Category: Language

We live in a diverse world. People are always on the move each passing second. Some in search of knowledge, others search for employment opportunities, and so on. Our diversity extends to culture. You identify people based on symbols, norms, values, artifacts as well as language. Language makes social interaction possible and influences how people conceive of concepts and objects. It, therefore, fosters the feeling of group identity and solidarity.

There are so many languages in different geographical regions of the world. When you visit an area with an extraordinary style to you, you feel out of place. Why? Because you may not understand the language of the other person. Use gestures, though some may be offensive to the other person. It leaves you with the option of getting a translator for you to understand the other person. However, a translator has limitations too. If in case you wish to convey a confidential matter, then it becomes a significant challenge. Some could be arrogant and may give contradicting information. Since the translator also wants money for service delivery, you may find that they are too expensive.

Technology has paved the way for easier information passage and communication across different languages. In 2006 launch of google translate was done to gather linguistic data. This statistical machine works on the Android app and iOS versions. It uses an analytical method to form an online database based on language pair frequency. Google translate is free and online all the time, whereas experienced translators are fewer and costly. Google translate is also fast. It produces a translation with the same number of words just in seconds!

Google translate also has some disadvantages. It offers no confidentiality. This information always is at risk of reaching the wrong hands. The translation given is also not very clear. You can easily experience incorrect content or structure. There is no form of quality control on google translate. You may never be sure that the material the machine dispenses out is correct or way off the mark. If you wish to study another language, do not rely on google translate. It struggles with polysemy (the multiple meanings of words).

In conclusion, you may use online translation if the content from the other language is not confidential. It could be a general comprehension text or even writing of emails. Let us appreciate the diversity of people from different parts of the world by studying their languages too.

Fundamentally, educating and interde two significant segments sending and getting data ultimatedly. An educator attempts his best to import information as the manner in which he comprehended it.The utilization of imaginative techniques in instructive organizations has the potential not exclusively to improve training ,yet additionally to engage individuals ,reinforce administration and direction exertion to accomplish the human advancement objective for the nation .The never slants appear to have risen in the field of training that have altogether changed the substance of customary arrangement of training .Recent patterns ,approachs and improvements depict the imperative job of instruction segment as a rule with its internationalization of the instruction procedure, weight on quality above amount ,increment in the reception of innovations, need of expert ability and so on. The speculations and strategies are always suffering in the field of ELT too. The investigation of old style and examination of sentence structure turns into the mode from unknown dialect in school and this strategies and approaches new patterns to unknown dialect instructing become known as region to informative strategy

Introduction

The innovation that the researcher talks in the paper certain both to methodology and materials used in language teaching. Moreover , this article brings out the subtle distintion between the scholarly perception of language as treated in research and pedagogy. The argument advances as the paper proceeds with trends of education with specific reference to the Indian scenario, methodologies adopted, the bygone methods the peer practice ,the present trend,new teaching design,new devices,the need for change the ICTand English language.English language teaching has undergone tremendous over the years,especially the last ten years. Students are burdened with studing ,learning and grasping the materials ,and of course ,lecture with the collection of relevant information from prescribed texts. Many career allenatives once regarded insignificant are gaining importance at present such as communication skills ,soft skills ,interpersonal skills,ICT literacy etc.

The need for chiseled graduates to merge successfully in the global marked is in the great demand nowadays .For this a change in the trend especially the teaching learning process ofEnglish language has to undergo a transition for the betterment,season change, fation change in the attitudes of human beings change but it is disheaetening to note that in the last century English curriculum has hardly undergone any change.There had been much of changes in the attitude of people as to what they perceive to be a language. The historical backdrop of unknown dialect has alwaysnbeen a significant commonsense concern.It was latin which commands.

Systems embraced in before days

Communicarion is the foundation based o which any thought can advance and form into a completely fledged one. Witout that ,sustenance in any field is inconceivable during the last decade,various urgent variables have consolidated to influence the present belief systems of educating of English, for example, the ineffectual methodologies,unsuitable materials .and integtation of contdextualized teaching,over accentuation on multi language aptitudes and so on.

In 21st century there is rice of informative methodology.Which stress ral meaning specialized strategy than activity,topic and circumstances which are counterfeit and remote from students lie.

Modern trends of teaching English

The process of English communication learning will be more student –cetered but less time consuming.Therefore ,it promices that the teaching quality will be improved and students applied English communication can be effectively cultivated,meaning that students communicative competence will be further developed.Languge in Education would ideally and ordinarily build on such naturally acquired language ability,enreachin it through the development of literacy into an instrument forabstract thougt and the acquisition of the academic knowledge.

New age devices

This year , the consumer Electronics show which was held at las vegas,gave a glimpse of ground breaking devices purly meantbfor students.Thesevshowpieces ranged from 3D printers to smert watches.The youth requirement are matched by by a new new age devices,be it studies or social media steaming devices like the google chrome cast and the Rokku make group studies become interactive and presentation surprisingly fulfilled one.One has to stream the media on to a smart TV using dongle.Another blessing is the e- reader for the pn the move generation.The all new kindle paper white is a boon. The students association and Teachers strengthening are worried during the instructing and learning process.The traditional technique for showing where in the teache appreciates the imposing business model of educating in some cases even pulverizes the pressuer of the students.

Job of present day Teacher

Analyst characterized the term job as specialized term which initially originates from human science ang alludes to the common desire for digger an individual ought to carry on a few methodologieshave advanced distinctive job for a language teacher.Richards and Rodger persuade an educator’s job as a piece of plan ,part of a method.To harmer,a instructor assumes the job of controller,organizer,assessor,promoter,participant,resource,tutor and onlooker. The Teacher turns into a genuine facilitatoror learning for the language learners,purely by methods for diologic correspondence.

The educator’s job isn’t disregarded altogethetbut is restricted,the instructor is relied upon to be manage by the side. The job of instructors by what means will portray as pursues:

• Facilitator
• Independent member
• Needs expert
• Counselor
• Group handling chief

Conclusion

Over the world ,data innovations I significantly adjusting the way student,faculty nd staff learn and work.As the interest for innovation keeps on rising, schools and Univetsities are moving a wide range of understudy services,from clothing observing to nibble conveyance obnline.Technology is additionally changing the study hall experiences.The researchehodr that the target kind of instructing is giving the data or knowkedge to the mnds of the students.Any techniques utilizing PC or altering the current regular chalk-talk strategy are I on United Arab Emirates nnovative in the event that they eventually serve the fulfillment of center goal of educating.

Taking precedence over one global language seems a good strategy from various aspects. Unifying languages in the world enable people to communicate with around the world, avoids miscommunication. However, I disagree with this idea. Ignoring local language limits knowledge expansion and cognitive ability improvements in education. Local language plays an important role to build one’s identity, skills and cultural background. Being multilingual provides brain functionalities, advanced job opportunities in this variable economic life.

Ignoring one’s mother tongue loses the chance for cultural heritage with grandparents, and eventually might result in the failure of building one’s identity and cultural background. This would miss business opportunities rooting local language once one grows up. Also, the side effect of encouraging a global language rather than the local language is to decline the quality of education. Kioko (2015) describes that since students have enough capabilities to manipulate language when learning with home language, learners are able to focus on educational engagement such as learning, questioning, making suggestions, answering questions and knowledge building with one’s own interest. Home language’s disrespect results in not only the cause of an individual’s poor academic performance but also opportunity loss of producing highly capable human assets in society.

