Small-scale Research Research Articles

Perspectives of the degree project: Small-scale action research in Swedish higher education

The degree project in educational sciences constitutes the pre-service teacher students' final academic achievement in the Bridging Teacher Education Programme at a university in Sweden. The degree project is complicated or a possibility because this university thesis constitutes only one part of the professional degree. The other part of the thesis project, a BA/BSc or MA/MSc, has been acknowledged as previous academic achievement, a required academic qualification for enrolment in the programme. A further difficulty or opportunity is that students' previous theses were achieved in academic disciplines not typically related to teacher education, sometimes several decades ago. This study aimed to visualise the notion of degree project in bridging teacher education. Our initial questions were: Could the transition between academic disciplines be facilitated? Could knowledge of degree project genres be visualised to enhance academic achievement? What is professional development for student teachers? In the actual study, the scope was limited to perspectives of the degree project and suggestions for improvement of degree project design. Thus, in participatory inquiry conversations, small groups of students and lecturers shared their perspectives of the degree project, and provided suggestions for improvement of the project design. Findings from qualitative analysis of the audio recorded data revealed students’ difficulties in conceptualising the writing assignment, mainly due to unpreparedness. Means of addressing the unpreparedness emerged as task-sequencing throughout the study programme, applying an academic literacies approach. Implications for further action research and teaching are participatory inquiry conversations as continual components in the study programme. A further area of potential investigation is application of instructional design theory to degree project supervision.

Cross-linguistic influence: The role of L1 and L2 differences in acquiring second language

This article discusses the role of first language and second language differences in second language acquisition process of L2 learners. This small scale research focuses on finding answers to three main questions: a) what are the main reasons for transferring L1 knowledge into L2; b) what should learners do to deal with this problem; and c) when does transfer start to diminish. The participants of this study are 21 students who are studying in their eleventh grade. According to the analysis of results, (1) main reasons for language transfer are different language structures and not enough knowledge in target language (knowledge gap in the target language) these, in turn, can slow down language learning pace of learners; to deal with the problem (2) learners should devote much time to learning (analyzing speeches, listening to podcasts, reading authentic articles, communicating with native speakers) and expose to L2 as much as possible, finally, (3) the influence of their first language has diminished significantly after time passed, but it didn’t disappear fully.

GENDER VARIABLE IN REALIZATION OF DIRECTIVE SPEECH ACTS

This paper deals with the gender variable in realization of directive speech acts, such as requests, suggestions, advice etc. The sample for this small-scale research consists of 328 instances of directive speech acts which are excerpted from the transcripts of selected dialogues of the popular US sitcom Friends and five American feature-length films. Directive speech acts are analyzed using Blum-Kulka et al’s classification (1989) and divided into three broad categories – direct, conventionally indirect, and non-conventionally indirect with many subcategories. The focus of this paper will be on direct strategies typically expressed with imperatives and on conventionally indirect directives usually expressed with interrogative sentences which include a suggestory formula and preparatory strategies, with special emphasis on their use in male and female language. The goal of the paper is to analyze and compare gender preferences in using different strategies for the realization of directives, with the assumption that women will be more thoughtful of the hearer’s face and use indirect forms more frequently than men. This is in line with Holmes’s (1995) characterization of women’s speech as more polite than men’s. The paper will analyze the use of these directive strategies in F-F interactions, M-M interac- tions, M-F interactions and F-M interactions. The illustrative examples will be analyzed using the theory of speech acts and politeness theory, using qualitative, quantitative and comparative research methods.

Dengue Infected Patients in Local Population of Lahore

Over the past 20 years, dengue fever's demographic characteristics have significantly altered in Pakistan. Different facets of particular epidemics have been covered in small-scale research from around the nation during this time. However, there is a dearth of information on the country's general trend of dengue virus infection. Objectives: To examine liver function test of dengue infected patients, age and gender wise distribution of dengue virus infected patients. Methods: During August-November 2011, patients with clinical presentation of DF, who came to Emergency department of Mayo Hospital Lahore, were included in this study. Total 64 patients were included in this study and LFTs were performed photometrically to see the effect of dengue virus infection on liver of affected patients during early days of infection from 2-7 days. Results: Out of 64 patients, 47 were males and 17 were females. Dengue fever was more common among the age group of 16-25 years and less common among children and older age group. All the patients had low platelet level with 29 patients had complaint of bleeding. Serum raised level of ALT and ALP was observed in some patients. Conclusions: Presently widespread throughout the year with a high frequency in the post-monsoon season, dengue fever is currently endemic in Pakistan. The median patient age for dengue has dropped, and younger patients, particularly men, may be more vulnerable. Total and differential leukocyte counts can assist identify individuals who are at risk for bleeding, and LFTs can show whether dengue virus infection has an impact on the liver.

