This book adopts a multi-method and multi-phase approach to investigate the washback effects of Test for English Majors (TEM) on program administrators, teachers and students, shedding new light on TEM reform and the reform of English teaching and learning in China. TEM, a nationwide test used to measure the language proficiency of undergraduate English majors in China, is a major standardized test taken by nearly 400,000 students every year. The book's key features include: an in-depth discussion of the nature of washback and a framework for investigating it; a multi-method and multi-phase approach, employing both the quantitative method of questionnaire surveys and the qualitative methods of interviews and classroom observations; large-scale questionnaire surveys conducted among experts, program administrators, teachers and students, and involving over 30,000 participants; detailed assessments of TEM's washback effects on stakeholders' perceptions, classroom teaching practice, students learning activities, etc.; and essential insights into testing and teaching reforms.

Originally published in 1874. The book also contains specimens of Gypsy poetry, and an account of certain Gypsyries and of various things relating to Gypsy life in England. Contents include: The Gypsy Language - Word Book of the Romany - Gypsy verbs - Little Sayings - The Lord's Prayer in Gypsy Dialect - Book of Wisdom of the Egyptians - Gypsy names of Countries and Towns - English Gypsy Songs - Foreign Gypsy Songs - The English Gypsies - Gypsy names - Fortune Telling - Metropolitan Gypsies - Famous Gypsies. Etc

The book contains contributions from practitioners and theoreticians who explore the pronunciation of English from various perspectives: phonetic, phonological, psycholinguistic and sociolinguistic. In accordance with the unifying theme of the volume, individual contributions investigate the characteristics of a foreign accent, its production and perception, study the development of methods and techniques in pronunciation teaching, evaluate their use in classroom materials and in the classroom itself, and investigate the conditions for second language learning and teaching from the perspective of learners and teachers. The book offers a unique combination of a scholarly research with practical applications, inspired over the years by the work of Professor Wlodzimierz Sobkowiak, who has researched pronunciation teaching and pioneered technology-oriented, corpus-based approaches to the study of English pronunciation in Poland.

As one of the most recognized names in the fields of language assessment and applied linguistics, Lyle F. Bachman has published extensively and contributed a very high volume of journal articles, books, and conference presentations to the field. These writings have strongly influenced the discipline and over the last three decades have played a hand in shaping the field into what we know today. Until now, Bachman’s work has been spread across various mediums and not existed in one place. The Writings of Lyle F. Bachman is the first book to pull together Bachman’s work into a single, comprehensive volume. The text is split into eight major sections, with each section beginning with an introduction by the editors to provide contextualization, and ending with a set of thought provoking discussion questions. Sections cover some of the major areas of the field, including Validation, Test Methods Facets, Program Design and Evaluation, and Language Testing as related to Second Language Acquisition, and papers within each section are presented chronologically so that the evolution of Bachman’s ideas and research insights can be clearly traced. Due to Bachman’s strong impact in the field, this volume not only presents a collection of his writings, but rather an overview of the discipline as it stands today that the Editors have put in a context that will be useful to both researchers and graduate students in the areas of Language Assessment & Testing and Applied Linguistics.

This edited collection challenges the perceptions of disciplinary, linguistic, geographical and ideological borders that run across language education. By highlighting commonalities and tracing connections between diverse sub-fields that have traditionally been studied separately, the book shows how the perspectives of practitioners and researchers working in diverse areas of language education can mutually inform each other. It consists of three thematic parts: Part I outlines the field of language education and challenges its definition by highlighting additional theoretical constructs that have tended to be viewed as separate from language education. Part II investigates curricular boundaries, showing how the language-learning curriculum can be enriched by connections with other curricular areas. Lastly, Part III looks into the challenges and opportunities associated with language education against the backdrop of globalisation.

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This volume promotes a thought-provoking discussion on contemporary issues surrounding the teaching of language and literacy based on first hand experiences and research. Drawing on the authors' experiences as teacher educators, language and literacy teachers, and researchers on literacy issues it brings together the multiple traditions. What makes the proposed volume unique is the common theme that runs through all the chapters: the examination of the term literacy, the complexity of this term and the importance of having a wide understanding of what it is before tackling educational issues of pedagogy, assessment and student engagement. What is more, as the editors argue, it is necessary to join up the dots and explore the commonalities that form the core of the literacy spectrum.

