The current study investigated whether the change toward more gender-inclusive English that is taking place in Inner Circle countries is also gaining acceptance for English usage in an Outer Circle country: Singapore. Data for the study came principally from a questionnaire completed by students at a Singapore junior college and from writing…

This study examined and compared the rhetorical structure of argumentative texts written by three groups of university students: 1) twenty Indonesian texts written by Indonesian native speakers (I.I.); 2) ten English texts written by Indonesian native speakers (I.E.); 3) ten English texts written by English native speakers (A.E.). Following the…

150 female graduate students at King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia were interviewed. Since most students are not proficient in English, they are required to take an English for Specific Purposes (ESP) course when admitted to the M.A. and Ph.D. programs, as locating information in specialized journals is required for their assignments, term…

Student replies to a questionnaire evaluating the use of the language laboratory revealed positive attitudes regarding the effectiveness of the individual practice the lab provides. They emphasized the need for a language lab monitor. Cross tabulations examined attitudinal differences among old and new users, professorial encouragement, and…

Discusses a community-based nonformal education movement in Papua New Guinea to use hundreds of the country's languages to teach initial literacy in local preschool and adult education programs. The article describes this movement, the proposed government reform of the English-only formal education system and the ensuing conflicts. (37 references)…

Analyzes the syllabus used in Brunei schools, questioning the introduction and timing of school subjects, particularly in relation to which language medium is used for teaching, and suggesting an alternative syllabus. Samuel's response questions whether Jones' recommendations are workable and acceptable in the Brunei situation. (33 references)…

Identifies five recurring themes in the literature on bilingualism: role of language policy or planning activities in educational reform; concern with nurturing the mother tongue and facilitating transfer of skills across languages; importing a model versus a "cycle of discovery"; practical problems that impede implementation of…

Discusses the possibility of most students attaining a communicative proficiency in a language other than English. A case study of a school is presented that includes information and opinions gathered from parents and an outline "depth" curriculum for this school. (14 references) (Author/CK)

Examines Language development in mainstream education through analysis of the language demands made on bilingual pupils by tasks and interactions in subject classrooms and the responses pupils make to these demands. Argues that the samples analyzed demonstrate the potentially crucial role of contextual factors in the English language development…

Describes a computer program that generates a bank of items for second-language learning drills, including the differential processing of nouns, adjectives, and verbs. The program is used in a New Testament Greek course at the University of the Orange Free State (South Africa), and the exercises generated are tied directly to the course textbook.…

Briefly describes 22 reports on language-related research relevant to Southeast Asia, detailing study aims, methodology, researchers, and sponsors for studies conducted in Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. (CB)

Discusses current research on six bilingual elementary schools in Friesland, focusing on students' command of Dutch and Frisian, and on school policies concerning Frisian as an instructional subject. The proportions of Frisian- and Dutch-speaking children in an area, the pedagogical and sociolinguistic climates, and the problems associated with…

Four classroom activities for French second-language instruction are described: a unit on Lorraine, a region of France; a song and related exercises for young children; an exercise in interviewing classmates, based on an 1890 interview with Marcel Proust; and a literature-based unit on friendship. (MSE)

Examines whether or not communication strategies (CS) can be taught and suggests reasons for the controversy surrounding the teachability of CS. Also reports on a study of CS training with Hungarian secondary students, the results of which suggest that quantity and quality of learners' use of CS does improve with focused instruction. (Contains 62…

A study with 118 male and 87 female junior high school students in Spain using a scale developed to assess anxiety among Spanish students associated with learning a second language found a relationship between low anxiety and superior performance in the second language (English). The scale obtained predictive validity. (SLD)