Search results for: language classes

Authors: Michael Karnes, Alper Yilmaz

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This paper presents the application of the omni-modeler towards pedestrian redetection. The pedestrian redetection task creates several challenges when applying deep neural networks (DNN) due to the variety of pedestrian appearance with camera position, the variety of environmental conditions, and the specificity required to recognize one pedestrian from another. DNNs require significant training sets and are not easily adapted for changes in class appearances or changes in the set of classes held in its knowledge domain. Pedestrian redetection requires an algorithm that can actively manage its knowledge domain as individuals move in and out of the scene, as well as learn individual appearances from a few frames of a video. The Omni-Modeler is a dynamically learning few-shot visual recognition algorithm developed for tasks with limited training data availability. The Omni-Modeler adapts the knowledge domain of pre-trained deep neural networks to novel concepts with a calculated localized language encoder. The Omni-Modeler knowledge domain is generated by creating a dynamic dictionary of concept definitions, which are directly updatable as new information becomes available. Query images are identified through nearest neighbor comparison to the learned object definitions. The study presented in this paper evaluates its performance in re-identifying individuals as they move through a scene in both single-camera and multi-camera tracking applications. The results demonstrate that the Omni-Modeler shows potential for across-camera view pedestrian redetection and is highly effective for single-camera redetection with a 93% accuracy across 30 individuals using 64 example images for each individual.

Keywords: dynamic learning, few-shot learning, pedestrian redetection, visual recognition

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Authors: Omenogor, Happy Dumbi

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This paper examines the areas of convergence and divergence between English and Ųkwųanį (a language in Nigeria) vowel systems with particular emphasis on the front vowels. It specifies areas of difficulty for the average Ųkwųanį users of English and Ųkwųanį L1 users of English as a second language. The paper explains the nature of contrastive analysis, the geographical locations where Ųkwųanį is spoken as mother tongue as well as English and Ųkwųanį front vowels. The principles of establishing phonemes, minimal pairs in Ųkwųanį as well as the vowel charts in both languages are among the issues highlighted in this paper.

Keywords: convergence, divergence, English, Ukwųanį

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Authors: Mohsen Maraoui

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In the aim of natural language processing applications improvement, such as information retrieval, machine translation, lexical disambiguation, we focus on statistical approach to semantic indexing for multilingual text documents based on conceptual network formalism. We propose to use this formalism as an indexing language to represent the descriptive concepts and their weighting. These concepts represent the content of the document. Our contribution is based on two steps. In the first step, we propose the extraction of index terms using the multilingual lexical resource Euro WordNet (EWN). In the second step, we pass from the representation of index terms to the representation of index concepts through conceptual network formalism. This network is generated using the EWN resource and pass by a classification step based on association rules model (in attempt to discover the non-taxonomic relations or contextual relations between the concepts of a document). These relations are latent relations buried in the text and carried by the semantic context of the co-occurrence of concepts in the document. Our proposed indexing approach can be applied to text documents in various languages because it is based on a linguistic method adapted to the language through a multilingual thesaurus. Next, we apply the same statistical process regardless of the language in order to extract the significant concepts and their associated weights. We prove that the proposed indexing approach provides encouraging results.

Keywords: concept extraction, conceptual network formalism, fuzzy association rules, multilingual thesaurus, semantic indexing

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Authors: Mohammad Naseh Nasrollahi Shahri

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The article draws on Michael Bakhtin’s theory of language to examine peer interactions. It represents an analysis of other-repetition in student interactions. Several recent studies have explored various aspects of repetition in multiple contexts. However, other-repetition in peer interactions has not received enough attention. Building on previous studies, this study examines patterns of other-repetition or appropriation in the context of discussion activities performed by EFL learners. The analysis highlights the meaningfulness of other-repetition in a way that distinguishes them from rote-repetition. It is suggested that instances of repetition constitute third spaces between the self and other which provide ideal settings for language learning and demonstrate student agency and engagement.

Keywords: repetition, agency, Bakhtin, dialogue

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Authors: Katherine O'Grady-Bray

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For some deaf children, reading books can be a challenge. Frank Barnes School (FBS) provides guided reading time with Teachers of the Deaf, in which they read books with deaf children using a bilingual approach. The vocabulary and context of the story is explained to deaf children in BSL so they develop skills bridging English and BSL languages. However, the success of this practice is only achieved if the person is fluent in both languages. FBS piloted a scheme to convert an Oxford Reading Tree (ORT) book into an e-book that can be read using tablets. Deaf readers at FBS have access to both languages (BSL and English) during lessons and outside the classroom. The pupils receive guided reading sessions with a Teacher of the Deaf every morning, these one to one sessions give pupils the opportunity to learn how to bridge both languages e.g. how to translate English to BSL and vice versa. Generally, due to our pupils’ lack of access to incidental learning, gaining new information about the world around them is limited. This highlights the importance of quality time to scaffold their language development. In some cases, there is a shortfall of parental support at home due to poor communication skills or an unawareness of how to interact with deaf children. Some families have a limited knowledge of sign language or simply don’t have the required learning environment and strategies needed for language development with deaf children. As the majority of our pupils’ preferred language is BSL we use that to teach reading and writing English. If this is not mirrored at home, there is limited opportunity for joint reading sessions. Development of the e-Book required planning and technical development. The overall production took time as video footage needed to be shot and then edited individually for each page. There were various technical considerations such as having an appropriate background colour so not to draw attention away from the signer. Appointing a signer with the required high level of BSL was essential. The language and pace of the sign language was an important consideration as it was required to match the age and reading level of the book. When translating English text to BSL, careful consideration was given to the nonlinear nature of BSL and the differences in language structure and syntax. The e-book was produced using Apple’s ‘iBook Author’ software which allowed video footage of the signer to be embedded on pages opposite the text and illustration. This enabled BSL translation of the content of the text and inferences of the story. An interpreter was used to directly ‘voice over’ the signer rather than the actual text. The aim behind the structure and layout of the e-book is to allow parents to ‘read’ with their deaf child which helps to develop both languages. From observations, the use of e-books has given pupils confidence and motivation with their reading, developing skills bridging both BSL and English languages and more effective reading time with parents.