This book presents folktales in the Herati dialect of the Afghan Persian language, along with useful transcriptions and translations. This dialect is spoken by the sedentary population of Herat city and the adjacent area situated in the northwest of Afghanistan. Historically, the area in question was part of the Persian province of Khorasan that was known for its significant role in the development of Persian culture in general and literature and philosophy in particular. Suffice it to say that the classical Persian language (Farsi) is considered to have originated in that region. For centuries, Herat has been one of the main cultural centers of the Khorasan province, and according to a reliable historic source, it was in Herat that the first poetical piece in Farsi was composed. The area was the birthplace of many most prominent Persian-speaking poets such as Ferdowsi, F. 'Attar, Khayyam, to mention a few. Others such as Jami and Ansari were originally from the Herat area and their shrines are located in the city. Given the fact that many early Persian-speaking poets came from this region (Khorasan) and from Herat in particular, their native Khorasani dialects--including Herati-- considerably influenced the language of Persian classical literature. The Herati dialect linguistic importance from the synchronic perspective is based on the fact that it serves as a bridge between the Persian dialects of western Iran and the Tajiki of Central Asia. In addition, given the geographic position of Herat (situated on the border between modern Afghanistan and Iran), its dialect also shares many common characteristics with the Persian dialects of Iran and those of Afghanistan. Despite its cultural and linguistic importance for studies in Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia, this region has never been open to field research (especially by westerners) because of its long political instability and constant wars. There is no similar published work in English on this particular Persian dialect and its oral literature. Based on academically informed fieldwork and presented in a scientific fashion, this study provides information previously unavailable and is thus valuable to the academic discourse in Iranian linguistics. The materials were collected by the author during field research in Afghanistan in the 1980s from illiterate dialect speakers (a category which has preserved the dialect the most in terms of purity and entirety). The book helpfully provides a grammatical introduction to the Herati dialect, a glossary of dialectal and common words, as well as approximately 500 explanatory notes. This book will be of interest to linguists and language learners, especially those studying Afghan Persian. It will also be useful as a language learning aid for intermediate and advanced students of spoken Afghan Persian in general and of Persian (in the broader sense) dialectology in particular, foreign NGO workers or interpreters/translators who find themselves in the field in western Afghanistan or far eastern Iran. Though the present book is by no means a study in folklore literature or anthropology, these texts containing ethnographic data will also be of value to folklorists or ethnographers.

Japanese From Zero! is an innovative and integrated approach to learning Japanese developed by professional Japanese interpreter George Trombley and co-writer Yukari Takenaka. The lessons and techniques used in this series have been taught successfully for over ten years in classrooms throughout the world. Using up-to-date and easy-to-grasp grammar, Japanese From Zero! is the perfect course for current students of Japanese as well as absolute beginners. In Book 1 of the Japanese From Zero! series, readers are taught new grammar concepts, over 800 new words and expressions, and also learn the hiragana writing system. Features of Book 1: * Integrated Workbook with Answer Key * Over 800 New Words and Expressions * Learn to Read and Write Hiragana * Easy-to-Understand Example Dialogues * Culture Points about Japan * Bilingual Glossaries with Kana and Romaji ...and much more!

German Grammar in Context presents an accessible and engaging approach to learning grammar. Each chapter opens with a real-life extract from a German newspaper, magazine, poem, book or internet source and uses this text as the starting point for explaining a particular key area of German grammar. A range of exercises follow at the end of the chapter, helping students to reinforce and test their understanding, and an answer key is also provided at the back of the book. This second edition features: Updated texts with current newspaper and magazine articles and new extracts from digital media such as chatrooms or blogs Inclusion of a wide-ranging selection of sources and topics to further students' engagement with issues relevant to contemporary Germany and Austria Clear and user-friendly coverage of grammar, aided by a list of grammatical terms A wide variety of inventive exercises designed to thoroughly build up grammatical understanding, vocabulary acquisition and effective comprehension and communication skills Helpful 'keyword boxes' translating difficult vocabulary in the texts A recommended reading section offering advice on additional grammar resources and website links German Grammar in Context will be an essential resource for intermediate to advanced students of German. It is suitable for both classroom use and independent study.