bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
NATURAL SEQUENCES IN CHILD SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION1
Authors: Dulay Heidi C. , Burt Marina K.
Published: October 2006

The acquisition sequences of 11 English functors were compared for native Chinese‐ and Spanish‐speaking children learning English. Three different methods of speech analysis used to obtain the sequences are described in detail. All three methods yielded approximately the same sequence of acquisition for both language groups. This finding provides strong support for the existence of universal child language learning strategies and suggests a program of research that could lead to their description.
IS THERE A “NATURAL SEQUENCE” IN ADULT SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING?
Authors: Bailey Nathalie , Madden Carolyn , Krashen Stephen D.
Published: October 2006

The Bilingual Syntax Measure (Burt, Dulay, and Hernandez 1973) was administered to 73 adult learners of English as a second language in order to investigate accuracy of usage for eight English functors. It was found that there is a highly consistent order of relative difficulty in the use of the functors across different language backgrounds, indicating that learners are experiencing intra‐language difficulties. Also, the adult results agreed with those obtained by Dulay and Burt (1973) for 5 to 8 year old children learning English as a second language, indicating that children and adults use common strategies and process linguistic data in fundamentally similar ways.
PREFABRICATED PATTERNS AND THE EMERGENCE OF STRUCTURE IN SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION1
Authors: Hakuta Kenji
Published: October 2006

In order to test the hypothesis that the second language learner possesses a series of structurally cohesive learner systems, speech samples of a five‐year‐old Japanese speaking learner of English were elicited over a 15 month period. Three types of “prefabricated routines” were analyzed in detail: (1) patterns using the copula, including all allomorphs of be; (2) the segment do you as employed in questions; (3) the segment how to as in embedded how‐questions. The analysis supported the contention that the subject was operating within a simple learner system involving prefabricated routines.
INTEGRITY, PROMISE AND LANGUAGE PLANNING
Authors: Drake Glendon F.
Published: October 2006

This study sets the parameters for the language planning response to Lau us. Nichols. The study examines seminal studies in sociolinguistics and bilingualism as appropriate bases for the response; principally the UNESCO report,‘The Use of Vernacular Languages in Education,’and the research of W. E. Lambert and his associates. The study synthesizes the findings, resolving apparent contradictions by means of certain intervening social‐psychological variables. This synthesis is applied to a model constructed from Fishman's summary of world‐wide policy responses to bilingualism and bi‐dialectal education. This socio‐linguistic synthesis is related to political alternatives available for the implementation of the planning. From this, the study demonstrates possible alternative responses to Lau vs. Nichols. The study defines and evaluates each response and concludes in favor of a pluralistic response with its‘bargaining’ consequence.
LEARNER INTUITIONS OF GRAMMATICALLY
Authors: Schachter Jacquelyn , Tyson Adele F. , Diffley Frank J.
Published: October 2006

In order to characterize learner transitional competence adequately and to identify particular learning strategies of students learning a second language, both the actual performance of the learners and their intuitions about the target language must be taken into consideration. Grammaticality judgments by adult target language learners can be a valid means of obtaining the necessary intuitional data. We developed a method of eliciting intuitions of grammaticality and used this method in a pilot project involving 100 ESL students from the following language groups: Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Persian, Spanish. The subjects were presented with a set of sentences some of which were well‐formed, some of which were malformed in specific ways—and were asked to make a judgment about each sentence. The use of intuitional data forces the researcher to view the learner in a new light. The results of the pilot indicate that the elicitation of intuitional data is revealing and must be pursued.
READING, PERCEPTUAL STRATEGIES AND CONTRASTIVE ANALYSIS1
Authors: Cowan J. Ronayne
Published: October 2006

Psycholinguistic research in sentence perception supports a model of the reading process in which the reader matches expectancies set up by sampling previous syntactic clues in a text with the structural signals which follow. Such expectancies are language specific, and when they are applied to reading a second language various confusions and comprehension breakdowns result. Examples from three learning situations, Japanese reading English, Persians reading English, and English speakers reading Hindi, are presented and an analysis is made of the competing syntactic processes which account for the confusions arising in each case–negation, relativization and co–reference. The evidence lends some support for a model of second language acquisition like that proposed by Numser (1971) as well as a general apriori“predictive” version of the contrastive analysis hypothesis.
SOCIAL DISTANCE AS A FACTOR IN SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION
Authors: Schumann John H.
Published: October 2006

