Essay Features Research Articles

ОСОБЕННОСТИ ОБУЧЕНИЯ СОЧИНЕНИЯМ ОТДЕЛЬНЫХ ВИДОВ В СОДЕРЖАНИИ РАБОТЫ УЧИТЕЛЯ НАЧАЛЬНЫХ КЛАССОВ

ОСОБЕННОСТИ ОБУЧЕНИЯ СОЧИНЕНИЯМ ОТДЕЛЬНЫХ ВИДОВ В СОДЕРЖАНИИ РАБОТЫ УЧИТЕЛЯ НАЧАЛЬНЫХ КЛАССОВ

Biblical Theology

Biblical Theology John Thomas Willis, Christopher T. Begg, Thomas Hieke, and William J. Urbrock 1353. John Barton, "Old Testament Ethics: Story or Style?" Sibyls, Scriptures, and Scrolls, 113-29 [see #1505]. Conservatives deal with the Bible on the lines of legalism, opposing same-sex marriage, while endorsing keeping the Sabbath, tithing, and capital punishment. Liberals oppose the idea of normative OT regulations such as the laws in Leviticus, and highlight rather the overall character, drift, and emphasis of OT texts based on loving God with all the heart and one's neighbor as oneself. B. proposes that the best course in thinking about OT ethics is to read the OT as a guide to a style of living, a source of mottos and epigrams for the good life, and a text that can shape the reader in significant ways. It may be time for the domination of narrative in Christian readings of the OT to yield to a more wisdom-centered approach, and for the Bible to be seen as contributing to the construction of a lifestyle, rather than as telling a story meant to serve as a paradigm for the story of our own lives.—J.W. 1354. Luigi Castangia, "Abissi del cosmo e dell'uomo. Gli inferi nel pensiero biblico," HT 26 (2017) 47-60. C.'s essay deals with the underworld in the Bible, with a focus on poetic texts. In so doing, he presents an etymological analysis of the Bible's main "underworld terms" (šĕʾôl, šaḥat, tĕhôm, and mĕṣûlâ) that serves to highlight the close connections between biblical and ANE texts regarding the underworld. The meaning of each term is sketched by C. in light of the contexts in which it occurs. The second part of C.'s essay focuses on Jonah 2 and Proverbs, noting that in these texts the Bible's cosmological language for the underworld undergoes an anthropological and ethical transposition, in which cosmological depths become an abyss of distress or a chasm of evil and sin. This metaphorical dynamic does not, however, occur in all cases. Rather, certain underworld terms remain anchored in their cosmological sense, while others [End Page 461] more readily lend themselves to the above-mentioned shift. [Adapted from published abstract—C.T.B.] 1355. Cyprien Comte, "L'espoir de Dieu: Conversion (Shoûv) humaine et repentir (Niḥām) de YHWH dans la Bible hébraïque," BLE 119 (2018) 73-89. Five texts of the Hebrew Bible present human conversion (šûb) as the cause of Yhwh's own "repentance" (niḥām). In 1 Samuel 15, Saul "turns away" (šûb) from God's will, with the result that God "repents" of having made him king of Israel and announces his rejection. The other four texts, i.e., Jer 18:1-12 (Jeremiah's visit to the potter's workshop); Jeremiah 26 (Jeremiah's trial); Joel (the prophet's call to repentance); and Jonah 3–4 (Jonah in Nineveh) report a prophetic summons to repentance and—in most instances—the hearers' response to these. Divine "repentance," grounded as this is in Yhwh's mercy, i.e., his readiness to "adapt" his own behavior in response to humans' behavior in the face of his words to them, surfaces particularly in contexts of prophetic discourse, the aim of which is to evoke conversion from the hearers. [Adapted from published abstract—C.T.B.] 1356. Alexander Deeg, "'Auch für dich' und das messianische 'Heute.' Überlegungen zur Hermeneutik des Alten Testaments aus homiletischer Perspektive," Hermeneutik des Alten Testaments, 166-87 [see #1531]. D. is a professor of practical theology in the Evangelical Faculty of the University of Leipzig who is heavily involved in the Christian-Jewish dialogue. His essay features reflections concerning the use of the OT in Christian preaching. The essay's five overarching headings are as follows: (1) The Co-existence of Christianity and Judaism and Israel's Bible, or: The Setting in Life of Christian Hermeneutics of the OT; (2) Contemporary Challenges for a Sermon on the OT; (3) The OT as a Context for Truth and Tonality in the Church's Proclamation: Hermeneutical Considerations; (4) "For You...

