Academic Texts Research Articles

Translanguaging strategies in multilingual newly arrived students’ writing

ABSTRACT Despite burgeoning research on translanguaging in education, research on translanguaging approaches to literacy education has lagged behind that of research on oral translanguaging in education. Hence, this article investigates what translanguaging strategies six multilingual newly arrived students used in the production of an academic text, and what prior experiences they had with learning and developing translanguaging strategies. These questions were investigated through a 60-minute writing session, in which six multilingual newly arrived students (age 16-19) wrote an academic text in Norwegian on a designated topic. The participants had lived in Norway between six months and 3.5 years. Next, the researcher conducted student interviews, exploring the students’ translanguaging strategies and their previous experiences related to learning and developing them. The analysis shows that all the students applied translanguaging strategies before and during writing. The students reported that they had developed the strategies on their own, without their teachers’ encouragement and support.

Phrasemes in Academic Student Texts

Vilma ZUBAITIENĖ, Gintarė JUDŽENTYTĖ-ŠINKŪNIENĖ, Eglė GUDAVIČIENĖ, Lina PLAUŠINAITYTĖ, Skaistė VOLUNGEVIČIENĖ. Studentų darbų fraziškumas. Kolektyvinė monografija. Vilnius, Vilniaus Universiteto leidykla, 2020, 614 p.

Artificial Intelligence text generators for overcoming language barriers in ecological research communication

AbstractLanguage barriers can impede the dissemination of research findings, restrict collaboration and exclude non‐English‐speaking researchers from the global scientific community. To overcome this challenge, we explore the potential of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) text generators to assist non‐anglophone researchers in producing high‐quality academic texts for publication in scientific journals, with a focus on the field of ecological research. These tools can produce grammatically correct, coherent and contextually appropriate text, improving scientific communication quality. Improving scientific communication is vital in Ecology, where research findings can have important implications for the environment and public policy. GenAI text generators can generate summaries of research findings, abstracts and social media posts promoting research findings. Nonetheless, researchers must exercise caution and use these tools together with human review and editing to ensure accuracy and clarity. As natural language processing and machine learning continue to evolve, the use of GenAI text generators in scientific communication is poised to become increasingly important.

Leveraging L2 academic writing: Digital translanguaging in higher education

Although the literature on computer-assisted language learning has demonstrated that digital tools such as online translators offer affordances to second or foreign language writers of English to solve lexical and syntactic issues, the extent to which digital technology supports multilingual students in producing academic texts has been underexplored. In this study we investigate what digital technology enables and does not enable students to do in communicating meaning by examining the writing experiences of two multilingual students. The data were derived through screen sharing and online stimulated recall interviews and analyzed using the concept of digital translanguaging, which focuses on meaning making using students’ entire meaning making repertoire. The findings suggest digital translanguaging afforded students to self-resolve their linguistic issues to varying degrees. However, it also became evident that these affordances hit a wall at a certain point beyond which no further progress could be made, constraining their ability to communicate intended ideas in L2. We conclude by providing insights into instructional and strategic support to effectively support multilingual students to offer greater opportunities to achieve their communication goals and create equitable higher education spaces.

Procrastination and Individual Study Method of Students with Specific Learning Difficulties [SpLDs] In Reading Comprehension

Procrastination is mainly defined by cognitive factors and significantly affects the performance of students with specific learning difficulties [SpLDs]. The individual method of study seems to be influenced by other factors, such as cognitive- emotional abilities and learning motivation. The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between procrastination and the individual method of study, with emphasis on the comprehension of academic texts using the pedagogical tool. The use is according with the principles of Targeted Individual Structured Differentiated integration program for teaching students with specific learning difficulties [TISDPfSpLDs]. The participants N=411 undergraduate students come from the departments of the School of Humanities and Cultural Studies of the University of Peloponnese [Kalamata] and from the departments of the Agricultural University of Athens [AUA]. The results showed that procrastination is part of the reading behaviors in reading comprehension with which students’ [SpLDs] are familiar in their individual study method. The conclusions highlight the beneficial effects of training on metacognitive skills using the TISDPfSpLDs, because they help control emotional and academic procrastination.

