Title: Students’ Assistance in Writing Grammatical Essay
INTRODUCTION
In the past fifty years, technology has revolutionized the way we live.
The advancements in technology have not slowed into the new millennium and as
they continue to advance so must we and the world around us change to keep up.
Learning methods also have changed to keep up with the advancement of
technology. In the past, people generally relied on dictionaries or academic
books to refer and to correct their work but nowadays, there are quite a number
of computer tools which help people and make their task become easier. One of
the tools is grammar checker. Grammar checker is a computer tool which has been
installed mostly in Microsoft Words which attempts to verify written text for
grammatical correctness. Without realization, people actually use it when
producing a written text. So, this paper aims to look at how students involve
in the usage of grammar checker in Microsoft Words in writing exercises and how
does grammar checker help them improve their grammatical competence.
To achieve an excellent grammatical competence may not sound easy, but
with grammar checker tool which offers a help in assisting students to improve
themselves in learning language proves that it has a huge role in helping
students. Nowadays, students do their assignments using computers and since
grammar checker software is provided in every computer thus it gives a huge
help to them in which it detects grammatical errors and helps improvise
student’s grammatical competence. Although the usage of grammar checker is
widely used among the people, but there were not many valid researches which
supported the idea on how grammar checker really helps in improving student’s
grammatical competence especially in writing skills. By doing this research, we
are able to look at the usefulness of the tool in helping students to write a
grammatical text.Hence, the objectives of this research are:
- To identify students’ perceptions on the usage of grammar checker.
- To investigate to what extent does grammar checker help improve students’ grammatical competence in writing skill
- What are the students’ perceptions on the usage of grammar checker?
- To what extent does grammar checker help improve students’ grammatical competence in writing skill?
LITERATURE REVIEW
Article 1
Title of
Article: Implementing
Computer-Assisted Language Learning in the EFL Classroom: Teachers’ Perceptions
and Perspectives
Author: Chan Nim Park and Jeong-Bae Son.
Journal: International Journal of Pedagogies and Learning,
2012, Volume 5, Issue 2
URL: http://eprints.usq.edu.au/6887/1/Park_Son_IJPLv5n2_AV.pdf
Purpose of
Study/ Objectives:
1) To examine the factors that affect
teachers’ usage of computers in their EFL classrooms.
2) To identify the teachers’ perceptions on
CALL and the ways which can be done to improve CALL practice in school.
Statement of
problem/Significance:
1) Due to the rapid progress of Internet
technology, internet-based computers have been used widely in conducting a
classroom lesson for EFL learners in Korea.
2) The incorporation of internet-based
computer in the teaching and learning of English may not be successful if the
one who utilizes CALL is not comfortable in making it as an approach in
delivering the lesson.
3) However, some claim that it is not
necessary for the teachers to be comfortable to use CALL in the classroom to
make the lesson successful.
4) So, in order to find out whether teachers’
attitudes can influence the effectiveness of CALL in the classroom, a research
can be done to look at the aspects that affect their usage of internet-based
computers in EFL lesson.
Research
Questions:
1) What are the factors that affect teachers’
usage of computers in their EFL classrooms?
2) What are the teachers’ perceptions on CALL
and what are the ways which can be done to improve CALL practice in school?
Methodology:
1) A questionnaire was distributed to all
participants through e-mail.
2) The questionnaire consisted of two sections
which for the first section was to find out information related to the
participants’ background and also information related to their usage of
computer, while for the second section it was to look at their perceptions and
attitudes towards CALL.
3) An interview was done as a follow-up step
to get clear and detailed information about the teachers’ views on CALL
implementation in the classroom.
4) The interview was done for each participant
and it was conducted in Korean language.
5) Since the data should be in English, the
answers recorded from the interviews were transcribed and translated into
English.
6) The data were analyzed and classified based
on the main questions prepared a the beginning of the interview.
Sampling/Population/Participants:
1) 12 in-service teachers of EFL were involved
in the study.
2) They were all working as secondary school
teachers in Korea which consisted of two male and ten female teachers.
3) Teachers who aged from 31 to 57 with 3 to
26 years of working experience as a teacher participated for this study.
4) All of them have the access to computer and
Internet and they have been using computers for work-related purposes from 4 to
15 years.
Findings
& Discussion:
1) Many teachers have a positive perception
towards CALL and some of them believed that CALL helps improve their teaching
of foreign language.
2) All of them agreed that the learners can
benefit from CALL because they will have more chance to engage in a real
learning setting and the learning can be conducted in a fun way.
3) Computer usage in the classroom nowadays
has become very essential due to modern technology. This is because it brings
changes to the traditional teaching methods of EFL and it also provides
self-directed language learning which can help the learners in cultural
understanding.
4) All teachers believed that CALL has positive
outcomes in language teaching because it can develop language skills of the
learners and also attract their attention since it incorporates with a fun
process of learning.
5) But some showed a different view on CALL by
stating that computer usage can be disadvantageous in terms of lack of time for
teachers’ preparation before conducting the classroom lesson, learners’
physical fatigue and limited attention.
6) Factors that affect the teachers’ uses of
CALL are lack of time to prepare for teaching materials, lack of computer
skills, lack of computer facilities in school, curricular restriction and the
stress from the social pressure that expects teachers to incorporate computer
in the teaching of EFL.
7) CALL practice can be done in the future
successfully if well-equipped computer facilities are provided in schools.
Besides, the teachers claimed that there should be a textbook that is relevant
to the content of CALL so that the disadvantages experienced before can be
avoided and the teachers also should attend training courses on CALL so that
they can be competent to use computer in their teaching.
Comments:
1)
CALL has its own advantages and disadvantages.
2)
However, in current time, it is the most suitable approach to be used in
delivering lesson especially for teaching and learning English.
3)
In order to make CALL as a successful approach in teaching and learning
English, many things need to be done particularly training courses for the
teachers who will facilitate CALL in the classroom.
4)
If teachers know well how CALL is supposed to be conducted the lesson
will be successful.
