ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
A Contextual Approach to the Study of Discourse Anaphoric Expressions: On the Probabilistic Nature of Theoretical Predictions
Author: Madhkhan, Mozhgan
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Discourse Analysis,Writing (Composition),English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Form Classes (Languages),Context Effect,Indo European Languages,Native Language,Foreign Countries,Ambiguity (Semantics),Films,Narration,Phrase Structure,Universities,Linguistic Theory,Statistical Analysis

Anaphoric expressions are among the most frequent language forms which depend on context for their resolution. Among efforts made in theorizing referential choice, distance approaches take into account how accessibility/continuity is reflected by choice of referring expressions. The thing is that individual's choices are made under major and minor influences which affect the variable predictability of anaphoric expressions. In order to investigate the variability of individual writings in a free writing task (the present paper aims to investigate the variability of individual writings in terms of the use of anaphoric expressions in a free writing task). Narrative data was collected from 10 native writers (of English/Persian in University of Isfahan) by presenting them a seven-minute soundless action movie and asking them to narrate its story. The results show a fair degree of diversity in varying frequencies of pronouns and Full NPs. It is suggested that diversity might be caused by two factors: referential strategies of text producers who consider the helping role of context as well as the degree of referential distance, referential ambiguity and salience.
English Language Proficiency and Content Assessment Performance: A Comparison of English Learners and Native English Speakers Achievement
Author: Miley, Suzi Keller
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Scores,Accountability,English Language Learners,Academic Achievement,Language Proficiency,Language Tests,State Standards,Comparative Analysis,Language Arts,Mathematics Tests,Mathematics Achievement,Statistical Analysis,Elementary School Students,Middle School Students,Achievement Gap

As a result of the accountability requirements established in Title III of the Elementary and Secondary Educational Act (ESEA) legislation, English Learners (ELs) are expected to make progress in both content area academic achievement and English Language Proficiency (ELP). In Tennessee ELs progress is measured by administering WIDA-Access to assess English language proficiency, and Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) standardized assessments to measure content academic achievement. The purpose of this study was to compare and analyze the performance levels of ELs who achieved the exit criteria on WIDA-Access state mandated English proficiency assessment and their subsequent performance on English Language Arts and Math TCAP assessments. Specifically, a comparison of EL's achievement on TCAP was compared to the achievement on TCAP of non-ELs. Independent samples t-tests were performed on data from 302 elementary and middle school ELs and non-ELs that participated in WIDA-Access and TCAP assessments in 2015. Data analyses concluded that English Language Arts and Math TCAP scale scores were significantly different between ELs and non-ELs. Achievement levels in both English Language Arts TCAP and Math TCAP for ELs, who achieved the exit criteria on WIDA-Access, were lower than the achievement levels of non-ELs. Discussions of the findings in this study along with implications of using these assessments to measure ELs growth is provided in relation to the increased demands on measuring both the academic achievement and English language progress for ELs.
Critical Thinking and Argumentative Writing: Inspecting the Association among EFL Learners in China
Author: Pei, Zhengwei
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Critical Thinking,Persuasive Discourse,Writing (Composition),Higher Education,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Majors (Students),Undergraduate Students,Cognitive Tests,Thinking Skills,Scoring Rubrics,Essays,Comparative Analysis,Statistical Analysis

Nurturing critical thinking (CT) has been acknowledged as a core objective of tertiary education, and drawn attention from academia of teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in China. The thrust of the present study was to determine the association between CT and EFL argumentative writing among Chinese undergraduates. To this end, 110 English majors across three grades at two universities were conveniently selected and given the critical thinking skills (CTS) test and EFL argumentative writing test. The results of this study indicated that undergraduate English majors in China did not possess strong CTS. Though their CTS was not found to be significantly correlated with EFL argumentative writing performance, textual analysis of typical essays showed that strong-CTS learners outperformed weak-CTS ones in relevance, clarity, logicality, profundity and flexibility of argumentative writing. The obtained results suggest a need to integrate CT into EFL writing instruction.
Integration of Three CBI Models and WeChat Mobile Learning in Business English Teaching
Author: Siqi, Che
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Teaching Methods,Telecommunications,Handheld Devices,Business English,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Language Proficiency,Educational Technology,Technology Uses in Education,Course Content,Higher Education

