This thesis investigates the causes of fossilization in English writing among two groups of English majors as well as the measures to deal with it. The experiment was conducted among 62 English majors from National Un...This thesis investigates the causes of fossilization in English writing among two groups of English majors as well as the measures to deal with it. The experiment was conducted among 62 English majors from National University of Defense Technology, and both their questionnaires and written texts were collected as the source of data analyzed. With data collected from questionnaires and written texts, the study aimed to explore （a） the causal factors leading to fossilization in writing, （b） the strategies to deal with students＇ fossilization. Relevant information was elicited from the questionnaire, written texts. Quantitative data were treated with SPSS for descriptive analysis and correlation analysis. The results indicated that both external and internal factors can lead to fossilization in English writing. The external factors include input, instruction and environment in the learning, and the internal factors incorporate students＇ interest, learning strategy, motivation with their systematic knowledge. Based on the results of the experiment, the author attempts to discuss measures to deal with fossilization.展开更多
This article develops an empirical an investigation on the errors in compositions written by students who are studying in Luzhou Vocational and Technical College （LVTC） and Luzhou Medical College （LMC） and contras...This article develops an empirical an investigation on the errors in compositions written by students who are studying in Luzhou Vocational and Technical College （LVTC） and Luzhou Medical College （LMC） and contrasts them in order to trace the source of the errors. It finally turns out to be that there exists strong correlation between students＇ academic quality and the number of errors of various types. Compared with ordinary university students, vocational and technical college （VTC） students＇ interlanguage （IL） errors seem to be more rudimental, and more negative-transferring, most of which are influenced by their mother tongue （MT）-Chinese. VTC students＇ general error in writing is misspelling, while university students ＇ major error lies in collocation. In this thesis, some practical enlightenment about learning and teaching English writing are also proposed.展开更多
For most universities and colleges in China, literary theory is taught at the graduate level of literary studies. Most English teachers think literary theory is such a complex field with jargon-ridden disciplines and ...For most universities and colleges in China, literary theory is taught at the graduate level of literary studies. Most English teachers think literary theory is such a complex field with jargon-ridden disciplines and concepts that it is often considered as ＂a hot potato＂ in classroom teaching. Based on a case study from ＂Approaching Fiction＂ in China Youth University of Political Studies （CYUPS）, the present paper claims that application of literary theory in teaching literature not only greatly broadens students＇ horizon but also deepens their interpretation and understanding of literary works. With proper selection of teaching material and carefully designed teaching approaches, application of critical theory plays an increasingly important role in the undergraduate literature classroom.展开更多
This paper reports a study into the use of amplifiers and amplifier collocations in the doctoral dissertations of Chinese EFL learners. A sample corpus of doctoral dissertations by Chinese doctoral students and a cont...This paper reports a study into the use of amplifiers and amplifier collocations in the doctoral dissertations of Chinese EFL learners. A sample corpus of doctoral dissertations by Chinese doctoral students and a control corpus of doctoral dissertations by native speaker doctoral students were compiled and used for the analyses. Results showed that the overall number of amplifiers used by the Chinese students and the native speaker students were comparable. However, the Chinese learners overused totally, very and really and underused entirely and highly in their writing. Moreover, the Chinese learners tended to use more amplifier collocations than their native speaker counterparts. In particular, they tended to use clearly much more frequently to intensify the reporting verbs and to use the amplifiers to intensify the meaning of general adjectives in their writing. It was also found that many amplifier collocations used by the Chinese learners were congruent collocations. The findings may indicate a non-native style within Chinese learners＇ writing. We argue that Chinese learners overuse amplifiers and amplifier collocations in order to focus the reader＇s attention as well as to enhance the meaning of general adjectives. Meanwhile, the Chinese learners＇ mother tongue exerts a clear influence on their use of amplifiers and amplifier collocations. Pedagogical implications are also discussed within the paper.展开更多
The global spread of English as a Lingua Franca （ELF） has implications for practice in English Language Teaching （ELT） classrooms. This paper presents a study on attitudes toward ELF which is crucial to its incorp...The global spread of English as a Lingua Franca （ELF） has implications for practice in English Language Teaching （ELT） classrooms. This paper presents a study on attitudes toward ELF which is crucial to its incorporation because attitudes influence the learning output in ELT. It uses a mixed method approach through a questionnaire survey on attitudes toward ELF, which contains a modified Verbal Guise Technique （VGT）, complemented with semi-structured interviews. Seventy university students and 4 lecturers from three English departments in Japan （Waseda University and Sophia University） and Indonesia （Universitas Negeri Jakarta） were involved in filling out the questionnaire and semi structured interview sessions. The results highlight positive attitudes towards ELF and its incorporation into ELT （Japan： 3.71, and Indonesia： 3.51）. In addition, factors which influence these attitudes （aspects related to language learning experience） were proven significant. The interview sessions also suggest ways to incorporate an ELF perspective into the ELT classrooms. Further, it addresses the issue of the gap between theory and practice in research on Global Englishes in Language Teaching （GELT） where a ＂conceptual gap＂ is often found. The study is of value to those interested in ELT curriculum evaluation and design to meet the needs of both ELT and ELF community in countries like Japan and Indonesia.展开更多
文摘This thesis investigates the causes of fossilization in English writing among two groups of English majors as well as the measures to deal with it. The experiment was conducted among 62 English majors from National University of Defense Technology, and both their questionnaires and written texts were collected as the source of data analyzed. With data collected from questionnaires and written texts, the study aimed to explore （a） the causal factors leading to fossilization in writing, （b） the strategies to deal with students＇ fossilization. Relevant information was elicited from the questionnaire, written texts. Quantitative data were treated with SPSS for descriptive analysis and correlation analysis. The results indicated that both external and internal factors can lead to fossilization in English writing. The external factors include input, instruction and environment in the learning, and the internal factors incorporate students＇ interest, learning strategy, motivation with their systematic knowledge. Based on the results of the experiment, the author attempts to discuss measures to deal with fossilization.
