The Influence of Teaching Experience on Student Dropout

Introduction Schooling institutions are regarded as the primary grounds to certify and empower human development (Kohn, 2011). The teachers have the responsibility of certifying, socializing educating and empowering the learners (Lovitt, 1991).Advertising We will write a custom thesis sample on The Influence of Teaching Experience on Student Dropout specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More However, the teacher can only archive these obligations if s/he is supported by creation of a good learning environment. Furthermore, the teacher is a key factor in sustaining the education system. Therefore, the role of ensuring that education system delivers full baked graduates does not fall entirely on the teacher’s competencies but the general schooling environment (Meece Eccles, 2010). Government schools are predominantly occupied by people from the lower social status in life. In addition, these schools are characterized by inadequate fun ding’s that leads to poor teaching and consequently higher dropout rates (Lovitt, 1991). Methods that are certain in determining potential school drop outs have not been established. Furthermore, there is lack of risk factors that has a direct correlation to the rate of drops. This means that drop out is caused by a combination of factors across multiple domain (Lamb, 2011). There is a higher chance that a student will drop out due to multiple situations compounding on each other (Milliken, 2007). To understand this phenomenon further, the study will review the three forms of drop out. Status dropout rate refers to percentage of individuals who are between the ages of 16 to 24 but do not have any formal education.Advertising Looking for thesis on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More They could be people who have not been enrolled in the formal education system at high school level, without high school accreditatio n certificate, without a diploma or a certification that can be equated to a general education development certification (Randall, 1999). Status dropout is measured using two methods namely American community survey and current population survey. Data that relates to these types of population have been collected over few decades. This data is being applied in analyzing the finer details of this educational misfortune especially in civilian population (Randall, 1999). This form of drop out pays no attention to the time. This means that it pays no regards to when a person was schooling. In addition, this method separates immigrants from other populations. This is because immigrants are deemed to have little experience in United States education system as compared to their counterpart citizens of the United States (Ehlers, 2010). In general, those individual who are born outside the United States have higher dropout status than those who are born and raised in the United States. Cohort dropout rate relates to determination of dropout rates with a group being the base (Kohn, 2011). This means that cohort by definition means a group of student who joins the ninth grade with the hope and expectation of graduating after a four-year curriculum. Students who transfer from one institution to the other are included in the calculation since the number is subtracted from the initial school and added to school they are joining (Lovitt, 1991).Advertising We will write a custom thesis sample on The Influence of Teaching Experience on Student Dropout specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More The cohort dropout rate is calculated by computing the number of students in a group that dropped schooling with a number of similar cohorts joining the school in a particulate period. The opposite is known as cohort graduation rate (Milliken, 2007). Event dropout rate This refers to the rate of student dropout in a school annually without compl eting their 12th grade education (Schargel Smink, 2001). This measure yields a small rate since it is computed on a yearly basis as opposed to the other two methods which are cumulative in nature. Event drop out has been used in determining the legal age where youths can drop out of school (Gordon, 2005). This is because the analysis can easily determine where majority of the youths drop out of school. In addition, the event dropout has been used to study high school experience during a given period in time (Wentzel, Wigfield, 2009). Furthermore, this method has been used to evaluate the educational policies that exist among the various states since the event dropout rate is different in each state. The teacher’s perceptions of the dropout rate Teachers agree that the adult-student relationship is fundamental in accessing and understating resilience (Gilman, Huebner Furlong, 2009). A student is most likely to succeed in gaining and sustaining resilience considering the cha llenging environment if there is an adult who takes a personal and dedicated initiative to offer guidance, recognition and support to such a student (Seligman et al, 1995). The presence of at least one concerned individual can make a lifetime impact on the development of a child. The role of a school comes in this situation since the school is a place for supportive environment (Christenson Reschly, 2010).Advertising Looking for thesis on education? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More This occurs because the teacher-student relationship is supportive in nature. The teacher plays the role of a concerned adult who recognizes and supports the efforts of students who are learning (Shaul, 2004). Students have a role to play in minimizing the dropout rate (Provenzo McCloskey, 1996). The secret to success is the ability to define goals and set a mechanism that will help the learner archive the set goal. The teachers should play their professional role of guiding the students through the technicalities of life and the education system. However, student must remain committed to the path of success through hard work and self-discipline (Porter, 2008). Parents, also, have roles to play. They should complement the teacher role in instilling virtual and morals in the student. The education process is a triangle that involves the parent, student and the teacher. Issues There are various reasons that are associated with drop out cases. 35% of students feel that failing in scho ol will make them drop out, 43% will drop out of school if they missed too many classes, 45% feel they were not prepared for high school education and 32% will drop out of school if they are compelled to repeat a grade (Franklin, Harris Meares, 2008). These are the leading issues that are associated with school dropout. Prevention in rural school district Teachers, student and policy makers should form part of the system that is capable of building student’s confidence through provision of success opportunities, empathizing the need of education in relation to the future, developing student’s internal motivation, nurturing student’s problem solving skills, identifying and responding to student personal and family issues, and establishing a safe, supportive and caring environment for the youth (Porter, 2008). The system is meant to rationalize the student’s thinking capacity which will enable him/her to make better decisions especially in teenage and earl y adulthood years (Smink Schargel, 2004). This will facilitate their abilities to perceive information and digest it towards their own benefits References Christenson, S., Reschly, A. L. (2010). Handbook of school-family partnerships. New York: Routledge. Ehlers, C. S. (20082010). Encyclopedia of cross-cultural school psychology. New York: Springer. Franklin, C., Harris, M. B., Meares, P. (2008). The school practitioner’s concise companion to preventing dropout and attendance problems. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Gilman, R., Huebner, E. S., Furlong, M. J. (2009). Handbook of positive psychology in schools. New York: Routledge. Gordon, E. E. (2005). The 2010 meltdown: solving the impending jobs crisis. Westport, Conn.: Praeger. Kohn, A. (2011). Feel-bad education: and other contrarian essays on children and schooling. Boston: Beacon Press. Lamb, S. (2011). School dropout and completion international comparative studies in theory and policy. Dordrecht: Springer. Lovitt , T. C. (1991). Preventing school dropouts: tactics for at risk, remedial, and mildly handicapped adolescents. Austin, Tex.: PRO-ED. Meece, J. L., Eccles, J. S. (2010). Handbook of research on schools, schooling, and human development. New York: Routledge. Michael, D. B. (2005). Promising practices for family involvement in schooling across the continents. Greenwich, Conn.: Information Age Pub.. Milliken, B. (2007). The last dropout: stop the epidemic!. Carlsbad, Calif.: Hay House. Porter, L. (2008). Teacher-parent collaboration: early childhood to adolescence. Camberwell, Vic.: ACER Press. Provenzo, E. F., McCloskey, G. N. (1996). Schoolteachers and schooling: ethoses in conflict. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Pub.. Randall, L. (1999). Schooling for success: preventing repetition and dropout in Latin American primary schools. Armonk, N.Y.: M.E. Sharpe. Schargel, F. P., Smink, J. (2001). Strategies to help solve our school dropout problem. Larchmont, N.Y.: Eye On Education. Seligman, M. E., Reivich, K., Jaycox, L., Gillham, J. (1995). The optimistic child. Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin. Shaul, M. S. (2004). School dropouts: education could play a stronger role in identifying and disseminating promising†¦. S.l.: Diane Pub Co. Smink, J., Schargel, F. P. (2004). Helping students graduate: a strategic approach to dropout prevention. Larchmont, N.Y.: Eye On Education. Wentzel, K. R., Wigfield, A. (2009). Handbook of motivation at school. New York: Routledge. This thesis on The Influence of Teaching Experience on Student Dropout was written and submitted by user Dorothy R. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Manifest Destiny Essays

Manifest Destiny Essays Manifest Destiny Essay Manifest Destiny Essay The belief in Manifest Destiny. America’s right to spread out due west. was popular among the Democratic Party. which paved the way for struggle in U. S. political relations. In the 1840’s. Manifest Destiny was used as justification for the appropriation of Texas. the war with Mexico. and to get parts of Beaver state from the British. The argument over whether America truly had a manifest fate to spread out all the manner West or if it was used as an alibi to get more land led to arguments in U. S. political relations. Advocates of manifest fate. largely democratic. argued that the U. S. . as a more advanced civilization. had a God-given right to spread out its boundary lines. They believed the enlargement would educate the West and America’s democratic. cultural. and spiritual values would profit the Native Americans. In add-on. protagonists would reason that the belief would beef up the brotherhood. doing it invulnerable. On the opposing side. dwelling largely of the Whig party. the God-given right to spread out all the manner due west at the monetary value and rights of 1000s of guiltless indigens was blasphemy. The Whig party was non manifest fates merely critic. emancipationist. fearful of bondage spreading. argued that the fundamental law did non give the state the right to derive new land and the cou ntry’s critical establishments would endure as America was spread excessively thin. As more and more people migrated to the region in hope of becoming a successful farmer and becoming rich, the area became highly dense with slaves and wore out the soil very quickly. The invention of the cotton gin made it easier to harvest cotton, causing slave owners to buy more slaves and plant more plants, ventually causing them to need more land. This caused the southerners to pursue territorial expansion westward. The answer to many of these problems was the annexation of Texas, which Mexico considered a part of itself despite the Revolution of 1836. The northern states were largely opposed to the annexation of Texas because of the widespread fear of a war against Mexico and the danger of slavery growing; as Reverend William Ellery Charming wrote: l proceed now to what is to me the strongest argument against annexing Texas This measure will extend and erpetuate slavery (Document B). This disagreement led to some internal tension between the North and the South. The dispute over the borders of the new Republic of Texas and Mexico were never officially settled in 1835. Texas claimed the territory all the way to the Rio Grande River, whereas Mexico claimed that it only gave up the land past the Nueces River. After annexing Texas as the 28th state into the union in 1845, President James Polk claimed the border at the Rio Grande River, which provoked the Mexican-American War. The war was Justified by irrational reasons; for xample, an editor of the New York Sun wrote: The [Mexican] race is perfectly accustomed to being conquered e shall teach [them] that our victories will give liberty, safety, and prosperity (Document H). After a year and a half of conflict, the war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo in 1848, creating the Texan-Mexican border at the Rio Grande River and increasing the area of the United states Dy almost Oue to tne lana galnea In tne Mexlcan cession. Altnougn, efforts were made to prevent slavery from flourishing in Texas, it was declared a slave tate due to the Missouri Compromise of 1820. This enraged northerners as Texas was a gigantic state compared to any other state at the time; this would keep the House of Representatives in balance with slave states and free states but would allow slavery to grow tremendously over the period of the next few decades. The annexation of Texas put a big dent in the relationship between the North and the South. On the opposite side of the Mexican Cession, in the North-West, the Oregon Country was held in Joint occupation between Britain and the United States due to the Treaty of 1818. British trappers, farmers, and missionaries started settling in the Oregon Country starting in the 1830s. As there was no central government in the region, the residents of the region started meeting to discuss organizing a government for the area. This led to the American government being concerned and encouraging American citizens to migrate to the Oregon Country in order to prevent the British immigrants from taking over. As Thomas Hart Benton said in his speech in the U. S. Senate. . the Government will give protection and land Let the emigrants go on hey will make all quite there rive [the British] off our continent, quiet their Indians, and protect the American interests (Document A). One of the first migrations of U. S. citizens into the area was in 1839 when a group of 18 men set out to settle the area on behalf of the American government; this was followed by The Great Migration of 1843 when almost a thousand emigrants left for Oregon. Following the inauguration of James K. Polk as president after the election of 1844, the border of the Oregon Country was finally settled at 490 