This paper examines a series of societal factors that promote either social distance or proximity between two groups and thus affect the degree to which a second language learning group (2LL group) acquires the language of a particular target language group (TL group). It is argued that social distance and hence a bad language learning situation will exist where the 2LL group is either dominant or subordinate, where both groups desire preservation and high enclosure for the 2LL group, where the 2LL group is both cohesive and large, where the two cultures are not congruent, where the two groups hold negative attitudes toward each other and where the 2LL group intends to remain in the target language area only for a short time. It is also argued that social solidarity and hence a good language learning situation will exist where the 2LL group is non‐dominant in relation to the TL group, where both groups desire assimilation for the 2LL group, where low enclosure is the goal of both groups, where the two cultures are congruent, where the 2LL group is small and non‐cohesive, where both groups have positive attitudes toward each other, and where the 2LL group intends to remain in the target language area for a long time. Examples of both good and bad language learning situations are drawn from actual contact situations: Americans living in Saudi Arabia, American Indians in the US. and American Jewish immigrants in Israel.
PREDICTORS OF PRONUNCIATION ACCURACY IN SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING1
Authors: Suter Richard W.
Published: October 2006

Sixty‐one non‐native speakers of English were measured on 20 variables suspected of displaying significant relationships to pronunciation accuracy. The English pronunciation of the non‐native speakers was then rated under controlled conditions by a panel of 14 native English‐speaking judges. The variables which proved to be most strongly related to pronunciation accuracy were native language, strength of the speaker's concern about his pronunciation, and amount of conversation carried on at work and at school with native speakers of English. Among the variables found to have negligible relationships to pronunciation accuracy were amount of formal classroom training in the pronunciation of English, extroversion, and sex.
IMPROVING ON THE BASIC EGG: THE M‐C CLOZE
Authors: Jonz Jon
Published: October 2006

An open‐ended cloze procedure was modified by item‐analytical and error‐analytical techniques. A short (33 items) multiple‐choice (M‐C) test was the result of that modification. The new test was administered as an experimental adjunct to an established placement examination at a large university in the eastern United States. The M‐C cloze took less than twenty minutes to administer and score, yet rivaled the placement accurary of the much longer placement examination. Substantial correlation was found between the M‐C cloze and the sub‐tests of the placement examination. The study provides evidence for the feasibility of vastly reducing the time spent in placement testing in established English as a second language programs without sacrificing the quality of the information derived from that testing.
THE ROLE OF INTELLIGENCE IN SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING1
Authors: Genesee F.
Published: October 2006

The current research was undertaken to assess the role of intelligence, as measured by standardized, group I.Q. tests, in the acquisition of a second language. Anglophone students from three different grade levels (4, 7 and 11) in each of two types of second language programs were evaluated on a battery of French language tests, including tests of reading, language usage, listening comprehension and interpersonal communication. The students were enrolled in regular French‐as‐a‐second language courses and in French immersion courses where French is used as a medium of course instruction during all or part of the school day. A sample of average, below average and above average students was selected to represent each program at each grade level. The test results indicated that performance on the reading and language usage tests correlated with IQ level. On the other hand, performance on the tests of listening comprehension and interpersonal communication skills did not correlate with IQ level. This was true for students at all grade levels in both types of language programs. The results are discussed in terms of first language acquisition.
SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION AS A CLASH OF CONSCIOUSNESS
Authors: Clarke Mark A.
Published: October 2006

Recent interest in “humanism” in second language teaching and learning has produced a number of interesting paradigms for the examination of psycho‐sociological factors in second language learning. Of particular note are the theoretical perspectives developed by Guiora et al. (1972, 1975), Gardner and Lambert (1972), and Schumann (1976). These characterizations of second language learning do not, however, provide explanations which lead directly to the identification and solution of problems faced by students in a foreign culture. This paper presents a theoretical perspective of second language learning which explains cross‐cultural problems in terms of conflicting definitions of reality. First, parallels are drawn between the trauma endured by ESL students in the United States and that endured by schizophrenics. Then, culture and language shock are discussed in terms of the conflicts experienced by individuals from traditional societies as they attempt to adjust to a “modernized” society.
DOES PRACTICE MAKE PERFECT?: A STUDY OF INTERACTION PATTERNS AND L2 COMPETENCE1
Authors: Seliger Herbert W.
Published: October 2006

The study reported here postulates the existence of two types of language learners who can be characterized by the intensity with which they practice a second language (L2). Any verbal interaction requiring L2 is defined here as practice. Learners who interact intensively, who seek out opportunities to use L2 and who cause others to direct language at them are termed high input generators. Learners who either avoid interacting or play relatively passive roles in language interaction situations are termed low input generators The subjects in this study are adult ESL students in an intensive program. They were grouped into one of the two categories described above based on a quantitative measure of verbal interaction in L2 classes. The subjects were then compared for performance or achievement on language tests, the amount of language contact outside the classroom, and field sensitivity. It was found that while placement test scores could not have predicted performance on final tests, measures of interaction could. It is concluded that interaction type is a determining variable in the acquisition of L2.
THE USE OF ENGLISH AND FRENCH CLOZE TESTS IN A BILINGUAL EDUCATION PROGRAM EVALUATION: VALIDITY AND ERROR ANALYSIS1
Authors: Lapkin Sharon , Swain Merrill
Published: October 2006

