ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Comparative Effect of Memory and Cognitive Strategies Training on EFL Intermediate Learners' Vocabulary Learning
Author: Banisaeid, Maryam
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Second Language Instruction,Second Language Learning,Memory,Cognitive Processes,Learning Strategies,Vocabulary Development,Comparative Analysis,Correlation,Language Proficiency,Pretests Posttests,Control Groups,Experimental Groups,Instructional Effectiveness

The present study was conducted to compare the effect of memory and cognitive strategies training on vocabulary learning of intermediate proficiency group of Iranian learners of English as a foreign language. It is to check how memory and cognitive strategies training affect word learning of EFL intermediate learners (N = 60) who were homogenized by the Nelson proficiency test (Nelson 250 B). They were divided into two experimental groups. For omitting the words learners know, pre test of vocabulary was taken. Also a questionnaire adapted by Rezaee et al (2004) based on Kudo' (1999) work with the reliability of 0.92 was taken to deduce not only their familiarity of strategies but also their knowledge of strategies uses. In the first experimental group, 30 students were trained to use memory strategies (keyword and semantic map) in word learning and in the other experimental group, the other 30 students were taught to learn the same new English words through cognitive training (flashcards and repetition). The course consisted of 11 sessions (two two-hour sessions per week). At the end the data was collected using a teacher made test as the post test (including 60 open ended items). The results of the independent t-test shown that there is no significant difference between the effect of cognitive and memory strategy training on intermediate EFL learners' word learning. In general, the finding suggests that memory strategies training and cognitive strategy training respectively enhance memory and cognitive strategy uses.
An Analysis: The Usage of Metadiscourse in Argumentative Writing by Malaysian Tertiary Level of Students
Author: Anwardeen, Nor Hafizah
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: College Students,Persuasive Discourse,Writing (Composition),Error Patterns,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Foreign Countries,Computational Linguistics,Writing Instruction,Language Usage,Error Analysis (Language)

This paper analyzes the results of a corpus-based study on the usage of metadiscourse in argumentative writing by Malaysian college students. The aims of the study is to examine the frequency and distribution of metadiscourse used by the particular students in argumentative writing as well as to analyze the errors that made by the particular students in using metadiscourse. The finding shows that Malaysian college students are more inclined to using textual metadiscourse instead of interpersonal metadiscourse. Besides, the selected students are using less code glosses and stance indicator in their argumentative writing. In addition, Malaysian college students committed quite a number of errors in using metadiscourse and practices are needed to train them in using metadiscourse correctly. These findings are useful for Malaysian tertiary level of educators or teachers as they help the educators to figure out the weaknesses of students in using metadiscourse.
Acquisition of Some Selected Prepositions of Time by English Major Undergraduates at Balqa Applied University in Jordan
Author: Al-Qudah, Ayat Khalid
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Second Language Learning,Form Classes (Languages),Undergraduate Students,Age Differences,Measures (Individuals),Grammar,Validity,Reliability,Predictor Variables

This study aimed to identify the acquisition of some selected prepositions of time by English major undergraduates at Balqa Applied University in Jordan and to reveal any significant differences among their acquisition attributed to the academic level (1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th year levels) and to studying &quot;English Basic Grammar&quot; course. A random sample consisted of 197 students chosen from two colleges at Balqa Applied University in the year 2012/2013. The instrument was developed by the researcher. Results indicated that their highest acquisition was in the preposition of time (at) and the lowest acquisition was in the preposition of time (until). Findings also revealed the mean of acquisition of the prepositions of time was lower than (0.50). Findings also indicated that there is a significant difference among respondents' acquisition of the prepositions of time attributed to year-level in three prepositions (at, to, since) in favor of the third year level students, and difference in the acquisition of (on) in favor of the fourth year level students and a significant difference in the acquisition of (after) in favor of the second year level students. The results indicated no significant differences in acquisition attributed to the university college, but there is a significant difference among respondents' acquisition attributed to studying the course &quot;Basic English Grammar&quot; in favor of the students who studied the course. The study was concluded with some recommendations.
The Impact of Canadian Social Discourses on L2 Writing Pedagogy in Ontario
Author: Kalan, Amir
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Second Language Learning,Writing Instruction,Grounded Theory,Discourse Analysis,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Social Influences

