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Native and non-native raters of L2 speaking performance: accent familiarity and cognitive processes
Get PDFRater variation in performance assessment can impact test-takers’ scores and compromise assessments’ fairness and validity (Crooks, Kane, & Cohen, 1996). Rater variation can also undermine a test’s validity and fairness; therefore, it is important to investigate raters’ scoring patterns in order to inform rater training. Substantial work has been done analyzing rater cognition in writing assessment (e.g., Cumming, 1990; Eckes, 2008); however, few studies have tried to classify factors that could contribute to rater variation in speaking assessment (e.g., May, 2006).
The present study used a mixed methods approach (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 1998; Greene, Carcelli, & Graham, 1989) to investigate the potential differences between native English-speaking and non-native English-speaking raters in how they assess L2 students’ speaking performance. Kane’s (2006) argument-based approach to validity was used as the theoretical framework. The study challenged the plausibility of the assumptions for the evaluation inference, which links the observed performance and the observed score and depends on the assumption that the raters apply the scoring rubric accurately and consistently.
The study analyzed raters’ scoring patterns when using a TOEFL iBT speaking rubric analytically. The raters provided scores for each rubric criterion (i.e., Overall, Delivery, Language Use, and Topic Development). Each rater received individual training, practice, and calibration experience. All the raters filled out a background questionnaire asking about their teaching experiences, language learning history, the background of students in their classrooms, and their exposure to and familiarity with the non-native accents used in the study.
For the quantitative analysis, the two groups of raters 23 native (North American) and 23 non-native (Russian) raters graded and left comments for speech samples from Arabic (n = 25), Chinese (n = 25), and Russian (n = 25) L1 background. Students’ samples were in response to two independent speaking tasks; the students’ responses varied from low to high proficiency levels. For the qualitative part, 16 raters (7 native and 9 non-native) shared their scoring behavior through think-aloud protocols and interviews. The speech samples graded during the think-aloud included Arabic (n = 4), Chinese (n = 4), and Russian (n = 4) speakers.
Raters’ scores were examined using the Multi-Faceted Rasch Measurement using FACETS (Linacre, 2014) software to test group differences between native and non-native raters as well as raters who are familiar and unfamiliar with the accents of students in the study. In addition, raters’ comments were coded and also used to explore rater group differences. The qualitative analyses involved thematical coding of transcribed think-aloud sessions and interview sessions using content analysis (Strauss & Corbin, 1998) to investigate the cognitive processes of raters and their perceptions of their rating processes. The coding included such themes as decision-making and re-listening patterns, perceived severity, criteria importance, and non-rubric criteria (e.g., accent familiarity, L1 match). Afterward, the quantitative and qualitative results were analyzed together to describe the potential sources of rater variability. This analysis was done employing side-by-side comparison of qualitative and quantitative data (Onwuegbuzie & Teddlie, 2003).
The results revealed that there were no radical differences between native and non-native raters; however, some different patterns were observed. Non-native raters also showed more lenient grading patterns towards the students with whom their L1 matched. In addition, all raters, regardless of the group, demonstrated several patterns of rating depending on their focus while listening to examinees’ performance and interpretations of the rating criteria during the decision-making process. The findings can motivate professionals who oversee and train raters at testing companies and intensive English programs to study their raters’ scoring behaviors to individualize training to help make exam ratings fair and raters interchangeable
Factors leading to student completion: a study of successful post-traditional students
Get PDFThis study examined the factors that lead to student completion for part-time, post-traditional community college students (PTS). Research identified the environmental experiences and common characteristics of the student population using a sequential, exploratory research design. The qualitative segment of the study utilized a holistic, single-case study design, whereas the quantitative portion evaluated archival quantitative data from a 2013-2015 graduating cohort. In addition, the study explored the success of PTS enrolled in structured academic programs. The majority of students in the cohort were female, over the age of 35, White, low income, receiving some form of financial aid, not first generation to college or unknown, and did not require developmental education courses. More than half of the graduates earned a degree, not a certificate. Among the environmental experiences, the only significant factor appeared to be the use of an academic advisor. Supporting these data were individual interviews which indicated academic advising, or some form of mentorship coupled with a high level of self-motivation, led to success and completion. Additionally, the study determined that there is a significant difference between students who are enrolled in a structured academic program versus a non-structured academic program. The study was concluded with recommendations for further research on students not well represented in the sample and the number of credits earned by cohort participants
Mapping The Extent Of The Magellanic Clouds Using Gaia Data
No full textThe Gaia Data Release 1 (GDR1) set yields a promising amount of information
about the Milky Way and the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds (LMC and SMC),
mapping over one billion star positions. We can learn more about the distribution of
stars in the Magellanic Clouds and determine the Cloud’s extent. We assumed that
the Milky Way is axisymmetric about its center in Galactic latitude and longitude. Iso-
lating a region of the Gaia star counts around the Magellanic Clouds, we can reduce
the foreground contribution from the Milky Way by finding the corresponding region
reflected around the Milky Way’s center to create a proper foreground correction or
“filter”. This filter is made using a Voronoi tessellation, by which we can determine the
local density at each point throughout each region. One can then statistically subtract
the local density of each point in the reflected region of the Milky Way (representing
the foreground stars) from that of the LMC and SMC. The result is the excess from the
Magellanic Clouds. When comparing how the density of the LMC and SMC change
with distance, we define the “edge” to be where those densities met that of the Milky
Way. We found that the edge is at about 10.2 kpc radially from the LMC center, and
about 8.0 kpc radially from the SMC center
Cross-cultural dynamics among White-led nonprofit organizations in South Phoenix communities of color
No full textWhite administrators of nonprofit organizations are tasked with the challenge of making the right
decisions when their nonprofit seeks to work in predominantly Black and Brown neighborhoods.