This paper presents empirical data concerning the use of cloze tests to measure children's language proficiency in a bilingual education program. Grade five students in their sixth year of a primary French immersion program were tested using both English and French cloze tests. Correlations between the cloze test and other language achievement measures were calculated for both languages and found to be high. This suggests that in summative evaluations, the cloze technique provides an economical, valid and reliable measure of overall language proficiency.

A detailed error analysis was also undertaken to compare quantitatively and qualitatively the errors made by bilingual students with those made by comparison groups of English students (in English) and students in francophone schools (in French). Generally speaking, few quantitative or qualitative differences were noted between the immersion students and the comparison groups. This suggests that strategies used to process the cloze passage by second language learners are similar to those used by their native language counterparts.
IMPLICATIONAL PATTERNS IN INTERLANGUAGE SYNTAX VARIATION
Authors: Hyltenstam Kenneth
Published: October 2006

In this paper, the acquisition of Swedish syntax of negation by adult second‐language learners has been studied. Insights into the route of acquisition have been gained through a close examination of the learners' variation in their placement of the negative element, i.e., the way in which some learners variably place the negation before and after the finite verb. This type of variation has previously been seen as random and irregular, but through application of devices for the study of variable data, such as implicational scales (DeCamp 1971), variable rules (Labov 1969) and linguistic continua (DeCamp 1971, Bickerton 1975), it has been possible to discover regular patterns in the variation. Such regularities have previously been found in sound system acquisition by second‐language learners (L. Dickerson 1975, W. Dickerson 1976).

The route of acquisition has been found to be highly regular for the group of 160 subjects who were examined in this study, and furthermore, independent of differences in background factors of the learners, such as length of education and knowledge of foreign languages. Most interestingly, the route of acquisition has also been found to be the same for learners with different source languages.

Thus the findings reported in this paper suggest that the process of acquisition of grammatical structures is a regular and dynamic one, in that there is a successive and continuous transition from one state to another. The behavior of a group of backsliders in the same syntactic area has also been studied. It is found that what is acquired last is also the first to be given up. These findings are in agreement with the Jakobsonian view of a natural sequence in language acquisition and language loss.
TOWARD A REALIZATION OF PSYCHOLINGUISTIC PRINCIPLES IN THE ESL READING CLASS1
Authors: Clarke Mark A. , Silberstein Sandra
Published: October 2006

This article is an attempt to utilize psycholinguistic research to develop a framework for the teaching of reading to second language (L2) learners. The first section highlights current psycholinguistic reading theory and develops goals for L2 reading teachers based on this theory. The proficient reader is viewed as an active, information‐processing individual who uses a minimum number of clues to extract the author's message from the page. It becomes the responsibility of teachers to train students to determine their own goals and strategies for a particular reading, to give students practice and encouragement in using a minimum number of syntactic and semantic clues to obtain the maximum amount of information, and to encourage students to take risks, to guess, and to ignore their impulses to be always correct. In an attempt to translate theory into practice, the second section of the article explores the implications of a psycholinguistic perspective for the learning environment, teacher behavior, and the preparation and use of L2 reading materials. The optimum learning environment is viewed as one in which students and teachers work together: teacher intervention is minimized as students are encouraged to use their developing skills to solve reading problems on their own. Materials development is viewed as being composed of the development of reading skills exercises (scanning, skimming, reading for thorough comprehension, and critical reading) and the development of language skills exercises (vocabulary, structure, and discourse). The third section of the article discusses lesson planning within a psycholinguistic framework and presents a sample lesson plan in English as a second language which emphasizes a skills approach to reading. Lessons are planned for maximum flexibility, allowing the teacher to take advantage of students' interests and needs.
THE MONITOR MODEL: SOME METHODOLOGICAL CONSIDERATIONS
Authors: McLaughlin Barry
Published: October 2006