The process of learning new languages improves brain functionality and intellectual capabilities. Valoes (2014) describes that compared with the monolingual children, bilingual experience enhances the cognitive abilities such as organizing of thoughts and activities, task and time management, efficiency, and decision making. Also, learning foreign languages stimulate an individual’s curiosity for the cultural and historical background of the language, which gives a wide range of choices for a future career. These intellectual abilities shine in the different fields once children select their own specialities such as science, engineering, medicine. Because to become professional in those fields, students need to learn a wide range of topics of knowledge in a tight schedule for a long time, which would be required a high task management skill, problem-solving, mental toughness. Foreign language acquisition clearly benefits one’s life enforcing one’s intellectual strength and expanding social success in a long period.

Being multilingual enables an individual to migrate to another countries to survive in this severe economy. According to Valoes (2014) in his article “Importance of Language – Why Learning a Second Language is Important”, living in a country without communication is a severe handicap. It is nearly impossible to settle down in a community and adapt to a local environment without having a way to communicate with each other. After learning another language, the experience enables an individual to learn another new language because they already figure out how the experience of learning second language is different from one’s primary language. Learning a new language enables learners to choose countries to live with an individual’s preference. Some people migrate and spend the rest of their lives out of their homeland, which uses a language different from her/his language.

In conclusion, learning one global language should disagree because it prevents students from enhancing academic performance and losing one’s identity and cultural background, it prevents students from enforcing intellectual capacity and economic success, and it loses immigration opportunities. Although being a monolingual with a global language seems to communicate with people smoothly in the globe, the benefit is limited. The policy ruins the local histories, cultures and thoughts, that would block the born of the innovations and the discoveries of the centuries. If Christopher Columbus followed one global language policy, he would never actively learn Spanish and Latin and also seamanship. On the other hand, multilingualism fulfils intellectual curiosity and can be a tool to survive in an unknown society.

References

1. Kwizera. (2017 ) “Rwanda Academy of Language and Culture has its work cut out”, (editorial), The New Times. Kigali, Rwanda.
2. Valoes L. D. (2014). Importance of Language – Why Learning a Second Language is Important Retrieved from https://discover.trinitydc.edu/continuing-education/2014/02/26/importance-of-language-why-learning-a-second-language-is-important/
3. Kiko, A. (2015). Why schools should teach young learners in home language Retrieved from https://www.britishcouncil.org/voices-magazine/why-schools-should-teach-young-learners-home-language

The connection thought music

They say music is the universal language of mankind, attracting people from all different types of cultures, and uniting them as one. Each musician is born with their own heartbeat which essentially is the source of said language. Music isn’t simply typed, it’s a picture painted onto silence. Music has the ability to allow the listener to feel the true, raw, uncut passion that runs through the musicians’ bones. Music is the medicine of the mind. Its sole purpose is to speak for those who can’t find the words to say. Each piece of music screams a different tune to each person. By simply listening to a piece of music we can feel a variety of emotions. A piece of music could make someone forget everything and at the same time make another remember

everything. For some, music can make time pass faster, understand the things you couldn’t understand, or even travel to places never been before. Music plays a different role in people’s lives. For example, it can create both physical and emotional bonds. Music can help us get through difficult times, help us to remain positive, and connect with others in a way that is impossible with just simple words. It overcomes language, age, and social barriers we find in society. It’s a form of escape from everyday life and the best part is when the music hits you, no matter how hard, you feel no pain.

What does music mean to you?

In order to have a better understanding at a more personal level of what music means to people I asked this question to a number of four of my friends. They all have very different and unique personalities as well as different backgrounds and ages. Let’s begin with Nina, she is a talented young woman, very musically inclined that plays the saxophone and taught herself how to play the piano, ukulele, and drums and furthermore has conducting skills. It’s as if she knew how to play every instrument that she sets her attention to. This is what she said…”I’ve been asked this very question many times and I have yet to find an appropriate answer. Music to me is many things. It’s a way for me to express myself when I have no words to say. It’s an opening into my heart and mind for others to see. Plugging my headphones into my phone is like placing the IV that’s going to save my life into my arm. It’s my medicine, my lifeline on my hardest days. Music lifts me up when I’m too down but also keeps me grounded when my head is too high in the clouds. Music plays a very important factor in my happiness. I find myself most happy when I’m screaming at the top of my lungs in the car with some friends hitting notes we know we can’t hit, or at concerts where I can feel the bass vibrate through my chest and into my bones. Music to me is like a drug. It flows through my veins as my heart pumps its own beat. I don’t simply feel the music, I also create it and enjoy sharing this special talent with others. I find myself constantly trying to make others feel, not with my words, but with my music. It’s so much more than a simple song, or tune. Music isn’t simply music to me, it’s the sounds colliding inside my ears, the feeling of the music rushing through my veins and out through my fingers when I play. It’s not loved by music. It’s a passion, and it goes beyond liking, and beyond a hobby. It’s about a way of living. Music is essential to my life. Music is my escape. Music is a part of me, it makes me who I am. I express myself the best when involving music in some form or way. I’m even listening to music as I form this answer. Music inspires me to do my best, makes me feel powerful, and at the same time helps me show my most vulnerable emotions. I wish there was a simple answer to what music is to me. But music isn’t a simple thing, it’s complex and has many layers. Therefore, music is a lot of things to me, but most importantly, it is me. Music is who I am. You just have to listen to fully understand.”

The Music of Many Lands

Proof that music is the universal language of mankind it’s by the folk music of the world. Enjoyment of it is not confined to the land of its origin. People can and often do enjoy hearing the music of lands other than their own. Getting acquainted with the music of other lands can be a delightful experience. If you somehow happened to visit each segment of our earth you will see that each country or gathering of people has its very own trademark tunes and dance moves. Everyone has contributed their own ’emphasize’ to the ‘language’ of music. What’s commonly so particular is that an individual can distinguish the land where a specific melody or move started, similarly that we can tell an outsider’s nationality by his accent.

Most ethnic music wasn’t composed by skilled composers. Some of it has existed for thousands of years. In early times tunes were created by musically inclined persons and these were handed down from generation to generation.

The words of the songs addressed love, peace, war, drinking, fictional characters, and amusing incidents. And people danced to the tunes, each group developing its own vogue. So when individuals got together at social events in town commercial centers, in homes, or around pit fires, they sang and moved to the music that had been passed on from their progenitors. Obviously, the geology and atmosphere of their land likewise along with their history, language, traditions, and personality formed their melodies and dance moves. Also, these are the things that give each gathering’s people music that is impossible to miss ‘complement’ that distinguishes it as belonging to them.

One thing is sure​—there is tremendous variety. Aside from so-called “serious” or classical music and operas, there is a wide range of semiclassical music, and every land has its own folk music as described before, country songs, and marches. Music for dancing goes from graceful waltzes to lively polkas; there are Latin-American congas, rumbas, and Brazilian sambas, also merengues, beguines, and bossa novas, many of these having an African background. Particularly since World War I, extremely rhythmic instrumental and vocal music​—jazz, blues, swing, and rock became widespread. In some music, melody, and harmony stand out; different kinds emphasize beat and rhythm.

The Power of Music

Where does music’s power come from? From its capacity to incite a specific inclination, mindset, or spirit in people. Music can unwind and relieve, revive and even enliven. You can nearly “feel” the difference between an enthusiastic march and a delicate serenade. Music has the power to mix every human feeling, like love, tenderness, reverence, sadness, anger, hatred, and passion. From the beginning of time, man has perceived music capacity and has utilized it to move individuals in certain ways. Music can be compared with a gift, yet it is the way in which a gift is utilized that determines its value to the user.

