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This study examines Slovak dialect perceptions from 311 participants in 9 municipalities in Slovakia. Data were collected between 2016 and 2017, utilizing a map task, degree of difference ratings, and other Likert scale tasks to assess participants’ perceptions of and attitudes about dialects in Slovakia. Participants received blank maps of Slovakia on which to elicit participants’ perceptions of where isoglosses (dialect boundaries) lie. They drew their own isoglosses and were asked to label each dialect region contained within them. Content Analysis was used to code each label for semantic field in order to create composite maps for each label. After analyzing data from each municipality separately, 22 salient categories emerged. To be determined salient in this study, a category had to be marked by at least ten percent of participants per municipality. The most salient boundaries that emerged from this study were those between central (“correct”) Slovak and “other,” “not central” Slovak; those between “The East” and the rest of Slovakia, and those between “The South” (or, more accurately, “The Hungarian South”) and the rest of Slovakia. This thesis explores those ideologies in detail, and takes Nitra as a case study for the discussion.

La présente étude a pour objectif de constituer un dossier terminologique en mathématiques dans la perspective d’une éducation bilingue français/lyèlé. Cela intervient dans un contexte où les enseignants du primaire en zone lyèléphone ont des difficultés pour ce qui concerne l’usage d’un langage approprié pour la transmission des connaissances mathématiques. La recherche se situe au carrefour de deux domaines différents : la sociolinguistique et la terminologie. Si sur le plan sociolinguistique, l’analyse a porté sur les représentations des enseignants au sujet des langues d’enseignement et des pratiques pédagogiques, la terminologie se pose ici comme un secteur plus pratique dans la mesure où le chercheur se voit appeler dans une action de recherche intervention. Pour ce qui est de la méthodologie utilisée, nous avons dans un premier temps recueilli les opinions des acteurs sur la question de l’enseignement ; par ailleurs, la plus grande partie du travail a été menée en privilégiant la démarche socio-anthropologique. Dans une telle perspective, le chercheur en effet mobilise son expérience d’enseignant mais aussi construit le lexique de façon progressive durant ses voyages sur le terrain. Le traitement des données (termes) s’est fait selon une démarche terminologique privilégiant le choix des unités linguistiques relatives aux mathématiques de base : autour d’un terme dit vedette, l’on réunit les informations relatives à la prononciation, à la sémantique, à la lexicologie, etc. Les informations en français et en lyèlé sont fournies autour du terme-vedette. Enfin, la démarche utilisée débouche sur la constitution d’un lexique français/lyèlé ; le chercheur recommande l’idée de partir de ce travail comme modèle pour construire d’autres lexiques et curricula dans d’autres domaines et dans d’autres langues du Burkina Faso. / This study aims at putting together a terminology case file in mathematics with a view to a French/Lyèlé bilingual education. This takes place in a context where elementary teachers in Lyèlé-speaking zones have difficulties identifying an appropriate language for the transmission of mathematical knowledge.This research is at the crossroads of two different domains: sociolinguistics and terminology. On the sociolinguistics front, the analysis focused on the representations of teachers on the topic of teaching languages and teaching practices. Terminology is a more practical field as the researcher is in an interventive research dynamic.Concerning the methodology employed, first we gathered the opinions of teachers regarding education; besides, most of the work was done following the socio-anthropological approach; in such a perspective, the researcher both mobilises his own teaching experience and progressively builds the glossary during his travels in the field.Treatment of the data (terms) was done following a terminological approach privileging the choice of linguistical units linked to basic mathematics: we compile the information relating to pronunciation, semantics, lexicology, etc., around a “star” term. The information in French and Lyèlé are supplied according to the star term.Finally, the approach used leads to the constitution of a French/Lyèlé lexicon; the researcher recommends using this study as a starting point to build other lexicons and curricula in other domains and in other Burkina Faso languages.

Exploring the theme of Diaspora, this paper is an accompanying document for the documentary, A Dream Lost in Dream. It sheds light on the purpose, and process of producing this documentary. The main purpose for the production of this documentary has been described as initiation of healthy and casual dialog between diverse populations in America. It emphasizes the importance of creating visual media targeting masses rather than the elite. It is argued that it can act as a tool of awareness, reducing anxiety in the society. It also embarks on the production journey of the documentary A Dream Lost in Dream. The film is a portrayal of an East Indian immigrant struggling between economic survival, family issues and passion to fly.