This paper attempts to illustrate the impact of Canadian social, political, and academic discourses on second language writing pedagogy in Ontario schools. Building upon the views that regard teacher knowledge as teachers' sociocultural interactions and lived experiences, and not merely intellectual capabilities gained within teacher preparation, this article proposes that the impact of dominant social discourses on classroom practice might be more profound than teachers' creativity and initiative. This idea is demonstrated by examining the findings of a grounded theory study of frequently employed strategies that can deal with intercultural rhetoric in EAL (English as an additional language) academic writing. Guided by Foucauldian critical discourse analysis, this article approaches the experiences of five Ontario EAL teachers with intercultural rhetoric in order to show the significance of the influence of dominant Canadian social discourses on their practice. This report, in particular, explores possible connections between the popularity of strategies that employ students' first languages in EAL academic writing and dominant social, political, and academic discourses in Canada over the past 50 years. This paper, finally, poses questions about the future of EAL writing pedagogy as anti-multiculturalism discourses gain more dominance in Canada.
The Laughing EFL Classroom: Potential Benefits and Barriers
Author: Stroud, Robert
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Programs,Humor,Educational Environment,Student Participation,Student Surveys,Interviews,Instructional Effectiveness,Retention (Psychology),Anxiety,Student Attitudes,Language Teachers,High School Students,Secondary School Teachers,Barriers

The use of humor in EFL across the world has been widely discussed as an effective way to create a more comfortable, productive classroom environment in language learning. However, student-perceived benefits of both teacher and student-produced humor in the more specific context of a Japanese language classroom have not been explored in any great detail. Two surveys of 104 Japanese high school students and a set of interviews revealed as expected positive feedback on general classroom humor usage, with noticeable positive effects perceived as improvements in retention, willingness to participate, enjoyment in learning and classroom atmosphere, as well as a lowering of anxiety. However, regardless of this clear preference for humor inclusion in learning, several potential barriers were identified to help offer reasons why some students may not wish to use humor in class themselves. These included teacher disapproval, student confidence issues and language problems with being humorous in the L2. This study concludes with a suggested ten-step guideline for teachers to follow to harness humor as a potential catalyst for learning for differing classes, based on this report's findings.
A Corpus-Driven Investigation of Chinese English Learners' Performance of Verb-Noun Collocation: A Case Study of &quot;Ability&quot;
Author: Xia, Lixin
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Case Studies,Computational Linguistics,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Native Speakers,Asians,Phrase Structure,Verbs,Nouns,Contrastive Linguistics,Foreign Countries

The paper makes a contrastive study on the performance of verb-noun collocation given by Chinese EFL learners based on the CLEC, ICLE and BNC. First, all the concordance lines with the token &quot;ability&quot; in the CLEC were collected and analyzed. Then, they were tagged manually in order to sort out the sentences in the verb-noun collocation structure. After that, a contrast was made between the data in the three corpora. The study found that there was a distinct gap between the use of verb-noun collocation between English native speakers and Chinese EFL learners, and that Chinese EFL learners also gave less satisfactory performance in verb-noun collocation in terms of correctness and appropriateness.
Functional Grammar and Its Implications for English Teaching and Learning
Author: Feng, Zhiwen
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Grammar,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Academic Achievement,Teaching Methods,Language Teachers,Knowledge Base for Teaching,Linguistic Theory,Role

Functional grammar has received more and more attention from domestic scholars in the world of linguistics since 1970s, but it is still new to most EFL teachers. In spite of controversies about its applications into classroom teaching, this new grammar model has its own advantages and can facilitate EFL students to achieve academic success. This paper, based on current literature, examines and analyzes the following issues: the nature of functional grammar, the key concepts of functional grammar, the fundamental differences between traditional grammar and functional grammar, and the implications for English teaching and learning. The purpose of this paper is to help EFL teachers have an overall understanding of the theory and key concepts of functional grammar as well as the positive role functional grammar plays in school contexts.
Relationship between Attitude toward Target Language Culture Instruction and Pragmatic Comprehension Development
Author: Rafieyan, Vahid
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Correlation,Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Pragmatics,Likert Scales,Attitude Measures,Questionnaires,Language Tests,Pretests Posttests,Student Attitudes,Positive Attitudes,Foreign Countries,Cultural Awareness,Familiarity,Textbook Content,Teaching Methods,Adult Students,English (Second Language)