A reality we should consistently confront is that music is a form of communication, between the artist or entertainer and the audience. Not just feelings are communicated; thoughts about something are also being expressed. After all, the songs we listen to are simply a speech set to music, the music is often helping the words (or lyrics) to penetrate more promptly into the mind and heart. Some might say that they do not give attention to the words of a song, that they just enjoy and appreciate the melody. But even without conscious attention, the words are nonetheless heard, and their effect, though slow or subtle, still is there. People who set radio and television commercials to music know this, and you probably have found the words and music of some of these commercials running through your mind long after you heard them. So, the question is, What does the music you choose communicate to you?

Music is often the medium or vehicle for spreading philosophies, political ideologies, nationalism, religious beliefs, and a host of many other things.

For example, a very famous artist that most people remember until this day is John Lennon. His message for world peace was loud and clear. His most famous song was Imagine, the lyrics to the song are and I quote…

Imagine there’s no heaven

It’s easy if you try

No hell below us

Above us only the sky

Imagine all the people

Living for today

Imagine there are no countries

It isn’t hard to do

Nothing to kill or die for

And no religion, too

Imagine all the people

Living life in peace

You may say that I’m a dreamer

But I’m not the only one

I hope someday you’ll join us

And the world will be one

Imagine no possessions

I wonder if you can

No need for greed or hunger

A brotherhood of man

Imagine all the people

Sharing all the world

You may say that I’m a dreamer

But I’m not the only one

I hope someday you’ll join us

And the world will live as one

What do you think his message was? Did you notice the way he put the main world problems? Like wars, religions that get involved in wars, money, hunger, greed, and pride of man. He wrote that song while the war in Japan was happening and the amount of suffering that he saw in those innocent people inspired him to create a song

Part of the triumph of the French Revolution is frequently attributed to what one writer calls “the blood-curdling call to arms” of the song “La Marseillaise. Colleges and schools usually have their “fight songs” used before athletic contests. The heavy, mystic tone in the music of certain religions fits their doctrines.

True, music’s moving effect is only temporary. But it is often long enough to give a decided push in a certain direction or to lower resistance to a certain attraction or temptation. If you studied chemistry in school you learned about “catalysts.” You learned that the combining of two or more chemicals can often be achieved only by using some other ingredients that, in effect, brings the chemicals together. That ingredient is a “catalyst.” Now, we all have certain weaknesses and wrong inclinations, and so we feel tempted at times to do certain things that are wrong.

Suppose circumstances come up that encourage you to do a wrong act. Music can be the “catalyst” that will cause desire and circumstances to combine​—resulting in something you may afterward seriously regret. Yes, the impulse that music supplies, though temporary, may be all that is needed to trigger people into a course or way of life that is itself long-lasting or that produces results that are.

Have you ever wondered how words get there meaning, or how the same word can have two different meanings? Understanding the meaning of language can be complex to grasp but learning the three theories of meaning will help to gain a better idea of what it consists of. The first theory is the Reference Theory Meaning founded by Aristotle during the fourth century BCE, “According to this view, the meaning of a word consists in what it refers to” (Hughes, Lavery & Doran, 2015, p.21). An example of this is the word book, we all know that this word refers to all objects that are books. The meaning of a word is being able to explain it using a reference such as visualization. This could be showing a person who does not know what a book is, the object and then explaining the details of it. This theory may seem like common-sense, but it is more complex than this.

The reference theory becomes difficult when you come across words that do not have a reference class. These are words such as how, no, yes, where, of, is, unless, a, and like where the theory cannot be applied. This means that there are words that can be understood without a reference “For example we all understand the meaning of the phrase the oldest man in the world, even if when we don’t know to whom it refers. If the meaning is the reference, then we shouldn’t be able to understand what the phrase means unless we know who the oldest man in the world is” (Hughes Lavery & Doran 2015, p.22). This is where things can become confusing and meaning as well as reference must be recognized for their distinct differences.

This leads to The Idea of Theory Meaning created by John Locke during the seventh century, “He held that the meaning of a word consists of the idea or mental image that is associated with the word” (Hughes Lavery & Doran 2015, p.22). When using the Idea Theory, we create mental images of what a word means. For an example the word book, when a person mentions this word you would create a mental image in your mind of what this object is. This gives your mind an idea of the characteristics associated with the word. This theory can be difficult because our minds create an image of a book that does not contain all the characteristics of this object. When we hear the word book an image may appear with a small book but there are big, long, short, and tall books so “How, then, can our image be the meaning of a word” (Hughes Lavery & Doran 2015, p.22).

The difficulty with this theory is that everyone has different mental images of a word. If we do not all share the same mental image, how can we know the image we have is the meaning of that word. Also, how can we know that the other persons image is the same as the idea you had associated with that word. When these problems occur, we use the Meaning as Use concept, created by Ludwig Wittgenstein. He came up with the theory that “Words have meaning only when they are used in sentence; without such context they have no meaning” (Hughes Lavery & Doran 2015, p.23). This means that words can have different meanings depending on how they are used within a sentence. Every word has no meaning until it is used within a sentence, once it is used that is how you determine the meaning of it. This concept applies to words that have no reference or mental image.

Language can be complex and consist of many different rules but, understanding the three main functions can help with daily communication. The first function of language is descriptive, this is when we describe an object, place or thing. For an example this room is hot, or the air is humid outside. When we use descriptive language, we are usually making factual statements about something. Second, is evaluative function this is when we evaluate a statement that is factual such as that was the worst park I’ve ever been to. We create a judgment about something also known as an evaluation. Third, is emotive function this is a function we use in order to express our emotions in our language. It is simply providing a description of what you are feeling. An example of this would be saying I love you, you are expressing and describing how you feel towards another person.

Fourth, is evocative this function is altering your language in order to express emotion and sympathy through our words. Many use this function within quotes, poetry, and songs. Fifth, is persuasive function this is one of the most used functions in language. It is convincing someone else to believe or accept something. This is typically used on arguments where authors try to persuade the audience to believe an idea or concept. One example of this function is “You shouldn’t take astrology seriously. There is no scientific basic for it” (Hughes Lavery & Doran 2015, p.26).

Sixth, is interrogative function in which we ask a question in order to gain information. This simply doing something a question such as what is today’s date? Seventh, is directive we use this when making a demand such as wash the dishes tonight. We’re telling someone else to do a specific task. Eighth, is performative function this is used typically when actions are being performed like I quit, or your fired. Last, is the recreational function which is used in order to add a sense of humor to language such as jokes that make others become amused or interactive.

Definitions play a huge roll in meaning; it explains the use of words. There are seven different types of definitions in language, the first is reportative. This is the standard dictionary definition of a word. Reportative definitions can be difficult because they are not always clear on how to use a word or term. Second, is stipulative definitions this is when a standard definition of a word is given a new meaning or additional meaning. “For example, we might invent the word spinge to refer to the deposit that builds up between the bristles on a toothbrush” (Hughes Lavery & Doran 2015, p.33).

Third, are essentialist definitions that reflect things that have importance. Fourth, is ostensive this is a demonstrative definition used for words that are hard to understand. Fifth, is operational this definition provides the concept and meaning of a word. Sixth, is circular which states the term or word being defined within the definition. Last, is obscure which thoroughly expresses the meaning of a word’s definition. In conclusion, understanding the meaning of words and the concept of definitions can become very troublesome, but learning these theories, skills and information can provide a better understanding for those who have difficulty with language use.

