Search results for: indigenous language

Authors: Ayoola Idowu Olasebikan

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The global community has become increasingly dependent on various kinds of technologies out of which Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) appear to be the most prominent. ICTs have become multipurpose tools which have had a revolutionary impact on how we see the world and how we live in it. Yoruba is the most widely spoken African language outside Africa but it remains one of the badly spoken language in the world as a result of its outdated teaching method in the African schools which prevented its standard version from being spoken and written. This paper conducts a critical review of the traditional methods of teaching Yoruba language. It then examines the possibility of leveraging on ICTs for improved methods of teaching Yoruba language to achieve global standard and spread. It identified key ICT platforms that can be deployed for the teaching of Yoruba language and the constraints facing each of them. The paper concludes that Information and Communication Technologies appear to provide veritable opportunity for paradigm shift in the methods of teaching Yoruba Language. It also opines that Yoruba language has the potential to transform economic fortune of Africa for sustainable development provided its teaching is taken beyond the brick and mortar classroom to the virtual classroom/global information super highway called internet or any other ICTs medium. It recommends that students and teachers of Yoruba language should be encouraged to acquire basic skills in computer and internet technology in order to enhance their ability to develop and retrieve electronic Yoruba language teaching materials.

Keywords: Africa, ICT, teaching method, Yoruba language

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Authors: Aziz Soubai

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The primary issue is that English as foreign language learners don’t use English outside the classroom. The only little exposure is inside the classroom, and that’s not enough to make them good language learners! Edmodo, like the other Learning Management Systems, can be used to encourage students to collaborate with each other and with global classrooms on projects where English is used- Some examples of collaboration with different schools will be mentioned and how the Substitution Augmentation Modification Redefinition (SAMR) model and its stages can be applied in the activities, especially for teachers who are hesitant to introduce technology or don’t have a lot of technical knowledge. There will also be some focus on Edmodo groups and on how flipped and blended learning can be used as an extension for classroom time and to help the teacher address language problems and improve students’ language skills, especially writing, reading and communication. It is also equally important to use Edmodo badges and certificates for motivating and engaging learners and gamifying the lesson.

Keywords: EFL learners, language classroom-learning management system, edmodo, SAMR, language skills

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Authors: Grace Temiloluwa Agbede, Rodwell Makombe, Gift Mheta

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The study adopts a sociolinguistic framework to analyse trado-medical and church advertisements in Nigeria. The study employs a qualitative case-study approach to examine the language of trado-medical and church adverts in Nigeria. Obviously, language serves as an instrument of thought. Thus, it is safe to say that language is at the centre of every human activity and experience because it differentiates human beings from all other animals. The study analyses the appropriateness of language and visual elements in trado-medical and church advertisements in relation to their meaning. It focuses on billboard advertisements as well as selected Newspapers in Nigeria. It then became clearer that society influences language and vice versa. Thus, the justification for this study is predicated on the fact that more work still needs to be done to unpack the intertwined relationship among sociolinguistics, visual culture and advertisement. Given that this research focuses on visual advertisements by traditional medical practitioners and churches in Nigeria, it is therefore necessary to investigate the interplay between language and visuality in advertisements by traditional medical practitioners and churches.

Keywords: commercials, culture, language, visuality

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Authors: Pouya Vakili

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The aim of present paper is to have a rough comparison between language proficiency and communicative competence, moreover, how different scholars in the field of second language acquisition/assessment have defined competence in different paradigms. Researchers differ, however, in how they view 'competence'. Those who are dealing with generative tradition associated with Chomsky have defined it as linguistic competence (knowledge of the grammar of L2). Other researchers have adopted a broader perspective that is examining how learners acquire communicative competence (knowledge of both the L2 grammar and of how this system is put to use in actual communication).

