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No abstract available / Dissertation (MA)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / Afrikaans / unrestricted

This study was initiated as a result of the appearance of a number of articles and commentaries in the academic press which intimate that the English language levels of many overseas students studying in Australia are not sufficient to meet the demands of their academic programs. A preliminary investigation into the standards set by one university revealed that there was no statement, policy or, public document describing an appropriate level of language use; and that the university concerned defined language proficiency entirely in terms of bands, scores or grades provided by external testing organisations.Commencing with the assumption that there is an entry level of English language competence, below which students have little chance of success in their studies (at least, within the accepted timeframe), this qualitative case study into one tertiary institution utilises a number of data collection strategies in order to develop a description or definition of a 'gatekeeper' level of English competence. It then compares the findings with the criteria for assessment and grading used by the two most widely available English language tests, TOEFL and IELTS.The first chapter introduces the background to the study. The second chapter outlines the underlying philosophical, social and linguistic framework within which the study was devised, in the context of the literature which informed it. The following chapter presents a justification for the selected research methods and data collection strategies. In the fourth and fifth chapters, the results demonstrate that interpretations of tertiary entry-level language proficiency vary, leading to confusion and an absence of strategic direction; it is further suggested that an appropriate level of language proficiency for tertiary entry cannot be defined without taking into account the prevailing social, political and educational ++ / environment. Recommendations are put forward for the development of an institutional-level framework in which it might be possible to make judgements about the desired levels of language proficiency and improve on existing procedures for their evaluation.This study aims to bring together a number of different strands of research into language and tertiary education such as definitions of language proficiency, language testing and literacy issues, and demonstrate their interconnectivity. As a result, it presents a broad overview (within the overarching discipline) rather than focusing on a single area in depth. Although as a site case study this research does not claim generalisability, it is hoped that- its findings might be useful for other institutions as a basis for their own research.

Radiotelephony between air traffic controllers and pilots utilises standard phraseology as the medium of communications. Standard phraseology employs specific structure, terminology and pronunciation to ensure effectiveness and accuracy. On occasions when standard phraseology is found insufficient, plain language is used to efficiently relay vital information. By default, English is the designated language of communication between controllers and pilots of international flights. Deviations from the usage of standard phraseology and lack of language proficiency had been identified as one of the causal factors in safety occurrences. Language deficiencies, specifically of the non-native speakers of the English language, had raised much concern but there is limited information in the area. This research attempted to fill a small segment of this knowledge gap. It was focussed on the usage of standard phraseology and English language in an air traffic control environment involving English Second Language users. Audio data was sourced from routine radiotelephony recordings of ‘live’ air traffic control facilities in Malaysia to capture realistic communications between controllers and pilots in the Terminal Approach Radar, Area Radar and Aerodrome Control environments. A detailed cross sectional investigation of the radiotelephony characteristics, deficiencies and errors of transmitted messages revealed the radiotelephony performances of controllers and pilots in the environments. The recurrence of deviations from standards and occurrence of errors implied the likelihood of such deficiencies taking place. Demographic groups’ descriptions complemented the radiotelephony analyses as background information on language related training. The results were comparative to other similar studies and offered new information on English Second Language speakers in the Air Traffic Control environment.

Radiotelephony between air traffic controllers and pilots utilises standard phraseology as the medium of communications. Standard phraseology employs specific structure, terminology and pronunciation to ensure effectiveness and accuracy. On occasions when standard phraseology is found insufficient, plain language is used to efficiently relay vital information. By default, English is the designated language of communication between controllers and pilots of international flights. Deviations from the usage of standard phraseology and lack of language proficiency had been identified as one of the causal factors in safety occurrences. Language deficiencies, specifically of the non-native speakers of the English language, had raised much concern but there is limited information in the area. This research attempted to fill a small segment of this knowledge gap. It was focussed on the usage of standard phraseology and English language in an air traffic control environment involving English Second Language users. Audio data was sourced from routine radiotelephony recordings of ‘live’ air traffic control facilities in Malaysia to capture realistic communications between controllers and pilots in the Terminal Approach Radar, Area Radar and Aerodrome Control environments. A detailed cross sectional investigation of the radiotelephony characteristics, deficiencies and errors of transmitted messages revealed the radiotelephony performances of controllers and pilots in the environments. The recurrence of deviations from standards and occurrence of errors implied the likelihood of such deficiencies taking place. Demographic groups’ descriptions complemented the radiotelephony analyses as background information on language related training. The results were comparative to other similar studies and offered new information on English Second Language speakers in the Air Traffic Control environment.