latitude, despite the riginal demand of 54040 latitude, in an agreement known as the Treaty Line of 1846. Emigrants flooded into the area in thousands, partly due to the California Gold Rush which started in 1849 but brought wealth to only a few. As more and more people migrated into the area, southerners started bringing slaves along with them, despite California being a free state. This, combined with the Compromise of 1850 which required all states to return run-away slaves to their owners due to the Fugitive Slave Act, enraged abolitionist and anti-slavery societies in the North causing a strain in he relations between northern and southern states. As more Americans moved westwards, many unsettled territories started being settled. Two of these territories were Kansas and Nebraska, set up in the Kansas- Nebraska Act of 1854 by Stephen Douglas. Despite the Missouri Compromise, the state government allowed voters to choose if they allowed slavery within each territory; this voting method later became known as Popular Sovereignty. Although both states were considered free states, this led to the Bleeding Kansas, a series of political confrontations about whether Kansas should enter the Union as a slave state r a free state. After a very lengthy debate, Kansas entered the Union as a free state, angering southern slave owners. This was reversed in the Dred Scott vs. Sanford case; it was brought to the Supreme Court when a slave, who was brought to a free state by his owner, tried to sue him and gain freedom. Although this was a huge failure due to the Supreme Court ruling that blacks, free or slaves, should not be considered American citizens and thus could not sue in court, it sparked wide public aeoates over slavery an IT t a ne Drea Scott vs. sanTora aeclslon was constltutlonal or ot. As it was determined to be unconstitutional, the decision to the case rendered many U. S. citizens angry due to the government breaking a constitutional law. This, in turn, angered many northerners over the fact that the government supported slavery, severely damaging the connections and associations between the North and the South. As the mid-1800s gradually went by, many events changed the relations, for the better and the worse, between the northern and southern states. Different points of views, like these, on numerous different things would eventually be the cause of he Civil War in the 1860s. Although, it united and expanded the country after the Civil War, manifest destiny divided the United States in the mid-19th century by incorporating to contrasting philosophies about social, political, and economical foundations of the new regions gained by the United States within that time period. Territorial expansion shaped many types of social divisions in the American society due to slavery, created new enemies for the States as a result of the annexation of Texas, and severed the relations between the North and the South because of the Dred vs. Scott decision.

The GI Bill of Rights Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

The GI Bill of Rights - Term Paper Example The World War II veterans had an inordinate impact on the society. The US economy benefitted immensely by their services. Civil labor went up on statistics charts as the returning veterans put down their guns and started working just like other civilians. The returning veterans not only served as laborers but a significant number also went to various educational institutes with the incentives provided by the GI Bill. The returning veterans probably realized the importance of education. This show of determination is worth praising because many soldiers were picked for war services while they were graduating and therefore could not continue their studies. Their education was interrupted by the war and the G I Bill allowed them to return to school when the war was over. The GI Bill was different from other legal bills as it focused not on any tangible assets of the US citizens; instead, it focused on the intangible and the most important asset: the human brain. The bill liberated minds and pushed people to think freely and to pursue their thoughts. It was similar to teaching someone how to catch fish instead of hand feeding them. The GI Bill caused a silent revolution, not by forcing people out of their homes but by liberating their thoughts and suggesting to them to discover their own path. The returning veterans benefitted from this bill and the institutions got the freedom to teach in the way they prefer. That was the right way to deal with the great potential of the returning veterans. The author Michael Bennett tries to highlight various aspects of the GI Bill. He shows that this bill had more meaning and significance than what it is normally credited for. Bennett argues that the GI Bill served the US society in many ways. It let the educational institutes conduct their teachings and research programs the way they wanted. The bill never interfered in their business; instead, it gave them the freedom to enhance their strategies and make them more productive. I t gave the colleges an expanded student body and more funding. The strategy was either you made it or you flunked out. Colleges and universities grew dramatically during this era. Â  As a result of the GI Bill, the educational institutes became more accommodating to students of all backgrounds. Race, gender, and religion were no longer the hurdles and education was available to all. The beauty of the bill that the author highlights is when the war veterans returned from the battlefield, they had become accustomed to multicultural environment. And when Universities allowed students of all races to get educated, the veterans experienced a similar melting pot atmosphere they experienced during the war. The GI Bill had more impact on class than race. Before WWII college was mostly for the wealthy. The GI Bill allowed men who never thought they could afford college an opportunity and that include black men, but colleges in the South were segregated by race and in the North black student s were very much in the minority. The author argues that the returning veterans had to face financially challenging atmosphere upon their return home and the GI Bill helped them in more than one way to get them back on their feet. For instance, Les Faulk of Turtle Creek, a returning veteran

Cinematic Portrayal of Iranian Women Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Cinematic Portrayal of Iranian Women - Essay Example The role of women in the Iranian society has greatly evolved and this evolution is easily noticeable through the significant number of changes that precipitated in the cinematic portrayal. Women all over the world have experienced immense amount of social pressures and obligations, in short simple words the plight of women has been the subject of countless literature and cinematic pieces. Iran is a highly patriarchal society since its emergence as a powerful empire to its establishment as an Islamic republic, a woman’s sole responsibility was to serve her husband and look after his well-being. Before the cinema had gained immense popularity, many literatures focused on the characteristics of a good woman and a bad woman and how a man’s fate depends on the character of his wife. (Donmez-Colin, 2004, p.155-170) Therefore, authors and poets seemed to hold the woman responsible for any sort of mishap that would befall her husband. The patriarchy was pretty evident but durin g the 30’s there were countless movies that showed a headstrong female lead but there role and discourse in the movie were especially