Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons™
Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Keyword
-
- ESL (7)
- Curriculum development (3)
- EFL (3)
- TESOL (3)
- Automated item creation (2)
-
- Context (2)
- Elicited imitation (EI) test items (2)
- L2 strategies (2)
- Language aptitude (2)
- Peirce (2)
- Proficiency (2)
- Pronunciation (2)
- Specifications (2)
- Teacher training (2)
- A probabilistic morphological analyzer (1)
- Academic Word List (1)
- Academic listening (1)
- Academic preparation (1)
- Active learning (1)
- Annotation tasks (1)
- Argument construction (1)
- Automated cross-linguistic-mapping construction (1)
- Automatic language classification (1)
- BTR TESOL (1)
- CCASH (1)
- COCA (1)
- Classroom management (1)
- Collocational competence (1)
- Computer-aided pronunciation (1)
- Conferences (1)
- Publication Type
Articles 1 - 30 of 38
Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
K-12 Teacher Perceptions Regarding Hispanic Family Educational Beliefs And Language And Literacy Practices, Marisa Lee
K-12 Teacher Perceptions Regarding Hispanic Family Educational Beliefs And Language And Literacy Practices, Marisa Lee
Theses and Dissertations
Abundant research exists examining what occurs in Hispanic homes regarding educational beliefs and literacy and language practices before and after children enter the school system. What is not known is whether or not teachers are aware of these practices and beliefs. The research questions of this study focus first on what perceptions K-12 teachers have about Hispanic educational beliefs and practices, and second, on determining if those perceptions correlate with teacher training in English as a second language (ESL). To answer these questions, a questionnaire was written based on an extensive review of literature regarding three aspects: Hispanic educational beliefs, …
The Development Of Two Units For Btr Tesol: "Basic Principles Of Second Language Acquisition" And "Communicative Language Teacher And Information Gap Exercises", Paul A. Scholes
Theses and Dissertations
A team of graduate students from Brigham Young University under the supervision of the main author Dr. Lynn Henrichsen collaborated on creating a book, as well as a website, Basic Training and Resources for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (BTR TESOL). The entire project consists of 10 sections with nearly 50 units addressing topics that novice teachers should know before teaching English to non-native speakers. The BTR TESOL program provides basic material for untrained novice teachers that will help them to be better prepared to face the challenges and responsibilities of teaching English. This write-up describes …
The Development Of Two Units For Basic Training And Resources For Teaching English To Speakers Of Other Languages: Understanding And Adapting In A New Culture And Teaching Culture, Monty A. Colver
Theses and Dissertations
A team of Brigham Young University graduate students working under the supervision of Dr. Lynn Henrichsen, collaborated on the creation of a book as well as a website, Basic Training and Resources for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (BTR-TESOL). The project, which will be developed in phases over the coming years, is intended to provide novice English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers with some introductory material on nearly fifty different topics related to the field. Each unit is not intended to be a comprehensive source and is not to be seen as a replacement for formal training. …
The Effect Of Content Revision Logs And Student-Teacher Conferences On Esl Student Writing, Urim Yi
The Effect Of Content Revision Logs And Student-Teacher Conferences On Esl Student Writing, Urim Yi
Theses and Dissertations
Research has demonstrated the need for both teachers and students to find appropriate types of feedback for meaning-level (content) issues for English as a second langauge (ESL) writing (Kepner, 1991). The current study examines the use of a content revision log (where students monitor their revisions in such content issues as organization, paragraph development and use of topic sentences). Adding to the effect of applying the content revision log, the effect of holding conferences was also examined in the hope that referencing the content revision log during a conference session would bring the most positive results. There were three types …
Iconic Semantics In Phonology: A Corpus Study Of Japanese Mimetics, Joshua Marrinor Caldwell
Iconic Semantics In Phonology: A Corpus Study Of Japanese Mimetics, Joshua Marrinor Caldwell
Theses and Dissertations
Recent research on Japanese mimetics examines which part of speech the mimetic occurs as. An individual mimetic can appear as a noun, an adjective, an adverb, or a verb (Tsujimura & Deguchi 2007, 340). It is assumed by many scholars that mimetic words essentially function as adverbs (Inose 2007, 98). Few data-based studies exist that quantify the relative frequency of mimetic words in different word categories. Akita (2009) and Caldwell (2009a) have performed small scale or preliminary studies of this aspect of Japanese mimetics. The use of mimetics in other grammatical function categories has been attributed to the polysemous nature …
Pyaline: Automatically Growing Language Family Trees Using The Aline Distance, Paul A. Huff
Pyaline: Automatically Growing Language Family Trees Using The Aline Distance, Paul A. Huff
Theses and Dissertations
Several methods for determining a numerical distance between languages have been proposed in the literature. In this thesis I implement one of them, the ALINE distance, and develop a methodology for comparing its results with other language distance metrics. I then compare it with a leading distance metric, the LDND distance, proposed by the ASJP project.