Keywords: bilingual book, e-book, BSL and English, bilingual e-book

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Authors: Geraldine Agbor Ojong

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This paper conveys some of the problems teachers of ESL face in classroom settings in Thailand. The results of this paper is achieved through close and open ended questionaires administered to a group of English language teachers of three prominent schools in Kaengkhoi, saraburi Province, Thailand.(Saengvithaya school, kaengkhoi school and Pytoon withaya school). Face to face interview of some foreign teachers and students selected randomly And general observation. The data was analysed by frequency distribution and percentage: The result of the study may be generalized so that the conference committee can suggest possible solutions or give contributing ideas on how to handle some of these problems.

Keywords: Asian, colonize, ESL, foreign country

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Authors: Wajiha Fatima

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Based on Rod Ellis’s (2002) the methodology of task-based teaching, this study explored the effects of pre-task activities on the Job Application letter of 102 ESL students (who were female and undergraduate learners). For this purpose, students were divided among three groups (Group A, Group B, and Group C), kept in control and experimental settings as well. Pre-task phase motivates the learners to perform the actual task. Ellis reportedly discussed four pre-task phases: (1) performing a similar task; (2) providing a model; (3) non-task preparation activities and (4) strategic planning. They were taught through above given three pre-task activities. Accordingly, the learners in control setting were supposed to write without any teaching aid while learners in an experimental situation were provided three different pre-task activities in each group. In order to compare the scores of the pre-test and post-test of the three groups, sample paired t-test was utilized. The obtained results of the written job application by the female students revealed that pre-task activities improved their performance in writing. On the other hand, the comparison of the three pre-task activities revealed that 'providing a model' outperformed the other two activities. For this purpose, ANOVA was utilized.

Keywords: pre-task activities, second language learners, task based language teaching, writing

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Authors: Magda Silva

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This paper presents the sociocultural and critical theories used in the creation of a study abroad program in Brazil, as well as the successful results obtained in the fourteen years of experience provided by the program in distinct regions of Brazil. This program maximizes students’ acquisition of the Portuguese language, and affords them an in-depth intercultural and intracultural competence by on site studies in cosmopolitan Rio de Janeiro, afro-heritage Salvador da Bahia, and Amazonian Belém do Pará. The program provides the means to acknowledge the presence, influence, similarities, and differences of Portuguese-speaking Brazil in Latin America.

Keywords: study abroad, critical thinking, sociocultural theory, foreign language, empirical, theoretical

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Authors: Ali Akbar Jabbari

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The present study assessed the acquisition of L3 French direct objects by Persian speakers who had already learned English as their L2. The ultimate goal of this paper is to extend the current knowledge about the CLI phenomenon in the realm of third language acquisition by examining the role of Persian and English as background languages and learners’ English level of proficiency in their performance on French direct object. To fulfill this, the assumptions of three L3 hypotheses, namely L1 Transfer, L2 Status Factor, and Cumulative Enhancement Model, were examined. The research sample was comprised of 40 undergraduate students in the fields of English language and literature and translation studies at Birjand University in Iran. According to the English proficiency level of learners revealed by the Quick Oxford English Placement test, the participants were grouped as upper intermediate and lower intermediate. A grammaticality judgment and a translation test were administered to gather the required data on learners' comprehension and production of the desired structure in French. It was demonstrated that the rate of positive transfer from previously learned languages was more potent than the rate of negative transfer. A Comparison of groups' performances revealed a significant difference between upper and lower intermediate groups in positing French direct objects correctly. However, the upper intermediate group did not significantly differ from the lower intermediate group in negative transfer. It can be said that by increasing the L2 proficiency of the learners, they could use their previous linguistic knowledge more efficiently. Although further examinations are needed, the current study contributed to a better characterization of cross-linguistic influence in third language acquisition. The findings help French teachers and learners to positively exploit the prior knowledge of Persian and English and apply it in in the multilingual context of French direct object's teaching and learning process.

