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In this thesis I examine the linguistic, semantic and sociolinguistic components of the English modal system and the difficulty the system presents to both instructors and learners of English as a second language (ESL). The purpose of this study was to determine what these components are and how they affect communication. I begin by defining what modality is and how it is manifested in English. The focus is upon the one-word modals and not the phrasal modals; however, some phrasal modals are explicated when a contrast exists between the meaning of the one-word modal and its phrasal equivalent. After the modal is defined, problem areas of form and meaning are explicated. Then, a review of how grammar, specifically modals, has been taught in the field of Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) follows. In this review, second language acquisition research is also examined for its influence on grammar pedagogy.

This study investigated the effectiveness of two methods of accent modification instruction. Thirty nonnative English speakers received an intonational-based instruction method for the pronunciation of American English. Half of those speakers received additional instruction and activities that were based on theories of cognitive processing of language. Three expert listeners evaluated pre- and post-instruction recordings of each speaker. Listeners were asked to rate the use of speech characteristics determined to be instrumental for intelligible speech on a 5-point Likert scale and three yes/no responses. As a whole, the intonational-based instruction method resulted in significant increases in the use of positive speech characteristics. A modification of that method did not result in significant differences in any of the speech characteristics. Findings of this study support the focus on suprasegmentals in pronunciation training of English as a second language and may lead to more diverse methods and designs for accent modification research. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Wichita State University, College of Health Professions, Dept. of Communication Sciences and Disorders / "December 2005." / Includes bibliographic references (81-95)

Thesis (M.A. (English Studies)) -- University of Limpopo, 2012 / Reading achievement in South Africa is generally cited as one of the lowest in the world. Whereas general reading challenges and lower reading proficiencies have been adequately expressed in the literature, very little is said about the information-processing strategies between learners who juggle between two distal language systems. In order to fill in this void, this study sought to investigate strategies used in processing-processing strategies among 7th graders when reading both English and Sepedi texts in rural Limpopo and to examine the anaphoric interpretation in Sepedi and English texts, to assess the application of inferencing reading strategies in Sepedi and English text, to determine the role of working memory (recall) in processing texts, to examine the differential comprehension levels in two Sepedi dialect; and also to ascertain recall achievement relationship between these languages. Based on data deduced from self-developed equivalent tests for recall, inference and anaphoric resolution among a research population of 150 (n=150) seventh graders from three geographically dispersed schools in Limpopo Province, both descriptive statistics and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) were used to analyse central tendencies, measures of dispersion, and mean differences. The results of the study show a relatively low reading achievement in both languages, with the majority of the participants scoring below 50%. However, there was a differential performance, with statistically significant differences in favour of the Sepedi text. These results thus challenge the commonly held assumption that readers developed higher proficiency in English than they did in African languages (see Pretorius and Mampuru, 2007; Pretorius and Currin, 2010). Moreover, the results showed no statistically significant differences between the schools and Sepedi dialects used in the communities around the schools. In the end, implications for threshold hypothesis and suggestions for bi-literate development, emphasising reading achievement in the home language are offered for adaptations in comparable contexts.

The primary purpose of the study is to investigate whether learners' L1 or L2 plays a more influential role in their L3 acquisition. This study also seeks to discover the factors attributed to the influence, such as language typological distance and learning strategies. A total of 33 subjects are Taiwanese college students who have Chinese L1 and English L2 learn French as their L3. The survey asks the participants to finish a French test, which has 30 questions. Half of the questions have sentences with parallel structures in English and French, whereas the other half of questions have sentences with nonparallel structures. Quantitative results indicate that learners have significantly higher performance over the sentences where English and French do not have parallel structures. It draws a conclusion that English, as learners' L2, affects learners' L3 acquisition more because English and French are typologically closer. The learners also tend to apply the learning strategies that they use to acquire the second language to learn their third language. / text

This investigation reports on a study that explores the views of students, teachers and parents about the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) approach in learning English as a second language in Bangladesh. This study focuses on the improvement of English language outcomes in Bangladesh. Though compulsory for fifteen years of schooling, public examination results indicate that students perform poorly in English. This research is conducted at the secondary schools in Bangladesh where English is compulsory because of its global nature as the second or foreign language. Mainstream students learning English using the Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) approach are facing many challenges. The study employs a mixed methods approach which includes qualitative interviews, semi-structured focus group interviews and observations; and quantitative data involved achievement tests to find gaps between oral and written attainment, in order to determine the effectiveness of CLT developing language skills to communicate in and outside the classrooms. ESL learners in Bangladesh have been using CLT for nearly two decades, but the attainments are not satisfactory particularly in oral language (listening and speaking) compared to written language (reading and writing). Four schools (two high and two low achievement) were selected from two divisional cities according to the public examination results. Five students, all English subject teachers and five parents from each school were invited randomly to participate. Findings indicated a confirmation of the gap between oral and written language achievements and highlighted that CLT is not working effectively to develop communicative competence to the learners. The participants identified several factors causing this. Among these were large class sizes (number of students), an extensive curriculum, insufficient class time (duration), an inappropriate examination system, excessive teacher workload, lack of parent awareness of CLT, and negative relationships between home and school. All of these factors impact on the effectiveness of CLT in Bangladesh. All participants agreed that CLT as an approach is better than other approaches used in Bangladesh to develop English language learning, but the varied interpretation and implementation (practice) makes it less effective. Therefore, they suggested some issues for local and national level policy makers that could enhance the CLT practice in Bangladesh.