They utilize their personal worldviews and instincts to carry out the mission of their
organization. The problem is that White administrators use their own cultural beliefs as their
guide, which typically is counterintuitive to the cultural beliefs of Black and Brown people in the
neighborhoods they wish to serve. This disparity raises issues, barriers, and sometimes conflict
between both groups, which further divides efforts of collaboration. This study investigates the
assumptions, disparities, and paradoxes that exist and arise between administrators in a Whiteled
nonprofit organization and residents in Communities of Color as they negotiate issues of
trust, decision-making, and transformative practices through the context of a nonprofit agency’s
mission and the neighborhood. By using portraiture, the assumptions, disparities, and paradoxes
were examined utilizing the factors whereby groups engaged in relationship-building efforts.
Employing one-to-one interviews, focus groups, observations, and documents allowed the
researcher to answer the research questions through the portraits. These questions were centered
on the understanding of the roles that White administrators and Black and Brown residents carry
out in collaborative process efforts. Based on their understanding of these roles, the research
sought to find a collaborative process that works. The findings revealed through the data that the
Black and Brown residents and White-led administrators in nonprofits can achieve true
collaborative practices through a more democratic approach. By understanding Black and Brown
residents’ Community Cultural Wealth, both groups can engage in this democratic approach
which benefits the mission of the nonprofit and empowers the Black and Brown residents
Reading comprehension tests: reading-to-write-a-synthesis and gap-filling
No full textThis study was conducted to evaluate a potential new way of assessing reading comprehension at the college level in Afghanistan. The way in which the assessment of reading comprehension was approached in the English Department of Herat University required change and updating. In this study, synthesis writing is evaluated to determine if reading-writing integration can help in assessing the reading comprehension of Afghan sophomore students. Furthermore, a gap-filling activity was used to examine if a cognitively less challenging activity can provide support (scaffolding) in completing a more complex task. Participants were divided into two groups. Gap-filling and reading-to-write-a-synthesis activities were presented in reverse order to the groups. A 2-by-2 mixed ANOVA was conducted to assess the main effects of task and group and the interaction effect between the two factors. Results of the study suggest the order of presentation affects the performance of participants in these two tests and, contrary to expectations, that presenting the reading-to-write-a-synthesis activity prior to the gap-filling activity may result in better performance on the more challenging reading-to-write-a-synthesis activity
Linear Stochastic Sampling(LSS) in Computer Graphics
No full textThis thesis presents a new technique to randomly sample from the large datasets in linear order. Existing stochastic sampling methods work well but are limited to the small datasets. If existing stochastic sampling methods are implemented for large datasets, thrashing results, wherein the Operating System will spend most of its time swapping the pages of memory rather than executing instructions.
We make two contributions to our research. First, we derive explicit formulas that minimize the stochastic sampling time and generate a higher quality of the output images at the same time. Second, we analyze the new algorithm in the context of visual quality, memory usage, and performance. The results of our analysis show that this technique is competitive with other stochastic sampling methods while avoiding thrashing and using computer memory more efficiently.