Keywords: Cross-Linguistic Influence, Persian, French & English Direct Object, Third Language Acquisition, Language Transfer

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Authors: Franklin Uakhemen Ajogbor

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The issue of the English sentence has remained controversial from Traditional Grammar to modern linguistics. The English sentence occupies the highest rank in the hierarchy of grammatical units. Its consideration is therefore very necessary in learning English as a second language. Unfortunately, divergent views by grammarians on the concept of the English sentence have generated much controversy. There seems not to be a unanimous agreement on what actually constitute a sentence. Some schools of thought believe that a sentence must have a subject and a predicate while some believe that it should not. The types of sentence according to structure are also not devoid of controversy as the views of several linguists have not been properly harmonized. Findings have shown that serious effort and attention have not been paid by previous linguists to clear these ambiguities as it has a negative implication in the learning and teaching of English language. The variations on the concept of the English sentence have become particularly worrisome as a result of the widening patronage of English as a global language. The paper is therefore interested in the investigation of this controversy and suggesting a solution to the problem. In doing this, data was collected from students and scholars that show lack of uniformity in what a sentence is. Using the Systemic Functional Model as theoretical framework, the paper launches into the views held by these various schools of thought with the aim of reconciling these divergent views and also an attempt to open up further research on what actually constitute a sentence.

Keywords: traditional grammar, linguistics, controversy, sentence, grammatical units

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Authors: Miriam Sebastian

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This research focused on the effects of bilingual education as medium of instruction to the academic performance of selected intermediate students of Miriam’s Academy of Valenzuela Inc. . An experimental design was used, with language of instruction as the independent variable and the different literacy skills as dependent variables. The sample consisted of experimental students comprises of 30 students were exposed to bilingual education (Filipino and English) . They were given pretests and were divided into three groups: Monolingual Filipino, Monolingual English, and Bilingual. They were taught different literacy skills for eight weeks and were then administered the posttests. Data was analyzed and evaluated in the light of the central processing and script-dependent hypotheses. Based on the data, it can be inferred that monolingual instruction in either Filipino or English had a stronger effect on the students’ literacy skills compared to bilingual instruction. Moreover, mother tongue-based instruction, as compared to second-language instruction, had stronger effect on the preschoolers’ literacy skills. Such results have implications not only for mother tongue-based (MTB) but also for English as a second language (ESL) instruction in the country

Keywords: bilingualism, effects, monolingual, function, multilingual, mother tongue

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Authors: Pushpinder Syal

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Literary writing carries the stamp of the current language of its time. In translating such texts, it becomes a challenge to capture such reflections which may be evident at several levels: the level of dialectal use of language by characters in stories, the alterations in syntax as tools of writers’ individual stylistic choices, the insertion of quasi-proverbial and gnomic utterances, and even the level of the pragmatics of narrative discourse. Discourse strategies may differ between earlier and later texts, reflecting changing relationships between narrators and readers in changed cultural and social contexts. This paper is a consideration of these features by an approach that combines historicity with a description, contextualizing language change within a discourse framework. The process of translating a collection of writings of Punjabi literature spanning 100 years was undertaken for this study and it was observed that the factor of the historicity of language was seen to play a role. While intended for contemporary readers, the translation of literature over the span of a century poses the dual challenge of needing to possess both accessibility and immediacy as well as adherence to the 'old world' styles of communicating and narrating. The linguistic changes may be observed in a more obvious sense in the difference of diction and word formation – with evidence of more hybridized and borrowed forms in modern and contemporary writings, as compared to the older writings. The latter not only contain vestiges of proverbs and folk sayings, but are also closer to oral speech styles. These will be presented and analysed in the form of chronological listing and by these means, the social process of translation from orality to written text can be seen as traceable in the above-mentioned works. More subtle and underlying shifts can be seen through the analysis of speech acts and implicatures in the same literature, in which the social relationships underlying language use are evident as discourse systems of belief and understanding. They present distinct shifts in worldview as seen at different points in time. However, some continuities of language and style are also clearly visible, and these aid the translator in putting together a set of thematic links which identify the literature of a region and community, and constitute essential outcomes in the effort to preserve its distinctive nature.

Keywords: cultural change, dialect, historicity, stylistic variation

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Authors: Montserrat Crespi Vallbona, Marta Domínguez Pérez

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Globalization impacts on cities and especially on their centers, especially on those spaces more visible and coveted. Changes are involved in processes such as touristification, gentrification or studentification, in addition of shop trendiness. The city becomes a good of interchange rather than a communal good for its inhabitants and consequently, its value is monetized. So, these different tendencies are analyzed: on one hand, the presence of tourists, the home rental increase, the explosion of businesses related to tourism; on the other hand; the return of middle classes or gentries to the center in a socio-spatial model that has changed highlighting the centers by their culture and their opportunities as well as by the value of public space and centrality; then, the interest of students (national and international) to be part of these city centers as dynamic groups and emerging classes with a higher purchasing power and better cultural capital than in the past; and finally, the conversion of old stores into modern ones, where vintage trend and the renewal of antiquity is the essence. All these transforming processes impact the European cities and redefine their image. All these trends reinforce the impression and brand of the urban center as an attractive space for investment, keeping such nonsense meaningful. These four tendencies have been spreading correlatively impacting the centers and transforming them involving the displacement of former residents of these spaces and revitalizing the center that is financed and commercialized in parallel. The cases of Madrid and Barcelona as spaces of greater evidence in Spain of these tendencies serve to illustrate these processes and represent the spearhead. Useful recommendations are presented to urban planners to find the conciliation of communal and commercialized spaces.