Article 2
Title of
Article: Is Computer
Assisted Language Learning (CALL) efficient for grammar learning? An Experiment
Study in French as a Second Language
Author: Florence Chenu, FrédériqueGayraud, Bruno
Martinie& Wu Tong.
Journal: The JALT CALL Journal, 2007, Volume 3, Issue 3, pp.
85-93
URL: http://journal.jaltcall.org/articles/3_3_Chenu.pdf
Purpose of
Study/ Objectives:
1) To identify whether Computer Assisted
Language Learning (CALL) can benefit the intermediate non-native learners of
French in learning relative clauses.
Statement of
problem/Significance:
1) Previous researches on CALL looked at its
effect in the learning of grammar system of a target language.
2) Even though many results indicated that
CALL did provide an advantage to the learners in acquiring the target language
system, there were some other researches that showed a similar impact of the
learning process when using both CALL and other teaching methods.
3) Due to several factors that led to the
inadequacy of the researches, a new research should be conducted and more
details in the research design should be included in order to prevent from
obtaining inconsistent findings.
Research
Questions:
1) Can CALL benefit the intermediate non-native
learners of French in learning relative clauses?
Methodology:
1) The participants were randomly divided into
a control group and an experimental group.
2) Pre-test and post-test were used in
conducting the experiment.
3) The pre-test was used to test the mastery
of French relative clauses of the learners from both groups.
4) After that, the two groups were put into
two different learning sessions.
5) For the control group, it was a 3-hour
traditional lesson which involved the strategies of giving explanations and exercises
through spoken and written modalities.
6) While for the experimental group, it was a
3-hour self-training session where they used website that only has written text
and no feedback given by the system.
7) After 3 hours, post-test took place to
investigate how the learners have improved after the lesson.
8) A questionnaire was also used but only for
the experimental group to find out their attitudes towards CALL.
Sampling/Population/Participants:
1) 26 participants of different native
languages were chosen to be part of the experiment and their age range was
between 18 to 42 years old.
2) They were chosen based on the period of
time that they have spent to learn French which 19 months and also based on the
duration of living in France which is from 4 to 5 months.
Findings
& Discussion:
1) Participants with low mastery level of
French relative clauses in the experimental group showed more improvement
compared to those with high mastery level.
2) However, in the control group, participants
with high mastery level of French relative clauses improved more than those
with low mastery level.
3) Many participants in the experimental group
showed positive attitudes towards CALL after experiencing it during the
session.
4) However, they preferred the traditional
method to be used in class because the feedback from the teacher can be
obtained directly during the lesson.
5) Based on the result of the experimental
group, written language in CALL device will help learners to learn at their own
pace.
6) Based on the result of the control group,
both spoken and written language involved in the instruction will make the
learners to absorb two types of information at the same time and this makes
their memory to have difficulty in decoding the information.
Comments:
1) CALL has its own advantage that students
can benefit from especially the written language obtained in the device which
helps students to be able to learn at their own pace.
2) However, immediate feedback that CALL does
not have makes the students to prefer traditional way of teaching since they can
directly ask questions to the teacher if they do not understand any topic on
grammar.
3) So, in order to have a successful process
of teaching and learning, CALL should be integrated with the traditional method
so that both can implement one another and students will benefit more in the
classroom lesson.
Article 3
Title of
Article: Word
Processors’ Grammar and Spelling Assistance: Consequences for Second Language
Learning and Teaching
Author: Ingrid Fandrych
Journal: The Internet TESL Journal, 2001, Volume 7,
Issue 6
URL: http://iteslj.org/Articles/Fandrych-WordPro.html
Purpose of
Study/ Objectives:
1) To look at the usefulness of word
processors in regards to the grammar and spelling assistance.
2) To explain the word processors’
significance for second language learning and teaching.
Statement of
problem/Significance:
1) Word processors have been used widely among
the people especially those in the academic setting.
2) Reliance on the software occurs when people
want to produce a text that they believe to be error free.
3) However, people do not aware of the
credibility of such software because of their notion that the software will
correct all the errors in the text.
4) Since the credibility of the software has
not been fully justified, there is a need to look whether the end result after
making the correction is reliable or not.
Research
Questions:
1) Are word processors useful in regards to
the grammar and spelling assistance?
2) What is the significance of the word
processors for second language learning and teaching?
Methodology:
1) The most common word processors were used
for the analysis and they were Word and WordPerfect.
2) Different version of Word and Word Perfect
were used and they were Word 97, Word 2000, WordPerfect 8 and WordPerfect 9.
3) Texts that were tested using the word
processors were students’ essays, newspaper articles, literary texts and
academic texts.
4) The word processors were set into a setting
that is relevant to the features that the software has.
5) The texts were transferred into the
software and suggestions of errors were looked upon.
Findings
& Discussion:
1) Some complex grammatical features could not
be detected by Word 97 and it was not able to recognize the context of the
text.
2) It was not a practical software since it
only follows what has been programmed into the software and that is why a
correct long sentence is considered to be wordy due to its dependence on word
counts.
3) Only certain problems can be detected by
Word 97.
4) WordPerfect 8 was more flexible than Word
97 since it let the users to choose from the options what is the most suitable
word or rule for the sentence.
5) Besides, WordPerfect 8 has the option where
the users can choose the style of writing that they want that is from ‘very
formal’ to ‘informal’.
6) Word 2000 has some improvements compared to
Word 97 for its spelling and grammar checkers.
7) A wide range of words and names were
recognized by the spelling checker while, for the grammar checker an effective
user-friendly grammar is offered to the users and suggestions to write again a
proper sentence are provided.
8) Word 2000 can also correct the errors and
mistakes in a text automatically. But still there were some errors which
remained the same.
9) WordPerfect 9 was more critical than the
rest but still there are few errors that it cannot solve.
10) Thus, all word processors have their own
advantages and disadvantages.
11) A reliance on one word processor does not
guarantee a total-error-free text can be produced this is because there is no
precise grammar checker in the current time.
Comments:
1) There is no perfect software for spelling
and grammar checker.
2) All of the word processors have their own
strengths and weaknesses when it comes to the spelling and grammar checking.