Globalization and sociopolitical factors impact migration patterns all over the world. In Puerto Rico, these factors created superdiverse environments where languages users have pushed the boundaries of language in order to make sense of their worlds. Even though this language dynamic is natural for locals, it is those who visit from different countries, specifically international graduate students, that have a difficult time adjusting to Puerto Rico’s rich use of English and Spanish. Understanding how international graduate students perceive the language used at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez (UPRM) upon arrival is essential to provide a better experience for future students. As of this writing, this study is the first to investigate the language perceptions of incoming international graduate students at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez. This descriptive exploratory case study explores language perceptions of first semester international graduate students with an assistantship. I interviewed 3 first-semester students at a large, public, research university, located on the west coast of Puerto Rico. I carried out two semi-structured individual interviews and one semi-structure focus group interview. I employed data triangulation and member checked to ensure validity and trustworthiness of data. Study findings reveal that participants did not initially perceive English as being the main language of use during their graduate studies. Participants mentioned struggles throughout their semester due to the heavy presence of English in their coursework and assistantship. Participants suggested that the university should provide more English language support to ensure the success of incoming international students. In this study, I addressed gaps on translanguaging at superdiverse universities, and international teaching assistants’ perceptions of language at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez campus. Based on the findings, I offer English course suggestions to enhance academic and professional opportunities for international students at UPRM.

Thesis advisor: Lisa S. Cahill / The dissertation draws upon African and Christian ethics as well as on African women's experiences of resistance to violations of their human dignity and womanhood. It takes a theological approach drawing on resources including African women’s theology, Jon Sobrino, Emmanuel Katongole, and Catholic social teaching. An important lens for diagnosing the problems faced by women in Sub-Saharan Africa is Engelbert Mveng’s concept of “anthropological poverty.” This concept refers to the multiple aspects of the loss of dignity resulting from slavery and colonialism; a basic argument of this dissertation is that anthropological poverty affects women in unique ways, that are exacerbated by religious and cultural histories of oppression of women. To address this situation, I will advocate for an interplay between the sacredness of life of every individual that is a salient principle of Christian ethics and the collective consciousness of solidarity that is distinctive of African cultures. The dissertation uses the narratives of abuse of women from the Democratic Republic of Congo that mirror those of Sub-Saharan African women more generally. It argues that these abuses impoverish women not only economically but also and especially anthropologically. While anthropological poverty is rooted in the history of slavery and colonization of African nations, it continues to be worsened by an intermingling of androcentric Christian views with the cultural patriarchal gender biases which significantly shape women's identity and women’s roles in society. Another factor that worsens women's anthropological poverty is sexual violence, especially rape used as a weapon of war. The dissertation argues that the Catholic social teaching's discourse of the preferential option for the poor overlooks the ways these factors doubly impoverish women and obstruct their political participation in society. The Church's teaching tends to focus on economic over anthropological poverty. The dissertation undertakes the task of moral imagination using narrative criticism as a method of biblical exegesis. It assesses the foundations of the political participation of women in African traditions and Scriptures, using the feminist biblical lens of Elisabeth Schüssler Fiorenza, "discipleship of equals." Through a "sophialogical" hermeneutic, the dissertation identifies the epistemology that arises from women's resistance to anthropological poverty. From the perspectives of Latin American liberation theology and a political theology of hope for Africa, it theorizes that the passion of anger offers a particular epistemology of liberation, and can become a praiseworthy and effective means of women’s social participation when it is solidaristic and resistant. The dissertation concludes by assessing the extent to which Catholic social teaching on the preferential option for the poor lacks an adequate analysis of women's specific poverty. The option for the poor needs to regard women's suffering and responses to suffering as loci theologici. This option needs to consider the "conative interruption" dimension of anger that women's narratives disclose as a sign of the times. The dissertation resolves that the Christian virtues of fortitude and prudence need to be rearticulated in the contexts of grave abuses of womanhood, connecting them to solidaristic and resistant anger through which women's sacredness of life can be significantly ennobled. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2020. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Theology.

Colleges and universities typically provide remedial reading coursework for English language learners (ELL) to develop academic reading proficiency. However, a disproportionate number of ELLs fail to exit remedial classes. Prior research has indicated cultural relevance can motivate and stimulate learning; however, the extent to which a culturally relevant classroom curriculum makes a difference in the ELL classroom experience has not been fully explored. This study describes the experience of cultural relevance in an academic reading ELL college class. Moll's funds of knowledge was used as the conceptual framework in a qualitative case study to examine how cultural strengths and knowledge can be embedded into instruction for enhanced learning. Data were collected from one teacher and 10 ELL student interviews, lesson observations, and the course syllabus with instructional materials. The results from an inductive analysis revealed four major themes: cultural relevance, student characteristics, reading English, and social learning, which aligned with the funds of knowledge framework. Further, it was found that a teacher's role can serve as the cultural bridge to enhance ELL's cognition. Recommendations for future research include a larger and more culturally diverse group of participants to (a) explore if a consistency occurred that was informed by cultural experience, and (b) investigate the experience of culturally relevant pedagogy for ELL students. Social change implications include culturally relevant pedagogical practices, a cost effective instructional model, and successful academic English acquisition for ELLs.

