Global Language Research Articles

Language exposure practices among Hasidic Yiddish-Hebrew speaking children – in support of Yiddish vitality in Israel

Ultra-Orthodox Hasidic communities in Israel maintain the use of Yiddish as a prestigious language, connecting generations and preserving the communities’ traditional way of living (Hary and BenorBerlin, 2019)). Yiddish, the Community Language (CL), is supported within the family and the Hasidic community outside the family, while Hebrew, the Majority Language (ML), is used with members outside the community. Hasidic communities present a unique model of bilingualism to be discussed within the framework of the Ethno-linguistic Vitality Theory (Giles et al., 1977). The current study presents language exposure practices among bilingual Yiddish-Hebrew-speaking children in Israel and aims to reveal its possible influence on both language abilities and the communities’ vitality.Thirty-five parents and children (aged 37 months–80 months) participated in the study. Parents filled out the Bilingual Parents' Questionnaire (BIPAQ) (Abutbul-Oz and Armon-Lotem, 2022) addressing the children’s language-exposure practices as well as linguistic abilities and children's ML-Hebrew abilities were assessed with the Goralnik (2009) standardized test. Results indicated higher exposure to Yiddish when significant differences between daily hours of exposure for each language, number of months in an educational setting of CL-Yiddish and ML-Hebrew as well as the richness of the languages the children are exposed to. Furthermore, interpersonal exchanges conducted in CL-Yiddish outside the family supported Yiddish and influenced ML-Hebrew abilities; more usage of Yiddish with grandparents, teachers and peers was related to lower results of ML-Hebrew assessment whereas Yiddish use with younger siblings was related to higher evaluation of Yiddish abilities. Support of CL-Yiddish usage combined with its prestigious status and demographic characteristics of the Hasidic communities suggests a high vitality of the Yiddish-speaking community in Israel and its success in maintaining its language despite the dominance of the majority language (Hebrew).

Investigating the roles of Short - Term Memory in The Process of Learning Interpretation for English Linguistics Students at HUIT

This study examines the intricate relationship between Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry and Trade's (HUIT) English linguistics final-year students' short-term memory and interpretive skills. Interpretation, a key skill in linguistics, is essential to language understanding and translation; hence, linguistic education must include it. This study analyses how HUIT English linguistics students employ short-term memories to influence their interpretation learning and the relevance of such influences. Quantitative methods examined this complex relationship between short-term memory and interpretive learning. Memory, language proficiency, and simulated interpretation exams were given to many HUIT English linguistics seniors. Correlation studies and regression models were used to determine how short-term memory affects interpretation performance. Current research emphasises short-term memory for comprehension. Students understood more with better short-term memory. This group processed language faster, recalled better, and grasped verbal intricacies. The study also found classroom methods adopted by students with good recall. These findings can help us focus and improve our interpretation skills in sessions. Understanding how important short-term memory is helps teachers help pupils remember and evaluate what they hear. This study enhances interpretation education, which may help meet the global language professional need.

PROBLEMS FACED BY STUDENTS IN SPEAKING ENGLISH

English is an international or global language that individuals from different regions or countries use to help them understand and interact with one another. Indonesian is the national language of Indonesia. One of the language skills that students need to be proficient is speaking, as speaking is the most crucial aspect of the objectives for learning Indonesian. The first goal of this study is to determine students' difficulties in speaking English, and the second is to look for possible remedies. In this research, a case study methodology was carried out. Students of class XII at one of public senior high schools in Tarakan served as the research subjects. Of the 36 students, only 28 per cent (10) were deemed to speak. This study revealed that students' challenges when speaking English are primarily related to a deficiency of vocabulary, challenging grammar, and challenging pronunciation.

Are Emotions Conveyed Across Machine Translations? Establishing an Analytical Process for the Effectiveness of Multilingual Sentiment Analysis with Italian Text


 
 
 Abstract Natural language processing (NLP) is being widely used globally for a variety of value-creation tasks ranging from chat-bots and machine translations to sentiment and topic analysis and multilingual large language models (LLMs). However, most of the advances are initially implemented within the English language framework, and it takes time and resources to develop comparable resources in other languages. The advances in machine translations have enabled the rapid and effective conversion of content in global languages into English and vice-versa. This creates potential opportunities to apply English language NLP methods and tools to other languages via machine translations. However, although this idea is powerful, it needs to be validated and processes and best practices need to be developed and kept updated. The present research is an effort to contribute to the development of best practices and an evaluation framework. We present a systematic and repeatable state-of-the-art process to evaluate the viability of applying English language sentiment analysis tools to Italian text by using multiple English language machine translation mechanisms such that it can be easily extended to other languages.
 
