1,720,966 research outputs found
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
The effect of task-based language teaching on developing speaking skills among Saudi Arabian female EFL learners at university level
No full textControlled AccessIn the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the rate of women entering international workspaces has been increasing. However, due to the competitive nature of the job market, women are required to gain a high level of English proficiency. With this in mind, the current study takes a socio-cognitive theory to investigate the impact of task-based language teaching (TBLT) on the oral proficiency of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners at a Saudi Arabian female university. The aims of this study were threefold: a) to investigate the speaking challenges faced by female EFL learners at the university level, b) to explore the attitudes of one teacher and 16 Saudi EFL learners toward TBLT, and c) to examine the effect of TBLT on developing learners' oral language proficiency based on the complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF) measurement.
Many previous studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of TBLT over other teaching methods in a variety of teaching contexts. However, most of these studies have taken a sociocultural approach to their investigations. Thus, the current study offers new insights by investigating an understudied cohort of EFL learners from a socio-cognitive perspective. The study used a four-pronged design comprising a quasi-experimental teaching intervention, pre- and post-tests, a questionnaire, and semi-structured interviews. Under the quasi-experimental design, 32 learners were divided into an experimental and a control group, with 16 participants in each group. Both groups attended EFL classes for over a period of three months, but the experimental group followed the TBLT approach whereas the control group was taught according to the CLT approach, the conventional approach at the selected university.
The learners of the experimental group completed a post-intervention questionnaire, two semi-structured interviews, and one pre- and one post-intervention speaking test, while the teacher of the experimental group only responded to one post-intervention semi-structured interview. Firstly, the pre-intervention interview was conducted to investigate learners’ speaking challenges. Then, a post-intervention questionnaire was followed by a semi-structured interview conducted with learners in the experimental group to further examine their attitudes toward TBLT in English speaking instruction. The second post-intervention interview set out to investigate the attitude of the experimental group teacher with respect to the TBLT approach in teaching speaking skills. Both interviews for the learners and the teacher were analysed using a thematic analysis through NVIVO software and SPSS was utilised to analyse a Likert scale questionnaire. Finally, pre- and post-speaking tests were administered to all of the participants in both groups (control and experimental) and were designed based on the TOEIC test. The data collected from the speaking tests were analysed using the CAF framework and subsequently computed through t-test to assess the differences between the two groups.
The main findings of the research are that TBLT is more effective than the conventional teaching method in the EFL female Saudi Arabian university context. Regarding speaking challenges, the first interview revealed that some learners have several concerns when speaking (e.g. concerns about grammar or lack of vocabulary) despite demonstrating serious interest and awareness of speaking-development strategies. The results of the questionnaire and learners’ post-intervention interview revealed that learners have a positive attitude toward the use of TBLT, as they seem to believe it helps to increase motivational aspects, such as self-confidence, when interacting using the target language (TL). Likewise, the teacher also expressed a positive attitude toward TBLT, particularly because it encourages learners to use the TL in classrooms, which is in line with their learning goals. Meanwhile, the second post-intervention interview with the teacher also revealed a major concern surrounding the difficulty and time-consuming nature of the TBLT approach from the instructor’s standpoint. Finally, in terms of oral proficiency, the results of the pre- and post-test measurements showed that the experimental group experienced statistically significant improvements in several components of the CAF measurements (accuracy and fluency) compared to the control group. First, in terms of syntactic complexity, the experimental group showed significant reductions in the mean length of the C-unit and mean length of clauses, while the clauses per C-unit significantly increased. No significant changes appeared in lexical complexity, and the experimental group made significantly fewer errors and produced more errorless clauses post-intervention. Finally, regarding fluency, the number of silent pauses and repairs in the experimental group’s speech was reduced significantly, although the changes in filled pauses were not significant.
Based on the above results, it has been concluded that the TBLT approach has a significant effect on developing EFL learners’ speaking skills, specifically, with regards to accuracy and fluency. Learners’ attitudes toward a particular pedagogical approach are essential in encouraging learners to participate in classrooms which should affect whether they develop the target language, such as speaking skills, or not. In this experimental study, the TBLT approach was shown to develop learners’ speaking skills. The study was, however, limited by the small sample size and brief duration. Therefore, it is recommended that the study be replicated with a larger sample over a longer intervention period. Furthermore, the effect of TBLT on learners at different proficiency levels is also worth exploring further
The construction of group identities and the positioning of ‘Irishness’ in computer-mediated siscourse surrounding the repeal of the Eighth Amendment
No full textIn 2018 Ireland held a referendum proposing a repeal of an historic
amendment to the Constitution which guaranteed the unborn child a right to life
equal to that of the mother, effectively rendering abortion illegal in all but
exceptional circumstances. The referendum on this divisive issue generated
enormous public interest, resulting in highly publicised debates in both online and
offline spheres. This study uses the online context of the referendum to examine
identity construction and navigation by groups and individuals participating in
computer-mediated discourse. Four major identity themes are identified in this study:
national, gender, political, and religious. Data are collected from comments made by
users on the public Facebook pages of major Irish news outlets. There are two major
groups identified in this study: the Yes group which self-identifies as pro-choice and
supports a Yes vote in the referendum, and the No group which self-identifies as pro-
life and advocates a No vote which would retain the status quo. There is also a third
group of Undecided voters, although there were few examples of these comments in
the data corpus.
Using a combined positioning theory and corpus-based approach to discourse
analysis, the data corpus is analysed using both quantitative and qualitative methods,
including the analytical software tool AntConc. The study finds that there are two
divergent Irish identities in this debate. The Yes group positions Ireland and its
people as a modern nation, evidenced by their support of increased access to
abortion. This stance carries a wider symbolism including a greater emphasis on
gender equality and women’s rights, as well as a separation of Church and State. By
comparison, it was found that the No group’s version of Irish identity is focused on
retention of the traditional family unit at the centre of society, emphasised by a
difference from Britain and informed by Catholic values and morals. The study also
identified a high prevalence of trolling by both Yes and No users. This is a
discursive feature that is unique to computer-mediated environments and is
influenced by the nature of online communication itself
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
Author-wise bibliometric analysis based on entropy.
No full textAuthor-wise bibliometric analysis based on entropy.</p
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