Familiarity with the cultural features of the target language society and interest in learning those cultural features are the key factors to determine language learners' level of pragmatic comprehension. To investigate this issue, this study attempted to assess the relationship between attitude toward incorporating target language culture into classroom instruction and the development of pragmatic comprehension. The data were collected through the administration of a Likert scale attitude questionnaire and two pragmatic comprehension tests one used as pre-test and the other used as post-test to 32 intermediate level language learners at a language academy in Malaysia. The findings suggested that a positive attitude toward learning target language culture leads to a higher level of pragmatic comprehension. Therefore, it was recommended to furnish foreign language course books as well as foreign language classroom instruction with cultural information.
Motivation, Gender, and Learner Performance of English as an L3 in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region
Author: Ahåt, Rayhangül
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Learning Motivation,Gender Differences,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Qualitative Research,Statistical Analysis,Prediction,Minority Group Students,Linguistic Performance,Foreign Countries,Bilingual Education,Language Minorities,Multilingualism,Multiple Regression Analysis,Interviews,Questionnaires

Gender is considered as one of the important variables that effects learner motivation in second or foreign language acquisition. It is also believed that learner motivation has an impact on learner performance as well. Using the expectancy-value theory model of achievement motivation, this study aimed at exploring (1) the impact of gender differences on motivation and (2) motivational variables that predict learner performance in the context of English as an L3. The participants in this study were ethnic minority students (mainly Uygur) of a university in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China. Results of both quantitative and qualitative analyses showed that female students held greater attainment and intrinsic values than male students; the study results also revealed that expectancy and cost are motivational variables that better predict the minority students' EFL performance in the context of English as an L3. These findings support the notion that females are more interested in the target culture and interaction with its speakers than males in EFL learning. On the basis of these results, the author discusses possible factors that influence ethnic minority learners' motivation in learning English as an L3 and provides suggestions on how to motivate male students and help them to improve performance in the process of English teaching in the context of bilingual education in Xinjiang.
Index in Alexandre Dumas' Novel the Man in the Iron Mask: A Semiotic Analysis
Author: Syarifuddin, Salmia
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Novels,Semiotics,English Literature,Qualitative Research,Attribution Theory,Teaching Methods,Literary Devices

Novel as a literary work can be analyzed by using semiotic analysis. This article aims to analyze the meaning of index found in characterizations in the novel &quot;The Man in the Iron Mask&quot; by Alexandre Dumas. This article involved the descriptive qualitative method. The results revealed that there are many causal relations between the index and the characterization of the characters found in that novel. It contained 24 characterizations from eight major and five minor characters that had been representative of this article. From this article, it is obtained more information about the identified characterizations found in the novel and its index analysis that showed its causalities relation between the sign and the object (index and characterization) in a more comprehensive meaning. Since semiotics is the study of signs and novel is a literary work, it is recommended to English literature lecturers and students to enrich knowledge of analyzing literary works through semiotic analysis.
Making Culture Happen in the English Language Classroom
Author: Yakup, Doganay
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Cultural Awareness,Student Attitudes,Teaching Methods,Learning Activities,Role Playing,Dialogs (Language),Video Technology,Foreign Countries,Experimental Groups,Units of Study,Discussion,Comparative Analysis,Homework,Communicative Competence (Languages),Linguistic Competence,College Students,Questionnaires,Pretests Posttests

The issue of introducing the target culture into language classroom practice has long been an object of debates as well as the opinions of the learners towards it. Eventually, modern practitioners found a way of having the language learners acquainted with the target culture and introducing culture through culture-based textbook activities. However, the issue of additional culturally-oriented activities in improving students learning habits is questionable today. The purpose of this paper is to examine their effect and to investigate the attitudes of students towards language teaching and learning through culture-based activities (games, role plays, dialogues, video clips, discussions and comparisons of local and target cultures). The paper presents the results of the study conducted in one of the top universities of Kazakhstan throughout the spring semester of the 2012 academic year. Eighty students of different cultural backgrounds took part in the study. The activities for the experimental groups were modified according the tasks in each unit of one of the contemporary textbooks used in General English lessons. These activities varied from warm-ups to homework tasks in the units accordingly. The results suggest that practice of the various culture-based tasks and exercises helped the students to improve their communicative and linguistic competences in English. The results obtained from this study also offer insights into how culture-based activities can be used to develop and enhance not only students' language skills but also their awareness of various culture-sensitive issues.
Online Speaking Strategy Assessment for Improving Speaking Ability in the Area of Language for Specific Purposes: The Case of Tourism
Author: Phaiboonnugulkij, Malinee
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Second Language Learning,English for Special Purposes,Tourism,Speech Skills,Speech Communication,Language Proficiency,Language Tests,Qualitative Research,Educational Strategies,Web Based Instruction,Technology Uses in Education,College Students