The Monitor Model has been proposed (Krashen 1975, 1977a) as a general model for adult second‐language performance. The model claims that adult second‐language performers have two means of internalizing the rules of a target language: (1) language acquisition, which is primarily subconscious, is not influenced by overt teaching or error correction, and is very similar to primary language acquisition in children; (2) language learning, which involves the conscious representation of pedagogical rules, and is influenced by teaching and error detection. The model hypothesizes that learning is available to the adult second‐language performer only as a Monitor—that is, people use conscious grammar only to alter the output of the acquired system. This paper examines the Monitor Model and presents a methodological critique of the research on which the model is based. An attempt is made to provide an outline of an alternate model that more parsimoniously accounts for the data and that ties into a theory of human information processing generally.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF PIDGINIZATION, CREOLIZATION AND DECREOLIZATION TO SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION1
Authors: Schumann John H.
Published: October 2006

Schumann (1974) proposed that the pidginization process be used as a model for early second language acquisition (SLA) and that creolization serve as a model for the later stages of SLA. Subsequently, Schumann (1975, 1976, in press) elaborated the pidginization model arguing that social and psychological distance from the target language group cause persistence of pidginization in the speech of a second language learner. Stauble (1977) (following a suggestion by Bickerton 1975) has presented evidence that the process of decreolization is parallel to SLA. This paper attempts to reconcile these views by arguing that pidginization can account for early SLA, decreolization can account for the later stages of SLA and that creolization is inappropriate as a model for any aspect of the SLA process.

In addition, this paper speaks to the issue of just what constitutes legitimate pidginization. Flick and Gilbert (1976) and Meisel (1975) have criticized the analogy between pidginization and SLA, but their arguments appear to be based on a narrow view of pidginization which equates the pidginization process with pidgin languages. This paper presents arguments for a broader view of pidginization (Samarin 1971) which can account for both early SLA and the formation of true pidgins.
A CROSS‐CULTURAL STUDY OF SYMBOLIC MEANING–DEVELOPMENTAL ASPECTS1
Authors: Guiora Alexander Z. , Sagi Abraham
Published: October 2006

Twenty three Israeli kindergarteners and sixteen Israeli college students were tested on a variant of the Semantic Differential Test developed by Guiora (1976) to test the hypothesis that young Israeli children, like adults, are not influenced by the prevalence of grammatical gender in the language but ascribe sexual meanings to the test words based on their assumed connotative values.

The results bore out the original hypothesis, suggesting that whatever the cognitive processes are that underlie the development of the capacity to resolve seemingly conflicting information in favor of the more salient feature, e.g. meaning, they seem to be in place by the time the child reaches five years of age.
UNIVERSALS OF LEXICAL SIMPLIFICATION
Authors: Blum Shoshana , Levenston E. A.
Published: October 2006

Lexical simplification–the process and/or result of making do with less words–can be studied in a variety of linguistic contexts: translation, the usage of language learners, the usage of language teachers, pidginization, foreigner talk, simplified reading texts for learners. It operates according to universal principles that derive from semantic competence in the mother tongue. By means of a comparative study of some of these contexts–translation, the usage of second language learners and teachers, simplified reading texts–the operation of these universal principles is demonstrated. Aspects of simplification examined in detail include the use of superordinate terms, approximation, synonymy, transfer, circumlocution and paraphrase. A distinction is drawn between strategies and processes of simplification. “Strategy” refers to the way the learner/user arrives at a certain usage at a specific point in time, and “process” refers to the systematic series of steps by which the learner/user arrives at the same usage over time. Strategies may be process‐initiating (e.g. over‐generalization, transfer) or situation, bound (e.g. circumlocution, paraphrase).
A THEORETICAL MODEL OF SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING1
Authors: Bialystok Ellen
Published: October 2006

A model of second language learning is proposed which attempts to account for discrepancies both in individual achievement and achievement in different aspects of second language learning. The model outlines aspects of the input of information through various kinds of exposure to the language, the storage of that information for the language learner, and the responses that are produced as a function of the stored information.

The operation of the model is explained in terms of learning processes and learning strategies. The former refer to the obligatory relationships that hold between aspects of the model and are true for all second language learners. The latter describe a group of optional strategies that may be employed by different language learners and in different learning situations. Individual learner characteristics, such as language learning aptitude and attitude, affect the efficiency with which the processes will operate for an individual and the extent to which he will use the learning strategies.

