English For Science And Technology Research Articles

SCIENCE LITERACY IN THE MALAYSIAN ESL CONTEXT

English for Science and Technology (EST) was introduced in 2003 as an elective school subject for the learning of scientific content in English, indicative of Malaysia’s realization of the export value of English for international commerce. EST lays the foundation for the use of English in the fields of science and technology as a preparatory course for students intending to extend into tertiary education where science-based courses are taught in English. The theoretical foundation for language learning of this nature lies in the blending of content and its integration into the learning experience. This approach anchors on the assumption that content learning is facilitated through language exposure. In the context of the interest generated for the learning of Science in English, this study was conceptualized to investigate the relevance of EST to the students in terms of their attitudes towards the subject. The study surveyed a total of 212 secondary four public school students in an urban community. Collection of data was through the use of self-reporting scaled questionnaires administered to students in EST classrooms. The findings revealed a hierarchy of preferred topics and these findings were also correlated to topics found in the textbook. There was also a difference in opinion between male and female respondents in topic selection. The responses of the students towards EST relevance for the school curriculum were also moderated. A systematic study of this nature will help to improve and account for English language learning in school and has implications for maintaining education relevance in effective language learning.

Methods of Teaching EST from the Stylistic Perspective and the Content of EST Reading

To meet the requirements of the present job-hunting market, Huaqiao Foreign Languages Institute has set up English for Science and Technology (EST) courses for the senior students majored in English, which consist of Reading of EST and EST Translation. This article, mainly dealing with EST reading, discusses some tentative teaching methods from the perspective of stylistic features and EST reading content in order to cultivate the students with problem-solving capabilities.

English-for-Science-and-Technology Teaching Materials: Phase One Evaluation

The importance of English for the workplace, in addition to that of general English proficiency, is receiving increasing attention from educators and policy makers in the field of teaching English as a foreign language. In order to prepare college students for their professional development, appropriate English-for-specific-purposes (ESP) materials, including those for engineering majors, are needed for college courses. This study evaluated teaching materials on English for Science and Technology (EST), in hope of making contributions to the growth of EST materials that meet the educational needs of students in Taiwan. The EST materials were designed for college engineering majors. In the present study, it was used with two engineering junior classes in Taiwan for three weeks. After the trial teaching period, a questionnaire and a focus group interview were administered to collect learner perception on the EST materials. While the overall results of the questionnaire have indicated a positive attitude toward the materials, a careful examination of the statistics and further exploration of the interview data have revealed certain areas of the materials to be improved. Suggestions to the revision of the materials are provided at the end of the paper.

Vague expression and its translation in medical English

In real life,vague expression is ubiquitous in any nation and any language.Medical English,as a branch of English for Science and Technology ( EST ),is typical in accuracy of word use.However,like other kind of language,it adopts vague expression,too.Vague expression plays an important role in medical practice.In communication of medical practitioners and patients,appropriate vague expression will improve language expression and communication efficiency.In medical English,the vague words that express approximate,presuming,or uncertain meaning are usually used to replace the exact meaning words.The correspondent translation methods such as literal translation,meaning translation,specialization etc can be used according to the different context. Key words: Medical English; Vague expression; Translation

Designing new genre identities in scientific and technical discourse: cognitive, social and pedagogical implications

The purpose of this paper is to foreground the rhetorical architecture of the new emerging cybergenres in the discourse of English for Science and Technology (E.S.T.) and focus on the cognitive, sociopragmatic and pedagogical implications underlying these new genre identities. In particular, the paper will assess the use of these genre typologies in the E.S.T. classroom to develop the student's awareness of the social dimension of discourse in Internet communications, and also to draw the teacher's attention towards those cognitive aspects of language learning that contemporary cognitive psychology claims. The paper will conclude with some suggestions for a communicative syllabus design in the teaching of this specialised register for academic and professional purposes

Developing Critical Writing Skills in Engineering and Technology Students

AbstractThis study culminated in the development, refinement, and evaluation of a system of writing instruction that allows even instructors without great confidence in their own writing abilities to help students develop better, more effective writing skills and strategies. The system consists of two components and works backwards, starting with teaching students the assessment strategy (rubric) to be used in evaluating their work. Therefore, the first system component or rubric becomes a guide to teach students how to connect their ideas (sentence subjects) in sequence without ambiguity or implied connectivity. The second component of the system consists of written assignments initiated with “work orders” that state specifically what is expected of the student in each paragraph and includes formatting instructions. Finally, the system was designed for use in any technical curriculum by engineering and technology instructors and incorporates research findings and suggestions by four influential professional writing associations: 1) the college teachers of English for Science and Technology (EST), 2) the Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC) Committee on Assessment, 3) the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), and 4) Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC).

