• Title/Summary/Keyword: English Proficiency

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Comparative study on the language anxiety levels and factors in different English class environments (영어 수업환경의 유형에 따른 언어불안 정도와 불안요인에 대한 비교분석)

  • Cha, Haekyung
    • Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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    • v.15 no.10
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    • pp.6014-6028
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    • 2014
  • This study examined the levels of language anxiety and their causal factors in different English class environments. The findings show that the levels of language anxiety vary significantly in different types of class environments, indicating that both the class environments and individual characteristics are meaningful variables of language anxiety. The findings also show that unlike the levels of language anxiety, its causal factors are almost constant regardless of the class environment with communication apprehension being the most important factor. This study suggests that the English proficiency of students and professors needs to be considered when constructing specific class environments, in addition to promoting class environments favorable to students' active participation in class.

Putting Images into Second Language: Do They Survive in the Written Drafts?

  • Huh, Myung-Hye
    • Journal of English Language & Literature
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    • v.56 no.6
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    • pp.1255-1279
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    • 2010
  • Much has already been learned about what goes on in the minds of second language writers as they compose, yet, oddly enough, until recently little in the L2 research literature has addressed writing and mental imagery together. However, images and imaging (visual thinking) play a crucial role in perception (the basis of mental imagery), in turn, affecting language, thinking, and writing. Many theorists of mental imagery also agree that more than just language accounts for how we think and that imagery is at least as crucial as language. All of these demands, to be sure, are compounded for EFL students, which is why I investigate EFL students' writing process, focusing on the use of mental imagery and its relationship to the writing. First I speculate upon some ways that imagery influences EFL students' composing processes and products. Next, I want to explore how and whether the images in a writer's mind can be shaped effectively into a linear piece of written English in one's writing. I studied two university undergraduate EFL students, L and J. They had fairly advanced levels of English proficiency and exhibited high level of writing ability, as measured by TOEFL iBT Test. Each student wrote two comparison and contrast essays: one written under specified time limitations and the other written without the pressure of time. In order to investigate whether the amount of time in itself causes differences within an individual in imagery ability, the students were placed under strict time constraints for Topic 1. But for Topic 2, they were encouraged to take as much time as necessary to complete this essay. Immediately after completing their essays, I conducted face-to-face retrospective interviews with students to prompt them for information about the role of imagery as they write. Both L and J have spent more time on their second (untimed) essays. Without time constraint, they produced longer texts on untimed essay (149 vs. 170; 186 vs 284 words). However, despite a relatively long period of time spent writing an essay, these students neither described their images nor detailed them in their essays. Although their mental imagery generated an explosion of ideas for their writings, most visual thinking must merely be a means toward an end-pictures that writers spent in purchasing the right words or ideas.

A Korean Elementary School EFL Teacher's Implementation of Teacher-Based Assessment

  • Kang, Dae-Min
    • English Language & Literature Teaching
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    • v.17 no.2
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    • pp.19-37
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    • 2011
  • This study examines a Korean elementary school EFL teacher's practice of teacher-based assessment (TBA), a subject which has been little researched despite the authorities' strong call for its implementation. The classroom interactions for TBA were observed and audio-recorded in eight fifth-grade classes between March and June 2010. Additionally, the teacher and students were interviewed in a semi-structured way. The results showed that the teacher used three types of TBA: assessment of individual students on different topics, assessment of the entire class on the same topic, and assessment of individual students on the same topic. Due mainly to time constraints during class time and classroom management issues, the teacher preferred implementing the first two types of TBA. During the practice of the types, the teacher provided prompts or posed questions in ways that elicited responses which were short in length and easy. Although the third type of TBA was perceived by both the teacher and students as helping students enhance their EFL proficiency and was the most favored by the students, it was viewed by the teacher as having the potential of causing classroom management difficulties. Based on the findings, a number of implications are suggested.

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On Exploiting New Methods of Language Acquisition Offered by the Internet (인터넷이 제공하는 언어 습득의 새로운 방법 활용)

  • Choi, Mi-Hee Michelle
    • Journal of Digital Contents Society
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    • v.14 no.1
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    • pp.111-116
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    • 2013
  • Instructive lessons in the language classrooms are extremely constrictive to language learners in improving their English skills, thus, the use of technology in education plays an important role in a language classroom. Results of language proficiency improvement of the learners vary depending on the extent of supplementary materials offered by the internet delivered to the learners. The purpose of the present study is to explore and propose a new approach of language acquisition offered by the internet. This study presents effective methods of using the internet in carrying out the written work. In this paper, we show that the relationship between participation of the learners in the class activities and improvement of English writing skills are mutually proportional.

Pre-service Teachers' Perception on Peer Feedback in English Writing (영작문 활동 중 동료 피드백에 대한 예비교사들의 인식)

  • Kim, Heejung;Lee, Je-Young;Jang, So Young
    • The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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    • v.19 no.1
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    • pp.513-523
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    • 2019
  • The purpose of this study is to investigate the perception of pre-service secondary English teachers on peer feedback in English composition. For this purpose, a total of 37 students who took the English composition class for 15 weeks participated in the survey. After completing the survey, data were analyzed to find out the students' perception on peer feedback performed in their English composition class through frequency analysis and descriptive statistics. The findings of this study are as follows: First, the students showed positive attitudes towards on peer feedback activities. Second, the participants had received considerable help in the content, ideas and organization of their composition. Third, noticing that they all have made similar mistakes in their writing, the subjects were relieved to know that they are not falling behind their other colleagues. Fourth, the subjects did not trust the feedback contents among the peers, which were found in both the feedback giver and receiver. In particular, feedback from peers who had low English proficiency was rarely helpful. Fifth, the students were afraid that their relationship might become uncomfortable with peers when they pointed out peer's writing errors or made specific suggestions about their peer's writing. Finally, pedagogical implications were discussed based on the research findings.

