Thesis (M.A.)--Wheaton College, 2005. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 125-129).

Thesis (M. A.)--University of Canterbury, 2009. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 130-140). Also available via the World Wide Web.

This quasi-experimental study examined the impact of interactions with native French language Facebook posts on beginning French language learners’ willingness to communicate (WTC) and their attitudes towards the target language and culture in a university setting. In addition, the degree of interaction, by participants, with the French language Facebook posts was recorded and analyzed. This study was conducted during the Spring 2013 semester at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida. Participants in this study were recruited from two sections of FRE 1120, Elementary French Language and Civilization I. Native French language Facebook posts were “pushed” to participants’ personal Facebook News Feeds over the course of four weeks, with posts pushed on weekdays only and Facebook polls asking for participant feedback on Fridays. Two instruments were used in this study to obtain participants’ demographic information and to measure willingness to communicate as well attitudes towards the target language and culture. In addition, the researcher gathered observational data directly from Facebook. Data were analyzed using a Split-plot ANOVA and descriptive statistics. A total of 26 participants completed the study, with 14 participants in the control group and 12 participants in the treatment group. Both sections of FRE 1120 were conducted in a traditional, face-to-face format and were taught by the same instructor. Results indicated that participants’ willingness to communicate in French and their attitudes towards the target language and culture were not iv significantly impacted by interaction with native French language Facebook posts. The level of Facebook-facilitated interactions in all areas, including “Liking,” Sharing,” and “Commenting” was low. Self-reported interactions, including reading, viewing and translating of French language Facebook posts; Reading and viewing posts (such as simply viewing a photo) was the most frequently reported interaction, with “Commenting” and “Sharing” was the least common interaction. Opportunities for future research are numerous and include increasing the size of the sample, increasing the length of the study, and selected participants’ who are more advanced in their mastery of the target language. The potential of social network sites to serve as digitally immersive environments for foreign language learners should be explored in more depth and across various languages.

The purpose of this thesis was to gain an updated understanding of the needs of thehospitality industry, and the desirable competencies for middle managers. Most previous studieshave stated the importance of continuant research on desirable competencies to update hospitalityeducators and students. This study was conducted to explore what competencies are desirable,why they are desirable, and how one can acquire them. Few, if any previous studies haveexplored how desirable competencies can be acquired. This thesis adapted qualitative methods togain a better understanding of the informants’ perception of desirable competencies. Theinformants were the general, front-office, food and beverage, and housekeeping managers, atthree different hotels of three different hotel-chains. The informants were personally interviewedwith the use of semi-structured interview guides and fake CV’s the informants had to rank duringthe interviews. The result demonstrated desirable competencies in seven different competencydomains: conceptual/ creative, leadership, human resource, interpersonal/communication, finance,technical and culture/language. The first six competencies are similar to Sandwith’s CompetencyDomain Model (1993); however, this thesis adds another competency domain, culture/language.The competencies were found to be desirable for all manager but were utilized in various waysdepending on the manager’s position. According to the informants, most competencies could betaught and developed through a mixture of formal education and work experience, while somecompetencies were considering part of one’s personality or upbringing. The results provide abetter understanding of desirable competencies in the hospitality industry and the importance ofcultural/language competencies which has not been highlighted in previous studies.

The Diploma Thesis is divided into three sections. The first section describes the activities of the ILPS and characterizes closely the Study Centre in Prague -- Albertov and its courses. The second section deals with differences among cultures, according to Fons Trompenaars and Charles Hampden-Turner, and characterizes Czech culture and the cultures of participants of courses at Albertov. This section also includes a research study on the perception of Czech culture by foreign students and in-depth interviews with two representatives. The last section discusses the promotion of the Study Centre Albertov and proposes concrete ways on how to promote the 6-Week Intensive Czech Language Course and the summer course Czech Language and Culture.

The objective of this study is to investigate the appropriateness of the term kami (神) as the translation of the term ‘God’ from the point-of-view of Dynamic Equivalent (DE) translation in Japan. The study argues that the translated term kami (神) in the Japanese Bible was adopted at first without sufficient investigation of its appropriateness but because of its penetrating character, it became the exclusive term to represent the monotheistic God. Discussion of the effect of the philosophy of Dynamic Equivalent translation in the history of Bible translation in Japan and the history of the changes of the Japanese notion of God is used to justify the validity of the above argument. As a procedure, two translation methods (DE and FE) seen in conventional Bible translations have been compared, supported by case studies where these methods are used. Next, to understand the mind of the Japanese who were the recipients of the new concept of God, the history of Japanese Shinto is discussed. Finally, the lives of two Japanese assistants of Japanese Bible translation, Anjirō and Otokichi, are studied. The study concludes that the adoption of kami (神) was appropriate from the point-of-view of DE translation, and the Japanese assistants also applied the DE translation method unconsciously. A reassessment of their selection of the terms for God is possible if they are seen as examples of the DE translation method.