The Design Of Specifications For The Development Of Broadcast English Materials In Academic Listening/Speaking Courses, Amy Barlow
Theses and Dissertations
ESL students in academic listening/speaking courses often listen to long audio recordings similar to a lecture or other academic passages. When listening to these passages, students can lose their interest which impedes their learning of new strategies for understanding academic language. Students in the Level Four Listening/Speaking classes at Brigham Young University's English Language Center (ELC), under the previous curriculum, would experience this challenge. All of the passages were available only in audio and were long in duration. The students would lose interest and improve little in their listening skills. Under the new curriculum at the ELC, students in Academic …
A Hybrid System For Glossary Generation Of Feature Film Content For Language Learning, Ryan Arthur Corradini
A Hybrid System For Glossary Generation Of Feature Film Content For Language Learning, Ryan Arthur Corradini
Theses and Dissertations
This report introduces a suite of command-line tools created to assist content developers with the creation of rich supplementary material to use in conjunction with feature films and other video assets in language teaching. The tools are intended to leverage open-source corpora and software (the OPUS OpenSubs corpus and the Moses statistical machine translation system, respectively), but are written in a modular fashion so that other resources could be leveraged in their place. The completed tool suite facilitates three main tasks, which together constitute this project. First, several scripts created for use in preparing linguistic data for the system are …
Examining Rater Bias In Elicited Imitation Scoring: Influence Of Rater's L1 And L2 Background To The Ratings, Min Hye Son
Examining Rater Bias In Elicited Imitation Scoring: Influence Of Rater's L1 And L2 Background To The Ratings, Min Hye Son
Theses and Dissertations
Elicited Imitation (EI), which is a way of assessing language learners' speaking, has been used for years. Furthermore, there have been many studies done showing rater bias (variance in test ratings associated with a specific rater and attributable to the attributes of a test taker) in language assessment. In this project, I evaluated possible rater bias, focusing mostly on bias attributable to raters' and test takers' language backgrounds, as seen in EI ratings. I reviewed literature on test rater bias, participated in a study of language background and rater bias, and produced recommendations for reducing bias in EI administration. Also, …
An Introduction To Major University English Tests And English Language Teaching In China, Caiping Sun
An Introduction To Major University English Tests And English Language Teaching In China, Caiping Sun
Theses and Dissertations
The purposes of this project were to introduce (1) the four main college level English tests used in the People's Republic of China to expatriate English language educators, researchers, curriculum developers, and program designers; and (2) the college English language teaching situation in China to expatriates and give them information on where and how to apply for teaching positions there. The project produced two products to fulfill these goals. First, a paper titled an introduction to major university English tests in China: Their nature, development and importance is now ready to submit for publication. It is a paper that introduces …
Developing Cued Pronunciation Readings For Latter-Day Saint Missionaries Learning English, Holly A. Mueller
Developing Cued Pronunciation Readings For Latter-Day Saint Missionaries Learning English, Holly A. Mueller
Theses and Dissertations
The focus of this project was to develop self-directed pronunciation materials for a specialized group of English as a second language (ESL) learners—missionaries at the Provo Missionary Training Center (MTC) of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A set of six Cued Pronunciation Readings (CPRs) were developed. CPRs are computer-based, self-directed pronunciation materials designed to help students perceive pausing, word stress, and sentence-final intonation in spoken English and practice these features through a sequence of oral reading tasks. The CPRs developed in this project were based on essential missionary communicative tasks and utilized high-frequency gospel vocabulary. These tasks …
Empirical Study Of Information Design: Four Experiments, Noel Teresa Alton
Empirical Study Of Information Design: Four Experiments, Noel Teresa Alton
Theses and Dissertations
Current design theory sets out many rules and guidelines for designers, but good design is still difficult to replicate. Often the design principles found in the manuals are misapplied, resulting in designs that (1) do not fulfill their purpose and (2) disrupt the clarity of information. This thesis will review and provide experimental data supporting a model of visual form/visual purpose connections based on the semiotic of C.S. Peirce. This model was first used by Amare and Manning (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009) to evaluate and explain both effective and ineffective visual information design. This thesis will extend their approach, …
A Curriculum For General Academic Preparation, Teresa Ann Martin
