Impact of Social Media Technology in The Development of Igbo Langauge Among University Students: A Study of Imo State University Students (Published)
The paper studied the potential of using social media in the teaching and learning of Igbo language among linguistics students of Imo State University, Owerri. Igbo language is native to Igbo race of Nigeria. Descriptive method, involving questionnaires, were distributed to 140 Igbo linguistics students in the university. Data collected were analysed using SPSS package into percentages and means scores. Results showed students are aware of the existence of social media. Students strongly agreed that social media can be used in the teaching and learning Igbo. But factors, such as cost and poor internet connectivity, unavailability of Igbo modules, and lack of computer sets with Igbo vowels are limiting factors. Therefore, the university can provide free internet services for students. Igbo Modules can be prepared uploaded to the internet. Computer sets and keyboards with Igbo vowels can be manufactured.
Keywords: Igbo, Language, Social media, learning. mother tongue
Conscious and unconscious speech (Published)
A native speaker fluently speaks the language which is ungrammatical; the native speaker has a nation that he can speak his mother tongue without mistake. The confidence he gets because it is his mother tongue which he take it for granted. The research I have made in my mother tongue is that when someone unconsciously utters a sentence that /doctor kan jo/ /go to the doctor/ when the person uttered the incomplete sentence what was the situation? What was reason? Why she/he uttered? Is not known but the context may be someone might have expressed his/her health condition. What was his/her condition? Where was she/he? All these questions arose in my mind which I thought of these broken sentences and I understand the meaning of the utterance.
Keywords: Conscious, Language, Speech, Unconscious., native speaker
Language, Music and Dance as Tools for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development among the Igala People of Kogi State, Nigeria (Published)
The paper examines the Igala language, music and dance as veritable tools to provide credible platforms for proffering solutions to the problems of humanity. The main objective is to appraise the contributions of language, music and dance to poverty reduction through employment generation, carrier development and job opportunity. Content analysis was adopted which made use of secondary data as the only source of data generation. Findings revealed that the Igala people have very rich culture and traditions which are expressed in language, music and dance. Also, the Igala culture has the ability to communicate instructions to the audience without spoken words and the ability of the hearer to also understand inwardly. The study recommends among others that the art of communicating verbally in language music and dance should be harnessed for carrier development, job creation, employment opportunity in order to reduce poverty scourge in the society.
Keywords: Language, Music, Poverty Reduction, dance communication.
Investigating the Instructional Effect of TBLT on Business Students’ English Language Performance (Published)
The aim of this research paper was to explore the instructional impact of Task-Based Language Teaching on English language attainments among 81 second-year university business studies students. The participants were studying a private university located in the surrounding areas of Bangkok, and were introduced to a TBLT learning environment for the duration of one English course (16 weeks). To test the effectiveness of TBLT, t-tests analyses (0.05) were utilised to compare resulting end-of-term performances with prior achievements attained under the conventional form of instruction. Overall, the findings indicated that TBTL positively influenced English language performances when compared to conventional methodologies (TBLT: 60.9 = Grade C+; CONV: 54.93 = Grade C; p [0.0195] = sig <0.05). Nevertheless, the bulk of progress was concentrated in speaking skills (p = sig <0.05), as no significant difference was noted in formal comprehensive examinations. Furthermore, variability analyses highlighted that upper-quartile students showed significant improvements in both major sets of assessments (speaking and formal examinations); while speaking scores for the lower-quartile remained stagnant, and formal examination scores exacerbated altogether. This led to the unequivocal conclusion that learners’ response to TBLT is governed by linguistic potential.
Keywords: English, Language, Performance, TBLT, Task
Language and Situation: An Examination of the English Language in Nigeria (Published)
Language cannot be separated from the society. It is the unifying instrument among the members of any given society. Languages are used in situations. If the situation is not given, there is nothing the language use could be marched with. It is on this note that this paper examined language and situation with particular reference to English language in Nigeria context. Various crucial aspects of language were examined. Some English lexical items were also discussed in various situations. The paper concluded that the choice of lexical items used in communication is determined by certain factors in situational context. It was therefore recommended that every language speaker should study and understand the situation in which he/she finds himself/herself before selecting lexical items. A good knowledge of register is also expected of every speaker and writer of English. This will go a long way in assisting the speaker’s/writer’s choice of appropriate lexical items as situation demands.
