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Social Class as a Predictor of Pragmatic Competence: An Investigation of L1 and L2 Politeness Strategies Use in Light of Social Class Factors
Get PDFSince Bernstein’s (1958) preliminary assertions on sociology of education, many linguistic and paralinguistic features have undergone research in light of social class. The present article is aimed at finding the predictability of first language and second language politeness strategy use through social class. To this end, a group of Iranian English learners was administered a social class questionnaire measuring three social class factors along with Persian and English discourse completion tests which included 9 scenarios for the three face threatening acts. The findings showed that in both L1 and L2, negative and positive strategies were the most common, while off record and no face threatening act were rarely used. A total make-up of similarities was found between L1 and L2 in the frequency of PSs on the three FTAs. It was also found that educational and behavioral social class factors were respectively high and small predictors of L1 and L2 politeness strategies use. The importance of considering social class in pragmatic competence is discussed
Are Paragraph Theories Array of Impressions?
Get PDFThere are a number of functions paragraphs play in discourse studies. For example, it encourages a writer to give adequate focus to the various aspects of his or her message; and it facilitates the identification of one idea in an essay to another idea. Some classical second language writers (for example: Stern, 1976; Halliday & Hasan, 1976; Warriner, 1988; Lunsford & Connors, 1995; Driscoll & Brizee, 2000; Langan, 2001; Sekyi-Baidoo, 2003; Kirzner& Mandell, 2007; and Beare, 2012) on discourse studies have focused on key theoretical issues of paragraph theory such as: definition, types, structure and elements. Modern writers such as Bailey (2011), Rolls & Wignell (2013), Nordquist (2019) have also contributed to studies on paragraph theory. Some university students find it perplexing observing all the elements and constituents of the paragraph theory. The purpose of the paper was, therefore, to find out factors accounting for students’ problems in construction of paragraphs. This chronological paper traced the various theories of paragraph from 1970s to the 2000s, and analysed thirty (30) essay-based texts of university students in a descriptive way. Again, two texts (one each) from a non-native academic of English and a native academic of English were analysed. The results from the texts of student participants showed students’ paragraph writing flaws in areas of concluding sentence, and coherence. The study, therefore, recommended that second language teachers should pay extra attention to students’ paragraphs, especially in writing of concluding sentences, and observance of paragraph coherence
Preface to the Special Issue on Material Development
Get PDFThis special issue brings together the research focusing on future perspectives and challenges of Materials Development. Despite a great number of studies investigating Materials Development from different aspects, there are various unresolved issues which need further research. This special issue publishes 5 articles which focus on different aspects of materials development in various contexts
Brainstorming Revisited: Does Technology Facilitate Argumentative Essay Writing?
Get PDFBrainstorming, as a pre-writing activity, facilitates the process of generating ideas and helps organize learners’ thoughts to get involved in writing activities. The present convergent mixed-methods study investigated whether the integration of technology and brainstorming could affect the argumentative writing of EFL learners. Initially, 68 university students in three intact classes (n=26, n=23, n=20) were exposed to mobile-assisted brainstorming (n=26), wordle-assisted brainstorming (n=23), and cooperative brainstorming (n=20) in the quantitative phase. For qualitative data collection, each session, some paper strips with three questions on them were distributed among the groups to help the researchers discover the participants’ learning processes and perceptions during the instruction. Sixty-five participants who had attended all treatment sessions took one immediate post-test on a seen and one delayed post-test on an unseen topic. Two one-way analysis of variance tests (ANOVA) examined whether there were statistically significant differences between the means of the groups. The results revealed that the wordle-assisted brainstorming group outperformed the two other groups in both post-tests. The findings supported the use of word clouds as a cognitive activity in promoting the argumentative essay writing of Iranian EFL learners. The study has implications for teachers, practitioners, and educators
Promoting Advantageous Ways for Teachers and Learners to Deal with Corrective Feedback
Get PDFResearchers and educators in the field of second language acquisition (SLA) have long been interested in the role of corrective feedback (CF) in language teaching and learning (Cohen, 1975, 2018; Ellis, Loewen, & Erlam, 2006). The main goal is to explore how to provide CF, the kind of feedback to provide, when, and by whom in order to facilitate learner’s uptake and second language (L2) development (e.g., Carroll & Swain, 1993; Han, 2002; Lyster & Ranta, 1997). As Cohen (2018) states, aligned with more learner-centered approaches to language teaching, not only should teachers know how to deal with providing CF but they also need to promote learners’ awareness as informed consumers of CF to optimize its effect in their L2 development journey with the highest level of efficiency (Cohen & White, 2008). CF is defined as comments on accuracy or suitability of students’ comprehension or production of a foreign/second language. The extent of CF and the ways in which learners can strategically embark on such CF is still open to debate due to the fact that there are many mediating factors influencing the efficacy of CF. Consequently, being able to propose advantageous ways of providing CF by teachers and effective use of CF by learners in L2 education settings remains a desideratum which requires a systematic review of various aspects of CF and factors contributing to its effectiveness. To this end, the current paper opens by providing a definition of CF and delineating how it is operationalized in different theoretical schemes. Categories of CF are described as are technology-based means for CF, and key dilemmas regarding CF and its effectiveness are noted. The conclusion reached is that CF must be viewed as highly complex – especially as it concerns learners’ autonomy in L2 development and in effectively strategic use of CF. The article ends with some recommendations regarding advantageous ways of promoting CF practice in L2 classrooms
Preventing Attrition and Promoting Retention