Keywords: communicative competence, competence, language proficiency, linguistic competence

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Authors: Chong Ling Ling

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In the Malaysian polytechnic, there are concerns about language proficiency, communicative competence, and employability among Malaysian polytechnic ESL engineering students. This study examined the relationships between communicative competence, language proficiency, and employability using descriptive analysis and inferential statistics. Next, Pearson’s Correlation determines the correlation between communication competence, language proficiency, and employability skills of Malaysian Polytechnic ESL engineering students. The total number of participants was 81 final-year engineering students. The findings revealed high positive correlations between the communicative competence -'I can talk with a friend in English.' and employability skill (r = 0.854, p = .031), also, language proficiency -'I can understand the English songs I listen to' and employability skill (r = 0.887, p = .038). The result is consistent with the theories. The result revealed that for the 81 students, communication competence and language proficiency, and employability skills are firmly and significantly correlated. Thus, it concluded that both communicative competence and language proficiency equally essential to ensure a higher employability rate among Malaysian polytechnic ESL engineering students.

Keywords: communicative competence, employability, language proficiency, Malaysian polytechnic

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Authors: Milagros S. Salibad, Levita B. Grana

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The presence and role of Indigenous Peoples (IPs) residing in key biodiversity, protected, and watershed areas within the ancestral domain in the Caraga region, Mindanao, Philippines, hold immense significance. Recognizing their importance and rights, this study aimed to determine the level of biodiversity conservation practices and extent of environmental stewardship among the Mamanwas, Manobos, and Higaonons, assess potential differences in these practices, and identify factors that facilitate or hinder them. Employing an explanatory sequential mixed-method research design, 421 respondents participated through a researcher-made questionnaire. Additional data were collected through focus group discussions, key informant interviews, researcher field notes, community immersions, and secondary sources. The results revealed a high level of biodiversity conservation practices across the three IP groups, with variations influenced by their cultural and traditional practices, awareness, and access to resources and information. Each group exhibited unique environmental practices shaped by their distinct cultures, traditions, and customary knowledge. They have a strong sense of ownership and responsibility towards their ancestral lands and territories and adopt traditional knowledge and practices that promote sustainable resource management and biodiversity conservation. These practices align with the Indigenous Peoples Rights Act (IPRA), also known as Republic Act No. 8371. Various facilitating and hindering factors influenced their conservation efforts. To uphold the region's biodiversity resources, it is recommended that government agencies continue to evaluate and monitor the sustainability of IPs' local biodiversity conservation practices. Additionally, efforts should be made to involve IP communities as essential contributors and stakeholders in these conservation endeavors.

Keywords: biodiversity, conservation, indigenous peoples, traditional knowledge, environmental stewardship

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Authors: Rudinë Fetahaj, Flaka Isufi, Kristina Hansson

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While evidence shows that in most European countries’ multilingualism is rising, unfortunately, the focus of Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) is still monolingualism. Furthermore, there is sparse information on how the needs of multilingual children with language disorders such as Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) are being met and which factors affect the intervention approach of SLTs when treating DLD. This study aims to examine the relationship and correlation between the number of languages SLTs speak, years of experience, and length of education with the advice they give to parents of multilingual children with DLD regarding which language to be spoken. This is a cross-sectional study where a survey was completed online by 2608 SLTs across Europe and data has been used from a 2017 COST-action project. IBM-SPSS-28 was used where descriptive analysis, correlation and Kruskal-Wallis test were performed.SLTs mainly advise the parents of multilingual children with DLD to speak their native language at home. Besides years of experience, language status and the level of education showed to have no association with the type of advice SLTs give. Results showed a non-significant moderate positive correlation between SLTs years of experience and their advice regarding the native language, whereas language status and length of education showed no correlation with the advice SLTs give to parents.

Keywords: quantitative study, developmental language disorders, multilingualism, speech and language therapy, children, European context

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Authors: Ayla Hoeta, Holly Winton