In this survey, a number of recent studies were reviewed to assess the impact of using assistive technology in teaching students diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The survey investigates the possible beneficial effects of such technology in terms of academic learning as well as in terms of social integration of students in the years 4-6 (ages 9 -13). The role of Autism Spectrum Disorder in limiting the learning abilities and social skills of diagnosed students is covered, explaining the factors most relevant within this context. Recent studies were chosen as they dealt with more recent technological tools that are relevant today, with the exclusion of older forms of technology that are deemed obsolete. The different forms of technology used in these studies are taken into consideration, both simple and advanced forms were reviewed, and the results were examined critically. In addition, different sample sizes were also considered, ranging from single cases to relatively bigger samples. The findings do confirm that the use of assistive technology does help improve the social and academic performance of autistic students to varying degrees and that improvements are felt by the educators as well as parents and caregivers. Attention was given to the factors influencing the choice of the technological tools used in assisting autistic students. The survey further considers the limitations and setbacks that can occur with the use of technology

The study explored factors associated with English as Second Language (ESL) and English Literacy Development (ELD) students’ performance on the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) from three different yet interrelated aspects. These aspects were the relationship between test performance and the characteristics of ESL/ELD students; the relationship between ESL/ELD students’ aggregated school performance and their school-level socio-economic status; and a comparison of ESL/ELD and non-ESL/ELD students’ performance on three test formats in the reading component of the OSSLT (multiple-choice questions, constructed-response questions, and constructed-response questions with explanations). The study was conducted based on 4,311 ESL/ELD students’ test data, their responses to the Educational Quality and Accountability Office’s (EQAO) Student Questionnaire, and the test results of 5,003 non-ESL/ELD students. School-level socio-economic status data from the Education Quality and Indicators Program (EQUIP) were merged with the OSSLT test data. These data were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis, multiple regression and discriminant analysis. The results indicated that e-literacy activities, literature literacy activities, non-fiction literacy activities, newspaper and magazine literacy activities, and literacy hours were positive predictors of ESL/ELD students’ performance on the OSSLT. Letter reading and writing, song and poetry literacy activities were two negative predictors. In terms of home language patterns, whether English was the first language of the test-takers, and what language(s) they spoke at home were both influential variables in differentiating ESL and ELD students’ literacy performance. The results also revealed that a higher parental education index positively predicted a school’s average OSSLT performance. In ii addition, ESL/ELD students demonstrated substantial performance gaps in all of the three test formats in reading as compared to non-ESL/ELD students. Only multiple-choice questions obtained a significant discriminant coefficient with a weak discriminating function. The results of this study offered some insights about identifying and understanding factors that were associated with ESL/ELD students’ OSSLT performance from the perspective of the test-takers and the test itself. The results also provide directions for future research and instructional support in relation to ESL/ ELD students in the context of the accountability framework in Ontario.

From the 1960s to the present, the Swedish school has undergone quite a few major reforms, including three new national curricula. The aim of this literature review is to investigate what previous research says about curriculum reform regarding second language teaching and learning in general, and English as a second language in particular. Through analysis of the chosen seven sources, there is some evidence that curriculum reform has affected second language learning and teaching. Especially when it comes to the implementation of curriculum, a subject syllabus plays an essential role in the process of transmitting knowledge, and the dynamic of the classroom is changing, which entails that both teachers’ role and students’ roles are shifting. The teacher is not the only source of knowledge any more, and students do not just sit in the classroom and listen to the teacher. Students’ influence is highlighted both in the curriculum and in the classroom. Communicative competence has become the focus of the teaching and learning of a second language.

This study investigates the efficiency of using children’s literature to support English vocabulary acquisition in a first and second language classroom context. Previous research has established that it is important for children to be given the opportunity to expand their basic vocabulary in English during their years in school, in order to assimilate the teaching in the classroom. The knowledge of words is mentioned in the curriculum, for almost all subject areas. Therefore it is of great importance that teachers are aware of factors that affect vocabulary acquisition to support/enable children’s vocabulary development. Results of this study are based on 7 scientific studies that were found through searches in the ERIC database. The synthesis of our study highlighted several significant factors that can affect children's vocabulary acquisition. Our focus was to examine children's literature as a didactic tool along with different working methods and strategies. Through storybook reading, children encounter many new words which has been shown to have a positive effect on all children's vocabulary development. Teaching target words, repeated reading of the story and discussions about vocabulary appeared to be working methods and strategies that benefited vocabulary acquisition. Research highlights that there is a connection between the development of children's vocabulary and the number of instructions and activities that are completed linked to the target words. Based on these results, our concluding reflections highlights the importance of teachers using interaction and storybook reading to support the acquisition of children’s vocabulary. A rich vocabulary gives students the conditions to succeed in school and to function in a democratic society.