3) So, one should not depend only on the
software to produce error-free text.
4) This is because the text produced might not
be totally grammatical in terms of its context.
METHODOLOGY
Sample
Thirty three (33) participants of English
language learning programme from IFLA department at International Islamic
University Malaysia (IlUM) will be chosen. All of them are in level 2 and their
level of English proficiency is intermediate.
Method for
Data Collection
Qualitative and quantitative methods
will be used in conducting the research. For the qualitative method, the
researchers will conduct an extensive experiment and analysis to study the
participants’ writing skills and how the usage of grammar checker in Microsoft
Word 2010 can improve their grammatical competence in their writing skills.Asfor the quantitative method, a set of close ended questionnaire
which consists of 10 questions regarding the students’ experiences
and opinions on using the grammar checker tool in writing essays will be
distributed to them. It is used to gain a deeper insight into the perceptions
of the students about the use of grammar checker in learning.
Framework
This research will be using the article by Ingrid Fandrych entitled Word
Processors’ Grammar and Spelling Assistance: Consequences for Second Language
Learning and Teaching from National University of Lesotho as a framework to
conduct this research. This framework article basically discusses about the
consequences of Grammar and Spelling assistance for Second Language Learning
and Teaching. As for the questionnaire part, this paper will improvise the set
of questionnaire made by ZainabSalehAlBulushy in the article entitled Paper
Dictionary or Electronic One?.
Procedure
First of all, the participants will
be asked to write an essay on a given topic on papers and then it will be
analyzed and graded manually. After that, the researchers will mark their
essays based on a standard rubric by Cahill which was released in Cambridge
University Press for essay marking and the students’ weaknesses in several
parts of English grammar will be identified. The participants will then be
asked to type in their essays using Microsoft Word 2010 and they will use the
grammar checker that is automatically provided. The researchers will then
compare the essay that they have written and the one that is typed using
Microsoft Word. They will check whether the grammar checker can really detect
and improve the students’ grammatical competence in their writing skills. This
experiment will be conducted by the researchers for one whole semester to make
it more reliable. In the end, after the experiment session is over, the
participants will need to answer a set of close ended questionnaire which
consists of 10 questions regarding their experiences in using the grammar
checker application in writing essays.
EXPECTED FINDINGS
Based on the written essays, majority of the students will have a wide
range of grammatical errors. Many of them will have problems with tenses,
articles, subject-verb agreements and sentence structures and only a few of
these students seem to have some errors in spelling and punctuation.
However, it is seen that almost every student will show huge
improvements in their typed essays using Microsoft Word 2010 which provides
automatic grammar checker for every user. Since this tool automatically detects
a grammatical error with coloured and underlined markers, the students can
easily identify the grammatical mistakes that they have done and correct them
immediately. Through this process, they are able to learn the correct way of
using tenses, articles and subject-verb agreements which they were weak at
previously in the written essays. Hence, they are able to produce
almost-perfect essays with no or minor grammatical errors. This will show that
grammar checker really assists the students in acquiring their grammatical
competence in their writing skills.
From the survey, the students will show a positive feedback in using
Microsoft Word 2010 for their assignment because it provides an automatic
grammar checker. They will feel that the tool is very useful especially in
energy and time saving. Besides that, they will also think that they learn
English grammar better that way if they are given more opportunities to use the
computer (Microsoft Word 2010) for the written assignment because of the
immediacy of the grammar checker in correcting their works and improving their
writing skills.
REFERENCES
Chenu, F., Gayraud, F., Martinie, B. &
Wu, T. (2007).Is Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) efficient for
grammar learning? An experiment study in French as a Second Language.The
JALT CALL Journal, 3 (3). Retrieved from http://journal.jaltcall.org/articles/3_3_Chenu.pdf
Fandrych, I. (2001).Word processors’
grammar and spelling Assistance: Consequences for second language learning and
teaching. The Internet TESL Journal 7 (6). Retrieved from http://iteslj.org/Articles/Fandrych-WordPro.html
Park, C. N. & Son, J. B.
(2012).Implementing Computer-Assisted Language Learning in the EFL classroom:
Teachers’ perceptions and perspectives.International Journal of Pedagogies
and Learning, 5 (2). Retrieved from http://eprints.usq.edu.au/6887/1/Park_Son_IJPLv5n2_AV.pdf
ZainabSalehAlBulushy. (n.d.).Paper
dictionary or electronic one? Retrieved from http://www.developingteachers.com/articles_tchtraining/dictionarypf_zainab.htm
APPENDICES
Questionnaire (Improvisation is made
according toZainabSalehAlBulushy’s article)
Please tick (√) the appropriate
answer.
1. Do
you know about grammar checker in Microsoft Word 2010?
Yes
( ) No
( )
2. Do
you disable the grammar checker in doing your written works?
Yes ( ) No ( )
3. Do
you like using grammar checker in doing your written works?
Yes ( ) No ( )
4. What
is/are your weaknesses in grammar especially in regards to writing an essay?
You can tick more than one.
Tenses ( )
Articles ( )
Subject-Verb Agreement (
) Sentence structures (
)
Fragments (
) Spelling and
punctuation ( )
5. Do
you think grammar checker tool can help in minimizing your grammar errors in
writing skills?
Yes ( ) No ( )
6. Apart
from writing skills what are the other language competences that you think can
be improved by using the grammar checker tools?
Speaking ( )
Reading ( )
Listening ( )
7. Do
you think the grammar checker is useful?
Yes ( ) No ( )
8. Do you think that grammar checker is time and
energy saving?
Yes ( ) No ( )
9. Do you learn English grammar faster and
better on papers or using grammar checker provided by Microsoft Word 2010?
Yes ( ) No ( )
10.
The use of grammar checker enhances your autonomy. Do you agree?
