Socialization experiences and coping strategies of adults raised using spoken language

This investigation concerned the socialization experiences and coping strategies of a group of 28 deaf adults who were raised using spoken language. Most respondents reported some level of social isolation because of (1) limitations in communication with hearing peers; (2) missing information in social, academic, and work settings; and (3) a sense of being "different." Most participants also reported strategies used to reduce isolation and mitigate the social difficulties associated with their hearing loss.     

论英语口语习得中语言环境的重要性

本文论述了英语口语习得中语言环境的重要性。笔者首先对英语口语习得的概念进行了定义,分析了影响学生英语口语习得的一些因素,并根据实际的教学情况提出了营造大学英语口语习得环境的方法与途径。     

Institutional child abuse in Greece: some preliminary findings

A long-term study on child abuse and neglect in Greece is being carried out at the Institute of Child Health, Athens. A multidisciplinary team is investigating the nature of the problem in Greece, is trying a system of therapeutic intervention to families, is evaluating the adequacy of child protection as it is used in child abuse and neglect, and is examining the efficacy of the law. During a one year period, 5 children cared for in institutions were referred to the program. All were boys. All were children with minor or major handicaps. Two of died from the abusive incident. A study of the circumstances of the injury, and of the conditions in Greek institutions, supports the idea that institutional and family child abuse share many common characteristics. Special mention is made of the Greek circumstances pertaining to child protection and the law.     

Natural language processing techniques in computer-assisted language learning: Status and instructional issues

The role of natural language processing (NLP) techniques, such as parsing and semantic analysis, is described within current language tutoring systems. Significant trends are distinguished in the exploitation of these techniques, design issues and tradeoffs are examined, and current and potential contributions of NLP technology are discussed with respect to instructional theory and educational practice. Limitations and problems are addressed in using NLP tools for teaching, and approaches to assessment are considered.     

Determinants of student readiness for flexible learning: Some preliminary findings

An exploratory study using a questionnaire and focus group interviews was conducted amongst a small sample of first‐year, first‐semester, undergraduate design students from the Faculty of Art and Design at Monash University, Australia, to determine their readiness for off‐campus, flexible, independent learning. The study explores common problems, similarities and differences among learners from South East Asia, other international students, and local Australian students. Findings of the study are presented under five key themes: dependence on the teacher and the classroom environment; flexible learning and working alone; structure; communication; and work patterns. The article details approaches to study of first‐year undergraduates taking a creative unit such as design and concludes by discussing the possible cultural attributes that have an impact on the learning as well as related concerns and problems.     

合作学习法:一种提高学生口语表达能力的有效方法

语言焦虑情感会对学生口语表达产生负面影响。本文通过对学生口语表达时产生焦虑情感的归因分析,阐述了运用合作学习法的优势,从而有效地降低学生口语表达时所产生的焦虑情感,提高学生的口语表达能力。     

Incidental word learning in a hearing child of deaf adults

It is unclear how children develop the ability to learn words incidentally (i.e., without direct instruction or numerous exposures). This investigation examined the early achievement of this skill by longitudinally tracking the expressive vocabulary and incidental word-learning capacities of a hearing child of Deaf adults who was natively learning American Sign Language (ASL) and spoken English. Despite receiving only 20% of language input in spoken English, the child's expressive vocabularies at 16 and 20 months of age, in each language, were similar to those of monolingual age-matched peers. At 16 months of age, the child showed signs of greater proficiency in the incidental learning of novel ASL signs than she did for spoken English words. At 20 months of age, the child was skilled at incidental word learning in both languages. These results support the methodology as it applies to examining theoretical models of incidental word learning. They also suggest that bilingual children can achieve typical vocabulary levels (even with minimal input in one of the languages) and that the development of incidental word learning follows a similar trajectory in ASL and spoken English.     

语文学习生态初探

语文学习生态是指语文学习是动态生成的,它的各个要素及各要素之间的相互关系构成学习生态的内部环境和外部环境.语文学习过程中各个要素不断发生变化、相互产生作用.改革语文教学就是要激活这些促进学习发展的作用,抑制那些妨碍学习发展的作用.     

The motive/stategy model of learning processes: some empirical findings

The motive/strategy model underlying the learning process inventories of both Biggs and Entwistle has major implications for both educational practice and research. As yet, however, there is only limited empirical support for the validity of the model. This paper reports findings, several as yet unpublished, from a number of the writer's investigations which throw light on this issue. Overall, these results question the validity of the model and fail to confirm several plausible propositions based on the model.     