Content-Based Instruction (CBI) is considered effective not only in mastering language skills, but also in acquiring the content knowledge of business subjects. WeChat, a popular communicative and interactive platform, is acknowledged as a new instrument to improve verbal teaching proficiency and obtain relevant information. The integration of three major CBI models and WeChat Mobile Learning can form three applicable phases of Business English teaching, which is an innovative but challenging teaching approach for business English teaching.
Analysis of Teacher Beliefs and Efficacy for Teaching Writing to Weak Learners
Author: Mohar, Tunku Mohani Tunku
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Teacher Attitudes,Language Teachers,Self Efficacy,Teacher Effectiveness,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Interviews,Language Proficiency,Teaching Methods,Writing Skills,Feedback (Response),Writing Improvement,Writing Instruction,Foreign Countries,Case Studies,Religious Education,Teacher Student Relationship

The present study investigated the beliefs and efficacy of a teacher teaching English to students who were weak at the language. The objective of the study was mainly to investigate the beliefs and efficacy of the ESL teacher for teaching writing to weak learners. The research was a case study of the English Language teacher teaching Form Three class of students whose English proficiency was very low. An interview was conducted with the teacher to further probe the instructional strategies applied to enhance her beliefs and efficacy in her own capabilities to make learning happen in her classroom. Observations were made to investigate the teacher's efficacy in teaching and the performance of the students specifically for writing. Results show the teacher's beliefs of her students' capabilities and their language needs helped shape the teacher's instructional strategies. The teacher's efficacy enabled her to decide to undertake the task of teaching writing to her students because she was confident in her ability. The teacher provided clues to the students to facilitate their learning. This kind of feedback from the teacher indirectly motivated them to learn. The teacher's beliefs and efficacy contributed to her teaching practice and the instructional strategies that she used in turn enhanced her beliefs and efficacy. The study implicates that teacher's beliefs and efficacy can assist the weak learners in improving their writing skills and also facilitate language learning.
Adolescent Identity Formation in the Context of Vocationally Oriented Special Needs Schools
Author: Jacobs, Carmelita
Date: 2017-08-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Adolescent Attitudes,Self Concept,Vocational High Schools,High School Students,Student Attitudes,Special Needs Students,Special Schools,Teacher Student Relationship,Qualitative Research,Semi Structured Interviews,Content Analysis,Student Experience,Social Influences,Sense of Community,Peer Acceptance,Education Work Relationship,Outcomes of Education,Goal Orientation,Barriers

Adolescence is a phase that is associated with important identity-relevant issues. Shaping a clear sense of identity is an important step in developing a healthy psychosocial disposition, and the school is an important context where this can happen. In this article, we explore how adolescents who had attended a special needs school of skills in the Western Cape, South Africa, perceived the role that their school experiences played in shaping their sense of identity. These were learners who entered the school of skills with a poor sense of self, due to years of academic difficulties and exclusion in mainstream primary schools. Using a qualitative research design, data was collected through interviews, and analysed by means of the inductive process of thematic content analysis. The findings showed that participants' school experiences shaped their sense of identity in a more positive way. The participants' narratives speak to the complexity in the individual, the school and the community in contributing to a sense of identity with both positive and negative aspects. Though the participants experienced a sense of belonging and felt accepted by their teachers and peers, the school did not deliver on its implicit promise of a job-related skill, and this in turn negatively affected their thinking about future life paths and careers, which is important for identity formation.
Promoting Resilience among Sesotho-Speaking Adolescent Girls: Lessons for South African Teachers
Author: Jefferis, Tamlynn C.
Date: 2017-08-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Resilience (Psychology),African Languages,Foreign Countries,Females,Adolescents,Blacks,Phenomenology,Freehand Drawing,Rural Areas,Content Analysis,Student Motivation,Teaching Methods,Teacher Role,Teacher Student Relationship,Evidence Based Practice,Secondary School Students,Secondary School Teachers,Native Language,Interviews

Teachers are a crucial part of young people's social ecologies. Considering that black South African adolescent girls remain the most marginalised group in South Africa, the purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study has been to explore if and how teachers champion resilience among black adolescent girls living in rural contexts of structural adversity. Using Draw-and-Talk and Draw-and-Write methods, 28 Sesotho-speaking adolescent girls from the Free State Province of South Africa generated a total of 68 drawings. The drawings were analysed using inductive content analysis. The findings include teachers actively listen and provide guidance; teachers motivate girls towards positive futures; and teachers initiate teacher-girl partnerships. These findings prompt three strategies to support teachers' championship of resilience, namely preempt support; advocate for a changed education landscape; and communicate constructive messages.
Socio-Educational Development of Pre-School Children in Eastern Cape: Factors Militating against Fathers&apos; Readiness to Participate
Author: Salami, Ishola Akindele
Date: 2017-08-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Preschool Children,Foreign Countries,Fathers,Parent Participation,College Students,Student Surveys,Readiness,Child Development,Statistical Analysis,Social Development,Parenting Skills,Educational Development,Mothers,Parent Influence,Likert Scales,Parent Child Relationship

