• Speech Sciences
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.59-72
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• 2006

In the present study, we investigated the grammaticality judgement skills of children with developmental language impairments. The participants included 20 children with language impairments of ages ranging from 7 to 9 years and of IQ's ranging from 71 to 84, and 40 normally developing children. Twenty normal children were matched with the language impaired children in their language ages and the other 20 normal children were matched with the language impaired children in their chronological ages. The children were asked to judge the grammatical correctness of 48 short sentences, half of which were ungrammatical sentences containing incorrect case-markers and the other half were grammatically correct sentences. Four types of case-markers including nominative "i/ga", accusative "ul/lul", locative "e," and instrumental "ro" were systematically changed to generate the ungrammatical sentences. The language impaired children performed worse than both groups of normally developing children in detecting the ungrammatical sentences and in correcting the case-markers of those sentences. In detecting the errors of ungrammatical sentences, the language impaired children exhibited variable performances across the different case-markers.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.41-59
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• 2006

As the late partner to science fiction, various experimental languages such as animal language, telepathic language, newly invented language, alien language often appear as "unexpected and frightened situations" in SF. Like generative semanticists, some SF writers daringly delve into the sacred mystery of semantics in language whereas others avoid the dream of a universal language by holding themselves to manageable data. Samuel Delany's description of the ideal telepathic universal language in Babel 17 shows us humans' dream to be like God by showing to us the new process of communication in the factual interplanetary environment. Similar to the mystery of alien language in SF, the baby's babbling reveals how language is both simple and complicated. Children's language shows us the changing process of a soul revealed by language use and it is no wonder that many languages of AIs in SF often borrow their source from children's language acquisition processes. In short, science fiction as the repository of tropes illuminates other literary language studies and other literary genres. Especially in terms of the futuristic study of linguistics, the relationship between science fiction and linguistics is much closer than we thought.

• Journal of English Language & Literature
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• v.54 no.2
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• pp.189-215
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• 2008

This study proposes using children's literature as a means of teaching and learning English as a foreign language and suggests practical strategies on the basis of transactional theory of reading suggested by Rosenblatt (1994, 1995). This study suggests three novels written for children or young adults: On My Honor (1986) by Marion Dane Bauer, The Giver (1993) by Lois Lowry and Hatchet (1987) by Gary Paulsen. These texts were selected because of their diverse topics, easy and comprehensible language, engaging stories, and authentic and rich expressions, making them effective materials for foreign language learners. This paper is organized as follows: First, it reviews research on teaching literature in English education and response-oriented language teaching to provide theoretical background of literature-based language teaching and learning. Second, it provides the background of the texts selected for the study. Third, it develops diverse, practical strategies for instructors who intend to use children's literature in EFL teaching. We expect to guide EFL instructors in adopting children's literature in their English class by connecting theory and practice and by providing diverse methods and strategies, and sample responses by EFL university students.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.699-710
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• 2007

The study purposes to explore the effects of individual characteristics and home environments of children on their bilingual language aquisition, that is, to examine whether their English language competency is different from their Korean language competency depending on those variables. Thus English or Korean language competency of children who had had early exposure in English learning were studied in terms of child's individual characteristics such as age, gender, exposure period to English, intelligence, and experiences of visiting English-speaking countries, and home environments such as parental age, educational level, income level, their perceived English competency, their perceived significance of English and Korean language, and the frequency of using English at home. 72 children who went to English kindergarten were tested with Peabody Pictures Vocabulary Test-Revised (PPVT-R) in Korean version and in English version respectively. The results show that child's intelligence and experiences of visiting English-speaking countries influence their Korean language competency. Also child's age, exposure period to English and experiences of visiting English-speaking countries influence their English language competency. Moreover their mother's educational background, father's English fluency, mothers' English fluency, and the frequency of using English at home influence child's English language competency, whereas any variables did not influence child's Korean language competency. Accordingly, child's English and Korean language competencies are related to each other.