An Integrated Course System for Teaching English for Science and Technology

The purpose of the present study was to develop a curriculum with which we can teach English for Science and Technology (EST) in college classes. In this paper we proposed an integrated syllabus, through which we expect to succeed in teaching EST to the proficiency level that the students need to reach in four years. The course structure consists of two types of core systems and a supra-system. The first type of core systems is for improving overall English proficiency, and the other is for teaching vocabulary; both achieve greater efficiency than was possible before.

On the Use of the Passive in English for Science and Technology

This study focused on the use of the passive in EST (English for Science and Technology) and tried to explain in what discourse circumstances, the passive was to be preferred over the active and vice-versa. Through the studies by Brogan (1973), Tarone et.al (1981) and Turk and Kirkman (1989) etc., this study offered a more balanced view and a more adequate explanation on the use of the passive than to simply accept the frequent use of the passive in EST.As a result, there were several findings elucidated in this study, and particularly, two of them were crucial. They were (1) to encourage the use of we + active verb construction in place of the passive because attribution of responsibility for choices was desirable, (2) to encourage other ways of being impersonal than through use of the passive. For instance, use of an abstract/inanimate subject + active verb construction. This usage was also effective in place of the passive. These usages can be more recommended in place of the passive than simply to accept the frequent use of the passive.

Teaching English Reading for Science and Technology

This study deals with teaching English for science and technology (EST) to technical students particularly by focusing on its reading comprehension. First of all, by taking a brief overview of the historical development of ESP (English for Specific Purposes), some principles of teaching EST were set up and focused on the reading comprehension. Some essential grammatical items as well as the rhetorical patterns in the written texts were discussed along with the examples. How these items and patterns were introduced into the classroom settings and how was the effect in learners' reaction? These were also discussed in this study. This study has basically focused on 'EST reading' in the light of 'Schema Theory' of cognitive psychology rather than three other linguistic skills of listening, speaking and writing.

Using aspect to express viewpoint in EST texts

The rhetorical function of tense and aspect forms in English-for-Science-and-Technology (EST) texts is not well understood because of the enormous variation in their use. In this paper, a new system of analysis of EST data is proposed. To illustrate this system, some data from previous grammatical-rhetorical interpretations will be re-analyzed in an exemplary fashion. In this analysis it is proposed that each grammatical tense/aspect form in English, including the passive, can be reduced to a unique semantic core that may be combined with one of several event types into which predicate phrases can be classified based on their lexical-aspect properties. In creating texts, events are cognitively assembled into coherent causal networks. One factor determining the degree of coherence between events is the grammatical-aspect form used. Presumably, writers make use of the cognitive potential available through these lexical/grammatical-aspect combinations for different rhetorical purposes. Consequently, previous disparate rhetorical interpretations of predicate phrases used in EST texts will be subsumed and systematized according to their degree of coherence.

Earth and Physical Science: Content and Learning Strategies (Science through Active Reading [STAR] Series)

N According to the authors, Earth and Physical Science is designed to teach ESL and EFL students to think critically during their language learning activities. This textbook presents very elementary English structures within a specific English for Science and Technology (EST) context which beginners can easily manage. It seems to fit well into the interests and proficiency level of EFL secondary students in the type of courses I am familiar with, for example, in Mexico. These classes consist of approximately 80-90 hours of instruction and assume little or no prior L2 exposure. The authors' pedagogical philosophy encourages students to acquire and use learning strategies through active reading (i.e., the students are told to perform tasks using appropriate reading strategies for each specific task, such as using background knowledge or imagery). Christison and Bassano base this textbook on O'Malley and Chamot's (1990) cognitive academic language learning approach (CALLA). The authors' implicit goal is to provide practice in learning strategies that good language learners use. It is suggested that these strategies are not restricted to highly capable individuals, but that they can be learned by less effective language learners who have not discovered them on their own (O'Malley & Chamot, 1990). The book is divided into six sequenced chapters or content units: Meteorology, Topography, Oceanography, Physics and Chemistry, Physics, and Astronomy. However, one drawback of this text is that there is no increase in difficulty level across the units. As a result, the students will not be challenged to develop linguistically in the later chapters. At first glance, one might think that this textbook is difficult for students of general English because of its subject matter. However, in my view, the textbook is appropriate for ESOL students during their first or second years in an English-speaking academic context. This book can be used by native or nonnative teachers. The authors provide good examples for each of the topics presented, which help both the students and teachers to follow the explanations; at the same time, the texts are reinforced with clear pictures or illustrations, which are undoubtedly one of the strengths of this volume because they promote comprehension through imagery. The authors provide a series of prereading and postreading activities that help the students comprehend and process the information in the passages. These activities include consulting and sharing ideas with others, making and experimenting with hypotheses, reading and classifying new information, and doing vocabulary building exercises. At the end of each chapter there is a glossary, providing students quick reference to the