The Pentateuch: Genesis

The PentateuchGenesis Christopher T. Begg, Eric J. Wagner, CR, Michael W. Duggan, and Bradley C. Gregory 241. [Torah; Greek Law] Anselm C. Hagedorn, "Sacred Law, Lawgivers and Codification. Perspectives from the Hebrew Bible, Gortyn and Selinus," Writing Laws in Antiquity, 117-40 [see #700]. H.'s essay offers a wide-ranging comparison of Greek and biblical laws. After surveying the current state of the question, he proceeds to compare and contrast the two legal traditions in light of two related issues: the involvement of the gods in writing laws (and other materials) and the sacred character of law. With regard to the first issue, H. shows that even though the references to Yhwh's writing activity in the Hebrew Bible are relatively limited in comparison with the mentions of writing gods elsewhere in the ANE, the characterization of Yhwh as the author or writer of Israelite law does play a key role in the Pentateuch, especially in the late stages of the formation of this collection. By contrast, the references to writing gods are marginal at best in ancient Greece, and Greek gods are never presented as the authors of written laws. This contrast points to a more basic difference in the understanding of the relationship between the gods and laws in the two cultures, a point that is then explored in the next section of H.'s essay. Here, he begins by noting that the biblical law codes are intrinsically religious documents and that this feature also permeates the depiction of Moses as lawgiver, in contrast to Greek lawgivers. Thereafter, H. proceeds to discuss the role of the gods and the place of sacred or religious matters in various laws of the so-called Gortyn Code, as well as the law of Selinus. As he notes by way of conclusion, comparison of the two corpora highlights first and foremost the differences between Greek and biblical laws. While the written law may be viewed in both cultures as an "identity marker," the status and meaning of the laws vis-à-vis the community and the god(s) remain markedly distinct. In particular, the scribal processes underlying the composition and revision of biblical laws "removes the law from human activity" (p. 132) in a way that is unparalleled in the Greek world. [Adapted from published abstract—C.T.B.] 242. [Torah; Greek Law] Gary N. Knoppers, "Moses and the Greek Lawgivers. The Triumph of the Torah in Ancient Mediterranean Perspective," Writing Laws in Antiquity, 50-77 [see #700]. K.'s essay features a discussion of the parallels between the traditions about the Greek lawgivers and the eastern Mediterranean world, specifically the figure of Moses. In dialogue with A. Szegedy-Maszak and others, K. begins by reviewing the typical features that characterized the great lawgivers of the Greek tradition, e.g., their rigorous training, [End Page 79] their virtue, or the challenges that the new legislation they sought to impose had to face. He then discusses the question of whether, and to what extent, the resulting typology can be applied to figures elsewhere in the ancient Mediterranean region, especially to Moses. He argues in this connection that while the divine origin of the legislation associated with Moses (the Torah) signals a basic difference between the Greek and Israelite legal traditions and their respective authoritative figures, the line between the two legal traditions should not be drawn too sharply (contra Szegedy-Maszak): first, because the relationship between divine and human roles in the origins of the law is more complex and more nuanced in the biblical tradition than has been sometimes supposed; and second, because the notion of the divine origin of law is not unknown in the Greek traditions about lawgivers. On this basis, K. proceeds to a detailed discussion of the parallels between Moses and the Greek lawgivers (see pp. 63-69 of his essay). He concludes that the parallels are as significant as the differences that can be observed, and this finding, in turn, calls for a study of ancient lawgivers that is not merely restricted to the Greek cities but takes into account the wider Mediterranean context. [Adapted from published abstract—C.T.B.] 243...

“Tweet Me Your First Assaults”: Writing Shame and the Rhetorical Work of #NotOkay

This essay features a study of the #NotOkay Twitter thread, which arose as a response to the Access Hollywood Trump tape and comprises thousands of tweets by women who describe their first experience of sexual assault. I analyze this hashtag as an act of what Elspeth Probyn calls “writing shame.” I first trace the cultural habitus of emotion around sexual assault and harassment, which teaches survivors to internalize shame and normalizes assault. I then examine how #NotOkay contributors—both before and after the election—participate in writing shame, a practice that does the following rhetorical work: serves as an invitational space for women to rewrite assault-related shame; revises the locus of shame from the individual to the culture that shames; and generates calls to transform this emotional and rhetorical sphere.