Illustrations are provided to explain how the model would account for performance on a number of different learning tasks.
PERSONALITY AND LANGUAGE BEHAVIOR: A RESTATEMENT1
Authors: Guiora Alexander Z. , Acton William R.
Published: October 2006

This restatement of the theoretical framework underlying the research program of the University of Michigan Personality and Language Behavior Research Group addresses two theoretical issues that are at present particularly relevant to a theory of second language acquisition: the statue of constructs in the theory that have been transported or transposed from other fields, and the process (and criteria) of theory validation. Defining and assessing the value of “borrowed” constructs is of course serious concern of any interdisciplinary, applied science. Once that has been accomplished to satisfaction, however, the even more imposing task remains of testing the fit of those constructs within the larger context, in this case, a general theory of second language acquisition. Using as an example the development of the language ego paradigm (Guiora 1972). we first assess the moorings of its theoretical constructs in psychology and linguistics. We then examine the nature of the empirical evidence and argumentation that bears on its validity.
STRATEGIES FOR REQUESTING IN SPANISH AND ENGLISH Structural Similarities and Pragmatic Differences
Authors: Walters Joel
Published: October 2006

This paper reports on recent work in the acquisition of pragmatic competence in a second language. It centers on the speech act of requesting and the semantic strategies for conveying that speech act. First, a contrastive analysis of Spanish and English strategies is undertaken to show that basically the same strategies are available in both languages. The paper goes on to describe an experiment in which native speakers of each language were asked to judge the relative politeness of each strategy. It concludes with an examination of the frequency of use of the various strategies for conveying requests among a population of bilingual children. The findings show that, while basically the Same request strategies are available to speakers of Spanish and English, the use of those strategies differs markedly. More polite strategies are employed in speaking Spanish, while more neutral strategies are used in English.
INTENSIVE SECOND LANGUAGE STUDY IN A BICULTURAL MILIEU: AN INVESTIGATION OF ATTITUDES, MOTIVATION AND LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY1
Authors: Gardner R. C. , Smythe P. C. , Clément R.
Published: October 2006

The purpose of this investigation was to investigate the relation of a series of attitudinal/motivational variables to achievement in French of samples of Canadian and American adult students in an intensive French language program, and to assess the effects of the program on attitudes, motivation, and French proficiency. The results demonstrated an association between an attitudinal/motivational factor, referred to as an integrative motive, and French oral proficiency and reported satisfaction with the program for the sample of 89 Canadian students, but not for the 65 Americans, even though an integrative motive factor was obtained with both samples. Furthermore, both samples evidenced decreases in anxiety and attitudes toward bilingualism, and increases in French proficiency as a result of the program, while the American sample also demonstrated a decreased appreciation of the French Canadian community, and an increased desire to learn French. The results were interpreted as reflecting the role played by attitudes in the language learning situation, but attention was directed toward the significant influence the sociocultural background of the student can have on the nature of this role.
INSIDE THE “BLACK BOX”: METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES IN CLASSROOM RESEARCH ON LANGUAGE LEARNING
Authors: Long Michael H.
Published: October 2006

Two basic approaches characterize classroom research on second language learning: interaction analysis and anthropological observation. Within each approach several methods are available for data collection and analysis. Procedures described are the use of behavioral observation systems, discourse analysis, ethnography, constitutive ethnography, and diary studies. Strengths and limitations of these methods and of both basic approaches are considered, and suggestions are made for the design of future research. This work needs to include a classroom observational component in which language acquisition as well as classroom process variables are treated. In this way it will be possible to test a theory of second language acquisition with the aid of formal instruction.
NATIVE AND NONNATIVE SPEAKER PERFORMANCE ON CLOZE TESTS1
Authors: Alderson J. Charles
Published: October 2006

A frequent assumption of proficiency tests for nonnative speakers of a language is that they measure something that native speakers are able to do uniformly well. The cloze procedure is increasingly used to construct proficiency tests for administration to nonnative speakers of English. However, little evidence is available on the question of whether cloze tests are capable of making fine distinctions between native and nonnative speakers. The paper reports on a study comparing the performances of native speakers of English with those of nonnative speakers, on a number of cloze tests constructed by manipulating variables in cloze test design. It is shown that native and nonnative speakers perform similarly on cloze tests with respect to these variables. The results are related to the claim that cloze tests (as distinct from cloze items) measure essentially lower‐order language skills, and it is suggested that the notion of language proficiency needs to be revised. This has major implications for the construction and validation of language tests.
DRAMA IN SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING FROM A PSYCHOLINGUISTIC PERSPECTIVE
Authors: Stern Susan L.
Published: October 2006

This study lays the theoretical groundwork for a psycholinguistic understanding of drama in second language (L2) learning. That dramatic activities help L2 learners improve communicative competence was assumed for this study. An investigation into the use of drama in language education, psychotherapy, and speech therapy was then undertaken with the goal of discovering commonly shared assumptions which would provide insight into the psychological processes behind its use in L2 learning. The investigation led to the hypothesis that drama encourages the operation of certain psychological factors in the participant which facilitate communication: heightened self‐esteem, motivation, and spontaneity; increased capacity for empathy; and lowered sensitivity to rejection. An exploratory study was undertaken on an informal basis. It consisted of administering a questionnaire to 24 nonnative English speakers enrolled in three ESL classes at UCLA who had participated in the same dramatic activities, and administering open‐ended questions about the use of drama from the teacher's perspective to the instructors of these classes. The results of the exploratory study supported the hypothesis.
LANGUAGE COMPETENCE AND READING STRATEGIES: A COMPARISON OF FIRST‐AND SECOND‐LANGUAGE ORAL READING ERRORS1
Authors: Cziko Gary A.
Published: October 2006