Keywords: gentrification, shop trendiness, studentification, touristification

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Authors: Francielle A. Vargas, Thiago A. S. Pardo

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According to the standard philosophical definition, lying is saying something that you believe to be false with the intent to deceive. For deception detection, the FBI trains its agents in a technique named statement analysis, which attempts to detect deception based on parts of speech (i.e., linguistics style). This method is employed in interrogations, where the suspects are first asked to make a written statement. In this poster, we model false statements using linguistics style. In order to achieve this, we methodically analyze linguistic features in a corpus of fake news in the Portuguese language. The results show that they present substantial lexical, syntactic and semantic variations, as well as punctuation and emotion distinctions.

Keywords: deception detection, linguistics style, computational linguistics, natural language processing

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Authors: Maliheh Rezaei

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Peace education has been introduced into many higher educational contexts by designing different programs, expecting to result in constructive changes, specifically in post-conflict countries. Teachers are the potential agents of positive change who play a major role in fostering the culture of peace in their classes. The purpose of this literature review was thus to evaluate the implementation of peace pedagogies by teachers in the context of higher education. More specifically, it addressed a) the role and characteristics of teachers and b) the pedagogies that they used to construct the culture of peace. The systematic literature review was used and several inclusion criteria were applied. Only papers published in English, which contained the keywords of university, higher education, peace, peace education, and similar derivatives such as ‘peacebuilding’ in their title and/or abstract, were included in this review. Moreover, only papers that dealt with the actual implementation of peace education theories were investigated. Findings highlighted that most teachers relied on pedagogies adopted from social justice, global citizenship, and positive psychology practices aiming to foster positive human traits such as resilience, empathy and reflection that were also believed to play an important role in peacebuilding efforts. Nevertheless, the incorporation of peace remained peripheral. The main challenge to incorporate the tenets of peace education was the shortage of teachers who were skilled and qualified enough to incorporate and promote the culture of peace in their classes. This literature review presents the body of research that has linked peace education to Higher Education. Therefore, it informs teachers about the potential roles they have in creating a peaceful and sustainable future. It also presents them with more effective pedagogies and practices to successfully integrate peace-related activities in Higher Education.

Keywords: culture of peace, higher education, teacher, pedogogy

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Authors: Abdulmajid Mukhtar Afat

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This paper aims at introducing finite automata theory, the different ways to describe regular languages and create a program to implement the subset construction algorithms to convert nondeterministic finite automata (NFA) to deterministic finite automata (DFA). This program is written in c++ programming language. The program reads FA 5tuples from text file and then classifies it into either DFA or NFA. For DFA, the program will read the string w and decide whether it is acceptable or not. If accepted, the program will save the tracking path and point it out. On the other hand, when the automation is NFA, the program will change the Automation to DFA so that it is easy to track and it can decide whether the w exists in the regular language or not.

Keywords: finite automata, subset construction, DFA, NFA

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Authors: Rishabh Nagpal, Riya Uchagaonkar, Venkata Naga Narasimha Ashish Mernedi, Ahmed Hambaba

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The rapid evolution of technology in the communication sector continually seeks to bridge the gap between different communities, notably between the deaf community and the hearing world. This project develops a comprehensive American Sign Language (ASL) recognition system, leveraging the advanced capabilities of convolutional neural networks (CNNs) and vision transformers (ViTs) to interpret and translate ASL in real-time. The primary objective of this system is to provide an effective communication tool that enables seamless interaction through accurate sign language interpretation. The architecture of the proposed system integrates dual networks -VGG16 for precise spatial feature extraction and vision transformers for contextual understanding of the sign language gestures. The system processes live input, extracting critical features through these sophisticated neural network models, and combines them to enhance gesture recognition accuracy. This integration facilitates a robust understanding of ASL by capturing detailed nuances and broader gesture dynamics. The system is evaluated through a series of tests that measure its efficiency and accuracy in real-world scenarios. Results indicate a high level of precision in recognizing diverse ASL signs, substantiating the potential of this technology in practical applications. Challenges such as enhancing the system’s ability to operate in varied environmental conditions and further expanding the dataset for training were identified and discussed. Future work will refine the model’s adaptability and incorporate haptic feedback to enhance the interactivity and richness of the user experience. This project demonstrates the feasibility of an advanced ASL recognition system and lays the groundwork for future innovations in assistive communication technologies.

