ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Developing CALL to Meet the Needs of Language Teaching and Learning
Author: Jiang, Zhaofeng
Date: 2008-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Second Language Learning,Computer Assisted Instruction,Teaching Methods,English Teachers,College Students,Comparative Analysis,Conventional Instruction

This paper illustrates the advantages and disadvantages of CALL. It points out that CALL is influenced by traditional language teaching and learning approaches to some extent. It concludes that what is important in our university system is that CALL design and implementation should match the users' needs, since CALL is not always better than traditional language learning and teaching method.
Discourse Markers in Composition Writings: The Case of Iranian Learners of English as a Foreign Language
Author: Jalilifar, Alireza
Date: 2008-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Graduate Students,Writing (Composition),Foreign Countries,Discourse Analysis,Taxonomy,Correlation,Connected Discourse,Majors (Students),Language Teachers,Teacher Education,Second Language Instruction,Writing Evaluation,Inferences

The aim of this study was to investigate discourse markers in descriptive compositions of 90 Iranian students who were selected from two universities. Without any instruction, they were given a topic to write a descriptive composition per week for 8 weeks. 598 compositions were collected, and they were analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively by three raters following Fraser's (1999) taxonomy of &quot;Discourse Markers.&quot; Findings showed that students employed discourse markers with different degrees of occurrence. Elaborative markers were the most frequently used, followed by inferential, contrastive, causative, and topic relating markers. There was a direct and positive relationship between the quality of the compositions and the number of well-functioned discourse markers. Results also revealed statistically significant differences between the use of discourse markers and composition quality in the groups. Graduate students used more discourse markers, and this led to more cohesive texts.
The Analysis of Cultural Gaps in Translation and Solutions
Author: Wu, Jianqing
Date: 2008-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Chinese,English,English (Second Language),Translation,Cultural Background,Semantics,Cultural Context,Language Usage

This paper is about cultural gaps and their translation. It compares the different cultural connotations of expressions in English and Chinese. First, it analyzes the following cases which are often found in translation: cultural background; non-equivalence; extension and intension; derivation. Then six methods are put forward to solve those above problems.
A Study of Autonomy English Learning on the Internet
Author: Zhong, Yunsheng
Date: 2008-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Internet,English (Second Language),English Instruction,Learning Strategies,Virtual Classrooms,Performance Factors,Efficiency,Independent Study,Social Networks,Educational Practices,Foreign Countries

With the variety of environment and method of English learning, Autonomy English learning on the Internet is playing a more and more important role in modern English learning. It challenges the traditional learning approach, and also is forwardness. This paper points out that autonomy English learning on the Internet facilitates the improvement of the English level even more on the basis of the author's acquisition and experience, as well as explains the favorable factors and unfavorable factors of autonomy English learning on the Internet, suggesting the effective strategies of autonomy English learning on the Internet.
Continuous Enrolment: Heresies, Headaches and Heartaches
Author: Yates, Lynda
Date: 2008-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Adult Education,Migrant Education,English (Second Language),English Language Learners,Interviews,Focus Groups,Public Policy,Enrollment Rate,Open Enrollment,Institutional Characteristics,Governance,Success,Change Strategies,Program Effectiveness,Program Evaluation,Teacher Attitudes,Student Attitudes,Administrator Attitudes,Foreign Countries

In this paper I report on a research project designed to address the question of how the policy of continuous enrolment has been working in practice in the AMEP (Adult Migrant English Program), the national English language program offered to newly-arrived migrants to Australia. Managers, teachers and learners from around Australia were interviewed individually or in focus groups to ascertain their views on the policy and its management. The literature on continuous enrolment has focused almost exclusively on adult education in North America, and has generally found little positive support for the policy among teachers. The results of this study indicate that the potential benefits to students in the context of the AMEP may outweigh the considerable disruption to classes it causes. In two of the three participating centres, the students were overall very positive about starting class immediately, and many teachers also appreciated these benefits for students and were developing strategies to minimize the negative effects. Similarly, while the managers generally recognized the organizational and pedagogical headaches that the policy caused, they appreciated the flexibility it gave them to open and manage classes according to local conditions. I argue that these more sympathetic views are a product of the unique context and history of the AMEP as a nationally-supported on-arrivals program, but that positive measures are nevertheless necessary in order to address the issues caused by continuous enrolment.
Faculty Learning Communities: A Model for Supporting Curriculum Changes in Higher Education
Author: Engin, Marion
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Communities of Practice,Models,Faculty Development,Questionnaires,Technology Integration,Handheld Devices,Computer Mediated Communication,Web 2.0 Technologies,Electronic Publishing,Self Efficacy,Technical Support,Collegiality,Usability,Instructional Innovation,Educational Change,Higher Education,Foreign Countries