A Study on the improvement of English writing by applying error indication function in word processor (워드프로세서의 영어문장 어법오류 인식개선을 통한 영어구문작성 향상방안에 대한 연구)

  • Yi, Jae-Il
    • Journal of Digital Convergence
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    • v.18 no.2
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    • pp.285-290
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    • 2020
  • This study focus on improving the text language proficiency regarding users' written text. In order to tone up accuracy improvement in writing, Computer Assisted Language Learning(CALL) can be primarily used as one of the most efficient tools. This study proposes a English Grammar Checking Application that can improve the accuracy over the current applications. The proposed system is capable of defining the difference between a Noun and a Noun Phrase which is critical in improving grammar accuracy for those who use Englilsh as a foreign language in English writing.

Determinants of English Ability among Korean and Other Asian Immigrants in the US (미국에 거주하는 한국인과 아시아인들의 영어사용능력 결정요인에 관한 연구)

  • 이성우;민성희;김성수
    • Korea journal of population studies
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    • v.24 no.2
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    • pp.255-286
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    • 2001
  • The development of language skills among immigrants is important for their economic adjustment in their host societies since language is an important dimension of the skill levels of immigrants relevant for the labor markets of the host countries. Moreover, language plays a key role in the social adjustment of immigrants and in the social and political cohesion particularly in the society like the US that has diverse racial and ethnic groups. The main purposes of the present study are to analyze the determinants of English abilities of Korean and other Asian immigrants in the US. The present study utilizes the Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS, S, 5%) in the US. We adopted the ordered probit technique to analyze qualitative differences of English ability. The study found that English fluency increases with a longer duration in the US, the presence of children in the household, living in an area in which a smaller proportion speak ones mother tongue, a younger age at immigration, a higher level of schooling. However, there are marked variations in levels of English proficiency among Asian immigrants.

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Pre-service English Teachers' Peer Feedback on Microteaching (초등예비교사의 영어수업시연에 나타난 동료피드백 연구)

  • Jaeseok Yang
    • The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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    • v.9 no.1
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    • pp.339-345
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    • 2023
  • Pre-service teachers have established and developed their own teaching strategies and professional language teaching skills based on their pedagogical and learning experiences. In this regard, it is conceivable that pre-service teachers' feedback may have distinct viewpoints and focuses. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to analyze pre-service teachers' feedback to microteaching demonstrations. Participants in the study were 40 prospective elementary school teachers. They were invited to offer feedback on microteachings video-recorded by their peers. According to the findings, we identified a total of 708 comments. The majority of feedback was categorized as teacher talk(40.1%) , followed by teaching and learning activity (20.9%), interaction (12.6%), teaching materials (11.4%), classroom atmosphere and learning environment (8.9%), lesson flow (3.7%), review and evaluation (1.3%), and introduction and objectives (1.1%). The most frequent types of feedback were the teacher's use of appropriate speaking rate, tone, and intonation. This finding reflects the fact that English teachers realize the importance of the teacher's English proficiency, therefore we suggest that teacher education institutions need raise awareness not just of teachers' English skills but also of their diverse perspectives.

A Study on the Importance of EPTA Textbooks - Based on the Analysis of Textbook Satisfaction - (EPTA 교재 중요성에 대한 고찰 - 교재 만족도 분석 중심으로 -)

  • Jeon, Seung Joon;Kim, Kyoung Eun;Jung, Yun Sick
    • Journal of the Korean Society for Aviation and Aeronautics
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    • v.28 no.4
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    • pp.102-116
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    • 2020
  • The existence of appropriate teaching materials in foreign language is very essential especially if it is related to safety. Among them, the importance of textbooks is more emphasized because there is no suitable education or curriculum for EPTA (English proficiency test of aviation). A good textbook not only presents the right direction to study but also provides an efficient way to learn. This research exploded how well textbooks for EPTA are organized and analyzed current pilots' responses whether the textbooks are suitable for preparing EPTA through the questionnaire. The conclusion drawn is that textbooks for EPTA should be designed to encourage current and pre-pilots to learn how to communicate with controllers efficiently and briefly, and also should provide proper guide lines for preparing EPTA.

Predictors of Intention to Work among People with Disabilities who Maintain Economic Inactivity (비경제활동 유지 장애인의 취업의사 예측변인 탐색)

  • An, Yeji;Ji, Eun
    • 재활복지
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    • v.21 no.3
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    • pp.65-84
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    • 2017
  • This study identified predictors of intention to work among people with disabilities who maintain economic inactivity for two successive years by analyzing a total of 2,255 Participants in the 2014 data of the Panel Survey of Employment for the Disabled (PSED) with through $X^2$, t test, logistic regression. To explore factors affecting intention to work among people with disabilities who maintain economic inactivity, this study hypothesized the effectiveness of variables of demographic, disability, human resources, psycho-social factors based on previous studies. The analysis showed that male, spouse-being, low income status out of demographic variables were related to high probability of having intention to work among people with disabilities who maintain economic inactivity. In case of disability variables, experiencing disability-related discrimination significantly predicted the probability of having intention to work. However, the relationship between disability-related discrimination experiences and high intention to work needs to be viewed as correlated rather than cause-and-effect.In addition, literacy related to computer use/English proficiency/interpersonal and adaptation skills(human resources), experiences of vocational rehabilitation services (human resources), self-esteem (psycho-social) significantly predicted the probability of having intention to work among people with disabilities who maintained economic inactivity. Based on these results, support services for females with disabilities, effective rehabilitation programs of improving literacy related to computer use/English proficiency/interpersonal and adaptation skills and self-esteem, general expansion of vocational rehabilitation services for people with disabilities are suggested.