Browsing by Subject "The English Teacher : -- An International Journal"
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    A cognitive linguistic approach to English, Chinese and Thai spatial terms: the case of on, shangand bon
    (Bangkok : Assumption University Press, 2022) Triporn Kasempremchit
    The objective of this article is to compare the English spatial term on, the Chinese spatial term shang and the Thai spatial term bon from the cognitive linguistic perspective. These three spatial terms share a basic meaning of the position on the surface of something. However, the extended usages of these three terms are relatively different. In analyzing the differences between these three terms, sample sentences of English, Chinese, and Thai are collected from three corpora. The corpora used are British National Corpus by Oxford University (2021) for English sentences, Modern Chinse CCL Corpus by Peking University (2021) for Chinese sentences, and Thai National Corpus by Chulalongkorn University (2021) for Thai sentences. Data collected from the corpora are analyzed and discussed. The cognitive linguistic approach is adopted in the discussion. Concepts of spatial relations and meaning, proto-scene, polysemy words, and the semantic network of these three spatial terms are discussed in this article. The result of the analysis can be applied to spatial terms in teaching and learning. Since the difference between languages should be emphasized during classes, some negative transfers may be prevented. In addition, foreign students will have a better understanding of the terms studied in the foreign language classes.
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    A model of transactional negotiation of meaning
    (Bangkok : Assumption University Press, 2022) Seely, Ernest Michael
    Transactional competence as related to strategic competence, and ultimately communicative competence, is a rarely studied phenomenon regarding linguistics. Most literature on transactions focuses on the mechanics of business transactions and tends to gloss over what happens linguistically in such transactions. Therefore, as original research, this study posits A Model of Transactional Negotiation of Meaning that demonstrates the relevance of Strategic Competence within transactional communication. By analyzing the directive function of language within the context of Referential Communication, the model herein lays out the basis of discovery where miscommunication, as the result of Language Related Episodes (LREs), is addressed by Communication Strategies (CSs). Ten international university students demonstrated their Transactional Competence by navigating the completion of a closed task. The results demonstrated procedural breakdowns of the transactional process where achievement strategies such as asking for clarification or confirmation, interactional strategies, and maintenance strategies were needed to remediate problematic communication. It is believed that the transactional model herein is an excellent resource for discovering Language Related Episodes and the use of communication strategies found in common miscommunications. The model demonstrates that LREs are primarily referential and that establishing common reference points is crucial to competent transactional communication.
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    Adapting CEFR for English language education in ASEAN, Japan and China
    (Assumption University Press, 2019) Foley, Joseph A.
    This paper will first outline and discuss the revised version of the Common European Framework of Reference Languages: Learning, teaching and assessment (CEFR) [ 2018] together with the Frameworks of Reference for English Language Education in Thailand Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan and China which are based on the CEFR. The indications are of potentially several issues that need to be addressed, including the fact that the local versions of CEFR were mainly based on the 2001 framework and not the 2018 which came later. Other issues such as using the same proficiency scales as the basis for rating scale criteria may lead to perceived equivalence but does not necessarily lead to greater comparability of shared criteria. There are also indications from a number of studies that the perceived view that CEFR as being mainly an assessment tool rather than about language competency may result in a negative attitude from both teachers, students and stake-holders.
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    An investigation on the acquisition error of Chinese complement of result by foreign language learners at an international university
    (Bangkok : Assumption University Press, 2022) Chatsaran Chatsanguthai
    The study aimed to investigate the acquisition error of Chinese complement of result by foreign language learners at an International University in Thailand. The quantitative method of research was applied to analyze and summarize the data of all the participants involved in the study. The questionnaire adapted from second language acquisition and language testing research was conducted and distributed to the participants. Based on the findings of the study, the acquisition error made by foreign language learners was classified into 4 kinds; omission, addition, misinformation, and misordering. The important sources of errors were interlingual transfer and intralingual transfer. Some suggestions were proposed to enhance Chinese language proficiency of foreign language learners.
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    An analysis of business discourse strategies used in email transactions: a case study of Nissan Motor Thailand
    (Assumption University Press, 2016) Pailin Kekhua
    Nissan Motor Thailand (NMT) is one of the companies that are engaged in daily operation with diverse customers especially the Parts Logistics Department. This department corresponds with customers by using email transaction. In this context, understanding different communication strategies and interpersonal devices when dealing with overseas customers can be very important to understand different kinds of attitudes and communication strategies that are negotiated in the emails. The result of the study shows that there are various communication strategies used by different customers. These are politeness, clarification, acknowledgement, relationship bonding, lead in and topic focus strategies. Various attitudes [affect, judgement and appreciation] are also identified through the use of various lexico-grammatical items and other linguistic instruments such as 'modality', 'adverbials', 'capitalization and abbreviation' and ' punctuations'. these items indicate positive and negative attitudes while modalities in most cases are used to soften or sharpen the transaction. with the impact of AEC, this research supports the current policy of the company to promote NMT mindset about 'cross-cultural function' in both internal and external organizations.
