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Jo, Phill. "Strategic reading for English as a foreign language." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 1999. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/1725.
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Takagaki, Bob. "The acquisition of the English system of pronominalization by adult second language learners." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1985. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/25526.
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The study presented in this paper is a second language study of the acquisition of the English system of pronominalization by adult learners of English. It is a partial replication of Ingram and Shaw's (1981) first language acquisition study on the same topic.
One hundred and eighty four subjects and twenty control subjects were administered a written task that involved making anaphoric assignments to pronouns in thirty five test sentences, representing seven different sentence construction types.
Analysis of the data indicated that the two syntactic constraints of precedence and dominance played major roles in the anaphoric assignments made by all subjects. In addition, these two syntactic constraints were instrumental in delineating developmental stages in the acquisition process. A comparison of the response patterns displayed by the present study's subjects and those displayed by Ingram, and Shaw's subjects revealed a number of differences. These differences suggested that the acquisition process was not invariant and highly sequential in nature, but dynamic and highly creative, allowing a great deal of latitude in terms of the processing strategies employed.Education, Faculty of
Language and Literacy Education (LLED), Department of
Graduate
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Chou, Pei-Ying. "Co-teaching and reciprocal teaching for English-as-a-foreign-language reading." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2006. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/2873.
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The purpose of this project is to help promote elementary English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) students' reading comprehension. The project investigates the co-teaching model and its implementation in the Taiwanese English class. Curriculum and lesson plans are included.
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Powell, Deborah Sue. "Increasing cognitive functioning in science for English language learners." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 1997. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/3024.
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Hendricks, Jessica. "Language attitudes, medium of instruction and academic performance: a case study of Afrikaans mother tongue learners in Mitchell's Plain." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2004. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&.
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The purpose of this study was to determine the implication for learning for learners whose home language is different from the medium of instruction at school.The study is focused on a group of Afrikaans learners for whom English is not a foreign language. Rather, English is a language that they are in contact with on a daily level through the media, their peers and in the classroom. The study looked at why these learners find themselves in English classes when the language policy of the country makes provision for their specific home language in the classroom. It also tried to determine whether these learners experience problems in their learning as they shift from Afrikaans as a home language to an English medium of instruction in class.
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Picard, Michelle Yvette. "The serpent both in water and on land : a critical phenomenological investigation of foreign students' experiences of learning English in South Africa." Thesis, Rhodes University, 2000. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002639.
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In this dissertation I attempt to examine “the experience of the perspective” of foreign students introduced into English classrooms in South Africa. I acknowledge the importance of focussing on the individual’s narrative, since it is “only through an unconscious synthetic activity of consciousness” that perspectives are connected together (Carspeken 1996:11), but, along with Freire, I believe that “generative themes” can only be investigated in “man-world relationships”. The researcher needs to examine the phenomenon in context of the world that it originated from, since “historical themes are never isolated , independent, disconnected or static” (Freire 1972: 73). In this dissertation I, therefore, carefully follow the classic phenomenological steps to analyse data from my respondents and then immediately contextualise it in term of literature about the learners background, the educational and political system in which they currently find themselves as well as general literature about the phenomenon of immigrants and learning of a second language. The premise underlying this research is the “taken-for-granted certainty” (Carspeken 1996:11) that there is something unique in the South African situation which results in foreign students experiencing the learning of English in a particular way within this context.
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Russell, Margo K. "A Comparison of Linguistic Features in the Academic Writing of Advanced English Language Learner and English First Language University Students." PDXScholar, 2014. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/2023.
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Writing for an academic purpose is not an easy skill to master, whether for a native English speaker (L1) or an English language learner (ELL). In order to better prepare ELL students for success in mainstream content courses at the university level, more must be known about the characteristics of student writing in the local context of an intensive English program. This information can be used to inform ELL writing instructors of which linguistic features to target so that their students produce writing that sounds appropriate for the academic written register.
Two corpora of 30 research essays each were compiled, one of L1 student writing done in various departments at Portland State University, and the other of ELL writing produced in an advanced writing course in Portland State University's Intensive English Language Program. The corpora were compared for the frequencies of 13 linguistic features which had been previously found in significantly different frequencies in L1 and ELL essays (Hinkel, 2002).
The tokens of each feature in each essay were counted, and the frequency rate was calculated in each case. The results of the Mann-Whitney U test found 6 features with significantly different frequency rates between the two corpora. The following features were more frequent in L1 essays than in ELL essays: modal would, perfect aspect, passive voice, reduced adjective clause, and it-cleft. In addition, the type/token ratio was found be significantly higher in L1 essays than in ELL essays.
An analysis of how each of the significant features was used in the context of ELL and L1 essays revealed the following: Both student groups were still acquiring the appropriate use of modal would; the majority of students in both groups did not utilize it-clefts; the lower type/token ratio in ELL essays meant that these students used a more limited vocabulary than did L1 students; and ELL students were still acquiring the accurate and appropriate uses of perfect aspect, passive voice, and reduced adjective clauses, whereas L1 students used these features grammatically and for the standard uses.
To apply these findings to the ELL writing classroom, instructors should help students raise their awareness of these six features in their own academic writing by leading students in identifying grammatical and ungrammatical uses of these features and providing practice in differentiating between uses which are standard to the register of academic writing and uses which are appropriate only in conversation. Two sample activities are included to illustrate how to implement these recommendations.
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Macedo, Celia Maria Macedo de. "A functionally-based course for adult foreign language learners in Brazil." Virtual Press, 1986. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/471713.
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This creative project consists of a course syllabus and materials based on the functional approach. It was designed for students of English at Universidade Federal do Para in Brazil.The first chapter is about the teaching-learning situation where the syllabus will be applied; the second chapter is the proposed syllabus; the third chapter consists of the teacher's manual; and the fourth chapter is the students' book.
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Randolph, Gerda Ann Packard. "Building written language: A program for second language literacy in English." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2000. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/1866.
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Silburn, Gail Deirdre. "The effect of teaching text organisation on reading in English as a second language." Thesis, Rhodes University, 1991. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1001438.
