In writing and speaking, adverbial connectors always play a part to connect different parts together at both semantic and syntactic aspects. For it is so important that a lot of scholars have made and are making a ser...In writing and speaking, adverbial connectors always play a part to connect different parts together at both semantic and syntactic aspects. For it is so important that a lot of scholars have made and are making a series of studies to their functions. On the basis of corpus-based study, this paper firstly makes a comparison to the usage of adverbial connectors in their writings of the native students and non-native students and then exposes a distinctive gap between these two types of writings in usage of adverbial connectors. In order to help Chinese second-language learners acquire English as well as English native speakers do, this study deeply digs this gap and in further provides several pedagogical suggestions for English teachers and second-language learners.展开更多
In the field of second language acquisition, an increasing amount of research has been conducted on learner＇s beliefs. Few empirical studies, however, have been focused on students＇ conceptions of learning English ...In the field of second language acquisition, an increasing amount of research has been conducted on learner＇s beliefs. Few empirical studies, however, have been focused on students＇ conceptions of learning English （COLE）. This study aims to assess conceptions of learning particularly in the domain of English. Data were collected through the COLE questionnaire among 284 college students in China. Seven factors of COLE are identified, such as ＂memorizing＂, ＂testing＂, ＂drill and practice＂, ＂increasing knowledge＂, ＂understanding＂, ＂application＂, and ＂seeing in a new way＂. These findings also provide some pedagogical implications for English language instructors and researchers.展开更多
In order to provide English as a foreign language students with effective English language learning approaches, this investigation is focused on how students deal with words when they are doing reading material. It is...In order to provide English as a foreign language students with effective English language learning approaches, this investigation is focused on how students deal with words when they are doing reading material. It is found that most students can use some skills to guess the unknown words in reading materials, such as explanatory analysis skills, syntactic analysis skills, and structural analysis skills, while they have overlooked how these words are organized metaphorically and metonymically. This investigation will provide students with the target language knowledge metaphors and metonymy, examining the impact on computer vocabulary guessing and reading comprehension through teaching the concept of metaphor and metonymy. In this research, the new word-guessing skill based on the knowledge of metaphor and metonymy was applied to word-guessing teaching in reading comprehension of computer material. The research question is studied in this experiment： Can the training of using ways of word-guessing base on the knowledge of metonymy and metaphor promote students＇ ability of word guessing in reading comprehension of computer material？ The results show that students have gradually paid attention to the word-guessing skill in reading process. The skills based on the knowledge of metaphor and metonymy have helped students get the right meaning of the unknown words in computer reading materials. It has really enlarged students＇ vocabulary and improved their confidence in finishing reading.展开更多
The present paper examines gender effects on the use of emotion vocabulary in SECCL.The study reveals both inter-group and intra-group differences in the use of English emotion words by the female and male Chinese EFL...The present paper examines gender effects on the use of emotion vocabulary in SECCL.The study reveals both inter-group and intra-group differences in the use of English emotion words by the female and male Chinese EFL learners,and the findings also show that Chinese learners use emotion vocabulary in ways different from native English speakers.The gender difference is attributed to the ways in which Chinese culture defines and values women and men in terms of emotion displaying.The paper suggests that learning English emotion words should be integrated with learning cultural meanings associated with them.展开更多
Textbook evaluation is of great importance for both teaching and learning. A review on several previouslypopular evaluation systems makes us believe that a more objective and quantitative evaluation approach isdespera...Textbook evaluation is of great importance for both teaching and learning. A review on several previouslypopular evaluation systems makes us believe that a more objective and quantitative evaluation approach isdesperately needed. Thus a new exploration to evaluate textbooks via corpus is discussed in this paper in lightof Second Language Acquisition studies.展开更多
China English is defined as a developing variety of international English spoken in China with some characteristic features at the level of phonology, grammar, lexis and pragmatics. The authors present the analysis of...China English is defined as a developing variety of international English spoken in China with some characteristic features at the level of phonology, grammar, lexis and pragmatics. The authors present the analysis of the use of the first-person plural pronoun we by Chinese senior English majors in spoken English as a way of illustrating how the pragmatic features of these students＇ choice of first-person pronoun manifest according to their social positions. Analysis finds that for these speakers we is used in ways that are consistent with wo-men, first person plural pronoun in Chinese, which is often used ambiguously for non-specific reference. Findings indicate that speakers lacking social power will use the pronoun to reproduce a mainstream or generic discourse. The authors conclude by arguing that Chinese university students＇ use of we can simultaneously be seen as an expression of their English language proficiency and as an adherence to Chinese cultural and pragmatic norms.展开更多
This paper investigates developmental patterns of metadiscourse use in Chinese students’EAP writing in an English medium university,in comparison with English majors’EFL writing in mainstream state universities and ...This paper investigates developmental patterns of metadiscourse use in Chinese students’EAP writing in an English medium university,in comparison with English majors’EFL writing in mainstream state universities and L1 student writing in UK universities.Taking a longitudinal and cross-contextual perspective,the study explores corpora of L1 and L2 student writing gathered from three sources:EAP essays written by Chinese undergraduate students at an English Medium Instruction(EMI)university;argumentative essays written by English majors in the Written English Corpus of Chinese Learners(WECCL);and academic essays of English L1 students from the British Academic Written English(BAWE)corpus.Hyland’s(2005 a)model of metadiscourse was adopted to identify interactive and interactional devices in each corpus,and results were compared between different levels as well as across the corpora to reveal developmental features.Findings show marked differences in metadiscourse use between Chinese EMI students’EAP essays and English major students’EFL essays in mainstream state universities,whereas a similar pattern of use occurred in EAP essays and English L1 student academic essays.Significant changes were also found between different year levels in two L2 essay corpora.The findings suggest that metadiscourse use in L2 writing had developmental trajectories distinctive to different institutional contexts,with EAP instruction in the EMI institution having mixed effects on Chinese students’awareness and use of metadiscourse in essay writing.展开更多
文摘In writing and speaking, adverbial connectors always play a part to connect different parts together at both semantic and syntactic aspects. For it is so important that a lot of scholars have made and are making a series of studies to their functions. On the basis of corpus-based study, this paper firstly makes a comparison to the usage of adverbial connectors in their writings of the native students and non-native students and then exposes a distinctive gap between these two types of writings in usage of adverbial connectors. In order to help Chinese second-language learners acquire English as well as English native speakers do, this study deeply digs this gap and in further provides several pedagogical suggestions for English teachers and second-language learners.