My dissertation follows a coherent theme on three important and interesting issues for the Korean labor market as follows: Chapter 1 using data from the 2008 Panel Survey of Employment for the Disabled (PSED) investigates gender wage differentials among the disabled. The selectivity corrected decomposition framework is employed to examine what factors - endowments, discrimination, and selectivity - account for the wage gap. The main results are as follows: (1) the gender wage gap among the disabled is sizable: (2) the wage gap is significantly attributable to discrimination: (3) the endowments factor plays an important role in explaining gender wage differentials, as well: and (4) the presence of selection effects raises the observed wage gap. Such evidence suggests that Korean disabled female workers are more likely to be disadvantaged than their male counterparts in terms of wages.Chapter 2 using the 2007 Korea Labor and Income Panel Survey (KLIPS) examines the impact on wages of skills-job mismatch between acquired and required English language proficiency in Korean workplaces. The main findings of this study reveal (1) job mismatch in terms of English language skills has a strong statistically significant impact on wages: (2) the returns to over-skilling are negative (the wage penalty), while the returns to under-skilling are positive (the wage premium): and (3) the wage penalty associated with over-skilling is stronger than the wage premium associated with under-skilling.Chapter 3 using the KLIPS data from 1998 through 2008 investigates the causal relationship between veteran status and post-service labor market outcomes by examining the wage experience of veterans and nonveterans. The major empirical findings can be summarized as follows: (1) contrary to the general perception, veteran status has a significant positive impact on wages after completion of military service, inducing a veteran wage premium: and (2) in terms of the veteran wage premium in subgroups based on educational attainment at the time of entry into military service, less-educated veterans have a greater wage premium relative to their nonveteran counterparts of similar backgrounds than is the case for more-educated veterans. It suggests that military service could be particularly important for less-educated veterans.

This study sets out to describe the current situation in the Home Tutor Scheme in the Australian Capital Territory, and to evaluate the Scheme's effectiveness in achieving its goals as listed in the Australian Institute of Multicultural Affairs Review (1980). These stated goals were: to improve the students' English language proficiency, to encourage integration of the students into the wider community, and to prepare them to attend more formal English language classes. The writer also considered a further question in evaluating the Scheme, whether it satisfied the needs and expectations of the tutors and the students. There were two sections to the investigation: the main study, in which the progress of eighteen tutors and their students was followed for a period of up to six months, and a subsidiary study that was designed to assess the generalisability of the data elicited in the main study. A range of instruments were employed. In the main study, findings were derived principally from interviews, and from lesson reports written by tutors. In the subsidiary study, data were collected by means of questionnaires issued to a greater number of tutors and to students from the Scheme's four major language backgrounds. The introductory chapter sets out the purpose of the study and explains its relevance in the current Australian context. This is followed, in Chapter 2, by a review of the relevant literature and previous research. The design of the study is set out in Chapter 3, where details are given of the procedures and instruments employed to gather data. In Chapters A, 5 and 6, the results of the study are presented. Discussion of these results and a consideration of their implications may be found in Chapter 7. In the final chapter, Chapter 8, the findings are summarised and recommendations are made for future developments in the Scheme. In summary, the study found that in the ACT the Scheme was achieving some success in its language teaching and social objectives, and in satisfying its student clientele. It was also found, however, that the Scheme's operational efficiency was hampered by the low level of staffing and that a significant number of tutors withdrew from the Scheme after a short period because they were not experiencing a high level of satisfaction. The recommendations made would, it is thought, lead to greater efficiency of organisation and could raise the level of tutor satisfaction.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship of language learning strategy use and self-efficacy beliefs with language proficiency of the language preparatory school students. Moreover, some demographic characteristics of the participants were analyzed in relation to the proficiency scores of the students. Four hundred eighty nine language preparatory school students from one private university in Ankara were included in the study. Turkish version of Inventory of Strategies for Language Learning and Questionnaire of English Self-Efficacy were given to the participants. Proficiency scores were taken from the proficiency test done to examine their proficiency level at the beginning of the year. Multiple regression analysis was utilized to evaluate data collected. The results indicated that the number of years of English language learning, being abroad, type of high school that they graduated from, self-efficacy for receptive skills, and deep processing strategies predict the English language proficiency scores of the students positively, while memory and rehearsal strategies predict the English language proficiency scores negatively. The research findings were discussed by relying on the previous research findings.

