This paper discusses a study designed to survey English as a second language readers for the purpose of determining whether a range of syntactic gradation can be observed, and the degree to which readers intended for the same level of proficiency are of equivalent difficulty. (Author/CFM)

A study assessed and compared the syntax in the oral language of six-, seven-, and eight-year-olds with the syntax in the written language of reading instruction textbooks prepared for children of the same age. (HOD)

This paper reports on a case study of a Cantonese-speaking child age 2 and considers the implication of tone acquisition for tone studies in general, and Cantonese tonology in particular. (NCR)

In testing kindergartners and first graders in their comprehension of the words "before" and "after," it was found that when temporal terms are acquired, they are first used as prepositions and then as subordinating conjunctions. (Author/NCR)

This experiment used two groups of preschoolers and one group of young grade-schoolers to test for their comprehension of presuppositions and negation in complex syntax. (NCR)

The study involved a comparison of the ability of the Northwestern Syntax Screening Test and the Concrete Objects Test to measure receptive and expressive language skills in 30 trainable mentally retarded children. ( Author/ PHR)

Adult skilled and unskilled readers were tested using the cloze procedure, comparing syntactic and lexical errors with materials at varying levels of difficulty. Findings suggest that reading materials for adult basic education students should control not only vocabulary and subject matter, but also the syntactic complexity of the written…

A simplified formula for teaching German word order to American students is suggested. Other formulas in a few manuals are reviewed; suggestions for application of this one are offered. Consistent use of the formula has resulted in quicker development of a native feeling for the structure of the language. (AMH)

Compared with 30 normal and 30 language-deviant 3-year-old Spanish speaking Puerto Rican children were two measures of linguistic proficiency. (Author/MH)

The Spanish feminine article /el/, ordinarily the singular masculine definite article, has been used as evidence of the need for obligatory disagreement rules. Others explain the anamoly by means of referral rules. A third solution is suggested: an allomorphy rule which can be interpreted syntactically or phonologically. (LMO)

The acquisition of textual competence in a language occurs through the acquisition of both lexical competence and knowledge of word order that allows the construction of well-formed sequences. Exercises that help develop vocabulary and word order skills in French as a foreign language are presented. (MSE)

A study of 45 hearing-impaired students (ages 10 to 19) investigated their understanding of English verb-particle combinations of varying syntactic and semantic difficulty. Results suggest an order of difficulty in learning. Idioms were found to be more difficult than literal meanings with little improvement over the age range of the subjects.…

Summarizes 10 presentations made at the workshop on a variety of topics including: classification of Chinese dialects; the importance of semantic units in tone sandhi; insights on Chinese character recognition among brain-damaged patients; and a cognitive approach to the study of Chinese grammar. (TR)