Keywords: sign language, computer vision, vision transformer, VGG16, CNN

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Authors: Yan Huang

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Event-related potentials (ERPs) technique helps researchers to make continuous measures on the whole process of language comprehension, with an excellent temporal resolution at the level of milliseconds. The research on sentence processing has developed from the behavioral level to the neuropsychological level, which brings about a variety of sentence processing theories and models. However, the applicability of these models to L2 learners is still under debate. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the neural mechanisms underlying English subjunctive mood processing by Chinese ESL learners. To this end, English subject clauses with subjunctive moods are used as the stimuli, all of which follow the same syntactic structure, “It is + adjective + that … + (should) do + …” Besides, in order to examine the role that language proficiency plays on L2 processing, this research deals with two groups of Chinese ESL learners (18 males and 22 females, mean age=21.68), namely, high proficiency group (Group H) and low proficiency group (Group L). Finally, the behavioral and neurophysiological data analysis reveals the following findings: 1) Syntax and semantics interact with each other on the SECOND phase (300-500ms) of sentence processing, which is partially in line with the Three-phase Sentence Model; 2) Language proficiency does affect L2 processing. Specifically, for Group H, it is the syntactic processing that plays the dominant role in sentence processing while for Group L, semantic processing also affects the syntactic parsing during the THIRD phase of sentence processing (500-700ms). Besides, Group H, compared to Group L, demonstrates a richer native-like ERPs pattern, which further demonstrates the role of language proficiency in L2 processing. Based on the research findings, this paper also provides some enlightenment for the L2 pedagogy as well as the L2 proficiency assessment.

Keywords: Chinese ESL learners, English subjunctive mood, ERPs, L2 processing

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Authors: Erfan Abdeldaim Mohamed Ahmed Abdalla

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The era of the knowledge explosion in which we live requires us to develop educational curricula quantitatively and qualitatively to adapt to the twenty-first-century skills of critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, cooperation, creativity, and innovation. The process of developing the curriculum is as significant as building it; in fact, the development of curricula may be more difficult than building them. And curriculum development includes analyzing needs, setting goals, designing the content and educational materials, creating language programs, developing teachers, applying for programmes in schools, monitoring and feedback, and then evaluating the language programme resulting from these processes. When we look back at the history of language teaching during the twentieth century, we find that developing the delivery method is the most crucial aspect of change in language teaching doctrines. The concept of delivery method in teaching is a systematic set of teaching practices based on a specific theory of language acquisition. This is a key consideration, as the process of development must include all the curriculum elements in its comprehensive sense: linguistically and non-linguistically. The various Arabic curricula provide the student with a set of units, each unit consisting of a set of linguistic elements. These elements are often not logically arranged, and more importantly, they neglect essential points and highlight other less important ones. Moreover, the educational curricula entail a great deal of monotony in the presentation of content, which makes it hard for the teacher to select adequate content; so that the teacher often navigates among diverse references to prepare a lesson and hardly finds the suitable one. Similarly, the student often gets bored when learning the Arabic language and fails to fulfill considerable progress in it. Therefore, the problem is not related to the lack of curricula, but the problem is the development of the curriculum with all its linguistic and non-linguistic elements in accordance with contemporary challenges and standards for teaching foreign languages. The Arabic library suffers from a lack of references for curriculum development. In this paper, the researcher investigates the elements of development, such as the teacher, content, methods, objectives, evaluation, and activities. Hence, a set of general guidelines in the field of educational development were reached. The paper highlights the need to identify weaknesses in educational curricula, decide the twenty-first-century skills that must be employed in Arabic education curricula, and the employment of foreign language teaching standards in current Arabic Curricula. The researcher assumes that the series of teaching Arabic to speakers of other languages in regular schools do not address the skills of the twenty-first century, which is what the researcher tries to apply in the proposed unit. The experimental method is the method of this study. It is based on two groups: experimental and control. The development of an educational unit will help build suitable educational series for students of the Arabic language in regular schools, in which twenty-first-century skills and standards for teaching foreign languages will be addressed and be more useful and attractive to students.

Keywords: curriculum, development, Arabic language, non-native, skills

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Authors: Diana A. Sokolova

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This article is devoted to one of the possibilities for identifying the author of an oral or written text - sociolinguistic profiling. Sociolinguistic profiling is utilized as a forensic linguistics technique to identify individuals through language patterns, particularly in criminal cases. It examines how social factors influence language use. This study aims to showcase the significance of linguistic profiling for attributing authorship in texts and emphasizes the necessity for its continuous enhancement while considering its strengths and weaknesses. The study employs semantic-syntactic, lexical-semantic, linguopragmatic, logical, presupposition, authorization, and content analysis methods to investigate linguistic profiling. The research highlights the relevance of sociolinguistic profiling in authorship attribution and underscores the importance of ongoing refinement of the technique, considering its limitations. This study emphasizes the practical application of linguistic profiling in legal settings and underscores the impact of social factors on language use, contributing to the field of forensic linguistics. Data collection involves collecting oral and written texts from criminal and civil court cases to analyze language patterns for authorship attribution. The collected data is analyzed using various linguistic analysis methods to identify individual characteristics and patterns that can aid in authorship attribution. The study addresses the effectiveness of sociolinguistic profiling in identifying authors of texts and explores the impact of social factors on language use in legal contexts. In spite of advantages challenges in linguistics profiling have spurred debates and controversies in academic circles, legal environments, and the public sphere. So, this research highlights the significance of sociolinguistic profiling in authorship attribution and emphasizes the need for further development of this method, considering its strengths and weaknesses.

