This qualitative study was guided by the framework of Intercultural Communicative Competence (ICC). In Canada, although researchers recognize that learning French through a cultural context will promote understanding and acceptance of cultural diversity, as well as the learning of the target language, there is little evidence to support the ways in which this methodology may influence the learning of elementary Core French students. The purpose of this study was to investigate the ways in which a group of Grade 4 students, from an English community, perceived their peers from a French community, and to describe any changes in their attitudes toward learning French as a Second Language in response to the opportunity to learn through a cultural context. This action research study used a questionnaire, an observation checklist of task-related behaviour, and semi-structured group photo-interviews to explore 15 Grade 4 students’ perceptions and attitudes in response to a new research-based teaching approach. As the cultural exchange unfolded, I sought evidence of the three savoirs (that according to the ICC model, primary students have the ability to develop), in order to promote interculturality: savoir être (related to students’ attitudes towards the other students), savoirs (related to knowledge of the other culture), and savoir apprendre/faire (related to behaviour toward the other culture). Results indicated that students showed evidence of two savoirs: savoir être and savoirs. Savoir apprendre/faire, however, was not shown. In addition to the two savoirs, the exchange promoted the learning of French in the classroom, and supported the development of students’ confidence in communicating in French. The findings of this study contribute to the teaching of Elementary Core French in Ontario, by providing valuable insights into the possible ways that learning French through an intercultural experience holds potential in developing students’ communication abilities as well as awareness and acceptance of otherness, which is the bedrock upon one can develop effective communicators in the target language. / Thesis (Master, Education) -- Queen's University, 2014-04-23 18:35:56.721

This classroom-based study provides insights into the nature of collaborative writing in a Malaysian tertiary ESL setting. It tracked the collaborative writing processes of three case study groups over one semester and elicited students' reflections on their collaborative experience. The study focussed on three case study groups formed by nine undergraduates who were enrolled in an academic writing course in a large public university in Malaysia. The individuals volunteered to be involved in the study and they self-selected their group members. Multiple research instruments were used for data collection. The primary data was comprised of audio and video-recordings of the case studies' collaborative writing sessions over three writing tasks. Interviews, journal entries, and a questionnaire supplemented the primary data. The use of various techniques ensured that data collection was sufficiently covered in breadth and in depth. Results showed that the collaborative writing process was a complex phenomenon. The nature of collaboration is influenced by group composition, role flexibility, and task complexity. The findings reveal that familiarity with group members is crucial for group cohesion; it provided a safe and comfortable working environment. Flexibility in role-taking also helped the groups to carry out their collaboration effectively. Leader, contributor, and gate-keeper roles were interchangeable across groups and across tasks except for the scribe role. It was found that as tasks increased in complexity, conflict also intensified. During negotiations and resolutions of conflicts, the students had considered cultural issues, such as sensitivity to face and group harmony. Other affective factors such as cooperation, willingness to share, team spirit, and tolerance aided the collaboration while apathy and domineering behaviour were detrimental. These multiple factors, which differed from one case study to another, shaped the distinctiveness of each group. Nonetheless, findings from the students' transcripts and personal reflections revealed that group collaboration changed and became more positive over time. This study provides a revised definition of collaborative writing. The three case study groups shared some common features, such as mutual interactions, sharing of expertise, conflict, and use of colloquial sentence particles. However, there were other features which were peculiar to each group, namely, self-questioning talk, use of local language, creative use of language, and humour. These features not only mediated the writing processes, but also expanded the students' knowledge construction and language acquisition. Based on the analyses, a number of implications have been drawn regarding the use of collaborative writing in the classroom. The study culminates with several recommendations for future research.

Abstract:​ Diploma thesis called​ Pupil with a different mother tongue​ concerns the topic of pupils with a home language different from the language of communication of the country they are in. In the theoretical part, the thesis describes the situation of these pupils in the Czech republic and in the world, especially the topic of bilingualism which reflects the situation of pupils with a different home language which already use the second language in various degrees. Next, it deals with intercultural communication, support of these pupils in school and methods of maintaining both languages (native and second). Practical part is based on observation of bilingual children in a particular Czech school in England, further on analyzed language utterances of children with a different home language and on semi-structured interviews with some bilingual families (children and parents) in England and in the Czech republic. Interviews concern the maintenance of mother language and situations regarding usage of both languages by questioned children in families and in school. The aim of the thesis is to describe the situation of pupils with a different home language in family and in school in England and in the Czech republic and to find out how families deal with maintenance of mother language and which of both...

Uhusiano baina ya lugha na utamaduni, mila na mirathi ya jamii kwa jumla huenda ukafahamika angalau kwa wepesi, iwapo tutazingatia mambo mawili: kwanza, lugha na matumizi yake ni chombo cha kujieleleza thamani tafauti zilizofungamana na maumbile ya kimila, fikira, maarifa, imani, adabu na utamaduni wa jamii yenyewe kwa jumla. Pili, matumizi ya lugha aghlabu husadifu kuwa ndio msingi wa kuendeleza na kukuza, na hata pia kubuni, uzushi mpya katika mirathi ya utamaduni, mila na khulka za kijamii. Kwa hivyo si rahisi kwa lugha kutengamana na taswira za jamii: utu, utamaduni, mila, mitindo na mengineo. Tungependa kuandaa madhumuni yetu ya kuonesha athari na hatari zinazokabili hali ile ya kutumia lugha geni katika kuendeleza shughuli za jamii au taifa la kienyeji. Muhimu pia, tutashughulika na athari za mtindo huo katika fasihi za kienyeji, hasa tunapozingatia kuwa fasihi ya maandishi ni mfano wa kioo cha hakika ya jamii.

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The central aim of this thesis is to provide a detailed ethnographic account of the human ecology of the Broads - a protected wetland region in the East of England - focussing upon how working lives shape and are shaped by this reedy landscape. In conversations about the management of the Broads, the concept of "common sense" is a frequent trope; encompassing a wide range of associated meanings. But what are these meanings of "common sense" in English culture, and how do they influence the peoples of England, and landscapes in which they work? This thesis addresses these questions ethnographically; using academic and lay deployments of common sense as a route into the political economy of rural Norfolk. Based on 12 months of fieldwork in the Broads National Park, this thesis draws together interviews and participant observation with land managers of various kinds - including conservationists, farmers, gamekeepers, volunteers, gardeners, and administrators. Chapter 1 dissects the differences between academic and popular understandings of "common sense" as a phrase, and produces an ethnographically-derived, working definition. Chapter 2 examines the attitudes of farmers, establishing "the common" as a root metaphor for social and practical rectitude, actualised through labouring in a shared landscape. Chapter 3 explores how the common is sensed, reflecting upon the diverse sensoria afforded by different degrees of enclosure on a single nature reserve. Chapter 4 explores how the concept of common sense intersects with a prevailing culture of possessive individualism, creating a fragmented society in the Park, wracked by controversies over management. Chapter 5 examines bureaucracy in Broadland - frequently cast as the very antithesis of common sense. In the conclusion, we return to the title, and ask - what do the reeds have to say about land, labour, and human nature?