Compares the performance of Spanish children with and without reading disabilities on a single word naming task which required extensive phonological computation. Supports the hypothesis that poor phonological skills are a characteristic of reading disabled children. (RS)

Using examples in English, French, German, Italian, and Spanish, the article suggests various activities to promote the learning of descriptive adjectives and to expand students' active vocabulary. These activities include describing oneself or a friend, finding a person who possesses certain characteristics, choosing an ideal companion, and…

Discusses language planning in modern Spain in terms of policy formation and implementation. The article argues that the elevation of Castilian to a position of linguistic supremacy is closely connected with the history of the development of a Spanish centralized state. It is concluded that whereas linguistic pluralism exists in theory, social…

This article discusses the importance of three contextual variables in ensuring Hispanic individuals' success in learning English: (1) consideration of the impact of majority social context and attitude toward immigrants; (2) the views of the individual's family on the importance of acquiring English; and (3) classroom instructional strategies.…

Monolingual Spanish-speaking children between the ages of 2 and 4 were given two structured tasks that assessed the contrastive use of "se" for coding these functions. Results suggest there is a differential order of acquisition of the clitic "se," whereby children initially contrast regular and reflexive with nonreflexive…

Explored the relationship between language anxiety and reading in Spanish. Issues addressed include the following: the effect of language anxiety on reading comprehension and recall of university-level students and the effect of language anxiety on the reading process itself. Two inventories assessed two different anxiety levels: the Reading…

Describes the mobile library service in Memphis/ Shelby County (Tennessee) that was designed to meet the needs of non-English speaking residents. Discusses identifying target populations; funding; technology to provide access to the Internet; English as Second Language and multicultural Web sites; and cellular digital packet data (CDPD) and…

Students in lower-level Spanish classes completed a questionnaire assessing intrinsic and extrinsic motivation for learning Spanish, feelings of autonomy and competence in language learning, integrative orientation, and perceptions of teachers' communication style. Results of a path analysis showed that the more controlling the teacher was…

Studied the use of verbal morphology in oral narratives by eight advanced learners of Spanish. Learners commented in an immediate retrospective protocol on their use of perfective and imperfective morphology. Some reasons for tense-aspect morphological selections have implications for research methodology in future studies on acquisition and use…

The continua model of biliteracy offers a framework to situate research, teaching, and language planning in linguistically diverse settings. The continua model is revisited from the perspective of international cases of educational policy and practice in linguistically diverse settings, and from a critical perspective that seeks to make explicit…

Notes how 80 students who spoke Spanish at home were randomly assigned one of four teachers, two who used a great deal of music in their classrooms while the other two did not. Suggests that music had a positive effect on oral language and reading scores. (SG)

Reports on Contrastive syllable timing (English-Spanish) and the acquisition of English syllable timing by Spanish native speakers. Results are used to explain the influence of the native language in the acquisition of a foreign language. (Author/VWL)

Examines the literacy learning experiences of two children of Mexican descent becoming literate in their home language, Spanish. The children's experiences reveal problematic aspects of an instructional approach in which a teacher attempts to balance a traditional phonetic approach to teaching literacy with holistic literacy experience.…

Focuses on how learners perceive the experience of their linguistic development, and particularly how contextual factors in the learning environment and individual issues such as linguistic goals, self confidence, and friendship patterns interact with their perceptions of progress and performance in Spanish. Data consists of reports from advanced…

Tested how domain-related knowledge, syntactic complexity, and reading topic influence inference generation in the written recalls of English-speaking participants after they read Spanish historical texts. Three types of inferences were examined: within-text inferences, elaborative inferences, and incorrect inferences. (Author/JL)