Over the past decade criterion-referenced testing (CRT) has become an emerging issue in language assessment. Most language testing books have hitherto focused almost exclusively on norm-referenced testing, whereby test takers' scores are interpreted with reference to the performance of other test takers, and have ignored CRT, an approach that examines the level of knowledge of a specific domain of target behaviours. It is designed to comprehensively address the wide variety of CRT and decision-making needs that more and more language-teaching professionals must address in their daily work....

The influence of cognitive processing on second language acquisition (SLA), and on the development of second language (SL) instruction, has always been a subject of major interest to both SLA researchers and those involved in SL pedagogy. Recent theoretical research into SLA and SL pedagogy has shown renewed interest in the role of cognitive variables such as attention, short, working, and long term memory, and automaticity of language processing. This volume first examines the theoretical foundations of research into the cognitive processes underlying SLA, and then describes various...

Pragmatics in Language Teaching examines the acquisition of language use in social contexts in second and foreign language classrooms. Included are 2 state-of-the-art survey chapters, and 11 chapters reporting the results of empirical research. The empirical studies cover three areas: incidental acquisition of pragmatics in instructed contexts, the effects of instruction in pragmatics, and the assessment of pragmatics ability. The studies address a number of areas in pragmatics, from speech acts and discourse markers to conversational routines and address terms, and represent a range of...

An important new collection of original papers dealing with essential issues and research in the learning of language by deaf people. The book addresses issues in the fields of second language acquisition and deafness, and draws upon the fields of linguistics, psychology, and education. Of particular importance is the relationship between the learning of English by the deaf and by hearing speakers of other languages. The first five chapters concern theoretical issues on language varieties among the deaf population, American sign language and the biology of language, sign language instruction,...

This important new book provides a critical overview of recent classroom-centered research and its implications for the teaching and learning of languages. Chaudron synthesizes and evaluates crucial research about the way student and teacher behaviours affect language learning and discusses research methods. Second Language Classrooms will be of vital interest to researchers, language teachers, and curriculum specialists, as well as readers with a general interest in education, linguistics, sociology, or psychology.

O'Malley and Chamot review the literature on learning strategies, describe and classify learning strategies in second language learning, and discuss why learning is affected in a positive manner when such strategies are used. The authors present instructional models for learning-strategy training that teachers can apply to their own classes. The material is based on current research in second language acquisition and cognitive theory.

Traditionally, the curriculum has been regarded as a statement of what should be done in a course of study. The Learner-Centred Curriculum takes as its starting point what is done by language teachers in their classes. Nunan develops a concept of the negotiated model in which the curriculum is a collaboration between teachers and students. The author looks at the curriculum from a teacher's perspective and reports on what instructors focus on in planning, implementing, and evaluating language courses. He synthesizes theoretical models and recent empirical studies, and considers the vital part...

This text presents up-to-date theory, research, and classroom applications in second language reading from an interactive perspective. The paperback edition presents up-to-date theory, research, and classroom applications in second language reading from an interactive perspective. The book supports the view that reading in a second language involves more than decoding; instead, reading is seen as an interactive process whereby the learner's own background and knowledge contribute to understanding reading material. These articles are written by experts in the reading field, who present process...

Issues of language curriculum development underlie all stages in the planning and implementation of language teaching programmes. This authoritative collection of papers argues for these isses to be made explicit. The stages which the book deals with are: curriculum planning, specification of ends and means, programme implementation, and classroom implementation. Evaluation is also of crucial relevance at each stage. The 'curriculum' is taken to mean all the factors which contribute to the teaching and learning situation, and the emphasis of the book is on the interdependence of these...

This volume explores how a second language is acquired and what learners must do in order to achieve proficiency. The paperback edition is a collection of original essays that approaches second language acquisition from a linguistic rather than a sociological, psychological, or purely pedagogical perspective. A wide range of viewpoints and approaches is represented. The essays in this book provide an incisive analysis of how a second language is acquired and what the second language learner must do mentally to achieve proficiency in another language. The chapters are arranged topically from...