This article reports on a faculty learning community (FLC) as a professional development model for faculty in an English-medium university in the United Arab Emirates. The authors describe how the introduction of a new learning and teaching technology, in the form of iPads, resulted in many of the faculty feeling unsure about their pedagogy. A face-to-face FLC was set up with an on-line component. The FLC served as a forum to discuss issues, resolve these problems and develop sound pedagogy in accordance with the culture of the university. The authors present data from blogs, discussion notes and questionnaires, and they discuss the strengths and limitations of a FLC as a model of professional development (PD) in this particular context.
High School Students' Understanding of Acid-Base Concepts: An Ongoing Challenge for Teachers
Author: Damanhuri, Muhd Ibrahim Muhamad
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Statistical Analysis,Case Studies,Science Tests,Achievement Tests,Secondary School Students,Secondary School Science,Scientific Concepts,Multiple Choice Tests,Foreign Countries,Concept Formation,Chemistry,Pretests Posttests,Instructional Effectiveness,Scores

Using a quantitative case study design, the &quot;Acids-Bases Chemistry Achievement Test&quot; (&quot;ABCAT&quot;) was developed to evaluate the extent to which students in Malaysian secondary schools achieved the intended curriculum on acid-base concepts. Responses were obtained from 260 Form 5 (Grade 11) students from five schools to initially create the two-tier multiple-choice items. After pilot testing, the final version of the &quot;ABCAT&quot; consisting of 19 items, 10 multiple-choice items and nine two-tier multiple-choice items, was administered to 304 students in Form 4 (Grade 10) from seven secondary schools when 12 alternative conceptions were identified by at least 10% of the students. Of these alternative conceptions, three were displayed by less than 15% of students. The two-tier multiple-choice items had a slightly higher internal consistency reliability (Cronbach's alpha) of 0.54 than the multiple-choices items with a value of 0.42. The data from the study suggest that the &quot;ABCAT&quot; has shown the extent to which the teaching has reduced the incidence of students' scientifically inappropriate understandings; for example, in nine of the 19 items, no alternative conceptions were displayed by the students.
Examining Primary Pre-Service Teachers' Difficulties of Mathematics Teaching with the Micro-Teaching Method
Author: Savas Basturk
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Teaching Methods,Microteaching,Preservice Teachers,Preservice Teacher Education,Mathematics Instruction,Semi Structured Interviews,Student Teaching,Student Teacher Attitudes,Qualitative Research,Grade 3,Elementary School Curriculum,Anxiety,Performance Factors,Self Efficacy,Foreign Countries

The purpose of the study was to examine primary pre-service teachers' difficulties of the teaching of mathematics with micro-teaching method. The participants of the study were 15 third grade pre-service teachers from the department of primary education in the faculty of education. In this grade which includes four sections, there were approximately 150 pre-service teachers. All of them taught mathematics with the micro-teaching method in a period of 40 minutes. To gather data, a semi-structured interview was administered. Later the recorded interviews were transferred to written texts and analysed. The pre-service teachers' responses were qualitatively analysed to characterize patterns and categorize answers. The main results of the study revealed that before the teaching the pre-service teachers were concerned about classroom management, excitement, lack of materials, unable to use time effectively. A majority of them indicated that, during their teaching, they were most forced into managing classroom and encouraging students' class participation. The artificial nature of micro-teaching negatively influenced pre-service teachers' classroom management and prevented to implement their teaching plans as they wished.
What Can We Tell from These Temporal Measures?--Temporal Measures as Indices of Oral Proficiency
Author: Wang, Binhong
Date: 2008-12-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,English (Second Language),Second Language Instruction,Oral Language,Language Tests,Teaching Assistants,Universities,College Students,Time,Articulation (Speech),Syllables,Statistical Analysis

Oral English teaching has long been a weak link in the science universities in China, let alone the research on oral English test by quantitative method. Therefore, OEPT in the U.S. sheds light on the spoken English teaching and researching in China. OEPT (Oral English Proficiency Test) is a spoken English test aimed to assess the oral English proficiency of prospective international teaching assistants in the U.S. In the past few years, temporal variables as indices of oral English proficiency to analyze examinees' oral speech were explored and studied at a large Mid-western American university. Based on the descriptive statistics of the selected temporal variables, this paper aims to give an interpretation of the figures obtained by OEPT data in order to get enlightening implications on spoken English teaching in China.
An Investigation of Pre-Service Science and Mathematics Teachers' Personal Growth Initiative
Author: Büyükgöze, Hilal
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Mathematics Teachers,Science Teachers,Preservice Teachers,Gender Differences,Instructional Program Divisions,Departments,Academic Achievement,Graduate Study,Student Surveys,Factor Analysis,Teacher Competencies,Student Development,Statistical Analysis