Yes ( ) No ( )
Writing
Rubric by Neta Cahill (Cambridge University Press, 2012, Retrieved from
http://www.cambridge.org/grammarandbeyond/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Cahill-Rubric.pdf)
For this assignment, we were asked to collect the data or the corpus from the CMC mode that we have chosen and then analyzed them based on the framework that we chose in the linguistic course in which for our group it is Psycholinguistics. The framework that we chose was on the topic of language, thought and culture in which a theory that says a language determines or shapes ones cultural worldview. In conducting the analysis based on the framework, we chose Facebook posts from several users that touched on the issue of the missing flight MH370.
This is one example of a documentary about the missing flight MH370.
(Source from YouTube)
Title= Missing Flight MH370: People’s Views on the Incident Based on Facebook Posts
INTRODUCTION
In the past fifty years, technology has revolutionized the way we live.The advancements in technology have not slowed into the new millennium and as they continue to advance so must we and the world around us change to keep up. With the advancement in internet technology such as mobile internet and broadband people have more access to various forms of entertainment, information and communication. If in the 90’s, people are familiar with the modes of computer-mediated communication (CMC) like emails or live chats, but nowadays, social networking sites like Facebook are considered as vital among people to communicate with others. It can be seen that people nowadays use Facebook not only for communication purposes but also to express their thoughts and opinions especially about worldwide news. Expressing thoughts and opinions which is commonly occurred in face-to-face communication has changed its way of delivery due to the new media. People nowadays use Facebook to express what they feel, their thoughts about what is happening in their surroundings and many more. So, now it can be seen that the face-to-face communication has been transferred to online communication by people expressing their thoughts and feeling through the posts on Facebook. Recently, people all around the world are discussing about the missing flight of MH370 openly especially using Facebook. Since Facebook has become a medium for expressing thoughts for the online users, this study is meant to prove whether the hypothesis which says language determines or shapes one’s view is true or not.So, the purpose of this study is to examinethe views of people regarding the missing flight of MH370 through Facebook posts.
The objectives of this paper are:
1.To identify the background of the people that use English for the posts regarding the issue of MH370 on Facebook.
2.To investigate the people’s views on the issue of MH370 based on their posts on Facebook.
3.To identify how their backgroundsinfluence their viewson MH370 and the way they express them on Facebook.
This paper will answer three questions and they are:
1.What are the backgrounds of the people that use English for the posts regarding the issue of MH370 on Facebook?
2.What are the people’s views on the issues of MH370 based on their posts on Facebook?
3.How their backgrounds influencetheir views on MH370 and the way they express them on Facebook?
METHODOLOGY
A quantitative approach is used for this research. For this study, Facebook which is one of the asynchronous modes of CMC is used in collecting the data or the corpus.
Corpus
The corpus was obtained from people’s posts on their Facebook accounts regarding the missing case of flight MH370 that happened recently. It consists ofviews which obtained in the English posts of Malaysians and non-Malaysians regarding the missing flight. The number of Malaysians and non-Malaysians involve in the analysis is 14 and 8 respectively.
Framework
CORPUS (RAW DATA)
Malaysians with Positive Responses
MH 370 flight KL-Beijing went missing on the 8th of March 2014.Since then never miss following the progress of SAR.My heart goes out to families of the passengers and cabin crew aboard.It is really heartbreaking,keep on praying.
Though it is sad to accept the fact that the passengers and crews have perished but we still hope for miracles from Allah S.W.T. My deepest condolences to the family members of the passengers and the crew members. Let us also pray to Allah to ease the searching work for the wreckage and bodies of the victims.
One of them was my cousin ex colleague *malay couple newly wed that suppose going honeymoon to beijing* My deepest condolence to the victims families. This will be a biggest history for yr 2014. To all passengers crew n captain of MH370, ...
Down to earth we bended our kness n held up our hands look up in the skies...May all rest in peace. Alfatihah for muslims passengers n crew. Everything happened for a reason.
Down to earth we bended our kness n held up our hands look up in the skies...May all rest in peace. Alfatihah for muslims passengers n crew. Everything happened for a reason.
Malaysian PM: it is with deep sadness and regret, I must inform you Flight #MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean.
innanillahiwainnanilahirajiun..
al-fatihah. —
innanillahiwainnanilahirajiun..
al-fatihah. —
#prayforMH370
God our Father,
Your power brings us to birth,
Your providence guides our lives,
and by Your command we return to dust.
Lord, those who die still live in Your presence,
their lives change but do not end.
I pray in hope for their family,
relatives and friends,
and for all the dead known to You alone.
In company with Christ,
Who died and now lives,
may they rejoice in Your kingdom,
where all our tears are wiped away.
Unite us together again in one family,
to sing Your praise forever and ever.
Amen.
God our Father,
Your power brings us to birth,
Your providence guides our lives,
and by Your command we return to dust.
Lord, those who die still live in Your presence,
their lives change but do not end.
I pray in hope for their family,
relatives and friends,
and for all the dead known to You alone.
In company with Christ,
Who died and now lives,
may they rejoice in Your kingdom,
where all our tears are wiped away.
Unite us together again in one family,
to sing Your praise forever and ever.
Amen.
It's a really hard time to go through this.
Losing a loved one is definitely a heart aching thing.
Dear god, pls be with them.
Losing a loved one is definitely a heart aching thing.
Dear god, pls be with them.
Nobody knows when d last goodbye is - pray MH370
Flight MH370 ended in the Southern Indian Ocean'
A dark time looms upon us. A father was lost, a sister was gone, a friend has vanished, a mother has departed. We can only hope that more light will be shed upon this. For now, it's imperative that the black box be found as soon as possible in the aftermath of this deeply unfortunate event to be investigated. But for the time being...we can only give our thoughts and prayers for the families affected...
Fare thee well...Al-Fatihah
Everyone is indeed in grief today knowing that the missing flight MH370 had indeed ended its journey somewhere at the bottom of the sea in a remote part of the southern Indian ocean.
Death comes at anytime with Allah's will either through natural causes or tragic events. We will all have to be ready to face it.
We pray to Allah to bring us through this tough storm.
Innalillahiwainnalilaihiroji'un.
Death comes at anytime with Allah's will either through natural causes or tragic events. We will all have to be ready to face it.
We pray to Allah to bring us through this tough storm.