<em>Interaction: Language and Science</em> by Terry L. Powell. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman & Co., 1990. 290 pp.

116 Reviews Phillips, M . (1985). Aspects of text structure: An investigation of the lexical organisation of text. New York: Elsevier Science Publishers. Pressley, M . , Levin, J.R., & McDaniel, M.A. (1987). Remembering versus infering what a word means: Mnemonic and contextual approaches. In M . G . McKeown & M.E. Curtis (Eds.), The nature of vocabulary acquisition (pp. 107-127). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Robinson, P.J. (1988). A Hallidayan framework for vocabulary teaching: An approach to organising the lexical content of an ESL syllabus. IRAL, 26 Sinclair, J.McH. (Ed.) 1987. Collins COBUILD English language dictionary. London: Collins. Sinclair, J.McH. & Renouf, A. (1988). A lexical syllabus for language learning. In J. Carter & M . McCarthy (Eds.), Vocabulary and language teaching (pp. 140-160). London: Longman. Tyler, A. & Nagy, W. (1990). Use of derivational morphology during reading. Cognition, 36, 17-34. White, C.J. (1988). The role of associational patterns and semantic networks in vocabulary development. English Teaching Forum, 26 (4), 9-11. Zimmermann, R. & Schneider, K.P. (1987). The collective learner tested: Retrospective evidence for a model of lexical search. In C. Faerch & G. Kasper (Eds.), Introspection in second language research (pp. 177-196). Philadelphia: Multilingual Matters. David Leech is a PhD student in the Department of TESL & Applied Linguistics at UCLA. He is currently investigating second language lexical acquisition and use from the perspectives of cognition, lexical semantics, and textlinguistics. Interaction: Language and Science by Terry L . Powell. Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman & Co., 1990. 290 pp. Reviewed by Charlene Polio University of California, Los Angeles Interaction: Language and Science, by Terry L . Powell, is not a book on the discourse of science, as one might expect from its title. It is actually a reading textbook for students of English for Science and Technology (EST). Two criteria relevant to evaluating such a textbook are the extent to which the author has responded to schema theory and attended to material authenticity. While the book

The effect of syntactic simplification on reading EST texts as L1 and L2

ABSTRACTThere has been a considerable suggestion in the literature that syntactic adaptation of a text would simplify it. This empirical study determined that the complexity of the syntax does not significantly affect the level of reading comprehension. While a complete conceptual and lexical analysis may be necessary for reading comprehension, a thorough syntactic analysis is not. This should be true for both expert and novice readers in a particular professional field, herein computer science.Using American (L1 or E1, English as a native language) and Dutch (L2 or E2, English as a second, nonnative language) computer science and humanities majors reading in EST (English for Science and Technology), it was found that there were no significant differences between subgroups reading an authentic (in original, unadapted form) computer science text and those reading a syntactically adapted text either in comprehension or in time across the four groups of subjects. These results indicate that syntactic simplification of an EST text is not a real simplification. Hence, technical writers and EST teachers might give priority to other more conceptual ways of rewriting texts.

E.S.T. and the oracle

This paper seeks to clarify previous terms in English for Science and Technology (E.S.T.). Descriptions of scientific passages in terms of a “presuppositional rhetoric” could well simplify the nature of an E.S.T. syllabus. However, this concept has not been explored, either theoretically or in terms of its applications. A possible syllabus for E.S.T. is suggested based upon a set of causal relations underlying most semantic functions. These causal relations arise from a logical description of the presuppositional rhetoric of scientific passages. An empirical study is reported of the semantic functions present in 52 randomly-selected passages. Non-fiction Arts passages were the most complex, both in terms of the number of functions and of propositional difficulty. E.S.T. passages were less complex than Arts passages, but more complex than everyday conversations. Comparison of theory and empirical results suggests that a causal approach to presenting E.S.T. materials might be well motivated. Suggestions are made for accompanying exercises.

