Evaluating Theories of Language

Evaluating Theories of Language

Author: Karen Dodd

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2008-04-30

Total Pages: 218

ISBN-13: 0470698551

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One approach to the study of language has been to describe people whose ability to communicate is impaired. Some researchers have argued that it is possible to identify the component mental processes that contribute to the ability to communicate by describing the ways in which language can break down. Other researchers have expressed doubts about the extent to which data from impairment reflects normal language function. This volume reflects the problems of constructing theory of how the normal brain deals with language from data from impaired individuals from the perspective of a range of disciplines: psycholinguistics, linguistics, neurophysiology and speech-language pathology. The chapters include critiques of methodology; application of new technology; the study of bilingual people; and cross-linguistic studies. A range of language skills is discussed (phonology, prosody, syntax, semantics, reading and spelling) in the context of both developmental and acquired impairments (hearing loss, cerebellar dysarthria, sub-cortical aphasia, cortical aphasia, phonological disorder, and dyslexia). This book icludes contributions from researchers and clinicians on both sides of the Atlantic as well as from Australia and Hong Kong.


The Cambridge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition

The Cambridge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition

Author: Julia Herschensohn

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2018-09-06

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781108733748

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What is language and how can we investigate its acquisition by children or adults? What perspectives exist from which to view acquisition? What internal constraints and external factors shape acquisition? What are the properties of interlanguage systems? This comprehensive 31-chapter handbook is an authoritative survey of second language acquisition (SLA). Its multi-perspective synopsis on recent developments in SLA research provides significant contributions by established experts and widely recognized younger talent. It covers cutting edge and emerging areas of enquiry not treated elsewhere in a single handbook, including third language acquisition, electronic communication, incomplete first language acquisition, alphabetic literacy and SLA, affect and the brain, discourse and identity. Written to be accessible to newcomers as well as experienced scholars of SLA, the Handbook is organised into six thematic sections, each with an editor-written introduction.


Theory of Language

Theory of Language

Author: Steven Weisler

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2000

Total Pages: 370

ISBN-13: 9780262731256

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Along with coverage of phonics, phonology, morphology, semantics and syntax, the text covers more unconventional topics including language and culture, and language evolution."--BOOK JACKET.


Language Assessment Literacy

Language Assessment Literacy

Author: Dina Tsagari

Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing

Published: 2020-04-21

Total Pages: 332

ISBN-13: 152754978X

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The field of language testing and assessment has recognized the importance and underlying theoretical and practical underpinnings of language assessment literacy (LAL), an area that is gradually coming to prominence. This book addresses issues that promote the concept of LAL for language research, teaching, and learning, covering a range of topics. It brings together 14 chapters based on high-stakes and classroom-based studies authored by academics, professionals and researchers in the field. The text examines diverse issues through a multifaceted approach, presenting high-quality contributions that fill a gap in a research area that has long been in need of theoretical and empirical attention.


Critical Thinking in Psychology

Critical Thinking in Psychology

Author: Robert J. Sternberg

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 297

ISBN-13: 0521845890

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Explores key topics in psychology, showing how they can be critically examined.


Language Description Informed by Theory

Language Description Informed by Theory

Author: Rob Pensalfini

Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company

Published: 2014-01-15

Total Pages: 405

ISBN-13: 9027270910

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This volume explores how linguistic theories inform the ways in which languages are described. Theories, as representations of linguistic categories, guide the field linguist to look for various phenomena without presupposing their necessary existence and provide the tools to account for various sets of data across different languages. A goal of linguistic description is to represent the full range of language structures for any given language. The chapters in this book cover various sub-disciplines of linguistics including phonetics, phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, language acquisition, and anthropological linguistics, drawing upon theoretical approaches such as prosodic Phonology, Enhancement theory, Distributed Morphology, Minimalist syntax, Lexical Functional Grammar, and Kinship theory. The languages described in this book include Australian languages (Pama-Nyungan and non-Pama-Nyungan), Romance languages as well as English. This volume will be of interest to researchers in both descriptive and theoretical linguistics.