A Curriculum For General Academic Preparation, Teresa Ann Martin
Theses and Dissertations
The curriculum at the English Language Center (ELC) at Brigham Young University (BYU) currently has two programs: Foundations and Academic. In order for students to progress from Foundations to the Academic Program, they must pass their Level Achievement Tests (LATs), which are administered as final exams. Each semester there are students who do not pass their LATs. The question then is what should happen to these students? Should they be asked to leave the ELC, should they have to repeat the same level until they pass, or should they be promoted without passing their LATs? This project presents an alternative …
Evaluating The Usefulness Of An Aural Gapped Listening Summary As A Measure Of Academic Listening Proficiency, Sarah Elizabeth Mottaghinejad
Evaluating The Usefulness Of An Aural Gapped Listening Summary As A Measure Of Academic Listening Proficiency, Sarah Elizabeth Mottaghinejad
Theses and Dissertations
For this project I sought to find a more effective means of evaluating academic listening comprehension. This involved doing an in-depth investigation of academic listening, the constructs involved in listening comprehension, and of methods of assessing listening comprehension. It also included a study of the concept of test usefulness (Bachman and Palmer, 1996), which consists of reliability, construct validity, authenticity, interactiveness, impact, and practicality, and is used to help select the most effective methods of assessing language abilities. Based on my review of listening comprehension testing methods, I created a method of assessing academic listening comprehension, Aural Gapped Listening Summaries …
An Evaluation Of The Learning Outcomes And The Curricular Organization Of The Brigham Young University Undergraduate Tesol Internship Course, Marisa Irene Ontiveros
An Evaluation Of The Learning Outcomes And The Curricular Organization Of The Brigham Young University Undergraduate Tesol Internship Course, Marisa Irene Ontiveros
Theses and Dissertations
This thesis presents two research problems regarding the evaluation of the learning outcomes and the curricular organization of the TESOL minor internship course at Brigham Young University. First, the course learning outcomes have not been revisited after their initial design which demands the need for assessment. Additionally, the current curricular organization of the course does not allow for all learning outcomes to apply to students enrolled in the course, as some of the students do their internships internationally which prevents them from participating in the sessions held locally during their internship. In an effort to find solutions to these two …
Utilizing Human-Computer Interactions To Improve Text Annotation, Marc A. Carmen
Utilizing Human-Computer Interactions To Improve Text Annotation, Marc A. Carmen
Theses and Dissertations
The need for annotated corpora in a variety of different types of research grows constantly. Unfortunately creating annotated corpora is frequently cost-prohibitive due the number of person-hours required to create the corpus. This project investigates one solution that helps to reduce the cost of creating annotated corpora through the use of a new user interface which includes a specially built framework and component for annotating part-of-speech information and the implementation of a dictionary. This project reports on a user study performed to determine the effect of dictionaries with different levels of coverage on a part-of-speech annotation task. Based on a …
Specifications For The Development Of Effective Academic Vocabulary Activities In Intensive English Programs, Jared Nathan Garrett
Specifications For The Development Of Effective Academic Vocabulary Activities In Intensive English Programs, Jared Nathan Garrett
Theses and Dissertations
With the new curriculum at the English Language Center (ELC) at Brigham Young University (BYU) including a program focused specifically on preparing students to succeed in academic institutions wherein the language of instruction is English, a need for a systematic approach to vocabulary instruction was identified. Specifically, the Academic Program focuses on the Academic Word List (AWL) in order to provide a broad base of words that can best prepare students for the academic world. This project followed the ADDIE model (Analyze, Design, Develop, Implement, Evaluate) to craft a systematic approach to developing vocabulary learning activities. An analysis of existing …
Students' Perceptions Of Their Esl Training In Preparation For University Reading Tasks, Olha Kondiyenko
Students' Perceptions Of Their Esl Training In Preparation For University Reading Tasks, Olha Kondiyenko
Theses and Dissertations
This study sought to determine perceptions of former English Language Center (ELC) students of their readiness for university reading tasks after completing their ESL training. Former ELC students who now study or have studied at 10 different American post-secondary institutions provided insights for the study. Through questionnaires and face-to-face interviews, the study collected and analyzed many interesting and revealing comments from participants. Their comments demonstrated that even though the majority of students overall were satisfied with their learning experiences at the ELC, some significant changes still have to be made to be able to fully meet students' educational needs. Participants …