Half a Loaf is better than none: A Qualitative Study of Investors in a Developing Country

The study is conducted to explore the available investment avenues when the market is highly volatile, the interest rate is high, and contractionary monetary policy is in place by the central bank. A phenomenological research design was used to conduct the study. Data were collected from ten finance professionals who were full time investors with more than five years of experience. Data was collected through structured interviews, and thematic analysis was applied for data analysis. The validity of the data was checked through member checking and reviewed by an expert in the field of investment and economic policy. The themes reported that the safest investment avenue available at present is fixed deposits, but there is a hurdle of strict tax laws. Investors are not clear about the future direction of the present Government. Small scale private investors, students, and researchers studying Government policies may be benefited from the findings of this research to formulate their investment strategies. This study helps the potential investor to better invest in the most suitable avenues available when the market is highly uncertain and the policies of the Government are rigid. The study fills the gap as there is a lack of research in Pakistan in this context.

THE FUNCTIONS OF CODE-SWITCHING USED DURING THE STUDENT-TEACHER INTERACTIONS IN THE CLASSROOMS: OBSERVATIONS AND IMPACTS

The alternation among a number of languages within a stretch of language, recognized as "code-switching" (CS), is considered a valuable strategy for bilinguals in trying to make linguistic choices for purposes of communication. According to different points of view, code-switching can be viewed as a strategy to communicate meanings at the macro scale (such as identity, solidarity, etc.) or as an attempt to convey intended meaning to the hearer within the limits of conversational interaction at the micro-scale. Even though code-switching is widely accepted as a strategy for bilingual speakers, its application in foreign language learning remains controversial. However, recent researchers have emphasized its potential. This small-scale research looks at code-switching by students and teachers in an English as a foreign language lesson at Jordan University. Dialogue analysis was employed to analyze sample extracts and transcripts' code-switching occurrences. The results indicate that code-switching is being used by students and teachers to obtain access to language or as a classroom management method. This study also shows that code-switching can be utilized by learners to avoid L2 when the lesson content is irrelevant to them. In such cases, code-switching does not achieve its potential as a discourse strategy, and learning languages is unlikely to be facilitated.

Innovative Approaches in Teaching English Writing to Chinese Speakers: Book Review

Innovative Approaches in Teaching English Writing to Chinese Speakers, edited by Barry Lee Reynolds and Mark Feng Teng and published by De Gruyter Mouton in 2021, addresses the needs and directions for innovation in English writing teaching. Based on the Chinese-speaking contexts, its empirical studies highlight teacher-researchers’ attempts on pedagogical innovations, showcasing stakeholders’ attitudes and perceptions regarding these approaches. The book illustrates the shared features and challenges of the assessment-driven teaching of English writing. Its collection of qualitative studies and small-scale action research significantly provides deeper insights into innovative English writing teaching. Additionally, it includes practical suggestions for future reforms of curriculum designs, pedagogies, and education systems in the regions. Thus, it benefits various readers concerned with the design, process, and outcome of teaching English writing. This book review summarizes the eleven chapters firstly. It critically discusses three critical issues in the volume. This review concludes with an overall evaluation of this book’s contribution to the innovation of teaching English writing.

Get ready...get set...go! A new entrant programme for social workers in mental health

INTRODUCTION: Previous research has found that many social work new graduates donot feel that they come to their work in mental health with sufficient knowledge. One way of remedying this is using post-qualifying New Entrant to Specialist Programmes (NESP), where social workers gain additional knowledge and skills in a particular field of practice. METHODS: A small-scale research project was conducted with five social workers whohad recently completed a NESP qualification within a district health board (DHB) setting in Aotearoa New Zealand. Semi-structured interviews were used to obtain deep information from participants in line with a subjectivist perspective. FINDINGS: Participants indicated that they had found the NESP qualification useful in improving their confidence and competence in their early practice years. They found the programmewas useful in decreasing a sense of isolation by bringing them together with other social workers, or members of other disciplines, and they appreciated the skills and support they had received from their group supervision experience. The greatest challenges revolved around time constraints and they wished for more social-work-specific and cultural content within their programmes. CONCLUSIONS: The programmes appear to serve an important function in improving competence and confidence for social workers new to the field of mental health. Social work’s commitments to social justice and Te Tiriti o Waitangi need to continue to be pulled through into post-qualifying programmes and a sense of professional identity needs to be nurtured within medically oriented settings.

