Essay Type Research Articles

Should Undergraduate Students be Introduced to a Greater Range of Written Genres in EAP Courses? A Pilot Study from a Malaysian University

This study set out to determine whether the current EAP programme conducted at Universiti Malaysia Sabah introduces students to a sufficient range of written academic genres (e.g. experiment write ups, test reports, reflective writing) for them to be able to cope with the specific coursework demands of their undergraduate programmes. Focusing on the School of Science & Technology, the researcher investigated 10 science programmes and their syllabus requirements to establish the suitability of the writing formats and genres being currently taught in the EAP classroom. Questionnaires were distributed to the co- coordinators of each science subject programme. The study concludes that greater emphasis should be placed on science- specific genre writing and suggests that previously too much importance has been placed on teaching the components and the rhetorical moves associated with general academic essay types.

Adding to the Biology Education Research Tool Kit: Research Methods Essays

An increasing number of resources are becoming available to support the professional development of scientists transitioning to studying science education. CBE-Life Sciences Education is adding to the available professional development resources by launching a new type of essay, titled Research Methods.

A Corpus Based Study on the Use of Preposition of Time ‘on’ and ‘at’ in Argumentative Essays of Form 4 and Form 5 Malaysian Students

This article presents a corpus- based investigation on English prepositions of time presented in the argumentative essays of Form 4 and Form 5 Malaysian secondary students in the MCSAW corpus. The aims were to find out the distribution patterns and the common errors in the use of preposition of time, ‘on’ and ‘at’. This corpus based study investigated the distribution patterns of on and at in an argumentative type of essay. Furthermore, this study also highlighted some common errors found in the use of these preposition of time and prepare some possible explanations for the errors. Last but not least, the result of this study can provide suggestions on the teaching of preposition of time on and at and also the use of MCSAW Corpus for future studies.

THE EFFECT OF DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION AND ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION ON STUDENTS’ WRITING COMPETENCY

This experimental study aims at investigating the effect of Differentiated Instruction and achievement motivation on students’ writing competency of tenth grade students of SMAN 2 Denpasar. The design of this research was 2x2 factorial design. Data of students’ writing competency were collected by using an essay type test. Meanwhile, data of students’ achievement motivation level were collected by using questionnaire. The acquired data were analyzed statistically by two way ANOVA and Tukey test. This research discovers: 1) there is a significant difference in writing competency between the students taught with Differentiated Instruction and those taught with conventional method, 2) there is no significant difference in writing competency between the students having low achievement motivation taught with different instruction and those taught with conventional method, 3) there is a significant difference in writing competency between the students having high achievement motivation taught with Differentiated Instruction and those taught with conventional method, and 4) there is a significant interaction effect of teaching method (Differentiated Instruction and conventional method) and achievement motivation level (high and low levels) on students’ writing competency. Keywords: differentiated instruction, achievement motivation, writing competency

A strategy for detection of inconsistency in evaluation of essay type answers

The quality of evaluation of essay type answer books involving multiple evaluators for courses with large number of enrollments is likely to be affected due to heterogeneity in experience, expertise and maturity of evaluators. In this paper, we present a strategy to detect anomalies in evaluation of essay type answers by multiple evaluators based on the relationship between marks/grades awarded and symbolic markers, opinionated words recorded in answer books during evaluation. Our strategy is based on the results of our survey with evaluators, analysis of large number of essay type evaluated answer books and our own experiences regarding grievances of students regarding marks/grades. Results of both survey and analysis of evaluated answer books identified underline, tick and cross as frequently used markers compared to circle and question mark. Further, both opinionated words and symbolic markers identified through the survey are used by evaluators to express either positive or negative sentiments. They have differential usage pattern of these symbols as single evaluator and as one amongst multiple evaluators. Tick and cross have well define purposes and have strong correlation with marks awarded. However, the underline marker is being used for dual purpose of expressing both correctness and incorrectness of answers. Our strategy of inconsistency detection first identifies outliers based on the relationship between marks/grades awarded and number of symbols and/or opinionated words used in evaluation. Subsequently, marks and number of symbolic markers of outliers are compared with peer non-outlier answer books having same marks but different number of markers used. Such outlier answer books are termed as anomalous. We discovered 36 anomalies out of total 425 evaluated answer books. We have developed a prototype tool to facilitate online evaluation of answer book and to proactively alert evaluators of possible anomalies.