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This research investigated the effect of teaching text organisation on reading in English second language to schoolgirls. All subjects underwent a training programme of five one-hour sessions on consecutive school days. The experimental group were trained in the use and recognition of top-level organisation as a reading strategy, based on work done by Bartlett (1978) and Carrell (1985). The control group were trained in unrelated grammar exercises. A pre-test was administered to each group before their programme began. Post-test 1 was administered immediately after the training was completed, and Post-test 2, three weeks later. These tests required a written recall of two passages once they had been read, and an answer to a question on their organisation. The null hypotheses stated that the experimental group's training in the use and recognition of top-level organisation as a reading strategy would make no difference in their ability to read and recall information or to recognise and use top-level organisation in their recalls. For the quantity of information recalled, no differences were found in the Pre-test and Post-test 1; a statistically significant difference was found in Post-test 2 in favour of the experimental group. For the quality of information recalled, the control group remembered more top-level idea units in the Pre-test; there was no difference in Post-test 1; the experimental group did better in three out of five levels in Post-test 2. There was no difference in the Pretest in either group's use of the passage's top-level organisation to structure recalls, but the experimental group did better in both post-tests. The control group did better in the Pre-test in recognising the passage's top-level organisation, but the experimental group did better in both post-tests. The null hypotheses were rejected as the experimental training made a difference, although this difference only became apparent three weeks later, and not immediately after the training. The experimental group's nullifying the control group's Pre-test advantage in Post-test 1 and surpassing it in Post-test 2, powerfully supports Bartlett's and Carrell's findings that teaching the strategy did make a difference and that this effect could be maintained over three weeks
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Masube, Elizabeth Tobani. "The influence of teacher discourse moves on comprehensibility of language content by English first additional language (EFAL) learners." Thesis, University of Limpopo (Turfloop Campus), 2010. http://hdl.handle.net/10386/642.
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Thesis (M.ED.) --University of Limpopo, 2010This study was intended to investigate how teacher discourse moves influence comprehensibility of language content by the English First Additional Language (EFAL) learner and promote active participation by the learner in classroom interaction. The research is a Case Study which was conducted at a primary school in the Greater Sekhukhune District in Limpopo Province The Qualitative research approach was applied in the Case Study since the research is concerned with experience as it is lived ‘or felt’ or ‘undergone’ by participants. the key concern of this research is understanding the phenomenon of interest, from the participants’ perspectives, not the researcher’s. The situation in most Black schools is that first of all, teachers who teach English First Additional Language (EFAL) are not first speakers of English themselves. Secondly, learners have a problem of acquiring information through English as an additional language hence the question of comprehensibility of English language content. Teachers and especially learners are de-motivated as they lose interest in what goes on in Englishclassroom interaction due to the comprehensibility of English First Additional Language content As participant observer the researcher in this study concludes that the use of discourse moves by the teacher in classroom interaction enables the learner to comprehend the language content. Also that the teacher’s code-switching and code-mixing into the learners’ home language develops not only comprehensibility of EFAL language content but most of all promotes active learner participation in classroom interaction. This in turn helps the teacher to achieve the desired learning outcomes.
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Kennedy, Sara 1973. "Second language learner speech and intelligibility : instruction and environment in a university setting." Thesis, McGill University, 2008. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=115651.
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The purpose of this study was to investigate changes in the pronunciation and intelligibility of instructed and uninstructed second language (L2) learners over time, and to identify instructional, environmental, and methodological factors playing a role in pronunciation and intelligibility.Seventeen L2 graduate students at an English-medium university recorded three personal anecdotes over five months. The students also regularly logged their exposure to and use of English. Nine of the students (instructed group) were concurrently taking an oral communication course focussing on suprasegmental pronunciation. Classroom instruction was regularly observed and recorded. All 17 students were interviewed at the end of the study.
L1 listeners heard anecdotes from three instructed and three uninstructed students, matched for length of residence and first language (L1). Listeners also heard anecdotes from four L1 English speakers. One group of listeners retold each anecdote after hearing it (discourse-level task). The other group paused the recording of each anecdote whenever a word was unclear (word-level task). Each group of listeners also rated excerpts for accentedness, comprehensibility, and fluency.
Results of quantitative and qualitative analyses showed that: (a) no unambiguous changes in the pronunciation or intelligibility of either L2 learner group occurred over time; (b) word-level intelligibility measures more consistently differentiated L1 and L2 groups, and the instructed and uninstructed L2 groups; (c) compared to the instructed group, the uninstructed group logged relatively more English exposure/use for academic activities and relatively less for interactive social activities; (d) many instructed L2 learners did not believe that their pronunciation had noticeably improved, but almost all expressed satisfaction with their ability to communicate in English; (e) at the end of the study, many uninstructed learners reported persistent difficulties in communicating in English.
The results suggest that instruction in suprasegmental aspects of pronunciation sometimes may not lead to improved intelligibility or pronunciation. In addition, some L2 learners can be as intelligible as L1 speakers, depending on the listening task. Finally, results suggest that L2 learners' perceptions of their communicative ability and their patterns of L2 exposure/use are related. Implications for university preparation and support programs for L2 graduate students are discussed.
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Huang, Jing, and 黃景. "Autonomy, agency and identity in foreign language learning and teaching." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2009. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B41757981.
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Yates, Karen. "Teaching linguistic mimicry to improve second language pronunciation." Thesis, University of North Texas, 2003. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc4164/.
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This thesis tests the hypothesis that a whole language approach to ESL (English As A Second Language) pronunciation with emphasis on suprasegementals through the use of linguistic mimicry is more effective than a focus on segmentals in improving native speakers perceptions of accent and comprehensibility of ESL students' pronunciation of English. The thesis is organized into seven chapters. Chapter 2 is a discussion of the factors that affect the degree of foreign accent in second language acquisition. Chapter 3 gives a background on current ESL pedagogy followed by a description of the linguistic mimicry approach used in this research in Chapter 4. Chapter 5 and 6 are discussion of Materials and Methods and Conclusions and Implications.
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Groot, Ingeborg. "Note-taking in English as a second language acquisition." Virtual Press, 1991. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/770936.
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The purpose of this study was to investigate and describe several aspects of English as a second language (ESL) note-taking in response to lectures. The objective of this study was to analyze note-taking production. In addition, the study had hoped to trace note-taking progress as it correlated with language proficiency progress, but due to circumstances beyond the control of the researcher this idea had to be abandoned. Instead, the study focused on the first six weeks of a learner's academic semester in the target language.The researcher observed twenty students in order to obtain insights into the note-taking production of low ESL students in response to lectures. The methods used were: class observation, notebook collection, a two-part questionnaire, and a follow-up questionnaire. It was found that in the first six weeks of academic study, this group of low ESL students had difficulty taking notes due, largely, to language proficiency problems, such as the rate of delivery. Other reasons why the students had difficulties taking notes included their lack of formal training in note-taking and the fact that they were not using special strategies and skills. Thus, all this study can say about note-taking in second language acquisition is that it is difficult for low ESL students.Department of English
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Dlangamandla, F. N. N. "A case study of a teacher's oral error treatment strategies in an English language classroom." Thesis, Rhodes University, 1996. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1003315.
