Anne E. Mills – författare

Originally published in 1983, the papers in this volume were first presented at an international symposium “The Development of Language and Communication in the Blind Child” held in 1981 in Germany. The topic although specialized, had importance within several disciplines. Contributions came from the fields of education and medicine as well as psychology and linguistics. In bringing these researchers together the aim was not only to pool results but to encourage inter-disciplinary cooperation, thus giving work in this area a broader and sounder theoretical basis.Today it can be read in its historical context.

This study of gender was conceived when I first took up the position of lecturer in linguistics at the University of Tiibingen in 1975. My particular in­ terest in gender arose out of the work with German children and adults con­ ducted in the context of preparing my doctoral dissertation for the University of York; my position at the University of Tiibingen has given me the opportunity to carry out the necessary research in both Germany and Britain. The empirical investigations reported in this study were begun in my first year in Tiibingen and continued over a period of 7 years. In this connection, I would like to express my thanks to the staff and pupils of all the schools who participated in the testing: Kindergarten Waldhauser-Ost, Kindergarten Winkelwiese, Grundschule Wanne, Grundschule Waldhauser-Ost, and Albert Schweitzer Schule (Tiibingen); Somerford Junior and Infants School and Twynham Junior and Infants School (Christchurch, GB); Burdyke Infants, Badger Hill Junior and Infants School and Joseph Rowntree Junior School (York, GB). Thanks must also go to the families of Georg, Hanna and Gisela and of course to the children themselves, who allowed the intrusion of recording equipment so regularly into their homes. I am also grateful to the staff and students of the Universities of Tfibingen, York and Manchester who cooperated in several of the investigations.