THE TEACHERS` AND STUDENTS` AWARENESS OF STEM EDUCATION PRACTICED IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE IN KAZAKHSTANI SPECIALIZED SCHOOLS

This article highlights the vital role of teaching STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) in English in Kazakhstani secondary schools specialized in science and explores teachers` and students’ knowledge and awareness of STEM education practiced in English. The data reflected in this article is based on small-scale research held through the survey conducted among 149 Kazakhstani secondary school learners with in-depth study in math,physics and biology and interviews with 3 content teachers who practice teaching STEM subjects in English in schools specialized in science. The resultsof the survey demonstrate that students` general knowledge about a term of STEM is relatively low. Also, the results of the interview with teachers show that the STEM approach is applied through English in specialized schools and participants relate this approach to other methods such as PBL and CLIL. It provides encouraging expectations for further study and implementation of integrated STEM education with ELT in Kazakhstani secondary schools.

‘Ikke skade treet': ‘Don’t harm the tree'. Narratives from a Norwegian kindergarten

ABSTRACT Outdoor pedagogies have gained significant traction in Early Childhood Education over the years and European traditions represent a cultural norm in what is generally referred to as Scandinavian outdoor pedagogies. This small-scale ethnographic research adopted an interpretative methodological approach and afforded opportunities to observe young preschool children engaging in an outdoor, allotment, Garden School in the centre of Oslo Norway. Here we were in the privileged position to capture moments vis a vis the environment, and whilst we acknowledge traditional child led discourses, affiliated with healthy child development, we also envisaged a world where children engaged in post-anthropocentric entanglements with human and non-human kinships.

Gender as performance, experience, identity and, variable: A systematic review of gender research in jazz and improvisation

There is growing interest in examining the gendered nature of music practices worldwide. Recent investigations of access to and equity in the music industry have included studies of gender discrimination in classical music, popular music, film music, and within the structure of colonization. This article contributes to this work by reporting the findings of a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) of research that addresses the gendered nature of jazz and improvised music practices in education settings, ensembles, and professional performance environments. Our purpose was to generate an understanding of the phenomenon of gendered jazz and improvised music practices through the following research questions: (1) what is the scope and focus of existing empirical research on gender in jazz and improvised music? (2) where has this research been undertaken, by whom, and to what purpose? (3) what methodological approaches have been employed? (4) how has gender been understood in this research? Findings indicate that research on gender in the jazz and improvisation sector is largely undertaken by women researchers working individually within the Euro-Anglosphere (US, UK, Australia). The majority of studies were undertaken in the qualitative paradigm with autoethnographies, case studies, ethnography, and narrative inquiry as the dominant research approaches. A small number of studies used quantitative or mixed methods with gender as the key variable. By contrast, qualitative studies focused on gendered accounts of working in the jazz and improvisation sector providing deeply personal narratives via artistic research, as illustrations of how larger institutional and societal factors shape the experiences of the individual. Given this personal focus, explicit referencing to theoretical frameworks was de-emphasized in the papers reviewed. Our discussion focuses on the individual and institutional factors that might account for these patterns of research and knowledge production as a way of framing past and present understandings of issues relating to gender in jazz and improvised music. We argue that small-scale qualitative research needs to be supported by larger-scale intersectional investigation into systemic or institutionalized phenomena that investigates how gender marginalization is enabled through these structures. Recommendations for further research, policy and practice are provided.

Sanksi Pidana Penyebar Berita Bohong (Analisis Putusan Pengadilan Negeri Padangsidimpuan Nomor 148/Pid.Sus/2021/PN Psp).

The problem in this study is that the current judge's decision or court decision provides sanctions to perpetrators of crimes or violations according to the author, which does not provide a deterrent effect on perpetrators, so that these sanctions do not create a deterrent effect for perpetrators who commit crimes or violations. Therefore, crimes or violations are currently increasingly prevalent in everyday life. This type of research is a field research (Field Research), which is a research conducted in the real life arena, while the data needed is about theories regarding the law of spreading fake news where the research observes and participates directly in small-scale social research and observes the subject/object of the research. The results of this study are that Yanharis Bangsawan or the Defendant was right to have spread fake news on social media Facebook during the trial, the accusations made by the defendant against the victim were not proven to be true when the trial the judge also examined the chronology. Therefore, judges may not impose sanctions or decide on a case in a trial by themselves, it takes a certain consideration and reasons. The judge gives the sanction of the decision in a trial. However, the reason for the judge Number 148/Pid.Sus/2021/PN Psp, according to the author, is still lacking because the defendant has never been convicted or committed a criminal act, the sanction is reduced even though in this case the defendant had the intention of committing a criminal act.

