Beyond Concordance Lines; Using Concordances to Investigate Language Development

Today, concordance seems to be an important asset in investigating language development. Without concordances, everything in language pedagogy seems to be wrong and dysfunctional. Concordance an alphabetical listing of words in a text (called search/key words) together with the contexts in which they appear, and the concordance software is the program which supplies these listings. It can provide statistical lists for all the words in the text/corpus object of study, statistics which can appear in alphabetical order or with regard to the frequency of occurrence of each word. There are many example of concordance that we can use now such as Wordsmith, MonoConc Pro and Microconcord. In our country, the usage and analysis of language corpora didn't spread widely since it was new to us.With the concordance, we can analyze the word easily but to get the result that we want, it might take difficult task to do because the high amount of data itself.

Example of concordance application program:

Concordancers have been widely used in linguistics, above all in text-type studies which rely on quantitative analysis. Yet, linguistics is not the only field where concordancers may prove useful; apart from genre studies, translation and literary criticism might also be benefitted from the advantages these programs present. Thus, if stylistic analysis is nowadays applying concordancers to detect cases of literary influence (in some cases mere plagiarism), by the same token, the programs can be useful to detect cases of intertextuality, be it intertextuality ‘proper’ (specific texts overtly drawn upon within a text), or interdiscursivity (how a discourse type is constituted by a combination of other discourse types). Obviously, concordancers do not work on ‘nothing’: you need a first ‘intuition’ to start with but, once you have it, concordancers are very simple to use and save a great deal of time: collocation, frequencies (and their implications regarding lexical cohesion), or intertextual links among texts are spotted quickly and efficiently.

When I began my research, I had no idea how helpful a concordancer would prove. My object of study was Angela Carter’s "The Company of Wolves", a tale classified as one of the landmarks of feminist revised versions of fairy-tales, classification which I discussed in my work. Thus, although I did not deny its evident intertextual connections with the famous story of Little Red Riding Hood, I had also found traces of other texts and, above all, of other generic types. The purpose of my work was, then, to see which generic type(s) were present in the tale, how they showed in it and, above all, why.

Norman Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis was adopted as the framework for the analysis, an approach that attempts both a description of discourse (as practised within linguistics by discourse analysts) and, mostly, an interpretation of discourse as social practice, aiming at making the opaque aspects of discourse more visible (discourse that is determined to a great extent by hegemonic ideologies). A key issue in Fairclough’s framework is that of the heterogeneous nature of texts, heterogeneity that can be exploited by the participants of the discursive practices for political purposes ("a strategy for dealing with the problematisation of one’s position is to be creative, to put together familiar discourse types in novel combinations as a means of finding new ways of doing things to replace the now-problematic old ones.", Fairclough 1989:171). The first task in my analysis was, then, to establish the degree of heterogeneity of the text under discussion, therefore establishing what generic type(s) it drew upon.

In order to delimitate the kind of genres present in our text, I also took into account the kind of multidimensional approach proposed by Biber (1989), which accounted for a number of text-types regarding both their linguistic co-occurrence patterns and their shared functions. His approach attempts to identify the linguistic parameters along which genres vary, and to do so he incorporates quantitative analysis (computer-based) to account for the co-occurrence of bundles of linguistic features in texts, which will be later ‘qualitatively’ analysed and interpreted with regard to the underlying function of the texts.

My main work hypothesis was that Carter’s tale was mainly constructed upon two different generic types –religious sermons and folk tales- which, although theoretically and ‘functionally’ different, shared a certain number of traits which made them susceptible of being combined within a single text with a clear purpose in mind. I then proceeded to establish the frequency of lexical apparitions and collocations, together with verb tenses and the like with the help of a concordancer, to prove my hypothesis. Once this was achieved, I realised that both generic types mixed in the text in a very interesting way, ‘cross-referring’ to each other as the narrative unfolded, and here also the concordancer proved really useful. I also made use of it to establish the cohesive patterns of the text, as well as certain features of Carter’s style (such as the recurrent use of hypallages or transferred epithets).