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Theoretical perspectives on error treatment in second language acquisition research are divided on the effect and desirability of corrective feedback on the learner's output. Theorists like Krashen (1982), believe that correction hampers acquisition because it encourages the learners to avoid difficult structures and to focus on form rather than on meaning, while Long (1977) contends that error treatment possibly speeds up interlanguage development although errors disappear slowly. Edmondson (1985) asserts that bringing errors to the learner's attention helps learning and that error - treatment contributes to consciousness-raising which is important for language acquisition. Research findings present conflicting evidence on the effects of corrective feedback on those for whom correction is meant. Some researchers report no concrete findings on the relationship between corrective feedback and learning outcomes (Hendrickson (1978) and Brock, Day and Long (1986)). Others, for example, Chaudron (1977) and Crookes and Rulon (1985) report differential effects of corrective treatments. Salica, Ramirez and Stromquist and Wren (cited in Chaudron 1988) report some evidence of feedback on error resulting in the learner's ability to self-correct. However, Hendrickson (1978) reports that some direct types of corrective procedures have been found to be ineffective. This research investigated a teacher's oral error treatment policy in different types of English lessons in a situation where L2 pupils study English as a subject according to an LI syllabus. The findings of this case study reveal that the teacher's manner of correction, when he decides to correct, is subtle and indirect. Rarely does he correct overtly and explicitly as his concern is to avoid hurting the error maker's feelings. He defers treatment and ignores most of the oral errors that learners make during classroom interaction. Pupil perceptions of their teacher's corrective treatments were positive although some of the pupils reported that they found his corrections confusing and intimidating at times. Most of them expressed , a wish to have their speech errors attended to explicitly, preferably by their teacher as his treatments were found to be motivational and unabrasive. Some of the pupils were opposed to peer correction for fear of ridicule. They also felt that fellow pupils did not always provide correct treatments. All the pupils in this study were of the opinion that oral error treatment is desirable because they believe that it improves their performance in English.
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Chen, Selma Shu-Mei. "The effects of L1 word order and English proficiency on non-English speakers' sentence processing." Virtual Press, 1989. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/720150.
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This study is a partial replication of Davison & Lutz's (1984) experiment. It was designed to test if L1 word order and English proficiency are involved in non-native speakers' sentence processing. This study concentrates on the roles of syntax and pragmatics/semantics in sentence processing. By comparing two corresponding syntactic structures with similar meanings but different forms in context, we can detect the different degrees of the salient property of a certain NP. The perception of the salient NP is related to the definition of the sentence topic, which functions as the link between the sentence and the discourse. The salient NP can be identified by applying our linguistic knowledge, syntactic rules, and our real world knowledge, pragmatic principles,. The choice of syntactic structure is conditioned heavily by pragmatic principles. It is believed that response times correspond to the degrees of salience.Sixty international students participated in the experiment. Stimulus sentences were presented with a computer program and response times were recorded in seconds by the computer automatically. A cloze test was given for the measuring of English proficiency.The data collected were analyzed with SPSS-X. The MANOVA was carried out to compare the differences between VO/OV language types, target sentences (transformed and untransformed ones), five types of syntactic constructions, and the interactions ofword order by target sentences, target sentences by syntactic constructions, and L1 word order by target sentences by syntactic constructions. The response times for English proficiency were used as a post hoc variable. Significance was set at .05.The results revealed that there was a significant difference across five syntactic constructions (p < .05). The other tests were not significant. Two important limitations on this study are problems arising out of randomization parameters in the experiment, and the lack of lower level English proficiency subjects.Department of English
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Mugore, Masawi Maireva Faustina. "Language learning and teaching in Zimbabwe : English as the sole language of instruction in schools : a study of students' use of English in Zimbabwe, their indigenous languages (Shona and Ndebele), and the schools' methods of instruction in secondary school classrooms." Thesis, McGill University, 1995. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=29090.
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This study focuses on the use of English as the sole medium of instruction in Zimbabwean schools and the effect of such a policy on the educational achievement of students, particularly in secondary schools. The role of Shona and Ndebele, two other Zimbabwean official languages, in schooling is also examined.Some of the findings reveal a learning and teaching environment that prevents strategies from addressing linguistic, social and cultural development with a coherent workable vision in the English classroom.
Because English is the working language of government, business, and industry in Zimbabwe, an English-only policy seems to be a practical means to prepare students for higher education and the workforce. The growing status of English as an international lingua franca provides additional support for such a policy.
This study reveals the need to rethink the imposition of an English-only policy. The findings indicate that current teaching approaches/methods and materials do not entirely support language development in English, largely because they do not take into account the economic, social, and linguistic situations of the students.
The study supports and calls for a multifaceted approach to the way language is currently taught in Zimbabwe, and sees this as one way secondary schools can produce, through the medium of English instruction, students and teachers who can adapt to rapid change, and relate to people from diverse socio-cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
The study emphasizes the integration and expectations of people's views on language and education, as heard and expressed by many respondents. This is considered central to any meaningful effort towards linguistic competence, a challenging but stimulating learning environment, and better communication among students and teachers.
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Liu, Songhao. "The acquisition of the Chinese de-construction by native English speakers." HKBU Institutional Repository, 2010. http://repository.hkbu.edu.hk/etd_ra/1192.
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Mohamed, Hashim Issa. "Academic writing as social practice: a critical discourse analysis of student writing in higher education in Tanzania." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2006. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&.
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This thesis was a critical analysis of students academic second language writing at Sokoine University of Agriculture. Student writing in English as a second language in higher education has excited much interest in the English as a Second Language writing research and discussion in Tanzania. The interest was motivated by frequent criticisms from examiners regarding students literacy performance in the English as a Second Language writing in the post primary and higher education where the language of instruction is English as is configured in the Tanzanian language policy.
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Jung, Miso. "When English as a Second Language students meet text-responsible writing." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2005. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/2906.
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This thesis follows two international freshman students in an English composition class at California State University, San Bernardino. The results indicate that the students generally experienced feeling challenged and overwhelmed about the unfamiliar topic, but detailed assignment guidelines played a key role for students to progress in understanding the assignment.
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Berwick, Richard. "The effect of task variation in teacher-led groups on repair of English as a foreign language." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1988. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/29230.
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An experiment was conducted to determine how learners and teachers of English as a foreign language in Japan cooperatively attempt to improve the comprehensibility of their talk in English during performance of various conversational tasks. The basic practical issue under study was the possibility that certain kinds of teacher-led groups and tasks would be more effective in generating repair and negotiation of the language by which tasks are accomplished than others, and that these group-task combinations might eventually be employed as alternatives to traditional teacher-fronted forms of foreign language instruction.