The Rule Identification Urgency Solution (RIUS) Method in Preparation of Regional Regulation Academic Manuscripts

The purpose of this research was conducted to offer a new method in the preparation of academic texts on laws and regulations. Academic Manuscripts contain the results of research regarding the contents of the content or proposals submitted to be regulated in a provision of statutory regulations and or regional regulations. Provisions related to the preparation of academic manuscripts have been regulated in laws and regulations, but a special method is needed in preparing academic manuscripts so that they are in accordance with the needs of the community. In this study using normative legal research methods. The findings in this study are that there is a novelty method that can be used in the preparation of academic manuscripts, namely the Rule Identification Urgency Solution (RIUS). With the RIUS method, an academic text can be used as a basis or basis for argumentation in the formation of laws and regulations or regional regulations. In conclusion, the RIUS method is a method that can analyze the rule of law, identify problems, the urgency of why these regulations are needed, and the solutions that can be provided. The RIUS method was first applied by researchers in preparing academic texts for regional regulations in the Badung Regency Government and Jembrana Regency Government, in this case researchers as experts in preparing academic manuscripts. Suggestions that can be given are that in the preparation of academic papers it is best to focus on analyzing what problems occur in society so that a regulation is needed.

Students’ Digital Reading Habits For Digital Academic Text And Their Achievement

Abstract. The role of digital media is much useful for contributing to creating reading habits through the benefit of technology. Technology has grown up these days, the young generation is living a life in the modern area, where they could get their education everywhere not bound to a classroom. That’s the way the promoting of to create a literate society or reading habit in this modern era is might be important for EFL to study more easily with creating a literate society through reading cause reading is the identification of the symbols and the association of appropriate meaning with them. This study describe about what is the level of students’ digital reading habits for academic text with descriptive quantitative and the correlation between students’ habits in reading digital academic text and their achievement, is there any correlation or not. 95 students who have done with their reading material for academic text in 4th semester, only 39 students were include for this research. 31 item questionnaire was distributed to obtain data about students’ reading habit in digital academic text and their achievements. For the second instrument is based from the final course reading exam. The first result in student’s reading habits in digital academic text have an average result habits in reading or low habits in reading based on the SPSS calculation for the descriptive statistic, it means there are some other aspects of student’s reading habits in this private university by comparing for the previous study. Afterward the researcher analyze the data after collecting it. The data shows that students’ reading habits in digital academic text don’t affect on student achievement, it means that there is no significant correlation between the students’ reading habits in digital academic text and their achievement in the 4th semester at the private university of Malang.

Proposed Framework for Human-like Language Processing of ChatGPT in Academic Writing

The study proposed a framework for analyzing and measuring the ChatGPT capabilities as a generic language model. This study aims to examine the capabilities of the emerging technological Artificial Intelligence tool (ChatGPT) in generating effective academic writing. The proposed framework consists of six principles (Relatedness, Adequacy, Limitation, Authenticity, Cognition, and Redundancy) related to Artificial Language Processing which would explore the accuracy and proficiency of this algorithm-generated writing. The researchers used ChatGPT to obtain some academic texts and paragraphs in different genres as responses to some textbased academic queries. A critical analysis of the content of these academic texts was conducted based on the proposed framework principles. The results show that despite ChatGPT’s exceptional capabilities, its serious defects are evident, as many issues in academic writing are raised. The major issues include information repetition, nonfactual inferences, illogical reasoning, fake references, hallucination, and lack of pragmatic interpretation. The proposed framework would be a valuable guideline for researchers and practitioners interested in analyzing and evaluating recently emerging machine languages of AI language models.

Using online machine translation in international scholarly writing and publishing: A longitudinal case of a Chinese engineering scholar

AbstractScholars who use English as an additional language (EAL) worldwide are under increasing pressure to write and publish in English due to the pervasive publish‐or‐perish culture and the growing dominance of English in academia. While previous studies have focused either on textual differences between EAL scholars' writing and native writers', or explored the difficulties EAL scholars meet and strategies they employ in the process, this paper examines a longitudinal case of a Chinese engineering scholar using online machine translation (MT) to support his academic writing and publishing in English. Drawing from the technology acceptance model as the theoretical background, this study shows that online MT can be a crucial support for scholars with limited English proficiency in the process of preparing a manuscript, submitting it and communicating with editors and reviewers. Frequently occurring problems in machine‐translated academic texts include improper use of technical terms, use of informal language and the inclusion of grammatical mistakes. However, in the last decade, online MT has made great improvements in academic translation. We believe these findings can empower EAL scholars to effectively use online MT in academic English writing and inspire educators to help novice scholars mobilize various high‐tech tools such as online MT to support their writing and international publishing.

