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The Influence of Chinese Culture on Learning Chinese as a Second Language: A Case Study of Zimbabwean Students Learning Chinese as a Second Language
Issue:
Volume 3, Issue 2, March 2015
Pages:
33-39
Received:
29 January 2015
Accepted:
10 February 2015
Published:
16 February 2015
Abstract: Learning Chinese as a second language is a hot and rising issue all around the world. Although the teaching and learning of Chinese as a second language is getting a lot of support from the Chinese government， through the establishment of Confucius Institutes which are aimed at the spreading and the promotion of Chinese language and culture. The spreading of Chinese language and culture is still facing a lot of challenges due to cultural differences. If the teaching and learning of Chinese language is to going develop, there is need to establish new teaching frameworks, teaching methods and approaches which can accommodate and promote culture learning in the Chinese language classes. This paper is aimed at exploring the importance of culture in second language learning, drawing examples from the teaching and learning of Chinese language and culture in Zimbabwe. Language and culture are inseparable, language is the carrier of culture and a mirror to reflect the culture. It is through language that culture is passed from the generation to generation. Without culture, language is like a tree without roots, it cannot stand, the same is with culture without language, It cannot survive. In second language learning and teaching it is important for the language teachers to understand the culture of the students and it’s more important for the students to understand the culture of their target language. Chinese language is rich with culture, the expressions, grammar, characters, idioms and everything in Chinese language has a cultural connotation and meaning which if not taught well, it brings misunderstandings and a lot of problems. New teaching frameworks and approaches should be established basing on the differences that exist between the two cultures.
Abstract: Learning Chinese as a second language is a hot and rising issue all around the world. Although the teaching and learning of Chinese as a second language is getting a lot of support from the Chinese government， through the establishment of Confucius Institutes which are aimed at the spreading and the promotion of Chinese language and culture. The sp...
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The Syntactic Relationship Between Transitivity and Voice
Issue:
Volume 3, Issue 2, March 2015
Pages:
40-51
Received:
27 January 2015
Accepted:
19 February 2015
Published:
10 March 2015
Abstract: This study presents a holistic description of the syntactic relationship between transitivity and voice, which has not attracted overt attention. The data comprises 2,187 finite verbal group (FVBG) clauses abstracted from a 17,600-word corpus of orthographically transcribed spoken instructional texts recorded in selected secondary schools in Lagos State, Nigeria. The scale-and-category version of the systemic grammatical model aided the analysis. Fourteen features of syntactic relationship were identified in the literature and their occurrence in the data was ascertained. The pattern and frequency of occurrence of transitivity and voice were determined. Findings confirm the fourteen features and show that the same 1,180 FVBG clauses indicated both transitivity and voice. Voice was however syntactically more basic than transitivity because its unmarked active voice was 26 per cent higher than transitivity’s unmarked transitive. Transitivity was 67 per cent transitive and 33 per cent intransitive while voice was 91 per cent active and 9 per cent passive. Their joint occurrence was 65 per cent active transitive, 25 per cent active intransitive, 8.1 per cent passive intransitive, and 1 per cent passive transitive. Only rarely did there occur such perfect correspondences as active transitive with passive transitive. Passive intransitive clauses with animate subjects were restricted to the text dealing with persons and personalities. The transitive verbal group clause with the rankshifted clause as complement and the non-let imperative clause were shown to be passivisable without extraposition and replacement, and against traditionally held views on transitivity and voice, respectively.
Abstract: This study presents a holistic description of the syntactic relationship between transitivity and voice, which has not attracted overt attention. The data comprises 2,187 finite verbal group (FVBG) clauses abstracted from a 17,600-word corpus of orthographically transcribed spoken instructional texts recorded in selected secondary schools in Lagos ...
