In-depth analysis of a large corpus of English and German beginning consonant and syllable stress errors revealed that claims regarding these errors can not be replicated for Spanish, leading to the development of hypotheses focusing on Spanish as a pre-final-stress and syllable-timed language. (38 references) (Author/CB)

Using a type-case analytic approach, this study investigates the teaching/learning process in an intermediate-level college Spanish conversation course to answer questions about the development of communicative competence. It demonstrates constraints and limitations and suggests the need to reconceptualize theoretical and methodological approaches…

Presents a bibliography of materials published in English, French, Spanish, and German on literacy in developing countries. Highlights include orality and literacy; literacy and development; conceptual approaches to literacy; learners and dropouts; the role of primary education in literacy; and operational issues in implementing literacy programs.…

Examined the effectiveness of a nonbiased computerized language screening test, the Kidtalk Interactive Diagnostic Test of Aptitude for Language Knowledge (KIDTALK), in differentiating children on basis of diagnostic category but not ethnic/linguistic background. Found a significant difference between scores of the language learning disabled and…

Study used 103 bilingual college freshmen to evaluate psychometric characteristics of the Personality Inventory for Youth (PIY) translated into Spanish. Scales and subscales of the Spanish PIY demonstrated internal consistency and temporal stability comparable to English counterparts, and multivariate analysis did not identify a language effect…

Explores the role that language plays in determining why, what, and how Latino youth learn in their communities. It highlights the fundamental, and often overlooked, resource that Latino English-Spanish bilingualism represents for building bridges between communities, homes, and schools. Strengthening bilingualism is a way to link homes,…

Reports on an experiment investigating adult second language (L2) acquisition of Spanish object clitic placement by native speakers of English and French. Two experimental methodologies are compared: an on-line sentence matching task and an off-line grammaticality judgment task. (Author/VWL)

Discusses the possibility of anxiety in response to foreign- or second-language reading. Introduces the construct of foreign-language reading anxiety, offers a scale for its measurement, and reports on a preliminary study of reading anxiety in 30 intact first-semester classes of Spanish, Russian, and Japanese. (VWL)

Standardization data based on responses of 616 Puerto Ricans to the Spanish version of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (D. Wechlser, 1981) reveal reliability data and base rates to assist in evaluating the clinical significance of differences between Performance Intelligence Quotient (PIQ) and Verbal Intelligence Quotient (VIQ).…

Compares the types of metacognitive reading strategies and comprehension problems that four Mexican-American, fourth-grade bilingual students demonstrated while reading expository and narrative texts in English and Spanish. Finds students successfully using code-mixing, code-switching, and paraphrased translating to enhance their comprehension.…

Describes English learners' views on the acquisition of the phonetic component of English by focusing on (1) their awareness of the difficulty and importance of English pronunciation, and (2) their beliefs about influential factors in the acquisition of pronunciation and their attitudes towards English accents. Examines differences in phonetic…

Thirty-two Hispanic speakers of English, of whom half learned English prior to and half after age 12, were compared for voice onset time (VOT). Analysis of recorded speech samples found the two groups differed significantly on VOT values. Analysis of variance found significant main effects of group, place, voice, and gender. (Author/DB)

Assessments of a 6-year-old Spanish monolingual and 5-year-old bilingual children included a home-language survey, parents' and teachers' ratings, cartoon conservation scales, and standardized tests. Nonverbal cognitive development was shown to influence language acquisition. Cultural and linguistic factors affected children differently. (SK)

Describes a 4-year teacher action research project focused on whether student dialogue journals can provide documentation of student learning from a cultural unit taught in Spanish. Results are discussed. (Author/VWL)

Discusses challenges facing libraries trying to order Spanish language materials. Highlights include distribution issues, including small stocks, paying in advance, size of print runs, and varying prices; the Guadalajara International Book Fair; online ordering; communication; and a list of Spanish language book distributors that specialize in…