This thesis reports on a longitudinal, mixed-methods study of the relationships between informal (i.e. out-of-class) second language (L2) contact, vocabulary-related strategic behaviour and vocabulary gain in a study abroad context. The study addressed three main gaps in knowledge that arose from analysis of the literature: (1) the evidence of informal L2 contact was largely unreliable, ungeneralisable, or both; (2) the evidence of vocabulary-related strategic behaviour in informal L2 contact was neither context nor task specific; and (3) there was no evidence of the interplay between informal L2 contact, vocabulary-related strategic behaviour and vocabulary gain in a study abroad context. The sample (n=241) were adults undertaking a study abroad experience (SAE) in England, who comprised a range of nationalities and first language backgrounds and for whom the majority of the SAE was spent outside of the classroom. A vocabulary test was administered at the beginning and end of the SAE. A questionnaire was administered during the SAE to determine the most highly identified with informal L2 contact scenarios and out-of-class vocabulary-related strategies. Subsequently, an innovative research tool comprising computer-based simulations of the most identified with scenarios was developed and used as the stimulus in semi-structured interviews to capture task and/or context-specific vocabulary-related strategic behaviour. Analysis grouped participants by length of stay and location. The most highly identified with informal L2 contact scenarios involved participants seeking information from external sources, such as interlocutors, posters or websites. The vocabulary-related strategies most highly identified with by the sample pertained to the use of a newly encountered lexical item; that is, they were strategies in which the learner used or prepared to use a lexical item that they had decided to engage with strategically. The strategic behaviour manifested in response to the simulation tool (the 'OWLS') provided strong evidence in support of the fundamental considerations of task, context and intention in strategy-based research. Regression analysis revealed that informal L2 contact scenarios that were less strategically prohibitive and strategies that were less context-dependent were predictors of vocabulary gain. The pedagogical implications of these findings are far- reaching in terms of preparing L2 learners for informal contact on a SAE and guiding their manipulation of that contact for maximum linguistic gain.

Theoretical perspectives on error treatment in second language acquisition research are divided on the effect and desirability of corrective feedback on the learner's output. Theorists like Krashen (1982), believe that correction hampers acquisition because it encourages the learners to avoid difficult structures and to focus on form rather than on meaning, while Long (1977) contends that error treatment possibly speeds up interlanguage development although errors disappear slowly. Edmondson (1985) asserts that bringing errors to the learner's attention helps learning and that error - treatment contributes to consciousness-raising which is important for language acquisition. Research findings present conflicting evidence on the effects of corrective feedback on those for whom correction is meant. Some researchers report no concrete findings on the relationship between corrective feedback and learning outcomes (Hendrickson (1978) and Brock, Day and Long (1986)). Others, for example, Chaudron (1977) and Crookes and Rulon (1985) report differential effects of corrective treatments. Salica, Ramirez and Stromquist and Wren (cited in Chaudron 1988) report some evidence of feedback on error resulting in the learner's ability to self-correct. However, Hendrickson (1978) reports that some direct types of corrective procedures have been found to be ineffective. This research investigated a teacher's oral error treatment policy in different types of English lessons in a situation where L2 pupils study English as a subject according to an LI syllabus. The findings of this case study reveal that the teacher's manner of correction, when he decides to correct, is subtle and indirect. Rarely does he correct overtly and explicitly as his concern is to avoid hurting the error maker's feelings. He defers treatment and ignores most of the oral errors that learners make during classroom interaction. Pupil perceptions of their teacher's corrective treatments were positive although some of the pupils reported that they found his corrections confusing and intimidating at times. Most of them expressed , a wish to have their speech errors attended to explicitly, preferably by their teacher as his treatments were found to be motivational and unabrasive. Some of the pupils were opposed to peer correction for fear of ridicule. They also felt that fellow pupils did not always provide correct treatments. All the pupils in this study were of the opinion that oral error treatment is desirable because they believe that it improves their performance in English.

Second language acquisition (SLA) is seldom entirely successful with adult learners. It has been suggested that all second language (L2) learners, in the process of mastering a target language (TL), develop a linguistic system that is self-contained and different from both the learner's native language and the TL. This system is referred to as 'interlanguage' (lL). In the process of SLA, IL evolves into an ever-closer approximation of the TL, and ideally, a learner's IL should continue to advance until it becomes equivalent to the TL. However, it has been observed that somewhere in the L2 learning process, IL may reach one or more plateaus during which the development of the IL is delayed or arrested. A permanent cessation of progress toward the TL is referred to as 'fossilization'. Researchers in SLA agree that motivation is one of the key factors influencing language-learning success and studies suggest that some language learning motivation may be related to the need for achievement. The purpose of this research was to establish if adult ESL learners are aware of fossilization and, to examine if motivation, and more specifically achievement motivation, is a factor in IL fossilization. The participants in this study consisted of 15 ESL learners in Puerto Rico who had at least eight years of formal ESL training. The instrument used to gather information included a questionnaire to obtain demographical and qualifying data, an 'English Language Proficiency Evaluation' to determine levels of IL fossilization, a 'Measure of Achievement Motivation' to ascertain achievement motive, and individual and group interviews in order to ascertain perception(s) regarding the role of motivation on fossilization and perceptions regarding the barriers to achieving TL competency. The research demonstrated that there is a moderate to strong positive relationship between IL fossilization and achievement motivation, i.e., high achievement motive is correlated to TL competency and descending levels of achievement motive are correlated to ascending levels of IL fossilization. The findings have significant implications for both ESL learning and instruction, and suggest that not all IL fossilization may be permanent.