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Maramataka is an ancestral lunar environmental knowledge system based on environmental tohu (signs, observations or indicators), that continues to impart maatauranga (knowledge) to tangata whenua, people of the land after thousands of years. Maramataka is the mauri (energy) flow between whenua (land), moana (water) and rangi (sky), experienced through tirotiro (observing), connecting and attuning to the natural environment. Tohu serve as guidance to practises of kaiawhina (protection) a key value driving Aotearoa New Zealand led research in Antarctica. Recent developments recognise the importance of including and integrating indigenous knowledge and perspectives such as maatauranga Maaori which can provide insights into the conservation of Antarctica. We use an ancient kaupapa Maaori framework of weaving, wayfinding and attunement to navigate complexities using Hautu Waka. We investigate and weave together learnings from Antarctic and western science and indigenous Maaori maatauranga and tohu of moana, whenua and rangi to provide an indigenous perspective of Antarctica taiao and Maramataka. Drawing on past and present knowledge of environmental calendars contained in maatauranga Maaori and paleoclimate knowledge bases, field observations, interviews and whakataukii (proverbs), we aim to provide a conceptual Maramataka of the southwestern Ross Sea region and area of Antarctica. A key area of interest are the tohu related to the marama which are connected to all three interweaving spheres of moana, rangi, whenua. Maatauranga Maramataka in Aotearoa has been developed over millennia and we acknowledge the mana and sacredness of this tupuna knowledge and that this conceptual Maramataka serves as the starting point of a journey to shine light on indigenous perspectives using Maaori methods and frameworks in a dominant western science paradigm.

Keywords: Maramataka, Antarctica, Aotearoa, Maaori, tohu, moon, lunar calendar

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Authors: L. Freeborn

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Recent years have seen an increasing number of neuroimaging studies related to language learning as imaging techniques such as fMRI and EEG have become more widely accessible to researchers. By using a variety of structural and functional neuroimaging techniques, these studies have already made considerable progress in terms of our understanding of neural networks and processing related to first and second language acquisition. However, the methodological designs employed in neuroimaging studies to test language learning have been questioned by applied linguists working within the field of second language acquisition (SLA). One of the major criticisms is that tasks designed to measure language learning gains rarely have a communicative function, and seldom assess learners’ ability to use the language in authentic situations. This brings the validity of many neuroimaging tasks into question. The fundamental reason why people learn a language is to communicate, and it is well-known that both first and second language proficiency are developed through meaningful social interaction. With this in mind, the SLA field is in agreement that second language acquisition and proficiency should be measured through learners’ ability to communicate in authentic real-life situations. Whilst authenticity is not always possible to achieve in a classroom environment, the importance of task authenticity should be reflected in the design of language assessments, teaching materials, and curricula. Tasks that bear little relation to how language is used in real-life situations can be considered to lack construct validity. This paper first describes the typical tasks used in neuroimaging studies to measure language gains and proficiency, then analyses to what extent these tasks can validly assess these constructs.

Keywords: neuroimaging studies, research design, second language acquisition, task validity

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Authors: Marina Galakhova

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Nowadays, language variants, as well as minority languages and cultures, are of increased interest, and the desire to protect them is rising. The Maori language is defined as a vulnerable language by UNESCO. Its usage is confined to intra-family communication. It is not being utilized by the younger generation or being taught at an early age; therefore, it is being replaced by more frequently used languages. Maori loanwords are a unique part of New Zealand English. That is why it is worth our attention. The aim of this study is to investigate Maori cultural loanwords in the New Zealand media. Methods of analysis of lexical units, etymological interpretation, and linguocultural commenting were used. The results of the research show that Maori borrowings are used in the media, not only with regard to Maori people but also to the whole nation. The Maori language is often used in media texts, most often without a translation in English. Not only are words borrowed, but also cultural concepts. The language usage is limited to the following spheres: everyday life, education, religion, and media. The conclusion can also be drawn that Maori words are used to emphasize a new bicultural national identity; the revival of the Maori language and culture contributed to a large number of borrowings into New Zealand English. It has been established that the Maori language is substratum because Maori provides an intrusive language, which is English with language material. It is stated that the number of borrowings denoting Maori culture is very significant. This group is even greater than the group relating to flora and fauna. Language policy in New Zealand is designed to protect and promote the Maori language and culture. Tables of Maori loanwords are also presented.

Keywords: loanwords, Maori, minority languages, New Zealand

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Authors: Adeyemo Abduljeeel Taiwo

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This research is an attempt that creates a conducive atmosphere of a phonological and morphological compendium of Arabic language in Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) for modern day communications. The research is carried out with the chief aim of grammatical analysis of the two broad fields of Arabic linguistics namely: Applied and Socio-Linguistics. It draws a pictorial record of Applied and Socio-Linguistics in Arabic phonology and morphology. Thematically, it postulates and contemplates to a large degree, the theory of concord in contemporary modern Arabic language acquisition. It utilizes an analytical method while it portrays Arabic as a Semitic language that promotes linguistics and syntax among the scholars of the fields.