Past studies on South African fathers' less or non-involvement in their children's development have either approached it qualitatively, with rural dwellers that are less educated than participants, or those that were quantitatively limited in terms of their focus and methodology. There is, therefore, a dearth of quantitative data on factors affecting South African fathers' readiness to participate in their children's development. It is precisely this realisation that has prompted this research paper. For this study, a descriptive survey research design with a sample of 300 university students was adopted. A questionnaire with a reliability coefficient of 0.78 was used to collect data, and both descriptive and inferential statistics were employed in the analysis at 0.05 level of significance. Absence of father at home (weighted average = 3.72), relationship with the mother of the child (weighted average = 3.63), and financial factors (weighted average = 3.46) are identified as those factors conspiring against South African fathers' readiness, while fathering skills (weighted average = 3.41) are not one of these factors. The conclusion drawn, based on the findings of this research, is that counselling service units ought to be established in all communities in South Africa to work with families so as to help facilitate and maintain positive and cordial relationship amongst them.
Exploring Students&apos; Perspectives toward Clarity and Familiarity of Writing Scoring Rubrics: The Case of Saudi EFL Students
Author: Aldukhayel, Dukhayel M.
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Scoring Rubrics,Writing Achievement,Writing Evaluation,Writing Tests,Questionnaires,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Familiarity,College Students

The main aim of this research study is to investigate the clarity and familiarity of three scoring rubrics used in a Saudi university's preparatory year program (PYP) for assessing students' writing achievement in midterm and final exams. This exploration is important in providing some evidence for the quality of scoring rubrics. To achieve that purpose, a 13-item online questionnaire was used to collect Saudi EFL PYP students' perspectives toward two quality criteria concerning rubrics; (1) clarity of the information included in the PYP rubrics, and (2) familiarity of the rubrics to students. The subjects were 281 Arabic-speaking male and female EFL Saudi students enrolled in three different academic levels in a Saudi university's PYP. The results suggest that the quality of the PYP rubrics is insufficient and the criteria set for providing evidence for the rubric qualities were not met. The results show that students tend to have a mild agreement on the clarity of the PYP rubrics, whereas they show a clear disagreement on their familiarity with the rubrics and with why and how the rubrics are used. The study implicates that administrators and teachers need to carefully consider the clarity and familiarity of rubrics in order to justify the decisions made about students' writing abilities. Rubrics that are unclear or unfamiliar can make students feel confused and frustrated, as they cannot get a clear sense of their writing scores, as well as their strengths and weaknesses.
Pre-Service Teachers&apos; Professional Learning Experiences during Rural Teaching Practice in Acornhoek, Mpumalanga Province
Author: Nkambule, Thabisile
Date: 2017-08-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Learning Experience,Preservice Teacher Education,Preservice Teachers,Professional Education,Rural Schools,Student Teaching,Educational Practices,Professionalism,Semi Structured Interviews,Teaching Experience,Student Journals,Group Discussion,Foreign Countries,Qualitative Research,Elementary Education,Secondary Education

The concept of student teaching practice is globally rooted in training pre-service teachers to work within diverse schools and learner populations, in dissimilar contexts. It is also a drive towards the development of knowledge, professionalism, sense of efficacy, and flexibility in their performance and interactions. There is seemingly little research that has been done in South Africa to gain insight into the pre-service teachers' development of knowledge and professionalism during rural teaching practice. In developing countries like South Africa, teaching practice challenges are usually severe, particularly in rural schools, where there is generally a paucity of information on the nature of school-based support pre-service teachers receive. In the article we explore pre-service teachers' professional learning experiences during teaching practice in Acornhoek, rural Bushbuckridge. The project used qualitative semi-structured reflective discussions and students' reflective journals to collect data. The findings show that pre-service teachers experienced a shift of mind as they engaged in professional thinking, learning and meaning making.
Teacher Classroom Practices and Mathematics Performance in South African Schools: A Reflection on TIMSS 2011
Author: Arends, Fabian
Date: 2017-08-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Achievement Tests,International Assessment,Elementary Secondary Education,Mathematics Tests,Mathematics Achievement,Teaching Methods,Classroom Techniques,Questionnaires,Correlation,Discussion (Teaching Technique),Feedback (Response),Formative Evaluation,Problem Solving,Metacognition,Cooperation,Teacher Collaboration,Teacher Attitudes,Hierarchical Linear Modeling

