotaped while working independently on tasks to examine their spontaneous private speech. Results show that the private speech of bilingual preschoolers appears to develop normally. Positive effects of second-language learning in a bilingual program on the…

The results of a series of three studies of classroom factors influencing English oral language development in Spanish speaking bilingual elementary students are reported. Teacher control of oral language practice, extra practice in oral language encoding for bilingual students, and similarities between the English proficiency scores of children…

The first part of these findings is a report on a study of the characteristics of 120 Spanish-English bilingual children's speech over a two-year period in the classroom, on the playground, and at home. Three types of language measures were used as well as audiotaped speech samples taken in the three communication settings. Preliminary findings…

Challenges the belief in contemporary English language teaching that students should be exposed to authentic or natural language focused on achieving practical purposes, and draws some lessons from the classroom from the way young children play with language. (15 references) (Author/CK)