Keywords: Arabic language, applied linguistics, socio-linguistics, modern communications

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Authors: Zahra Mirsanjari

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Research in the field of education has widely documented that teachers’ sense of efficacy has strong impacts on various aspects of teaching and learning. The present study is an attempt to examine Iranian EFL teachers’ degree of self-efficacy for teaching English. The data required for the study was gathered from Iranian EFL teachers teaching English as a foreign language in different schools and language institutes in Iran. Data were collected using Teacher’s Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES). Results identified four dimensions of teachers’ English teaching-specific sense of efficacy: instructional strategies, classroom Management, Student Engagement, and Oral English Language Use.It was also found that teachers rated their self-efficacy in teaching English at a moderate level in the dimensions of instructional strategies, classroom management, and student engagement. Results have implications for language teachers and practitioners.

Keywords: self-efficacy, English Language teaching, EFL teachers, language teachers and practitioners.

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Authors: Karlygash Adamova

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This article is focused on the KazTest as one of the most important high-stakes tests and the key tool in Kazakh language assessment. The research will also include the brief introduction to the language policy in Kazakhstan. Particularly, it is going to be changed significantly and turn from bilingualism (Kazakh, Russian) to multilingual policy (three languages - Kazakh, Russian, English). Therefore, the current status of the abovementioned languages will be described. Due to the various educational reforms in the country, the language evaluation system should also be improved and moderated. The research will present the most significant test of Kazakhstan – the KazTest, which is aimed to evaluate the Kazakh language proficiency. Assessment is an ongoing process that encompasses a wide area of knowledge upon the productive performance of the learners. Test is widely defined as a standardized or standard method of research, testing, diagnostics, verification, etc. The two most important characteristics of any test, as the main element of the assessment - validity and reliability - will also be described in this paper. Therefore, the preparation and design of the test, which is assumed to be an indicator of knowledge, and it is highly important to take into account all these properties.

Keywords: multilingualism, language assessment, testing, language policy

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Authors: Elahesadat Emrani

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The role of psychology in language teaching has gained significant recognition and importance in recent years. This article explores the intersection of psychology and language teaching and highlights the profound impact that psychological principles and theories have on language learning and instruction. It discusses how an understanding of learners' cognitive processes, motivations, and affective factors can inform instructional strategies, curriculum design, and assessment practices. Additionally, the article sheds light on the importance of considering individual differences and diverse learning styles within the psychological framework of language teaching. This article emphasizes the significance of incorporating psychological insights into language classrooms to create a supportive and effective learning environment. Furthermore, it acknowledges the role of psychology in fostering learner autonomy, enhancing learner motivation, promoting effective communication, and facilitating language acquisition. Overall, this article underscores the necessity of integrating psychology into language teaching practices to optimize learning outcomes and nurture learners' linguistic and socio-emotional development. So far, no complete research has been done in this regard, and this article deals with this important issue for the first time. The research method is based on qualitative method and case studies, and the role of psychological principles in strengthening the learner's independence, increasing motivation, and facilitating language learning. Also, the optimization of learning results and fostering language and social development are among the findings of the research.

Keywords: language, teaching, psychology, methods

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Authors: Eman Mohamed Abdelwahab, Badreyya Alkhanbooli

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This study focuses on exploring the challenges encountered by English language teachers in same-ability English language classrooms in the United Arab Emirates public schools. This qualitative study uses open-ended questions for data collection from teacher participants. The study sample includes the participation of 60 English language teachers from 8 public schools across 4 emirates/cities in the United Arab Emirates. The study results highlight a number of challenges that are mostly encountered by English language teachers in their classrooms while teaching in same-ability classrooms, including lack of diversity in abilities, class-time limitation, difficulty in engaging all students (especially lower-achieving students), limited opportunities for peer learning and limited linguistic diversity. A set of suggestions is to be provided by participating teachers and researchers to improve the same-ability teaching and learning experience in English language classrooms.