The purpose of this study was to compare the differences in strategies used in an online language for specific purposes (LSP) speaking test in tourism with two proficiency groups of students, and to investigate the strategies that should be used for low-proficiency students to improve their LSP speaking ability. The Web-based Speaking Test in English for Tourism (WBST-EFT) and a coding scheme were used as research instruments. Descriptive statistics, the Mann-Whitney U test, percentages, and qualitative content analysis from verbal reports were used in the data analysis. The findings showed that the two proficiency groups significantly and differently reported cognitive and metacognitive strategies for this LSP online speaking test. The qualitative results indicated that high-proficiency students used more complex details in all of the sub-strategies than the low-proficiency students. Low-proficiency students should be trained to effectively employ these strategies to improve their LSP speaking ability through the use of an online LSP speaking test that has been considered as an effective tool and that provides an opportunity for students to self-assess and self-practice their performances. Both strategies and online speaking tools can be used with a large number of students to develop LSP speaking ability in tourism.
From Call to Mall: The Effectiveness of Podcast on EFL Higher Education Students' Listening Comprehension
Author: Al Qasim, Nada
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Listening Comprehension,Listening Skills,Statistical Analysis,Females,Experimental Groups,Comparative Analysis,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Second Language Learning,Questionnaires,Handheld Devices,Audio Equipment,Information Dissemination,Electronic Learning,Student Attitudes,Undergraduate Students,Pretests Posttests,Control Groups

Despite recognition that language can best be learned in an authentic context, and a growing emphasis on the importance of using technology to improve listening skills, only limited research in this area exists in a Saudi context. To add to this research, this quantitative study examines the influence of podcasting on the listening comprehension of 46 female Saudi EFL students in higher education. The randomly selected participants were divided into two groups: a control and an experimental group, and given a six week treatment. A T-test and questionnaire were employed, and the results indicate significant differences between the two groups, favoring the experimental group.
Adaptability of the In-Use Textbooks to Students in Rural Junior Middle School in Henan, China
Author: Duan, Daohuan
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Second Language Instruction,Second Language Learning,Textbooks,Textbook Content,Rural Schools,Middle Schools,Middle School Students,Middle School Teachers,Questionnaires

In Henan province, and through out China, both students in cities and countrysides are using the same textbooks for junior high schools. This phenomenon unavoidably resulted in the fact that it is difficult for students in rural junior high school to understand the contents in textbooks. In order to investigate whether the learning difficulty results partly from the inadaptability of the in-use textbooks to students in junior high school of Henan Province, we assumed that the three-version textbooks being used in the schools are not adaptable. Through observation, plus analysis of the questionnaire, we find that in compiling textbooks, rural students' needs are always ignored consciously or unconsciously. Consequently, our hypothesis was confirmed by the conclusion. In the end we strongly recommend that rural students' special needs should be taken into consideration.
Politeness in Interlanguage Pragmatics of Complaints by Indonesian Learners of English
Author: Wijayanto, Agus
Date: 2013-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Undergraduate Students,Interlanguage,Pragmatics,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Second Language Learning,Interpersonal Communication,Negative Attitudes,Measures (Individuals)

Complaint is intrinsically an abusive act which tends to offend the complainees. In spite of this complainers could consider politeness when they still intend to maintain a good relationship with the complainees. This paper investigated politeness strategies involved in complaints relating to different social status levels and social distances. The data of the complaints were elicited through oral discourse completion tasks from 50 Indonesian learners of English consisting of 25 males and 25 females. The findings indicated that most complaints sounded very direct, particularly those addressed to lower-unfamiliar interlocutors. Four politeness strategies of Brown and Levinson (1987) were employed by the learners. Bald on record and Positive politeness were the most pervasive strategies used across status levels and social distances. Negative politeness was comparatively high, but it was not as high as Bald on record and Positive politeness. Off-record was rarely phrased across status levels and social distances.