Aloud Protocols Research Articles

Transferring implied values of the Latvian source text diminutives into English: Piloting translation guidelines with novice translators

During ongoing research on linguistic means and translation solutions for transferring into English the implied values of Latvian diminutives in literary translations, Guidelines for translators, which might assist them in their decision-making process, have been drafted and piloted. The aim of the present paper is to find out what revisions of the draft Guidelines devised for transferring implied values of the Latvian source text diminutives into English may be required on the bases of analysis of the feedback and translation solutions chosen by novice translators piloting these Guidelines. The draft Guidelines were piloted during a student translation experiment, where its participants worked in pairs or groups of three, translated selected fragments from Latvian prose texts, and recorded their Dialogue Think Aloud Protocols (DTAPs). Afterwards, they completed a questionnaire, reflecting on their translation process and the usefulness of the draft Guidelines in their decision-making process. The analysis of the anonymously coded and processed experiment data (translations, DTAPs, questionnaire answers) shows that the participants considered and took into account the advice of the draft Guidelines. They used various stylistically marked parts of speech and other linguistic means, thus being able to convey the nuances expressed by source text diminutives in almost 85% of the analysed cases. As a result, it can be concluded that, from the experiment participants’ perspective, no major revisions of the draft Guidelines are required. The next stage of this research is obtaining the opinion of translator trainers on the draft Guidelines in the translator training process.

Fluency development beyond speech rate: A study on the effects of read aloud protocols on EFL learners

Research on the effectiveness of read aloud protocols to develop EFL fluency has mostly had positive outcomes. However, the impact of these types of interventions in intermediate levels of proficiency has yet to be conclusive when measured using speech rate as a dependent variable, e.g., word correct per minute. We studied how a listener's comprehension and intelligibility might change when read aloud protocols are used to enhance fluency. To do so, we used a data set that did not present increasing rates in speech rate after 11 weeks of practice (as reported in Rodríguez-Fuentes et al., 2023). We asked a group of independent raters to rank each participant's three (first, middle, and last) performances to assess if they could find differences in the performances over time. Seventy-nine percent of the raters perceived that the third performances were the best of each set they were provided, and that the second performances were better than the first. There was a consistent positive progression in perceived fluency. Also, a qualitative analysis of students' reflections showed significant gains from using read aloud protocols (RAPs) and increased awareness of key areas of fluency development, such as intonation, speech flow (vs. word-by-word reading), and self-confidence, among others.

Word choice for writing: the nature and types of children’s meta-lexical awareness

Children’s increasing expertise in composition relies partly on word choice. Little is known about how children consider words as they write, their meta-lexical awareness, or about their choice of words for writing. In this study, we investigate children’s meta-lexical awareness, as one aspect of their metalinguistic awareness, which guides their word choices as they write. We describe how child writers express their meta-lexical awareness and how this might relate to writing achievement. We view language as functional in context of use following systemic, functional grammar theorists. We employ a mixed methods approach using writing achievement scores and a modified think aloud protocol to understand what children think about words as they write. Findings show that children develop increasing sophistication in the way they consider and choose words and that this relates to their writing achievement. The nature of children’s meta-lexical awareness and its relationship to writing achievement is theorised, adding to the growing body of research into the importance of metalinguistic awareness to children’s writing.

INVESTIGATING THE COGNITIVE PROCESSES IN POST-EDITING ACTIVITY USING THINKING ALOUD PROTOCOLS

The study aims to investigate the cognitive processes and meta-cognitive strategies used by the post-editor when doing the post-editing activity. It examines the way the post editor reads, thinks, speculates, and makes decision to the machine translation results and correcting the problems founds from the translated text. Thinking Aloud Protocols (TAPs) is used as the approach of the study to record the meta-cognitive strategies applied by the post editor. Several instruments such as video recording tools, machine-translated text, and timer are operated during the data collection. From the study, it is shown that reasoning and problem solving become the most running strategy from the post-editor. It occurs since the post-editor mostly looks for the problems and tries to find a way of correcting mistakes from the translation. The result also shows that the post-editor tries to comprehend the problems and decides the accurate decision when song the post-editing. The cognitive process and meta-cognitive strategies are quite different between the translator and the post-editor.

A blended model to support brief interventions in primary care: A qualitative study of usability and acceptability of HealthEir in community pharmacy.