Persuasive Writing: How Students Argue

English persuasive writing is an important skill to be mastered by students as it is highly valued when and if students continue their studies to a higher education level. The objectives of this study are to: (1) identify the distinctive features of persuasive essays commonly adopted by Malaysian students; (2) investigate the problems students encounter while developing their arguments, and (3) to suggest strategies that can improve students’ persuasive writing skills. Seventy-nine essay samples from four secondary schools were selected for the analysis and Toulmin’s Model was employed as the tool for analyzing the essays. The focus of the analysis is to uncover the persuasive elements that the students have applied in their writing. The raw data were gathered by reading each of the essays and labeling the persuasive elements (claim, grounds, warrant, backing, rebuttal and qualifiers) which were identified. Findings from the analysis have indicated that the students applied the basic persuasive elements: claim, grounds and warrant. It was also discovered that the students lacked the optional persuasive elements; qualifier, rebuttal and backing. Students need to be exposed to new or alternative strategies of composing in order to help improve their persuasive writing skills.

Post-Academic Writing: Human Writing for Human Readers

Academic writing is regularly criticized for its obscure and turgid prose, for its over-theoretical approach, and its reliance on jargon. In this essay, I suggest researchers and writers, especially qualitative inquirers, should move toward a more open and accessible style of “post-academic” writing. Put simply, post-academic writing is human writing for human readers and is at its best when it takes on a storytelling form. The essay features discussion of seven ways of becoming post-academic writers.

Exploring the relationship between textual characteristics and rating quality in rater-mediated writing assessments: An illustration with L1 and L2 writing assessments

Abstract Numerous researchers have explored the degree to which specific textual characteristics of student compositions are associated with high and low ratings, as well as differences in these relationships across subgroups of students (e.g., English language learners). These studies provide insight into rater judgments and the development of writing proficiency. However, the degree to which textual characteristics are associated with the psychometric quality of ratings is relatively unexplored. This study illustrates a procedure for exploring the influence of textual characteristics of essays on rating quality in the context of rater-mediated writing performance assessments in order to gain a more-complete understanding of rating quality. Two illustrative datasets are used that reflect writing assessments for native English speakers and English language learners. The CohMetrix software program was used to obtain measures of textual characteristics, and the Partial Credit model was used to obtain indicators of rating quality. The relationship between essay features and rating quality was explored using correlation and profile analyses. Results suggested that rating quality varies across essays with different features, and the relationship between rating quality and essay features is unique to individual writing assessments. Implications are discussed as they relate to research and practice for rater-mediated writing assessments.

The cosmic sublime in the aesthetics of Longinus and Zhuangzi

This essay features a comparative study of the aesthetics represented by the Greco-Roman critic Longinus and the Chinese Taoist philosopher Zhuangzi through what I would call the cosmic sublime. Both Longinus and Zhuangzi, I propose, articulate an aesthetic ideal of the cosmic sublime, by which I mean the grandeur captured by a cosmic perspective or obtained from contemplating phenomena of a planetary scale, as well as the emotions associated with experience of the sublime. And both seek to theorize the sublime by positing the great-small and subject-object distinction. While concurring to the importance of great natures in producing and appreciating sublime images, the two thinkers diverge with regard to the relation of the subject and object of aesthetic judgment. Where Longinus presages Kant in emphasizing the preeminence of the judging mind in comprehending cosmic phenomena, Zhuangzi asserts the merging of the aesthetic subject with the primal simplicity, a claim that anticipates Holderlin and Nietzsche’s call to identify with the Dionysian One. As an aesthetic category, the cosmic sublime provides a vantage point from which to view how the human mind confronts and conceptualizes grandeur of an infinite dimension. As a comparative lens, the cosmic sublime helps reveal not only a new aesthetic ideal but also a distinctive Chinese aesthetics analogous to the Western sublime tradition.