when depicting sexuality. Women were not really treated as symbolic for sexuality; largely they played roles of young damsel in distress, however they shed significant amount of light on the strength of a woman’s to confront all her problems. The movies then followed a strict feministic theme and usually along with a female lead there were greedy and lustful antagonist that turned out to be the prime source of conflict in the movie plot. The commercial success of movies such as Dokhtar-e-Lor or the Lor Girl in 1933 showed the hardships and plight of a gypsy woman. Though the movie entailed strong factual errors and numerous directorial flaws but the heroic tale of Golonar, the Lor Girl became an instant success on an international front. The main protagonist was played by an Iranian singer and the movie propagated a progressive image of the Iranian society that the Shah wanted to establish. The plot of the movies largely revolved around the domestic problems of women and since their roles in the society was rather limited. (Lahiji, 2011) However, once the Islamic revolution had taken place the Iranian society became largely misogynistic in their practices. There was hardly any freedom given to the female population and at this point women’s participation in theater and films rapidly declined as it was compulsory for women to wear hijab and they were unable to step out of their houses without their â€Å"mahram’, which is a collective term for a woman’s male relative such as husband, brother or father. One of the main drawbacks that occurred as a result of this practice was prostitution, a problem that was further exacerbated by the Iran-Iraq war. (Donmez-Colin, 2004, p.155-170 & Dabashi, 2001, p. 7) Since most of the male members of the family had gone to war, women had no choice but to suppor t their families by resorting to prostitution. In a country governed according to religious guidelines, though prostitution dealings are done from behind a veil but all these elements are pretty rampant in Iran. Iranian women are the prime victims of domestic and marital violence. Not only on a domestic front but women have to endure great atrocities especially the criminal justice and correctional system for women is often labeled as being ruthless. Women prisoners live in awful conditions and are treated like animals. They are often subjected to brutal physical and sexual abuse, during the Khomeini era any virgin prisoner on a death row

Governance and Public Policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Governance and Public Policy - Essay Example Hence, sustainable development has become essential for the global and local bodies across the world. These factors are also seen as the major reasons for deteriorating environmental conditions across the globe. The primary role of governments is to provide a coherent guideline of governance through well defined constitution and policy framework. The policy frameworks are important part of administration processes that are designed to improve and improvise the diverse welfare programmes of the public at large. The various areas of the public welfare domain like health, education, environment, energy etc. require comprehensive understanding of the wide ranging implications of the government policies. Paul Sabatier, noted social scientist, has conceptualized ‘Advocacy Coalition Framework’ or ACF and ‘Multiple Streams Framework’ for the policies in different areas of public welfare, that have proved quite effective. The coalition broadly comprises of two major sources who seemingly reflect the welfare of the people: media, researchers and analysts; actors at all levels of government (local, state and international) (Sabatier, 1988). It takes into account the interests of various stakeholders by incorporating opinions and feedback from wide ranging external and internal resources that may significantly impact the masses in the specified areas. They facilitate the schemes to the public and the decision making bodies that are responsible for various processes for policy framework and subsequent implementation of those policies. The various countries have realized the necessity of environmental preservations and have enacted laws and guidelines for conservation and preservation of environment through stringent measures. UK is the first country that has come up with Climate Change Act 2008 which has‘a legally binding long-term framework to cut carbon emissions. It

The Role Of Interactional Modification In Efl

The Role Of Interactional Modification In Efl The interaction hypothesis claims that interactional modification promotes language development through increasing comprehension. Owing to the fact that online interactive exchange offers learners many opportunities to use the target language to negotiate both meaning and form in a social context , this study is an attempt to compare the types and frequency of Interactional Modifications as employed by two groups of intermediate EFL students-one interacting via online communication and the other through regular oral class interaction to explore the potentials of text-based online chat in facilitating the development of question forms in English as a foreign language. To do so, while a total of eighteen paired intermediate EFL students used a synchronous chat program (Yahoo Messenger) over a seven week period to complete a series of communicative tasks outside their classroom time, the members of the comparison group did the same tasks using plain classroom oral interaction. The resul ts show that Iranian EFL learners in computer mediated communication (CMC) environment had over five times as many turns, and used a much greater variety of interactional modifications in comparison to the group in class environment. Data from this study also suggest that interactional modifications during online negotiation facilitate the development of question forms in English as a foreign language. Given that the current study only focused on online interaction among non- native speakers (NNSs), future studies on online negotiation including both NNSs and native speakers (NSs) are still needed. Key terms: Computer-Mediated Communication, Interactional modifications, question forms development Introduction Interaction is the key to second language learning. However one of the greatest challenges faced by the foreign language (FL) education is how to construct an interactive learning environment outside the classroom in which learners can exchange information and communicate ideas in the target language (TL). This challenge as Campbell (2004) truly mentioned is due to the fact that unlike ESL learners who communicate in TL outside of the classroom, the EFL learners re-enter a world talking their mother tongue as soon as they leave the classroom and consequently they dont have any opportunities to interact in TL and are left with little opportunity to use what theyve learned in the classroom. Many a researcher in the area of Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) has suggested that text-based Synchronous Computer Mediated Communication (SCMC) is capable of providing an ideal learning environment which may be beneficial to second/foreign language learning. (Beauvois, 1992; Pellettieri, 1999; Chapelle, 2001). Pellettieri (2000) declared a logical relationship and argued that because oral interaction is considered by many to be important for second language development, and because Synchronous [CMC]. . . bears a striking resemblance to oral interaction, it seems logical to assume that language practice through [CMC] will reap some of the same benefits for second language development as practice through oral interaction.