Brief interventions for lifestyle behaviour change are effective health promotion interventions. Primary care settings, including pharmacies, are the most frequently visited healthcare facilities and are well placed to provide brief health interventions. However, despite the evidence-based and policy guidance, barriers to brief interventions have limited their implementation. This study aimed to explore the usability and acceptability of HealthEir, a blended model with digital, print, and communication elements designed to support the delivery of brief health-promoting interventions in pharmacy practice. Usability tests using a think aloud protocol and set tasks (to assess usability) and semi-structured interviews (to assess acceptability) were conducted with fifteen patients and twelve pharmacists. Usability data were analysed deductively using Nielsen's five quality components of usability as a framework. Acceptability data were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. All participants found HealthEir straightforward to use and completed the required tasks without assistance. A small number of patient and pharmacist participants identified opportunity for improvement of the digital element. Acceptability was also high, with individual comments from participants identifying opportunity for improvements to HealthEir, and two patients identifying privacy or safety concerns. The majority of comments regarding acceptability reflected wider social and cultural challenges such as perceptions of the roles of pharmacists and pharmacies and the low priority of preventative health interventions. HealthEir has been demonstrated to be a usable and acceptable support that has the potential to overcome barriers to delivery of brief interventions in pharmacies. Usability and acceptability testing identified minor changes that may further improve its design prior to piloting and implementation.

Well-trained, trained and recreationally trained runners’ cognition during a 5km tempo run: a think aloud study

ABSTRACT A think aloud (TA) protocol was used to explore whether thought processes and attentional focus differed between well-trained, trained, and recreationally-trained runners across a 5km tempo run. Eighteen runners completed a self-paced 5km tempo treadmill run. Participants were asked to TA and provided their ratings of perceived exertion alongside breathlessness, cognitive demands and lower-body effort, every 1 km. Verbalisations were coded using content analysis into categories and sub-categories and were compared across groups and over every kilometre of the run. Speed and Rate of Perceived Exertion scores increased over the 5km but there were no significant differences across groups. The nature of verbalisations for categories and sub-categories varied across groups with the majority of the well-trained runner’s thoughts relating to active self-regulation, while internal sensory monitoring was used most frequently by the trained runners and distraction was most widely verbalised by the recreationally-trained group. There was a statistically significant difference between the use of active self-regulation across groups, with differences also seen for the sub-categories of running form and motivational self-talk. The number of verbalisations across categories changed over time, but there was no statistically significant interaction with group. Results highlight active self-regulatory differences between well-trained, trained and recreationally-trained runners in the study, suggesting that it is likely not just exposure to running that enables runners to develop effective psychological skills. Findings could be used by coaches to offer targeted support and opportunities for lower-level runners to develop effective cognitive skills to impact on performance and running adherence.

Tell Us What You Really Think: A Think Aloud Protocol Analysis of the Verbal Cognitive Reflection Test.

The standard interpretation of cognitive reflection tests assumes that correct responses are reflective and lured responses are unreflective. However, prior process-tracing of mathematical reflection tests has cast doubt on this interpretation. In two studies (N = 201), we deployed a validated think-aloud protocol in-person and online to test how this assumption is satisfied by the new, validated, less familiar, and non-mathematical verbal Cognitive Reflection Test (vCRT). Verbalized thoughts in both studies revealed that most (but not all) correct responses involved reflection and that most (but not all) lured responses lacked reflection. The think-aloud protocols seemed to reflect business-as-usual performance: thinking aloud did not disrupt test performance compared to a control group. These data suggest that the vCRT usually satisfies the standard interpretation of the reflection tests (albeit not without exceptions) and that the vCRT can be a good measure of the construct theorized by the two-factor explication of 'reflection' (as deliberate and conscious).

Motivation of Prospective Science Teacher While Reading Texts as a Part of Self-Regulated Learning: Study on Critical-Argumentation Reading Activities

Reading is an important activity that must be present in the science learning process, especially reading with meaningful activities, one of which is critical argumentation reading activity. Reading is very closely related to student motivation while reading. This motivation plays an important role in supporting the success of reading goals. So far, research related to students' reading motivation has rarely been carried out, especially for critical argumentation reading activities. Most of the research was conducted at the elementary and secondary school levels. Therefore, this research will be conducted with the aim of analyzing students' motivation while reading using critical argumentation activities. This study involved 83 science teacher candidate students. In practice, students were divided into three classes, namely group experimental class (N = 29), individual experimental class (N = 29), and control class (N = 25). The research was conducted using the think aloud protocol method, in which students were asked questions while reading the text, and recorded all the answers orally. The results showed that students' motivation during reading as part of a self-regulation strategy showed better results when students read using the critical argumentation reading model. In addition, students are able to carry out self-regulation strategies from a better motivational aspect if reading activities are carried out in groups.