 

Motivation of U.S. High School Students in Learning Chinese

This study surveyed 217 American high school students’ motivational factors in learning Chinese and the factors that sustain their learning of this language. In addition, the perceptions of teachers and student focus groups were used to verify, explain and expand the survey findings. Due to the constraint of the space, only quantitative research data and findings are included in this paper. The qualitative research data and findings will be discussed in the future. The findings suggested that the future career prospect connected to China’s economy was one of the most important factors that motivated students to learn Chinese and sustained their motivation. This finding supports the language globalization hypothesis proposed by Dörnyei and Csizer (2002) as such that Chinese is in the process of being changed into a world language due to the growth of China’s economy. In addition, the unique aspect of Chinese language and culture contributes to the challenge of learning Chinese and serves as another important factor to motivate students and sustain their learning. This finding supports self-determination theory (SDT) as learning a challenging subject satisfies learners’ needs for competence. It was found non-Chinese students continued significantly longer in Chinese programs. Heritage is ethnic Chinese students’ most important motivator to learn Chinese and to sustain their learning. The desire to maintain one’s heritage through learning a second language (L2) reflects heritage learners’ need for relatedness to their culture, which is one of human beings’ innate psychological needs according to SDT. More studies on high school students’ motivation for learning Chinese and other less commonly taught languages are needed. This research is intended to provide data for schools in the United States and overseas that are contemplating implementation of a Chinese language program.

How to Teach English Without Cultural Bias

As a global language, English is crucial in international communication, business, and education. However, the issue of cultural bias in English education has gained widespread attention. Cultural bias can lead to difficulties for learners during the educational process, affecting their academic performance and cross-cultural communication skills. This paper investigates how to teach English without cultural bias to promote a more equitable, effective, and inclusive education. In conclusion, English education is crucial in international communication, business, and education in today’s globalized world. However, cultural bias can negatively impact English teaching, leading to difficulties in academic achievement and cross-cultural communication for students. Multicultural education theory and cross-cultural education theory provide a solid theoretical foundation to help us understand and address issues of cultural bias. Both approaches emphasize the importance of cultural diversity and the need for educators to take measures to reflect and respect students from diverse cultural backgrounds. While cultural bias is undeniable, we can create a more inclusive and culturally sensitive English education environment with appropriate methods and strategies, promoting students’ success and cross-cultural understanding. This is essential for achieving more equitable and effective English education to meet the needs of students from diverse cultural backgrounds and to promote cross-cultural communication and cooperation.

Comparing Artificial Intelligence and Senior Residents in Oral Lesion Diagnosis: A Comparative Study.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a field of computer science that seeks to build intelligent machines that can carry out tasks that usually necessitate human intelligence. AI may help dentists with a variety of dental tasks, including clinical diagnosis and treatment planning. This study aims to compare the performance of AI and oral medicine residents in diagnosing different cases, providing treatment, and determining if it is reliable to assist them in their field of work. The study conducted a comparative analysis of the responses from third- and fourth-year residents trained in Oral Medicine and Pathology at King Saud University, College of Dentistry. The residents were given a closed multiple-choice test consisting of 19 questions with four response options labeled A-D and one question with five response options labeled A-E. The test was administered via Google Forms, and each resident's response was stored electronically in an Excel sheet (Microsoft® Corp., Redmond, WA). The residents' answers were then compared to the responses generated by three major language models: OpenAI, Stablediffusion, and PopAI. The questions were inputted into the language models in the same format as the original test, and prior to each question, an artificial intelligence chat session was created to eliminate memory retention bias. The input was done on November 19, 2023, the same day the official multiple-choice test was administered. The study had a sample size of 20 residents trained in Oral Medicine and Pathology at King Saud University, College of Dentistry, consisting of both third-year and fourth-year residents. The responses of three large language models (LLM), including OpenAI, Stablediffusion, and PopAI, as well as the responses of 20 senior residents for 20 clinical cases about oral lesion diagnosis. There were no significant variations observed for the remaining questions in the responses to only two questions (10%). For the remaining questions, there were no significant differences. The median (IQR) score of LLMs was 50.0 (45.0 to 60.0), with a minimum of 40 (for stable diffusion) and a maximum of 70 (for OpenAI). The median (IQR) score of senior residents was 65.0 (55.0-75.0). The highest and lowest scores of residents were 40 and 90, respectively. There was no significant difference in the percent scores of residents and LLMs (p = 0.211). The agreement level was measured using the Kappa value. The agreement among senior dental residents was observed to be weak, with a Kappa value of 0.396. In contrast, the agreement among LLMs demonstrated a moderate level, with a Kappa value of 0.622, suggesting a more cohesive alignment in responses among the artificial intelligence models. When comparing residents' responses with those generated by different OpenAI models, including OpenAI, Stablediffusion, and PopAI, the agreement levels were consistently categorized as weak, with Kappa values of 0.402, 0.381, and 0.392, respectively. What the current study reveals is that when comparing the response score, there is no significant difference, in contrast to the agreement analysis among the residents, which was low compared to the LLMs, in which it was high. Dentists should consider that AI is very beneficial in providing diagnosis and treatment and use it to assist them.