Engaging students online: an analysis of students’ motivations for seeking individual learning development support

This presentation outlines the key findings of a small-scale research project aimed to explore the motivations for student engagement in self-selecting learning development (LD) online tutorials. The study used a mixed methods approach, including an online survey (n=43) and online interview (n=5). The recruitment invitation was emailed to all users booking a tutorial (n=390) within the project timeframe (October 2020-April 2021). Findings show that the main driver for engagement reported was participants’ limited confidence in their own academic writing abilities, which was consistently linked to attainment. Engagement was further motivated through a range of perceived impacts, including improved confidence and awareness of academic conventions. Participants reported a generally positive attitude towards online delivery, with key benefits including removing access barriers for students with complex commitments, travel and health issues. Conversely, the main downside of online tutorials was seen as diminished interpersonal contact. Qualitative data from both survey and interviews were further investigated using a Discourse analysis framework. One key finding was that the path to LD engagement is often mediated by academic authority figures, who may exert a significant impact on learner self-views. The presentation was designed to initiate discussion on the implications of these findings for learning developers. One area of reflection I planned to submit for the participants’ consideration is how lessons learned from the enforced pivoting to online delivery can underpin the developmental dimension of LD, with the ultimate goal of promoting learner confidence and growth.

Using empathetic-reflective-dialogical re-storying as a teaching-learning strategy to confront xenophobic attitudes in a context of higher education

Xenophobia poses a threat to social cohesion in South Africa. It is vital that pre-service teachers engage with their beliefs and attitudes about this phenomenon, so that they can promote socially inclusive education in a way that is sustainable. In support of the March 2019 National Action Plan in South Africa to address racism, including xenophobia, we recently undertook a small-scale research project, underpinned by the notions of diversity and inclusivity, at a Higher Education Institution, in the School of Education. In this article, we offer a methodological contribution in arguing for the efficacy of empathetic-reflective-dialogical re-storying as a teaching-learning strategy that contributes to transformed teaching praxis. This could provide a pathway to social inclusivity for education. This teaching-learning strategy serves a decolonial agenda in changing the way in which teaching-learning takes place. We explored various perspectives and positions with regard to the other in the interests of building a sustainable foundation for future generations to live with dignity, regardless of ethnicity.

Swiss Multilingualism and Global English: Bourdieusian Capitals in Contestation

ABSTRACT This paper reports on a small-scale research study into the beliefs of teenagers in Switzerland on Swiss national languages and their status relative to English. High school students (n = 232) in the French-speaking city of Lausanne completed a questionnaire about the economic, social, cultural and symbolic value of German, Italian and English. The data was then analysed quantitatively by computing the means, standard deviations, significance, and effect sizes, and interpreted in relation to the capitals of Bourdieu. The findings corroborate previous studies on the widespread and shared high value ascribed to English for economic, social, cultural and symbolic purposes. They also reveal, however, a solid respect and support for Swiss multilingualism. The study thus suggests that the students’ high estimation of English is not at the expense of the national languages, German and Italian. Even though students value Swiss multilingualism, they nevertheless rank the economic capital of German higher than Italian. Finally, the apparent accommodation of English beside national languages is explained in regard to the Swiss multilingual tradition.

Evaluation of Arts-Based Performance Tasks in Hybrid Classes

Performance tasks are the major requirements that senior high school students demonstrate, especially from the core art subject, Contemporary Philippine Arts from the Regions (CPAR) in De La Salle Santiago Zobel School (DLSZ). CPAR provides annual strand-based art-integrated exhibitions and performances in various strands in DLSZ. Amidst the ongoing pandemic and the new hybrid concurrent class setup in the setting, three (3) varied art-integrated performance tasks were mounted. The aim of this small-scale ethnographic action research study is to analyze the development of the art-integrated performance tasks through document analysis in the Arts & Design Track, HUMSS, and ABM strands; identify its educational objectives by conducting a structured interview of the teachers involved (u=9); explore the perceptions of the integration from selected students (n=7); and evaluate the success ratings based on the educational objectives of the integration by conducting a survey from the students (n=149) using 5-point Likert scale. Results revealed that the art integration of the subjects is generally perceived as connected and the art-integrated performance tasks from each strand are deemed beneficial, challenging, excellent, and very successful. Further studies are needed to discuss the issues in a larger context and on the socioemotional impact of the students and teachers involved.