Once this was done, I searched for the explicit intertextual links of Carter’s tale with other texts. Apart from the obvious connections with different versions of Little Red Riding Hood, the text also hinted at some links with religious writings, certain poets, some Renaissance works (above all, the recurrent use of a number of images and expressions), and gothic novels, all of which I either scanned or downloaded from Internet sources to run the concordance program and spot the appearances. Obviously, all these things can also be –and still are- done ‘manually’, but at the risk of wasting a considerable amount of time and, also, of losing our patience more often than not!

The concordancer used in my research was the commercial program called Monoconc. Yet, as my work advanced, I became more interested in this kind of programs, and started to search the net for other resources of the like. As it happens, I found two other concordancers which were rather attractive, relatively easy to use and, above all, free. I considered then that there might be more researchers interested in knowing a bit more about them: how they worked, as well as which were their advantages/disadvantages when compared to a commercial one.

That concordance used for literary work and linguistic.thank you.

Experience using blog

1.Blogging activity really improves my writing skill a lot especially in grammar area. It encourages me to write in right way and doesn't break the rule of grammar.

2.Blog is a useful learning experience to me anyway after I learnt this course. It helps me to write creatively without any limit and expressing my feeling freely. It is quite enjoyable,m practical and effective to use. We don't just write about information, but also we decorate the blog skin with some good pictures and good music.

3.All the things we need to know before accomplishing the blog are the sources, references and the keypoints of the work. By knowing this aspect, we can complete it in right way and effectively.

4.My problem using the blog is that I can't always write the blog frequently because there is no Internet connection available in my study place.

5.I would recommend this activity to my friends since it is enjoyable and useful. Hope that they will get advantages from blogging just like me.

6. If there is no barrier, I would continue writing blog even after I finish my study. Thank you...

Computer Assisted Language Learning: Application or Prospects

Online Journal.
Yesterday, when I had free time, I go to the PTSL to doing some research about the online journal. The topic that I selected is The Application Of ICT In Language Learning.

Proquest Journal
Can ICT reduce social exclusion? The case of an adults' English language learning programme.

Strong claims are made for ICT-based lifelong learning as an effective way of reducing the exclusion of various groups in society, yet, there is very little research to support these claims. Empirical research is needed, including qualitative studies of the experiences of socially excluded learners using ICT. This article reports the findings of such a study in relation to learners from one socially excluded group, adults from ethnic minority backgrounds, who are disproportionately deprived and often excluded by language. The article discusses the study of the experiences and perceptions of adults learning English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) through ICT in seven different learning centers in England. The findings show that technology is insufficient to overcome existing inequalities in access to learning, and to engage learners who would not otherwise undertake formal learning, but ICT-based learning can reduce some aspects of social exclusion in terms of encouraging minority ethnic group learners to speak more within the host community. ICT-based learning offers a space for language learning and practice, which is often absent in traditional ESOL classrooms and in the. Learning is a social practice in which the level of commitment of tutors to encouraging the use of these media and creating a safe and private space for learning affects the range of learning activities with which learners engage and the impact of these on their everyday use of English.


Emerald Journal
Innovative practice in the use of ICT in education and training: learning from the winners

Addresses three separate initiatives: South Yorkshire Further Education Consortium (SYFEC); e-skills4industry – a partnership between Lewisham College and Deloitte; and Cascade and information and communication technology (ICT) training for schools. The initiatives, however, share two important characteristics. First, they are all initiatives which have been recognized within the National Training Awards (NTA) programmed organized by UK Skills and supported by the UK Government's Department for Education and Skills (DfES). Second, each of the initiatives, albeit in different ways, looks at the utilization of information and communication technology (ICT) in different aspects of education and training. The three winning accounts featured here offer useful insight into how the further and higher education sectors, in partnership with industry, are responding to some of the challenges and opportunities that have arisen as the use of information technology (IT) becomes common place in people's working (and learning) lives.