(p. ) While many studies investigated the role of oral negotiated interaction in second/foreign language development (Gass, 1997; Long, 1985; Mackay, 1995; Mackey Philp, 1998), the role of online negotiated interaction in facilitating language development has not yet been explored completely. Specifically, as far as the efficacy of SCMC medium in grammatical development is concerned, the previous findings are unsatisfactory and controversial. Moreover little research has yet been conducted into the effect of CMC in the EFL context. This study therefore, explores the role of interactional modifications during text-based SCMC in order to better understand the potential of text-based online chatting to facilitate the development of question formation in English as a foreign language. Literature review Interactional modifications in CMC environment In spite of the fact that a few studies has addressed the issue of interactional modifications in CMC environment (Lee, 2001, 2002; Kotter, 2003; Jepson 2005; Isharyanti, 2008), none of these studies have been conducted in naturalistic setting (e.g. outside of the classroom or language laboratory), thus ignoring the real potential of CMC technology which is beyond any temporal and spatial constraints. Although focusing on different categorization of interactional modifications, all of these studies have shown unanimously that CMC medium is capable of providing a conductive learning environment in which interactional modifications might be generated. Lee (2001, 2002) conducted two similar studies in which she explored the types of interactional modifications employed by Spanish Learners at intermediate level of proficiency. Considering both studies, a total of ten categories of interactional modifications were identified including Comprehension checks; Clarification checks; Confirmation checks; Use of English, Word invention; Request (for help); Use of approximation; Self corrections; Topic shift ,and Use of keyboard symbols as discourse makers. The result showed that request (for help) happened the most frequently followed by clarification checks self- correction and comprehension check (Lee, 2001, p. 238; Lee, 2002, p.280). Through a comparison of the result of her study with the literature on face-to-face communication Lee (2002) argued that the learners negotiated with each other using a variety of modification devices similar to face-to face communication (p. 280). Being one of the first studies in this area, the studies con ducted by Lee were subject to a number of limitations. For example the definitions used in coding categories are somewhat problematic (Thomas Reinders, 2010) since as Kotter (2003) stated there is substantial overlap between the definitions of clarification checks and requests (p. 157). Providing a more coherent classificatory system, the study by Kotter (2003) focused on eight types of interactional modifications including: Confirmation checks; Clarification request; Comprehension checks, Repetitions; Recasts, Overt indications of understanding; Overt indications of agreement; and Overt indications of non-agreement (p. 157). However, in contrast to Lees (2001, 2002) finding, Kotters (2003) study revealed a marked difference between conversational repair in spoken interactions and in the MOO-based exchange (p. 145). He discussed that these differences may due to a number of medium-specific factors (p.163). Jepson (2005) explored the types of repair moves used by NNSs in synchronous text-based chat in comparison to voice-based chat during 10, 5-minute sessions. (5 text-based chat sessions and 5 voice-based chat sessions). Although a number of new interactional modifications ( e.g. Self repetition/Paraphrase, Explicit Correction and Question)were identified, this study is also subject to a number of limitations. There was no information about the proficiency level of participants as this issue may affect the interaction and the interactional modifications generated during the process of negotiation. Furthermore, the duration of the sessions was limited (5 minutes). These two issues may question the external validity of the findings. In a more recent study, Isharyanti (in Marriott Torres, 2008) examined the types and frequency of interactional modifications employed by NNSs during synchronous text- based chat. Focusing on a more varied number of interactional modifications, Isharyantis study confirmed the potential of CMC environment in generating interactional modifications. The data showed that the participants engaged in online negotiation process and in order to understand and to be understood, they used a variety of interactional modifications among which confirmation check (24%) was the most frequent one followed by overt indication of agreement (21%) and clarification request (21%). Nevertheless, to examine the potential of CMC technology as a medium for negotiated interaction, the presence of a control a group (a typical class environment in which learners communicate face-to-face) would be helpful. L2 grammatical development and Text-based computer mediated communication The role of negotiated interaction in L2 development continues to be of great interest to researchers (see Pica, 1987; Gass and Varonis, 1989; Mackey, 1995). However, much of the research on the effect of negotiated interaction and interactional modifications used during negotiation process is based on data from face-to-face interaction in ESL context. Moreover, the few studies that have been conducted in CMC environment are unsatisfactory and controversial. There are three standà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.blue print Sotillo (2000) compared syntactic complexity of 25 learners output produced in synchronous versus asynchronous computer mediated communication (SCMC vs. ACMC). She claimed that because of the fast nature of interaction in SCMC, the participants did not pay any attention to form (accuracy) while negotiating meaning (97). In the meantime, due to the delayed nature of ACMC, this medium was capable of generating more syntactically complex structures. Nevertheless, as Fiori (2005) stated while Sotillo reported that grammatical accuracy may suffer in the SCMC environment, her data revealed that the synchronous groups interactions exhibited fewer errors than the asynchronous groups utterances (p. 569). Further investigation, therefore is needed to better understand the potential of SCMC environment in fostering the grammatical development. In the same vein of research, Lees studies (2001, 2002) admitted that although the participants did engage in negotiation of meaning, negotiation of form rarely happened among them. She argued that due to the rapidity of the interaction occurred in SCMC, participants produced brief utterances using simple sentence structures and ignored linguistic errors (Lee, 2001, p. 239). Thus she concluded that interaction mediated via SCMC technology fostered fluency rather than accuracy. Emphasizing on further studies on the effectiveness of CMC medium for the development of learners interlanguage, Lee (2001) suggested that students need to be advised of the need to write correctly to maintain a balance between function, content, and accuracy (p. 242). Blake (2000) examined the online discourse of 50 Spanish learners at intermediate level of proficiency in term of task type. By considering the potential of CMC environment for eliciting negotiation of meaning, Blake (2000) concluded that carefully crafted tasks stimulate L2 learners to