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A Case Study of Solutions to Some Intonation Mistakes Made by Vietnamese Students - A Phonetic Experimental Research
Issue:
Volume 3, Issue 2, March 2015
Pages:
52-60
Received:
28 February 2015
Accepted:
7 March 2015
Published:
16 March 2015
Abstract: This study focuses on the importance of combining phonological knowledge with rhythm, melody and syntax rules in teaching English intonation affected by stress for Vietnamese students, verified by Experimental Phonetics. The hypothesis is that the English Rhythmic patterns and melodic aspect will help students to identify their intonation mistakes and change from negative to positive attitude towards practicing intonation melodically affected by stress. The final target is to improve Vietnamese students’ pronunciation skill as well as catching the main idea in the conversation in order to have successful communication in English.
Abstract: This study focuses on the importance of combining phonological knowledge with rhythm, melody and syntax rules in teaching English intonation affected by stress for Vietnamese students, verified by Experimental Phonetics. The hypothesis is that the English Rhythmic patterns and melodic aspect will help students to identify their intonation mistakes ...
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Linguistic Imperialism and Reshaping the World's New Identity: A Research Paper in Linguistics
Issue:
Volume 3, Issue 2, March 2015
Pages:
61-68
Received:
22 February 2015
Accepted:
9 March 2015
Published:
21 March 2015
Abstract: Linguistic imperialism is a controversial issue for its intricate nature and for its impact in a rapidly changing world. English is an imperialist language due to its growing stature in various domains around the world such as: formal education, media, world trade, diplomacy, etc. Hence, English is considered the lingua franca of the modern era, as the most preferred and widely used language in numerous global fields. English emerged as an imperialist language after the decline of minor languages and the dominance of the world imperialism. English as the language of technology and modernization lays its shadows on economics and politics, which affect the social, as well as the cultural identity of the world. English nowadays is significantly related to social and economic rise of people .Apparently, this rise is shown in the constant change of the norms of behavior, values, attitudes and beliefs, particularly among the young generations, as a result of their intensive exposure to English. Certainly, the significant impact of the global dominance of English manifests in constructing social inequalities between those who speak and use English and those who do not. The researcher of this study does not exclude what is called the hidden agenda aimed by the supper powers to reshape the global system through eliminating other cultures and identities and forming new ones. World efforts and procedures are required from scholars, governments and formal institutions to encounter such a phenomenon.
Abstract: Linguistic imperialism is a controversial issue for its intricate nature and for its impact in a rapidly changing world. English is an imperialist language due to its growing stature in various domains around the world such as: formal education, media, world trade, diplomacy, etc. Hence, English is considered the lingua franca of the modern era, as...
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The Effect of Audio-Visual Materials on Iranian Second Grade High School Students’ Language Achievement
Fatemeh Asadi,
Shaban Berimani
Issue:
Volume 3, Issue 2, March 2015
Pages:
69-75
Received:
21 February 2015
Accepted:
17 March 2015
Published:
21 March 2015
Abstract: The present study investigated the effect of audio -visual materials on Iranian second grade high school students’ language achievement. The participants were 80 Iranian female students with the age of 15-16 that were selected from high schools in Savadkooh, north of Iran. The administration of the OPT test and taking the result a homogeneous group of 60 was formed and 20 participants were excluded from the study. Participants were randomly selected into two homogeneous groups each consisting of 30students. Both of the groups were taught the same materials. The control group received the traditional treatment without the audio-visual materials while the experimental group received the audio-visual materials treatment. Before starting the treatment two similar tests based on high school English text book 2 were prepared by the researcher as the pretest/posttest to find out students language achievement at the beginning and at the end of the study. Analysis of this study and the results in the posttest showed significant differences between the two groups. Also participants in experimental group received and answered the pre-test and post-test motivation questionnaire to find out the effect of audio-visual materials on improving students' motivation. The results indicated that the students in the experimental group performed better than the students in the control group in their language achievement. So, it was concluded that the role of audio-visual materials in teaching high school English textbook2 to students led to a higher level of improvement in students' motivation and language achievement.
Abstract: The present study investigated the effect of audio -visual materials on Iranian second grade high school students’ language achievement. The participants were 80 Iranian female students with the age of 15-16 that were selected from high schools in Savadkooh, north of Iran. The administration of the OPT test and taking the result a homogeneous group...