The study was operationalized in a 2 x 5 between-and-within subjects, repeated-measures analysis of variance design. Two, six-dyad, teacher-led groups -- homogeneous (Japanese teacher/Japanese learner) and mixed (native English speaking teacher/Japanese learner) -- were formed in order to compare the frequency of 12 repair exponents generated during performance of five tasks. Teaching goals were represented in two tasks, instruction in use of the string-searching function of a laptop computer 1) with and 2) without the computer physically present. Non-teaching (social and cooperative problem-solving) goals were embodied in three additional tasks, 3) free discussion, and construction of a Lego (snap-together) toy accomplished with participants facing 4) away from and 5) towards each other. Task categories were also divided into experiential and expository activities (respectively, Tasks 2 and 5, and Tasks 1 and 4) following a model for use of reference in English. Experiential dyadic activity was related to the occurrence of exophoric (pointing out) reference and expository dyadic activity to the incidence of anaphoric (pointing back) reference in the task transcripts.
Results of the analysis of variance indicated that while tasks differed on the basis of repair and reference, the groups did not: Dyadic talk was more responsive to the nature of the task than to the language background of the teacher. Further analysis suggested more frequent and elaborate repair during tasks which combine non-teaching goals and experiential processes as compared with tasks emphasizing teaching goals and expository processes. Qualitative analysis of task transcripts supported this distinction and elaborated specific discourse functions for such repair exponents as referential questions and confirmation checks which characteristically co-occur in conversational discourse.
Based on these findings, it was concluded that Japanese teachers are capable of generating appropriate conversational repair in dyadic interaction with learners largely on a par with their native English-speaking counterparts. To this extent, their potential contribution to learners' acquisition of a foreign language is of an equivalent value. Furthermore, teacher-led small groups can be effective contexts for generating a rich supply of conversational repair and. thus should be considered as alternatives to traditional teacher-fronted foreign language classroom instruction. Finally, tasks which support achievement of social and problem-solving (i.e., non-teaching) goals through experiential activity are effective contexts in which normal forms of conversational repair can be generated. Since such tasks can be adapted easily to classroom settings, they merit consideration among the range of task options available to teachers and other instructional planners.Education, Faculty of
Educational Studies (EDST), Department of
Graduate
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Sun, Lixia. "Reviewing computer-assisted language learning (CALL) in a vocational school in China." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2005. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&action=viewtitle&id=init_5543_1178702325.
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In recent years, advances in computer technology have motivated Chinese teachers to reassess computer use and consider it as a valuable part of daily foreign language learning and teaching. Software programmes, USB (Universal Serial Bus) technology, and computer networks are providing teachers with new methods of incorporating culture, grammar, and real language use in the classroom. Students gain access to audio, visual and textual information about the language through the use of computers. The aim of this study was to investigate vocational school English students and teachers concerns and behaviours about integrating information technology into English instruction.
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Fujita, Masahiro. "Developing listening comprehension competence in Japanese English as a Foreign Language Learners." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2002. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/2150.
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The purpose of this project is to investigate a model for developing listening comprehension competence on the part of Japanese learners of english as a foreign language, with a view toward promoting practical and communicative english competence.
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Smith, Karina Yarwood. "Me Llamo Lenika." Thesis, McGill University, 2008. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=112517.
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Educating language minority children in Canada is becoming increasingly challenging as our population becomes more and more diverse. Determining the best educational policy to help immigrant children learn English or French, while furthering their knowledge of core subject material has long been a difficult task for educators in the public system. This novel is a fictional account of an immigrant girl's first year in an Ontario elementary school. Through her experience, I describe a language policy whereby children have access to bilingual primary education no matter what their first language is. Two-way immersion is offered for language minority groups with significant numbers of students within a district. And, in collaboration with the community, first language support in school is given to students of all language backgrounds. I propose a teacher training programme that better prepares teachers for the linguistic diversity in their classrooms and promotes foreign language learning in teachers themselves. Children under this system are able to acquire the dominant language of society, learn the subject material, and continue to develop literacy skills in their first language. With such policies in place, I argue, Canada could be a world leader in bilingual education for diverse populations.
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Yu, Hsien-Yu. "Computer-assisted English as a foreign language curriculum design." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 1997. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/1311.
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Quigley, June R. (June Richfield). "A Semantic Field Approach to Passive Vocabulary Acquisition for Advanced Second Language Learners." Thesis, North Texas State University, 1986. https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc500401/.
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Current ESL instructors and theorists agree that university students of ESL have a need for a large passive vocabulary. This research was undertaken to determine the effectiveness of a semantic field approach to passive vocabulary acquisition in comparison to a traditional approach. A quantitative analysis of the short-term and long-range results of each approach is presented. Future research and teaching implications are discussed. The outcome of the experimentation lends tentative support to a semantic field approach.
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Brulhart, Marilyn Mae. "Foreigner talk in the ESL classroom : interactional adjustments to adult students at two language proficiency levels." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1985. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/25356.
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While native speakers adjust their speech to accommodate non-native speakers on syntactic and prosodic levels, they also make adjustments on the level of discourse. It has been argued that these interactional adjustments are crucial to the promotion of language learning. A quasi-experimental, factorial study compared the frequencies of nine interactional features used in the speech of four ESL teachers as they taught beginner and advanced level adult classes. It was expected that teachers would change their use of each feature accordingly as students neared native proficiency. Nine two-way analyses of variance were employed to capture three sources of variation in the use of the interactional features: proficiency level, teacher and proficiency level by teacher interaction. As predicted, display questions and self-repetitions were used significantly less often with advanced students than with beginners. High variability in teacher behaviour was discovered, and seemed to be primarily an artifact of lesson content. In fact, discourse usage seemed to vary as a function of lesson content, as well as proficiency level of the students. One result, the marked reduction in use of display questions at the advanced level, was discussed in light of prevailing ESL goals. As research addresses the question of whether and which adjustments do promote language acquisition, there will be implications for teacher training.Education, Faculty of
Language and Literacy Education (LLED), Department of
Graduate
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Yin, Zhaochun, and 尹照春. "The lexical inferencing of Chinese learners of English as a foreign language." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2011. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B47752920.
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The primary purpose of this study is to explore the lexical inferencing of Chinese learners of English as foreign language in terms of the intent, the clue use, the procedure, the processing type, the adaptability, and the success of lexical inferencing as well as the subsequent lexical knowledge acquisition. All together 781 Chinese EFL learners at four stages of English learning (senior secondary year-2, tertiary beginning, tertiary middle, and tertiary final) participated in this study. 726 respondents answered a questionnaire of lexical strategies to unknown words in reading and clue use in lexical inferencing. 55 participants thought aloud the process of inferring the meaning of 12 target words while reading an article, and reported their knowledge of target words in a surprise test one week after the think-aloud activity.
Data collected from the questionnaire were analyzed quantitatively to rank various lexical strategies and types of clue use. The think-aloud protocols of lexical inferencing were analyzed qualitatively to identify the type and amount of clue use, the event sequence of lexical inferencing, the processing type & adaptability, and the outcome of lexical inferencing. Their subsequent knowledge of target words was coded and analyzed. All these items of lexical inferencing also were processed quantitatively to explore the overall view of Chinese EFL learners‘ lexical inferencing, and the similarities & differences of learners at different stages.