The current paper primarily aims to investigate pre-service science and mathematics teachers' personal growth initiative levels. The second aim of the study is to examine whether participants' initiative levels differ in relation to their gender, grade, department, perceived academic achievement, and willingness to attend graduate education after graduation. The study group consists of 212 pre-service teachers (156 female, 56 male). 80 of them attend science education program, whereas 79 of them attend primary mathematics education and 53 of them attend secondary mathematics education program in two different state universities located in Aksaray and Ankara, Turkey. The participants were surveyed by &quot;The Personal Growth Initiative Scale-PGIS&quot; developed by Robitschek (1998) and adapted into Turkish by Akin and Anli (2011). The data collected during the spring term of 2014/15 academic year. The construct validity of the scale was verified by confirmatory factor analysis, and the reliability was examined by calculating the Cronbach alpha value of the PGIS. The results showed that (1) pre-service teachers have moderate levels of personal growth initiative, (2) their PGI levels statistically differ in relation to their willingness to attend graduate education, and (3) juniors have higher levels of personal growth initiative than freshman and sophomores.
What Helps TESOL Methods Students Learn: Using Q Methodology to Investigate Students' Views of a Graduate TESOL Methods Class
Author: Collins, Linda
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Methods Courses,English (Second Language),Second Language Learning,Second Language Instruction,Teaching Methods,Teacher Education,Language Teachers,Likert Scales,Teacher Characteristics,Student Attitudes,Course Content,Factor Analysis,Learning Processes,Peer Relationship,Feedback (Response),Course Descriptions,Preferences,Graduate Students,Masters Programs,Correlation,Learning Activities,Q Methodology,Mixed Methods Research

The direction of university courses is often guided by the results of traditional Likert scale student evaluations. Most of these focus on instructors' characteristics and frequently do not provide useful insights into students' learning preferences or feedback regarding specific activities and projects in the courses. This study, carried out in a Midwestern U.S. university, reports the use of Q methodology to capture students' views of 35 activities in a graduate TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) Methods course as to which were most helpful and least helpful to learning course content. During the last class of the semester 19 students carried out Q sorts about different aspects of the methods course. Factor analysis showed how participants grouped onto 3 factors, expressing 3 unique views on how helpful the 35 different course activities were to their learning. The majority of the students were &quot;group-centered learners&quot; who learned best through various face-to-face interactions with classmates. Two were &quot;self-centered learners&quot; who learned best by working independently, then receiving feedback. One learned best through the course's online activities. Analysis of students' different views helped researchers determine whether to redesign various aspects of the course to meet different learning preferences.
Proctored and Unproctored Test Performance
Author: Brallier, Sara
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Undergraduate Students,Introductory Courses,Sociology,Conventional Instruction,Lecture Method,Distance Education,Delivery Systems,Intermode Differences,Test Format,Computer Assisted Testing,Comparative Analysis,Achievement Gains,Supervisory Methods

This study examined test performance as a function of test format (proctored versus unproctored) and course type (traditional versus distance). The participants were 246 undergraduate students who completed introductory sociology courses during four semesters at a southeastern university. During each semester, the same instructor taught a traditional lecture section and a distance section of the course. Students in both course types took unproctored online tests in two semesters while students in both course types took proctored classroom paper-and-pencil tests in the other two semesters. Students scored significantly higher on the unproctored online tests than on the proctored classroom tests. There was no significant difference in test performance between students enrolled in distance courses and those enrolled in lecture courses. Additionally, no significant interaction was found between test format and course type. Implications of these results for the design and structure of online and hybrid courses are discussed.
Software Application for Supporting the Education of Database Systems
Author: Vágner, Anikó
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Computer Software Reviews,Courseware,Databases,Database Management Systems,Active Learning,Database Design,Technology Uses in Education,Programming,Computer Science Education,Educational Technology,Foreign Countries

The article introduces an application which supports the education of database systems, particularly the teaching of SQL and PL/SQL in Oracle Database Management System environment. The application has two parts, one is the database schema and its content, and the other is a C# application. The schema is to administrate and store the tasks and the solutions, and it has a stored procedure which performs a syntactic verification of the solutions. The C# program helps the teacher organize the tasks and give feedback to the students. The main goal of the software application was to support the active learning method for database systems. With its help the students can practise alone, and they can get feedback from the teacher on their solutions
Shifting to Active Learning: Assessment of a First-Year Biology Course in South Africa
Author: Downs, Colleen T.
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Active Learning,Undergraduate Students,College Students,Biology,Course Evaluation,Program Implementation,Educational Change,Tutoring,Student Participation,Learning Experience,Skill Development,Educational Benefits,Lecture Method,Mathematics Achievement,Student Attitudes,Scores