Keywords: English language teaching, same ability grouping, ESL, English language learners

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Authors: Aicha Zohbie

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The purpose of this paper is to critically compare two teaching methods: the communicative method and the grammar-translation method. The paper presents the importance of language awareness as an approach to teaching and learning language and some challenges that language teachers face. In addition, the paper strives to determine whether the adoption of communicative teaching methods or the grammar teaching method would be more effective to teach a language. A variety of features are considered for comparing the two methods: the purpose of each method, techniques used, teachers’ and students’ roles, the use of L1, the skills that are emphasized, the correction of students’ errors, and the students’ assessments. Finally, the paper includes suggestions and recommendations for implementing an approach that best meets the students’ needs in a classroom.

Keywords: language teaching methods, language awareness, communicative method grammar translation method, advantages and disadvantages

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Authors: Hoi Yan Lau

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In Hong Kong, most families have working parents, and the primary caregivers of young children are helpers. This leads to a lack of interaction and language expression in children’s home environment, which affects their language development. This study aims to explore the effectiveness of parent-child reading in improving young children’s language skills. A 4-year-old girl and her mother are recruited to a 3 months’ parent-child reading program. There is a total of 26 reading sessions which target to enhance the parent’s skill of parent-child reading and to assess the child’s language ability. At the same time, the child’s use of language in normal classroom settings is analyzed by anecdotal records. It is shown that the parent is able to use more and better guiding questions during parent-child reading after this program, which in turn leads to more and longer response of the child during the reading sessions. The child also has an increase in Mean Length of Utterance and has a higher frequency of using complete sentences when interacting with other classmates in the classroom. It is worthwhile to further investigate the inclusion of promoting parent-child reading to enhance children’s language development in preschool curriculum planning.

Keywords: Hong Kong, language skills, parent-child reading, preschoolers

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Authors: Genevieve Jorolan Quintero

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In Mindanao, the southern island of the Philippines, two provinces, Davao Oriental and Tboli of South Cotabato, respectively, are homes to indigenous communities known for their dream weavers. Davao Oriental is home to the Mandaya, while Lake Sebu is home to the Tboli. The dream weavers are mostly women who have continued the tradition of weaving, a spiritual practice of handicraft embodying the beliefs of the community. It is believed that a weaver is guided by the Tagamaling, or the nature spirit in Mandaya mythology, and Fu Dalu, or the spirit of the abaca among the Tboli. In the dream, the Tagamaling or Fu Dalu reveals to the weaver the design or the pattern of the dagmay as the abaca woven cloth is called among the Mandaya and the tnalak among the Tboli. The weaver then undertakes the production of this nature-spirit-inspired fabric based on her memory of the dream. This interaction between the spirit world and the human world inspired the theme of the short story with the title Loom of Dreams, published in 2015 by Kritika Kultura, an international peer-reviewed journal of language and literary/cultural studies of the Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines. In Lake Sebu, a collection of the legendary tnalak with various designs is preserved by the cultural advocate and tnalak collector Reden S. Ulo. About a hundred tnalak designs are housed in a mini museum. The paper discusses how the dagmay and the tnalak of the two Philippine indigenous communities, the Mandaya and the Tboli, embody their folklore and cultural heritage. The specific objectives are: 1. To describe the role of the dreamweavers among the Mandaya and Tboli communities in the Philippines; 2. To analyse how folklore influences the designs on the woven fabric, the dagmay, and the tnalak, and 3. To discuss how dream-weaving helps preserve culture legacy. Ethnography was used in the conduct of this research. Specifically, the following data collection methods were done: 1. a series of visits to the Mandaya and Tboli communities; 2. face-to-face interviews with the respondents from the communities, and 3. the recording of the interviews with the knowledge-bearers and material culture keepers from both communities, the narratives of which were used as a basis for the data analysis. The influence of folklore in the culture and the arts of the indigenous communities is significantly evident in the designs of the dagmay and the tnalak. As the dream weavers continue to weave the dagmay and the tnalak, this cultural legacy will continue to prosper and be preserved for posterity.