Editor's Note

Editor's Note

교사 의견 조사에 기초한 수학 교과에서의 수업평가 기준 및 활용 탐색

본 연구자는 수학 수업에서 요구되는 교사 지식을 '교과 내용 지식', '학습자 이해 지식', '교수 학습 방법 및 평가 지식', '수업 상황 지식' 네 가지로 상정하고, 각각의 지식에 대한 수업평가 영역 및 기준 마련을 위한 연구를 순차적으로 수행한 바 있다. 하지만, 이와 같이 마련된 평가 기준은 실제로 교사의 의견 수렴을 거치지 않은 것이기 때문에 다분히 추상적이고 형식적 측면이 강하므로, 평가 기준의 양이나 기준 내용의 가독성, 적절성 등이 보다 객관적인 시각에서 제 삼자에 의해 판단, 검증될 필요가 있겠다. 이러한 취지에서 본 연구에서는 위의 선행 연구들 중에서 가장 최근에 수행된 결과로부터 마련된 교사 지식에 관한 수업평가 기준을 면밀히 검토하여, 현장에서 보다 수월하게 효율적으로 활용 가능한 평가 기준을 마련하고, 이의 활용 가능성 및 방안을 탐색하여 제안하고자 하였다. 이를 위하여, 몇몇 현장 교사들을 대상으로 수업평가 기준을 활용하여 본인의 수업을 실제로 점검해 보게 하고, 두 차례에 걸쳐 설문 조사를 실시하였다. 또한, 설문 조사에 앞서, 본 연구의 대상인 교사들에게 보다 나은(가독성 있고 효율적인) 수업평가 기준 및 사용법을 제공하고자 사전 연구를 실시하여 수업평가 기준 및 활용법을 일차적으로 수정 보완하였다. 한 마디로, 본 연구는 교사 지식에 대한 교사 자신의 자기평가 방법에 따라 측정 용이한, 즉 실제적 활용 가치에 초점을 둔 수업평가 기준을 최종적으로 마련하고자 하였다. 궁극적으로, 이러한 연구 결과로부터의 기대는 합리적이고 효과성을 거둘 수 있는 평가 기준이 마련되어 이를 토대로 교사의 수업 전문성 신장이 보다 적극적으로 고무됨으로서 교실 수업이 개선되도록 하는 데 도움이 되고자 함이다. On the standards or elements of teaching evaluation, the Korea Institute of Curriculum and Evaluation(KICE) has carried out the following research such as : 1) development of the standards on teaching evaluation between 2004 and 2006, and 2) investigation on the elements of Teacher Knowledge. The purposes of development of evaluation standards for mathematics teaching through those studies were to improve not only mathematics teachers' professionalism but also their own teaching methods or strategies. In this study, the standards were revised and modified by analyzing the results of those studies focused on the knowledge of subject matter knowledge, knowledge of learners' understanding, teaching and learning methods and assessments, and teaching contexts. For this purpose, according to those evaluation domains of each teacher knowledge, elements on teaching evaluation focused on the teacher's knowledge were established using the instructional evaluation framework, which is developed in this study, including the four areas of knowledge obtaining, instructional planning, instructional implementation, and instructional reflection. In this study, 1st and 2nd pilot studies was accomplished for revising evaluation standards and as a result, the procedure for implementing mathematics teaching using evaluation standards was changed to evaluate teachers own teaching using the standards focused on instructional reflection and according to the degree of satisfaction on reflecting their own teaching, standards on knowledge obtaining, instructional planning, instructional implementation would be utilized. Teacher survey is accomplished two times, by the subject of seven teachers. According ot the result of the first teacher questionnaire which was consisted of the essay type of questions on the degree of understanding the content of standards, the evaluation standards were revised. According ot the result of the second teacher questionnaire which was consisted of the essay type of questions on the application of standards, the evaluation standards were revised finally and the way of how to use the standards efficiently was suggested.

