Faculty of Education - Theses
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ItemSeeing you seeing me : constructing the learners and their target language speakers in Korean and Australian textbooks( 2006)To be successful in real-life communication with their target language (TL) speakers, language learners need to develop a sound knowledge of modern-day target language society, and an understanding of the beliefs and values most commonly shared by TL speakers. Such knowledge forms the basis of what Clark (1996) calls 'common ground', and is essential for interlocutors to exchange meanings. Removed from natural settings, textbooks are one of the principal resources for foreign language learners to construct a conception of their TL speakers in relation to themselves. This project examines the constructs of the learners' TL speakers provided in, respectively, a Korean language textbook for Australian beginner learners and an English language textbook for Korean beginner learners. By analysing how each presents the other set of people in terms of the attributes the other group assigns to itself in its own books, this study assesses how well each book assists their local learners to begin constructing sound common ground with their TL speakers. Analysis is made of the verbal and visual texts in each whole book with respect to topic and attributes; as well, using Gee's discourse analysis framework, close analysis and comparison is made of the information about the TL speakers and the learners themselves in the first three chapters of each book in relation to the three major beginner learner topics: Self-introduction, family and school. While there are a number of similarities in representation of the TL speakers by both sides, even this small examination shows glaring omissions and contradictions in the construct of the TL speakers proposed for the learners of each language compared to how their actual TL speakers project themselves. Furthermore, these differences would easily lead to confusion over meanings if used in real life. If such mismatches persisted over years of language learning, it can be predicted that learners would fail to create some elements of 'common ground' essential for them to understand what their TL speakers mean in interaction and be understood themselves.
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ItemAssessing the writing of Chinese as a second language learners( 2005)This thesis is concerned with the assessment of Chinese as a second language in the Language Other Than English (LOTE) program in Victoria schools. In particular, its purpose is to investigate how Victorian secondary Chinese teachers carry out a common assessment of Chinese Second Language (CSL) students and Chinese Second Language Advanced (CSLA) students. The study explores how eight VCE Chinese teachers differentiate their assessment between five CSL students and five CSLA students' performance in a writing test. Teachers adopted the official criteria to assess the written samples, including holistic scales and analytical scales. The results indicate that there is little stable agreement within the teachers of how to differentiate between the two levels. Moreover, lacking a training process prior to assessment, teachers' judgements are mainly based on their own expectations and their interpretations of official criteria are heavily influenced by their various experience and backgrounds.
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ItemLearner access to language research( 2008)This is a study of how my class of learners perceived the relationships between English language learners, teachers, and researchers, during a five week Intensive Academic Preparation ELICOS course at an Australian university. As a starting point, it seizes on the fact that learners, unlike teachers and researchers, are rarely, if ever, encouraged to engage with language research as a potentially valuable resource for language learning. Noting the dearth of literature surrounding this topic specifically, this study focuses on the appropriateness of various practitioner inquiry models for a naturalistic exploration of my own classroom. The approach taken is one of Exploratory Practice, which is a set of guiding principles motivated by a strong ethicality towards learners and teachers. Using everyday pedagogical activities as data collection methods, such as group discussions and summaries as well as individual written pieces, this study reveals three important characteristics of my learners: a sense of pride in their personal knowledge of English language learning, an understanding of themselves as individuals within the language learning process, and a deep concern with the practical aspects of learning English. Meanwhile, my learners generally portray the relationships between learners, teachers, and researchers as hierarchical and unidirectional, with researchers and research on top. Overall, the study suggests that there is some value in providing access for my learners to language research, and in the conclusion to the study I make some recommendations for future research centring around ideas of learner identity, teacher/learner understandings of roles, and the place of the individual language learner within language learning.