Innalillahiwainnalilaihiroji'un.
It's been a very trying week for all and our country is being scrutinized by the international media. It does not help if our own rakyat is squabbling and is blaming each other or worst, events are politicized. Our leaders from BOTH sides need to put all political and strategic differences aside and stand united as a nation. Cause that is what our rukunegara seeks from us. Loyalty to our country. Let's learn to love and respect again. X
I have avoided posting ANYTHING about MH370 because, frankly speaking, there are WAAAAY too many Facebook friendly arm-chair critics more than ready to post up EVERY single article they come across that offers another speculatative theory. And at the moment, for the sake of the families of those in the plane, FACTS are all I am interested in.
Malaysians with Negative Responses
High probability of hijacking. Uyghur terrorist could be the main suspect in my opinion
so are they saying it takes just a simple switch to turn an aircraft completely 'invisible' to radar? really? i mean, is that the kind of safety features you get after spending hundreds of millions of dollars on this so-called state-of-the-art jet plane? ohh come...ON!
Foreigners with Negative Responses
Closure for who? You can't assume & tell people that their loved ones are dead with no evidence, not good enough!! Do the right thing & continue the search and keep quiet until what happened & real information can be confirmed. Utterly disgraceful & I feel now more than ever for the loved ones left behind
I still find it odd that they were so sure that it had crashed in the vicinity of the proper flight path, that there were witnesses to verify that something had occurred there... and then suddenly days later there was "evidence" saying it had in fact continued flying... and now they're concluding that somehow its ended up thousands of kilometres off course..... it makes NO sense at all!
If I was a family member of any of the passengers and crew, I would be outraged and disgusted at the entire management of this disaster. There has been so much wasted time searching in unnecessary areas and speculating by many which has not achieved anything. What a farce. Why not do this analysis from the start that way the search could have happened in the right areas? Maybe then, there could have been resolution for the poor family members who have had to suffer through this nightmare for more than two weeks. I had my own thoughts about what happened to this ill fated flight, however I do now believe the plane is at the bottom of the ocean. Every resource, technology, funds, divers and effort needs to be made to retrieve the bodies/corpses of the passengers and crew so their families can give them the burial/final resting place they deserve. This will allow the families to have some closure, but until they accurately identify (not speculate) what happened and why, the families will never rest. My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the passengers and crew. May those who lost their lives rest in eternal peace and watch over their loved ones
it's very sad that it's taken 2 weeks to possibly locate.... imagine if there were survivors... highly unlikely they'd survive 2 weeks clinging to floating debris.... I find it incredulous that a whole plane could just vanish in this day and age with all the tracking devices for planes not to mention laptops and mobile phones etc.... makes us all wonder if something shady has happened like the plane never taking off or taken somewhere top secret cos of the people on it and something they knew... possibly a knowledge that would ruin some big companies iron grip on something profitable or maybe someone with some government shattering or new world order revealing revelation......
I begin to question whether flight actually happened and where passengers are?think about it, if skyjack where is the plane and passengers? If crashed where is wreckage? No ransom demands so far, no trace of people anywhere as in they stole the plane.Peopleare missing but why? who? why this plane? where could it land? where might it go down unnoticed? What can be done with it now? the questions are endless but they all assume a flight actually happened and the passengers were on it. beginning to doubt it
If Governments around the Globe actually gave up sensitive satellite information then we would of known much earlier where it was headed... You can't tell me that with the sophisticated spying Satellites that the USA, China and Russia have they don't know what has happened. They monitor every inch of the Globe
Foreigners with Positive Responses
How does a huge plane disappear off the radar?
How is it that passengers mobile phones ring when called?
How can we lose a jetliner with all the technology and sophistication of present day?
Yes these questions boggle our minds, but at the same time we can ask ourselves: How is it that our heart pumps blood constantly without a command from us? Which part of my body is my soul contained in? How is it that our liver, kidneys and other organs function without our command when many of us don't even know their purpose?
Definitely it is The Creator of all things Who knows that which we do not know! Trust that He will make things better!
How is it that passengers mobile phones ring when called?
How can we lose a jetliner with all the technology and sophistication of present day?
Yes these questions boggle our minds, but at the same time we can ask ourselves: How is it that our heart pumps blood constantly without a command from us? Which part of my body is my soul contained in? How is it that our liver, kidneys and other organs function without our command when many of us don't even know their purpose?
Definitely it is The Creator of all things Who knows that which we do not know! Trust that He will make things better!
We can't imagine not knowing what happened to our loved ones. We can't imagine letting our loved ones be part of the Search and Rescue mission - in the vast, angry ocean. So i say, it's time to stop judging, shut up and pray because we really have no idea how we would react should we're in their positions. Just my 2 cents.
ANALYZED DATA
Malaysians with Positive Views
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Malaysians with Negative Views
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Non-Malaysians with Negative Views
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Non-Malaysians with Positive Views
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They are more calm and relaxed
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They speculate based on many theories
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They are wholeheartedly dissatisfied
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They believe that the incident is unprecedented and all we can do is to pray
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They motivate and encourage the families of the victims
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They question the communication system of the airplane
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They keep on questioning on so many things. They want solid evidence and reliable answers
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They pray and send condolences
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They blame the poor management of Search and Rescue team (SAR team)
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They defend and compliment the SAR team for doing an amazing effort
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They speculate on hidden agendas
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Table1 Views of Malaysians and non-Malaysians on the missing flight MH370
SUMMARY OF DATA
Malaysians with Positive Views
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Malaysians with Negative Views
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Non-Malaysians with Negative Views
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Non-Malaysians with Positive views
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12
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2
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6
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2
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Table 2 Number of people with positive and negative views on the missing flight MH370
The corpus was analyzed based on one hypothesis from Psycholinguistics’ topic on language, thought, and culture. The theory that will be tested is language determines or shapes cultural worldview. Hence, the analysis was done by looking at how a same language being used can bring different views from different individuals and how culture or background influence people’s views on the issue of MH370. The results were put into table and summarized.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Many researches which are done on the new media like social networking sites (SNSs) only focus on how the media affects the users. But, there is an inadequate discussion on how the users use the SNSs. According to Hunt, Atkin and Archana Krishnan (2012), users’ motivations can influence how SNSs are used.In their research, they have listed several motives that users have when using the interactive features on Facebook. They are impersonal communication, self-expression, entertainment, information seeking and passing time motives. In relation to the issue discussed above, self-expression motive indicates that it is true that people use Facebook to express themselves. In their finding, they claimed that “self-expression motive was also shown to be a significant predictor for usingFacebook” (p. 198). This indicates that people posts status or comments to express what they have in mind. In their explanation on self-expression motive in SNSs, Hunt et al. (2012) stated that self-expression in SNSs help to show the identity of the users. This means that self-expression on the online media reflects who they are. Based on this, it can be understood that people’s views that are being expressed on the online communication are influenced by their identity and the way of perceiving things but not the language that they use.This is different from the theory mentioned at the beginning of this paper in which language determines or shapes one’s worldview. Steinberg and Sciarini (2006) explained that the theory refers to a situation whereby “a language will itself condition and influence one’s cultural, social beliefs or views of the world” (p. 191).So, in order to show that the theory cannot be supported, the analysis on the views of people based on their posts in English on Facebook was done.