negotiate meaning which. . . . appear to constitute ideal conditions for SLA, with the CMC medium being no exception (p. 133). However, his stand on the effectiveness of CMC medium for grammatical development is uncertain. According to Blake (2000) the predominance of incidental lexical negotiations, in contrast to the paucity of syntactic negotiations, leaves unanswered or unsatisfactorily addressed the issue of grammatical development (p. 120). Therefore, further research is to be conducted in order to declare this issue with certainty. On the contrary, Pellettieri (2000) claimed that bearing a striking resemblance to oral interaction, network based communication (NBC) is capable of facilitating grammatical development. She examined online discourse produced by 20 NNSs during 5 30-minute sessions. As far as the potential of CMC medium in stimulating negotiation of meaning is concerned, the results of her study echoed the findings reported in literature. She observed that, engaging in online negotiation process is as facilitative as it is typical to oral interaction. She also found that the learners seek mutual understanding and try to convey their meaning by using some communicative strategies. Adopting an interactionist perspective, she argued that Because through negotiation, interlocutors can zero in on the exact source of communicative problem they are trying to resolve, and because often at the root of the problem is some aspect of the L2 form, be it lexical, syntactic, or semantic, L2 learners are even more likely to notice the problem and attend to these very aspects of form in their output while negotiating meaning. (p.61) As Pellettieri reasoned, engaging in the process of negotiation of meaning, the interlocutors attention will be drawn on linguistic form and consequently they are able to notice the gap between their interlanguage and the target form. This process focus on form has been claimed necessary for grammatical development (Gass and Varonis, 1994; Schmidt, 1990; Spada Lightbown, 1993 as cited in Pellettieri, 2000). Finally Salaberry (2000) compared the efficacy of two environments: CMC environment versus face-to-face environment in fostering L2 morphosyntactic development. He analyzed the discourse produced by four NNSs qualitatively. The findings revealed that with respect to the use of past-tense verbal morphology across tasks, some initial changes in the development of morphological endings were more evident in the CMC session than in oral session (p. 17). According to Salaberry (2000), the outperforming of CMC environment over face-to-face environment in facilitating morphological development may due to medium-specific characteristic that is CMC provides a learning environment in which the learners attention will be drawn on both form and function (p. 19). Differences in the mixed findings regarding the effect of SCMC medium on the grammatical development may be due to the difference in target items used to measure development. In Sotillos (2000) study, the target feature was Syntactic complexity which was defined by Sotillos (2000) as the ability to produce writing that uses subordination and embedded subordinate clauses (p. 99). Lees (2001, 2002) measure of development was sentence structure (simple sentences versus complex ones) ,while Salaberry (2000) used past tense verbal endings as the target grammatical feature. However, as far as the researchers are aware, there is not a single study to address the effect of CMC environment on the development of grammatical development with regard question forms in English as a foreign language. Therefore, in the light of ongoing discussion as to the role of CMC in foreign language development, the present study was designed to answer the following research questions: Do Iranian EFL learners engage in meaning negotiation process through SCMC? What types and frequency of interactional modifications do Iranian learners employ in CMC environment versus of those in class environment? Is there a the relationship between group membership (Experimental group: CMC environment Vs. Control group: Class environment) and the production and development of question forms in English as a foreign language? Method Following the mixed methods approach, this study adopted both a qualitative perspective to provide an in-depth explanation of the types of interactional modifications and a quantitative view point via a pretest-posttest, delayed posttest design to explore the existing relationships. Participants A total of 36 EFL learners from a Language school in Rasht, Iran participated in the present study. Their Participation in the study was voluntary and involved a commitment of 50 to 60 minutes performing some communicative tasks with their assigned partners for one session per week for 7 weeks outside of the classroom. This study was held during study periods at the language school. All participants were native speakers of Persian who were receiving two 90-minute classes of English instruction weekly. There were 30 female and 6 male students. The age of participants ranged from 14 to 32 years, with an average of 17. To meet local ethics requirements, the participants and their parents consent to contribute to this project was secured through two forms a Contract Form with an explanatory statement according to which the researchers guaranteed that participants would receive some rewards (some English books on DVD) if they accomplished the expected tasks and Parental Consent Form, in P ersian, given to all participants and their parents to be signed. Instrument Yahoo! Messenger Chat Software The software used in this study was the Yahoo! Messenger, a free program available for public use. It allows for real time, synchronous Computer Mediated Communication in Internet chat rooms. Using the text mode, the participants could record all of the written transactions entered in a chat window, which provided the researchers with an instantaneous transcript of all user exchanges. Communication Tasks The tasks used in this study were selected and developed to (a) provide opportunities for the interactional modifications to take place and (b) provide context for the targeted structures to occur. Following Pica, Kanagy Faloduns typology (1993), information gap tasks were used in this study in order to make the participants exchange information and endeavor to gain a single outcome. The selection of the communicative tasks utilized for both treatment and tests-was motivated by previous studies such as Pellettieri, (1999), Blake, (2000) and Cheon (2003). Each task was photocopied and distributed to every participant. Table 1. presents a detailed description of each task. Table 1. Task materials used for test and treatment Task Task instruction given to participants Pretest Missing information Work with your partner. Ask and answer questions to find the missing information. Treatment Complete the drawing Below is a drawing of Richards room. He hasnt had time to put all his things where he wants them. Your partner has a complete drawing of his room. Ask him/her questions where to put all the things. Complete the drawing Below is a drawing of a kitchen. Your partner has the same drawing but with a number of objects. (E.g. glasses, pots, etc.). Ask him/her questions where to put all the things. Spot the differences You both have two similar photographs but taken at a slightly different time. Work with your partner to find as many differences between the two photos as you can. Spot the differences Work with your partner. You both have a drawing of a busy yard where you can see people