Systemic grammars describe a number of semantic and pragmatic dimensions of human language that have been ignored by some of the research in theoretical linguistics. Quintus computer systems proposes a two phase project to design and develop a modular, principle based parser that can formulate the various independent functional descriptions of an utterance using independent systems of principles of the sort found in systemic grammar. This parsing system will be embedded in a similarly modular framework for representing discourse information and conducting instructional dialogues based on the work that has been done on computer-aided instruction. This last will complete a comprehensive formal theory of instructional dialogue, together with a design for realizing that framework in a feasible computing system.