An Integrated E-Learning Examination Model Using Combined MCQ and Essay Based Full Blind Marking Assessment Technique

Web-based testing and assessment systems offer greater flexibility than the traditional approach because test could be offered at different times by students and in different locations. Though Multiple-Choice Question (MCQ) is known to offer easier and faster methods in examination scoring and assessment, it has major disadvantage of fixed responses which tend to emphasize recall and encourage guessing. Assessment systems normally should generate responses that have the potential to show originality and a greater depth of understanding of the learning contents. This paper presents integrated online assessment systems as a remedy to MCQ limitations. The Online Examination architecture developed and the model formulated combined MCQ with other assessment systems such as Long answer(essay) questions, Short answer (fill in the gap) questions,True/ false questions,Graphical (diagram -based) questions The discursive examination component- essay type uses double blind marking technique to assess the performances in examination and the system model was implemented using Apache Server, PHP Programming Language , HTML, Ajax, jQuery, Javascript and MySQL Database. 

Use of technologies in programs of permanent education in health: an experimental study

The study focuses on the contribution of technologies in the programs of permanent education for nursing professionals. Aims: to analyze the application of information and communication technologies in the permanent education of nursing assistants and technicians; to compare the information obtained by the nursing assistants and technicians who use a virtual learning environment (VLE) and those who are involved in traditional hands-on training and; to evaluate the applicability of information and communication technology in the programs of permanent education in health for nursing assistants and technicians. Method: this is an experimental study, incorporating a clinical essay type of data collection, with a quantitative approach, to be performed in a municipal public hospital, located in the municipality of Duque de Caxias. The subjects of the research will be 60 nursing assistants and technicians that work in the health studies unit. The expected period for data collection will be from November 2013 to January 2014.

THE EFFECT OF PROJECT BASED LEARNING AND STUDENTS’ PERCEIVED LEARNING DISCIPLINE TOWARD THE WRITING COMPETENCY OF THE ELEVENTH GRADE STUDENTS OF SMAN 5 MATARAM IN THE ACADEMIC YEAR 2012/2013

ABSTRACT This experimental study aims at investigating the effect of Project Based Learning (PBL) and students’ perceived learning discipline on students’ writing competency of the eleventh grade students of SMAN 5 Mataram. PBL is a teaching method which underlies on project given to the students. Besides teaching method, learning discipline is taken into account because it is predicted can affect the students’ achievement in learning foreign language. This research involved three type variables, namely: teaching method as independent variable, learning discipline as moderator variable, and students’ writing competency as dependent variable. To conduct this research, 80 students were selected as the sample. The design of this research was 2x2 factorial design. Data were collected by an instrument called posttest which is essay type test. The acquired data were analyzed statistically by two way ANOVA. This research discovers: 1) there is a significant effect of PBL on students’ writing competency, 2) there is no significant effect of the interaction between teaching methods (PBL and conventional teaching method) and students’ learning discipline level (high and low levels) on students’ writing competency, 3) PBL has significant effect for both high and low discipline students. Based on the analysis, PBL has positive effect on students’ writing competency. So, it is recommended to apply this teaching method in writing class as an alternative way to improve students’ writing competency. Key words: project based learning, learning discipline, writing competency

Gender Differences in Students’ Performance in History at Senior High Schools in Cape Coast

Gender differences in scholastic achievement test as a function of method of measurement were examined by comparing the performance of male and female history students in three senior high schools in the Cape Coast Metropolis on essay and multiple-choice test items. The T-test for testing difference in means of two samples was used for the analysis. Female students performed significantly better than male students on essay test items. However, there was no statistical difference on multiple-choice items between females and males. It is clear that female students do not have any problem with examination forms, they perform better in all forms of examination. Therefore, it is suggested that ideally the most appropriate test-type for examinations is the multiple-choice test as it favours both genders. Nonetheless, the essay type of examination has its own merits.