References

1. Hughes, W., Boyne, M. R., Lavery, J., & Hughes, W. (2016). Critical thinking: an introduction to the basic skills. Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press.
2. Erstad, W. (2018, January 22). 6 Critical Thinking Skills You Need to Master Now. Retrieved from https://www.rasmussen.edu/student-experience/college-life/critical-thinking-skills-to-master-now/
3. Bassham, G. (2019). Critical thinking: a students introduction. Dubuque: McGraw-Hill Education.

Is speaking a dialect forced upon our ancestors by their colonial masters, something that should be forgotten or something to be celebrated? For too long, the Jamaican Creole was the language of the countryside and the uneducated. The citizens of Jamaica continue to overlook the value of our Jamaican Creole. When the British colonized Jamaica in 1655, they propelled Jamaica into an English speaking country, even though the majority of slaves here spoke other African dialects. As a form of rebellion, the slaves refused to speak the English Language. The British outlawed the use of native tongues as a way of controlling them by weakening the bonds that they had to their homelands. Francis’s (2005) study pointed out that 69% of the Jamaican nationals feel that Patois should be made an official language. This further highlights the love the Jamaicans have for their language and how much it means to them. Notwithstanding the negative realities that have resulted from patois not gaining official status, it is now the prerogative of the Jamaican Governments to address this issue. Jamaican Creole should be afforded official status because it will aid in increasing the self-esteem of many Jamaicans and it will serve as a means of expressing their identity and it represents Jamaicans historical struggle for equality.

The Jamaica Creole should be afforded official status because it will aid in increasing the self-esteem of many Jamaicans. The perception that the Jamaican Creole language is a form of ‘bad English’ persists today, it is considered to be an unacceptable official language. Interestingly, Nelson (2018) states that people who speak Jamaican Creole are often referred to as uneducated and are treated with disdain by society because they believe it lacks prestige. Also, many believe that Patois is deemed as an inferior form of English. Hence, theses person who speaks Patois is often marginalized when being dealt with public officials, simply because they do not speak Standard English. Repeatedly, the Creole speaker hears: “Yuh chat bad, een pickney!” Or, “yu cyaa talk prapaly?”. Undoubtedly, this results in the development of insecurity and low self-esteem among Creole speakers. Hence, Creole speakers withdraw themselves from any form of public speaking which leads to low self-esteem and self-rejection. They then reject the view that the Jamaican Creole language is of any value. For example, in the classroom, there is a stigma attached to the student who speaks the Creole language because they can’t speak Standard English. Therefore, the student refuses to answer any questions in class simply because they fear the outcome of being humiliated or labeled as “chat bad”. If Patois is considered as valuable a language as any other language then the negative stigma associated with the unique Jamaican Creole would decrease.

Additionally, Patois should be afforded official status because; it will serve as a means of expressing the Jamaican identity. Language is what connects us to our culture and ancestors. It’s what shaped our attitudes, beliefs, and values. Devonish (2017) postulates that Jamaicans expressed pride in their culture and their language. In addition to this Belcher-Timme (2009) notes that the unique Jamaica Creole set it apart from other cultures, making Jamaicans “easily distinguishable from other cultures”. This simply means that the Jamaican Creole is the vessel that holds our Jamaican identity and heritage thus, it is worthy of respect and recognition. The Jamaican Creole is one of the most recognizable characteristics of the Jamaican people in pop culture, it fascinates other cultures. This is evident in our Folklore and reggae music, which is now recognized on an international level. If one is to translate folklore meaningfully into Standard English is difficult and impossible. Likewise, for the lyrics of reggae music. This simply means that the messages that are conveyed in the reggae music and folklore would not be as effective as the use of Jamaican Creole.

Furthermore, Belcher-Timme (2009) argues that Patois should be afforded official status because it represents Jamaicans historical struggle for equality. Also, his research pointed out that Jamaicans are very proud of the struggle that their ancestors have had to fight through and overcome, making patois a “staple of any true Jamaican”. The Jamaican Creole represents a group of people and what they stand for. Our oppressors are no longer holding us back on this, it is us. Patois is a pivotal element in preserving traditions and the past in Jamaica.

On the other hand, many opponents will argue that there is no reason to make patois another official language when students are already struggling to master Standard English in school. However, Nelson (2000) states that students are having difficulties with the English Language because they do not speak the English language frequently. If you ask a child who is about nine years old to perform the latest deejay music, he can reel off in a few minutes, not missing a beat or a word. Maybe he’s not that verse in school. However, the deejay communicated to him effectively, because they speak the same language, the Jamaican Creole. This is the core of the problem concerning the poor academic performance in English among Jamaica students. Also, (Pryce, 1997) believes that the reason students are having trouble with the English language is more a result of students not reading enough.

Additionally, others may argue that the Jamaican Creole becoming an official language is unattainable due to the lack of a spelling system. However, a unified and standard system that governs the use of the language can be created. When this is done, the Jamaicans will be able to learn the syntax, morphology, and phonetics of their language. This will make it easier for them to write the language.

The significance of gamification can be better understood if we realize that the human brain have a natural tendency to stay away from those situations where it feels threatened or bored. Unfortunately, language classes can sometimes be boring for learners, especially for young learners. This is why when children, and even adults, are sitting in a classroom and watching a teacher who is giving a lecture and asking them to copy from the board, they easily lose their concentration and get distracted. Incorporating some colors, activities, and excitement into the same lesson will allow the teacher to keep learners of all ages focused and help them to learn the same material in a more interesting and interactive way.

All learning environments should encourage active and critical learning, not passive learning. Game based learning provides this ideal environment. The best games are those that actively engage learners, so that they experience the pleasure of exploring and understanding a new system. Well designed games, played in a variety of ways, using different media and platforms, can pierce distractions and engage learners in a way that few other methods can. Games can take the form of word play, language play, narrative and role play, as well as digital platforms. Gamification can be used at nearly all ages and language levels – from those acquiring literacy skills, practising listening and speaking skills, to enhancing critical thinking and problem solving skills, as well as developing digital literacy skills. The beauty of play in the learning environment is that learners develop autonomy quickly and can self correct easily, with a minimum of emotional stress. There is a clear path of progression and learners can learn at their own pace.

Badges and points are a great concept that promotes learning, especially when we are trying to personalize the process and enable each learner to make progress according to their own capacity. When they look at the badges they have earned, the learners will understand their own progress and potential, and they will try harder to get better. They can earn a badge when they achieve a particular goal, but the gaming experience is enhanced when we allow our students to unlock unexpected badges. For example, if a student hands in a homework assignment with no spelling mistakes, we can announce the big surprise that s/he has unlocked the “Spelling Bee” badge. Gamifying and grading don’t work well together. Grades remind people of work, where points remind people of games. We can show what level students have achieved once they reach a certain amount of points in the same way that karate learners earn different belt colors as they progress.

Games promote learners’ interaction. Pair or group work is one of the main ways to increase cooperation. Many games can be played in pairs or in small groups, thereby providing an opportunity to develop their interpersonal skills such as the skill of disagreeing politely or the skill of asking for help. In the classroom learners will definitely participate in the activities. Therefore, in groups or in pairs, they are more willing to ask questions, communicate and discuss topics with their partners and think creatively about how to use foreign language to achieve their goals. The competition in the games gives learners a natural opportunity to work together and communicate with each other a lot. Games improve learners’ language acquisition. Thanks to the motivation and interaction created by games, learners can acquire knowledge faster and more effectively than by other means. Games can stimulate and encourage learners to participate in the activity since they naturally want to win. Apart from having fun, students are learning. They acquire a new language. Learnerss begin to realize that they have to use the language if they want others to understand what they are saying. Furthermore, games can lower anxiety. In the easy, relaxed atmosphere which is created by using games, learners remember things faster and better.