Keywords: dreamweaver's, Mandaya, mindanao, Philippine folklore, Tboli

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Authors: Ambika Prasad Gupta, Harshit Sosan Lakra

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Food security is an important issue that has been widely discussed in literature. However, there is a lack of research on the specific food security challenges faced by tribal communities. Tribal food security refers to the ability of indigenous or tribal communities to consistently access and afford an adequate and nutritious supply of food. These communities often have unique cultural, social, and economic contexts that can impact their food security. The study aims to assess the food security status of all thirty-two major tribes, including Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG) people living in various blocks of Jharkhand State. The methodology of this study focuses on measuring the food security index of indigenous people by developing and redefining a new Tribal Food Security Index (TFSI) as per the indigenous community-level indicators identified by the Global Food Security Index and other indicators relevant to food security. Affordability, availability, quality and safety, and natural resources were the dimensions used to calculate the overall Tribal Food Security Index. A survey was conducted for primary data collection of tribes and PVTGs at the household level in various districts of Jharkhand with a considerable tribal population. The result shows that due to the transition from rural to urban areas, there is a considerable change in TFSI and a decrease in forest dependency of tribal communities. Socioeconomic factors like occupation and household size had a significant correlation with TFSI. Tribal households living in forests have a higher food security index than tribal households residing in urban transition areas. The study also shows that alternative methodology adopted to measure specific community-level food security creates high significant impact than using commonly used indices.

Keywords: indigenous people, tribal food security, particularly vulnerable tribal groups, Jharkhand

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Authors: Andrew R. Beatty

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The exploitation of Australia’s vast mineral wealth is regulated by a matrix of planning, environment and heritage legislation, and despite the desire for a ‘balance’ between economic, environmental and heritage values, Aboriginal objects and places are often detrimentally impacted by mining approvals. The Australian experience is not novel. There are other cases of clashes between the rights of traditional landowners and businesses seeking to exploit mineral or other resources on or beneath those lands, including in the United States, Canada, and Brazil. How one reconciles the rights of traditional owners with those of resource companies is an ongoing legal problem of general interest. In Australia, planning and environmental approvals for resource projects are ordinarily issued by State or Territory governments. Federal legislation such as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 (Cth) is intended to act as a safety net when State or Territory legislation is incapable of protecting Indigenous objects or places in the context of approvals for resource projects. This paper will analyse the context and effectiveness of legislation enacted to protect Indigenous heritage in the planning process. In particular, the paper will analyse how the statutory objects of such legislation need to be weighed against the statutory objects of competing legislation designed to facilitate and control resource exploitation. Using a current claim in the Federal Court of Australia for the protection of a culturally significant landscape as a case study, this paper will examine the challenges faced in ascribing value to cultural heritage within the wider context of environmental and planning laws. Our findings will reveal that there is an inherent difficulty in defining and weighing competing economic, environmental and heritage considerations. An alternative framework will be proposed to guide regulators towards making decisions that result in better protection of Indigenous heritage in the context of resource management.

Keywords: environmental law, heritage law, indigenous rights, mining

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Authors: Japhet Asanji

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The bases of this research were to explore student’s perception of home background and the acquisition of English Language in Mbonge Municipality by examining how financial status, level of education, marital status and parenting styles of their parents influence English Language Acquisition. Using random sampling techniques, closed-ended questionnaires were administered to 60 students, and the data was analysed using descriptive statistical analysis. The results reaffirm the positive relationship between student’s perception of home background and the acquisition of English language. Contributions, limitations, and direction for further research are also discussed.

Keywords: student, home background, English language acquisition, Cameroon

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Authors: Belkhadir Radouane

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In this study, author tried to explore the beliefs of some Moroccan teachers working in the delegations of Safi and Youcefia about the usefulness of first and second languages in learning the third language. More specifically, author attempted to see the extent to which these teachers believe that a first and second language can serve students in learning a third one. The first language in this context is Arabic, the second is French, and the third is English. The teachers’ beliefs were gathered through a questionnaire that was addressed via Google Forms. Then, the results were analyzed using the same application. It was found that teachers are positive about the usefulness of the first and second language in learning the third one, but most of them rarely use in a conscious way activities that serve this purpose.