Globalization and College Students’ Attitudes towards Learning English in an Indonesian Context

Learners’ attitudes towards learning English as a global language have been widely discussed, yet little is known about this in Indonesia. This study aims to address this knowledge gap by exploring the responses of Indonesian university students to a survey on their attitudes toward learning English in the context of globalization. A total of 333 students volunteered to participate, representing diverse departments within a faculty at a university in Central Java Province, Indonesia. To collect data, we carefully adapted and designed a questionnaire, which was administered online using Google Forms. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The analysis suggests that college learners and users of English in Indonesia hold a positive attitude towards learning the language. We also provide pedagogical implications.

Legal transcription service in the light of access to justice in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Regional State (SNNPRS) judicial system

This paper focuses on the serious but not well-acknowledged problem related to legal transcript production in SNNPRS High Courts. It sheds light on how distortions of content are made in the testimonies of witnesses to the extent they may affect the legal evidential purpose transcripts could serve. Textual data were collected through audio-recording of court proceedings, review of legal transcripts and interviews. The findings indicated that legal transcription is conducted by employees who had qualification in computer science, but no training in legal transcription and the role that transcripts have in the judicial process. The High Courts of the region employ unilingual and inter-lingual modes of transcription, depending on whether limited court language-proficient witnesses who testify in their native tongue are provided with a court interpreter or not. Major language use problems that are observed in the legal transcripts were found to be attributable to lack of training, and lack of awareness on the part of judges, the judicial system and legal transcribers.

Navigating language maintenance challenges with health professionals: Reflections from Spanish speaking families in Australia

ABSTRACT Parents often worry children will lose their heritage language when their spoken language develops and they transition to majority language environments. With a growing population of Spanish speakers in Australia, increased attendance at childcare and earlier and more frequent exposure to English, there is a need to understand what advice health professionals are imparting to support language maintenance amongst the Spanish speaking community. In this study, I interviewed 13 Chilean and Colombian mothers about the language maintenance challenges they encountered when their children transitioned to majority language environments. I also investigated if they had sought advice from health professionals, what advice they had been provided, and what impact that had on their family language policy. This study showed that parents often adopted different family language policies in spite of, rather than because of, advice from health professionals. The need for more nuanced and informed advice to support language maintenance in the early years warrants further research into professional development and training in multilingual development.

Carbon accounting

The aim of this paper is to present the current state of scientific research in the field ofenvironmental accounting, especially with regard to carbon accounting. To this end, a bibliometricsurvey of 1,035 WoS-indexed publications was conducted, which included specificorganizational and technical activities using the Mendeley Reference Manager and the specializedsoftware VOSviewer. The survey revealed the main contributors to this field accordingto the criteria of the most productive author, the leading journal, the most cited article,the keywords used in the researched articles, as well as the frequency of their appearanceand the geographical locations where the research is focused, highlighting the leading countryin the field of carbon accounting. In addition, the analysis identified 9 clusters in two segmentsfrom the field of economics, and the results show that the topic of carbon accounting isunderrepresented in academic papers and research studies worldwide. Nevertheless, somepublishers, researchers and universities have taken a leadership position from the outset bypositioning themselves as pioneers of zero tolerance for carbon emissions. This may be thefirst bibliometric analysis and systematic review of carbon accounting in scientific papersin the context of Croatian research. The theoretical achievements of the paper open newavenues for other researchers in the studied field. The current scientific insights could bedeepened by further expanding the original assumptions and incorporating searches in theSCOPUS database and other indexed scientific publications in various world languages.