Evaluating rater accuracy and perception for integrated writing assessments using a mixed-methods approach

Abstract Integrated writing (IW) assessments underscore the connections between reading comprehension and writing skills. These assessments typically include rater-mediated components. Our study identified IW type essays that are difficult-to-score accurately, and then investigated reasons based on rater perceptions and judgments. Our data based on IW assessments are used as formative assessments designed to provide information on the developing literacy of students. We used a mixed- methods approach with rater accuracy defined quantitatively based on Rasch measurement theory, and a survey-based qualitative method designed to investigate rater perceptions and judgments toward student essays within the context of IW assessments. The quantitative analyses suggest that the essays and raters vary along a continuum designed to represent rating accuracy. The qualitative analyses suggest that raters had inconsistent perceptions toward certain features of essays compared to the experts, such as the amount of textual borrowing, the development of ideas, and the consistency of the focus. The implications of this study for research and practice of IW assessments are discussed.

Gender and Humor: Interdisciplinary and International Perspectives

Gender and Humor: Interdisciplinary and International Perspectives

“Every Swamp is a Castle”: Navigating Native Spaces in the Connecticut River Valley, Winter 1675–1677 and 2005–2015

This essay focuses on the historical and ecological landscape of King Philip's War (1675–1678), highlighting 2 spaces in Kwinitekw, the Western Abenaki term for the Connecticut River Valley, during the harsh winter of 1675–1676. I track the captive Mary Rowlandson's journey with the Wampanoag leader Weetamoo through the interior Nipmuc country and Kwinitekw and discuss the Penacook leader Wanalancet's winter refuge in the Kwinitekw headwaters. This paper highlights an indigenous studies methodology of place-based, experiential research in the land and waterways, in combination with more traditional historical and literary methodologies. It also demonstrates the importance of indigenous language and place names in mapping historical contexts, understanding ecological knowledge, and interpreting the movements of leaders. The paper focuses on the vast expanse of the Wabanaki country, which is often neglected or misrepresented in colonial-era histories, and especially the “extensive and varied ‘winterlands’” highlighted by the scholarship of Thomas Wickman. The essay features maps of areas historically inhabitated by Native peoples created with ArcGIS by a collaborative team, and highlights contemporary on-the-ground engagement with these places, the knowledge gained from reading the archive of the land, and the possibility of understanding of these spaces as vital ecological and social communities, which have much to teach us today.

Time Logic on the Move

Things exist logically as understandable through time; such logic is called “time logic” that includes both logically dead and alive. This essay features time logic on the move, personal concrete, coherent open, and inter-changing into music.

“Thank God for the Public Press, Which Sheds Its Strong White Light on All the Dark Corners of the Earth!”: Ada Nield Chew’s Journey From Factory Girl To Author-Activist

This essay recovers an often overlooked episode in women’s labor history. Its focus on author-activist Ada Nield Chew reconstructs her journey towards literary professionalization and her evolving relation to literature and the radical press. The essay features extended close literary analysis of Nield’s “Crewe Factory Girl” letters for the first time. Examining their significance as historical records contextualizes Nield’s early writings and their intersections with the literary marketplace, socialism, and feminism in 1890s England.

His Work/Our Work: Advancing the Learning Values of James Kenneth Mitchell’s Hazards in Context Framework

The principal objective of this essay is to pay tribute to James Kenneth Mitchell and his service to Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, the larger academic community, practitioner circles, and at-risk communities worldwide. As testimony to his instructional and mentoring influences, the works of his former students are described from the author’s experience and point of view. Their works reflect his professional and personal values towards inclusiveness that have helped to shape a more nuanced knowledge about natural hazard risks and related management policies. To bring perspective to Mitchell’s impact on his former students, the essay features a brief review of the literature on natural hazards education, describes the scholastic and service achievements of those students, and concludes with a statement of his ongoing legacy.

Research on Intercessory Prayer: Theoretical and Methodological Considerations.

Belief in the healing power of prayer is found in various religious traditions. Spiritually grounded clinical interventions, such as intercessory prayer (IP), need to be understood in a broader sense. This essay features the IP trials, observing the controversial relationship between inconsistent results and allegedly inadequate methods and theoretical hypothesis. A survey of the literature was conducted including publications indexed until September 2013, focusing on the trials developed in the field and on the critics about the methodological design. Recent meta-analyses and multicenter studies found inconclusive results in the investigation of IP. Clinical trials on IP present some methodological difficulties: The intervention is not fully controlled; the primary outcome is not properly defined; and the theoretical models seem inconsistent. The "non-local consciousness" model may be appropriate for studies of IP. Directions for future research: greater emphasis on the evaluation of the effectiveness of this intervention in animal models; selection of subjects and healers who have previous connection; considering the hypothesis of non-local consciousness in the study design.