Keywords: Bilinguilism, teachers beliefs, English as ESL, Morocco

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Authors: Manthekeleng Linake, Fesi Liziwe

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The ongoing argument over the use of English as a learning and teaching language in schools was examined in this study. The nature of the language proficiency gap is particularly relevant in light of the present emphasis on learning and educational quality in contemporary debates, as well as the education sustainable development goal. As a result, an interpretivist paradigm, a qualitative technique, and a case study-based research design were used in the work. Two school principals, two teachers, two members of the School Governing Body (SGB), and four learners were chosen using purposive sampling from two schools in the Amathole West Education District. The researchers were able to acquire in-depth information on the disputes surrounding the use of English as a language of learning and teaching by using semi-structured interview questions and focus groups. Despite knowing that they do not have the potential to do well in English, teachers found that despite appreciating the value of mother tongue and cultural identity, they prefer to use English as the language of teaching in schools. The findings, on the other hand, revealed that proponents of mother-language-based education argue that learning one's mother tongue is a human right.

Keywords: English first additional language learners, social justice, human capabilities, language proficiency

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Authors: Saeid Rabiei Majd, Motahareh Alvandi, Bahareh Asefi

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Extraction of maximum natural resources is one of the common policies of governments, especially petroleum resources that have high economic and strategic value. The incentive to access and maintain profitable oil markets for governments or international oil companies, causing neglects them to pay attention to environmental principles and sustainable development, which in turn drives up environmental and climate change. Significant damage to the environment can cause severe damage to citizens and indigenous people, such as the compulsory evacuation of their zone due to contamination of water and air resources, destruction of animals and plants. Hawizeh Marshes is a common aquatic and environmental ecosystem along the Iran-Iraq border that also has oil resources. This marsh has been very rich in animal, vegetative, and oil resources. Since 1990, the political motives, the strategic importance of oil extraction, and the disregard for the environmental rights of the Iraqi and Iranian governments in the region have caused 90% of the marshes and forced migration of indigenous people. In this paper, we examine the environmental degradation factors resulting from the adoption of policies and practices of governments in this region based on the principles of environmental rights and sustainable development. Revision of the implementation of the government’s policies and natural resource utilization systems can prevent the spread of climate change, which is a serious international challenge today.

Keywords: climate change, indigenous rights, petroleum operation, sustainable development principles, sovereignty on resources

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Authors: Nasir Umar Abdullahi

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The social media profoundly causes the reading culture to decline in Nigeria, where the English language is a second language (SL), a language of instruction (LI), as well as the target language (TL). This is because the university students have, over the years, failed to make extensive reading their closest companion, with much emphasis on reading the European novels, newspapers, magazines, etc., so as to learn language from its original or native speakers for linguistic competence. Instead, they squander the most part of their day and nocturnal hours, sending and receiving messages through social media. The end result is their vocabulary become stagnant or ebbs, and that they cannot acquire the Cox head’s 570 vocabulary, let alone the Nation’s 2000 vocabulary to use the language fluently in writing, reading, listening, and speaking and to further compete with the native speaker in varying degrees of language usages. Be that as it may, if the social media is a monster in worsening the decline in reading culture, which degenerates in the Northern part of the country in contradistinction to the Southern part, it boosts it as well, for aside the social media language, slangs, cliché, for instance, students improve their vocabulary power, and at the same time it allows the students to privately and leisurely put the language into use, by using practically some of the vocabulary they have acquired to chart, to comment, socialize to adjudge, etc. This is what this paper tries to explore in Umaru Musa Yar’adua University Al-qalam University and the Federal University Dutin-ma.

Keywords: social media, reading, vocabulary, universities

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Authors: Khaled M. Alhawiti

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Natural Language Processing (NLP) is an effective approach for bringing improvement in educational setting. This involves initiating the process of learning through the natural acquisition in the educational systems. It is based on following effective approaches for providing the solution for various problems and issues in education. Natural Language Processing provides solution in a variety of different fields associated with the social and cultural context of language learning. It is based on involving various tools and techniques such as grammar, syntax, and structure of text. It is effective approach for teachers, students, authors, and educators for providing assistance for writing, analysis, and assessment procedure. Natural Language Processing is widely integrated in the large number of educational contexts such as research, science, linguistics, e-learning, evaluations system, and various other educational settings such as schools, higher education system, and universities. Natural Language Processing is based on applying scientific approach in the educational settings. In the educational settings, NLP is an effective approach to ensure that students can learn easily in the same way as they acquired language in the natural settings.