I roto i ngā toru ngahuru tau kua tupu haere ngā kaupapa mātauranga mō te reo Māori mai i te kōhanga reo, ki te kura kaupapa Māori, ki te whare kura tae atu ki ngā whare wānanga Māori. Nā tērā whanaketanga o ngā kura reo Māori i rerekē ai te whakaako. Ka kitea ka huri te reo Māori hei kaupapa ako, ā, nā reira ka nui haere ngā kupu ā-kaupapa. technical language, subject specific Kātahi ka whakaputaina he marautanga reo Māori hei āwhina mā ngā kaiako ki te whakatutuki i ngā whāinga ako i roto i te akomanga. Engari, kāore i kitea te whānuitanga o ngā momo-kōrero i roto i te marautanga reo Māori, ahakoa e tāia ana te manomano rauemi. Kāore i whakanahanaha te takoto i ngā momo-kōrero hei āwhina mā ngā pouako reo Māori. Ahakoa he mea nui tērā inā ka whakaakona te reo matatini literacy ki te reo Māori. Kei te tapanga, He Pātaka Momo-Kōrero, He Kete Momo Kīpeha, ngā whāinga nui o tēnei rangahau mō te reo matatini, mō te mātātuhi literature hoki. Tuatahi, ka whakaemia tētehi huinga momo-kōrero Māori, kātahi ka whakarōpūtia aua momo-kōrero ki ētehi anga momo-kōrero. He tātai momo-kōrero, me kī. Tuarua, ka tīpakohia tētehi o aua rōpū hei āta tātari. Koia ko te kīpeha me ngā anga momo kīpeha. Ka whakaaturia te wetereo, te tikanga, te whakamahia o aua kīpeha ki ngā kupu ake a ngā kaiuru me ētehi tauira mātātuhi. Ka tohea he tino whai pānga aua āhuatanga reo kia mōhio ai te tangata ki te whakakounga i te reo Māori. Ka toko ake ngā kōrero nei i ngā whakawhitinga kōrero a ngā kaiuru 28. Ka arotakea ngā anga reo e tētehi atu rōpū tāngata, tekau nei, kia kitea ai mēnā he whai hua, he whai māramatanga ki te hapori reo Māori. He nui kē atu ngā kōrero ka whakahokia mai mō te kounga o te reo pērā i te aronga Māori, i te kaupapa Māori, i te takotoranga Māori. Heoi, ko tētehi kitenga nui o tēnei rangahau, ki tā te Māori titiro, he wāhanga nui te reo peha kia kounga te momo-kōrero, ā, kei tēnei tuhinga kairangi ētehi whakamāramatanga o aua kīpeha hei manaaki i te mauri ora o te reo Māori.

This thesis will take a closer look at the relatively new and multifaceted concept of Lusophony. It begins with a brief introduction to Portuguese colonial history and postcolonial development with a focus on the connection between Portuguese national identity, the colonial empire and today's Lusophone world. Subsequently, this thesis will present various conceptions of the colonial empire and the panorama of the transformations of colonial and anti-colonialist narratives through which Portuguese colonization and decolonization were justified. Among other things, this thesis aims to explore the topic of Lusophony in historical contexts, to examine the circumstances of this idea's origin and its development in Portugal, and, finally, to present some conceptualizations in the current academic context. Lastly, the main problems that Lusophony struggles with in the postcolonial context will be considered, specifically its relationship with the colonial past(s). Key-words: Lusophony, Post-Colonialism, Portuguese speaking community, Identity, Lusophone culture, Portuguese language

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2001. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 258-270).

This thesis is made up of three parts; the first is an outline and discussion of the various approaches taken in the description of Polynesian languages in the last 30 years. It provides background discussion of the model of description used in the rest of the thesis. The second deals with the phonology of the 'Ua Pou dialect, concentrating in particular on two areas; the phonetics of the glottal stop phoneme, and penultimate vowel extension. The latter is a feature which has received no mention in any literature to date but is the most noticeable suprasegmental phonetic difference between the Marquesan dialects and the other Eastern Polynesian languages. The last four chapters describe the structure of phrases in the 'Ua Pou dialect. The first two of these deals with the centripetal particles of the noun and verb phrase respectively, that is, the particles within phrases which modify the base of that phrase. Particles which relate phrases to other phrases, that is, the prepositions and ai, are dealt with separately in the last two chapters since their description requires some comments on the syntax of the language. / Thesis now published as a book. Margaret Mutu with Ben Teʻikitutoua (2002). Ùa Pou : aspects of a Marquesan dialect. Canberra, ACT: Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies. ISBN 0858835266.