The present perfect in the rhetorical divisions of biology and biochemistry journal articles

Most English for science and technology (EST) teachers will agree with Walker (1967) that for the nonnative speaker of English, the present perfect is one of the most difficult tenses in the English verb system. Sometimes it is confused with a present tense and at other times a past. The most difficult task for the teacher is to teach students when to use it. This difficulty is further intensified when normative speakers are required to read and write scientific discourse and are confronted with the rhetoric of scientific English. The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of the present perfect in each rhetorical division (Introduction, Methods, Results and Discussion) of biology and biochemistry journal articles to determine whether the meanings conveyed by the perfect are related to the rhetorical functions of each division. Although the main focus was the examination of the relationship between rhetorical function and the use of the present perfect in the four rhetorical divisions, other issues such as the choice between the use of either the present perfect or the past tense to report past research, and time and frequency indicators occurring with the perfect, were examined and are discussed herein. EST researchers have demonstrated a relationship between rhetorical function and grammatical choice in technical English and have pointed out the inadequacy of using a sentence-oriented approach to grammar which describes grammatical choices only in syntactic and semantic terms (Lackstrom, Selinker & Trimble, 1970). They have also shown that factors other than time-tense relationships such as paragraph organization, core idea, or degree of generality expressed at various points in the paragraph may govern the choice of tense (Lackstrom, Selinker & Trimble 1970; Selinker, Trimble & Vroman, 1972). Lackstrom et al. (1970) reported that the present tense occurred where technical English rhetoric required the expression of a generalization. However, Oster (1981) found that the present perfect rather than the present tense was used to express a generalization about past literature and that the use of the present perfect implied to the reader that the topic discussed within that sentence would be elaborated in subsequent discourse. Lackstrom, Selinker, and Trimble (1973) have made a distinction between the use of the past tense and the present perfect by scientific writers to express the rhetorical function of reporting past research. In a study of verb forms in the rhetorical sections of MS theses in biology, chemistry and physics,

Evaluating oral skills in an EST program: Native english-speaking scientists respond to Chinese scientists' english

This paper reports on one aspect of an evaluation of the effectiveness of the oral communication skills component of an English for Science and Technology (EST) program. Speech samples of Chinese scientists studying in an intensive EST program were evaluated by native English-speaking professional peers. While the actual results are primarily of interest to those involved in the program itself, of more general interest — and the focus of this paper — is the methodology involved in this study. Thus, this paper might be of particular interest to those involved in ESP program design, development, and evaluation.

The Language Of Business

The teaching of the language of business, sometimes also called the “language of commerce” or “administration” (Yates 1977), has the longest history of any specific purpose teaching area; and, in ESP at least, the largest number of textbooks have been produced for business students (Robinson 1980). Yet most seminal research contributions to ESP have been in English for Science and Technology (EST). Due to this phenomenon, Swales (1985) subtitles his ESP retrospective “a source and reference book on the development of English for science and technology.” Earlier well-known collections–e.g., MacKay and Mountford (1978), Trimble, Trimble, and Drobnic (1978), and Selinker, Tarone, and Hanzeli (1981)–provide further evidence for the dominance of EST in teaching and research.

Computer-based education and the teaching of English for specific purposes: Report on a project in progress

South Africa is a multilingual country. Apart from two official languages, there are seven major languages. The latter group form part of the so-called Southeastern Bantu languages. When students with a Bantu language background start their university careers, they face a very serious communication problem because the medium of instruction is English. This means that they have to study in an ESL situation. In many cases English may even be a third language because they often speak more than one vernacular language. Students who enroll for courses in a faculty of Science are in the situation where they need English for Science and Technology (EST). In the beginning of 1979 Control Data Corporation (U.S.A.) introduced their PLATO Education System in South Africa. Their main interest was to offer people whose native language was not one of the official languages, viz. English and Afrikaans (the latter originated from Dutch), opportunities for educational upgrading. This area of interest led to a number of problems that called for immediate attention. Among these was the need for ESL course materials. The English materials available on PLATO were not ESL materials. Furthermore, the students' lack of proficiency in English made it difficult for them to benefit from excellent courses in many other subject areas.

Formal Written Communication and ESL

This article, first of all, describes some of the results of research into the relationship between grammatical choice and rhetorical function in English for Science and Technology (EST). The second part of the paper presents some details about procedures used in EST courses for non-native speakers. We emphasize changes made in these procedures through application of the results of our research. Some unsolved problems are referred to.