Key Words: stochastic, sampling, linear algorithm, thrashing, efficienc
The good guys have guns: a statistical analysis of the arguments for deregulating firearm ownership
No full textFirearms are a controversial subject in the United States. Recently, firearm deaths (per year) have surpassed automotive deaths, and deserves increased academic scrutiny. The question I examine here is; Does a good guy with a gun stop the bad guy? I utilize a time-series (ARIMA) analytical approach to analyze the effects of removing state-level firearm control on subsequent violent crime, firearm suicide, firearm homicide and overall firearm death within those states from 2004-2014. Data were aggregated from multiple sources, including the Center for Disease Control, the Uniform Crime Report, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Five states were selected, four states that had legislative change between 2004-2014, and one state with no legislative changes, to create twenty ARIMA models. Four national-level regression models (n = 479) were created to analyze the overall effect of firearm control on violent crime, firearm suicide, firearm homicide and overall firearm death. The national-level models suggest that firearm control is moderately effective in preventing suicide and overall death, but the results for firearm homicide and violent crime were inconclusive. This study concludes that, based on the evidence from all 24 models, states that have passed gun legislation to increase the prevalence of “the good guy with a gun” have not achieved any noticeable effect in deterring or preventing the bad guy
Cultural factors and documented concussion reports in collegiate football players: exploring the effects of macro- and exo- system factors
Get PDFDespite the well-publicized negative health consequences of repeated traumatic brain injury, non-reporting concussion rates have remained constant over recent years, especially in high-risk sports such as college football. This study, grounded in Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory (1998), evaluates the hypothesis that the number of publicly acknowledged concussions by NCAA college football teams will be inversely related to the cultural factors hypothesized to constrain players’ non-reporting behavior, and by extension, the number of publicly acknowledged concussions reported by NCAA football teams. All data used for this study was derived from publicly-reported data found online pertaining to teams playing during the 2017-2018 football season, using data scraping and mining methods using the open-source statistical package R, and R sub-packages, and secondary analyses of text data using LIWC. Indicators of the outcome variable, number of publicly acknowledged concussions, and all indicators were derived from various sources of online data including financial reports, team success records, and social media. A principal components analysis identified one component which, although unrelated to diagnosed concussions, was significantly related to suspected concussions (head and neck injuries). Implications include both methodological and applied outcomes regarding construction of cultural-level variables and football culture’s impact on the safety and well-being of players
Coyotes exhibit immune and genetic evidence of rickettsial infections in Arizona
Get PDFRocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF), caused by the bacterium Rickettsia rickettsii, was recognized as endemic in Arizona after a 2004 outbreak, and has been a public health concern since that time. The brown dog tick (Rhipicephalus sanguineus) is the primary vector in the state. Since it selects domesticated dogs as the primary host, free-roaming dogs in peridomestic areas have been named as the primary risk factor for human cases of RMSF. However, the sudden emergence and long-distance transmission of the pathogen have not been adequately explained, and one possible mechanism could include a wildlife component. Since coyotes are prevalent in Arizona, wide-ranging, and genetically-similar to dogs, we predicted that brown dog ticks might parasitize coyotes and that coyotes would therefore have evidence of pathogen exposure. We tested coyote sera for antibodies to R. rickettsii. Eight out of 94 (8.5%) samples were seropositive at 1:256 or higher titers. Subsequent qPCR analyses of coyote skin showed evidence for Spotted Fever Group Rickettsia in 4 out of 138 (2.9%) samples, but not for R. rickettsii. Antibodies are cross-reactive for many rickettsiae, so the positive results in serology could indicate coyotes’ exposure to diverse, nontypical rickettsial species with various levels of pathogenicity. This cross-reactivity may play a role in the maintenance of rickettsial bacteria in Arizona. Although the specific mechanisms remain unknown, it is possible that Rh. sanguineus are responsible for transferring rickettsial pathogens across canine host species. Alternatively, a different pathogen-vector complex could be operating on coyotes than on dogs
The role of authenticity and cognitive distortions in reducing workplace stress
No full textMillions of employees working in universities experience occupational stress. Common stressors include working long hours and lack of supervisor support. Adverse consequences of workplace stress at the institutional level include higher levels of burnout and turnover rates. At the individual level, stressed employees experience lower job satisfaction and more health problems. There are many stress management interventions available to employees at different corporations in an attempt to reduce workplace stress, many of which are based on cognitive-behavioral therapy; this encourages individuals to challenge and change their maladaptive thoughts about stress. Researchers suggest that these programs appear to be effective. However, more recently, newer interventions have been implemented, such as mindfulness-based stress management programs. These programs aim to reduce stress by changing the relationship the individual has with stress rather than changing the thoughts themselves. These programs appear to be successful as well. The current study attempted to compare a brief, one-session, cognitive- behavioral intervention to a mindfulness based intervention to determine if one lowers stress more effectively than the other. Additionally, the current study was intended to examine if the cognitive-behavioral intervention significantly reduced cognitive distortions and if the mindfulness intervention significantly increased authenticity. It was hypothesized that the cognitive-behavioral and mindfulness interventions would be equally effective at reducing stress. Because the study was underpowered, no inferential statistics could be used; instead the data is summarized with descriptive statistics. The intended methodology is reviewed in light of how it would add to the literature on short-term stress management interventions