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An observable feature of learner language, linguistic variability, is described and used as the basis for speculating about an aspect of the process of second language learning. It is hypothesized that variation in correct use of target language forms varies as a function of the demands placed on the learner to produce these forms. Three groups of adult subjects enrolled in community college programs participated in the study. Twenty-six were intermediate English as a second language (ESL) students, 21 were advanced ESL students, and 16 were native speakers of English. Transcripts of planned discussions provided the data of the analysis which examined the use of the Wh-question system and the verb system. The linguistic variability in the data seemed to be systematic. With regard to dimensions of language proficiency, these appeared to be the extent to which the learner's knowledge of the language is analyzed, and the extent to which the knowledge is automatically accessible. The framework generated by these two dimensions describes the learner's knowledge of the language; it serves to separate formal knowledge from the ability to apply known aspects of the language to various purposes. The model derived from the data is that the process of language learning involves the gradual analysis of the structure of language and the development of more fluent retrieval procedures. (AMH)

1Boy Crusoe

By Allan Eric

Also published as" A Yankee Crusoe" . A 15 year old hard working and studious farm boy finds the lure of adventure on the seas as a merchant seaman more than he can resist. This is his story. " I was born in a little town in the State of Maine, near the close of the Civil War. My boyhood life did not differ materially from that of the average farmer's son in the remote country districts of New England--except, perhaps, that I read more and thought more. Hard work on the rugged soil, two terms each year in the little yellow country schoolhouse, a day's fishing now and then filled the early years of my life full to over-flowing. " What he gets is enough excitement and adventure to overflow his wildest dreams. How he experiences disaster and uses his wits and knowledge to overcome every problem makes for a great read. - Summary by Phil Chenevert