doing different things. Your drawings are NOT the same. There are 9 differences. Ask and answer questions to find the differences. Posttest Missing information Work with your partner. Ask and answer questions to find the missing information. Delayed Posttest Missing information Work with your partner. Ask and answer questions to find the missing information. Procedures First, the researchers explained the project to the students and expressed the hope that the students would choose to participate. All participation was voluntary, however to encourage the students to take part in the study, the instructor guaranteed that participants would receive a DVD-pack including some English books as a reward. To meet local ethics requirements, through a Contract Form with an explanatory statement and a Parental Consent Form in Persian, the students were asked if they would like to participate in this research project. Afterwards, Participants in experimental group (n=18) were divided by self-selecting into nine pairs and were asked to chat online to do a series of communicative tasks for one session per week for 7 weeks outside of the classroom. The students completed 7 tasks in total over the duration of the study. There were no time limits imposed on tasks. And the students were told that they should send copies of their chat transcripts to the researchers e-mail address for further data analysis. The participants in control group (n=18), solved the same tasks face-to-face in the classroom within the limited time imposed by à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ Data collection and analysis The data were collected from students weekly online chatting together with the scripts from face-to face conversation. In order to investigate whether Iranian learners engage in meaning negotiation through SCMC technology, the data collected from the written discourse were analyzed based on the typical scheme established by Varonis and Gass (1985). In accordance with Blakes (2000) study, the number of total turns and negotiations was calculated. Accordingly, negotiation routines were identified by means of their four components: trigger, indicator, response and reaction. The example below drawn from this study illustrates the model during lexical negotiation. Student A: Its on the drawer, near the edge of it. [Trigger] Student B: what do you mean by edge? [Indicator] Student A: side or lip. [Response] Student B: ok. Thanks. [Reaction] A ratio of negotiated turns to total turns was calculated in order to make the data comparable with previous studies. Additionally, to identify the type and frequency of interactional modifications, the data were coded based on the thirteen different interactional modifications using the criteria provided in Table 2. Using a selection of interactional modifications from a number of studies on internet chatting (Lee, 2001, 2002; Kotter, 2003; Jepson, 2005), the categorization of interactional modifications in Isharyanti, (n.d.) in Marriott Torres (2008) motivated the categorization system in this study. There were a number of modifications. Three items namely Explicit correction, use of Persian, and question were added to the aforementioned category. In order to establish inter-coder agreement, a trained independent coder recoded a randomly-selected 25% of the data. A Pearson product-moment correlation revealed an inter-rater correlation of .85 (P Table 2. Categories, definition and example of interactional modifications Code Type of IM Definition Example 1 CC Confirmation check A speakers attempt to confirm that he has understood an utterance via the (partial) paraphrase (as opposed to repetition, see below) of this turn, which can simply be answered with Yes or No. Did you mean? 2 CR Clarification request An explicit demand for an elaboration or a reformulation of an idea, which requires a rerun of the troublesome utterance in question. What do you mean by X? 3 C Comprehension check A speakers attempt to prompt another speaker to acknowledge that he has understood a particular utterance. Do you Understand? 4 SR/P Self Repetition The repetition, in isolation, of part of or an entire erroneous or otherwise problematic utterance. Where is the lamp?(*2) 5 SC Self-correction To correct errors made on lexical items or grammatical structure. This has been bee, I mean been. 6 R Recast A form-focused partner-related target-like reformulation of all or part of an incorrect utterance. A: I live Iran. B: Do you really live in Iran? 7 EC Explicit correction You should say X. 8 InU Overt indication of understanding An overt indication that a speaker has understood a particular message. Ok, I got it thanks. 9 InA Over indication of agreement An overt indication that a speaker agrees with what his partner said. Yes, I agree, youre right. 10 InNA Overt indication of non-agreement An overt indication that a speaker does not agree with what his partner said. No, I think choice B is better for him. 11 P Use of Persian To use Persian to substitute words or ideas in English. second tabagheh 12 KS Use of keyboard symbols as discourse markers To signal for uncertainty or to confirm an idea or agreement. à ¢Ã‹Å" º 13 Q Question Interlocutor asks a question in order to prompt the speaker to make a question Can you try that again? Note: Adopted from the categorization of Interactional Modifications described in Isharyanti (in Marriott Torres, 2008). There were a number of modifications to this classification as mentioned before. To answer the third research question-to examine whether there is a relationship between group membership (CMC environment Vs. Classroom environment) and development in question formationall the question forms produced by the participants during online negotiation and face-to-face interactions were collected for detailed study. Question development in this study is understood from two perspectives: (1) accuracy perspective and (2) developmental stage perspective. In analyzing accuracy, because participants took considerably greater time in online chat, and thus their language output in these two modes could have been different, the researchers converted the number of well-formed questions into standardized scores by computing the ratio of each participants number of well-formed questions to the total number of questions he or she produced. These accuracy-based scores were examined for further investigation. In addition to accuracy, the analysis concentrated on developmental stages. All the questions, produced by the participants, were coded in terms of the developmental stage it represented based on categorization of the developmental stages established by Pienemann et al. (1987), shown in Table 3. Accordingly, each students questions were studied individually and assigned to the appropriate stage category in each task. Stage assignment was based on the highest stage from which a participant produced two linguistically unique questions. Question development was operationalized as a stage increase on either posttest or delayed posttest. It was then possible to examine whether the learners had improved over time. Table 3. Examples of Question Forms and Developmental Stages Stage Description of stage Examples 2 SVO? Canonical word order with question intonation. Its a monster? Your car is black? You have a cat? I draw a house here? 3 Fronting: Wh/Do/Q-word Direct questions with main verbs and some form of fronting. Where the cats are? What the cat doing in your picture? Do you have an animal? Does in this picture there is a cat? 4 Pseudo Inversion: Y/N, Cop. In Y/N questions an auxiliary or modal is in sentence initial position. In Wh-questions the copula and the subject change positions. (Y/N) Have you got a dog? (Y/N) Have you drawn the cat? (Cop) Where is the cat in your picture? 