Introduction

In the following report, I am going to briefly discuss the term ‘curriculum’ in relation to Te Whāriki and the NZ Curriculum framework. Furthermore, the content knowledge and some of the strategies a teacher can use to promote the learning of young children in the learning areas of Language, Literacy, and the Arts using the above curriculum frameworks as an underlying concept will also be discussed.

Curriculum

All the experiences, activities and happenings (including decisions) that takes place in a learning environment impacting the learning of ‘community of learners’ directly and indirectly can be described as (day-to-day) curriculum (Ministry of Education [MOE], 2017). This day-to-day curriculum is planned and guided by set of principles, strands and goals that are weaved together and is collectively called a curriculum framework, e.g, Te Whāriki and NZ Curriculum. Beliefs, values and attitudes of teachers, children, parents/whānau and of others involved in learning process plays a significant role in shaping curriculum, so teachers need to be reflective, adaptable to accommodate everyone’s contribution and hence will produce a flexible curriculum, acknowledging the cultural identity and home knowledge of learners (Lim & Genishi, 2010). An example of flexible curriculum is ‘Emergent Curriculum’ where teachers observe children’s interest, consider sociocultural context of learning community (people, places, things including peers, whānau) to plan curriculum accordingly (Gordon & Browne, 2014). Such curriculum empowers children as ‘competent and confident learners (MOE, 2017) and connects their learning with their wider lives by acknowledging community engagement in the curriculum (Ministry of Education [MOE], 2007). Children’s and whānau interests are the deciding factors of what shape a curriculum will take and how.

Language/ Literacy

Language & literacy is defined as a system of symbols used to communicate experiences, ideas, knowledge with others (MOE, 2007). Every child has an innate urge to learn language(Chomsky,2000) which stimulates through sociocultural interactions (Vygotsky,1987), so teachers should provide children language rich environment which provide children many opportunities to engage themselves in ‘responsive and reciprocal’ interactions with their peers, teachers and environment (MOE, 2017).

Language/Literacy is all about making meaning (Listening, reading, and viewing) and creating meaning (Speaking, Writing, and Presenting) (MOE,2007). Children interact with their environment through oral (speaking), audio (listening) and visual language before they move forward to communicate through other mediums such as reading, writing i.e. literacy. Literacy helps children in other learning areas of curriculum (e.g, talking (oral/visual literacy) about different lines/patterns in a child painting helps teacher build on mathematics concepts along with adding to child’s vocabulary. Education Review Office (2017) accentuates on Oral language “as a precursor and extension of wider learning” (p.7), therefore, it is important for children to have access to various literacy practices throughout the day which allows them to play with literacy, code/decode texts, use it meaningfully in various contexts and critiquing it (Ministry of Education, 2009c) in order to “participate fully in the social, cultural, political and economic life of NZ” (MoE, 2007, p.18). Teachers need to be ‘active listeners’ (MacNaughton & Williams, 2009) throughout the day to respond to spontaneous and planned literacy practices. E.g, teacher can build on children language baking in a sand-pit using related vocabulary – baking powder, vinegar, flour, oven, fry pan etc.

Teaching strategies

Play number of games e.g. alliteration book or mystery bag to make children familiar with phonemic awareness which is important for writing and reading (Connor & Topfer, 2015). Te Whāriki states children should experience the stories of their own culture and of others (MOE, 2017), so storytelling should be encouraged. Storytelling is a group activity where children listens to the story, interprets meaning, understands emotions and context of the story further making connections to their experiences and hence developing holistically. Cultural and familiar plots need to be used to help children understand how stories can be interpreted in different languages (Gayleg, 2017) which will further help children develop advanced language skills such as comparing and contrasting different languages and cultures (MOE, 2007). Use of language/symbols as semiotic tool (Vygotsky, 1962) is important to initiate and mediate social interactions and to help children develop mental thinking skills particularly for bilingual children (Guo & Mackenzie, 2015). Teachers should emphasize on non-verbal gestures E.g, using New Zealand sign language or wave at child when saying bye will help child understand that bye can be said through verbal and non-verbal gestures. Open-ended questioning can be used to maintain a sustained conversation along with using sophisticated vocabulary and complex structures with young children (Collins, 2012). E.g, throw open ended questions around various ways of cooking to children cooking/baking in sandpit. Follow children’s interest to help develop literacy. E.g, if children interested in bugs/insects, a teacher can introduce ‘Casey Caterpillar’ to help children develop in writing. Meaningful literacy experiences in various contexts (Cigman, 2014) need to be encouraged to help children understand that meaning can be conveyed through many media. A teacher should recognize these meaningful interactions through spontaneous play (MoE, 2017). E.g, children interested in dramatic play of ice-cream shop selling ice-cream, a teacher can promote literacy by carefully planting literacy materials (Cigman, 2014) in that context such as pencil, papers to take orders, make menu, make open/close sign for a shop or create their own money (helping children become aware of other learning areas such as mathematics). Learning stories/portfolios is an important artifact which teachers can use as a literacy ‘developmental tool’ as children can self-assess and evaluate their own literacy learning (Craw, 2015). E.g, assessing their literacy journey from being able to spot their name to trace their name using loose parts to actually writing name with writing tools. Children learn and develop best when they can make connections across the home and centre experiences (MOE, 2017), so teachers can send home the same books to read they have read at centre to engage whānau in literacy journey. Children name identity can be a beneficial resource for teachers to begin literacy journey as children are always curious to learn about their name. E.g, developing name plates for children to trace or write on.

Art

Art is one of many ‘literacy modes’ (Craw, 2015) that today’s 21st century generation use to communicate and express themselves and hence, is an important skill to develop for our future generation. Art stimulates children senses, encourage them to think, use imagination, express themselves and learn different perspectives as they work independently and collaboratively to make meaning of the world around them (MOE, 2007). The above idea is further supported by neuroscience research who claims that Art helps in children development holistically through forming and strengthening neural pathways as they engage in natural art activities (Sousa, 2006). Furthermore, art encourages children to appreciate their own and others culture (MOE, 2017) enabling them to feel belonged with the land and culture they live in. Art is generally divided into Visual art and Performing art (music, drama, dance).

Visual art

The very first approach young children adopt to explore their visual environment is through visual art by looking followed by smelling, touching. So, an ECE children teacher should build on child’s very first communication skill. Language/literacy can also be promoted through visual art as Coleman (n.d.) states “reading as the product of sustained observation and attention to detail”. The above skills can be developed through visual art. E.g, observational painting of a pine cone will help children develop the above skills as they notice fine details (line, form, color, texture, form). Teachers should encourage visual art not only inside the classroom but also in our everyday life (Plows, 2017), e.g, visit art galleries, or find different patterns on clothes, walls or different textures of trees, branches etc.