The French oral reading errors of two groups of seventh‐grade English‐speaking students with intermediate and advanced competence in French as a second language were analyzed and compared to the errors of native French‐speaking students. It was found that the intermediate students made a significantly lower proportion of deletion and insertion errors than did the advanced and nativespeaker students and a significantly higher proportion of substitution errors that graphically resembled the text than did the native speakers. Also, the intermediate students made a significantly higher proportion of errors that did not conform to the syntactic, semantic, or discourse constraints of the text than did the advanced and native‐speaker students. It was concluded that both native French‐speaking students and students with advanced competence in French as a second language appeared to use an interactive strategy of drawing on both graphic and contextual information in reading French. In contrast, students with less competence in French did not use contextual information to the same extent and instead employed a more “bottom‐up” strategy of relying primarily on graphic information.
ORAL PROFICIENCY SCALES: CONSTRUCT VALIDITY AND THE HALO EFFECT
Authors: Yorozuya Ryuichi , Oller John W.
Published: October 2006

A counterbalanced experimental design was used to investigate the construct validity of four 10‐point scales of oral proficiency aimed at grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and fluency. Interviews with 10 foreign students were tape recorded and evaluated by 15 native speakers of English. Under condition 1, on four of five consecutive hearings, the raters evaluated the performances on only one of the four scales. Under condition 2, on the remaining occasion, they rated each interview on all four scales at one hearing. Construct validity was assessed by contrasting the amount of agreement across raters across scales with the amount of agreement within scales. A single general factor accounted for 96% to 113% of the estimated reliable variance in each scale. There was great fluctuation in specificity estimates which by the least biased method averaged between ‐12% and +3%. This result seems to indicate that there is no unique reliable variance (i.e., specificity) which can be attributed to the separate constructs of grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and fluency. The contrast between agreement and indexes for scales rated on the same occasion versus scales rated on different occasions revealed a halo effect which tends to reduce the reliable variance in scales rated at a single hearing by about 3%. Agreement across raters within and across scales tended to increase with repeated listenings. The global proficiency factor is sustained and no consistent specificity is found in the four scales studied.
THEORY AND RESEARCH IN SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING: AN EMERGING PARADIGM 1
Authors: McLaughlin Barry
Published: October 2006

The answers we give to the questions we ask are limited by the methods we use The argument of this paper is that theory and research in second language learning are leading us to ask questions for which we need a new research paradigm–one that focuses on the interaction of person and situational factors. This paradigm has been used in some areas of research in education and psychology, although only recently has the application of regression analysis allowed adequate testing of the model. Advantages and problems in the use of the interaction research paradigm are discussed and implications are drawn for research on second language learning.
GENDER PERCEPTION IN ARABIC AND ENGLISH
Authors: Clarke Mark A. , Losoff Ann , McCracken Margaret Dickenson , Still JoAnn
Published: October 2006

This paper describes a study conducted recently at the University of Colorado to investigate one aspect of the “Whorf‐Sapir hypothesis” of linguistic relativity. The study was a replication of a series of investigations conducted by the University of Michigan Personality and Language Behavior Research Group (Beit‐Hallahmi et al. 1974, Guiora and Sagi 1978, Guiora and Acton 1979, Guiora et al., in press) designed to examine the relationship between gender loading in languages (a linguistic construct) and perception/development of gender (a psychological construct) by speakers of those languages. The results of those studies indicated that adult speakers of English, Finnish, and Hebrew categorized objectsjconcepts in essentially the same fashion regardless of native language. The results of the present study, whiledecidedly tentative, indicate that Arabic speaking adults categorize “essentially asexual” objects/concepts in a markedly different way from English speaking adults, indicating that gender loading in Arabic influences Arabic speakers' perceptions of those objects/concepts. These findings run contrary to the results obtained from previous studies. Theoretical and methodological issues are discussed and suggestions are made for further research in this area.
THE RELATIONSHIP OF FIELD DEPENDENT‐INDEPENDENT COGNITIVE STYLES TO FOREIGN LANGUAGE ACHIEVEMENT
Authors: Hansen Jacqueline , Stansfield Charles
Published: October 2006