An approach to assessing and facilitating causal language in adults with learning disabilities based on Piagetian theory

Salient characteristics associated with Piagetian cognitive stages served as the basis for developing a linguistic taxonomy of causal semantic relations. Causal statements from adults with learning disabilities and normally achieving adults were analyzed and organized within this taxonomy. A relationship between Piagetian cognitive stages and verbal expressions of causality was identified. Based on this relationship, principles of Piagetian cognitive theory were used to design assessment and intervention plans for adults with learning disabilities.     

The use of repair strategies: bilingual deaf children using sign language and spoken language

The language effects on repair strategies employed by 7 bilingual deaf children (native signers who also used spoken language) was examined. During two sessions--one conducted in sign language and the other in spoken language--each child described a picture. The examiner stopped the child twice to request clarification. The children's responses to the requests were coded into seven repair strategies. Results indicated that language mode significantly influenced repair strategy behavior: In sign language, the children used a greater frequency, variety, and level of strategies. The position of the clarification request also had an effect: Later in the sequence, the children used more advanced strategies. It was assumed that these native signers evidenced a higher language level in sign, which allowed them to use more advanced communicational strategies in sign than in spoken language. This performance gap should be considered in intervention.     

动作技能型与心智技能型人才内隐序列学习能力的比较

采用传统的序列反应时(SRT)任务范式,对动作技能型人才与心智技能型人才的内隐学习能力进行了比较研究,结果发现:(1)动作技能型人才与心智技能型人才SRT任务的序列反应时差异不显著;(2)动作技能型人才与心智技能型人才SRT任务的内隐学习量差异显著,动作技能型人才的内隐学习量比心智技能型人才高;(3)内隐序列学习能力可能是某种动作技能的表现形式.     

Influence of eye gaze on spoken word processing: an ERP study with infants

Eye gaze is an important communicative signal, both as mutual eye contact and as referential gaze to objects. To examine whether attention to speech versus nonspeech stimuli in 4- to 5-month-olds (n=15) varies as a function of eye gaze, event-related brain potentials were used. Faces with mutual or averted gaze were presented in combination with forward- or backward-spoken words. Infants rapidly processed gaze and spoken words in combination. A late Slow Wave suggests an interaction of the 2 factors, separating backward-spoken word+direct gaze from all other conditions. An additional experiment (n=15) extended the results to referential gaze. The current findings suggest that interactions between visual and auditory cues are present early in infancy.     

The development of spoken language in deaf children: explaining the unexplained variance

Using a large existing data base on children with severe and profound deafness, 10 children were identified whose level of spoken laguage was most above and 10 whose level was most below that expected on the basis of their hearing loss, age, and intelligence. A study of their personal characteristics, family background, and educational history identified factors associated with unusually high performance; these includes earlier use of binaural ear-level aids, more highly educated mothers, auditory/verbal or auditory/oral instruction, reliance on spoken language as a method of communication, individualized instruction, integration, and structured teaching by parents. Parents of high performers also reported being highly commited to and focusing family resouces on developing their child's spoken language.     

The role of feedback in implicit and explicit artificial grammar learning: a comparison between dyslexic and non-dyslexic adults

The importance of feedback for learning has been firmly established over the past few decades. The question of whether feedback plays a significant role in the statistical learning abilities of adults with dyslexia, however, is currently unresolved. Here, we examined the role of feedback in grammaticality judgment, type of structural knowledge, and confidence rating in both typically developed and dyslexic adults. We implemented two artificial grammar learning experiments: implicit and explicit. The second experiment was directly analogous to the first experiment in all respects except training format: the standard memorization instruction was replaced with an explicit rule-search instruction. Each experiment was conducted with and without performance feedback. While both groups showed significantly improved learning in the feedback-based explicit artificial grammar learning task, only the typically developed adults demonstrated higher levels of conscious structural knowledge. The present study demonstrates that the basis for the grammaticality judgment of adults with dyslexia differs from that of typically developed adults, regardless of increase in the level of explicitness.     

A systematic review of digital storytelling in language learning in adolescents and adults

Education and Information Technologies - Digital storytelling (DST) is a novel approach that uses modern computer technology to amplify language learning and teaching. The present study aims to...