Using self-referential pronouns in writing: The effect of explicit instruction on L2 writers at two levels of proficiency

Skilled writers have at their disposal a range of rhetorical strategies for positioning themselves as competent members of a particular discourse community, including the judicious use of self-referential pronouns (e.g. I, she, he) to overtly signal authorial presence. However, while researchers routinely recommend that second language (L2) writers receive instruction on the use of this rhetorical strategy, empirical studies on the effect of such instruction are rare. The present study investigates the effect of explicit instruction on the ability of non-native speakers of English (NNS) ( n = 77) at two different levels of proficiency to use two signals of authorial presence (first person pronouns and self-referential third person pronouns/phrases) while writing specially constructed essay types. Using a controlled/posttest design with stimulated recall data, the study found that the instructed students significantly outperformed their non-instructed counterparts on Essay 1 (immediately after treatment), Essay 2 (one week later) and a quiz (one month later). The effect of the instruction did not depend on the proficiency of the student. Implications for L2 writing instruction are discussed.

Writers as Readers

Writers as Readers Will Jennings As a new member of Fourth Genre’s editorial staff, I approached the selection of a piece for this issue’s Writer as Reader series in much the same way as I’ve approached my own work as both a writer and a reader: at a somewhat sideways angle. The guidelines for this series have asked submissions to focus tightly on the frame of a single essay or work, rather than a writer’s body of work. And it is not my intention to wrench this guide from out of the works to drop in my own mesh of levers and gears. But when I was asked to consider taking on this position, and having read the guidelines and many of the splendid pieces published under its banner, I also found a nagging itch of slight impertinence beginning to rustle somewhere between my eyes and hands. Focus on a single piece of writing and not a writer. Reasonable. Certain economy there. But what of the writer as reader? As if there were some discernable point of demarcation served best by specific focus on the solitary work of another. As if our work didn’t already call for us to be as teachers, as parents, as intersection, or even, as collision. And that’s when Cecile Goding’s essay “Needles and Devils: Reading Memories” crossed my path. Without abandoning the crafted and considered type of essay that has represented this publication so well, I also want to open this series to the slight angle where we give similar substance to narratives of ourselves as readers. We are writers out in the world. We are readers out in the world. These are narratives that could be made to fit the mode already at work [End Page 155] here. But I want to humbly suggest the worth of our narratives as readers, engaged in a world where both reading and writing braid, snarl, tussle, undo, and, when done well, give voice to implication. I love the archaic definition of implication: to entangle, to enmesh, to turn back inward on itself. How else does a writer read? [End Page 156] Copyright © 2012 Michigan State University Board of Trustees

A Study on the Correlation between High School Students’ Writing Self-efficacy, and Descriptive Type and Essay Type Assessment Outcome

A Study on the Correlation between High School Students’ Writing Self-efficacy, and Descriptive Type and Essay Type Assessment Outcome

(Her-)stelwerk: skoolopstelle as voorbereiding vir akademiese geletterdheid op universiteitsvlak

This article explores the gap between schooland university writing in terms of creativewriting done at school level, as specified in the relevant policy documents and therequirements of academic literacy at university. This article also involves an empiricalstudy in which a questionnaire aimed at first year university students determinedthe extent of essay instruction at school. This was followed by an interview with asubject specialist for Afrikaans Home Language. It was found that despite the fact thatdepartmental policies require teachers to teach different types of essay writing they arenot taught effectively. It is clear that teachers may require training in terms of teachingdifferent types of essays and that the Department of Education should monitor andseparately assess modes of writing, such as expository and argumentative essays thatcould contribute to improving academic literacy. Keywords: academic literacy, academic writing, essays, school writing, Afrikaans, homelanguage, national curriculum statement, curriculum assessment policy statements. Article Text in Afrikaans

Computer Assisted Objective Structured Clinical Examination: A useful tool for dermatology undergraduate assessment