Get PDFThis paper discusses the stage of second language acquisition known as attrition and what learners and teachers can do to prevent attrition and promote retention. Attrition is the stage at which a learner’s attained proficiency declines due to a reduction of contact with the second language, whether from lack of contact with other speakers of the language, cessation of language instruction, or a number of other factors. The paper briefly summarizes research on language attrition, then reviews a prototype program developed to encourage L2 retention for a specific learner population, and discusses a range of activities in which learners at large may engage to promote retention of their L2 knowledge, including both traditional and technology-mediated activities. The paper also suggests means by which language teachers may prepare their students for the possibility of attrition and help them develop skills for independent learning and engaging with language activities and resources that will facilitate language retention
Helping to Maximize Learners’ Motivation for Second Language Learning
Get PDFSecond language (L2) motivation research has been thriving for the past decades by emphasizing L2 motivation theories and describing the motivated learner, while relatively few studies have dealt with how to motivate students in a systematic way. Approaches in these studies either included investigations into the role of different motivational strategies that teachers can use to motivate their students (Dörnyei & Csizér, 1998; Guilloteaux & Dörnyei, 2008) or the impact of various intervention methods (Chan, 2014; Mackay, 2014; Magid, 2014). Even though more situated and classroom-room related projects have been completed recently (Henry, Sundqvist & Thorsen, 2019), there is a need to provide further systematic analyses of how to maximize learner’s L2 motivation in the 21st century. To fulfill this aim, the present theoretical investigation first summarizes the most important L2 motivation theories and their contributions to learner motivation, then outlines the challenges that make motivating students difficult in the 21stcentury. These areas comprise the role of English as a lingua franca, students’ plurilingual identities and the relationship between student motivation and autonomy as a user. Among the main results and implications of the investigation features the finding that student motivation can be increased by engaging learners on their own terms and by involving their reality and creativity in the language learning process. Methods and activities which enable students to act as L2 users in the language class include translation and literature. In addition, the classroom as a venue of genuine communication can have a positive impact on student motivation in the practice of language teaching
Public Budget in Early Childhood Education: A Proposal for Evidence of Expenses with Students Attended in the Municipalities of Mato Grosso State
Get PDFThis study aimed to propose a structure that makes it possible to highlight budget expenditures with children’s education students. The methodology used was descriptive, with qualitative data and obtaining the bibliographical and documentary data. The secondary data were obtained through the Information System on Public Budgets in Education (ISPBE) and School Census. Both made available by the National Fund for Education Development (NFED), with 137 municipalities in Mato Grosso that reported information to ISPBE the financial year 2015. The results suggest that it is possible to improve the legal, managerial, and social control of information, starting with the budget structure, using resources already existing in the municipalities. The contribution of the research is to suggest the mandatory inclusion of expense finder in the draft legislation that is going through the process in the National Congress, replacing the text of Law 4.320/64, which will bring greater security and reliability of the information declared to the ISPBE, besides evidencing how much in fact it invests in education in the country, especially in child education and also to improve transparency and fight against corruption
Financial Actuarial Assumptions: Empirical Study of How Brazilian Companies Manage Their Defined Benefit Plans
Get PDFThis study investigates the factors that Brazilian companies use to manage their defined benefit plans, specifically the determinants of the three financial actuarial assumptions: discount rate, expected return on assets and compensation growth rate. The focus of this research is the companies listed on the B3 – Brazilian Stock Exchange - that recognized and disclosed, from 2010 to 2017, post-employment benefit characterized as Defined Benefit (DB). The sample containing 296 firm/year was divided into two subgroups considering the firm’s political connections. The results suggest that politically connected companies are less effective in managing the solvency of funds or, according to Kido, Petacchi and Weber (2012) act intentionally to justify the company's financial stress. The year before the elections proved to be the most relevant period of discretion, while the specific year of the electoral election only influences the determination of the actuarial financial premises in politically connected companies and, just like in Naughton, Petacchi and Weber (2015) the manager acts to improve the solvency (reduce the deficit) of the pension fund in these periods. The hypothesis that politically connected companies have an incremental adjustment in actuarial assumptions in electoral years has shown results consistent with the theory suggesting that this group of companies manages the reduction of the actuarial deficit in election times more incisivel
The Impact of Green Strategy on Organisations’ Relational Capital
Get PDFThe present study aims to explore the relationship between Green Strategy and Relational Capital. In doing so, it also investigates how green policies influence relational capital. The literature review refers to the significance of relational capital and its impact on strategic goals: organisational performance, organisational innovation and the social capital of the organisation. Examining the variables, green strategy and relational capital has also highlighted the factors that are influenced by green policies, including strengthening the negotiation capacity of the organisation, reinforcing knowledge diffusion and the development of a new corporate identity. Green practices that aim to improve the external conditions of the organisation are common characteristics and lead us to the following agents: Customers - Suppliers – Alliances – Corporate Reputation. Consequently, the categorisation of green practices refers to the relational capital’s components. The impact of green practices on relational capital is therefore indirectly proven due to the strong relationship between the factors and the components.