Research on the Role of Artificial Intelligence in the Core of Intelligent Translation Systems

With the development of the world economy and the expansion of foreign trade, the status of English as a global language in English teaching is increasingly elevated, and language translation is an indispensable link. In the new intelligent translation and reading system based on language models, its translation part includes at least one dictionary used for translation. The system includes: reading and writing database, loading module, editing module, label module, trigger module, annotation module, and word addition module. Among them, the read-write database is used to store literature; The loading module is used to load article materials as reading documents. It adopts natural language processing technology to save system translation and reading time and improve system efficiency. In order to test the advantages of the system used in this article, 200 vocabulary words were input into the system and compared with the traditional system for translation accuracy. The translation accuracy of the system in this article was 94.64%, while the translation accuracy of the traditional system was 83.34%. The system in this article helps to improve translation efficiency and enhance reading experience.

Language Policy and English Education in Bangladesh: A Critical Analysis

This research article provides a critical analysis of the intricate relationship between language policy and English education in Bangladesh. With a diverse linguistic landscape comprising Bengali, English, and indigenous languages, the study delves into the historical evolution of language policies from pre-independence to the present day. The impact of socio-economic dynamics and cultural influences on English language education is examined, considering factors such as access to quality education, language proficiency, and the role of English as a global language. Government initiatives and challenges in implementing language policies are scrutinized, providing insights into curriculum frameworks, teacher training, and societal attitudes. The implications of these policies on English education, including proficiency levels, employment prospects, and international competitiveness, are critically analyzed. The article concludes by offering recommendations for refining language policies, fostering linguistic diversity, and addressing emerging challenges in the evolving educational landscape of Bangladesh. This research contributes to the ongoing discourse on language policy and education, providing a nuanced understanding of the complexities involved in balancing linguistic diversity with the global importance of English in the context of Bangladesh.

The Activities Conducted on Students from Vernacular Background to Improve Their English Communication.

Scholars and educators have begun re-evaluating the approaches and objectives of teaching English in diverse contexts due to its widespread usage across various sectors and its status as a global language. This study examined Indian University students' views about the English language and their identity development and negotiation throughout their English language learning process. 25 respondents filled out a questionnaire, which was used to gather data. The study analysed how English is taught and learned in light of students' academic and professional requirements and interests. The study found that students thought activities would help them academically and professionally. Finally, the researcher recommended preparing activity-based teaching materials that fit students' needs and interests.

Prospects and Obstacles on the Path of Chinese’s Rise as a Global Language in the Context of the Internet

Abstract In this paper, the video retrieval technique based on model migration makes full use of the migration learning technique to build a text encoder and video encoder to obtain text and video features. The text is preprocessed based on the BERT model, and text features are extracted by combining TF-IDF and mutual information. The logistic regression algorithm is applied to achieve text classification. The text mining techniques above are used to parse YouTube Chinese learning resources to extract their dissemination features. The results show that 5,286 (61.48%) of YouTube Chinese learning resources are from the category of “education,” and 2,294 (26.68%) are from the category of “people and blogs.” The video resources category is the most popular and loved category among learners due to its highest average number of views (1238214.3). The dissemination is significantly impacted by teachers’ performance, vivid language, and interaction during the teaching process. The indirect effect value test between online interaction, technical support, and resource quality, as well as satisfaction and intention to continue using, met the criterion of significance (p<0.05). It indicates that perceived usefulness has a significant indirect effect (P<0.01) on the impact of knowledge dissemination. This study clarifies the dissemination influences that led to the rise of Chinese resources in the global context.

The importance of the English language as a global language and methods of learning

The importance of the English language as a global language and methods of learning

Modern approach to studying the language situation: slavic experience and Ukrainian realities

The article analyzes the use of the phrase language situation (linguistic situation) in diffe rent national scientific traditions and approaches to describing the language situation in Slavic countries. It was found that, despite the similarity of the general definitions of this concept, in specific studies the attention is mainly focused on one of three possible aspects — the relationship between the functioning of various idioms within society, the situation with the use of a certain idiom in a certain territory or in a certain community or on the intra- language proper situation, that is, the internal differentiation of language to meet the va- rious needs of society. The choice of research direction is determined primarily by the con- figuration of the language situation itself, i.e., whether it is endo- or exogenous, whether the state language has an established literary tradition and traditions of stylistic differentia- tion, a powerful dialect base, how widespread it is outside the range of the main distribu- tion of the language, etc. Ukrainian society is characterized as being in the process of transformation from an exogenous (characterized by mass bilingualism) to a predominantly endogenous (predomi- nance of the Ukrainian language) language situation. In this regard, there is a great need for research related to the analysis of language behavior of persons who are on the path of changing language preferences. Against the background of active migration processes pro- voked by the war, the problem of language adaptation of previously Russian-speaking citi- zens in a new language environment for them and the functioning of the Ukrainian lan- guage outside of Ukraine (as a diaspora and foreign language) becomes especially important. Given the limited possibility of making statistically reliable quantitative measurements of the language situation, the importance of studying individual language biographies of persons who have changed or are changing their language behavior is increasing. Keywords: language situation, language behavior, language policy, Slavic countries, language functioning, language corpus planning, majority language, minority language, Ukrainian lan- guage abroad.