Although reading ability alone cannot guarantee academic success, it is highly likely that a lack of reading can function as a key barrier to academic achievement. There are many other factors that are part of the causality. Of these, socio-economic status, teaching methods, parental involvement and lack of exposure to LoLT are probably the most important. Classroom teaching for reading instruction needs to be considered as the critical factor in preventing reading problems and must be the central focus for change. As such, teachers’ acquisition of the teaching skills necessary to bring about the development of literate language competency are critical especially in South Africa where many assumptions have been largely unquestioned about how to teach reading and writing, which languages to use and what counts as high quality practice in classrooms (Banda, 2000). The main aim of the study was to investigate principally reading with the use of English first additional language (FAL) in South African Universities. The objectives included enabling students to successfully learn reading in order to promote their’ reading to such a level that they can continue reading to learn and not learning to read. The researcher was particularly interested in exploring broader trends in reading strategies, instructions and training for students with the intention of contributing possible strategies to address the training of students for their role as literacy instructors in English as well as in multilingual education in South Africa. Methodologically, the study is premised within the interpretivist paradigm based on a qualitative research method. It is a case study design. It is a longitudinal study that covered a total of four years, the duration for a B Ed degree. The population comprises all forth year English teaching methods class and ten lecturers in the programme. The data collection tools included documents, participant observation, journal entry, assessments and focus groups. Interviews were granted to a purposively selected number of students (9) based on their academic performance over the years. There were three weak, three medium and three strong students that were interviewed. A total of 10 teachers were randomly selected from the Faculty to get their input about students’ reading. The ages of the respondents ranged from 18-60. The study concluded that students prefer to be taught in English although most see it as a barrier to learning. The findings showed that language learning can be easier if it is considered as social practice with academic purpose. The researcher recommends that there is need for a reduction of administrative duties from the lecturers to create more time for consultation. She or he also see a need for tutorials which can help to expose learners even more to interaction in EFAL.

The aim of this dissertation is to present a critical literature review and conceptual analysis of selected genre-based research materials from 1960-2002 on the theoretical and pedagogical issues involved in teaching reading and writing to students of English for Science and Technology. Methodologically, the comparative data-analysis is aimed at identifying commonalities and differences between the various data texts in terms of their definition, orientations, and pedagogical uses. Based on the analyses, suggestions are made for the additional practical applications of the approaches within a learning-centred, communicative framework. The main conclusion is that genre analysis is a fusion of textual-contextual orientations on a structural-linguistic, social-ethnographic cline, which involves simultaneous microlinguistic and macrorhetorical, social-ethnographic processing. Owing to the scope of genre analysis, it is suggested that a considerably expanded, in-depth investigation is needed to clarify the dynamic tensions between and within the individual genre-based approaches, as well as their pedagogical applications. / English Studies / MA (TESOL)

O objeto de investigação desta dissertação é o Quadro Comum Europeu (Common European Framework of Reference) e seus níveis de proficiência em línguas estrangeiras. O Quadro ou CEFR começou a ser desenvolvido pelos quase 50 paísesmembros do Conselho Europeu em 1991. As matrizes de referência do CEFR tornaram-se um marco internacional e oferecem atualmente orientações para a formulação de políticas linguísticas para o ensino, aprendizagem e avaliação em cerca de 30 línguas europeias, incluindo o inglês. Apesar de o CEFR também ser usado no Brasil em cursos preparatórios para testes internacionais e em vários tipos de processos seletivos, pouco se sabe sobre ele e a literatura sobre o assunto em português ainda é escassa. O objetivo geral deste estudo é investigar quais teorias de linguagem foram usadas na elaboração do CEFR. O objetivo específico é analisar as concepções de língua/linguagem, ensino e aprendizagem, sujeito e avaliação do CEFR para entender como os seus níveis de proficiência foram determinados. Por meio de uma pesquisa bibliográfica, foram reunidas e organizadas diversas publicações do Conselho Europeu, de suas instituições parceiras e de pesquisadores independentes, para investigar as questões propostas nesta dissertação. Ao final, foi possível estabelecer a evolução histórica das bases teóricas do CEFR, com origem na Virada Linguística, passando pela Escola da Filosofia da Linguagem e pelas disciplinas da Sociolinguística e da Pragmática. As diferentes concepções, com destaque para a concepção de língua/linguagem no CEFR, também foram devidamente analisadas. Finalmente, foi possível compreender com mais profundidade como os referidos níveis de proficiência foram determinados. / The object of research of this thesis is the Common European Framework (CEFR) and its levels of proficiency in foreign languages. The development of the CEFR by nearly 50 member countries of the European Council started in 1991. The CEFR reference scales have become an international landmark and currently provide guidelines for the formulation of language policies for teaching, learning and assessment in about 30 European languages, including English. Although the CEFR is also used in Brazil in preparatory programs and in different types of selection processes, little is known about it and the literature on the subject in Portuguese is still scarce. The general aim of this study is to investigate which language theories were used in preparing the CEFR. Our specific aim is to analyze the concepts of language, teaching, learning, self and assessment in the CEFR to understand how its proficiency levels were determined. By means of a bibliographical research, several publications of the European Council, partner institutions and independent researchers were gathered and organized to investigate the questions proposed in this research. In the end, it was possible to establish the historical evolution of the theoretical basis of the CEFR, its origins in the Linguistic Turn, with later developments from the School of Philosophy of Language and the disciplines of Sociolinguistics and Pragmatics. The different concepts, especially the concept of language in the CEFR, were also duly considered. Finally, it was possible to understand more clearly how the said proficiency levels were determined.