FINDINGS
Most Malaysians responded positively to what has been happening to flight MH370. Although it was a shocking news to the nation, 12 of them remained calm and relaxed. Throughout these trying times, they motivate the families of the victims and give uplifting comments for all Malaysians. It is also found that the believers of all religions utter many prayers, hoping for a good ending. Almost everyone sent their condolences to the families of the passengers when Malaysian Prime Minister NajibRazak announced that the missing flight MH370 ended in the southern Indian Ocean. Even though Malaysia received so many accusations and negative comments, most Malaysians defend and compliment the Search and Rescue team for the amazing effort they have been doing. However, it is found that there are two Malaysians who gave negative feedbacks. They simply made speculations based on many theories like hijacking. One of them started to believe that there must be a conspiracy behind the disappearance of the airplane while another person questioned the poor communication system of the airplane.On the contrary, foreigners have different opinions and views on this issue. It can be seen that six of them are wholeheartedly dissatisfied with everything. They keep on questioning on so many things and from all possible angles because they demand solid evidence and reliable answers that the airplane ended in the Indian Ocean. One of them expressed her sadness on how poor the Search and Rescue team is handling and managing the process of the search. These foreigners doubt that the airplane had technical problems and start to speculate on hidden agendas.
Nevertheless, there are still two foreigners who still believe that this incident is totally unprecedented and all we can do is to pray.
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DISCUSSION
The Malaysians whose posts were chosen for this analysis come from different ethnicity with different culture and religious beliefs such as Malay, Chinese, Indian, Muslim, Hindu and Christian. Based on the different backgrounds of the Malaysians, it can be shown that the theory mentioned before proved to be wrong since the same language used by the people does not indicate that they belong to a similar cultural background. This is applicable to the non-Malaysians as well in which they were from different countries, Australia, Singapore and America.Besides,they come from different social, cultural and religious background. Even though they are using English in their communication, it does not show that they have a similar cultural background to the Malaysians. This finding is in accordance to the statement by Steinberg and Sciarini (2006) that refuted the theory by claiming that a same language can bring to different views and ideologies. Besides, if a language shapes a worldview, there should be uniformity in the culture, ideology and thinking system of the people who use the language.But here it is clearly shown that people who use English do not necessarily have a similar cultural background. Based on the findings, the Malaysians were found to express many positive views in their posts on Facebook. This reflects the culture that they live in. Malaysians are commonly known as polite to others. That is why most of them express their views in a very subtle way and in a good manner. Besides, since the incident is very close to the heart of the Malaysians, they showed their sympathy as they can relate it to the feelings of the victims’ families.However, a few Malaysians have negative views on the issue by speculating the incident based on theories that they know and questioning the communication system of the airplane. This happened might be due to their knowledge that they have regarding the science of aircraftwhich makes them to be more familiar with the matter. By looking at how even among Malaysians are different in their views, this indicates that people do not share the same way of perceiving things. Furthermore, among the non-Malaysians also, it can be seen that they have different views on the incident. Many of the non-Malaysians showed negative views regarding the incident. They directly express their views by posting them on the Facebook. This can be related to their culture whereby being direct or outspoken is very common. Since it is common to them, it is alright for them to do that. However, there are a few of them who have positive views in regards to the incident. This may be due to the relationship that they have with the country or the people of the country which makes them to feel what the Malaysians were going through. Besides, their religious belief makes them to take the incident positively by not arguing too much on it and keep praying for the safety of the people who involved in the incident.
Hence, this shows that even though people use a same language which is English for their posts on Facebook regarding the missing flight MH370, they still have different views on that matter. This indicates that a language cannot determine how a person views something that happens in his or her surrounding. It reflects back to the social, cultural and religious backgroundthat one has. People who use a similar language do not necessarily similar in the way they think and perceive the world around them.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, Facebook has served as an SNS that provides a new channel for people to express their feelings, thoughts and opinions on what is happening in the surroundings. People or the online users particularly have another option to express themselves. When looking at the expressing the views on MH370, the case might be different if it occurs in face-to-face communication. If people need to say something about the missing flight to the rest that they know, then the communication will be direct and interactive since the participants involved in the communication are comfortable to one another. Plus, there is no need to worry for offending others because the interaction is all about sharing thoughts on the incident. So, they will keep on giving their opinions and feedbacks regarding the issue. However, if the participants involved are not familiar to one another, the communication will be less direct and they will be very careful in giving their opinions to the rest. In computer-mediated communication (CMC) such as Facebook, the act of expressing feelings and views will be different according to how the person who posts the status or comments thinks about others’ perceptions on his or her views. It is all based on the person who uses the social networking site. Besides, the interaction between the social network friends may not be as interactive as in the face-to-face communication because there is a possibility that no one will respond to the post or the feedback is not immediate as in the face-to-face communication. So, looking back at the main issue of this paper, language does not determine one’s view on something. Language is only acts as a tool for views or thoughts to be expressed in communication.
