<p> This dissertation study investigated the effectiveness of using a computer program to help English as a second language (ESL) learners improve their ability to use English intonation in communication. Recent research suggested that intonation and other suprasegmental features of pronunciation may have significant effects on oral proficiency and comprehensibility (e.g., Derwing &amp; Munro, 1997, 1998; Kang, 2010a, 2013). However, studies on the effectiveness of teaching suprasegmentals have not reached consensus on how intonation teaching can be effectively taught (e.g., Anderson-Hsieh, 1992; Levis &amp; Pickering, 2004).</p><p> In order to address the problem and provide more empirical evidence, this study included two groups of ESL participants: one treatment group (<i> n</i> = 16), and one comparison group (<i>n</i> = 16). All the ESL learners were Brazilian native speakers of Portuguese. The treatment ESL group received four-week (eight hours) perception training of English intonation with listening practice and PRAAT photo reading exercises; there was no production practice during the training. A pretest/posttest quasi-experimental design was used to investigate the change of the ESL learners&rsquo; intonation production. The ESL learners were tested for the accuracy of intonation production and the acoustic features of intonation. The treatment group significantly improved the correct use of intonation after perception training. A significant group difference of the acoustic patterns of intonation after training was also found. In addition, the study compared the acoustic features of the ESL learners&rsquo; intonation production to eight native speakers&rsquo; production. By examining the intonation features of total number of prominent syllables, allocation of prominent syllables, and the overall pitch range, the perception training did not help the treatment group reach the native-like level except for the use of prominence on nouns and the overall pitch range. However, the treatment ESL group showed a clear trend of changes moving closer to the native speaker pattern.</p><p> The study provided support that ESL learners could develop intonation production through explicit perception training; it also provided implications for English teachers to better understand and teach suprasegmental features of English.</p>

<p> Language learners continue to lag behind their counterparts academically. Statistics reveal EL&rsquo;s data as follows: Hispanic students continue to lag behind their White counterparts by 23% according to state report Texas Academic Performance Report: TAPR formally called the AEIS report for the 2014-2015 scholastic year in two or more subjects. Therefore, this single case qualitative study was conducted in search of strategies or methods to better serve language learners. More precisely transnational learners; these students balance two diverse worlds. They commute between two countries and at times leave family behind as they come to school in the US. Identifying strategies which principals are delivering to support ELs was the core of this study. </p><p> The purpose of this study was to seek mediums to better prepare our ELs for what is currently happening in our state, testing in English. Through this study the hope was to find strategies to better serve this population and thereby closing the academic achievement gap currently existing. </p><p> As mentioned above a single case qualitative study was the method of investigation. This was utilized to better understand the participants. Through this type of qualitative design the researcher was in close proximity and came to know her participants very intimately. The theoretical framework implemented was positioning theory due to the participant and vii administrators who are in constant change. Each is impacted by what they confront and thereby making for a constant metamorphosis of each.</p><p> By &ldquo;identifying, analyzing, and reporting patterns (themes) within data (Braun &amp; Clarke, 2006, pg. 79) the following themes emerged: a)family, b) community, c) teachers, and d) support for English Learners. From analysis of the data this study demonstrates some strategies being implemented to support English Learners. Only time will tell if the strategies have closed the achievement gap academically for ELs.</p><p>