Social studies teachers’ perceptions of the credibility and meaning of data visualisations for teaching

Preparing students for informed democratic citizenship by learning about contemporary political and social issues requires the ability to critically evaluate online data visualisations. This study examines 25 social studies teachers’ perceptions of online data visualisations as informational resources for teaching, and how these perceptions influence their reading of online data visualisations. The goal is to examine teacher understandings of the influence of fake news, how they understand issues of bias and credibility for data visualisations, and how their perceptions influence their interpretive practices. The study employed semi-structured interviews and a think aloud protocol. The think aloud involved the reading and analysis of a single online data visualisation. The findings provide insights into the ways that social studies teachers think about the role of data visualisations and online information in social studies education, their challenges to read and interpret online data visualisations, and implications for teaching.

The Impact of Metacognitive Instruction on ESL University Level Students’ Awareness and Use of the Reading Strategies

Previous studies related to metacognition and reading have extensively investigated metacognitive awareness of reading/reading strategies of students at a particular point in time and/or relation between metacognitive awareness and reading ability. However, research illustrating the changes in students’ awareness and use of the reading strategies over a period of time is strikingly absent from the literature. The present study was designed to explore qualitatively the impact of the metacognitive reading strategy instruction on students’ awareness and use of the reading strategies introduced over a period of time in university level ESL classrooms in Pakistan. It also offers a view of the students’ experience of such instruction. The study comprised of two action research cycles spanned over 4 months each. Eight undergraduate university students were selected as the participants of the study. Data collection instrument included interviews, think aloud protocols, learner diaries, end of class feedback, note-taking, researcher journal, and Survey of Reading Strategies (SORS) questionnaire. The findings revealed that metacognitive reading strategy instruction not only raised metacognitive awareness of the introduced reading strategies in students in a “real” classroom setting but also made them use the knowledge they gained during the study. Implications of the study are discussed.

Peer reviewer training to build capacity in engineering education research

ABSTRACT The Engineering Education Research (EER) Peer Review Training (PERT) project aimed to develop EER scholars’ peer review skills through mentored experiences reviewing journal manuscripts. Concurrently, the project explored how EER scholars develop capabilities for evaluating and conducting EER scholarship through peer reviewing. PERT used a mentoring structure in which two researchers with little reviewing experience were paired with an experienced mentor to complete three manuscript reviews collaboratively. Using a variety of techniques including think aloud protocols, structured peer reviews, and exit surveys, the PERT research team addressed the following research questions: (1) To what extent are the ways in which reviewers evaluate manuscripts influenced by reviewers’ varied levels of expertise? and (2) To what extent does participation in a mentored peer reviewer programme influence reviewers’ EER manuscript evaluations? Data were collected from three cohorts of the mentored review programme over 18 months. Findings indicate that experience influenced reviewers’ evaluation of EER manuscripts at the start of the programme, and that participation can improve reviewers’ understanding of EER disciplinary conventions and their connection to the EER community. Deeper understanding of the epistemological basis for manuscript reviews may reveal ways to strengthen professional preparation in engineering education as well as other disciplines.

Think Aloud Protocol and Decision Tree for Driver Behavior Modeling at Roundabouts

Learning from human driver’s strategies for undertaking complex traffic scenarios has the potential to improve decision-making methods for designing ADAS systems, as well as for design self-driving rules for automated vehicles. This paper proposes a human-like decision-making algorithm built up from human drivers experiential naturalistic driving. The approach of this work consists of exploring two main techniques. Firstly, the use of “think aloud protocol” to build a dataset based on naturalistic driving, capturing driver’s intentions. Afterwards, the technique of decision tree is used to generate an algorithm to categorize driving patterns as a function of circumstantial driving parameters. The study is focused on simple roundabouts in presence of other vehicles. The decision tree is translated into algorithmic rules, where the tree pathways are represented as ’if-then’ rules. Finally, the accuracy of the driver behavior model has been assessed, yielding promising results.

Estratégias de transcriação na dublagem de um anúncio humorístico de tipo de texto híbrido para o árabe - Vernacular é a panaceia?