Emerald Journal

Concept IV: role of computer applications in facilitating language learning.
Do electronic communications and computerized interventions respect the ecology of the behavior, the speaker, and the listener?
According to Vygotsky (Portes, 1985; Vygotsky, 1962, 1978; Wertsch, 1985, 1990), behavior, or activity, was said to be verbally mediated. Initial reflexive behaviors were regarded as biologically controlled but influenced by the child-environment interaction through which cognitive structures were modified. Thus, behavior cannot be separated from thought; both are embodied within the unique cognitions of the individual and are at the same time the manifestations of that individual's social-- historical development.


Concept IV: Role of computer applications in facilitating language learning.
Are computer applications that target particular age groups or grade levels respectful of the child's cognitive, linguistic, and social-historical development?
To understand Vygotsky's approach and the multiplicity of intellectual roots characterized in his writings, Wertsch (1985) identified three general themes which could be applied to specific issues: (1) reliance upon developmental methods, (2) attributing higher mental processes to the social processes from which they originated, and (3) the postulate that understanding mental processes requires understanding of the signs/ tools that mediate them. The three themes are interdefined; there cannot be isolation of social and individual phenomena in the social sciences.


Concept IV: Role of computer applications in facilitating language learning.
Because electronic communication uses the signs of language and is a tool for communicating, is it also an appropriate context for developing the signs and tools the child needs?
Any function in the child's cultural development appears twice, or on two planes. First it appears on the social plane, and then on the psychological plane. First it appears between people as an interpsychological category, and then within the child as an intrapsychological category. This is equally true with regard to voluntary attention, logical memory, the formation of concepts, and the development of volition.


Concept IV: Role of computer applications in facilitating language learning.
Is it appropriate to use electronic communication as the "social context" referred to as the interpsychological plane?
Although the holistic emphasis and functional-mediationist perspectives of the social-interactionist theories appear to be quite different from Skinner's behaviorist theories, there are shared theoretical tenets. First, both underscore the important role of environment in contributing to the acquisition of language. Further, though reinforcement is qualitatively different from the Skinnarian-defined operant conditioning, it is an important component of social-- interactionist theory.


Concept V: Computer applications as intervention tools for LLI
Selection of developmentally appropriate software and application in intervention are essential considerations. Are criteria outlined by Nelson and Masterson (1999) sufficiently stringent to guide the SLP?
Berlin, Blank, and Rose (1980) underscored the importance of language in the schools as the medium through which all learning takes place. Silliman (1984) pointed out that not all talk is effective teaching, though most teaching involves talk. Nelson (1984) noted that the research in the area of school discourse was sparse. She reported that literature in this area described teaching as a process of deciding which discourse styles and content to use; what pace to set; and how to best manage a classroom, not in a sense of discipline but as part of the larger process of selection of a discourse style.


Concept V: Computer applications as intervention tools for LLI
Do electronic communication contexts, such as email, chatrooms, and list servs, provide an appropriate intervention setting to stimulate (1) conversation initiation, maintenance and elaboration; (2) more mature discourse regulation; (3) development of more flexible and mature syntax; and (4) maintenance of connected discourse?
Four aspects of children's communicative abilities were examined by Fey and Leonard (1983), including conversational participation, discourse regulation, speech acts, and referential skills. Their findings indicated that the SLI child was a deficient initiator of conversation at home, with peers, and in school. Such children did not initiate conversation or elaborate on topics, but rather used other nonverbal or less efficient verbal behaviors in their role as a communication partner. The third aspect examined, speech acts, revealed conflicting information. Some children evidenced deficiencies in their ability to produce requests for action and information and employed a limited range of linguistic forms (Fey and Leonard, 1983).The last aspect discussed by Fey and Leonard (1983) was use of referential skills. They reported there was evidence that SLI children could encode the element of context, which carried the greatest information load, as well as and sometimes better than could younger, language-matched children.


