This article surveys the development of second language acquisition research in the area of tense and aspect. Research in the area has grown from the incidental investigation of tense-aspect morphology as part of the morpheme-order studies to investigations of the construction of interlanguage temporal semantics. Going beyond verbal morphology, many studies investigate a full range of temporal expression, including the use of pragmatic and lexical means. Much recent research also draws on theories of inherent, or lexical, aspect. An emphasis on the relation of form and meaning characterizes both the form-oriented approach and the semantic-oriented approach, the competing research paradigms that currently guide our work. The increase in scholarly activity in this domain of second language acquisition, as reflected not only in the number of studies undertaken but in the number of target languages investigated, bodes well for the understanding of temporality in second language.

This paper has two main objectives: (a) to put the vast body of research on Swedish as a second language (SSL) into one coherent framework; and (b) to test the predictions deriving from processability theory (Pienemann, 1998a, 1998b) for Swedish against this empirical database. We will survey the 14 most prominent research projects on SSL covering wide areas of syntax and morphology in longitudinal and cross-sectional studies. This survey is the first to be carried out for Swedish, and it will bring the body of two decades of research into one unified framework. We proceed in the following steps: First, a brief summary of processability theory is given. Then the theory is used to generate a unifying framework for the development of the specific L2 grammatical system (Swedish). Finally, the new framework is tested in the above-mentioned empirical studies.

This study addresses one of the functions of output proposed by Swain (1993, 1995, 1998). In particular, the activity of producing the target language may, under certain circumstances, prompt L2 learners to recognize some of their linguistic problems and bring to their attention something they need to discover about their L2. Two research questions were posed: (a) Does output promote noticing of linguistic form? and (b) Does output result in improved performance on the target form? In treatment phase 1, participants reconstructed a short passage after being exposed to it, followed by a second exposure to the same input material and a second reconstruction opportunity. In phase 2, participants wrote on given topics, followed by the presentation of a model written by a native speaker. Participants wrote a second time on the same topic. To test the noticing function of output, participants underlined parts of the sentences they thought were “particularly necessary” for subsequent (re)production. The control group was exposed to the same input materials but was not required to produce any output. Although phase 1 tasks resulted in noticing and immediate incorporation of the target form, the posttest performance failed to reveal their effects. In contrast, phase 2 tasks resulted in improvement on posttest 2. The results are discussed in terms of the efficacy of output in promoting noticing and learning and the conditions that may be required for output to be useful for SLA.

In SLA research, dependence in frequency data is a prevalent problem (Hatch & Lazaraton, 1991). Researchers usually regard the data as being independent and subject them to statistical analyses. Another problem in frequency data analysis in SLA research is the exclusion of interaction terms. This is the case because of the use of chi-square analysis or the unpopularity of multifactorial frequency data analyses. This study investigates the violation of the “independent observation” assumption as well as the effect of including interaction terms in frequency data analysis. Reanalyzing a couple of published data sets, the paper argues in favor of using multifactorial frequency data analyses over multiple chi-squares in order to take into account dependence and interaction of the frequency data. A set of recommendations for SLA researchers will be provided when statistically analyzing frequency data in SLA research.

We are grateful to Hidetoshi Saito for his careful and reasoned critique of the VARBRUL procedure in his article, “Dependence and Interaction in Frequency Data Analysis in SLA Research” (this issue). Saito reanalyzes Young's (1988, 1991) study of -s plural variation in the English interlanguage of native speakers of Chinese. He raises two criticisms of the statistical analyses in the original work: (a) data from all participants were lumped together, resulting in an analysis that ignores possible variation across participants; and (b) interaction between independent variables was not investigated, whereas Saito finds that an interaction term contributes to a statistical model that fits the data better than the original analysis.

In the book Computer-assisted language learning: Context and conceptualization, Levy sets out in the preface to (a) “circumscribe Computer-Assisted Language Learning [CALL] for the purpose of teaching it” (p. xi), (b) build on previous work rather than being led by technological innovation, and (c) “understand better the relationship between theory and application” (p. xi). Two hundred thirty-two pages later (plus 66 pages of appendices and references), it is clear that the book delivers its promise. The author bases the book on previous work and addresses a perpetual problem in CALL—reinventing the wheel. Moreover, Levy links the history of CALL with the present and combines a very thorough literature review with survey data about CALL materials development.

This published version of Markham's dissertation surveys the literature on second language phonetics (but not phonology), proposes two models, and presents experiments involving imitation of languages and dialects.

From reader to reading teacher: Issues and strategies for second language classrooms is a book targeted at second language teachers in training. The first two chapters provide a brief overview of theory and research in second language reading. Chapter 3 treats course design; 4, prereading activities; 5, activities during reading; 6, postreading activities; 7, vocabulary; 8, the use of literature; 9, assessment; 10, lesson planning; and 11, teacher development. In other words, the book attempts a comprehensive treatment of important issues related to reading instruction in second language contexts.