Keywords: authorship attribution, detection of identifying, dialect, features, forensic linguistics, social influence, sociolinguistics, unique speech characteristics

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Authors: Arlene López-Sampson, Tony Page, Betsy Jackes

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Aquilaria genus produces a highly valuable fragrant oleoresin known as agarwood. Agarwood forms in a few trees in the wild as a response to injure or pathogen attack. The resin is used in perfume and incense industry and medicine. Cultivation of Aquilaria species as a sustainable source of the resin is now a common strategy. Physiological traits are frequently used as a proxy of crop and tree productivity. Aquilaria species growing in Queensland, Australia were studied to investigate relationship between leaf-productivity traits with tree growth. Specifically, 28 trees, representing 12 plus trees and 16 trees from yield plots, were selected to conduct carbon isotope analysis (δ13C) and monitor six leaf attributes. Trees were grouped on four diametric classes (diameter at 150 mm above ground level) ensuring the variability in growth of the whole population was sampled. Model averaging technique based on the Akaike’s information criterion (AIC) was computed to identify whether leaf traits could assist in diameter prediction. Carbon isotope values were correlated with height classes and leaf traits to determine any relationship. In average four leaves per shoot were recorded. Approximately one new leaf per week is produced by a shoot. Rate of leaf expansion was estimated in 1.45 mm day-1. There were no statistical differences between diametric classes and leaf expansion rate and number of new leaves per week (p > 0.05). Range of δ13C values in leaves of Aquilaria species was from -25.5 ‰ to -31 ‰ with an average of -28.4 ‰ (± 1.5 ‰). Only 39% of the variability in height can be explained by δ13C in leaf. Leaf δ13C and nitrogen content values were positively correlated. This relationship implies that leaves with higher photosynthetic capacities also had lower intercellular carbon dioxide concentrations (ci/ca) and less depleted values of 13C. Most of the predictor variables have a weak correlation with diameter (D). However, analysis of the 95% confidence of best-ranked regression models indicated that the predictors that could likely explain growth in Aquilaria species are petiole length (PeLen), values of δ13C (true13C) and δ15N (true15N), leaf area (LA), specific leaf area (SLA) and number of new leaf produced per week (NL.week). The model constructed with PeLen, true13C, true15N, LA, SLA and NL.week could explain 45% (R2 0.4573) of the variability in D. The leaf traits studied gave a better understanding of the leaf attributes that could assist in the selection of high-productivity trees in Aquilaria.

Keywords: 13C, petiole length, specific leaf area, tree growth

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Authors: Deborah Idowu

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This research delves into the effectiveness of explicitly teaching productive non-cognate French suffixes to English beginner learners of the French language. It is widely accepted that cognates, especially orthographic ones, can be inferred by learners from their first language (in this case, English). The same is the case for derived French words with cognate suffixes, provided the learner is familiar with the lemma, which can either be cognate or non-cognate. However, the same cannot be said for derived French words with non-cognate suffixes. These suffixes often pose challenges to learners, even when the base word is familiar to them. The primary goal of this research is to enhance the vocabulary comprehension and expansion of English-speaking beginners in French by focusing on the recognition of derived French words that may not align with their L1 knowledge. The methodology employed in this study of derivational morphology involves an experimental group receiving explicit instruction on productive non-cognate suffixes, while a control group does not. By utilizing confidence ratings and other analytical tools, the analysis aims to measure the impact of this targeted instruction on the learners' ability to understand and incorporate non-cognate suffixes into their French vocabulary. Through this experimental approach, the research seeks to provide valuable insights into how explicit instruction on non-cognate suffixes can benefit beginner French learners, ultimately aiding them in navigating the intricacies of French derivational morphology. The objectives of this research are as follows: i. to investigate the impact of explicitly teaching productive non-cognate suffixes on the vocabulary comprehension and expansion of beginner learners of the French language; ii. to assess the effectiveness of targeted instruction on non-cognate suffixes in aiding English-speaking learners in recognizing and understanding derived French words that may not align with their native language knowledge, iii. to compare the vocabulary acquisition and retention of beginner French learners who receive explicit instruction on non-cognate suffixes with those who do not to determine the effectiveness of this instructional approach, iv. to analyze the confidence ratings and other analytical methods to gauge the learners' ability to integrate non-cognate suffixes into their French vocabulary and comprehend the meaning of derived words more effectively, v. to contribute insights into how explicit instruction on non-cognate suffixes can enhance the overall language learning experience for beginner learners of French, particularly in the area of French derivational morphology.

Keywords: suffixes, derivational morphology, non-cognates, vocabulary acquisition, French language learners

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Authors: Galit Harel

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Deborah was referred for psychoanalytic psychotherapy following a suicide attempt and depression. She began a fascinating journey spanning more than 10 years. During therapy, many questions arose concerning the suicidal episode, which she could not register consciously. The author tried to understand the reasons for her depression and the attempted suicide through the unconscious process in the therapeutic relationship and through the music and poetry that she brought to sessions. In this paper, the author describes the process of listening for the signifiers of semiotic and symbolic language, both metaphoric and metonymic, as revealed in poetry and music according to the theories of Kristeva and Lacan. The poetry enabled the patient to retrieve childhood memories, experience the movement from unconscious to conscious, and mourn through the experience of transference and countertransference in the therapeutic relationship. Also illustrated is the transition from singing the music to more symbolic language, turning the patient’s sensory experience into language, and connecting her personal experience with the culture of her past. The patient’s mourning and the lost love objects are discussed through the prism of classical and object relations theories.

