Concludes that reader enjoyment is related to both syntactic and semantic unpredictability. (FL)

Offers a practical model for teaching the extended modifier that is economical and linguistically sound, based on the insights and methodology of transformational generative grammar. Five transformational rules are given for generating extended modifiers from relative clauses. Examples of transformations and two class exercises in German are also…

Examines the nonstandard constructions in Caipira Portuguese, a dialect spoken in southeastern Brazil, which illustrate a tendency to reduce morphological redundancy at the noun phrase level. This is accomplished by restricting plural markers to only one of the elements of the noun phrase--not the noun, as might be expected, but, rather, one its…

Discusses the production of anomalous sentences by non-native students of the Japanese language and suggests that the primary cause of various errors indicated in such sentences is the confusion with English "when." In addition, it is suggested that error analysis can help clarify the nature of grammatical problems and facilitate learning of…

Describes a study on the English language use of native speakers of Arabic and Japanese in three task conditions: completing a written grammar test, participating in an oral interview, and narrating a story. Results support the hypothesis that the utterances of second language learners show systematic variability related to task. (SED)

Examines the syntactic complexity and grammatical transformations used by students of English as a foreign language. Suggests that they use and expand syntactic structures in a manner similar to native speakers. (EL)

Indicates that sentence combining and kernel identification training enabled sixth-grade students to comprehend longer, syntactically more complex sentences than control group students and to retain this ability over a six-week period. (HOD)

Presents a study of the relationship between syntactic complexity and grade level and of the relations of mode and syntax to an English as a foreign language writing sample. Examines the influence of the syntax in each mode of writing on the content of the compositions. (SED)

Students in grades three to seven were given tests on which problems were presented in either verbal or telegraphic format. Only in grade six was a significant difference found, favoring the verbal format. Problems with conventional syntax appeared to be easier to interpret than those with bare bones syntax. (MNS)

Reports on four experiments designed to compare the accuracy of the listener's memory for information associated with the thematic and nonthematic portions of sentences. Results are consistent with the identification of the nonthematic portion of a sentence as the locus of new ideas conveyed to the language recipient. (CLK)

The psycholinguistic method of teaching reading stresses the use of the child's oral language ability and syntactic and semantic information. (JH)

A study of the acquisition of interrogative forms in children of high socioeconomic status reveals that utterances belong more to the colloquial than to the standard range. It is concluded that disadvantaged children would show similar usage, leading to the suggestion that teachers teach language as they use it. (Text is in French.) (CDSH/CLK)

Criticizes traditional methods of defining the syntactical complexity of utterances and proposes distinguishing the various types of subordination in the sentence as well as elements of continuity and discontinuity in discourse structure, with particular reference to child language. (Text is in French.) (CDSH/AM)

Using a fictitious text, the article discusses the "sexism" in current spoken English, which discriminates against the female sex consciously and by negligence. Objectionable words are listed. An exercise for Secondary Grade II is offered, with sentences to be written, avoiding the "sexist" element. (IFS/WGA)

This paper demonstrates how attention to developmental skills at every stage of language instruction enhances mastery of specific structural targets. A college German course in which a high degree of reading comprehension is the objective is used; Modified-Adjective Construction is the specific structural target. (CHK)