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ItemInteractions between first and second language writing skills in Macedonian bilingual children in Australia( 2009)The theoretical belief arising from the interdependence hypothesis suggests that there is a common underlying proficiency in bilingual literacy development, particularly with respect to literacy skills, strategies and knowledge transfer across different languages. According to this view a strong establishment in one language not only develops skills in that language, but also facilitates the development of a second language. The aim of this research was to look at the interactions between literacy in Macedonian and English and to analyse the role of the first language literacy in second language acquisition in two dissimilar languages. Although the research explored the relationships between first language (Macedonian) and second language (English) writing skills, strategies and knowledge, the influence of motivation and the performance in English were also discussed. Namely this research investigated the skills and strategies that Macedonian bilingual children use for writing in Macedonian script and whether these strategies have a positive or negative transfer to English literacy. This research also analysed the writing behaviours, and attitude towards the two languages and how they affect the transfer of literacy skills and strategies. To address the aim of this research and gain an in-depth understanding about bilingual children's language acquisition and development a qualitative case-study method was employed. The subjects for this research were six nine year old children from a Macedonian/ English bilingual school. They were asked to write recounts in both languages, Macedonian and English, in order to investigate the transfer of skills, strategies and knowledge across both languages. The think-aloud protocols were used to look into the writing process and to categorise the types of writing strategies that the children can transfer from Macedonian to English literacy. This method was used to observe children's writing processes while writing and simultaneously discussing what thoughts were going through their mind. The childrens' attitudes towards learning in two languages were discovered by using semistructured interviews. The official results from the literacy assessment conducted at the school were also analysed and compared. The discussion of findings from the six children focussed on the transferable skills and strategies and the relationship between Macedonian and English writing. This research confirms that writing behaviours and strategies that the children displayed were consistent across both languages, even though the languages have different writing systems. In fact this research provided a better understanding of children's biliteracy development from an early age in a bilingual setting. Results of the study indicated that there is an interdependent ability between the first language and the second language writing and that there is a positive transfer of skills, strategies and knowledge from Macedonian to English. Therefore the conclusion is that the development of the stronger language literacy (Macedonian) facilitates literacy development in the second language (English) and that access to two languages from an early age and the possibility of learning those languages can facilitate literacy development.
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ItemImplementation and implications of the National English Profile for improving assessment strategies in a primary classroom( 1996)The National English Profile provides the framework for teachers to use in assessing the literacy development of children in Australian schools. This study documents how one school and, in particular, one teacher, implemented the National English Profile. In order to place this initiative in the context of educational change in Victoria today, recent initiatives and changes to the teaching of language have been examined. Current literature in the field of literacy and assessment have been critically reviewed. As a foreground to the study, the process of educational change is examined in two interrelated case studies. The first looks at how the site school reviewed their Assessment and Reporting Policy. The second examines personal educational change of the researcher with regard to the teaching and assessment of literacy. Both of these case studies refer to current literature in the field and refined the focus of the research in one classroom. This research study draws on and investigates a national initiative in assessment. It traces the implementation and implications of the National English Profile on classroom based assessment strategies. It took place over two years, at a time of quite dramatic change in state education in Victoria. The study provides insight into how teachers managed and adjusted to these changes in one particular school. The research design is drawn from naturalistic inquiry methodology. Data were collected from teachers, parents and children of the site school through questionnaires and interviews. From an analysis of these data, generalisations were made about the understandings a group of teachers, parents and children have about the worth of the National English Profile and the usefulness of particular classroom based assessment strategies. The use of Portfolios as a system of work sample collection that is both manageable and purposeful for teachers and children has been examined in this study.
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ItemFilm as cultural resource for tertiary learners of English in Vietnam( 2009)The goal of English learning in Vietnam today is linguistic proficiency and competence in intercultural communication. Despite the consequent need for access to native-speaker cultural meanings for developing Vietnamese tertiary students of English to this standard, to date the existing instructional conditions have not accommodated this need. The problem lies largely in the use of decontextualised language learning, traditional methodology and, inappropriate textbooks. This study was designed to begin resolving this problem by examining the potential of a target language feature film, "Million Dollar Baby". The aims were to ascertain the affordances of the film for providing access to the designated learners to native-speaker meanings of language, how these might be realised, and at what cost. A theoretical framework of language and culture drawing from the work of Hymes, Halliday, and Bourdieu was established as the basis on which principles and strategies for examining and teaching the fi lm were developed. Firstly, three cultural themes were identified that were significant in the film and of likely continuing value to learners. Secondly, discourse analyses of key scenes manifesting each theme were made using published resources and the opinions of native speaker informants. Thirdly, a set of lessons were trialled with representative volunteer learners in Vietnam, in which the film was shown and the language and cultural aspects of one key scene for each theme taught through an integrated process of informed discussion, embodied experience and personal reflection. The classroom experience was videoed and also documented in teacher and student journals, supported by interviews. Analysis reveals that film can offer a diverse set of language and culture resources for teaching classroom-bound students to access the cultural base of the meanings of language in use. It suggests that a scaffolded process of both guided cognitive exploration and physical experimentation modeled on an actual scene is necessary if students are to perceive and recognise native-speaker meanings as intended. The demands on both teacher and student were not inconsiderable, but were highly rewarding and the results suggest careful exploitation of a suitable film may be a rich seam to follow for developing learners' intercultural competence far from any real social interaction in the target language.