• English Language & Literature Teaching
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.129-150
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• 2009

This paper attempts to examine the effect of children's English stories on the development of Korean EFL primary school learners' listening and speaking competences and their motivation to learn English. This paper also discusses factors of English children's stories that make EFL learners' language learning efficient. Participants were 120 primary school students who attend one of the elementary schools in Chungnam province. They were randomly chosen and divided into two groups: experimental and control groups. In order to collect data, students' listening and speaking proficiency pre- and post-tests and the pre- and post-questionnaires regarding the participants' motivation to learn English were administered. The data were analyzed by ANOVA. The results indicate that the application of English children's stories to EFL learning settings can be an efficient way to improve EFL learners' listening and speaking competences and motivation to learn their target language. The findings of this study suggest that English children's stories provide language learners with interest, meaningful and authentic contexts and enjoyment. The pedagogical suggestion and implications are provided for EFL educators and teachers.

• The Korean Journal of Community Living Science
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.41-50
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• 2012

This study was performed to understand the depression of children with hearing impairment with relation to their mothers' nurturing attitude and sign language level. The subjects were 131 hearing impaired children aged from 9 to 16 years and their mothers, who had no hearing impairments. The children's depression was assessed by CDI(Kovacs 1983) adapted by Cho and Lee(1990), and the maternal attitude was measured through the instrument developed by Oh and Lee(1982) and revised by Lim(1987). The results were as follows. First, the girls' depression was higher than the boys', and children in a dormitory type of school showed higher depression than those in a general type of school. Second, children's depression did not show differences according to mother-child communication methods but differed according to mothers' sign language level. Children whose mothers had high level of sign language showed the highest depression and those whose mothers had beginning level of sign language showed the lowest depression. And mothers' affective, goal- achieving and rational attitude were negatively related with children's depression. Third, the depression of hearing impairment children was influenced mainly by the maternal affective attitude, and the next order was the type of school the children attend.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.44-58
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• 1990

Literacy acquisition is a social phenomenon. Children in a literate society grow up with literacy as an integral part of their personal, familial, and social histories. Because it is language, children learn written language in ways similar to oral language. However. because it is written, the ways in which written language differs from oral language in terms of its different functions and forms affect the way in which children learn written language. Written language is likely to be more decontextualized than spoken language. The ability to use decontextualized language seems to be crucial to successful participation and progress in school. Experiences identified as contributing to preschool children's literacy development contribute to their ability to use language in a decontextualized way. Teale and Sulzby's(1986) metaphor of emergent literacy has provided a conceptual scheme for understanding the nature and process of literacy acquisition in early childhood.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.23-36
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• 2009

Relationships between immigrant mothers' Korean language ability and preschoolers' language development in multi-cultural families were studied with 91 mothers and their children. Language capacity of mothers and children was measured by receptive and expressive vocabulary test, sentence comprehension test and two kinds of reading tests. Results showed that mothers' level of comprehension was relatively low but their reading ability was higher than that of elementary school first-grade Korean students. Comprehension of children in multi-cultural families with non-immigrant counterparts showed a lower level of language ability. Mother's level of expressive vocabulary, receptive vocabulary and reading ability correlated with children's language development. These results indicate a relationship between children's delayed language development in multi-cultural families and mother's low proficiency in Korean language.

• Korean Journal of Child Studies
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.119-131
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• 2000

Three levels(high, medium, low) of maternal language were used to examine the ways in which mothers interact with their children while reading together. Eighty pairs of mothers and their children were observed in their homes. Findings were that mothers made increased use of high level language with increase in children's age and IQ. Mothers' use of high level language was greater for 6-year-olds than for 5-year-olds and use of low level language was greater for 5-year-olds than for 6-year-olds. The more educated mothers used a higher level of language while less educated mothers used a lower level of language. Mothers' use of low level language predicted lower reading ability in children.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.49 no.7
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• pp.51-66
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• 2011

The purpose of this study was to review the current language level of children from multi-cultural background and whether the language level of these children would be increased after participating in the 'We Start Language Intervention Program'. The subjects were 30 36-75-month old children attending daycare centers in Ansan city, South Korea. The results showed that the receptive and expressive language levels of children from multi-cultural families were low compared to those of other children, and that their expressive language level was evaluated more negatively than their receptive language level. After participating in the 'We Start Language Intervention Program', language test scores, language age and language percentile rank were all increased. It was also found that the developmental language level of multi-cultural children increased, and that of the children that had a language delay or language disorder decreased.