Psychological literature on field independence indicates that a field‐independent person possesses enhanced cognitive restructuring abilities, while a field‐dependent individual is likely to possess well‐developed interpersonal skills It was hypothesized that field independence would be related to the acquisition of linguistic competence, and that field dependence would be related to the acquisition of communicative competence. Approximately 300 students enrolled in a first semester college Spanish class were administered the Group Embedded Figures Test of field dependence‐independence. Those scores were then correlated with scores on tests of linguistic, communicative, and integrative competence Student sex and scholastic aptitude were included in the design as moderator variables. The results indicate that field independence plays a role in second language learning. This role was particularly noticeable in the acquisition of linguistic competence and integrative competence It was only barely noticeable in the acquisition of communicative competence. Some classroom implications are discussed.
INPUT, NEGOTIATION, AND AGE DIFFERENCES IN SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION1
Authors: Scarcella Robin C. , Higa Corrine
Published: October 2006

This paper examines input and negotiation in child and adolescent second language acquisition. Two hypotheses are tested: first that adult native speakers provide more simplified input to younger learners than to older learners; and second. that older learners use more conversational negotiation devices and techniques than younger learners. To test these hypotheses fourteen Spanish speakers oust beginning to acquire English). seven children and seven adolescents were paired with fourteen adult native English speakers in such a way that fourteen conversational dyads were formed lo provide baseline data an additional fourteen native English speakers were matched with each other. Each dyad was asked to participate in a block‐building task Conversations during these tasks were audiotaped, transcribed and analyzed. The analysis provides evidence which is consistent with the two research hypotheses presented above.
THE CONVOLUTIONS OF SECOND LANGUAGE: A THEORETICAL ARTICLE WITH A CRITICAL REVIEW AND SOME NEW HYPOTHESES TOWARDS A NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL MODEL OF BILINGUALISM AND SECOND LANGUAGE PERFORMANCE1
Authors: Galloway Linda M.
Published: October 2006

Recently the number of studies in the neuropsychology of bilingualism and second language performance has mushroomed This article provides the reader with a critical review of the published and unpublished experimental studies available to date and proposes some new hypotheses about the nature of the organization of languages) in the bilingual brain. Variables treated in the discussion include stage, manner, modality. environment and age of second language acquisition, language specific and ethnic factors and cognitive style. Clinical data from polyglot a phasia are also analyzed An emerging picture of the neuropsychology of bilingualism and second language performance is presented and the contributing cerebral mechanisms and abilities arc discussed Theoretical and methodological issues are also considered

Virtually the only thing that is certain is that language is represented in the brain.

—Harry Whitaker
DICTATION AS A MEASURE OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE IN FRENCH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE1
Authors: Savignon Sandra J.
Published: October 2006

Dictation has been proposed as a relatively simple yet reliable and valid indirect measure of functional language skills and is gaining in popularity as a test of placement and proficiency in L2 programs of all kinds. Yet the continued reliance on exact word scoring of dictation would seem to limit its use as a measure of communicative competence. This paper reports on the development of other than exact word procedures for scoring dictation tests in French. Three separate passages were dictated to college students of French at various levels of proficiency as well as to smaller groups of native speakers and children who had acquired French in “natural” or immersion settings. A scoring procedure was developed which evaluated chunks rather than words on three criteria: exact word, phonetic similarity, and conveyance of meaning. The analysis of results suggests that this procedure offers a reliable and efficient alternative to word for word scoring on an exact word basis and that the distinction between the three criteria is potentially useful in diagnosing functional language skills in classroom programs.
SYSTEMATICITY AND ATTENTION IN INTERLANGUAGE1
Authors: Tarone Elaine E.
Published: October 2006

It has been argued (Tarone 1979) that the most systematic speech style of interlanguage is the vernacular, which is the speech style in which the learner pays the least attention to speech form. In this paper, the notions of “systematicity” and “attention” are developed in more detail. It is argued that attention is the variable which causes style‐shifting along an interlanguage continuum of styles. These styles range from the superordinate style (in which the most attention is paid to language form) to the vernacular style (in which the least attention is paid to language form). It is further argued that the interlanguage vernacular is systematic in that it is describable and predictable by a set of rules, and that the vernacular is the most systematic style in that it is the style which is least permeable to invasion from other rule systems.
AN INTRODUCTION TO GENERALIZABILITY THEORY IN SECOND LANGUAGE RESEARCH1
Authors: Bolus Roger E. , Hinofotis Frances B. , Bailey Kathleen M.
Published: October 2006

