Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, Depts. of Applied and Molecular Ecology, 1999. / Bibliography: leaves 359-374.

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Murdoch University, 2005. / Thesis submitted to the Division of Arts. Bibliography: leaves 278-295.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the oral participation of freshman International Students (ISs) in college content classes. The research questions were: (i) how much do ISs speak in different academic situations; (ii) what discourse moves do ISs make, especially initiation moves; and (iii) what are the exchange patterns into which IS discourse moves are organized. The naturally occurring discourse of eight freshman undergraduate ISs studying in a variety of fields was tape-recorded in four academic situations (lectures, laboratory sessions, freshman composition classes, and student/teacher writing conferences). Analysis of the transcripts showed that the amount of IS talk varied across the four situations, and among the eight students. The frequency of student moves also varied among the students and across situations, with student questions the most frequent move in lectures, student offer moves in labs, offered responses in composition classes, and nominated responses in conferences. The most frequent exchange patterns in lectures, labs and conferences were 2-part exchanges, but the 3-part exchange was the most frequent in composition classes. Longer exchange patterns also varied across the situations. The findings contribute to studies in SLA, Interlanguage variation, discourse and interaction analysis. There are also implications for the teaching of English for Academic and Specific Purposes.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Murdoch University, 2005. / Thesis submitted to the Division of Arts. Bibliography: leaves 324-354.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Murdoch University, 2008. / Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Arts and Education. Includes bibliographical references (p. 315-339)

The issue of seeking higher education by U.S. citizens has been explored using the human capital theory model. This work extends this analysis by applying the human capital model to the decisions of foreign students to seek higher education in the U.S. The theory suggests that foreign students will see. higher education in the U.S. if the net present value of doing so is greater than the value of remaining in their native country. In addition, the student's choice of field of study will be determined by differences in net present values. We extend the theory to include various non-pecuniary benefits and costs. The model is tested through the use of primary data derived from a cross-sectional survey conducted by the author. This data allows for a calculation of expected net present values for · remaining at home, coming to the U.S. and staying various lengths of time, and becoming a permanent U.S. resident. The findings show that the pecuniary returns from U.S. education are indeed high for engineers, and also for students from India and Taiwan. The non-pecuniary cost associated with U.S. education varies according to a foreign student's country or region of origin. Family and social ties, political stability, and job opportunities in the native country significantly affect a foreign student's planned length of stay in the U.S. upon completion of studies. / Ph. D.

A case study approach was adopted for this study. Four Taiwanese students enrolled in the writing program for international students at The University of Arizona were interviewed individually about (1) how they acquired the code of written English and what their L2 writing assumptions were upon entering The University of Arizona; and (2) what writing difficulties they experienced in a university writing program for international students and what their L2 writing assumptions were after completing a university writing program for international students. Findings from this research indicated that the four Taiwanese students did not have sufficient comprehensible input from pleasure reading or other voluntary, extracurricular sources. They acquired the code of written language from reading, participating in varied classroom activities such as small-group and whole-class discussions, peer review, teacher-student conferences, writing texts to different audiences for various purposes, analyzing model essays, practicing sentence combinations, and formal instruction in the composing process. Their writing difficulties could be summarized as follows: (1) not making good use of classroom activities to reshape ideas in terms of readers' expectations and their own writing intentions; (2) lack of experience to develop necessary reading and writing skills; (3) inadequate knowledge of the composing process; (4) inadequate syntax, vocabulary, or mechanics to express themselves in L2; (5) being influenced by their L1 rhetorical convention; (6) no intrinsic motivation to integrate with the target language, culture, or society; and (7) low expectations of success related to negative or weak teacher-student relationships. This research both reinforces and expands Krashen's (1984) model of second language acquisition and writing, showing the critical role of comprehensible input, the significance of natural acquisition over direct teaching of grammar rules and error correction, and the presence of an "affective" filter which is socially and culturally mediated, as well as cognitively and linguistically based.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / The goal of this thesis was to create a model of how video-taped law lectures (authentic materials) can be used in designing individual lessons which will, in general, incorporate current EAP practices and standards in aiding the LL.M. students to improve their lecture listening comprehension skills. More specifically, my model will show how within each lesson the video-taped law lectures can be used to target either a particular linguistic form or lecture construct feature for which studies have shown to be problematic in L2 lecture comprehension. Moreover, this model will further demonstrate how these lessons should address lecture organization specific to the study of law, as well as show how general lecture listening strategies can be presented as an integral part of every lesson.

This research set out to explore the curriculum experiences of French-speaking students in a private tertiary education institution. The study was qualitative in nature and utilized narrative inquiry and the case study approach. Data-gathering methods included a blend of semistructured interviews, document analysis, participant observation and field notes. Data analysis employed content and thematic analyses. Findings that emerged from the study were seven-fold: First, the academic experiences of French-speaking students from pre-degree to third-year degree programme entailed a rigorous negotiation with the LoLT. They negotiated the pre-degree route to mainstream degree programme due to non-compliance with academic standards set for higher education. Second, French-speaking students negotiated the pre-degree route to mainstream degree programme because their curricula of study, while they negotiated secondary school education in French-speaking countries were not recognized by most South African public universities. Third, French-speaking students experienced a number of hidden curriculum experiences which were not visible but influenced the planned, enacted and assessed curricula. Fourth, the deportment of lecturers was a useful asset. Lecturers were sourced from different sociocultural perspectives of the world. The impact of lecturers’ deportment led to commitment to achieve excellence and dedication towards student learning. Fifth, the use of Zulu, Sotho and sporadic use of Afrikaans languages by lecturers became sociocultural experiences of French-speaking students. The impact of this was felt by French-speaking students when they took a longer time to negotiate transition from French-speaking to English-speaking. The rate at which white lecturers spoke and the unfamiliar accents of black South African lecturers became important aspects of experiences they negotiated at Montana College. Sixth, learning ensues when there is a hybridization of the three sociocultural factors namely language of communication, acculturation to the domain of influence and mediated identity. Seventh, it was found that power relations manifested themselves in different perspectives at Montana College. Lave and Wenger (1991) proposed that power relations exist in the field of education where teachers exercise their roles as facilitators of learning and students see that they are in possession of economic power, by virtue of the fact that they pay fees. Consequently the issues of power relations abound in the form of the “continuity-displacement contradictions” as suggested by Lave and Wenger (1991:115-116). Much new knowledge came to light, especially in terms of the three sociocultural factors (language, acculturation and identity). When these are in a state of redress, there is an emergent learning, depending on the extent of hybridization between the sociocultural factors. The magnitude of learning is conceptualized to depend on the extent of redress or hybridization among the sociocultural factors. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / D. Ed. (Curriculum Studies)

This research study aims to investigate the exchange students' experiences with living in a foreign environment. Twenty students took part in this study and were made up of two categories namely study abroad students and student interns. The twenty students who took part in this study were mostly from industrialized countries namely Germany, the United States of America, Belgium, the Netherlands and Sweden. Data were collected by means of individual semi-structured interviews as well as observational methods namely participant and simple observations. The results indicate that if sojourners are to gain a better understanding the South African culture, it is important that they interact with the host nationals. Given that most of the students highlighted the issue of crime as their main concern, their knowledge on how to survive in a crime-ridden country like South Africa would be essential.