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    An analysis of Thai learners' writing of recounts and information reports
    (Assumption University Press, 2017) Nichtawan Sutinwong
    This small scale study looks at some of the major strengths and issues of genre writing of a group of Thai high school students. The study was limited to recount and information reports genres as these are considered to be among the prototypical genres in educational settings. The findings indicate that many of these high school students were able to construct text at the level of the basic linguistic features of the genres but needed to develop the nominal groups for elaboration and expansion. However there were issues in organizing and contextualizing of their writing which are only touched upon in this study although important for the development of their writing skills in other genres.
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    Being an English language teacher: a narrative analysis of ten foreign teachers in Thailand
    (Assumption University Press, 2016) Saengthip Methanopphakhun ; Deocampo, Marilyn Fernandez
    This study reflects upon the common narratives of ten foreign teachers relating their teaching experiences in Thailand. Thailand is often admired for its culture, people, environment and many can regard it as their second home. However, there are issues and challenges which they have to face such as, racial discrimination and prejudice, foreign teachers' high expectation toward students, teaching materials and the long teaching hours and the remunerations that they encounter. Although foreign teachers can settle happily in Thailand, there are real challenges that make up their day to day existence. In addition to those already mentioned there are problems with their visas and of course the language barrier. The complexity of involvement in the education processes in Thailand has other aspects that can be identified through the narratives in this study such as the attitude towards native and non-native teachers and perhaps more subtly the color of a teacher's skin.
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    Business English students’ perceptions towards collaborative listening
    (Bangkok : Assumption University Press, 2022) Namon Jirasataporn ; Parinun Permpoonsap ; Arisara Ngamsomjit
    The purpose of this research study was to examine the perceptions of EFL Business English students towards collaborative English listening in Listening and Speaking course in an international university in Thailand. Sixty-three undergraduate students participated in the survey research utilizing questionnaires for data collection. Teacher’s observation was also conducted for more insightful analysis. The findings revealed that the students’ perceptions towards the usefulness of collaborative listening were at a high level, which benefited them academically and socially. Not only did collaborative listening yield better results than listening individually, but also helped promote their interactions which resulted in more motivation in learning. Apart from providing an insight into students’ perceptions towards collaborative listening, the findings concluded with pedagogical implications for EFL teachers to integrate more of collaborative listening approach into their instruction to promote interaction among students especially during this time of pandemic where online classes are being conducted widely.
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    A critical discourse analysis of news reports on "occupy central" campaign from China daily and the New York times
    (Assumption University Press, 2016) Kai, Liu
    News language is not value-free reflection of the facts and news discourse is always endowed with ideological power. This study involves a Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) of the news reports on "Occupy Central" Campaign from China Daily and The New York Times, employing Fairclough's Three-dimensional model as framework and Haliidya's Systemic Functional Grammar (SFG), the Theory of Appraisal of Martin and Rose as analytical tools in the analysis. The analysis found various attitudes through language use. In addition, language use in news discourse is not value-free, but it is an ideological investment with reporter's own view and attitude towards the reported issues and people involved with. Those ideological differences determine how the news media produce different news reports while narrating the same event.
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    A critical discourse analysis of the news articles and reports about Diaoyu/Senkadu issues
    (Assumption University Press, 2016) Yujie, Tan
    The critical discourse analysis (CDA) is now a major tool for analyzing the news articles and reports. This paper uses CDA to analyze the news articles and reports concerning the Diaoyu/Senkaku issues. It aims to help English language teachers using CDA to create and improve the critical language awareness of students, and how discourse results from the social structure and power relations that serves discourse results from the social structure and power relations that serves different power groups. Through the analysis of articles of Diaoyu/Senkaku issues from Chinese newspaper the People's Daily and Japanese newspaper the Japan Times, it is clear that these two newspapers, which have two different political backgrounds, share some obvious similarities in terms of formatting. However, the differences are of much more significant as reflected in the construction of the texts and the lexical choices, modality and process types used in expressing the different views. In English language teaching, using authentic materials, such as newspaper articles and reports, makes the skill of CDA important as a teaching tool as it may help the English language learners to create and improve their language awareness and the ideology embedded in the texts.
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    Current Debates in the Theory and Teaching of English L2 Pronunciation
    (Assumption University Press, 2018) Danka, Sandor
    Ironically, the single concept that appears to be universal in the field of English pronunciation research and instruction, its common denominator as it were, is diversity. Research theory and classroom practice have both convincingly proven that explicit training may indeed lead to improvements in a learner’s clarity of speech, but it seems that everything else is open for debate. Variability in opinions begins with different interpretations of basic concepts, of individual speech sounds, syllables, phrases and utterances. Correctly identifying research foci, and by extension, educational priorities for classroom instruction also divides English L2 pronunciation professionals. Models are yet another area of contention – whether to focus on traditional pronunciation points of reference, e.g. features of Received Pronunciation or General American, or to concentrate instead on interactions where no native speaker is present, as proposed by the English as an International Language (EIL) framework. Next, dispelling doubts about its effectiveness can be a challenging endeavour when progress often manifests in small increments which require a significant investment of time and effort. Finally, the decision to incorporate digital technology and the Internet into the pronunciation classroom remains a dividing line between enthusiasts and those that call CALL (Computer-Assisted Language Learning) a fad that will soon pass. The purpose of this paper is to examine these hotly debated issues, while acknowledging that its emphasis on depth may be at the expense of breadth. Its scope will allow it to touch upon but the most significant disputes, those that bridge research theory with English L2 pronunciation classroom practice.