Keywords: natural language processing, education, application, e-learning, scientific studies, educational system

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Authors: Jabulani Sibanda, Clemence Chikiwa

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This paper traces diverse language practices representative of equally diverse conceptions of language. To be dynamic with languaging practices, one needs to appreciate nuanced languaging practices, their challenges, prospects, and opportunities. The paper presents what we envision as three major conceptions of language that give impetus to diverse language practices. It examines theoretical models of the bilingual mental lexicon and how they inform language practices. The paper explores classroom languaging practices that have been promulgated and experimented with. The paper advocates the deployment of multisensory semiotic systems to complement linguistic classroom communication and the acknowledgement of learners’ linguistic and semiotic resources as valid in the learning enterprise. It recommends the enactment of specific clauses on language in education policies and curriculum documents that empower classroom interactants to exercise discretion in languaging practices.

Keywords: languaging, monolingual, multilingual, semiotic and linguistic repertoire

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Authors: Khlaid Albishi

Abstract:

This paper participates in giving new vision and explains the learning and acquisition processes of English language by analyzing a certain context. Five important factors in English language acquisition and learning are discussed and suitable solutions are provided. The factors are compared with the learners' linguistic background at Bisha College of Technology BCT attempting to link the issues faced by students and the research done on similar situations. These factors are phonology, age of acquisition, motivation, psychology and courses of English. These factors are very important; because they interfere and affect specific learning processes at BCT context and general English learning situations.

Keywords: language acquisition, language learning, factors, Bisha college

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Authors: Benyamin Ahmadnia, Javier Serrano

Abstract:

In this paper we compare two different approaches for translating from Persian to Spanish, as a language pair with scarce parallel corpus. The first approach involves direct transfer using an statistical machine translation system, which is available for this language pair. The second approach involves translation through English, as a pivot language, which has more translation resources and more advanced translation systems available. The results show that, it is possible to achieve better translation quality using English as a pivot language in either approach outperforms direct translation from Persian to Spanish. Our best result is the pivot system which scores higher than direct translation by (1.12) BLEU points.

Keywords: statistical machine translation, direct translation approach, pivot language translation approach, parallel corpus

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Authors: Nouzha Yasmina Soulimane-Benhabib

Abstract:

Language is a medium of communication and a means of expression that is why today the learning of foreign languages especially the English language has become a basic necessity for every student who is ambitious. It is known that culture and language are inseparable and complementary, however, in the process of teaching a foreign language, teachers used to focus mainly on preparing adequate syllabi for ESP students, yet, some parameters should be considered. For instance; the culture of the target language may play an important role since students attitudes towards a foreign language enhance their learning or vice versa. The aim of this study is to analyse how culture could influence the teaching of a foreign language, we have taken the example of the English language as it is considered as the second foreign language in Algeria after French. The study is conducted at the Preparatory School of Sciences and Techniques, Tlemcen where twenty-five students participated in this research. The reasons behind learning the English language are various, and since English is the most widely-spoken language in the world, it is the language of research and education and it is used in many other fields, we have to take into consideration one important factor which is the social distance between the culture of the Algerian learner and the culture of the target language, this gap may lead to a culture shock. Two steps are followed in this research: The first one is to collect data from those students who are studying at the Preparatory School under the form of questionnaire and an interview is submitted to six of them in order to reinforce our research and get effective and precise results, and the second step is to analyse these data taking into consideration the diversity of the learners within this institution. The results obtained show that learners’ attitudes towards the English community and culture are mixed and it may influence their curiosity and attention to learn. Despite of big variance between Algerian and European cultures, some of the students focused mainly on the benefits of the English language since they need it in their studies, research and a future carrier, however, the others manifest their reluctance towards this language and this is mainly due to the profound impact of the English culture which is different from the Algerian one.

Keywords: Algeria, culture, English, impact

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