<p> The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of auditory-motor mapping training (AMMT) on the speech output of nonverbal elementary age students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Auditory-motor mapping training facilitates the development of association between sounds and articulatory actions using intonation and bimanual drumming activities. This intervention purportedly stimulates neural networks that may be dysfunctional in persons with ASD. </p><p> Seven nonverbal children with a primary diagnosis of ASD participated in twelve 20-minute weekly sessions consisting of engagement with 15 predetermined target words through imitation, singing, and motor activity (all components of AMMT). Assessments were made at baseline, mid-point, and post AMMT intervention sessions. These probes were used to determine the effects of AMMT on expressive language abilities of speech output. A null hypothesis was tested to determine the significance of the independent variables of singing, showing visual cues, and drumming on the speech output of nonverbal children with ASD, age five through eight years (<i>p</i> &le; .05). Additionally, effects of AMMT on children's development of social communication skills also were examined at the end of each intervention session. </p><p> Results of the study revealed no significant effect of the AMMT intervention on the speech output of elementary age children with ASD from the best baseline to probe one and probe two (<i>p</i> = .424), therefore the null hypothesis that there was no significant effect of auditory-motor mapping training (AMMT) on speech output of nonverbal elementary children with ASD was retained. Additionally, a comparison of the growth of the independent &lsquo;High Five&rsquo; gesture from session one to session twelve yielded no statistical significant results (<i>p</i> > .05). The McNemar chi-square was used to compare this secondary AMMT effect from sessions two to eleven, and revealed a positive growth trend that approached a significant outcome associated with the children's social communication responses (<i> p</i> =.063).</p><p> Although significant changes in the nonverbal children's speech output were not substantiated in this study, there were areas of growth for all children in this study that were highlighted through qualitative analysis and descriptive narratives. Confounding variables that possibly affected children's speech output and social communication development were addressed. Additionally, recommendations were made for future research involving music as a vehicle for speech development for nonverbal elementary age children with ASD.</p>

<p> Peer coaching is an alternative form of professional development in which teachers coach other teachers in the development of their practice. Studies have shown that teachers who have participated in a peer-coaching model have a higher rate of transfer of skill when compared to teachers who do not participate in this type of model. Although peer coaching has been proven to be effective, there is a lack of research documenting peer coaching interactions, how peers establish trust, and how they perceive peer coaching to impact their instruction. Analyzing how peers interact and what they say to each other to move instruction forward is therefore, important to understanding how school leaders and program directors can set up their environments to encourage these types of interactions. </p><p> The participants for this study enrolled in a National Writing Project summer institute. The data set for this study included semi-structured interviews, stimulated recall interviews, and digital entries relevant to the inquiry. To identify the codes, categories, and themes emerging from the data set, this study used constant comparative analysis. </p><p> Findings from this study suggest that informal interactions are just as important as formal interactions in building trust between peer coaches. Findings also suggest the importance of the writing group as paramount and purposeful for both composing and teaching writing. Findings also suggest that trust is built quickly in an environment such as a National Writing Project summer institute. Participants felt a sense of comfort when they were able to attend this summer institute with somebody that they already knew, believing that this helped them in establishing an initial level of comfort that served as a springboard for building additional relationships. Future research could continue to analyze both formal and informal interactions at the summer institute to revise a model of peer coaching that would assist program leaders in developing and enhancing the interactions between participants.</p>

A growing amount of empirical research and theory on educational development in multilingual contexts emphasises that mother tongue based education will benefit disadvantaged children. For most of the research and literature, led by UNESCO, it is argued that educational success in multilingual nations can only be achieved based on early learning and schooling in the mother tongue. Effective language policy based on mother tongue is crucial to the implementation of the educational system of any multilingual country, including Nigeria the case study, where the home and school languages are mainly uncoordinated. It also confirms that fluency and literacy in the mother tongue establish a cognitive and linguistic foundation for learning additional languages. Both the theoretical and empirical research agree that in order to drastically challenge the educational disadvantages and to be fair to various multi-ethnic groups, national education policy must promote multilingualism in the education system. This PhD thesis explores attitudes of Nigerian young people towards their mother tongue and English, in the context of Nigerian language and education policies. It describes the sociolinguistic realities of Nigeria and its language policy and planning situation, relating them to language use and attitudes among young people. It also aims to identify the role language plays in the widespread phenomenon of pupils who drop out of secondary education and pupils' attitudes towards the medium of instruction. These aims were supported by a language attitudes survey and fieldwork; where data were collected to study the attitudes of different young people, both secondary school pupils and school dropouts towards mother tongue and English, and to investigate differences in their language choice and use patterns. Findings from this research substantiate that mother tongue language policy within education can foster positive attitudes; they also confirm that there are attitudinal differences between certain groups of young people.