The findings reveal that Chinese EFL learners frequently used a number of lexical strategies, and lexical inferencing was the most frequently used. They used various types of clues, especially sentence meaning, morphology, and discourse meaning in their lexical inferencing. Some features of clue use, such as abundant imagined morphological clue and L1 grammar clue, revealed the impact of the Chinese language. There were also some variations in the clue use of learners at different stages. The results of this study show that major lexical inferencing procedure was ‘Guess > Accept’ at senior secondary stage and ‘Guess > Evaluate > Accept’ at three tertiary stages. There was an obvious upward shift of processing type from the ‘pure top processing’ of senior secondary to more advanced processing of tertiary stages. The overall adaptability of Chinese EFL learners‘ lexical inferencing was not high. There was an increasing tendency of high adaptability from the stage of senior secondary to tertiary final. The findings show that one fourth of lexical inferencing outcomes were ?Correct‘, while one third were ?Partially Correct‘. There was an increase tendency of ‘Correct‘ or ?Partially correct’ inferences and vocabulary knowledge acquisition from senior secondary stage to tertiary final stage. Measurable vocabulary knowledge was acquired in lexical inferencing.
Further explorations reveal that Chinese EFL learners‘ procedural & declarative knowledge might potentially explain the performances of their lexical inferencing.
This study culminates with some pedagogical implications for vocabulary learning and reading, and some suggestions for further research on lexical inferencing.published_or_final_version
Education
Doctoral
Doctor of Philosophy
30
Yuen, Susie. "ESL university students' coping strategies : a qualitative study of academic reading." Thesis, University of British Columbia, 1988. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/28316.
Full textAbstract:
The ability to read and write academic discourse in a second language often determines an ESL student's scholastic progress. Recent related research has focused on the academic reading of ESL university students at the text level, often at the single or multi-paragraph level (Block, 1986; Carrell, 1985, 1987), and has looked at categories that were general across subject areas.
This study explores how first year university ESL students cope with the reading demands of two specific credit courses, English Literature and Introductory Psychology, within the context of the course requirements, the instruction, and the nature of the academic discipline itself.
The research method focused on ethnographic interviews with ten students from various Asian countries and their Canadian instructors, on classroom observations, and on the researcher's extensive field diary.
Analysis of the findings identified three major coping strategies: self-management, background knowledge and experience, and reliance on the instructors in the disciplines. The nature of the genre, the students' interest in the discipline, and their perseverance in reading comprehension appear to influence their choice of strategies in meeting specific academic objectives. These strategies contributed to the background knowledge component of the academic tasks that the students face. Their efforts at academic tasks were guided by the concern to do what was required to complete course assignments. Essentially, course assignments directed the action component or agenda, of the students' academic tasks. Reading-to-learn involved approaching the genre-specific reading tasks at the whole text level within the context of what was required to successfully fulfil the course requirements of the particular genre. The primary reality of the students was to demonstrate an adequate level of academic proficiency.
In contrast with previous research, findings indicated the importance of genre-specific reading tasks at the whole-text level rather than generic reading at the paragraph level, and the importance of relating coping strategies to the context of what was required to fulfil course requirements rather than the study of strategies in isolation. Thus, the findings were consistent with a theoretical model (Mohan, 1986) analyzing academic tasks into an action component and a knowledge component.Education, Faculty of
Language and Literacy Education (LLED), Department of
Graduate
31
Isaacs, Talia. "Towards defining a valid assessment criterion of pronunciation proficiency in non-native English speaking graduate students." Thesis, McGill University, 2005. http://digitool.Library.McGill.CA:80/R/?func=dbin-jump-full&object_id=98938.
Full textAbstract:
This exploratory, mixed-design study investigates whether intelligibility is "enough," that is, a suitable goal and an adequate assessment criterion, for evaluating proficiency in the pronunciation of non-native English speaking graduate students in the academic domain. The study also seeks to identify those pronunciation features which are most crucial for intelligible speech.Speech samples of 19 non-native English speaking graduate students in the Faculty of Education at McGill University were elicited using the Test of Spoken English (TSE), a standardized test of spoken proficiency which is often used by institutions of higher learning to screen international teaching assistants (ITAs). Results of a fined-grained phonological analysis of the speech samples coupled with intelligibility ratings of 18 undergraduate science students suggest that intelligibility, though an adequate assessment criterion, is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for graduate students to instruct undergraduate courses as teaching assistants, and that there is a threshold level (i.e., minimum acceptable level) of intelligibility that needs to be identified more precisely. While insights about the features of pronunciation that are most critical for intelligibility are inconclusive, it is clear that intelligibility can be compromised for different reasons and is often the result of a combination of "problem areas" that interact together.
The study has some important implications for ITA training and assessment, for the design of graduate student pronunciation courses, and for future intelligibility research. It also presents a first step in validating theoretical intelligibility models which lack empirical backing (e.g., Morley, 1994).
32
De, Silva Hemani. "ESL teaching in selected Brisbane schools." Thesis, Queensland University of Technology, 1993. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/36695/1/36695_Digitised%20Thesis.pdf.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis reports the results of a one-year fulltime investigation into the use of communicative teaching methods in ESL classrooms in a selection of schools in Brisbane.
The motivation for this research program comes from the fifteen years of experience of the researcher in ESL teaching in Sri Lanka where, despite well resourced and publicised efforts, the Sri Lankan Ministry of Education has not been successful in implementing communicative teaching methods in Sri Lankan schools.
Traditional methods emphasise matters of form such as grammar and correct usage in quick reading and accurate writing whereas modern communicative methods emphasises speaking, listening and the content of what is to be communicated. Stephen Krashen's Monitor Model provides the theoretical foundation for communicative approaches utilised for data analysis in this study. An extensive list of activities and carrier topics published by a celebrated second language teacher and scholar, Mary Finocchiaro, has been adopted as the practical framework for data analysis.
A Teacher-Student Bond hypothesis has been postulated by the researcher as being potentially useful in improving the effectiveness and efficiency of ESL pedagogy.
ESL lessons are conducted in order to help migrant students from non-English-speaking backgrounds fit into the academic mainstream. As a study with some international significance, this mainstream of the educational system in Queensland has been described from the pre-school level to the tertiary level.
Political factors which influence the allocation of funding and teacher-training in support of ESL teaching have been described in relation to relevant demographic characteristics of Brisbane, which have influenced the sample construction of schools visited by the researcher.
Non-participatory classroom observation has been adopted as the main research method for data collection from a selection of schools in Brisbane, following a study of relevant demographic issues. Interviews with, and handouts prepared by, ESL teachers have also provided supplementary data.