The Language of Evaluation

The Language of Evaluation

Author: J. Martin

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2007-09-27

Total Pages: 291

ISBN-13: 0230511910

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This is the first comprehensive account of the Appraisal Framework. The underlying linguistic theory is explained and justified, and the application of this flexible tool, which has been applied to a wide variety of text and discourse analysis issues, is demonstrated throughout by sample text analyses from a range of registers, genres and fields.


Learning-Oriented Language Assessment

Learning-Oriented Language Assessment

Author: Atta Gebril

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2021-05-11

Total Pages: 222

ISBN-13: 1000378462

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This collection brings together research on learning-oriented language assessment from scholars working across geographic and educational contexts, highlighting the opportunities of assessment practices which seek to better align assessment and learning tasks and support effective learning. The volume begins by introducing learning-oriented assessment (LOA) and the context around its growing popularity, especially in accountability-oriented settings which favor summative large-scale tests. The first part of the book charts the development of LOA’s theoretical and conceptual underpinnings, outlining the ways in which they have been informed by theories of learning and key elements. The second part demonstrates LOA in practice, drawing on examples from different countries and instructional settings to explore such topics as the role of technology in LOA and developing feedback materials based around LOA principles and developed for core literacy skills. Offering a holistic view of learning-oriented assessment and the real-world affordances and challenges of its implementation, this book is key reading for graduate students, researchers, and practitioners in language testing and assessment, TESOL, and language education.


Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications

Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications

Author: Daniel L. Stufflebeam

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2014-10-13

Total Pages: 800

ISBN-13: 111807405X

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The golden standard evaluation reference text Now in its second edition, Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications is the vital text on evaluation models, perfect for classroom use as a textbook, and as a professional evaluation reference. The book begins with an overview of the evaluation field and program evaluation standards, and proceeds to cover the most widely used evaluation approaches. With new evaluation designs and the inclusion of the latest literature from the field, this Second Edition is an essential update for professionals and students who want to stay current. Understanding and choosing evaluation approaches is critical to many professions, and Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications, Second Edition is the benchmark evaluation guide. Authors Daniel L. Stufflebeam and Chris L. S. Coryn, widely considered experts in the evaluation field, introduce and describe 23 program evaluation approaches, including, new to this edition, transformative evaluation, participatory evaluation, consumer feedback, and meta-analysis. Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications, Second Edition facilitates the process of planning, conducting, and assessing program evaluations. The highlighted evaluation approaches include: Experimental and quasi-experimental design evaluations Daniel L. Stufflebeam's CIPP Model Michael Scriven's Consumer-Oriented Evaluation Michael Patton's Utilization-Focused Evaluation Robert Stake's Responsive/Stakeholder-Centered Evaluation Case Study Evaluation Key readings listed at the end of each chapter direct readers to the most important references for each topic. Learning objectives, review questions, student exercises, and instructor support materials complete the collection of tools. Choosing from evaluation approaches can be an overwhelming process, but Evaluation Theory, Models, and Applications, Second Edition updates the core evaluation concepts with the latest research, making this complex field accessible in just one book.


Assessing English Language Learners

Assessing English Language Learners

Author: Guillermo Solano Flores

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-01-29

Total Pages: 245

ISBN-13: 113407350X

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Assessing English Language Learners explains and illustrates the main ideas underlying assessment as an activity intimately linked to instruction and the basic principles for developing, using, selecting, and adapting assessment instruments and strategies to assess content knowledge in English language learners (ELLs). Sensitive to the professional development needs of both in-service and pre-service mainstream teachers with ELLs in their classrooms and those receiving formal training to teach culturally and linguistically diverse students, the text is designed to engage readers in viewing assessment as a critical part of teaching appreciating that assessments provide teachers with valuable information about their students’ learning and thinking becoming aware of the relationship among language, culture, and testing understanding the reasoning that guides test construction recognizing the limitations of testing practices being confident that assessment is an activity classroom teachers (not only accountability specialists) can perform Highlighting alternative, multidisciplinary approaches that address linguistic and cultural diversity in testing, this text, enhanced by multiple field-tested exercises and examples of different forms of assessment, is ideal for any course covering the theory and practice of ELL assessment.