Keywords: depression, lost love object, psychoanalytic psychotherapy, suicide attempt, symbolization of desire

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Authors: Salah Brahim Belakhdar, Tari Mohammed Amin, Rafai Abderrahmen, Amalsi Bilal

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Shear strength of sandy soils has been considered as the important parameter to study the stability of different civil engineering structures when subjected to monotonic, cyclic, and earthquake loading conditions. The proposed research investigated the effect of grading characteristics on the shear strength and mechanical behaviour of granular classes of sands mixed with salt in loose and dense states (Dr=15% and 90%). The laboratory investigation aimed at understanding the extent or degree at which shear strength of sand-silt mixture soil is affected by its gradation under static loading conditions. For the purpose of clarifying and evaluating the shear strength characteristics of sandy soils, a series of Casagrande shear box tests were carried out on different reconstituted samples of sand-silt mixtures with various gradations. The soil samples were tested under different normal stresses (100, 200, and 300 kPa). The results from this laboratory investigation were used to develop insight into the shear strength response of sand and sand-silt mixtures under monotonic loading conditions. The analysis of the obtained data revealed that the grading characteristics (D10, D50, Cu, ESR, and MGSR) have a significant influence on the shear strength response. It was found that shear strength can be correlated to the grading characteristics for the sand-silt mixture. The effective size ratio (ESR) and mean grain size ratio (MGSR) appear as pertinent parameters to predict the shear strength response of the sand-silt mixtures for soil gradation under study.

Keywords: mechanical behavior, silty sand, friction angle, cohesion, fines content

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Authors: Bing-Qing Lu, Hui-Tzu Min

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Recent research, supported by sociocultural theory, has shown that collaborative writing in the second language (L2) contexts afford students opportunities to interact with each other to co-construct knowledge during the co-composing process. To date, much research on pair interaction in L2 collaborative writing settings has centered on intermediate and advanced learners by using static categorization of pair interaction patterns. Little is known about the fluid nature of pair interaction during collaborative writing, especially among low-proficiency learners. This study, thus, is aimed to explore the interaction dynamics of low-proficiency L2 learners during collaborative writing via examining the interaction pattern, focus of interaction, and the language related episodes (LREs) of 5 low-proficiency L2 writers from Taiwan. Employing a micro-level functional analytical method to capture the changing nature of pair interaction dynamics, the researchers calculated the number of characters/words produced by each pair member during CW and then classified their utterances into four task related-aspects--content, organization, language use, and task management--to determine each pair member's relative contribution to different dimensions of the evolving text. The LREs were also identified and examined. The results show that, of the five pairs, three pairs changed their interaction patterns when discussing different aspects of writing. Regarding the focus of their interaction, all five pairs paid attention to content most, followed by language use, task management, and organization. They were able to successfully resolve the majority of language issues (75.2%) in LREs and use the correct forms in their writing. These findings lend support to the fluid nature of pairs’ interactions and the changing roles of L2 learners in collaborative writing and highlighted the necessity of examining learners’ interaction patterns from a micro-level perspective. These findings also support previous research that low-proficiency pairs are able to correctly revolve 2/3 of their produced LREs, suggesting that collaborative writing may also be suitable for L2 low-proficiency learners.

Keywords: collaborative writing, low-proficiency L2 learners, micro-level functional analysis, pair interaction pattern

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Authors: Gaston Bacquet

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The purpose of this research is to explore how language and culture shape a learner’s identity as they immerse themselves in the world of second language learning and how teachers can assist in the process of identity construction within a classroom setting. The study will be conducted as an in-classroom ethnography, using a qualitative methods approach and analyzing students’ experiences as language learners, their degree of investment, inclusion/exclusion, and attitudes, both towards themselves and their social context; the research question the study will attempt to answer is: What kind of pedagogical interventions are needed to help language learners in the process of identity construction so they can offset unequal conditions of power and gain further social inclusion? The following methods will be used for data collection: i) Questionnaires to investigate learners’ attitudes and feelings in different areas divided into four strands: themselves, their classroom, learning English and their social context. ii) Participant observations, conducted in a naturalistic manner. iii) Journals, which will be used in two different ways: on the one hand, learners will keep semi-structured, solicited diaries to record specific events as requested by the researcher (event-contingent). On the other, the researcher will keep his journal to maintain a record of events and situations as they happen to reduce the risk of inaccuracies. iv) Person-centered interviews, which will be conducted at the end of the study to unearth data that might have been occluded or be unclear from the methods above. The interviews will aim at gaining further data on experiences, behaviors, values, opinions, feelings, knowledge and sensory, background and demographic information. This research seeks to understand issues of socio-cultural identities and thus make a significant contribution to knowledge in this area by investigating the type of pedagogical interventions needed to assist language learners in the process of identity construction to achieve further social inclusion. It will also have applied relevance for those working with diverse student groups, especially taking our present social context into consideration: we live in a highly mobile world, with migrants relocating to wealthier, more developed countries that pose their own particular set of challenges for these communities. This point is relevant because an individual’s insight and understanding of their own identity shape their relationship with the world and their ability to continue constructing this relationship. At the same time, because a relationship is influenced by power, the goal of this study is to help learners feel and become more empowered by increasing their linguistic capital, which we hope might result in a greater ability to integrate themselves socially. Exactly how this help will be provided will vary as data is unearthed through questionnaires, focus groups and the actual participant observations being carried out.