Visits to twenty classrooms in ten schools in Brisbane have provided the data which has been analysed initially using the theoretical framework of Krashen. The data has been extended using the practical framework of Finocchiaro's list of activities and topics.
A student-age or experience-level dependent analysis has been used to unify the theoretical and practical frameworks using all available data.
Data indicates that the Teacher-Student Bonds hypothesis is significant only for students linguistically weaker in English and their more supportive ESL teachers in relatively smaller classes.
Problems of implementing communicative teaching methods by ESL teachers arises from the continued use of non-communicative, traditional, formal methods by even the more eminently qualified and otherwise experienced teachers who may have firmly committed themselves in interviews to the use of communicative teaching methods. Such implementation problems are in fact surmountable with the aid of communicatively experienced teacher-trainers who monitor, identify and discuss with relevant teachers any significant amounts of formal content observed in their lessons.
A minor interesting finding of this investigation indicates that the range of activities and topics available for use in ESL classrooms is much larger than is likely to be used by any one ESL teacher.
A major finding of this investigation is that the level of ESL experience of students should determine the communicative content satisfying Krashen Input requirements early years more and later years less. Krashen's Affective Filter requirements could well be satisfied to advantage at all levels.
A range of topics has been identified for future research:
* in relation to the theoretical framework, problems of:
- determining input content level complexity and improving student receptivity to input
- use of first language links between ESL teachers and their students
* in relation to the practical framework, problems of:
- selecting what in fact are more effective topics and activities
- damage that may result from using communicative methods over too long periods.
Some concluding statements have also been formulated in a way that might influence relevant policy determinations by the Sri Lankan Government and its Ministry of Education as they seek to implement communicative methods of teaching ESL in Sri Lankan schools.
33
Liu, Wen-Chung. "Memorization and improvisation: A comparison of two strategies in the oral acquisition of english as a second language." Thesis, Australian Catholic University, 2006. https://acuresearchbank.acu.edu.au/download/8306ae39a326dfcd147417f16ce5be64b3354f4b1b775de021f00e77c8127795/2361984/64967_downloaded_stream_192.pdf.
Full textAbstract:
The purpose of this research is to investigate the effects of two teaching strategies, memorization and improvisation, on ESL (English as a second language) students' oral proficiency and how they perceived the strategies and the activities used in the classroom. Participants were 16-year-old nursing students in a Taiwan medical college. They had learned English for at least three and a half years before joining the study, but most of their previous learning was focused on reading and writing. They were divided into three groups, experiencing a memorization strategy, an improvisation strategy, and a strategy combining memorization and improvisation respectively. Data were collected from their oral pre-test and post-test, perception questionnaire, perception interview, college-wide satisfaction survey and in-class observation. Data were analysed in both quantitative and qualitative ways. The results showed that each of the strategies had significant positive effects on students' oral acquisition, but the improvisation group performed significantly better than the memorization group, and the memorization group did better than the combination group. However, the satisfaction and perception surveys showed that participants preferred the combination strategy to the improvisation strategy, and the improvisation strategy was preferred to the memorization strategy. The finding also showed that participants' initial oral language levels made no difference on the rate of oral improvement. The high-level and intermediate students demonstrated no difference in their preference for the two strategies, but the low-level students showed significant preference for the memorization strategy. In terms of the teaching activities, participants preferred task-based activities to discussion activities, and activities involving multiple people were preferred to monologues such as storytelling and news reports.;Nevertheless, preference made no difference on participants' oral improvement. Based upon the insight gained from this study, pedagogical implications and for teaching oral language were developed and suggestions for future research have been recommended.
34
Li, Yim-wah Janet, and 李艷樺. "An investigation into conversational negotiation and repair in the foreign language classroom." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 1995. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B31958163.
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Phillips, Marjo H. "A profile of an English as a foreign language education system : the Finnish context." Virtual Press, 1995. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1001182.
Full textAbstract:
Since English is increasingly being taught worldwide, questions about the importance of teaching context continue to grow. But studies of EFL (English as a foreign language) educational systems in various contexts are rare. This holistic study was intended to describe and analyze one European setting where English is taught as a foreign language, to uncover the underlying assumptions and needs that drive EFL education, to hear teacher and student voices about the confidence they have in the system, and to identify factors in the layers of context that make this system unique.The study relies mainly on qualitative methods, but uses also some quantitative data to support and/or refute information obtained through qualitative research methods. The ethnographic field work was conducted on location in Finland from January to December of 1992.The findings indicate that the Finnish EFL education system is unique because of various social, political, and linguistic factors that are characteristic of the nation itself. Several factors contribute to the effectiveness of the system, such as highly qualified instructors, excellent instructional materials, and up-to-date teaching methods. More importantly, however, it is Finland's commitment to quality foreign language education that seems to be decisively instrumental in achieving the expected results. Thus, the nation as a whole invests in the development and research of foreign language education. It appears that the key to the relative success of the English education system in Finland involves just the right combination of interrelated factors and level of confidence found at every layer of the context.Since most EFL systems consist of the same universal elements' (teachers, students, materials, methods, etc.), the study proposes an EFL Contextual System Model, which is applicable to other settings. The Model can be used to analyze and interpret the parts and interrelationships of EFL systems in various educational contexts.By learning about the EFL context in Finland, the worldwide TESOL (teaching English to speakers of other languages) community can gain a better understanding of the importance and function of the broader teaching/learning context itself and draw parallels between EFL educational systems in various nations.Department of English
36
Powell, Judith Ann. "Teaching reading to adults where English is their second language." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2008. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/3346.
Full textAbstract:
This project sought to identify methods that will work best for Second Language (ESL) adults and identify ways in which ESL can be taught to help facilitate learning for the older adult over 40 years of age. This project identified some of the problems caused by the nature of the English language and the grammatical issues older ESL students face when attempting to learn to speak and read English.
37
Kirk, Ann Louise. "The effects of oral conferencing and written comments on the writing and revisions of ESL students." PDXScholar, 1988. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/3804.
Full textAbstract:
This study looked at the effect of written and oral comments on students' writing. The research hypotheses were that the use of oral comments would improve the overall quality of the students papers, increase the length more, and cause more changes in content than the use of written comments. On the other hand, the use of written comments would cause a greater decrease in grammatical errors in the students' papers than oral comments. The tests used to evaluate these hypotheses were the holistic writing scale used by the Test of Written English (TWE), a word count, a content percentage scale developed by the researcher, and an adaptation of Brodkey and Young's Composition Correctness Score (1981).
The procedures used in the study were as follows: Three different classes were used. Each class was randomly divided in half. After the students had written the first draft of an essay assignment given by their teacher, they were assigned to either the written or the oral group. Students in the written comments group received written comments only on their papers. Students in the oral conference group had conferences with their teachers about their papers. Then the students wrote a second draft of their papers. At this point, the process was repeated; students wrote a second paper. After this first draft, those students who had received written comments on the first paper had oral conferences, and those who had had oral conferences received written comments were revised based on these comments.