Large first-year class sizes have resulted in many lecturers adopting coping strategies consisting of direct-transmission mode teaching, reduced practical time, and assessment. Recently several strategies have been implemented in an attempt to improve student participation and active learning; however, these changes have to be facilitated and fostered by faculty and administrators. Consequently, we present the implementation, results, and feedback of a new Biology first-year course run for the period 2005-2008. In this course, the number of lectures was reduced, and the number of more co-operative tutorial and practical-based sessions was increased. The aim of these changes was to promote active participation of students and to encourage them to take responsibility for their own learning. Despite some initial problems, most students and staff were positive about the learning experience, and the skills developed were considered of value to other science courses. Other courses are encouraged to follow this example and move to a reduced lecture and increased interactive tutorial/workshop and practical approach to promote student learning and development.
Primary Teachers Opinion about Homework
Author: Matei, Stefania
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Homework,Elementary School Teachers,Teacher Attitudes,Foreign Countries,Online Surveys,Parent Participation,Questionnaires,Teacher Characteristics,Educational Attainment,Teaching Methods,Parent Role

Homework assignments trigger various perceptions and attitudes in students, parents or teachers: some overestimate them, others reject them, some do it with pleasure and to others they cause tears. Literature indicates both benefits and disadvantages of homework. In Romania, at primary level, homework is a systematic practice. The explanation is found in the Romanian education peculiarities and in the myth of homework efficiency for the student's development and achievement. This study aimed at explaining the teachers' perception about homework. In the survey conducted online with voluntary participation, 51 primary teachers were involved. Their answers highlight the teachers' beliefs on the need to request daily homework and the parents' involvement in controlling the homework assigned to their children. Respondents also praised in their answers the homework benefits for students, fully ignoring their disadvantages. The main causes of this situation are found in the peculiarities of the Romanian education. The change of the unilateral beliefs of teachers, parents, teacher trainers, curriculum creators referring to homework requires an active involvement of the education professionals. They should transpose the homework practice to systematic research whose results to be addressed to all stakeholders.
A Critical Analysis of Preservice Teachers' Efforts to Make Sense of Young Children's Sexual Acts towards Adults
Author: Alat, Zeynep
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Preschool Teachers,Early Childhood Education,Preservice Teachers,Sexuality,Young Children,Teacher Student Relationship,Semi Structured Interviews,Females,Student Attitudes,Sexual Harassment,Social Attitudes,Misconceptions,Crime,Student Behavior,Behavior Problems

This study explored Turkish early childhood education teacher candidates' efforts to make sense of sexual behaviors of both young girls and boys towards them or their colleagues during their field experience or in their daily experiences with young children. Semi-structured interviews with 13 female teacher candidates revealed that their perception of young children as &quot;innocent beings,&quot; their education that emphasize teachers' responsibility to cultivate curiosity in children, and their position in the hegemonic heterosexual world make these teacher candidates to avoid naming sexual acts of young children as harassment; blame their friends who were the target of those acts; tend to find other explanations for children's sexual acts rather than seeing children as sexual beings; and see sexual harassment as something women actually can enjoy.
Studying the Ability of 7th Grade Students to Define the Circle and Its Elements in the Context of Mathematical Language
Author: Akarsu, Esra
Date: 2015-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Grade 7,Secondary School Students,Geometry,Geometric Concepts,Mathematics Instruction,Vocabulary Skills,Definitions,Gender Differences

In this study, it was aimed to study the mathematical language skills that the 7th grade students use in defining the circle and its elements. In the study, the mathematical language skills of students that they use in defining the circle and its elements in a scenario were compared to the mathematical language skills they use in defining them when their names are given. The sampling of the study consists of 138 students of 7th grade. A scenario of 7 questions requiring the students to define the circle and its elements (center, radius, diameter, secant, chord, tangent) was arranged by the researchers and students were asked to respond these questions. Also, the students were asked to define the circle and its elements when their names were given. The students' mathematical language skills were examined in terms of their visual and verbal skills of definition. It was concluded that the students' mathematical language skills they used in defining the circle and its elements in a scenario were at a level that should be advanced, but their mathematical language skills they used in defining when their names were given is at a sufficient level. In addition, it was observed that the students had difficulty in defining the concept of tangent in a scenario at most and in defining the concept of chord when the names were given.