文摘This article develops an empirical an investigation on the errors in compositions written by students who are studying in Luzhou Vocational and Technical College （LVTC） and Luzhou Medical College （LMC） and contrasts them in order to trace the source of the errors. It finally turns out to be that there exists strong correlation between students＇ academic quality and the number of errors of various types. Compared with ordinary university students, vocational and technical college （VTC） students＇ interlanguage （IL） errors seem to be more rudimental, and more negative-transferring, most of which are influenced by their mother tongue （MT）-Chinese. VTC students＇ general error in writing is misspelling, while university students ＇ major error lies in collocation. In this thesis, some practical enlightenment about learning and teaching English writing are also proposed.
文摘For most universities and colleges in China, literary theory is taught at the graduate level of literary studies. Most English teachers think literary theory is such a complex field with jargon-ridden disciplines and concepts that it is often considered as ＂a hot potato＂ in classroom teaching. Based on a case study from ＂Approaching Fiction＂ in China Youth University of Political Studies （CYUPS）, the present paper claims that application of literary theory in teaching literature not only greatly broadens students＇ horizon but also deepens their interpretation and understanding of literary works. With proper selection of teaching material and carefully designed teaching approaches, application of critical theory plays an increasingly important role in the undergraduate literature classroom.
文摘This paper reports a study into the use of amplifiers and amplifier collocations in the doctoral dissertations of Chinese EFL learners. A sample corpus of doctoral dissertations by Chinese doctoral students and a control corpus of doctoral dissertations by native speaker doctoral students were compiled and used for the analyses. Results showed that the overall number of amplifiers used by the Chinese students and the native speaker students were comparable. However, the Chinese learners overused totally, very and really and underused entirely and highly in their writing. Moreover, the Chinese learners tended to use more amplifier collocations than their native speaker counterparts. In particular, they tended to use clearly much more frequently to intensify the reporting verbs and to use the amplifiers to intensify the meaning of general adjectives in their writing. It was also found that many amplifier collocations used by the Chinese learners were congruent collocations. The findings may indicate a non-native style within Chinese learners＇ writing. We argue that Chinese learners overuse amplifiers and amplifier collocations in order to focus the reader＇s attention as well as to enhance the meaning of general adjectives. Meanwhile, the Chinese learners＇ mother tongue exerts a clear influence on their use of amplifiers and amplifier collocations. Pedagogical implications are also discussed within the paper.
基金sponsored by Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education,The Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Indonesia
文摘The global spread of English as a Lingua Franca （ELF） has implications for practice in English Language Teaching （ELT） classrooms. This paper presents a study on attitudes toward ELF which is crucial to its incorporation because attitudes influence the learning output in ELT. It uses a mixed method approach through a questionnaire survey on attitudes toward ELF, which contains a modified Verbal Guise Technique （VGT）, complemented with semi-structured interviews. Seventy university students and 4 lecturers from three English departments in Japan （Waseda University and Sophia University） and Indonesia （Universitas Negeri Jakarta） were involved in filling out the questionnaire and semi structured interview sessions. The results highlight positive attitudes towards ELF and its incorporation into ELT （Japan： 3.71, and Indonesia： 3.51）. In addition, factors which influence these attitudes （aspects related to language learning experience） were proven significant. The interview sessions also suggest ways to incorporate an ELF perspective into the ELT classrooms. Further, it addresses the issue of the gap between theory and practice in research on Global Englishes in Language Teaching （GELT） where a ＂conceptual gap＂ is often found. The study is of value to those interested in ELT curriculum evaluation and design to meet the needs of both ELT and ELF community in countries like Japan and Indonesia.