Teaching strategies

Children should experience a wide variety of art materials such as clay, paint brushes, rollers etc (MOE,2017) to experiment with materials, to discover different elements, purposes and visual ideas (MOE, 2007), so various art materials should be made available at all times. E.g, providing various painting materials such as paint brushes, pipettes, sponges, bubble wrap will help children develop their skills around how to use each one. In MacNaughton & Williams (2009) view, teachers should use descriptive language with children engaging in visual art. E.g, children using clay, teacher can talk about different consistencies clay undergoes (hard, soft, pliable) and the impact of these consistencies on their clay product. Teachers should ask productive questions “to take a student forward in his/her thinking” (Martens, 1999,p.25) as cited in Isbell & Yoshizawa (2016). Teachers should incorporate visual art and processes meaningfully in day-to-day curriculum. E.g, incorporating ‘paper mache’ to create beautiful visual art structures along with contributing in sustainability.

Performing arts

Children engage in performing arts naturally on a daily basis – clapping, making sounds with hands/mouth, walking in a rhythmic way, stretching hands/legs, it’s all about performing. It also plays an important role in strengthening children’s cultural identity as they engage in music, dance, drama of different cultures (MOE,2017). It’s divided in 3 elements:

Music

Children encounter music everyday e.g. sounds from nature, acoustic or digital environment. Children enjoy, interpret and play with these sounds and make music independently or collaboratively through singing, listening songs, playing instruments. Through music engagements, they explore different elements of music – tone, pitch, rhythm, dynamics (MOE, 2007), which helps them to make and play with music.

Dance

Throughout the day, children engage themselves in dance or movements such as clapping their hands, stomping their feet, doing silly moves or dancing to a song. As Connell & McCarthy (2014) states that dance/movement helps children’s vestibular system to mature which further controls balance, posture and other cognitive skills – stay focused, problem solving. All these are pr-requisite for reading/writing (literacy skills). Furthermore, through dance, children observe and imitate each others moves (social skills). Movement also helps them to self-regulate in response to a stimuli (MOE, 2007) e.g, doing yoga or meditation at time of stress (physical & emotional well-being). Therefore, dance activities encourages holistic development of children.

Drama

Children role play different people based on their real experiences or imaginations, connecting various learning spaces together -home, centre or community. This role-playing boosts up their development (Vygotsky, 1978) as they understand different perspectives and experience how it feels like to be in place of mummy, daddy, baby, teacher etc. Drama helps children developing literacy skills as they effectively conveys their message and emotions through body movements, language, space along with developing social and cognitive skills as they negotiate their ideas, become aware of how different elements of drama (role, action, tension) and work together to convey meaning (MOE, 2007).

Teaching strategies: Sansom (2009) view, teachers should adopt “listening pedagogy” to observe, listen to spontaneous dance moments, flexible enough to adapt and respond promptly to build on children’s dance repertoire. Co-player and teacher-in-role are strategies teachers can adopt to build on children’s performing art through asking open-ended questions or enacting one of the play character. During this, they should be mindful of their interactions and not to disturb the originality of art along with re-imaging and adding elements that are new to them (Dunn & Stinson, 2012). E.g, in an ice-cream shop, teacher can introduce monetary, or menu elements by becoming a paying customer asking for food options. Teachers should encourage rhythmic movements throughout the day, encouraging children to match their body movements to the beat or through games require body percussion (Williams, 2016) such as dancing with hula hoops, gunny bags or keeping balloons in the air while dancing to the music. Teacher should also engage family and Community to share cultural dances & songs to strengthen children’s ‘sense of belonging’ with the centre environment (MOE,2017).

Conclusion

In this report, we talked about how young children make and interpret meaning in different ways using ‘hundreds of languages’ (Loris Malaguzzi) so teachers should be reflective, adaptable, aware of relevant curriculum and pedagogical knowledge and able to weave all learning areas together to support children’s multi- literacies in rhizomatic way.

References

1. Chomsky, N. (2000). New horizons in the study of language and mind. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
2. Cigman, J. (2014). Supporting boys’ writing in the early years: Becoming a writer in leaps and bounds (pp. 55-73). London, UK: Routledge.
3. Coleman, D. (n.d.). Guiding Principles for the Arts Grades K–12. Retrieved from http://usny.nysed.gov/rttt/docs/guidingprinciples-arts.pdf
4. Collins, M. (2012). Sagacious, sophisticated and sedulous: The importance of discussing 50-cent words with preschoolers. Young Children, 67(2), 66-71.
5. Connell, G., & McCarthy, C. (2014). A moving child is a learning child: How the body teaches the brain to think (pp. 83-89). Minneapolis, MN: Free Spirit Publishing.
6. Connor, J., & Topfer, C. (2015). Supporting literacy learning in the early years. Research in Practice, 22(2), 7-11.
7. Craw, J. (2015). Making art matter-ings: Engaging (with) art in early childhood education, in Aotearoa New Zealand. Journal of Pedagogy, 6(2), 133-153.
8. Dunn, J., & Stinson, M. (2012). Dramatic play and drama in the early years: Re-imagining the approach. In S. Wright (Ed.), Children, meaning making and the arts (2nd ed., pp. 115- 134). French’s Forest, Australia: Pearson.
9. Education Review Office. (2017). Extending their language – Expanding their world : Children’s oral language (birth-8years). Retrieved from https://www.ero.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/Extending-their-language-expanding-their-world2.pdf
10. Faulkner, D. (2014). Storytelling cultures in early years classrooms. He Kupu, 3(5), 80-91.
11. Gayleg, K. (2017, July/August). The magic of stories: Conveying values, beliefs and social norms. Exchange, (236), 40-42
12. Gordon, A., & Browne, K. (2014). Beginnings and beyond: Foundations in early childhood education (9th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
13. Guo, K., & Mackenzie, N. (2015). Signs and codes in early childhood: An investigation of young children’s creative approaches to communication. Australian Journal of Early Childhood, 40(2), 78-87.
14. Isbell, R., & Yoshizawa, S. A. (2016). Nurturing creativity: An essential mindset for young children’s learning (pp. 19-36). Washington DC: NAEYC
15. Lim, S., & Genishi, C. (2010). Early Childhood Curriculum and Development Theory. In P. Peterson, E. Baker & B. McGaw (Eds.), International Encyclopedia of Education (3rd ed.). UK: Elsevier.
16. MacNaughton, G., & Williams, G. (2009). Techniques for teaching young children: Choices for theory and practice (3rd ed.). NSW, Australia: Pearson.
17. Ministry of Education. (2007). Curriculum achievement objectives by level. Retrieved from https://nzcurriculum.tki.org.nz/content/download/1110/11995/file/charts1.pdf
18. Ministry of Education. (2009c). Kei Tua o te Pae/ Assessment for learning: Oral, Visual, and Written Literacy (Book 17). Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
19. Ministry of Education. (2017). Te Whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna O Aotearoa: Early childhood curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Mātauranga House.
20. Ministry of Education. (2007). The New Zealand curriculum for English-medium teaching and learning in years 1-13. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
21. Plows, J. (2017). A hamster’s head and a porcupine tail: Visual arts education and creativity in the sphere of early childhood. Swings and Roundabouts, 33, 28-30.
22. Sansom, A. (2009). Mindful pedagogy in dance: Honoring the life of the child. Research in Dance Education, 10(3), 161-176.
23. Scanlan, B. (2014). Seeing lines of flight in early childhood education as wonderful opportunities. He Kupu 3(5), 15-21.
24. Sousa, D. (2006). How the arts develop the young brain.Retrieved from http://www.aasa.org/SchoolAdministratorArticle.aspx?id=7378
25. Vygotsky, L. S. (1962). Thought and language. Cambridge: MIT Press.
26. Vygotsky, L. S. (1987). The collected works of L.S Vygotsky, vol.