A Corpus-Based Study of Interpersonal Metaphors of Modulation in Academic English

This article presents a study on the synchronic distributions of interpersonal metaphors of modulation based on the British National Corpus (BNC). The synchronic research reveals that interpersonal metaphors of modulation are mode-sensitive to written texts. Regarding genre distribution, metaphorical obligations driven by the explicit orientation dominate fiction texts. In contrast, the objective orientation drives obligations to be more prevalent in academic texts or more technical genres. The objective orientation of metaphorical inclinations is notably prevalent in newspapers and magazines other than academic texts. Besides, the findings highlight that the inherent personal and subjective characteristics of interpersonal modulations remain unchanged in their metaphorical forms, demonstrating less objectivity compared to ideational metaphors in highly technical disciplines.

Feminización de trayectorias migratorias pendulares y flotantes en la frontera colombo-venezolana

This article describes and characterizes the floating and pendular migration flows of a group of Venezuelan women in the border city of Arauca, Colombia. Using a qualitative methodological approach, field observations, in-depth interviews, focus groups, and a literature review of updated academic, regulatory, and institutional texts were conducted in an area of study with limited gender-based description. Thus, this study highlights the role of Venezuelan women as active migrant subjects and concludes that the labor, family, and social trajectories of the interviewed women are transversely modified by their migration experience, as they are subjected to various risks that expose their vulnerability as migrant women, in addition to risks derived from xenophobia and discrimination. Paradoxically, the migratory diaspora represents their only hope for having a better quality of life.

Students’ Need to Increase Ethically Acceptable Paraphrasing of Academic Texts

The lack of Indonesian students performing their abilities in L1 paraphrasing becomes the primary reason they are labeled as persistent plagiarizers. Students, in Indonesian context and circumstances, need to broaden their perspectives regarding how to document the sources, using them in their original papers to support and defend the arguments. Literacy should be developed sustainably in order for students might critically think and state things with evidence. However, to say that students still developing English writing text as intentional plagiarism will appear to be overly harsh. Teachers, at the university level, should acknowledge that students’ commitment to plagiarism is the process of knowing its definition, characters, impacts, and habit of copying others’ work without any attempt to document it properly. Moreover, it also signs the teachers that students’ ability to use academic English needs improving. Observing these facts urges us to facilitate students to make them ready to conduct the paraphrase of the L2 texts while their EAP is still developing. This study seeks the fundamental preparation that should be made to generate acceptable paraphrasing texts.

The Effectiveness of Web-based Critical Reading in Enhancing Physiotherapy Students’ English for Academic Texts.

The Effectiveness of Web-based Critical Reading in Enhancing Physiotherapy Students’ English for Academic Texts.

The Effectiveness of Machine Translation Using “Google Translate” in English Language Learning in Bangladesh

The study aims to discover the perceptions of tertiary-level students regarding the effectiveness of machine translators in English language learning. As a result, the study examines students’ development of English language skills after using Google Translate, which is a well-known and widely used machine translator. In this study, a mixed-method convergent design was employed. The participants of this study were 55 students enrolled in the B.A. (Hons.) in English program at Daffodil International University, Dhaka, Bangladesh. The result of the study shows that the participants use Google Translate to translate texts from English to Bengali or Bengali to English to better understand academic and non-academic English texts or books. The study has found that Google Translate is an effective tool for learning new word meanings, the meaning of complex sentences, new structures of sentences, the spelling of words, and the pronunciation of the English language. Furthermore, the research suggests that the implication of machine translators like Google Translate in English language learning can contribute to the improvement of students' language skills at the tertiary level.

Vocabulary size and comprehension of academic texts by Tanzanian university students: An exploratory study

This study aimed at determining the influence of vocabulary size on comprehension of academic texts among 256 university entrants to whom English was a foreign language (EFL) and a medium of instruction. The study was carried out at the University of Dodoma (UDOM) involving first-year students who were taking English Vocabulary Building as one of the core courses. The study used the vocabulary size test (VST) and a reading comprehension achievement test (RCAT). The results show that, on average, participants had a vocabulary size of 4 300 word families and the mean score of 39.83 in RCAT. With regard to relationship between scores of VST and RCAT, the results show that the two variables had positive correlation, r = 0.75, p < 0.001, and R2 = 0.565, indicating that about 56.5% of the variability in reading comprehension was explained by vocabulary size. Further, the linear regression analysis showed that B = 1.13, p < 0.0001, meaning that an increase of one score in VST (100 word families) influenced an increase of 1.131 in the text comprehension score.