Difficult belongings

The emergence of queer theory and politics in the 1990s was widely touted as heralding a new era of sexual inclusivity. However, this has not proved to be the case for everyone. This fictocritical essay features three vignettes of gay male Asian migrants living in Australia. We suggest that the sense of belonging these men develop is complex and difficult. All three subjects find themselves straddling two artificially polarised worlds: the white and modern world of ‘gay Australia’ and the racialised and striated ‘migrant’ world. This work explores some intersections of sexuality, belonging, race and migration in contemporary Australia through alternating acts of scholarly and creative writing.

Features of difficult-to-score essays

Abstract Previous research that has explored potential antecedents of rater effects in essay scoring has focused on a range of contextual variables, such as rater background, rating context, and prompt demand. This study predicts the difficulty of accurately scoring an essay based on that essay's content by utilizing linear regression modeling to measure the association between essay features (e.g., length, lexical diversity, sentence complexity) and raters’ ability to assign scores to essays that match those assigned by expert raters. We found that two essay features – essay length and lexical diversity – account for 25% of the variance in ease of scoring measures, and these variables are selected in the predictive modeling whether the essay's true score is included in the equation or not. We suggest potential applications for these results to rater training and monitoring in direct writing assessment scoring projects.

Assessing Student Writing on Tablets

There is increasing expectation that schools should be able to use tablets for a range of instructional and assessment purposes. This article considers the comparability of student writing on tablets and laptops to ensure that writing assessment is conducted in a way that is fair to all students. Data were collected from a sample of 826 students from Virginia and South Dakota at 2 grade levels. Each student was provided with a laptop, a tablet, or a tablet with an external keyboard and asked to respond to a grade-level-appropriate essay prompt. Results indicated no difference in the essay score or surface-level essay features across study conditions. However, the relatively short length of essays written, the fact that reference materials were not required to respond to the essay prompts, and the general motivational level of student participants were likely contributing factors to the observed outcomes.

Geographies of Indigenous Leaders: Landscapes and Mindscapes in the Pacific Northwest

This essay features three stories of “place-based” leadership in two Indigenous communities in the Pacific Northwest. Author Michael Marker weaves together stories from Nisga'a Elders in the Nass Valley of British Columbia, Coast Salish Elders in Washington State, and his own experiences as a researcher, teacher educator, and community participant to connect the personal, the political, and the historical themes of Indigenous education. Marker identifies two salient concepts through the developing narrative: first, leaders from an Indigenous consciousness must invigorate traditional spiritual foundations, and, second, they must mobilize knowledge of the land and people—corroded by colonization—toward cultural renewal. Bringing to light the conflicts between local community yearnings and Western institutional goals when engaging in cross-cultural collaborations, this essay puts forth a decolonized approach to educational leadership, one that requires cultural renewal and respect for how a people experience landscape, history, and identity. Erratum Publisher's Note: Due to an editing error, the original published version of “Geographies of Indigenous Leaders: Landscapes and Mindscapes in the Pacific Northwest” by Michael Marker misstated the present status of the Lummi Day School. The earlier version stated on page 230 that “This school is currently a U.S. government institution that serves students from kindergarten through eighth grade.” The sentence has been corrected to read: “This school was a U.S. government institution that served students from kindergarten through eighth grade.” Updated: 2015-09-30

Linguistic dimensions of impromptu test essays compared with successful student disciplinary writing: Effects of language background, topic, and L2 proficiency

One important validity question with regard to writing assessment is the degree to which performance on a timed writing test can predict performance on future academic writing. Recent developments in corpus linguistics have allowed scholars to describe in detail the linguistic features of a variety of academic texts, including genres of disciplinary writing and writing on essay tests, which can aid in answering this question. The purpose of this paper is to compare the linguistic features of test essays written by native and non-native speakers with a comparison corpus of successful student writing across a range of disciplines using Biber's (1988) multidimensional analysis framework. Essays written on two different test prompts were analyzed along dimensions of successful student writing revealed by an analysis of the Michigan Corpus of Upper-level Student Writing (MICUSP) conducted by Hardy and Römer (2013). Results demonstrated that test essays differed in significant ways from disciplinary writing, particularly in the natural and health sciences. Furthermore, language background (native vs. non-native), prompt, and language proficiency (i.e., essay scores) were systematically related to scores on all four dimensions. Implications for pedagogy and language assessment are discussed.