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    Developing Thai learners' CIC through translanguaging in one-on-one English tutorial sessions
    (Assumption University Press, 2017) Tassanee Kampittayakul
    This article presents a conceptual paper, which proposes a concept of employing translanguaging as a pedagogical tool to promote the learners’ CIC – Classroom Interactional Competence, which lies at the heart of learning. The aim of the concept is to bridge two practices of monolingualism between Thai teachers who teach English through Thai only and native speakers who use English only. Translanguaging reflects reality in terms of using both languages to interact to improve the interactional competence of the learners. When both the teachers and the learners translanguage in the classroom, ‘translanguaging space’ is established. This means boundary lines of the two languages are blurred and become so permeable that the learners are able to step in the space and utilize it to make their own ‘space of learning’ through interactions with the teachers. This concept implies that the more the learners interact with the teachers, the more they learn English. Thus, if the learners’ CIC develops in translanguaging classroom context, it can be argued that translanguaging promotes Thai learners’ CIC, which is seen the same thing as the progress of learning. The paper introduces the concept, reviews literature on translanguaging and CIC, discusses conceptual framework, and proposes significant issues in conducting a future study.
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    The effects of self-directed learning on the English reading comprehension ability of MBA students
    (Assumption University Press, 2017) Rosukhon Swatevacharkul
    In this study, self-directed learning (SDL) refers to practices for English reading comprehension ability of individual students outside of a classroom for 7 consecutive weeks. The objectives were to investigate the effect of SDL on English reading comprehension ability and its effect size; and to explore how SDL improves English reading comprehension ability of the 33 MBA students of Dhurakij Pundit University in Bangkok, Thailand. This research project took the form of an embedded mixed methods design with a variant of the embedded experimental model. Quantitative data were collected by the reading part of TOEIC, and qualitative data by a Learning Summary and Evaluation Sheet, and by the teacher’s reflections. The dependent samples t-test reveals that, on average, the English reading comprehension ability of the subject students before the SDL (M = 12.30, SD = 2.76), and that after the SDL project (M = 13.33, SD = 3.30) is significantly different (p = 0.02). This means that, on average, the English reading comprehension ability of the students in the post-test significantly increases from the pre-test. The effect size is 0.34, which means that its magnitude is “small”. SDL improves reading ability in terms of “increasing awareness of reading strategy use” (51.52%), “developing learning responsibility and effort” (21.21%), “providing freedom to learn” (21.21%), and “building self-confidence to read” (6.06%). Implications and applications are discussed, and recommendations are provided.
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    English for oral transactional communication: a case study of financial office personnel
    (Assumption University Press, 2016) Kanog-On Pradaphon
    Since the 20th century, English had spread through many countries used as an international language which is frequently used for a wide range purpose in public and personal needs. This case study aimed to identify the use of language(s) for communication between staff and student and to assess possible solutions to help staff improve their English communication skills as the use of English for oral transactional communication, a case study of financial office personnel. The conversation transcriptions were collected as the data for analyzing; these conversations were analyzed by adapting the CANCODE corpus model focusing on spoken discourse analysis. The main issue was on the use of language for both L1 and L2 in the process of the transactions. By analyzing each transcription in detail, it revealed the movement of the transaction between the participants and how English and Thai were used in the communication process. The use of translanguaging seemed to help the financial personnel offcers to overcome certain difficulties in communication when faced with the level of transactional interaction required in their job. However, the lack of ability to explain financial technical term to the 'clients' lead to misunderstandings in the conversation.
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    An evaluation of cultural contents and activities in the general English textbook
    (Assumption University Press, 2016) Zar, Ei Thin ; Ramnath, Rajeevnath
    This is an evaluation of cultural contents and activities in the textbook, General English, published by the Curriculum Project, Thabyay Education Foundation, used in the migrant learning centers in the Thailand-Myanmar border. The evaluation was done to support Thabyay Education Foundation, a non-profit organization. General English has been adapted from Language in Use (1991) and developed for the post-secondary who are between the age of 16 to 25. This research was conducted to find out whether the materials were appropriate with regard to the social lives of the refugee students. The evaluation was done in four categories: topics, illustrations and activities. To evaluate these four categories, the researcher analyzed the textbook and interviewed the participants. The interviews were conducted with 15 participants from three different learning centers in three different refugee camps. The findings reveal that the subject content of the material is generally appropriate and potentially engaging to the young adult Myanmar migrant learners.
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