ABSTRACT Adapting advertisements across distant languages and cultures poses challenges due to their heavy cultural context. Complicating matters, some ads mix various text types and genres. This study explores strategies for translating a humor-laden, hybrid-text ad into Arabic through dubbing. It investigates the effectiveness of different Arabic variants. The case study is an audiovisual ad by standup2cancer.org, featuring a cartoon Homer from The Simpsons, created to raise colon cancer awareness. Animation often escapes criticism due to its surreal nature, unlike real depictions that might be distasteful. Using Skopos Theory, the translations were analyzed, focusing on the decision-making process in creating functionally suitable versions for Arab audiences. A Think Aloud Protocol gathered data on participants’ decision agency during translation, validating choices. Most translators (80%) preferred Arabic vernacular, employing domestication (adaptation) as a macro-strategy and cultural substitution as a micro-strategy. Humor transfer succeeded best in Arabic vernacular, reinforcing its suitability for various text types and genres.

PROMOTING METACOGNITION OF READING STRATEGIES IN A HIGHER EDUCATION CONTEXT IN PAKISTAN

To develop reading skills of students, teachers have been advised to provide metacognitive reading strategy instruction by researchers. However, previous research has provided limited understanding of how teachers could foster metacognition of reading strategies in a ‘real’ classroom setting. Moreover, previous research pre-supposed an a priori list of teaching practices in the lessons and did not take into account the needs of the students and the context during metacognitive reading strategy instruction. Studies facilitating metacognitive reading strategy instruction in an ESL setting are also rare. This paper reports on an action research that provides a detailed data-led understanding of how metacognition of reading strategies could be promoted in an ecologically valid university level ESL classroom setting. The study participants of this study were eight undergraduate university students. Data for the study was collected through learner diaries, interviews, think aloud protocols, note-taking, researcher journal and end of class feedback in two action research cycles over an academic year. The findings revealed that providing explicit instruction and opportunities for collaborative discussion about strategy use as well as promoting students’ interest in reading helped raise students’ awareness, use and regulation of reading strategies. Implications of the study are discussed.

Investigating student approaches to scenario-based assessments of systems thinking

The development of systems thinking is considered a critical skill set for addressing interdisciplinary problems. This skill set is particularly important in the field of engineering, where engineers are often tasked with solving socio-technical problems that often require knowledge beyond their original discipline and practice in unfamiliar contexts. However, existing assessments often fail to accurately measure teachable knowledge or skills that constitute systems thinking. To investigate this issue, we compared students’ performance on two previously and independently peer-reviewed scenario-based assessments for systems thinking: The Village of Abeesee and the Lake Urmia Vignette. Twenty undergraduate engineering students participated in a multi-phase case study utilizing think aloud protocols and semi-structured interview methods to elicit the approaches students took thinking across the two instruments and past experiences that they felt prepared them to solve these ill-structured problems. We found that the way a scenario is presented to students impacts their subsequent problem-solving approach, which complicates assessment of systems thinking. Additionally, students identified only limited opportunities for the development of ill-structured problem-solving skills necessary for systems thinking. Our findings inform future work on improving systems thinking assessments and emphasize the importance of more intentionally supplying opportunities for students to practice solving ill-structured problems throughout the curriculum.

Deconstructing Immersion in the Experience Economy Framework for Immersive Dining Experiences through Mixed Reality.

In this study, we test the immersive character in an interactive content narrative developed for Microsoft HoloLens 2 mixed reality glasses in the dining context. We use retrospective think aloud protocol (RTAP) and galvanic skin response (GSR) to explore different types of immersion that can be created through interactive content narratives. Leaning on the core dimensions of the experience economy, we expand the current understanding on the role of immersion through integration of four immersive experience facilitators. The study revealed that these immersive experience facilitators occur simultaneously and can be enhanced through interactive content narrative design. Perceived novelty and curiosity were identified as key determinants to keep consumers engaged in the immersive experience and engage with the content. The study verifies the use of galvanic skin response in combination with retrospective think aloud protocol as a suitable approach to measure emotional engagement potential in interpreting consumers' recollection of immersive experiences.