This study reports the results of a survey administered to 175 graduate teaching assistants in a sample of six southeastern modern language departments. Of the questionnaires mailed out, 93 (53%) respondents participated. The specific purposes of this study were to determine: (a) if TAs were receiving coverage of various training items during their graduate preparation and training, and to what extent the coverage could be compared with the perceived importance of various areas in TA training between five variables (language, experience, degree, certification, and institution), (b) the relationship of the five factors on the separate categories of coverage of TA training items and the perceived importance of those items, (c) categorizations of the most and the least beneficial items in TA training, and (d) comments by the TAs concerning their training. / Paired t tests were used to make the comparison between coverage of items and their perceived importance according to the five variables. For each variable, the teaching assistants perceived that the training for each item was more important than the actual coverage they were receiving. / The five background variables were analyzed using an ANOVA to determine their individual effect on the separate categories of the coverage and the perceived importance of TA training items. There was no significant effect for any of the variables on the perceptions of importance of TA training items. The only significant effect on the coverage of items came from those respondents who taught in private institutions. / The most frequent beneficial item listed by TAs was the teaching of communication skills. The item most frequently listed as least beneficial was theory of language teaching and learning. / The comments of TAs about teaching assistant training and preparation ranged from complimentary remarks to very negative statements regarding departmental efforts in their training and preparation. / The results of this study indicated that many of the TA training topics proposed by professional organizations were not being implemented, and that the bulk of graduate training in southeastern modern language departments is still literary oriented. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 43-01, Section: A, page: 0097. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1982.

On major problem besetting secondary education in Oyo State of Nigeria is the students' lack of adequate skill in the use of English, resulting in their mass failure in the English language examinations set by the West African Examinations Council. / Though some studies aimed at solving this problem have been conducted, none of them has examined the adequacy of the preservice training of the teachers of English in these schools. Underlying this study, therefore, was the assumption that in an English as a second language situation like that of Oyo State, the competency of the teacher is a crucial factor in the successful learning outcomes of students. / The study examined the adequacy of the preparation of ESL teachers in Oyo State secondary schools and decided whether that preparation was related to the teachers' instructional practices. / From the review of literature, five competencies were identified as crucial to an ESL teacher education: written composition, reading, applied linguistics, listening/speaking skills, and the teaching of English. These were then developed into a 23-item questionnaire and administered to 270 English language teachers in 90 urban high schools in the state. The survey instrument asked the teachers questions about their preparation, instructional practices and in-service training programs. / Two hundred copies of the questionnaire were returned; the teachers' responses were scored through the use of a scoring guide and the preparation and practice scores were tabulated. A chi-square test was run on the teachers' reported preparation and practice scores to determine if the teachers' preparation was significantly related to their practices. Analysis of the responses indicated that while most of the teachers were adequately prepared in reading and applied linguistics, very few reported adequate training in writing, listening/speaking skills, and the teaching of English. The teachers' reported preparation and instructional practices were related. / On the basis of these findings, it was concluded that the preservice training of teachers in Oyo State was inadequate and needed urgent correction through inservice training programs if these teachers were to perform their duties effectively as ESL instructors. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 43-07, Section: A, page: 2261. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1982.