During the last decade researchers in the area of second language testing have adopted increasingly more sophisticated evaluation techniques in an attempt to better understand the process of learning a second language. Analysis of variance, regression analysis, and factor analysis are among the statistical procedures that have allowed for insightful evaluation of language testing data. This paper explores the feasibility of applying another procedure, generalizability theory analysis, to second language testing research. An earlier paper (Hinofotis, Bailey, and Stern 1981) reported on the development of a rating scale for assessing the oral proficiency of nonnative‐speaking teaching assistants and the actual use of the scale by a panel of raters in evaluating pilot data. The data from that study are reanalyzed here using generalizability theory, which provides simultaneous estimates of consistency along several dimensions of the research, e.g., raters, subjects, and occasions. The paper includes a comparison of generalizability theory and classical test theory, an analysis of the oral proficiency data, and a brief discussion involving the interpretation of generalizability study results.
THE COMPREHENSIBILITY OF THREE VARIETIES OF ENGLISH FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS IN SEVEN COUNTRIES1
Authors: Smith Larry E. , Bisazza John A.
Published: October 2006

Nonnative English speakers are almost always tested on their comprehension ability by listening to native speakers and answering questions based on what they have heard. Their comprehension of other nonnative speakers is seldom if ever tested. Nonnative speakers, however, do not limit their use of English to native speakers alone. Indeed they are increasingly using English with other nonnative speakers as well. The functional use of the term comprehensibility must therefore be broadened to include the evaluation of native and nonnative speakers. This paper reports the results of a study to test the comprehensibility of one native and two nonnative varieties of English with native and nonnative users of English in seven countries.
A STUDY OF SOCIAL VARIATION IN ADULT SECOND LANGUAGE AQUISITION
Authors: Eisenstein Miriam
Published: October 2006

This study focuses on the developing sensitivity of 74 adult English learners to 3 English dialects in their speech community and the extent to which these learners have assimilated community norms regarding dialect speakers. On the basis of a dialect discrimination task, a speaker evaluation task, and a personal interview, the awareness and attitudes of English learners were compared to those of a control group of native English speakers attending the same university.

An integration of the results from the three tasks seems to indicate that dialect sensitivity and attitude formation develop in a parallel fashion so that by the advanced level of proficiency, learners have assimilated native dialect attitudes to a surprising extent. Attitudes appear to stem from personal experience which is reinforced by other factors such as the opinions of others and characters presented in the media.
THE COMPREHENSION OF THREE COMPLEX ENGLISH STRUCTURES BY DUTCH LEARNERS1
Authors: Bongaerts Theo
Published: October 2006

This study investigated the comprehension of three complex English structures by Dutch learners at different levels of proficiency. The research was inspired by Carol Chomsky's investigations (1969, 1972) of English‐speaking children's acquisition of complex English structures and by studies by d'Anglejan and Tucker (1975) and Cooper, Olshtain, Tucker, and Waterbury (1979) of the acquisition of such structures by adult learners with different LI backgrounds and at different levels of proficiency. For the present study, the research instruments developed by d'Anglejan and Tucker and used by Cooper et al. were adopted, and in part, adopted. The responses of the Dutch learners were in many ways similar to those of the French Canadians studied by d'Anglejan and Tucker and the Egyptians and Israelis in Cooper et al.'s study, but there was also an important difference: The Dutch learners had fewer problems with the easy to see structure. It is argued that this difference can be accounted for by differences in LI learning experiences. Dutch learners of English have already been confronted with the problem of surface structure similarity between eager to see and easy to see sentences in the course of learning their LI, whereas French‐, Arabic‐, and Hebrew‐speaking learners have not.
THREE COMPONENTS OF BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE IN READING COMPREHENSION1
Authors: Carrell Patricia L.
Published: October 2006

Research in native (English) and nonnative (ESL) reading comprehension has shown that the ability to understand texts is based not only on the comprehender's linguistic knowledge, but also on general knowledge of the world and the extent to which that knowledge is activated during processing. Separate components of background knowledge which have been identified in the literature are: (1) prior knowledge in the content area of the text (familiar vs. novel); (2) prior knowledge that the text is about a particular content area (context vs. no context); and (3) degree to which the lexical items in the text reveal the content area (transparent vs. opaque). This paper reports a study which shows the individual and interactive effects of these three separate variables on the reading comprehension of both native (English) and nonnative (ESL) readers.

Results indicate that, unlike native speakers for whom all three components of background knowledge play a significant role in reading, understanding, and recalling a text, nonnative readers show virtually no significant effects of background knowledge. Further, also unlike native readers, nonnative readers appear not to have a good sense of how easy or difficult a text is for them to understand. These findings are discussed in relation to schema‐theoretical views of reading as an interactive process between the text and the reader, and in relation to their implications for ESL reading pedagogy.