UCLan Open Journals (University of Central Lancashire)
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TRANSLATION STUDIES AND THE INTEGRATED MODERN LANGUAGES DEGREE
Get PDFThis article examines the role of translation studies within the modern languages undergraduate degree course. It explores three possible goals that the teaching of translation might serve: as an aid to language learning, as a subject in its own right, and as a means of integrating the language learning with the cultural or area studies which make up the rest of the modern languages course. The article investigates the origins of translation as a teaching method, its fall from favour in the era of communicative language teaching in the late twentieth century, and its renaissance in the last decade due to the extraordinary recent growth in postgraduate courses in translation studies at UK higher education institutions and across anglophone academia, in order to ask what the purpose and possibilities of the subject might now be. Keywords: translation, undergraduate, postgraduate, communicative language teaching, degree programm
Equipping TESOL Trainees to Teach Through Discourse
Get PDFIt has long been argued that Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL teachers) should view language at the level of discourse, that is, beyond the level of the sentence. Despite this, many pre-service training courses do not place much emphasis on such a view of language and this can result in trainees who try to avoid teaching grammar, overemphasize form or, crucially, undervalue the communicative nature of language as discourse. This article outlines these issues before reporting on a change to the pedagogy of an undergraduate training programme which has attempted to remedy this
PODCAST OR PROSE? FEEDBACK ON MY FEEDBACK
Get PDFThis article details a study into using podcasts (digitally recorded sound files – in this instance with visuals) as an alternative medium in which to provide students from a variety of academic disciplines with formative and summative feedback on their assessments for a ten credit online work based learning module. The study aims to identify whether students prefer podcasts to prose, and to disseminate the findings to academics interested in alternatives to traditional written feedback. It is suggested that podcasts are congruent with a wholly online learning experience but offer the opportunity for a more personalised approach from a tutor they would usually not meet. In addition it may benefit students who learn best by visual and/or auditory means and podcasts may, therefore, enhance students’ engagement with the feedback provided
A SOCIO-PRAGMATIC STUDY OF THE USE OF REQUESTS IN ENGLISH BY TUNISIAN EFL LEARNERS
Get PDFThe present study investigates the request behaviour of Tunisian EFL learners (TEFLL). For this purpose, the data were collected using a discourse completion test (DCT). Accordingly, 67 female masters’ students studying at the Faculty of Letters and Humanities in Sfax (Tunisia) were asked to respond in English to six different situations in which they carried out the speech act of request. The data were analyzed by focusing on the directness level of requesting strategies according to the analytical framework of Blum-Kulka, et al (1989). A quantitative analysis of the data showed that the participants perform different request strategies (direct and conventionally indirect according to the social factors (social distance, social power and ranking of imposition) which are very influential in the choice of polite request strategies by TEFLL. The results revealed that, when requests are addressed to people in lower positions, TEFLL tend to use more direct request strategies in performing their request. The findings have also shown that TEFLL prefer to use conventionally indirect strategies in addressing their acquaintances and friends when the ranking of imposition is very high. On the other hand, when the requestee is in a higher position, TEFLL use more indirect strategies to show their respect and deference. Indirect request or negative politeness strategies are used to protect both of the requester and the requestees’ faces. The study has shown that TEFLL responses are influenced by their linguistic and cultural backgrounds; thus, it is suggested that Tunisian learners of English should be aware of the socio-cultural and pragmatic differences between their L1 (Tunisian Arabic) and English learnt as a foreign language
SOCIOCULTURAL THEORY IN SECOND LANGUAGE EDUCATION: AN INTRODUCTION THROUGH NARRATIVES by Merrill Swain, Penny Kinnear and Linda Steinman
Get PDFSOCIOCULTURAL THEORY IN SECOND LANGUAGE EDUCATION: AN INTRODUCTION THROUGH NARRATIVESAuthor: Merrill Swain, Penny Kinnear, Linda SteinmanPublisher: Multilingual Matters, 2010,192 pp, £19.95ISBN: 978184769329
Teacher-Student Talk in the One to One Writing Conference: Who Talks More and Why?
Get PDFThe one to one writing conference between a teacher and student is often viewed as an ideal space for student autonomy. Yet conferences are also instances of \u27institutional talk\u27, which are characterised by asymmetry in the relative power each participant enjoys during the interaction and the discursive devices they are able to employ. Much of the literature on conferences has been based on native speakers, yet with an increasingly internationalised populace within UK higher education, there is a need to evaluate international student autonomy, who may face greater challenges due to unfamiliarity with the genre and their spoken linguistic proficiency. This paper derives from an on-going doctoral study that seeks to examine the power relations that occur within the second language writing conference between a teacher and an international student on an International Foundation programme at UCLAN. This study will report on a first step that was taken in measuring conference interaction from a quantitative perspective and relating it to the contextual factors of institutional role and participant beliefs. The findings suggest that teachers dominate the conference interaction in terms of words spoken, turns used and average length of turns. This conversational dominance seems related to the defined roles the institution assigns each participant and the beliefs they carry into the conferences
REPROGRAMMING 1ST YEAR STUDENTS: AN ACTION RESEARCH CASE STUDY
Get PDFThis paper depicts a large-scale intervention within a 1st year Computing undergraduate university cohort. The course is a full 20 credit, Level 4 module comprising of 120 1st years studying at the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan). The students are from all manner of academic backgrounds. Many have studied either Computing or IT at school or college, whilst others have not undertaken any previous or formal qualifications in the subject. An Action Research study was organised and the content of the first module was redesigned to take students through a challenging (yet highly-scaffolded) project during the first four teaching weeks. This acted as an introduction to university life and the course in general. The rest of the modules followed on after this initial module finished, and was delivered in the more traditional long and thin mode. The motivation for this study was to improve the student experience generally – whilst specifically targeting issues surrounding student engagement and retention in the 1st year. Additional aims were also to help students make the transition from school to University so that they will be better prepared to enter the 2nd year of their degree. Delivering the first module as a block enabled a small team of staff to work closely with students, building strong relationships at the start of their degree. This meant that students could be carefully monitored and supported at this crucial time. The implementation of the 4WC has shown an improvement in student marks and student retention. The response to this intervention has shown that students have been enthused by the early results and are clearer about what they are going to study in depth later on. Consequently, students are more committed to the course, and retention rates have improved quite dramatically. In addition, students should be able to make better-informed choices about their future course options, having had exposure to the products on some of the different courses
PRESENTATIONS: WHAT’S STOPPING FE STUDENTS FROM ENGAGING WITH THEM?
Get PDFWith this research, it was important that a way of controlling behaviour in class was found that could be used in future years. The research focussed on developing new methods of teaching presentation skills and measuring the change in behaviour during class. Five new methods were developed to teach the skills needed by the students and behaviour was monitored using a form to track improvements on a weekly basis. Observations and interviews were used to gauge student feedback.The research found that most of the students were open to doing presentations but, the changes did not suit the group as a whole. It also showed that keeping the students busy in class has a positive effect on behaviour. The student approach to the presentations was professional, but affected by peer pressure. This showed itself in the lack of original approaches displayed in the presentations. Finally, the students are likely to keep producing unoriginal presentations until the peer pressure can be overcome.Five conclusions were identified from the results of research and these fed into ways of improving the authors practice. It was concluded that using a buddy system to support students would be useful, while engaging students in the design of their course would also reap benefits. Further conclusions were made with regards to overlooking possible trends in the research and understanding the journey that the students will be taken on. The last conclusion focussed on the tutor’s role in the classroom and the fact that they are there to protect their students from bad behaviour in the classroom