38
Chan, Ching-yan Sammi, and 陳靜欣. "Teacher's language alternation in an ESL classroom in an English as the medium of instruction (EMI) secondary school: a case study." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2009. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B43226371.
Full text
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Lee, Jun-Yong. "Language learning strategies and tolerance of ambiguity of Korean midshipmen learning English as a foreign language." Virtual Press, 1998. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1115721.
Full textAbstract:
This study explores patterns of language learning strategies and the degree of tolerance of ambiguity of Korean Naval Academy midshipmen. The subjects, 377 midshipmen, were divided into three groups according to class, major, and proficiency, and the results were analyzed by group. The study also sought to find out relationships between motivation, attitude, language learning strategies, and tolerance of ambiguity. For the study, the Strategy Inventory Language Learning (SILL for ESL/EFL) developed by Oxford (1990a) and the Second Language Tolerance of Ambiguity Scale by Ely (1995) were used, along with items about motivation and attitude toward language learning.It was found that the language learning strategy mean and tolerance of ambiguity mean were not high overall. The proficiency levels showed significant mean differences: the high proficiency level students showed a significantly higher mean use of language learning strategies and tolerance of ambiguity than did the low and mid proficiency level students. With respect to class levels, there were no significant mean differences relating to language learning strategies. The seniors' mean of tolerance of ambiguity, however, was significantly higher than that of the other class levels. For major, there were no significant differences in the use of language learning strategies and tolerance of ambiguity. Correlations between tolerance of ambiguity and language learning strategies were significant and positive, although modest.The midshipmen's means of motivation and attitude were comparatively high. It was also found that while motivation showed a strong correlation with language learning strategies, attitude showed a strong correlation with tolerance of ambiguity. Through the analysis of six open questions, in addition, it confirmed that the Korean midshipmen generally did not use active strategies in learning English, although high proficiency level students used more than the mid or low proficiency ones.Department of English
40
Al-Qarni, Ibrahim R. "Rote repetition in Saudi Arabian foreign language vocabulary acquisition." Virtual Press, 2003. http://liblink.bsu.edu/uhtbin/catkey/1263922.
Full textAbstract:
This study was designed to examine the impact of rote repetition strategies (RRSs) on the retention of newly learned vocabulary items on both immediate recall test (IRT) and delayed recall test (DRT) in the Saudi Arabian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context. The RRSs included in this study were the following:1. Silent repetition (SR): repeating the foreign word with its first language (Ll) translation silently2. Verbal repetition (VR): repeating the foreign word with its first language (L1) translation out loud3. Silent-written repetition (SWR): repeating the foreign word with its first language (Ll) translation silently while writing it down4. Verbal-written repetition (VWR): repeating the foreign word with its first language (L1) translation out loud while writing it downThe following hypotheses were investigated in this study:1. For Saudi EFL college learners rote repetition (RR) is an effective learning strategy in vocabulary learning for both short and long term retention.2. In terms of their impact on short-and-long-term retention, the four RR strategies investigated in this study are predicted to be ranked as follows: VWR > SWR > VR > SR.Four treatment groups with a total of one hundred and thirty three freshmen Saudi students majoring in English language and translation participated in this study. Each group was introduced to one of the above repetition strategies, trained to use the strategy, and instructed to carry out a vocabulary learning task using the specified strategy. The learning task was a memorization task of new English words with their Arabic equivalent translations. An iaanediate recall test (IRT) was administered right after the learning task was carried out followed by a one-week delayed recall test (DRT).The results obtained from participants' scores on both recall tests indicate that rote repetition strategies are effective strategies for Saudi EFL college students and help them in increasing their retention scores. The results also indicate that the SWR and VWR are more effective memorization strategies than VR and SR. The former strategies yielded better retention not only on the IRT but also on the DRT.College of ArchitectureDepartment of English
41
陳浩然 and Ho-yin Tony Chan. "The language learning strategies used by L2 English learners in the processing of corrective feedback: a casestudy from a secondary school in Hong Kong." Thesis, The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong), 2009. http://hub.hku.hk/bib/B43240744.
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Chunyan, Ma. "Additive Bilingualism or ‘Straight-for-English’? The linguistic and cultural impact of different approaches to the teaching of English on children in two Chinese schools." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2005. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&.
Full textAbstract:
This study examines the impact of two different models of teaching English to Chinese children, to see whether it meets learners&rsquoneeds. These two different approaches appear to lead to different result for children. The results of the analysis appear to show that this teaching programme is failing the children at Z&rsquo
SL. Therefore, the course needs to be reviewed and improved. Four research tools were used in this study: interviews, questionnaires, classroom observation, and document analysis. Interviews and questionnaires were distributed to coordinators and teachers at both schools. Questionnaires were also distributed to the parents of students. Classroom observation was done during normal class time by the researcher. The document analysis dealt with the analysis of the textbooks.
The results of the study appear to show that the teaching programme in English at Z&rsquo
SL has failed to meet the children&rsquo
s needs. The materials are not designed for young learner&rsquo
s needs. They just emphasize the four skills of English in an English environment, but neglect the relatively unstable language situation of the children. The teaching methodology emphasized the direct method, but neglected children&rsquo
s needs. Children should be taught to know how to use a language in the society they live in and to learn a second language effectively for actual use. This study concludes that two-way bilingual education and the cognitive developmental approach are most effective to develop dual language proficiency for Chinese children in their native language and English in order to bring up the children as members of Chinese society. Additive bilingualism education is also appropriate for Chinese children when the home language is a majority language and the school is adding a second minority or majority language. Another consideration is that collaboration between parents and teachers is more effective to provide opportunities for children to maintain their own language and culture while children acquire a second language.
43
Dooey, Patricia. "Issues of English language proficiency for international students." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2005. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/628.
Full textAbstract:
In the last 20 years or so, there has been a phenomenal increase in the number of international full-fee paying students applying to study in Australian universities, The revenue provided in this way has helped to address the problems faced by cash-starved universities facing recurring funding cuts over the same period. Furthermore, the presence of such students on any university campus provides immeasurable enrichment to the student body in terms of cultural diversity and research potential, and indeed it is very tempting in an ever,-increasing global market, to be as flexible as possible with prospective international students. However, the process of admission also demands careful consideration on the part of the various stakeholders involved. Although several factors need to be taken into account, the most obvious and certainly of primary importance would be the need to prove proficiency in the English language, Given that English is the dominant means of communication in the university, all students are required to draw from a complex web of linguistic resources to construct meaning and to complete the range of tasks required of them during their tertiary studies, This volume deals :with the overarching theme of issues of English language proficiency for overseas students studying in an Australian university. This focus can be viewed from many angles, and there are certainly many key facets involved, a selection of which is explored in the papers of the portfolio. These include the following broad areas: recruitment and admissions, language testing and technology, curriculum and inclusivity, English language support, academic conduct and finally the specific needs of international students, as viewed from their own perspective.