Second language speech: Structure and process is a collection of current research on SLA phonology. The papers in this book vary widely in scope and theoretical stance, but a recurrent theme is that research in second language phonology can shed light on other areas of SLA research. Summarized here are those papers that represent mainstream SLA phonology research, as well as papers that have particular relevance to other areas of SLA research.

This volume, the third in the Studies in Bilingualism series from the European Science Foundation's research on adult immigrants' L2 acquisition, begins with the observation that we have widely accepted the idea that learners' varieties and the transitions from one variety to the next are systematic, yet we have little research that records this systematicity. This study does exactly that by following for 30 months 10 L2 learners' developing linguistic means for indicating spatial relations. Carroll reports on two Italian speakers acquiring English; Becker on four Italian speakers and a Turkish speaker acquiring German; and Giacobbe, Perdue, and Porquier on two Spanish speakers and a Moroccan Arabic speaker acquiring French. To elicit the core data, the researchers asked the learners to describe pictures and to provide stage directions for a scene they had viewed to someone who had not seen it.

This book contains 11 papers on the computational extraction of lexical structure from text input and text search: That is what is meant here by lexical acquisition. The introduction sets out the prospects for automatic lexical acquisition and is followed by three papers on proper name identification and categorization. These offer different computational solutions to the quandaries proper names pose for delimitation, classification, standardization, and discourse reference. For example, where is the person in Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and how should this to be linked to Fed Chief? The advance in these papers is their attempt to solve proper naming via text structure alone, which makes the systems more savvy than brute look-up programs.

All too often, the festschrift consists of a disparate and uneven collection of papers on a range of subjects that often only vaguely intersect with the interests of the individual whose work is being honored by the volume. This is a festschrift with a difference. It consists of a coherent collection of original papers addressing an area of applied linguistics in which Van Els made his most outstanding contribution, that of foreign language policy. The collection is given added coherence by the fact that most contributors relate their papers to the work carried out by Van Els and his team on the Dutch National Action Programme on Foreign Languages. Although the majority of the papers describe initiatives in the Netherlands, there are also contributions from researchers working in a range of other contexts including Israel, the United States, and Finland. As the editors of the volume point out, the contributions from abroad highlight the international impact of Van Els's work on language policy.

Grauberg has undertaken the ambitious task of presenting in a relatively short book the linguistic and pedagogical aspects of teaching French and German as foreign languages. Despite many serious omissions, including a framework for discussing language proficiency, his classroom observations may prove useful for future French and German teachers.

Ridley addresses two developments in language teaching and SLA research. The first development is toward learner autonomy through self-reflection. None of her subjects reported learning a language in a classroom with a focus on learning strategies, though Ridley documents their individual preferred learning strategies with data from the beginning of the study. She then formulates her first hypothesis, “that individual learners have their own preferred lexical problem-solving strategies and patterns of reflective monitoring which are manifest when they speak and also write in the target language” (p. 20).

This book is a compilation of informative chapters containing selected papers (1988–1995) that first appeared in the English Language Teaching Journal, edited by Hedge and Whitney. The chapters have been reorganized “to provide a useful resource for teachers, trainee teachers, teacher educators, students, and researchers” (p. 1).

Nancy Lemberger's Bilingual education: Teachers' narratives is an interesting book, although probably not to SLA-type scholars. Bilingual education is written “to inform preservice and veteran teachers about the field of bilingual education on a very personal level” (back cover), presumably to be used as a text.

As I was preparing to do a workshop on research in second language acquisition, Evaluating research articles by Girden arrived on my desk. The timing was perfect and I was pleased to have this additional resource at my disposal. The book is designed for a wide-ranging audience, with examples presented from a variety of fields (e.g., social work, education, medicine, and psychology), although second language acquisition is not among them. The studies cited as examples include studies that are flawed in one way or the other, with the author leading the reader to understand the flaws.

The papers in Language learning through social computing introduce the classroom practices and philosophical underpinnings of computer-assisted language learning (CALL), which builds on collaborative approaches to L2 teaching and learning. The majority of the essays address general issues in collaborative learning through CALL, describing the authors' experience and reflections on L2 activities designed to engage learners in interesting discussions and projects, many of which rely on target language materials from the Internet.

This book is a timely and important contribution to the study of language acquisition. It should be of value to those engaged in active research in this field, as well as to the general reader with an interest in language acquisition and linguistics. The papers are rather technical and may be difficult for the general reader, but the introductory essay by the editor, Brent, goes a long way to provide the background and describe the contents of the other essays in a more comprehensible language for the nontechnical reader. It should be pointed out, however, that this book is about language acquisition in general (including the theory of learning), particularly the computational approach in the research. It is not specifically concerned with second language acquisition.