文摘In the field of second language acquisition, an increasing amount of research has been conducted on learner＇s beliefs. Few empirical studies, however, have been focused on students＇ conceptions of learning English （COLE）. This study aims to assess conceptions of learning particularly in the domain of English. Data were collected through the COLE questionnaire among 284 college students in China. Seven factors of COLE are identified, such as ＂memorizing＂, ＂testing＂, ＂drill and practice＂, ＂increasing knowledge＂, ＂understanding＂, ＂application＂, and ＂seeing in a new way＂. These findings also provide some pedagogical implications for English language instructors and researchers.
文摘In order to provide English as a foreign language students with effective English language learning approaches, this investigation is focused on how students deal with words when they are doing reading material. It is found that most students can use some skills to guess the unknown words in reading materials, such as explanatory analysis skills, syntactic analysis skills, and structural analysis skills, while they have overlooked how these words are organized metaphorically and metonymically. This investigation will provide students with the target language knowledge metaphors and metonymy, examining the impact on computer vocabulary guessing and reading comprehension through teaching the concept of metaphor and metonymy. In this research, the new word-guessing skill based on the knowledge of metaphor and metonymy was applied to word-guessing teaching in reading comprehension of computer material. The research question is studied in this experiment： Can the training of using ways of word-guessing base on the knowledge of metonymy and metaphor promote students＇ ability of word guessing in reading comprehension of computer material？ The results show that students have gradually paid attention to the word-guessing skill in reading process. The skills based on the knowledge of metaphor and metonymy have helped students get the right meaning of the unknown words in computer reading materials. It has really enlarged students＇ vocabulary and improved their confidence in finishing reading.
文摘The present paper examines gender effects on the use of emotion vocabulary in SECCL.The study reveals both inter-group and intra-group differences in the use of English emotion words by the female and male Chinese EFL learners,and the findings also show that Chinese learners use emotion vocabulary in ways different from native English speakers.The gender difference is attributed to the ways in which Chinese culture defines and values women and men in terms of emotion displaying.The paper suggests that learning English emotion words should be integrated with learning cultural meanings associated with them.
文摘Textbook evaluation is of great importance for both teaching and learning. A review on several previouslypopular evaluation systems makes us believe that a more objective and quantitative evaluation approach isdesperately needed. Thus a new exploration to evaluate textbooks via corpus is discussed in this paper in lightof Second Language Acquisition studies.
文摘China English is defined as a developing variety of international English spoken in China with some characteristic features at the level of phonology, grammar, lexis and pragmatics. The authors present the analysis of the use of the first-person plural pronoun we by Chinese senior English majors in spoken English as a way of illustrating how the pragmatic features of these students＇ choice of first-person pronoun manifest according to their social positions. Analysis finds that for these speakers we is used in ways that are consistent with wo-men, first person plural pronoun in Chinese, which is often used ambiguously for non-specific reference. Findings indicate that speakers lacking social power will use the pronoun to reproduce a mainstream or generic discourse. The authors conclude by arguing that Chinese university students＇ use of we can simultaneously be seen as an expression of their English language proficiency and as an adherence to Chinese cultural and pragmatic norms.
基金supported by Research Development Fund of Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University and Jiangsu Ministry of Education Philosophy and Social Sciences Funding Scheme.
文摘This paper investigates developmental patterns of metadiscourse use in Chinese students’EAP writing in an English medium university,in comparison with English majors’EFL writing in mainstream state universities and L1 student writing in UK universities.Taking a longitudinal and cross-contextual perspective,the study explores corpora of L1 and L2 student writing gathered from three sources:EAP essays written by Chinese undergraduate students at an English Medium Instruction(EMI)university;argumentative essays written by English majors in the Written English Corpus of Chinese Learners(WECCL);and academic essays of English L1 students from the British Academic Written English(BAWE)corpus.Hyland’s(2005 a)model of metadiscourse was adopted to identify interactive and interactional devices in each corpus,and results were compared between different levels as well as across the corpora to reveal developmental features.Findings show marked differences in metadiscourse use between Chinese EMI students’EAP essays and English major students’EFL essays in mainstream state universities,whereas a similar pattern of use occurred in EAP essays and English L1 student academic essays.Significant changes were also found between different year levels in two L2 essay corpora.The findings suggest that metadiscourse use in L2 writing had developmental trajectories distinctive to different institutional contexts,with EAP instruction in the EMI institution having mixed effects on Chinese students’awareness and use of metadiscourse in essay writing.