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Polite Request Among the Akyem Speech Community in Ghana
Esther Ofosua Totimeh,
Lawrence Bosiwah
Issue:
Volume 3, Issue 2, March 2015
Pages:
76-89
Received:
6 March 2015
Accepted:
22 March 2015
Published:
26 March 2015
Abstract: This paper investigates into various ways by which native speakers of the Akyem Twi dialect of the Akan Language of Ghana make polite request and how social variables such as age, gender and socio-economic status influence their request making. An ethnographic research approach to qualitative design was employed and the research participants of twenty were randomly selected using the purposive sampling technique of which their responses from the interview and the observation to the topic problem were submitted to content analysis. The findings indicate that the strategy for polite request is the indirect strategy. Comparatively, the Akyem speech community equally prefers the conventional indirect strategy as the most polite strategy of request speech act as the other speech communities in Ghana. Also, social variables such as age, gender and socio-economic status influence request making yet equal status contradicts some findings in relation to familiarity. Again, Ghanaians have one condition that warrants request which is not part of the existing one; they believe that the individual granting the request should be trustworthy. Moreover, there were new interesting findings in this study.It was foundout that non-conventional indirect strategy has some natural features which make it different from the conventional strategy and more like the direct strategy, even though they are all indirect strategies.
Abstract: This paper investigates into various ways by which native speakers of the Akyem Twi dialect of the Akan Language of Ghana make polite request and how social variables such as age, gender and socio-economic status influence their request making. An ethnographic research approach to qualitative design was employed and the research participants of twe...
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The Use of Indirect Strategies Among University Students in Ghana: A Case Study of University of Cape Coast
Lawrencia Nyamekye Adjei,
Lawrence Bosiwah
Issue:
Volume 3, Issue 2, March 2015
Pages:
90-101
Received:
6 March 2015
Accepted:
19 March 2015
Published:
30 March 2015
Abstract: This study aimed at finding out why and how students employ the use of sarcasm. The students of University of Cape Coast served as a case study. It also discussed how the social variables - gender and age influence the employment of sarcasm. The sampled size was eighty undergraduate students representing forty males and forty females with ten males and ten females in level hundred, two hundred, three hundred and four hundred respectively. The study used questionnaires. The study revealed that the aim of using sarcastic comments is to correct and tease. The study also revealed that gender has an influence on the issuing of such indirect strategies. In terms of age, it was revealed that students barely pass sarcastic comments towards people older than them. This shows their respect for the elderly as the culture demands in Ghana.
Abstract: This study aimed at finding out why and how students employ the use of sarcasm. The students of University of Cape Coast served as a case study. It also discussed how the social variables - gender and age influence the employment of sarcasm. The sampled size was eighty undergraduate students representing forty males and forty females with ten males...
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Zimbabwean Students’ Perception of Chinese Sounds
Guo Fuliang,
Herbert Mushangwe
Issue:
Volume 3, Issue 2, March 2015
Pages:
102-109
Received:
13 February 2015
Accepted:
25 February 2015
Published:
7 April 2015
Abstract: The present survey seeks to find out Zimbabwean student’s perception of Chinese sounds. The survey was carried out in 8 different schools in Harare, the capital city of Zimbabwe. 23 Chinese words with different initials representing all the consonants in Chinese language were used for the survey. During the survey Chinese words were read to students who had never studied Chinese and the students were asked to write down what they hear using Latin letters. The results of the survey shows that Zimbabwean students in Harare have either English influenced perception or Shona influenced perception. However, there were some instances where random pattern was observed, this could be due to the uniqueness of the given Chinese sounds. We concluded that when teaching Chinese or any other foreign languages a pre-survey is required in order to establish the prevailing influential language. In Zimbabwe any local language at any given place can be more influential in terms of shaping students’ perception towards the target language.
Abstract: The present survey seeks to find out Zimbabwean student’s perception of Chinese sounds. The survey was carried out in 8 different schools in Harare, the capital city of Zimbabwe. 23 Chinese words with different initials representing all the consonants in Chinese language were used for the survey. During the survey Chinese words were read to student...
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