Dermatology is a minor subject in undergraduate medical curriculum in India. The dermatology clinical postings are generally poorly attended, and the clinical acumen of an average medical graduate in this specialty is quite low. To develop and implement Computer Assisted Objective Structured Clinical Examination (CA-OSCE) as a means of end of dermatology posting evaluation. Also, to assess its effectiveness in improving the motivation, attendance and learning of undergraduate students with respect to their visual recognition skills and problem solving ability. We designed and introduced CA-OSCE as a means of end of posting assessment. The average attendance and assessment scores of students undergoing CA-OSCE were compiled and compared using 'independent t test' with the scores of previous year's students who had undergone assessment with essay type questions. The average attendance and average assessment scores for the candidates undergoing CA-OSCE were found to 83.36% and 77.47%, respectively as compared to 64.09% and 52.07%, respectively for previous years' students. The difference between the two groups was found to be statistically significant. Student acceptability of the technique was also high, and their subjective feedback was encouraging. CA-OSCE is a useful tool for assessment of dermatology undergraduates. It has the potential to drive them to attend regularly as well as to test their higher cognitive skills of analysis and problem solving.

I Speak for Myself

The anthology, I Speak for Myself, is the first in a series of books that allowMuslims to write about themselves. This volume is about Americanwomen describing their experiences of being a Muslima ‒ with one from aman, and further volumes in the series will focus on the American Muslimmale perspective and voices from the Arab Spring. Like most anthologies,the submissions are uneven, and with forty essays, there are more than afew poor essays. The editors indicate that they wanted the authors to writeessays that reflected their comfortable relationship to country and faith, butotherwise they left the theme open.Although the editors seem to have hoped for a diverse outpouring ofessays, and there is a great deal of diversity, there are certain commonthemes. Most notably were a series of essays by women who only talkedabout the hijab, as though that was their identity. These essays were fairlysimilar to one another, which may be the result of the short length of thesepieces. There is value in keeping the contributions brief, as stories movealong and ideas develop quickly, but is a problem when several peoplewrite on the same issue.Despite this general criticism, this book is a natural fit for any courseon Islam in America, gender and religion, or even as an introduction toIslam course. There are some absolutely delightful and fascinating essaysin this collection. The strongest ones dealt with the implicit nature of beingMuslim and American. Rather than discussing either or both identifications,authors simply talked about their lives. Following are several examplesof these types of essays ...

Reflections on 50 years of teaching psychology

There have been great changes in the numbers of students studying psychology atdegree level in the UK since 1961 – the year I graduated. And, similarly there have been great changes in what is taught – with an everwidening set of theoretical developments and practical applications. Nonetheless, despite these developments, Iargue that the teaching of psychology has not altered very much in its approach during the last 50 years. Lectures, tutorials, lab classes and essay–type examinations still dominate the timetable.

Discourse Markers in Argumentative and Expository Writing of Iranian EFL Learners

The aim of the present study was to investigate the frequency and the type of discourse markers used in the argumentative and expository writings of Iranian EFL learners and the differences between these text features in the two essay genres. The study also aimed at examining the influence of the use of discourse markers on the participants’ writing quality. To this end the discourse markers used in two essays (an argumentative and an expository) written by the participants of the study were analyzed. The results indicated a hierarchy of use of discourse markers in both essay types with elaborative markers (mainly “and”) the most frequently connectors used in both essay types. Next came contrastive and inferential markers; reason, exemplifier, and conclusive markers, respectively, were the least frequently used connectors. The results, moreover, indicated that, on the whole, the mean of discourse marker use was significantly higher in argumentative essays than in expository essays. As for discourse marker categories, contrastive and conclusive markers were used more frequently in argumentative than in expository essays. The results, nonetheless, showed that the use of discourse markers cannot be a significant predictor of the writing quality in argumentative and expository compositions of Iranian undergraduate EFL students.

Using Models in Writing Instruction

Models are commonly employed in both first (L1) and second language (L2) writing classrooms; however, questions remain concerning the role of this inductive technique in students’ genre learning. The study reported here examines the effect of two instructional techniques (models and models combined with explicit instruction) on the ability of three groups of writers (native speakers of English, higher proficiency nonnative speakers, and lower proficiency nonnative speakers) to produce a specially constructed essay type. Using a controlled/posttest design with stimulated recall data, the study found that those students receiving models were outperformed on Essay 1, Essay 2 (1 week later), and a Quiz (1 month later) by those students who received models in combination with explicit instruction. Implications for L2 writing instruction are discussed.