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ItemCombining intervention strategies when working with hearing-impaired mainstream students( 1998)Seven children with mild to moderate hearing impairment were selected for a language support pilot which provided support from an Itinerant Teacher of the Deaf in their mainstream classroom and in a withdrawal situation with two or three other children with hearing impairment. The withdrawal situation provided the children with a quieter learning environment, more opportunities to interact in spoken English with an adult and peers, and a positive atmosphere for promoting the use of hearing aids. This study looked for change in receptive and expressive language and improved mainstream classroom involvement of these seven children as a result of this alternative provision of support. This study found that a combination of the pull-in and pull-out models of service to mainstreamed students with mild to moderate hearing impairment can achieve receptive language growth above the norms expected for hearing children within six months. Expressively, six of the seven children showed a higher percentage of analyzable statements per forty utterances after six months' intervention. Six of the children were perceived by their teachers to have improved classroom involvement. Parents of six of the children perceived a greater involvement in family interactions.
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ItemComputer game and language learning possibilities and potentials( 2006)Recent studies in Second Language Acquisition (SLA) have acknowledged language learning as social activities that involve learners actively participating in the collaborative construction of knowledge, and engaging in authentic communications concerning their collaborative work. Learners' collaboration and talk is often facilitated by the use of computers, and what is more, teachers' participation in the computer-assisted tasks is also important as they offer indispensable assistance and guidance to students' understanding of the tasks. The purpose of this study is to examine authentic communications of English language learners and the researcher (teacher) in an interactive and entertaining computer game environment, with an attempt to emphasize the importance of computer in facilitating contextual meaning making in language education. In addition, this study proposes a sociocultural perspective of second language acquisition as an appropriate analytical lens to understand the relationships of various aspects of the above-mentioned environment and to investigate the possibilities of integrating those aspects to contribute to ESL learners' language learning. Four non-native English speakers playing two sessions of a well-known multiplayer computer game "Warcraft III" were audio and video taped. Their experience of learning English using the game were shared in the interviews in order to understand that, (1) the different modes offered by the computer game not only facilitated the participants' communications, but also assisted their collaboration and performance of the tasks. (2) Beneficial participants' communicative patterns can be identified in the play that contributed to their understanding of the tasks and language they speak. (3) Different forms of scaffolds of language learning were found and interactions can be analysed and understood using the Instructional Scaffolding Framework (Michell, 2005) among participants. (4) Gesture and other nonverbal acts by the participants assisted their verbal communication and helped them to explicate the salient aspects of the environment. The qualitative analysis of the authentic communications between the participants builds on the framework of sociocultural theoretical framework. The findings resulting from this study will help teachers and researchers to achieve a better understanding of authentic communication in computer-assisted situations, and provide new insights into the influence of multiplayer game on people's communications.
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ItemThe inclusion of linguistic diversity in early childhood settings( 2008)I begin this study by drawing upon theories of language development during early childhood (Goddard, 1974; Foss & Hakes, 1978; Raban & Ure, 2000; Clarke, 2005a; Fleer & Raban, 2005) and those theories that link language to one's cultural identity (Kramsch, 1998; Hinton, 2001). Australia had historically been a land of many languages (Pearson, 2005 cited in Van Tiggelen, 2005) and colonisation with the emphasis on monolingual discourse has taken away many of the 250 languages of Indigenous peoples (Nicholls, 2001; Clyne, 2005). The death of their language can be seen as the death of their culture and identity (Crystal, 1997). Although Australia's linguistic diversity is increasing with more than 248 languages currently being spoken (Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS, 2000 cited in Fleer & Raban, 2005), indigenous languages have been reduced to 48 languages and more are becoming extinct at the rate one every two years (Van Tiggelen, 2005). Yet, Australia's early childhood settings seem to be impoverished in reflecting the linguistic diversity present in our wider society (Makin et al., 1999 cited in Arthur, 2001; Lo Bianco & Freebody, 2001 cited in Fleer & Raban, 2005). Set within an interpretive paradigm, initially, my linear analysis aims to explore the understandings of early childhood practitioners in providing programs that reflected and included linguistic diversity. Then with the introduction of Postcolonial theoretical framework (Orientalism - Said, 1978; Critical whiteness theory, 1998) I begin to challenge the political language of 'Othering', 'Normalising' and 'Naturalising' to uncover the covert assertion of Colonial linguistic dominance. Moreover, by using Critical discourse analysis (Fairclough, 1995 cited in Locke, 2004) the paradigmatic shift, from interpretive to cultural studies becomes pivotal to my study, as I establish links between political discourse and discourses of individuals. Finally, by comparing the two types of analyses, I bring forth the relevance of using Postcolonial theories to unmask those socio-political discourses that aim to extinguish histories of Australia through the imposition of Colonial identity in the name of 'Nationalism' and 'National language'. Thus I challenge the invisible dominance of one language over languages, with an aim to create newer possibilities for a linguistically equitable Australia.