Keywords: Language, Register, Situation, lexical items
Language and Culture as Conflict Resolution Tools: Rethinking English as Lingua Franca (Published)
Language as a structure of meaning giving and reality creation is composed of words, phrases and sentences. Humans’ communications are based on these features to describe an event, explain one’s emotions, needs, interests and fears etc. Language is used to resolve or escalate dispute. People from different culture and social units perceive the world through the lens provided by their distinctive languages. Meaning that language provides repertoire of words that name the categories into which the language users have divided their world. In fact, definitions of words are linguistically, culturally and contextually bound. This is because words carry meanings that make sense to members of a shared social environment. Dispute resolution relies heavily on words (language). However, there is an underlying assumption in Nigeria that all these words should be in English – the second language. The researcher posits that if English is to be a conflict resolution tool in Nigeria. It must accommodate the diversity of culture and language usage. The paper therefore explores the challenges of English language in intercultural conflict resolution, and emphasizes the need to consider the different uses of the language in national and transnational conflict resolution.
Keywords: Conflict Resolution, Culture, English, Language, Lingua Franca
Assessing the Academic Writing Proficiency of EFL Learners at Qassim University: Honing the Skills of Young Writers (Published)
Four language skills, academic writing is the one most at casualty at the post intermediate level in KSA. Syntax, organization of materials and expression, all are severely affected so far as the EFL learners are concerned. This paper proposes to evaluate the problem from the pedagogical perspective by comparing the current teaching practices in teaching EFL writing with world trends. It highlights recent studies in EFL apart from showcasing the teaching community’s viewpoint. Finally, it presents recommendations aimed at attaining the desired learning outcomes.
Keywords: Academic, Language, Proficiency, Skill, University, Writers
The Language of Science: A Lexical Study of Academic Writing in Computer Science (Published)
Language is a veritable tool for conveying knowledge and information. In the field of science and technology, it is indispensable in disseminating, concepts and facts. Ideas and novel thoughts cannot be formulated without the use of languages in the sciences. Thus, language is the means of understanding science and technology. In fact, language and science are so inextricably linked that learning science is analogous to studying language. However, some second language learners of English fail to realize the relevance of language in the study of science and technology. Also scientific language expressing technical facts pose a lot of problems to second language learners in the field of computer science because the texts introduce the learners to many unfamiliar words. Therefore, this study examines and interprets some technical words in the field of computer science and shows its peculiar usage in the academic context. Excerpts culled from academic journals and texts in computer science are analyzed to explore some ordinary and technical words with specialized meanings. It is discovered that there is a significant number of technical jargons in computer science texts. A major implication of this study is that the second language learners of computer science need to understand and interpret the technical words for their studies and skills in professional communication.
Keywords: Academic Writing, Computer Science, Language, Lexical Study
Gender-Based Phonological Analysis in Non- Native Selected Tennis Players’ Speeches (Published)
This study is a phonological analysis of a kind of spoken discourse. It sheds light on English speeches of tennis players who are from different nationalities, but they speak English as their second or third language. This speech event is important in that a speech is given in a formal setting for a huge number of audience and it is characterized as being unplanned. Immediately after the final game, the two players; the winner of the match and his opponent, are to deliver a short speech. The study aims to examine, phonologically, the speeches of those nonnative players against the BBC accent. It focuses on whether male and female speeches are different or not and to what extent. It is hypothesized that the mismatch lies mainly in allophonic variations, let alone accent and intonation. It analyzes two spoken texts given on the court in the final game. The data are videos taken from “You tube” and they include the final part of championships when the trophies are presented to both players. They deliver a speech to express their feelings and viewpoints. This study is of interest to those interested in second language phonology, gender-based phonological differences and spoken discourse analysts.
Keywords: English Speech, Gender, Language, Phonological, Tennis Player
Language Use And Lexical Attrition: Do They Change Over Time (Published)
The issue of language use has already been assumed to be an important predicting factor for language attrition. Intuitively, it makes perfect sense that second or foreign language learners who make little use of a language experience more attrition than ones who use the language more frequently. Therefore, the availability or the lack of opportunities to use the language could influence the amount of language attrition, let alone an essential variable like vocabulary knowledge. Such language use factors must be considered in any model concerned with explaining FL attrition, and the primary purpose of the present study is to provide evidence about this. It attempts to examine a population of college acquired English among college leavers who vary in the extent to which they have been able to maintain contact with the target language over time. The findings demonstrated that participants rated many of their patterns of contact with English and vocabulary in particular somewhat lower after the end of formal instruction. Furthermore, the most powerful predictor appears to be the use of the internet which is strongly linked to better retention of productive vocabulary test over time.
Keywords: English, Language, Language Attrition, Literature, Vocabulary