abstract: Identification of primary language impairment (PLI) in sequential bilingual children is challenging because of the interaction between PLI and second language (L2) proficiency. An important step in improving the accurate diagnosis of PLI in bilingual children is to investigate how differences in L2 performance are affected by a length of L2 exposure and how L2 assessment contributes to differentiation between children with and without PLI at different L2 proficiency levels. Sixty one children with typical language development (TD) ages 5;3-8 years and 12 children with PLI ages 5;5-7;8 years participated. Results revealed that bilingual children with and without PLI, who had between 1 and 3 years of L2 exposure, did not differ in mean length of utterance (MLU), number of different words, percent of maze words, and performance on expressive and receptive grammatical tasks in L2. Performance on a grammaticality judgment task by children with and without PLI demonstrated the largest effect size, indicating that it may potentially contribute to identification of PLI in bilingual populations. In addition, children with PLI did not demonstrate any association between the length of exposure and L2 proficiency, suggesting that they do not develop their L2 proficiency in relation to length of exposure in the same manner as children with TD. Results also indicated that comprehension of grammatical structures and expressive grammatical task in L2 may contribute to differentiation between the language ability groups at the low and intermediate-high proficiency levels. The discriminant analysis with the entire sample of bilingual children with and without PLI revealed that among L2 measures, only MLU contributed to the discrimination between the language ability groups. However, poor classification accuracy suggested that MLU alone is not a sufficient predictor of PLI. There were significant differences among L2 proficiency levels in children with TD in MLU, number of different words, and performance on the expressive and receptive grammatical tasks in L2, indicating that L2 proficiency level may potentially impact the differentiation between language difficulties due to typical L2 acquisition processes and PLI. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Speech and Hearing Science 2012

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between English language proficiency scores as measured by the ACCESS for ELLs and achievement and growth scores on the reading subtest of the Measures of Academic Progress (MAP). The sample consisted of 2,006 3rd-5th grade English language learners (ELLs) from a large Midwestern school district. Results confirmed that an increase in English proficiency is associated with higher reading achievement scores. The unique variance explained by each of the domain scores (reading, writing, speaking, and listening) on the ACCESS for ELLs supports the use of a weighted composite score for decision making purposes. When considering within-year MAP growth by differing levels of proficiency, a curvilinear trend emerged. The two lowest proficiency groups demonstrated significantly lower reading growth than the two moderate and two highest proficiency groups. The greatest growth was seen by the two groups in the middle of the proficiency spectrum. Given the increased demands on measuring the achievement and progress of all students, including ELLs, and the use of standardized achievement scores for program and teacher evaluation, the results of this study suggest that a dichotomous classification of ELL/non-ELL might not accurately reflect the variability in growth at various levels of English proficiency. Implications for interpreting and using scores by ELLs are discussed.