Written corrective feedback, learner-internal cognitive processes, and the acquisition of regular past tense by Chinese L2 learners of English

Abstract This article reports on a mixed methods study that investigated the extent to which written corrective feedback (WCF) contributes to L2 learners’ acquisition of regular past tense in English and the cognitive processes that underpin the corrective feedback provided. The study adopted a pretest-posttest-delayed posttest design and involved 113 intermediate-level Chinese learners of English who were assigned to four conditions: indirect WCF, direct WCF, metalinguistic WCF, and control. A picture description task and a grammaticality judgement test were used to measure gains in the target structure. To explore how learners process feedback, nine learners, three from each treatment group, were selected to produce think aloud protocols. The study found that all three types of WCF had a positive effect on the picture description task, though none of them had a clear impact on the grammaticality judgement test. In addition, indirect WCF was found to have an advantage over direct and metalinguistic WCF on the delayed posttest, when compared to the control group. Think aloud data suggested that indirect WCF induced deeper cognitive processes than the other two kinds of feedback, which may account for the superiority of indirect WCF.

Using Subject Positioning Theory to Investigate Reading Engagement among University Students

This study sets out to investigate the magnitude of reading engagement by technical engineering undergraduates. Purposive samples in the form of six bachelor’s degree students were chosen based on the observed active roles as class representatives and as active learners in the English course that they have previously taken. Two chapters from a compulsory textbook of a mandatory course from the undergraduates’ programme called Innovation Management were chosen to explore their subject positioning and reading engagement aspect. The undergraduates were requested to activey read, interact and scribble notes if necessary during reading while their engagement via think aloud protocol were recorded. The recordings were transcribed and analysed for evidence of subject positioning and knowledge processing with inter rater and expert verifications on the identified themes. The findings show that the uundergraduates actively undertake subject positioning to align and disalign with subject matter materials and information put forth by the author of the textbook as evidence of moderate to active reading engagement and knowledge processing. Input from previous reading, general knowldge, current experience and previous work experience intertwine in functioning as sources of the subject positioning and knowledge processing during the reading engagements. The findings are significant in raising awareness among educators on the need to cultivate active reading engagement and to devise training for undergraduates on strategies for active reading engagement. These recommended efforts from this study will yield great benefits for undergraduates in their learning curve at the academia.

Development and initial validation of a Swedish inventory to screen for symptoms of deficient perineum in women after vaginal childbirth: ‘Karolinska Symptoms After Perineal Tear Inventory’

BackgroundPerineal tears are common after vaginal birth and may result in pelvic floor symptoms. However, there is no validated questionnaire that addresses long-term symptoms in women with a deficient perineum after vaginal birth. Thus, the objective of this study was to develop and psychometrically evaluate a clinical screening inventory that estimates subjective symptoms in women with a deficient perineum more than one year after vaginal delivery.Material and methodsThe development and psychometric evaluation employed both qualitative and quantitative methods. Qualitative strategies involved content validity and Think Aloud protocol for generation of items. The psychometric evaluation employed principal component analysis to reduce the number of items. The inventory was completed by women with persistent symptoms after perineal tears (N = 170). Results were compared to those of primiparous women giving birth by caesarean section (N = 54) and nulliparous women (N = 338).ResultsA preliminary 41-item inventory was developed, and the psychometric evaluation resulted in a final 11-item inventory. Women with confirmed deficient perineum after perineal trauma scored significantly higher on the symptoms inventory than women in control groups. A cut-off value of ≥ 8 could distinguish patients from controls with high sensitivity (100%) and specificity (87–91%).ConclusionsThe Karolinska Symptoms After Perineal Tear Inventory, is a psychometrically valid 11-item patient-reported outcome measure for symptoms of deficient perineum more than one year after vaginal birth. More research is needed to validate the inventory in various patient populations as well as its use in pelvic floor interventions. The inventory has the potential to improve patient counseling and care in the future.

Measuring the implementation of media literacy statewide: a validation study

ABSTRACT Even though media literacy education has grown in the United States and around the world, policymakers still lack knowledge about the scope and depth of implementation of media literacy learning activities in the elementary and secondary grades. This study reports how the Media Literacy Implementation Index (MLI) was developed and validated using a quota sample of stakeholders from across all school districts and local communities in Rhode Island. Using an established theoretical framework for media literacy, we first constructed a scale to examine the likelihood that learners may encounter a set of media literacy learning activities. Multiple methods were then used to assess reliability and validity of the instrument including cognitive pretesting, think aloud protocols, a content validation of MLI learning activities in relation to national education standards documents, and statistical validation including principal components analysis to assess internal consistency, reliability, and validity. An easy-to-implement measure of the scope and depth of media literacy education in elementary and secondary schools will be useful to diverse stakeholders including educators, school leaders, librarians, parents, community members, and elected public officials.