5 Do/Aux 2nd Q-word->Aux/modal ->subj (main verb, etc.) Auxiliary verbs and modals are placed in second position to Wh-Qs ( Q-words) and before subject (Applies only in main clauses/direct Qs). Why (Q) have (Aux) you (sub) left home? What do you have? Where does your cat sit? What have you got in your picture? 6 Cancel Inv, Neg Q, Tag Qu Cancel Inv: Wh-Q inversions are not present in relative clauses. Neg Q: A negated form of Do/Aux is placed before the subject. Tag Q: An Aux verb and pronoun are attached to end of main clause. Can Inv) Can you see what the time is? (Can Inv) Can you tell me where the cat is? (Neg Q) Doesnt your cat look black? (Neg Q) Havent you seen a dog? (Tag Q) Its on the wall, isnt it? Note. This table is based on Pienemann and Johnston (1987) and Pienemann, Johnston, and Brindley (1988) as cited in Mackey and Philp (1998). Results and discussion The first research question addresses the engagement of Iranian learners in meaning negotiation through SCMC. As the participants took considerably greater time in online chat, and thus their language output in these two environments was expected to be different, it was necessary to provide an overview of the number of total turns for each environment. Table 4 shows the raw number of turns, negotiations, and relative number of negotiations to total turns for both CMC and Class environments. As shown in Table 4, online environment produced about six times more turns than the class environment (4445 vs. 778). Similarly CMC environment generated more negotiations than the class environment. The relative amount of negotiation in CMC environment (2.15 %) reveals that the learners engaged in negotiated interaction in CMC environment in comparison to class environment (.38 %), although negotiations encompassed a small part of total turns in both environment. This result echoed the findings in Blakes study (2000) that is the total number of negotiations comprises only a small fraction of the overall conversational turns, ranging from .3% to 3.8 % (p. 127). Interestingly, the participants in CMC environment engaged more in negotiation process than class environment. This may due to the absence of paralinguistic and nonverbal information together with sufficient practice time which provide the participants with a learning environment to negotiate meaning. Table 4. Total number of turns and negotiated turns in CMC environment and class environment Negotiations Total turns Negotiations/ Total turns CMC environment 96 4445 2.15 % Class environment 3 778 .38 % The second research question aimed to determine the type and frequency of interactional modifications in CMC environment versus Class environment. With regard to the efficacy of CMC technology in generating interactional modifications, the result of this study supported the findings in literature and admitted the potential of CMC medium in providing a conductive learning environment for Interactional modifications to occur. Synchronous online interaction did provide NNSs many opportunities to negotiate meaning using a variety of interactional modifications. According to Figure1 which presents the percentage of each IMs in both CMC and class environment, the participants engaged in online negotiation employed a much greater variety of interactional modifications in comparison with the face-to-face interaction. In CMC environment 12 types of interactional modifications occurred among which clarification request (25%), Confirmation check (15%), overt indication of understanding (14%), U se of keyboard symbols (12%) and Self Repetition/paraphrase (11%) were the most used interactional modifications for negotiation. However just 3 types of interactional modifications occurred in class environment. Clarification request (78%) occurred most frequently, followed by C

The Individual and the Court System Essay -- essays research papers f

The Individual and the Court System - Essay The Australian jury trial system is said to have many merits and defects, and as Winston Churchill once said about democracy the Australian jury system is â€Å"not a perfect system, it is just the least worst of all the others†. In analysing the system several major strengths can be seen, but many weaknesses can be found also. It is a matter of great interest in the general community and many people have written on it, ranging from past jurors to university students. Some of the main strengths seen are that juries have established philosophical and historical importance within our community. The jury system is a centuries old tradition of our legal system and in the eyes of the community it remains a vital expression of the importance of justice being adjudicated upon by ordinary citizens. Without a jury system, it is claimed that the liberties of individuals would be adjudicated upon by unrepresentative experts who would further remove the workings of the legal system from those it is meant to serve in the wider community. It is also seen that the random selections of jury members from a cross section of society ensures that the law remains adjudicated upon by a representative sample of society who can reflect the values of the community they serve. In recent years it is argued that juries have effectively expressed community attitudes on diverse matters including passive smoking, reckless drunk driving and self defense claims in murder trials b y women who had suffered repeated physical and mental abuse. The existence of a jury means that lawyers must ensure that their cases are presented in a way that enables community understanding of important issues and principles. Without a jury it is argued the evolution of the principles of our legal system would become increasingly complex and removed from the understanding of the community. In general the community is more likely to have confidence in the decision of a representative group of that community than one made by a single judge or a court appointed panel of experts. If the system was removed it would open the adjudication process of civil and criminal trials up to the possibility of political or monetary influence - the jury is a vital institution for ensuring that 'open courts' remain truly open to public scrutiny. It is also argued by some that 'in diversity... ... and feeling it limited their ability to absorb evidence. "They felt that the barristers hadn't given them information that they required through the evidence," One juror mentioned that "It was a bit like being thrown pieces of a jigsaw puzzle and there were pieces that were missing and they had to fill those pieces with their own experience". It is arguable which side holds more sway, while it seems that the majority of published reports deal with the defects of the system there are a number of reasons for it's continuation. This seems to fate that it unlikely to be abolished entirely in either civil or criminal courts. It seems to me that any changes that are to be made will be focused on the need for specialised jurors and the ability for civil juries to award damages. As crimes become increasingly more complex it seems that changes will need to be made to the system but it will be a heatedly debated subject when it's change is made. Bibliography Structures and Systems, Willmott. J and Dowse. J, 2001, Western Australia, Politics Law Publishing Bulletin with Newsweek, 7/6/2004, Vol. 122 Issue 6428, p22, 4p www.ebsco.com - Jury Problems