Examining the Demographic, Socio-cultural, and Economic Dimensions of In-migrant Construction Workers: A Case Study on Internal Migration Trends, Working Conditions, and Quality of Life

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) of the United Nations, the global scenario for the number of international migrants increased to 281 million in 2020, meaning that 3.6% of the world's population lived outside their country of birth in that year. The objective of the study demographic condition of the internal migration population, working conditions of in migrant construction workers, inmigrant construction workers socio culture condition, psychological condition, the consequences and problems faced unorganized migrant construction workers. The research study adopted Descriptive Research design for the present study because the primary of the study is to attain information concerning the existing status of quality of life of migrant construction workers. The researcher moved to another location with the reference of previous contact, in the way, snowball sampling method was used to access the required number of population. It was noted that the majority of the construction workers were semi-skilled and were illiterate. Most of the respondents spoke Hindi as their major language, 38 percent of them spoke Oriya. The workers are said to be receiving monthly wages and the majority of them have a monthly income of up to Rs.10,000 on a average. It was identified that construction workers migrated from other states at 19 to 25 years. Temporary migrants migrating with their families are found to be higher. Among the migrant construction workers within the age group of 26 to 35 years migrate more than others. Sizeable size 94 percent of the respondents belong to the male category, most of the people working as a construction labourers are married. Among the in-migrant construction workers, migrants from Odisha are more in number, followed by people from West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and other states. The Hindu community is dominated in number compared to Muslim and Christian community.

The Politics of the Welsh Language and Sounds in The Silent Village (1943, dir. Humphrey Jennings)

The Silent Village (Humphrey Jennings, 1943) is a semi-documentary based on the infamous massacre of Lidice, perpetrated in June 1942 in retaliation for the assassination of SS-Obergruppenführer Heydrich by Czechoslovak resistance fighters. Instead of Czechoslovakia, the film takes place in the mining village of Cwmgiedd in South Wales, where Welsh was the majority language. Although only a minority of the UK population spoke Welsh, Jennings decided to keep most dialogues untranslated for two reasons: to lend the film “authenticity”, and because it might suggest that it was Czech. However, considering Welsh through the sole prism of its proximity with Czech would be missing part of the film’s point. In fact, The Silent Village can be read as containing myriad political messages expressed through the treatment of the Welsh language and the sounds associated with the community of Cwmgiedd: resistance to the German enemy, but also the struggle for linguistic and cultural diversity and against the policy of linguistic assimilation implemented by the British government.

Jezički pejzaž mesta Kovačica

In researching the linguistic landscape of Kovačica, we analyze the linguistic diversity of this multicultural town with a focus on both official and public inscriptions. The aim was to ascertain how minority language policies regulate public language use, as well as to examine whether one of the languages is more dominant than the other and whether a certain language is used for certain domains. The research corpus consisted of 152 photographs and accompanying notes taken during fieldwork. Through a detailed analysis of the corpus, we come to the conclusion that the linguistic landscape of the town of Kovačica is diverse and in accordance with the structure of the population and the languages that are in official use in the territory of the municipality of Kovačica. Regarding official inscriptions, we notice that Serbian, as the official and majority language in the Republic of Serbia, is more dominant than Slovak, except for some situations, for example street names and inscriptions on local historical monuments. On the other hand, the Romanian and Hungarian languages appear only on official signs as a feature of a multinational municipality in which four languages are in official use, which means that those two languages do not appear in other domains of the language landscape of Kovačica. In addition, English is becoming more prevalent in the official language landscape of Kovačica, especially in the tourist sector, which reflects the impact of globalization and the need to communicate with a wider international audience. When public written signs are concerned, our analysis shows the indisputable dominance of the Serbian language, which indicates a tendency towards monolingualism in the public space. In addition, there are occasional deviations in the spelling and correct use of both the Serbian and Slovak languages in the public space. Overall, the linguistic landscape of Kovačica reflects the town's rich traditional culture and confirms that the official use of languages is in line with Serbian legislation, but the private sphere does indicate a gradual shift from multilingualism towards monolingualism.