REFERENCES
Hunt, D., Atkin, D. &Archana Krishnan. (2012). The influence of computer-mediated communication apprehension on motives for Facebook use. Journal of Broadcasting and Electronic Media, 56 (2), 187-202.
Steinberg, D. D. &Sciarini, N. V. (2006). An introduction to psycholinguistics (2nded.). United Kingdom: Pearson Education Limited.
We were assigned to choose a CMC mode for this assignment and we chose Facebook which is an asynchronous mode of CMC. We were then asked to find an article on the CMC mode that we have chosen and summarized its content based on aspects that had been determined by the lecturer. In the summary, the URL of the article is provided and you may take a look at it after reading the summary.
Summary of the Article
Title of Article:The Influence of Computer-Mediated Communication Apprehension on Motives for Facebook Use
Author: Daniel Hunt, David Atkin, and Archana Krishnan
Journal:Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 2012, Volume 56, Issue 2
URL:http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/08838151.2012.678717
Purpose of Study/ Objectives:
1.To examine the influence of computer-mediated communication apprehension on motives for using the interactive features on Facebook.
2.To investigate how Facebook motives predict the use of its interactive features.
Statement of problem/Significance:
1.The impact of users’ motivations on the use of new media communication should be looked upon since its discussion is still inadequate.
2.Computer-mediated communication apprehension (CMCA) can become a measure to look at the communication apprehension which takes place across the online setting.
3.Similarities between the communication apprehension in a real setting and online setting can be discussed.
Research Questions:
1.Which motives for using Facebook predict the use of its interactive features?
2.How does gender influence motives for using Facebook?
Methodology:
1.A cross-sectional study design was implemented.
2. The survey was administered online through a third party online survey company, QuestionPro and the questionnaire consisted of measures of apprehension related to CMC activities as well as Facebook use.
Sampling/Population/Participants:
417 undergraduate students from a large introductory level course who are among the large majority of SNS users.
Findings & Discussion:
1. CMCA is inversely related to the motives of interpersonal communication, self-expression, entertainment and passing time for using Facebook.
2.One’s motivation to use Facebook for interpersonal communication, self-expression, entertainment and passing time decreases due to CMCA.
3.Interpersonal communication, self-expression and entertainment motives are the significant predictors of the use of interactive features on Facebook while information seeking and passing time motives are not.
4.People who are apprehensive would not be motivated to communicate with others even through the computer-mediated communication channel which is not in a public setting.
5.Entertainment as the significant predictor in CMCA shows that users primarily use Facebook for entertainment and the rest are only the secondary motives.
6.Female users are more likely to use the interactive features on Facebook compared to male users especially for interpersonal and entertainment motives.
7.CMCA negatively influences one’s motivation for using social networking sites (SNSs) and thus influences the online communication.
Comments:
1.Commonly, one’s personality can be identified not only through face-to-face communication but also through online communication.
2.CMCA indicates that people do not change their personality and identity when encountering different situations. That is why even in the online setting, people with communication apprehension will have lower motivations to use SNSs.
3.However, this may not be applicable to all since there are some people who are more comfortable to communicate via online channel. Thus, it means that communication apprehension in a public setting may not necessarily occur in an online setting.
Comments by the lecturer regarding to the first assignment: Lesson Plan
The lesson plan had already been marked and commented by the lecturer.
Assignment 1: Lesson Plan
The lecturer has instructed us to prepare a lesson plan to teach a group of students with specific skills. Our group had prepared a lesson plan complete with the activities for the students. Our specific skill is Listening skill.
LESSON PLAN (First Version)
Day/Date : Thursday/ 6th March 2014 Time : 2.00 pm — 3.20 pm
Standard : 3 Alpha Angle Duration : 80 minutes
Enrolment : 15/15
Level of : Beginner
Students
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Subject : English Language Language Skill : Speaking
Theme : Around the Town
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General Objectives
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1. To make students familiar with the basic language for directions to places around the town.
2. To boost students’ confidence in speaking.
3. To make students able to ask and give directions politely.
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Learning Outcomes
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At the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
1. Recognize and provide basic words for giving directions.
2. Give basic directions.
3. Participate in a dialogue session for asking and giving directions properly.
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Teaching Aids
|
|
Values
|
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Prior Knowledge
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Students have learnt the following items in previous classes:
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Activity
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Procedure
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Duration
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Induction
( 6 minutes )
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1. Teacher recalls the topic of directions from the previous lesson.
2. Teacher asks several students the basic directions that they have learnt in the previous lesson.
3. Students provide the basic directions that they know to the class.
4. Teacher shows a video of 3-minute durationon basic directions and places in town from youtube.com to end the recall session.
5. Teacher introduces the new topic to the students and provides a brief explanation on the activities that will be done in the class.
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2 minutes
3 minutes
1 minute
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Activity 1
( 35 minutes )
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1. Teacher uses a language learning site to assist the teaching.
2. Teacher introduces the new topic by showing an interactive map from the site to the students.
3. Teacher leads the activity by introducing the vocabulary related to the new topic that is included in the map.
4. Teacher lets the studentsto listen to the pronunciation of each of the words included in the map and asks them to repeat the pronunciation.
5. Students pronounce the words after listening to the audio and teacher will correct the pronunciation if needed.
6. Teacher provides explanation of the words to the students if needed.
7. After 15 minutes, teacher instructs the students to do the exercises provided in the site.
8. Every student is given a computer to do the exercises.
9. Students will do two exercises from the site; the first exercise is MatchUp 2 and the second exercise is Dictation.
10. One exercise will take place for 10 minutes in which 5 minutes for students to complete the exercise and 5 minutes for the teacher to discuss the answer with the whole class.
11. Teacher repeats the same steps for the second exercise.
12. During the activity, teacher will attend every student in the classroom to check on their progress in doing the exercises.
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3 minutes
12 minutes
20 minutes
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Activity 2
( 34 minutes )
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1. Teacher introduces the next activity to the students.