Contrasting a phenomenon at the syntax-discourse interface

This paper discusses the results of a contrastive analysis of subject-verb inversion (SVI) in English and Macedonian, a South Slavic language. We look at sentences, typically encoding thetic statements, in which the subject follows the verb. Both English and Macedonian belong to SVO languages, but unlike English, Macedonian word-order is considerably more flexible due to its rich inflectional morphology. Our main goal is to determine the scope of distribution of SVI in the two languages which will enable to discover the reasons for the distributional differences in the two languages. To achieve this, we compared the semantic, syntactic and discourse-pragmatic properties of the inverted structures in the examples collected from parallel fiction and academic texts. The sharp differences in the use of SVI between the two languages indicate that lexical and grammatical constraints severely restrict SVI in English, in contrast to Macedonian where it is governed by discourse principles.

Measuring multiple-source based academic writing self-efficacy.

Although writing self-efficacy has been a productive line of research for several decades, no prior writing self-efficacy measure has focused on students' self-efficacy for integrating information across multiple sources when producing an academic text. To fill this gap in existing research on the measurement of writing motivation, we designed a measure targeting the extent to which students are confident that they can write an academic text that integrates content from several different sources. In a study with Norwegian undergraduate students (n = 136), this measure, which we called the Multiple-Source based Academic Self-Efficacy Scale (MAWSES), was validated by means of confirmatory factor analysis and relationships between the resulting unitary construct and other relevant constructs. The findings provided evidence concerning the reliability and validity of the MAWSES. In future research, this measure could be included as an independent variable to predict processes and products of multiple-source based, integrated academic writing, as a moderator or mediator of effects in writing intervention research, or as an outcome variable in its own right.

The eradication of hate speech on social media: a systematic review

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a quantitative and qualitative synthesis of the diverse academic proposals and initiatives for preventing and eliminating hate speech on the internet.Design/methodology/approachThe foundation for this study is a systematic review of papers devoted to the analysis of hate speech. It has been conducted using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) protocol and applied to an initial corpus of 436 academic texts. Having implemented the suitability, screening and inclusion criteria, this corpus was refined to a sample of 74 articles.FindingsThe main subject categories studied in this corpus of academic research are legal issues and social media. In the majority of the articles, the use of hate speech via social media is associated with five typologies: religion, cyber racism, political slurs, misogyny and attacks on the LGTBI community. The absence of ethical reflection is one of the major shortcomings of IT-focused research and analysis devoted to online hate speech.Practical implicationsTo date various systematic reviews have been presented, and they focus on detecting or describing hate speech. These have used either the search appraisal synthesis analysis framework or the Cochrane network. The PRISMA protocol was applied for this study, and both Scopus and texts in German were included. To date no major, rigorous systematic review has been undertaken of proposals to combat hate speech.Originality/valueThe link between hate speech and poverty has not been studied in depth within the academic sphere. Tolerance and ethical compassion are not granted the attention they merit when it comes to analysing the phenomenon of hate speech.

O perevodah sovetskih issledovanij po afrikanskomu iskusstvu na kitajskij yazyk (1950–1990): problemy hudozhestvennoj antropologii

This article analyzes the translations of the works of Soviet authors into Chinese, made in the period of the 1950s - 1990s and published in China. The characteristics of scientific works are given, the content of research is considered, the personalities of Soviet authors and their translators into Chinese are studied, the activities of journals and publishing houses are evaluated, and comments on the presented academic texts are analyzed in line with existing historiographical problems.

A Corpus-Based Study of the Dependency Distance Differences in English Academic Writing

Dependency distance has increasingly become a key measure of interest in cross-linguistic corpus studies from multiple perspectives. Based on a syntactically annotated corpus of 400 PhD dissertation abstracts written by native English (L1) and English as a foreign language (L2) academic writers, the current study investigated the mean dependency distance (MDD) variation across language backgrounds and disciplines, which is followed by a grammatical description based on fine-grained indices related to particular syntactic structures. The findings include: (1) L2 academic writers produce an averagely longer MDD than L1 academic writers because of their heavy use of prepositional phrases; (2) The MDD of the linguistics abstracts is significantly longer than that of the physics &amp; chemistry abstracts because of the relatively higher syntactic complexity of the language of linguistics. The findings suggest that MDD can effectively differentiate academic texts with different language backgrounds and disciplines, that both L1 and L2 academic writers write under the constraint of dependency distance minimization, and that L2 PhD dissertation writers have achieved native-like writing proficiency in extending nominal structures.