Keywords: identity construction, second-language learning, investment, second-language culture, social inclusion

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Authors: Amira D. Ali

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Action research studies in education often address learners’ needs and empower practitioner-researcher to effectively change instructional practices and school communities. A systematic review of action research (AR) studies undertaken in EFL/ESL settings was conducted in this paper to systematically analyze empirical studies on action research published within a ten-year period (between 2010 and 2019). The review also aimed at investigating the focal strategies in teaching the language skills at school level and evaluating the overall quality of AR studies concerning focus, purpose, methodology and contribution. Inclusion criteria were established and 41 studies that fit were finally selected for the systematic review. Garrard’s (2007) Matrix Method was used to structure and synthesize the literature. Results showed a significant diversity in teaching strategies and implementation of the AR model. Almost a quarter of the studies focused on improving writing skills at elementary school level. In addition, findings revealed that (44%) of the studies used a mixed approach followed by qualitative method approach (41%), whereas only (15%) employed quantitative methodology. Research gaps for future action research in developing language skills were pointed out, and recommendations were offered.

Keywords: action research, EFL/ESL context, language skills, systematic review

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Authors: Ohood Alshammary

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This study explores the current situation of teacher professional development, focusing on challenges experienced by English language teachers at a Saudi Arabian university. The study examines the current context of English language department (ELD) teachers in relation to PD activities available and the nature of the challenges they face in their attempts to engage in PD. The study adopted an interpretive approach to understanding the current situation of teachers working at the English language department (ELD) at one Saudi Arabian university. The study's findings reveal that participating teachers were aware of the significance of PD but were disappointed that the voices of teachers were not heard. The research reveals many challenges; lack of autonomy, insufficient time, heavy workloads, unsupportive working environments, and PD activities that were not considered necessary by the participants. Teachers viewed PD as subject to a top-down system, causing them to feel professionally undermined, lacking autonomy, and forced to comply with university rules. The study makes several recommendations for improving the PD experience and helping raise institutional awareness of the need to encourage teacher engagement and recommend enhancements to ELD teachers' professional development based on teachers' perspectives.

Keywords: adult learning., professional development, PD challenge, teacher perspective

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Authors: Kim Bower

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Evaluating and researching motivation in language learning is a complex and multi-faceted activity. Various models for investigating learner motivation have been proposed in the literature, but no one model supplies a complex and coherent model for investigating a range of motivational characteristics. Here, such a methodological framework, which includes exemplification of sources of evidence and potential methods of investigation, is proposed. The process model for the investigation of motivation within language learning settings proposed is based on a complex dynamic systems perspective that takes account of cognition and affects. It focuses on three overarching aspects of motivation: the learning environment, learner engagement and learner identities. Within these categories subsets are defined: the learning environment incorporates teacher, course and group specific aspects of motivation; learner engagement addresses the principal characteristics of learners' perceived value of activities, their attitudes towards language learning, their perceptions of their learning and engagement in learning tasks; and within learner identities, principal characteristics of self-concept and mastery of the language are explored. Exemplifications of potential sources of evidence in the model reflect the multiple influences within and between learner and environmental factors and the possible changes in both that may emerge over time. The model was initially developed as a framework for investigating different models of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) in contrasting contexts in secondary schools in England. The study, from which examples are drawn to exemplify the model, aimed to address the following three research questions: (1) in what ways does CLIL impact on learner motivation? (2) what are the main elements of CLIL that enhance motivation? and (3) to what extent might these be transferable to other contexts? This new model has been tried and tested in three locations in England and reported as case studies. Following an initial visit to each institution to discuss the qualitative research, instruments were developed according to the proposed model. A questionnaire was drawn up and completed by one group prior to a 3-day data collection visit to each institution, during which interviews were held with academic leaders, the head of the department, the CLIL teacher(s), and two learner focus groups of six-eight learners. Interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. 2-4 naturalistic observations of lessons were undertaken in each setting, as appropriate to the context, to provide colour and thereby a richer picture. Findings were subjected to an interpretive analysis by the themes derived from the process model and are reported elsewhere. The model proved to be an effective and coherent framework for planning the research, instrument design, data collection and interpretive analysis of data in these three contrasting settings, in which different models of language learning were in place. It is hoped that the proposed model, reported here together with exemplification and commentary, will enable teachers and researchers in a wide range of language learning contexts to investigate learner motivation in a systematic and in-depth manner.

Keywords: investigate, language-learning, learner motivation model, dynamic systems perspective

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Authors: Archit Yajnik

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Part of Speech Tagging has always been a challenging task in the era of Natural Language Processing. This article presents POS tagging for Nepali text using Hidden Markov Model and Viterbi algorithm. From the Nepali text, annotated corpus training and testing data set are randomly separated. Both methods are employed on the data sets. Viterbi algorithm is found to be computationally faster and accurate as compared to HMM. The accuracy of 95.43% is achieved using Viterbi algorithm. Error analysis where the mismatches took place is elaborately discussed.

Keywords: hidden markov model, natural language processing, POS tagging, viterbi algorithm

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