Particular English language learners have a need to demonstrate high levels of accuracy in their written and spoken language production. Dynamic corrective feedback (dynamic CF) has been shown to facilitate L2 learner written accuracy attainment through providing manageable, meaningful, timely and constant feedback on authentic and frequent written language production. The research of this thesis examined the benefits of altering the dynamic CF model to be responsive to students' spoken production rather than solely their written production and measured the impact this adaptation would have on the established benefits of the instructional strategy on students' gains in written accuracy. The study also looked at the impact of both forms of dynamic CF on students' attainment of written complexity, fluency, and lexical development. The study included two groups of students whose language proficiency ranged from intermediate-low to advanced-mid who were studying English for academic purposes in an intensive English language program. These students participated in a one-semester Linguistic Accuracy course. Half of the students received the traditional form of dynamic CF in which they received feedback on only their written production, and the other half received a modified version of dynamic CF that provided students with feedback on only their spoken production. Before and after the treatment, samples of students' written production were collected through a thirty-minute essay test. These writing samples were analyzed for accuracy, fluency, complexity, and lexical development. Changes in each of these variables for both groups were contrasted using a mixed-model repeated measure Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). These tests revealed that there was not a significant difference in terms of the changes in accuracy or lexical development between the two groups; however, participants receiving the modified variation of dynamic CF did perform significantly better on the measurement of written complexity. Also, lower proficiency students receiving the modified version of dynamic CF did significantly better on the measurement of written fluency than students of a similar proficiency receiving the traditional form.

This paper is a study of the noun phrase construction in L2 learner language and the base for the study are the tools for measuring syntactic maturity presented by Kellog W. Hunt (1966). Hunt and other scholars have used T-units, the smallest terminable unit in language, to analyze L2 learner language. This study however, analyzes the construction of the noun phrase instead of T-units. Although the focus differs there are many similarities between the method used in this study and in those analyzing T-units. This means that the study tries to create indexes which we can use as tools for measuring syntactic maturity and complexity among L2 learners, by measuring consolidation and postmodification. The outcome of the study shows that it is possible to measure consolidation of the noun phrase and that this figure may very well function as a tool for measuring language development. Furthermore this paper investigates opportunities for teachers to teach syntax and concludes that there are ways of improving L2 teaching by utilizing knowledge about L2 learner syntax.

The current diploma thesis examines Czech listeners' perception of various accents of English from the points of view of comprehensibility, pleasantness, socioeconomic status, and model suitability. The main aim of the study is to contribute to the discussion on how accent variation within the Anglophone world is perceived by non-native speakers, and what aspects influence their evaluations of the accents. The theoretical part of the thesis defines several terms related to the domain, describes selected pronunciation varieties of English, and summarizes research which has focused on native accents of English in the perception of non-native speakers. The research part of the thesis consists of a study, in which 39 Czech students from two types of schools evaluated six accents of English and provided information about their experience with English and Anglophone cultures. The results showed that standard varieties are favoured by the students in all four respects, but also that students' evaluations, especially for pleasantness, may be affected by their relations to the Anglophone world. Key words: Native Accent, Regional Variation, L2 learner, Comprehensibility, Socioeconomic Status, Pronunciation Model, Standard

While it certainly can be argued that translation is a quite demanding discipline in general, some areas within this field are, naturally, more challenging than others. One of these is hedging, which serves a broad variety of purposes both with regard to the author and to the intended readership, and hence must be translated accordingly. This paper investigates hedges in scientific research articles, the types and frequency of hedges in the analysed Swedish sourcetext (ST) compared to the English target text (TT), and the methods used for translating these hedges and their distribution by means of a short study conducted on two Swedish runology articles. The study’s quantitative analysis shows that the Swedish ST has a clear preference for adverbial hedges, and to an extent, also for modal verb hedges, whereas the English TT – while yielding an even higher preference for adverbials and also for lexical verbs – uses modal verbs much less frequently. It becomes evident that adverbials may feature so strongly in translations because they are easier to recall and to use than more complex structures, especially for L2 speakers. This practice does, however, result in a somewhat less flexible translation. The by far most frequently used translation strategy is faithful translation, particularly for content-oriented hedges. However, a fair number of adaptations (both in modal strength and word class change) and omissions – mostly of modal verbs – as well as numerous additions occurred, initiated by influential factors such as cultural differences regarding natural sounding text, L2 speaker perception of equivalence and/or lack of suitable linguistic equivalents. Thereby, the English translation showed a tendency toward adapting weaker modals compared to their Swedish ST equivalents, confirming the greater reader-orientation of English research articles.

Le but de cette étude était de considérer la possibilité de la mise en œuvre de l’approche d'apprentissage par problèmes (APP), Problem Based Learning (PBL), comme une méthodologie d'enseignement, épistémologiquement solide, pour enseigner l'anglais de spécialité (ASP), en particulier, dans le domaine académique de la médecine, English for Academic Medical Purposes (EAMP). Dans un premier temps, l'étude a examiné si PBL est compatible avec l'enseignement des langues et a cherché à déterminer les avantages que cette méthode peut apporter à l'enseignement de l'ASP. L'étude a également tenté de résoudre des problèmes d'apprentissage en anglais qui ont été identifiés dans les Collèges de Santé de l’Année préparatoire (Branche Féminine) au sein de l'Université de Hail, Arabie Saoudite. Une analyse des besoins a été menée dans l'institution pour mieux identifier ces problèmes d'apprentissage. En conséquence, PBL a été mis en œuvre pour déterminer si cette approche est capable de fournir une solution possible à la question, puisque PBL a été initialement mis en œuvre en médecine pour faire face à des problèmes similaires. Cela a entraîné un changement dans les niveaux macro-méthodologique et micro-méthodologique, comme Demaizière (1996 ; 66) les appelle. Dans la partie empirique, une étude longitudinale a été menée avec 13 étudiantes qui ont été observées dans une période de 8 semaines au cours de cinq PBL tutoriels, qui a eu lieu pendant quinze séances. En général, les résultats étaient en faveur de la mise en œuvre de cette approche dans l'enseignement de l'anglais médical. Ils ont également montré que PBL peut améliorer l'autonomie des apprenants ; leurs permettre de développer des stratégies d'apprentissage ; les aider à exploiter leurs compétences linguistiques ; et d'apprendre le contenu orienté vers leur domaine. / The purpose of this study was to consider the implementation of Problem Based Learning (PBL) as an epistemologically sound teaching methodology to teach English for Specific Purposes (ESP) and particularly English for Academic Medical Purposes (EAMP). The study examined whether PBL is compatible with language teaching and determined the benefits that this methodology can bring to ESP. The study also attempted to solve problems with English learning that were identified in the Preparatory Year Health Colleges (Female Branch) within Hail University, Saudi Arabia. A needs analysis was conducted in the institution to examine the English learning situation and better identify these learning problems. Then PBL was implemented to determine if it provided a possible solution to the issue. This entailed a change in the macro-methodological and micro-methodological levels, as Demaizière (1996) called ‘le niveau macromethodologique’ and ‘le niveau micromethodologique’ (p.66). In the empirical part of this study, a longitudinal study was conducted with 13 students who were observed through a period of 8 weeks and over five PBL tutorials, which took place over fifteen sessions. During these fifteen sessions, learners’ behaviors or indicators of autonomy were observed at the group level for the first and third session of each PBL tutorial and at the individual level in session 2. In general, the results favored the implementation of this approach in teaching English for Academic Medical Purposes (EAMP). They also showed that PBL can improve learners’ autonomy; enable learners to develop learning strategies; help learners harness their language skills; and learn content oriented to their field.

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