Many theories of second-language acquisition (SLA) are oppositional, and culling may be necessary. Principled culling requires a rational approach to theory assessment, and the difficulty of identifying universally valid evaluation criteria makes this problematic. Assessment strategies used in other fields can be useful in SLA, but choice among…

Addresses the applicability of philosophers' insights regarding science to second-language acquisition. The generation of new hypotheses is an important component of theory construction. The role of reason in discovery is examined, as is the coincidence of interests between individual scientists and the institution of science. (Contains 99…

Discusses problems involved in scientific explanation in general and their relevance to theories of second-language acquisition (SLA) in particular. The property theory/transition theory distinction and the deductive-nomological model are examined. The use of Lipton's (1991) "best explanation" concept in evaluating SLA theoretical frameworks is…

Explores the claim that successful second-language acquisition (SLA) is the result of social, psychological, and affective factors; the argument that this claim has been falsified is untenable. Exploration of behavioral, psychological, and biological constructs to generate new formulations is a more productive approach to SLA theory building than…

Argues that second language teaching that aims to foster speaking skills and natural spoken interaction should be based upon the grammar of spoken language, not on grammars that mainly reflect written norms. Using evidence from a mini-corpus of conversational English, it is shown that popular pedagogical grammars are deficient in conversational…

This paper argues that it is necessary for researchers and test developers in the area of language performance testing to have a clear understanding of the role of underlying performance capacities in second language performance. It critically evaluates the models proposed by Hymes, Canale and Swain, and Bachman. (71 references) (MDM)

Provides a survey of the second language literature on the role of formulaic language, focusing on communicative, production, and learning strategy functions of such language. The need to address the theoretical and methodological difficulties surrounding the definition and identification of formulaic language is discussed. (105 references) (MDM)

Argues for a reconceptualization of second language learning in ways that account for the larger social and cultural forces that influence both the meanings residing in the linguistic resources used in face-to-face communication and the ability of individuals to use them. Also considers the sociohistorical significance of this perspective for…

Examines the ways in which social process, sociology, anthropology, and media studies recently seem to have replaced pedagogy, linguistics, and psychology as the major preoccupations in British applied linguistics. The role that applied linguistics research can occupy in an emerging political order characterized by free-market economics and…

This article discusses content schemata, formal schemata, and the newly-hypothesized abstract discourse schemata, asserting that empirical studies confirm that abstract schemata are more powerful owing to their greater generality than formal schemata, which in turn are superior to content schemata. (118 references) (MDM)

This study proposes a new measure of lexical richness, the Lexical Frequency Profile (LFP), which looks at the proportion of high-frequency general service and academic words in learners' writing. The results of a study involving 65 second-language students indicated that LFP scores were comparable to scores on other vocabulary measures. (14…

This article describes some of the policy questions arising in the course of efforts to develop a test of Navajo language comprehension for young children, explaining how the test development process was similar to and different from the typical model of top-down test development by outside experts. (58 references) (MDM)

This article examined the aspect hypothesis, which asserts that verb inflections in early interlanguage systems function primarily as markers of lexical aspect independent of the target language. A study of interviews conducted with 26 Puerto Rican college students grouped into 4 proficiency levels found that the association of inflections with…

The results of a study involving 18 students from a grade 8 early French immersion class support the argument that in producing a second language, learners will on occasion become aware of a linguistic problem and modify their output. (41 references) (MDM)

Reviews the evolution of semicolon use in English, examining the frequency of semicolons, colons, and dashes in grammar, language, and linguistic books from the mid-16th century to the present. Concludes that after flourishing in the 17th and 18th centuries, the semicolon may have become a marginal component of the English punctuation system. (42…