This study examined the effects of topic choice on ESL essay writing by answering the following research question: What are the differences between the mean scores of 98 adult university-level nonnative English speakers on each of five subscores of two writing tasks when those differences are controlled for the students' overall language proficiency by using their scores on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL)? / The subjects were selected by availability from the Center for Intensive English Studies at Florida State University and from the university at large and were randomly assigned into one of two treatment groups. Group 1 was administered an assigned topic on the writing test. This topic ("Discuss a recent event and its effect on your country") was the normal test topic used at CIES and had been used before with reliable results. Group 2 wrote on the open topic ("Choose any topic you like and write a composition on it"). After the tests, the compositions were scored according to the ESL Composition Profile. Finally, the subjects took the TOEFL in order to determine their overall language proficiency. / Pearson product-moment correlations were run first between all variables, with no relationship shown between the topics and subscores of the writing test. In order to test the null hypothesis (H(,O): (mu)(,T) = (mu)(,NT) for the total scores and for each subscore), a factorial design using a one-way Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) with two treatment levels was planned, with the effects of overall language proficiency partialled out as a covariate. However, the ANCOVA was not carried out, as the null hypothesis had been confirmed. There were, however, unusually high correlations shown between all other variables (e.g., TOEFL subscores and totals and ESL Composition Profile subscores and total scores.) / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 46-10, Section: A, page: 2951. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1985.

Reader-response criticism focuses on the active role of the reader in creating meaning in a work of literature. Since different readers experience the same work differently, the validity of a particular interpretation is established through a group process of negotiation among members of a reading community. / This study was undertaken to determine whether a first-year college composition course involving the study of literature can be taught effectively by means of methods based on the assumptions of reader-response criticism. / A class taught by reader-response methods was compared with two other classes. Students in the three sections completed attitude questionnaires before and after the course. Their final essays, written on a common topic, were scored holistically by impartial evaluators. Five students from each section were subjects of case studies; they were interviewed regarding their attitudes toward writing and literature, and they wrote brief interpretive responses to three poems at intervals during the semester. Their written interpretations were scored holistically and their interview responses analyzed qualitatively for information on how students perceive English classes and what problems they associate with the study of literature and writing. / The attitude questionnaries showed that the reader-response students' attitudes toward literature and writing improved as much as did those of students taught by more traditional methods. Their scores on the final essay equaled those of the other two classes. The case study analysis indicated that the reader-response group's ability to write interpretive responses to poetry improved twice as much as that of one control group and eight times as much as that of the other group. / It was concluded that reader-response criticism is a viable basis for effective teaching of such composition courses. Student attitudes improve; students write essays similar in overall quality to those written in more traditional classes; and many problems common to such courses are alleviated. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 47-05, Section: A, page: 1637. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1986.

This study investigated the ability of college freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors, in a predominantly Black college, to interpret metaphorical language and to differentiate their abilities in the interpretation of six types of tropes: Litotes, personification, synecdoche, hyperbole, metonymy and incarnation. / The data were acquired from 400 responses for 98 freshmen, 101 sophomores, 104 juniors and 97 seniors at Albany State College on the Revised Tullos Test of Metaphorical Language Interpretation. The respondents reacted to 72 multiple-choice items. / According to F-tests in one-way analysis of variance there were significant differences between the total score means for freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors, and also for each of the six tropes. / Analysis comparing contiguous sub-group means by the Scheffe's Procedure of Multiple Range Comparison and the S-method of Multiple Comparisons, disclosed that the development of metaphorical language interpretation skills did not improve significantly from year-to-year during the college experiences except during the freshman and sophomore years. From the end of the sophomore college year, no significant improvement was further noticed among juniors and seniors. The researcher's subsequent hypotheses is that the cresting of metaphorical language interpretation skills at the end of the sophomore year and its lack of further improvement in the junior and senior college years may be due to the absence of required English fundamentals courses in the junior and senior years. / In addition to the primary concerns, this study sought to determine which of the six tropes proved to be difficult for each of the four sub-groups of subjects. This was determined by comparing z scores means within each of the subgroups (freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors). It was found that: (1) Freshmen most often failed to interpret correctly the personification trope. (2) Sophomores most often failed to interpret correctly the incarnation trope. (3) Juniors most often failed to interpret correctly the trope personification. (4) Seniors most often failed to interpret correctly the metonymy trope. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 43-10, Section: A, page: 3248. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1982.