Abstract

Sentences in first-order predicate logic is usefully taken as programs during this paper the operational and fixpoint linguistics of predicate logic programs area unit outlined, and also the connections with the proof theory and model theory of logic area unit investigated it’s finished that operational linguistics could be a a part of proof theory which fixpoint linguistics could be a special case of model-theoretic linguistics key words and phrases predicate logic as a formal language, linguistics of programming languages, resolution theorem proving, operaUonal versus denotational linguistics, fixpoint characterization.

Introduction

Predicate logic plays a very important role in several formal models of pc programs. Here we tend to square measure involved with the interpretation of predicate logic as a artificial language. The programming language system based mostly upon the procedural interpretation, has been used for several formidable programming tasks. we tend to compare the ensuing linguistics with the classical linguistics studied by logicians. two sorts of linguistics, operational and fix point, are outlined for program languages. Operational linguistics defines the input-output relation computed by a program in terms of the operations induced by the program within a machine. The which means of a program to the input-output relation obtained by corporal punishment the program on the machine. As a machine freelance different to operational linguistics, fixpoint linguistics defines the mean of a program to be the input output relation that to the stripped fixpoint of a change assonated with the program. Fix purpose linguistics has been to justify existing ways for proving properties of programs and to inspire and justify new ways of proof relation, and truth.

A Syntax of Well-Formed Formulas

It is convention to limit attention to predicate logic programs written m grammatical construction type. Such programs have AN particularly easy syntax however retain all the communicative power of the full predicate logic. A sentence may be a finite set of clauses. A clause may be a disjunction Li V ‘ • • V Ln of literals L, that are atomic formulas P (tl, . . . , tn) or the negations of atomic formulas P(tl . . . . . tn) , wherever P may be a predicate symbol and t, are terms. Atomic formulas are positive literals. Negating of atomic formulas are negative literals.

The Procedural interpretation

It is best to interpret procedurally sets of clauses that contain at the most one posmve hteral per clause. Such sets of clauses square measure known as Horn sentences. we tend to distinguish 3 kinds of Horn clauses. The empty clause, containing no hterals and denoting the reality worth false, is interpreted as a halt statement.

B~ V ….. V B a clause consisting of no positive hterals and n -> one negative hterals ~s understood as a goal statement.

Model- Theoretic Semantics

There is general agreement among logicians regarding the linguistics of predicate logic. This linguistics provides an easy technique for determinative the denotation of a predicate symbol P during a set of clauses A. where X ~ Y implies that X logically implies Y. Dz(P) is that the denotation of P as determined by model-theoretic linguistics. The completeness of first-order logic implies that there exist illation systems such that durability coinodes with logical implication; i.e. for such reference systems X I- Y iff Sl = Y.

In order to create a comparison of the fixpoint and model-theoretic linguistics, we need a additional careful definition of D2. For this purpose, we tend to outline the notions of Herbrand interpretation and Herbrand model. An expression (term, literal, clause, set of clauses) is ground if it contains no variables. A Herbrand interpretation at the same time associates, with each n-ary predicate image in A, a novel n-ary relation over H. The relation is associated by I with the predicate image P during a.

1. A ground atomic formula A is true during a Herbrand interpretation I iff A E I.
2. A ground negative literal. A is true in I iff A ~ one.
3. A ground clause L~ V • • • V luminous flux unit is true in I iff a minimum of one literal L, is true in I.

Fixpoint Semantics

In the fixpoint linguistics, the denotation of a recursively outlined procedure is outlined to be the stripped-down fixpoint of a change related to the procedure definition.

Here we have a tendency to propose a samdar definition of semantics for predicate logic programs.

In order to justify our definition, we have a tendency to 1st disquiet the fixpoint semantics because it has been formulated for additional conventionally outlined recourse procedures. Our description follows the one given by American state Bakker.

Let P ~ B(P) be a procedure declaration in AN Algol-like. Language, wherever the primary occurrence of P because the procedure name, wherever B(P) is that the procedure body, and wherever the occurrence of P in B(P) all calls to P within the body of the procedure. Associated with B as a change T that maps sets I of input-output tuples into other such sets J = T(I). once the transformation T is monotonic T(I~) C T(I2) whenever I~ C lz) the denotetion of P as outlined as n, which is adenocele to the intersection of all fixpoints of T.

Model-Theoretic and Fixpoint Semantics:

We shall show that for sets of procedure declarations A, model-theoretic and fixpoint semantics coincide: D2 = Ds. It would be sufficient to show that NM(A) = AC(A), but it is easy to prove that even M(A) = C(A). In other words, a Herbrand interpretation I of A is a model of A iff I is closed under the transformation T assumed with A.

Conclusion

For impulsive sentences X and Y of first-order predicate logic, proof theory determines when X ~- Y and model theory determines once X ~ Y. we’ve got argued that m the procedural i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , operational semantics ~s proof theory and fixpoint linguistics is model theory. On the opposite hand, operational and fixpoint linguistics solely manage the case wherever Y could be a set of ground atomic formulas. Moreover, fixpoint linguistics solely deals with X, a group of procedure declarations. we tend to believe that the supplementary generality of proof theory and model theory has helpful consequences. The completeness theorem of first-order logic states that the relations b of derivabilty and ~ of logical lmplication area unit equivalent. For goal directed logical thinking systems this equivalence establishes that varied computation rules cipher the relation determined by the fixpoint linguistics. additional typically, this equivalence may be accustomed justify varied rules (such as Scott’s induction rule [6]) for proving properties of programs.

The book under review, Learner Corpora and Language Teaching, is edited by Sandra Götz and Joybrato Mukherjee, introducing the latest research in learner corpus studies and its value in language teaching. The volume is a collection of research papers originally presented at the 12th Teaching and Language Corpora Conference in Giessen in 2016, on the theme of combining language learning and teaching with the utilization of corpora. This volume is well organized with four thematically defined sections, namely, New learner corpora and tools, Written learner corpora and language teaching, Spoken learner corpora and language teaching, and Learner corpora and language teacher education. Despite a long history of corpus-based teaching, the specific learner corpus is rarely used in teaching. Each section contains a number of research projects in which the use of learner corpus materials and methodologies is essential. Authors are established or young scholars from Europe and Asia, and the language explored ranges from English to Japanese. In the situation that ‘learner corpora are still at a periphery of language teaching’ (Flowerdew, 2012), a distinctive feature of this volume is that it focuses on the value of learner corpus, both spoken and written, in the application into language teaching.

The papers collected in this volume present important contributions to methodological innovation in learner corpus studies. Section I starts with the introduction of a newly compiled spoken corpus, The Trinity Lancaster Corpus (TLC) as a case to be studied by Dana Gablasova, Vaclav Brezina and Tony McEnery (p. 7), who are trying to fill the gap between learner corpus and its direct application in language pedagogy. As each corpus material in TLC is marked based on the band of A, B, C, and D, with A indicating the highest performance and D a fail. So proficiency in spoken English can be compared to benefiting both students and teachers to understand successful communication. Furthermore, the corpus features various sociolinguistic characteristics of a corpus, like age, gender, education, learning experience. All these variables could be studied to explore their effects on language learning.