The Development Of Two Units For Basic Training And Resources For Teaching English To Speakers Of Other Languages: "Developing A Successful Teaching Personality" And "Managing Classes Of English Language Learners", Iva Crookston
Theses and Dissertations
A team of graduate students from Brigham Young University under the supervision of the main author, Dr. Henrichsen, collaborated on creating a book as well as a website, Basic Training and Resources for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (BTR-TESOL). The entire project consists of ten main sections with nearly fifty units addressing topics that novice teachers should know before teaching English to non-native speakers. The BTR-TESOL project answers the need for material for untrained novice teachers that will help them to be better prepared in a very minimalistic way to face the challenges and responsibilities that teaching of …
Principled Construction Of Elicited Imitation Tests, Deryle W. Lonsdale, Carl Chritensen, Ross Hendrickson
Principled Construction Of Elicited Imitation Tests, Deryle W. Lonsdale, Carl Chritensen, Ross Hendrickson
Faculty Publications
In this paper we discuss the methodology behind the construction of elicited imitation (EI) test items. First we examine varying uses for EI tests in research and in testing overall oral proficiency. We also mention criticisms of previous test items. Then we identify the factors that contribute to the difficulty of an EI item as shown in previous studies. Based on this discussion, we describe a way of automating the creation of test items in order to better evaluate language learners’ oral proficiency while improving item naturalness. We present a new item construction tool and the process that it implements …
Epicene Pronoun Use In Modern American English, Robin Montgomery Watson
Epicene Pronoun Use In Modern American English, Robin Montgomery Watson
Theses and Dissertations
Traditional prescriptive grammar for English states that the epicene or gender neutral pronoun for third person singular use is he. Research into speaker perceptions has clearly demonstrated that he is not perceived as neutral. Research has also shown traditionally proscribed epicene pronouns such as he or she and singular they to be commonly used, despite the long-standing proscriptions against them. The author examines the endurance of such proscribed options through the lens of markedness theory, considering the impact of cultural values on speakers' epicene pronoun choices. Gender in language is also considered, as well as Kuryłowicz‘s 4th Law of …
The Relationship Of Three L2 Learning Factors With Pronunciation Proficiency: Language Aptitude, Strategy Use, And Learning Context, Naomi Ofeina Haslam
The Relationship Of Three L2 Learning Factors With Pronunciation Proficiency: Language Aptitude, Strategy Use, And Learning Context, Naomi Ofeina Haslam
Theses and Dissertations
The purpose of this study was to determine whether language aptitude and the use of language strategies predict pronunciation gains in second language (L2) acquisition. A second goal was to determine whether these factors differed depending on whether learning occurred in an English as a second language (ESL) or English as a foreign language (EFL) learning context. Eighty-six ESL students in the United States and one hundred EFL students in China were asked to take the Pimsleur language aptitude test. The top 15 or 16 and lowest 15 or 16 scorers on this test from each group were asked to …
Essential 500 Wordlist For The Foundations Program At The Brigham Young University's English Language Center, Inho Jung
Theses and Dissertations
In order to help ESL students in the Foundations Program at BYU's ELC, I have developed a 500-word list of essential English vocabulary. This list attempts to reach one of the goals of the institute's curriculum, which is to develop systematic, integrated vocabulary instruction. Published literature reveals that studying with a list in conjunction with explicit instruction can enhance L2 vocabulary learning when the instruction is systematically integrated with other skills and activities. The literature also shows the importance of learning the most frequent and essential words first, which can be found in the General Service List and the Academic …
Instructional Readers: Teaching Content Through Vocabulary, Rachel E. Wood
Instructional Readers: Teaching Content Through Vocabulary, Rachel E. Wood
Theses and Dissertations
This project resulted in the creation of a prototype for a new book series entitled Instructional Readers that will be linguistically engineered to assist English-language learners in acquiring academic and content-based vocabulary in the sciences. The development of the prototype represented a process of trial and error, with decisions firmly grounded in extensive research concerning linguistic features that assist vocabulary growth while reading. The end result, the prototype entitled Cellular Transport, reflects the author's best attempt to combine these features. The project write-up details the steps used in writing the prototype to aid in the creation of similar instructional …