No description available.

Thesis (MEd (Education))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. / This research study was aimed at exploring and describing the teaching and learning strategies for language support to isiXhosa speaking learners in Grade One. There are a number of challenges related to teaching in a multi-linguistic classroom. This study highlights some of the current challenges experienced in the Metro East Education District of the Western Cape. In an attempt to resolve these problems, guidelines were given for effective dissemination strategies to support second/third language speaking learners. A gap in the literature on descriptions of current support provided to learners within the theoretical framework of the ecological systems theory was identified. This research therefore intends to fill this gap in the literature. Support to IsiXhosa learners who receive education in a second/third language in the South African context is especially unclear. A qualitative research approach supported by the exploratory, descriptive and contextual research designs was employed. The sample was selected from Grade One teachers from schools in different socio-economic areas in the Western Cape who provided education to IsiXhosa learners who receive education in a second/third language. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews. The findings provide a clear description of the challenges experienced by the learner and the teacher, current strategies that are employed by teachers, as well as resources and support utilised by teachers. Conclusions were made in terms of the ecological systems theory. Based on the findings, a number of recommendations were made regarding teaching and learning strategies for language support to Grade One IsiXhosa learners who receive education in a second/third language.

M.Ed. (Educational Linguistics) / This study focuses on the pedagogy of essay-writing in five randomly chosen rural Northern Province senior secondary schools. The aim of the research was to investigate the low standard of essay-writing of ten English Second Language Standard 10 students from the five schools. The case study design which included mostly qualitative methods was used for data collection. The qualitative research methodology was applied by the researcher in order to look closely at the research sample through interviews and the 'raw' data of the essays. The rationale for the study was that students in rural Northern Province schools produce a low standard of essays, and that this presupposes that these students lack the knowledge about and language skills. The theoretical background was derived from literature on second language learning, with special emphasis on writing. It was concluded from the theory framework constructed that both the students and the teachers in rural areas probably lack the skills needed to improve both the learning and teaching of essay writing. The research sample consisted of ten students who were interviewed and whose essays were collected for later analysis. In addition, five teachers were also interviewed and one was observed teaching essay-writing. The essays indicated that the students' grammar and other writing skills were limited, that the type of topics given to them were mainly too abstract and removed from their life experience, and that the teachers concentrated mostly on error-correction, and not on the content, when marking the students' essays. In the final analysis, a model on 'teaching expository writing' is presented as a guideline for teachers in one area of essay-writing.

This thesis looks at language as the medium of all our ideas and sentiments. The thesis represents a position statement regarding the development of isiZulu as an academic language. The field of Economics is used to merely illustrate and support the points that are being made in this work. It is argued that each language is viewed as the means of expression of the cultural heritage of its people, and it remains a reflection of cultural groups who speak that particular language. It is a fact that indigenous African Languages have been, for obvious reasons, blatantly understudied during the apartheid years in South Africa (Rudwick 2004). Languages have market value and the desirability of English as the most important global language today has an effect in most Black learners in South Africa. The study examined the development of indigenous African languages, isiZulu in particular, in Zululand University where ninety percent of students and lecturers are isiZulu first language speakers, and came to a conclusion that there is an urgent need for Black South African students to learn academic subjects through their mother tongues. This would help them in thorough understanding and interpretation of analytic text presented in a foreign language such as English. The study advocates that isiZulu, which is the mother-tongue of many students at the University of Zululand, should be a language for upward mobility to these students, but as the situation stands, isiZulu becomes a neglected or marginalised language since it is not the normal medium of instruction and it is not used for effective communication in their education system.