It is found in the first case study that with increasing L2 proficiency, the disagreements tend to be accompanied by more politeness markers to form more complex politeness strategies. This is the evidence indicating which resources could be more suitable to speakers at each level proficiency levels and corresponding pedagogical intervention may be appropriate for a targeted group of speakers. Another finding in the second case is that the advanced L2 speakers adjust their use of (un)certainty markers according to linguistics settings, while with several learners applying the same approach irrespective of the demands of the task. This suggests that intervention at both lower and higher levels of proficiency may be necessary even for advanced speakers. The third case study states a relationship between the overall performance of the learners and their listenership strategies. This indicates that signals of active listenership can be taught to elevate learners’ overall understanding and awareness of the conversation principles. These three cases demonstrate explicitly how findings from learner corpora can be directly used in materials design and how examples from these corpora can be integrated into classroom exercises.

As the second part of Section I, an automated tool for rating EFL essays is introduced by Olga Vinogradova, with a case study of a learner corpus named Russian Error-Annotated Learner English Corpus (REALEC). The corpus is compiled with two genres of graphical materials and argumentative essays in English by first- and second-year Bachelor students at different departments in four cities in Russia. Errors in the corpus are annotated manually by experts and performed in BRAT, an open-access user-friendly web-based tool. This paper described how to use BRAT thoroughly, from error identification to error classification, and error correction to annotation display. With the computer technology of automatic item generation (AIG), the annotated errors of the corpus are input into RETM-REALEC English Test Maker to generate test questions. These two pools of questions would provide a large number of choices for examiners to choose from. After being edited by instructors, questions are grouped into four types of tests. Both correct and wrong answers together with expected corrections would be automatically displayed in the interface of Moodle after the tests. The result shows that editing generated questions is of great necessity due to various special cases. The author also rationally analyses to what extent this process is useful for EFL instructors.

Section II of the volume focuses on the application of learner corpus in investigating the overuse or underuse of certain linguistic patterns in English by non-native speakers. Some of them select keywords as an indicator to analyze the use of the English language by native and non-native speakers, like the word ‘TAKE’ in Albert Biel’s paper (p. 51), and countable nouns, prepositional phrases, verbs and general adverbs in Pascual Perez-Paredes & Maria Belen Diez-Bedmar’s (p. 101); and some take syntactic feature as a parameter to calculate log-likelihood of learners’ English to native English, like linking adjuncts in Meredith D’Arienzo’s research (p.75), and direct quotes in Leonie Wiemeyer’s (p.129). Albert studies the use of ‘TAKE’ in German learners in learner corpus ICLE and comparable American English Speaker Corpus (LOCNESS), finding that non-native speakers do not overuse simple verbs due to restricted vocabulary as generally considered. Similar to the methodology as Albert adopts, Pascual Perez-Paredes and Maria Belen Diez-Bedmar take multiple keywords to analyze learner language complexity, and it is concluded that noun phrase is of great interest in identifying achievements in language acquisition. Except for words-based study, scholars also take advantage of syntactic features in their studies. Combining quantitative and qualitative methods, Meredith argues that EFL learners do perform universal variation in that both over- and underuse linking adjuncts appears in the study. And pedagogical interventions are proposed for Italian learners to acquire cohesive devices. Leonie studies the intertextuality of L2 learners, suggesting that in spite of the familiarity of direct quotation and conventions, teaching should enhance learners’ knowledge in length, syntactic integration, and purpose of direct quotes.

As a paralleled content, Section III is on the topic of spoken learner corpora and language teaching. Compared to written corpora, spoken corpora is another mode of language output. Will EFL learners be affected by these two different modes in terms of language accuracy and error rate? Mariko Abe finds that third-person singular – s may be problematic for Japanese learners as it does not improve in the less time-pressured written production mode compared to spoken mode. To test the expression features of German English learners, Anna Rosen takes 18 smallswords as indicators to compare learners with and without studying abroad experience. The result supports the previous study that learners benefit from the exposure to natural language environment. Besides linguistic features, spoken corpora together with the recordings contain more information on paralinguistic cues, like speech rate, tone, etc., which are potential resources for scholars to explore. In the research of Tomas Graf and Karin Puga, they study speech rate and edge tone respectively based on a spoken corpus, both of which explore possible and novel approaches for spoken corpus research as well as for spoken language assessment.

Learner corpora can be used to provide negative evidence for language learners to identify common and persistent errors, meanwhile, learner corpus data used in Data Driven Learning (DDL) activities can increase future teachers’ abilities to notice and evaluate errors. Section IV links learner corpus with teacher education to complement the gap between popularization of corpus and few trained teachers in corpus linguistics (Mukherjee, 2004). Marcus Calie (p. 245) reviews previous findings on corpus literacy and present data, sorts out a research and teaching perspective of corpora use, finding that the former remains under-addressed in language teacher education. Therefore, the author proposes an added value of learner corpus, that is, learner corpus could narrow the distance between teacher education and their career reality.

As a whole, the volume presents diverse approaches to deploy learner corpus in language learning and teaching. It explores multiple purposes that scholars could realize with the use of learner corpus. To be specific, diverse learner corpus study patterns start to emerge from the processing and analysis of the corpus data used. One major pattern is driven by distinctive linguistic features between advanced and lower learners, between L2 learners and native language corpus, which results in further exploration of how to improve language learning accordingly. These features include, but not limited to, lexical markers (Dana Gablasova, Vaclav Brezina and Tony McEnery in Section I, Pascual Perez-Paredes & Maria Belen Diez-Bedmar in Section II, Mariko Abe, Anna Rosen in Section III), syntactic structures (Albert Biel, Meredith D’Arienzo, Leonie Wiemeyer in Section II). Except for linguistic feature in common among spoken and written corpus, it is noted that scholars are researching on paralinguistic features of a spoken learner corpus. Such features of fluency, tone and speech rate, are undoubtedly vital for language learning and use. And these studies (Tomas Graf, Karin Puga in Section III) expand the use of learner corpus above traditional word analysis. Another pattern is about designing the teaching intervention process, e.g. exam questions, teacher training method, based on learner corpus (Olga Vinogradova in Section I, and Marcus Calie in Section IV).

Another shining point of the volume covers a comprehensive range of corpus types and learner corpus applications in the perspective of learners and teachers. Both spoken and written learner corpus studies are discussed in the volume, while with a deficiency of an overlapping content of Section I and Section III, in terms of the topics on spoken learner corpus. And readers may get confused about unclear classification of Section I and Section IV, in that the second paper in Section I is about how teachers could use learner corpus to design exam questions, which should fall into the category of Section IV on the topic of training teachers to apply learner corpus as teaching tools in general sense. In addition, authors in the volume also introduce lots of innovative corpus tools and learner corpus resources which are compiled in recent years, which inject new nutrition for the development of learner corpus studies.

Except for the mentioned advantages and convenience of learner corpus in language teaching, it is also critically demonstrated that several issues in the pedagogical application of the learner corpus. One is the inability of a corpus in presenting all paralinguistic cues when transforming spoken language into written transcriptions. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify what features of spoken communication will be captured in the transcript. And these features will play a role in the analysis (Adolphs & Knight, 2010). The other issue is about the variable controlling in the comparison of the different corpus. In an ideal situation, the corpus to be compared with should bear similar, if not the same, features of data in all respects. Otherwise, the comparison would be unreliable.

As a whole, Learner Corpora and Language Teaching is a highly informative and illuminating collection of latest studies on learner corpus and its application in language learning and teaching. Its innovative perspective, explorative efforts, rich learner corpus resources, critical thinking make it a truly valuable book for teachers, researchers and language learners. The research approaches, fresh corpus resources and inspiring findings are paving the way for future studies.