2. The similar map is used to assist the activity.
3. Teacher explains the activity that the students will do in brief.
4. Teacher divides the students of 15 into 5 groups.
5. Students group themselves into 3 persons per group.
6. Teacher explains the instruction to the students before starting the activity.
7. Teacher instructs the students to do a 3-minute role play of two tourists who ask for direction to a place in the town from a local citizen.
8. Teacher instructs the students to create their own dialogue for the role play based on the topic learnt.
9. Teacher instructs students to use a proper language for asking and giving directions in the dialogue.
10. Teacher instructs the students to use the information included in the map in creating the dialogue.
11. Teacher asks students to add extra information to the unlabeled places in the map and use them in the dialogue.
12. Studentsdiscuss among themselves and memorize the dialogue.
13. After 7 minutes, each group will be given 3 minutes to do the role play in front of the class.
14. Teacher watches and listens to the role play of all the groups.
15. After all role plays have ended, teacher gives comment on the students’ way of asking and giving directions.
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2 minutes
2 minutes
5 minutes
7 minutes
15 minutes
3 minutes
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Closure
( 5 minutes )
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1. Teacher ends the lesson by asking a few students about their opinions and suggestions on how to give a proper direction in a real situation.
2. Students give their answers and the teacher gives feedback to their answers.
3. Teacher concludes the lesson and ends the class.
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3 minutes
2 minutes
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Evaluation
|
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Reflection
|
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LESSON PLAN (Revised Version)
Day/Date : Thursday/ 6th March 2014 Time : 2.00 pm — 3.20 pm
Standard : 3 Alpha Angle Duration : 80 minutes
Enrolment : 32/32
Level of : Beginner
Students
| |
Subject : English Language Language Skill : Speaking
Theme : Around the Town
| |
General Objectives
|
1. To make students familiar with the basic language for directions to places around the town.
2. To boost students’ confidence in speaking.
3. To make students able to ask and give directions politely.
|
Learning Outcomes
|
At the end of the lesson, students should be able to:
1. Recognize and provide basic words for giving directions.
2. Give basic directions.
3. Participate in a dialogue session for asking and giving directions properly.
|
Teaching Aids
|
1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKGEpToeaFg
2. learningchocolate.com
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Values
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1. Leadership
2. Teamwork
3. Politeness
|
Prior Knowledge
|
Students have learnt the following items in previous classes:
1. Vocabulary
2. Simple prepositions
|
Activity
|
Procedure
|
Duration
|
Induction
( 5 minutes )
|
1. Teacher recalls the topic of directions from the previous lesson.
2. Teacher asks several students the basic directions that they have learnt in the previous lesson.
3. Students provide the basic directions that they know to the class.
4. Teacher shows a video of 3-minute duration on basic directions and places in town from youtube.com to end the recall session.
5. Teacher introduces the new topic to the students and provides a brief explanation on the activities that will be done in the class.
|
2 minutes
3 minutes
|
Activity 1
( 22 minutes )
|
1. Teacher uses learningchocolate.com, a language learning site to assist the teaching.
2. Teacher introduces the new topic by showing an interactive map from the site to the students.
3. Teacher leads the activity by introducing the vocabulary related to the new topic that is included in the map.
4. Teacher lets the studentsto listen to the pronunciation of each of the words included in the map and asks them to repeat the pronunciation.
5. Students pronounce the words after listening to the audio and teacher will correct the pronunciation if needed.
6. Teacher provides explanation of the words to the students if needed.
7. After 8 minutes, teacher instructs the students to do the exercises provided in the site.
8. Every student is given a computer to do the exercises.
9. Students will do two exercises from the site; the first exercise is MatchUp 2 and the second exercise is Dictation.
10. One exercise will take place for 7 minutes in which 4 minutes for students to complete the exercise and 3 minutes for the teacher to discuss the answer with the whole class.
11. Teacher repeats the same steps for the second exercise.
12. During the activity, teacher will attend every student in the classroom to check on their progress in doing the exercises.
|
1 minute
7 minutes
14 minutes
|
Activity 2
( 50 minutes )
|
1. Teacher introduces the next activity to the students.
2. The similar map introduced during the first activity is used to assist the activity.
3. Teacher explains the activity that the students will do in brief.
4. Teacher divides the students of 32 into 8 groups.
5. Students group themselves into 4 persons per group.
6. Teacher explains the instruction to the students before starting the activity.
7. Teacher instructs the students to do a 4-minute role play of two tourists who ask for direction to places in the town from two local citizens.
8. Teacher instructs the students to create their own dialogue for the role play based on the topic learnt.
9. Teacher provides a sample dialogue of asking and giving directions to the students.
e.g: A: Excuse me, miss. Can you help me? Actually, I am looking for the location of Star Hotel. How do I get there?
B: Oh it is located in front of Berjaya Mall. You just need to turn left at the first junction and go straight along the road. You will see Star Hotel on your left.
10. Teacher instructs students to use a proper language for asking and giving directions in the dialogue.
11. Teacher instructs the students to use the direction of places and information included in the map to create the dialogue.
12. Teacher asks students to add extra information to the unlabeled places in the map and use them in the dialogue.
13. Studentsdiscuss among themselves and memorize the dialogue.
14. After 10 minutes, each group will be given 4 minutes to do the role play in front of the class.
15. Teacher watches and listens to the role play of all the groups.
16. After all role plays have ended, teacher gives comment on the students’ way of asking and giving directions.
|
6 minutes
10 minutes
32 minutes
2 minutes
|
Closure
( 3 minutes )
|
1. Teacher ends the lesson by asking a few students about their opinions and suggestions on how to give a proper direction in a real situation.
2. Students give their answers and the teacher gives feedback to their answers.
3. Teacher concludes the lesson and ends the class.
|
2 minutes
1 minute
|
Evaluation
| ||
Reflection
|
1. The input is practical to the real life.
2. The exercises are simple and easy to be conducted.
3. The instructions are easy to comprehend.
4. The activities from the site are complete and suitable for beginner learners.
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