Discussion of the notion of readability focuses on predicting readability with computerized readability formulas. Semantic and syntactic factors are discussed, the development of readability formulas is described, and five commercially available computer readability formulas are reviewed, including the Readability Estimator, Readability Formulas,…

Discusses the field of instructional systems technology (IST) and the definition of its subject matter domain; describes cognitive mapping and semantic relatedness; and reports results of a study that generated a cognitive map to define the structure of research and theory in IST. (three references) (LRW)

Examining the existence of an identifiable domain of adult education, this article considers the increasing diversity of practice, the methodological and philosophical problems involved, changing concepts and aims of adult education, and the current climate of relativism. Proposes the concept of tradition, which helps define paradigms that change…

Argues that competence in academic subjects depends on mastery of their specialized patterns of language use. These patterns are described in terms of: 1) the semantics underlying Halliday's functional linguistics and 2) the structural analysis of communication genres. A sample classroom episode illustrates relationships among semantic…

Severely hearing-impaired students (n=187, ages 7-23) at eight reading levels were evaluated to determine their ability to comprehend common English modals. Although subjects' modal comprehension improved with reading level, subjects at the highest reading levels did not demonstrate complete mastery of modals. Modals tended to be acquired in a…

The article describes the application of the box method for teaching English skills with hearing-impaired students. The method employs teaching steps which make use of sequential fading techniques to achieve a low error rate. Examples demonstrating improvement in English syntax, morphology, and semantics of two profoundly hearing-impaired…

Defines and illustrates the importance of lexical function in second language learning based on the "meaning-text" model of I. A. Mel'cuk. Examples in French and in English demonstrate that it is possible to combine lexical and grammatical learning. (DJD)

A review of the significant advances made in the study of Spanish language history during the 1980s describes recent developments in introductory textbooks, manuals, external histories, phonological research, morphological research, syntactic research, semantic research, dictionaries, learned vocabularies, bibliographies, and literary research.…

Environmentally contaminated speech errors (irrelevant words or phrases derived from the speaker's environment and erroneously incorporated into speech) are hypothesized to occur at a high level of speech processing, but with a relatively late insertion point. The data indicate that speech production processes are not independent of other…

Characteristics of language production shared by interlanguage and agrammatism, a linguistic symptom of aphasia, are discussed, and it is proposed that the two constitute a reduced system within the language, derived from the language's conceptual system. (MSE)

Two studies tested three- and five-year-old children's ability to use multiple-referent and inclusion strategies to interpret new words. In both studies, children interpreted labels for single objects at the basic level. The multiple-referent and inclusion strategies led children to interpret novel words at the superordinate level. (RH)

BASIC programing was taught to 95 undergraduates from a manual emphasizing the language's syntax or from a manual that included additional material on the underlying semantics. Both approaches produced equivalent learning of syntactic features of BASIC; however, semantically trained students developed fewer misconceptions and performed better on…

Applies a categorical framework for relating compounds and metaphors to a discussion of the aspects of children's development of preferred and metaphoric compounds. Results indicate that preferred compounds serve the function of being conceptually precise, while preferred metaphors serve "suggestive" functions. (Author/CB)

Reviews the current use of Portuguese loanwords in Konkani, 28 years after the absence of Portuguese rule over Goa, India, considering grammatical, phonological, and semantic aspects. Although Goans predictably integrated Portuguese lexicon into Konkani, many of the loanwords are no longer used, especially among younger generations. (CB)

Theoretical/empirical foundations on which reaction times are measured and interpreted are discussed. Models of human information processing are reviewed. A hybrid procedure and analytical framework are introduced, using a speed-accuracy decomposition technique to analyze the intermediate products of rapid mental processes. Results invalidate many…