In contemporary Taiwan, Mandarin language proficiency and literacy in Han characters are not only key skills needed for success in academic institutions and employment markets, but they also carry meaning as symbolic markers of national and supranational Chinese identity. This study examines how Taiwanese-language medical studies curriculum planners are promoting alternative linguistic practices as a means of resisting the influence of Chinese nationalism in Taiwan and striving to replace it with a rival Taiwanese nationalism. I conducted research for this study during the 2010-2011 school year in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. I collected data for this study by engaging in participant observation research at Taiwanese-language curriculum-editing meetings; auditing Taiwanese-language courses at Kaohsiung Medical University; and conducting interviews with both curriculum planners and students at KMU. The role of official languages, literacy, and historical narratives are examined as symbolic components of a Chinese nationalist hegemony, which was constructed through the policies of the Kuomintang's Republic of China administration in post-war Taiwan. This study also examines the relationship between occupation, language skills, and national identification in the context of the contemporary Greater China regional economy. The curriculum planners who are the subjects of this study are employed in the field of medical care, where Taiwanese language skills are valued resources for communicating with patients from a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds. In addition, medical doctors have historically been vocal opponents of the Kuomintang administration's pro-Chinese nationalist policies. Therefore, this case study illustrates how the curriculum planners' occupations and language practices are utilized as resources in their efforts to foster Taiwanese autonomy in the Greater China region. This study also examines current limits to the effectiveness of language preservation and revitalization policies in Taiwan due to the importance of Mandarin-language literacy in the majority of high-status occupations in Greater China and to changing conceptions of the relationship between language practice and national identity. This study contributes to the fields of linguistic anthropology and Asian studies by examining relationships between nationalism, employment, language practice, and literacy in the context of Taiwan's ambiguous status as a national entity. It also analyzes ways in which language practices and literacy forms are created and modified as strategic acts to both identify people with competing nationalisms and allow them access to employment opportunities in the context of shifting administrative and economic power structures in the Greater China region.

For many American women, insurance restrictions and lack of access restrict women’s options when choosing birth experiences. This research uses a biocultural approach and cognitive anthropological methods to explore the ways and the degree to which alternative birthing practices, such as home-, clinic-, and hospital-based natural births, and midwifery services, physically and emotionally affect the women and infants who experience them. This research explores the reasons women pursue natural or alternative births. These topics are explored through interviews with women who have had natural births, who have used midwifery services, and who have had highly medicalized, OBGYN-attended births. Findings indicate that while there is not an overarching cultural model of how women want to experience birth, there is a shared cultural model concerning the nature of birth among Mississippi women. Results show that women benefit more, emotionally and physically, from natural birth and midwifery care than from highly medicalized birth.

This study is a description and interpretation of talk about hunting. The study is based on data gathered from in-depth interviews with twenty-four hunters in the United States who did not become hunters until adulthood. A single overarching research question guides the study: How do people create and use discourses of hunting? The study is situated within the ethnography of communication research program and, more specifically, within the framework of cultural discourse analysis. The study employs cultural discourse analysis methods and concepts to describe and develop interpretations of how participants render hunting symbolically meaningful, and of what beliefs and values underlie such meanings. The major descriptive findings include recurrent patterns of talk concerning: connecting with land and nature, spirit, other people, human ancestry, and human nature; taking responsibility in ecological, ethical, and health-related ways, both through hunting and through other practices such as gardening; being engaged, present, alert, excited, and challenged; killing for appropriate reasons, in appropriate ways, and with appropriate feeling; and living and acting in response to a modern world that diminishes human experience, brutalizes animals, and harms the natural world. The major interpretive findings include hunting being linked to other practices such as gardening, and being spoken of as a deeply meaningful pursuit practiced for the feelings of connection, engagement, and right relationship that it fosters, and as a physically and spiritually healthful remedy for the negative effects of modern living and of industrial food systems. This research demonstrates that hunting and talk about hunting can be underpinned by common beliefs and values shared by hunters, non-hunters, and anti-hunters. This research also suggests that adult-onset hunters and their discursive practices may be of unique value to wildlife agencies and conservation organizations, to other adult onset-hunters, and to both scholarly and public understandings of—and dialogues about—the practice of hunting.