Experience using TSL databases.
This was my first time using online databases and I don’t know that journal is provided in modern way. Usually if I need to seek for a journal I used the traditional way and go to level three at PTSL and then I will photocopy the page that I want. Using online databases is more easy and convenient, because all the information that we search is in your hand. It is more easy using PROQUEST and EMERALD because it give the clear instruction and it is easy to find the topic that I choose. I’ve also try the EBSCOHOST, ERIC and LISA but it is difficult to understand the steps to find the topic. By this experience I get, I feel like I'm love to do this activity again. Thank You.

COMPUTER ASSISTED READING

Think About It Activity

Computerized reading can be defined as one way to write a document or assignment using computer as a tool.It was used to replace the old way of typing which is called handtyping. As we all know, computer has been used widespread in our community and it's easy to use for important works like writing assignment for the students and accomplishing the document for the employees. If compared to the handtyping,computer assisted writing can makes your work more systematic and excellent. From the activity that I put above, I assumed that you all that read my blog can solve that easy questions. The questions are asking six basic key of question, what, who, how, which, where and why. You can give whatever answer the question as long as it possible. The purpose of the activity is to train you to think more and write effectively. Software that I always used is Microsoft Word 2003. This softwre really give benefits to me.It makes my works a whole lot easier and faster. And one of examples of URL that host computerized writing activities is SchoolExpress.com.



Somene can improve writing by using the computer. We must practicing writing the document or simply a paragraph a day to make us feel comfortable with it. Maybe, we are the slow writer at first, but after many drills, we can type and write faster. Computar that has many good programs and softwares can guides us to write with clear instructions.It also stimulate you to do things better since we can do a correction and decoration. It can make us a good writer absolutely. Thank you.

JIGSAW READING

JIGSAW READING
By Eva Lai
1. What is effective reading?
Effective reading involves active interaction between reader and text. That is to say, the reader makes use of his knowledge of vocabulary (semantics), sentence structures (syntax) as well as prior knowledge of the subject area (schema) to get meaning from the print.
To help students read effectively, we should NOT just ask them to prepare the reading text at home, we should NOT just explain the whole passage to them, and we should NOT just get them answer the comprehension questions in the course book. We should, on the other hand, give them a purpose to read. One way of giving them a purpose is to get information for use, whatever that use may be.
2. What is jigsaw reading?
Doing Jigsaw Reading is like playing with a jigsaw puzzle. Each student in a group is given part of the story to read. He has to read and comprehend it all by himself in order to report to other members of the group. After each member has reported the different parts of the story, the whole group work together re-arranging the parts to recover the original story.
3. How to work with jigsaw reading texts?
We can use any coherent passage to create a jigsaw reading text. But it is more interesting if we use short stories our students can read independently, i.e. without the help of the teacher or the dictionary.
We can divide the story up in between episodes. For example, having divided the story into 4 parts, we make copies so that each student is only allowed to read 1/4 of the story. To make the activity more exciting, we can turn it into a competition: Ask students to form groups of four. Give each group Part 1 to Part 4 of the story. Tell them to read, to take notes it necessary, and to report orally to the group after reading. The group that can reconstruct the story back to its original is the winner.
4. What kind of jigsaw can we do in primary classes?
In lower primary, we can use sentences to do jigsaw. Instead of breaking a story up, we can break up a sentence into short chunks at the meaning boundaries.
Example:
The noisy dog/barked loudly/ in the middle of/the night.
In upper primary (or for some students in junior secondary), we can ask them to rearrange jumbled sentences to form a story.
Example:
1. That was why he could not read at the age of ten.
2. He went into the women's toilet.
3. He sat on a bench.
4. People told him to wash his hands in the toilet.
5. Tom hated reading.
6. One day, Tom went to the park.
7. He made his hands very dirty because he could not read the sign "WET PAINT".
8. He walked to the toilets.
9. He was caught by the police.
10. He could not understand the words "MEN" and "WOMEN".
The right order should be : 5,1,6,3,7,4,8,10,2 and 9.
5. What kind of jigsaw can we do in secondary classes?
In secondary classes, we can break up short stories into meaningful chunks each consisting of several paragraphs. We can put the setting of the story as Part I, the first episode as Part II and so on. For example, in a story by Bill Lowe in TWIST IN THE TALE, we can have Jane searching for asparagus to prepare dinner for Jack as Part I; Jack being away in Manila as Part II, the voice from the telephone saying he will never come back as Part III, and Jane being heartbroken as Part IV. As there is a twist in the tale, we can ask students to supply a surprise ending after they have reconstructed the four parts of the story. It would be interesting to compare the students* versions and that of the author*s : a wrongly connected telephone call for Jane.
6. What can we achieve in doing jigsaw reading?
We can give students a feeling of satisfaction --- the satisfaction gained at the completion of a task. In the above examples, students read with a purpose : to transfer information to their friends to reconstruct the story.
We can also check comprehension by asking a group to re-tell the story to the class. We can then briefly analyse the text, e.g. quote connectives, cohesion markers, or flow of ideas to illustrate why Part II should follow Part I. We can throw in a bit of story grammar : the setting, the theme, the plot, characters, resolution,etc. By familiarizing students with story grammar, we can help them read more effectively as they have a better schema to rely on.
www.hkptu.org