44
Reynolds, Judith Marsha. "A description of the language experiences of English Second-Language students entering the academic discourse communities of Rhodes University." Thesis, Rhodes University, 1998. http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002644.
Full textAbstract:
This study is a description of the language experiences of English Second Language students in their first year at Rhodes University. It took place in the context of the changes that are currently occurring in higher education in South Africa in terms of student populations. More and more students are entering tertiary education institutions, including HWESUs, such as Rhodes University, who are considered non-traditional. These students typically have English as their second, or additional, language, and have not been adequately prepared for university study by their secondary education. This study describes the experiences of three such students in their first year at Rhodes University. Entry into a university is seen not just as acquiring knowledge, but as entering, or attempting to enter, a new culture. It is recognised that all students enter universities with other cultures or literacies already in place. In the case of non-traditional students tbese other literacies are usually at some distance from those of the university. The work of James Gee (1990) is particularly useful in understanding this process of adjusting to the demands of university study and the effect that previous experiences have on this process. This study is an attempt to discover and describe the literacies that these three students brought with them to university and the effect these literacies had on their attempts to enter academic discourse communities of the university. An ethnographic research method was adopted in order to do this. The study is also an attempt to evaluate, from the perspective of the three students, the appropriacy of the various changes that Rhodes University has made since the numbers of non-traditional students has started to increase.
45
Pandit, Goolam Hoosain. "Global student migration patterns reflect and strengthen the hegemony of English as a global lingua franca: A case study of Chinese students at three tertiary institutions in Cape Town in the period 2002-2004." Thesis, University of the Western Cape, 2005. http://etd.uwc.ac.za/index.php?module=etd&.
Full textAbstract:
The objective of this research paper was to examine how, through the prism of student migration patterns, the domination of the English language is extended and entrenched. Using the example of Chinese students in South Africa, the paper explored some of the reasons that underpin South Africa's growing appeal as an international study destination. The research specifically focused on the period between 2002 and 2004 which witnessed Chinese students arriving in unprecedented numbers to pursue higher education in a post-apartheid South Africa.
46
Mathew, Ingrid B. "Errors in pronunciation of consonants by Indonesian, Gayo and Acehnese learners of English as a foreign language." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 1997. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/904.
Full textAbstract:
This thesis reports on research into consonantal phoneme pronunciation errors in the English of EFL learners from three different first language groups in the province of Aceh, northern Sumatra, Indonesia. It is a qualitative study, describing the errors found for each first language group. Error data was collected from each participant in the language laboratory using an aural discrimination test, a word repetition test and a reading passage test, and also from interviews with each participant which were recorded on audio cassettes. Analysis and explanation of the error data then followed. There were eight participants from each of the three first language groups, with equal numbers of male and female participants in each group. All were students at the State Islamic Institute or other universities in Banda Aceh, either in the English teacher training department or taking English as a compulsory subject in their degree program. At the time of the research they were aged between 19 and 25, and had all taken EFL as a subject for six years in high school. Where it was not their first language, the national language, Indonesian, was their second language. All had studied Arable. The findings indicate errors are largely limited to final stops and sibilants, and initial and final affricates and interdentals.
47
Kontra, Edit Hegybíró. "The need for a culture-sensitive approach to teacher education in English as a foreign language." Thesis, University of South Wales, 1998. https://pure.southwales.ac.uk/en/studentthesis/the-need-for-a-culturesensitive-approach-to-teacher-education-in-english-as-a-foreign-language(8bb92694-fcca-4ea6-ace7-4f11e03d1b0a).html.
Full textAbstract:
The aim of this Portfolio is to provide insight into some characteristics of I lungarian learners of English, and to use this as evidence in pointing out the need for a change in current teacher education practices in the preparation of English teachers. The Portfolio comprises two projects. Project `A, ' Ihingal-ia» t ieivs about Native Eiiglislr , Sppeakiiig Insiniclors, explores the positive and negative experiences of Hungarian learners with native English speaking instructors. With the help of qualitative research and analysis the learners' needs and expectations are highlighted. Project `B, ' The L inguaage Leariii, ig SIralegie Used by Ilungariarl Learners of English, investigates the learning strategies of I lungariann learners and their general approach to learning. From the qualitative analysis of the data particular features emerge which have not been documented in the literature before. The research results point out those features of the learner which prevailing teacher education models do not prepare novice teachers for. The portfolio is based on I lungarian experience but an international relevance is also demonstrated. The two projects are each placed in the wider context of teaching English as a foreign language (EFL), and thus they provide evidence that besides preserving some universally valid elements of teacher education models, it is necessary to find ways of catering for particular local needs. Instead of imposing the values and beliefs represented by Anglo-American teacher education approaches, textbooks or methods, there are local, context-specific features which have to also be taken account of. At a time when English is primarily used for international communication, teachers can only be prepared in a training program which, instead of the present Anglo-American cultural dominance, adopts an intercultural approach. The final section of the portfolio outlines the possible elements of such a culture-sensitive teacher education model for teaching English as a foreign language.
48
Eubank, Ilona M. "The teaching of composition to speakers of non-standard dialects through collaborative learning." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 1990. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/575.
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Kollmann, Valerie. "Aspects of current English language teaching practices with a special focus on task." Thesis, Edith Cowan University, Research Online, Perth, Western Australia, 2005. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/theses/646.
Full textAbstract:
This portfolio is written with the intention to explore current English language teaching practices in global as well as Australian contexts, with emphasis on task-based language teaching. As a result of the forces of globalisation, the number of learners involved in English language instruction has increased throughout the world and with it the necessity of language programs that would facilitate instruction in accordance with the needs of the market. Since the task-based language syllabus is founded on needs generated by the learners, there is potential for this language teaching methodology to become the recommended mode of instruction in the future. The central feature of the portfolio is the examination ef the current discourse of task and subsequent disconnect as it applies in two situations, in the field of applied linguistic research and actual second language teaching contexts. Two small scale studies have revealed that in actual teaching practice task-based language teaching has either been applied in a limited sense, or not at all. The findings also indicate that such failure to implement task-based language learning principles is largely due to a lack of understanding of the concept of task and the use of global textbooks.
50
Liu, Kuan-Ting. "Promoting metalinguistic awareness through peer response in writing in elementary English as a foreign language." CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2005. https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/etd-project/2807.
Full textAbstract:
This project serves as a resource to help teachers understand and meet the educational needs of second-language learners by promoting their metalinguistic awareness through peer response in writing in elementary English as a foreign language.