Teachers play an important role in the provision of quality education. The variety of classroom practices they use in interacting with learners play a critical role in the understanding of mathematical concepts and overall performance in Mathematics. Following the work done by Hattie (2009, 2012) in relation to classroom practices this study investigated the association between learner achievement and selected teacher classroom practices. The Mathematics teacher questionnaire, administered as part of the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2011, comprised questions pertaining to the classroom practices of Teacher Clarity, Classroom Discussion, Feedback, Formative Assessment, Problem Solving and Metacognitive Strategies, and Collaboration. The results showed a positive association between teachers' high endorsement of the selected classroom practices and learner performance. The study also investigated how collaboration between Mathematics teachers affected learner performance. The analysis shows that teachers observing each other's lessons affected the learners' performance positively, although most teachers were not keen on collaboration with their peers. This study showed that various teacher classroom practices affect learner performance in Mathematics significantly and that these practices should be identified and mechanisms put in place to support teachers in terms of these practices.
Teaching Strategies to Support isiXhosa Learners Who Receive Education in a Second/Third Language
Author: Kotzé, T.
Date: 2017-08-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Teaching Methods,African Languages,Semi Structured Interviews,Foreign Countries,Multilingualism,Native Language,Second Language Learning,Language of Instruction,Elementary School Students,Grade 1,Qualitative Research,Systems Approach,English (Second Language),Indo European Languages,Barriers,Teacher Attitudes,Student Needs,Elementary School Teachers

There are a number of challenges related to teaching in a multi-linguistic classroom. Despite the literature clearly indicating how learners acquire learning, there is still a dearth of material on descriptions of current support provided to learners within the theoretical framework of Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory. In an attempt to resolve these challenges, this article explores and describes challenges regarding teaching strategies to support isiXhosa-speaking learners in Grade One, whose home language is different from the LOLT in their schools. A qualitative research design was used supported by the exploratory, descriptive and contextual research methods. A sample was selected of Grade One teachers from schools in different socio-economic areas in the Western Cape. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews. The findings provided a clear description of challenges and needs experienced by both the learner and the teacher. Conclusions were made in terms of Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory. Based on the findings, practical recommendations were made regarding teaching strategies for language support to Grade One isiXhosa learners.
Using Metaphoric Body-Mapping to Encourage Reflection on the Developing Identity of Pre-Service Teachers
Author: Botha, Carolina S.
Date: 2017-08-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Reflection,Preservice Teachers,Professional Identity,Foreign Countries,Teaching Methods,Human Body,Self Expression,Figurative Language,Art Activities,Undergraduate Students

This article explores the contribution that a teaching strategy, such as metaphoric body-mapping, can make towards the discourse on the development of professional teacher identity. Second-year students in a Life Orientation methodology module in a B.Ed programme were offered the opportunity to validate their local knowledge and make new meaning together, through bringing their lived experiences into the classroom. In a contact session, groups were tasked with using body-mapping to conceptualise metaphoric superhero and villain characters of both effective and ineffective teachers. In a subsequent discourse, the characteristics of these metaphoric characters were explored to set the stage for inter- and intrapersonal reflection on students' own social construction of their developing professional identities. This student experience clearly indicates that metaphors can be a rich and stimulating way for prospective teachers to talk about their perceptions, experiences and expectations of teaching, and the method accentuates the importance of tertiary institutions that contribute to the emerging conversation about the development of professional identity in pre-service teachers. This article pioneers the use of body-mapping as a group-based technique, where a group of people works together on the same bodymap, rather than the traditional individual approach to this method.
The Effect of a School-Based Outdoor Education Program on Visual Arts Teachers&apos; Success and Self-Efficacy Beliefs
Author: Hursen, Cigdem
Date: 2017-08-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Outdoor Education,Visual Arts,Art Teachers,Teacher Effectiveness,Self Efficacy,Academic Achievement,Museums,Natural Resources,Teacher Attitudes,Mixed Methods Research,Program Effectiveness,Knowledge Level,Teaching Methods,Interviews,Foreign Countries,Elementary School Teachers,Secondary School Teachers,Educational Needs,Pretests Posttests,Social Networks,Educational Technology,Skill Development,Faculty Development

The aim of this research is to determine the effect of an education programme developed based on the school-based outdoor education approach on the academic achievement of visual arts teachers, as well as their self-efficacy beliefs for using museums and the natural environment. The aim is likewise to explore the views of the teachers on the implementation of the education programme. The study, which utilised a mixed method of qualitative and quantitative data collection, lasted for seven weeks. The results demonstrate that the developed programme is effective. At the end of the study, a significant difference was revealed in terms of the participant teachers' knowledge and skills regarding the approach as well as their self-efficacy belief levels in relation to the use of museums and the outdoors as teaching environments. Face-to-face interviews conducted with the teachers who participated in the experimental practice revealed that they were satisfied with the experience.