EFL Students’ Perceptions of Utilizing Podcasts towards Learning-Teaching Performance

The development of technology contributes to the world of education, such as podcasts. It can be an alternative media for EFL students’ learning-teaching. This research aims to discover the EFL students’ learning-teaching performance through the podcast and explore their perceptions about the use of podcasts in learning-teaching performance. This research design is qualitative descriptive, and the respondents are the International Relations Department in semester three EFL students at the University of Technology Yogyakarta. The questionnaire was used in this study to collect the data. This research has two different questionnaires; the first contains the podcast material, and the second questionnaire contains questions about the perception of learning-teaching performance using podcasts. This research shows that EFL students’ learning-teaching performance using podcasts is good. It is proven by half of the respondents getting scores above the average, 63.82. Besides, EFL students agree that podcasts help their learning-teaching performance and give them new insight, such as new vocabulary. This research is limited to small-scale research, International Relations Department students in semester three. Thus, it is expected to conduct further wide-scale research related to the podcast.

The “Multimodal Literacy in the EFL Classroom” Workshop as a Design for Learning

This paper links Systemic Functional-based multimodal discourse analysis and English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teacher education through the workshop “Multimodal Literacy in the EFL classroom” (MLEFL). Drawing upon ‘multimodal analysis for critical thinking’ (MACT) pedagogy (O’Halloran et al., 2017) and the Systemic Approach to teaching critical viewing (Lim and Tan, 2017, Lim, 2018), MLEFL aims at involving student teachers (STs) in a transformative process through which STs with no previous instruction on multimodality are introduced to multimodal literacy. After being engaged in making meaning through various semiotic resources and conducting multimodal analysis with the use of a pedagogic metalanguage, STs complete a task of representing their new experiences via the process of creating a lesson plan aimed at promoting primary school students’ multimodal literacy. The paper presents MLEFL as a design for learning (Kress and Selander, 2012). It serves two purposes: to present the content and syllabus of the MLEFL workshop and to reflect upon its implementation and effectiveness. The paper reports on the qualitative findings from a small-scale research conducted with twenty pre-service EFL teachers who participated in the four-week workshop in a virtual environment. It investigates STs’ perceptions shared in workshop evaluation forms and participation in the forum as well as their assignments for signs of learning. The analysis of the findings revealed differences in STs’ capacities (Kress, 2010: 175) which support the effectiveness of the workshop. Most STs created lesson plans which promote critical viewing, used the pedagogic metalanguage efficiently and explained the design of their activities with well-informed rationale.

EAP learners’ attitudes towards grammar instruction

The importance of grammar instruction in EAP courses may frequently be downplayed due to an overemphasis on the incidental nature of language learning. As a result, EAP learners’ use of grammar might be neglected or not explicitly or systematically developed. Therefore, this small-scale practitioner research aimed to provide a platform for EAP learners on a pre-sessional course at a UK university to express their attitudes regarding the satisfaction of their grammar learning needs. Ninety-three students participated in a questionnaire, followed by a focus group interview. The findings revealed that the learners strongly supported the inclusion of more grammar on an EAP course, particularly in the form of clearer error correction practices, including the correction of spoken errors. The results, strengthened by the findings from the relevant literature, have important implications for EAP provision on similar courses. This article was published open access under a CC BY licence: https://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0.

The potential of contrastive analysis in the study of discourse

The article focuses on contemporary trends in contrastive studies. As a point of departure the nature, history and evolution of contrastive linguistics are examined. Contrastive linguistics is viewed in relation to other disciplines such as comparative linguistics, comparative historical linguistics, linguistic typology, theory of translation, and foreign language teaching. Any aspect of language may be covered in cross-linguistic studies which involve a systematic comparison of two or more languages both at micro-linguistic and macro-linguistic level. The current trends are identified in terms of macro-linguistic widening of contrastive analysis which is applied in studies of specialized discourses such as media, political and academic communication. The findings are based on a small-scale research of contrastive studies published in Contrastive Linguistics, the oldest international journal for contrastive linguistics. By conducting quantitative and qualitative analysis and employing a diachronic approach conclusions are drawn about the need for the contrastive approach at macro-level, the type of linguistic phenomena studied and the preferred methods of contrastive analysis within a period of forty-six years. The findings show that there is only a slight increase in macro-linguistic analyses in recent years, but contrastive analysis remains a vibrant area of research with a potential for development at discourse level in particular and implications for intercultural understanding and tolerance.