The Effect Of Language Aptitude And Strategy Use On Esl And Efl Learners' Pronunciation Proficiency, Naomi Ofeina Haslam
The Effect Of Language Aptitude And Strategy Use On Esl And Efl Learners' Pronunciation Proficiency, Naomi Ofeina Haslam
Theses and Dissertations
The purpose of this study was to determine whether language aptitude and the use of language strategies predict pronunciation gains in second language (L2) acquisition. A second goal was to determine whether these factors differed depending on whether learning occurred in an English as a second language (ESL) or English as a foreign language (EFL) learning context. Eighty-six ESL students in the United States and one hundred EFL students in China were asked to take the Pimsleur language aptitude test. The top 15 or 16 and lowest 15 or 16 scorers on this test from each group were asked to …
Developing A Curriculum Evaluation Model For The English Language Center At Brigham Young University, Rie Teraoka
Developing A Curriculum Evaluation Model For The English Language Center At Brigham Young University, Rie Teraoka
Theses and Dissertations
Evaluation is an important process in any language program curriculum to determine whether the program is meeting the needs of students, teachers and others who are involved in the program. The English Language Center (ELC) at Brigham Young University (BYU) is a unique institution that functions as 1) a language school for students from different backgrounds and with various purposes of learning English and 2) as a lab school for undergraduate and graduate students studying TESOL at BYU to have practical teaching experiences. Because of these two purposes, there are constant changes to the curriculum at the ELC. Evaluation is …
The Foundations Prep Course For Low Proficiency Students At Brigham Young University's English Language Center, Jessica H. Mcgovern
The Foundations Prep Course For Low Proficiency Students At Brigham Young University's English Language Center, Jessica H. Mcgovern
Theses and Dissertations
At the beginning of each term, a handful of students who are linguistically unable to function in an English-speaking classroom appear at the doors of intensive English language programs across the globe. The English Language Center (ELC) at Brigham Young University (BYU) is no exception. In the recent past, five to twelve students have arrived each semester inadequately prepared for the lowest level class available. When placed in that level (Level One), these so-called "Level Zero" students have had trouble progressing and have also delayed the progress of the entire class. Without intervention, these students can continue to lag behind …
Contextualizing Corrective Feedback In L2 Writing Pedagogy, Norman W. Evans, K. James Hartshorn, Robb M. Mccollum, Mark Wolfersberger
Contextualizing Corrective Feedback In L2 Writing Pedagogy, Norman W. Evans, K. James Hartshorn, Robb M. Mccollum, Mark Wolfersberger
Faculty Publications
Although effective writing skills are vital to the success of university-level students, second language (L2) writers face unique challenges in developing these skills. This is particularly relevant to their ability to produce writing that is linguistically accurate. While many writing teachers feel a great commitment to these students, much of the research has either led to conflicting results or provided teachers with limited practical guidelines that can be utilized effectively in the classroom. This is especially true regarding written corrective feedback (WCF). Therefore, this article provides L2 writing teachers with a paradigm for understanding the WCF debate and interpreting the …
A Review Of Fieldworks Language Explorer, Chris Rogers Ph.D.
A Review Of Fieldworks Language Explorer, Chris Rogers Ph.D.
Faculty Publications
One of the most important goals in language documentation is to produce reference materials as well as to create long-lasting (i.e., archivable) materials for the languages. Fieldworks Language Explorer (FLEx) 3.0 is software for organizing and analyzing linguistic data and is produced for free download by SIL International (SIL)1 . This review has three goals: to show how the current version of FLEx addresses problems in earlier versions of the program, to highlight some of the more useful features of FLEx 3.0, and to indicate how it compares to other database programs.
A Probabilistic Morphological Analyzer For Syriac, Deryle W. Lonsdale, Peter J. Mcclanahan, George Busby, Robbie A. Haertel, Kristian Heal, Kevin Seppi, Eric K. Ringger
A Probabilistic Morphological Analyzer For Syriac, Deryle W. Lonsdale, Peter J. Mcclanahan, George Busby, Robbie A. Haertel, Kristian Heal, Kevin Seppi, Eric K. Ringger
Faculty Publications
We define a probabilistic morphological analyzer using a data-driven approach for Syriac in order to facilitate the creation of an annotated corpus. Syriac is an under-resourced Semitic language for which there are no available language tools such as morphological analyzers. We introduce novel probabilistic models for segmentation, dictionary linkage, and morphological tagging and connect them in a pipeline to create a probabilistic morphological analyzer requiring only labeled data. We explore the performance of models with varying amounts of training data and find that with about 34,500 labeled tokens, we can outperform a reasonable baseline trained on over 99,000 tokens and …