Analysis:


1. Firstly, the objective of jigsaw reading is to stimulate student's mind to think creatively and freely. We are given task to reconstruct the short story that had been twisted and turn. It also instill cooperation between member of the group in order to solve the solution. If we didn't cooperate with each other, we can't completed the task successfully.

2. It also has advantages in improving our reading ability, whether we fully understand the story or not. It also tested our speaking ability when we have to retell the story to the others. On the other hand, it stimulate our reading and speaking skill synchronously.

3. Jigsaw reading is simple yet fun and interesting task to do in the classroom. So, if you feeling boring, just do the jigsaw reading activity in your classroom.


READING FOR INFORMATION

Animals that Hover
New studies on bats and bluegill sunfish add to scientists' knowledge of a rare and enviable trait
By Matt Ransford Posted 03.04.2008 at 2:51 pm 1 Comment

The hummingbird is an animal that by all rights shouldn't be able to fly. Its wing movements are not at all like that of other birds. But not only can they fly, they're so good at it that they're the only species which can fly backward. They're also one of the few—but not the only—that can hover. And in the past week alone, two new studies on hovering animals have been made public. One is on bats and the others on the bluegill sunfish.

A team of researchers from Drexel, MIT, Harvard, and George Washington University have been studying the bluegill sunfish's ability to hover. By using only its pectoral fins, the fish can hover and rotate or move forward and come to a controlled stop. The motion was discovered by filming the fish in a tank while introducing tiny particles to reveal the trajectory of its fins in the water. The sunfish moves its pectoral fins in an unusual "cup and sweep" motion, which produces no drag. The team is using the data to build a mechanical spandex fin for submarines in the hopes of increasing their mobility in the water.

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden, meanwhile, have been studying a similar ability in bats. Using a specially constructed wind tunnel and fog as tracer particles, the scientists trained the bats to fly from one end to the other and videotaped the results. They discovered the bats were able to generate an unexpected amount of lift by changing the curvature in their wings, allowing them momentarily to hover.


Analysis:

This article that I found in the web, www.englishpage.com under content, Reading Room is about the hummingbird and oth that can hover. This article is suitable for whom that looking new information about the hummingbirds. It also good for researchers since it is mentioned that there are new research was done. Thank you. Happy blogging and happy voting...

P/s: Pn.Zaini, I can't attend your tutorial class tomorrow because I going back home early morning tomorrow for election. I'm sorry for that. May Allah bless you.wassalam.