A study of the influence of the writer's social and cultural background and training on the organization of his or her writing was studied in essays written by two groups of students: Chinese students at the Beijing Institute of International Relations and the Xian Foreign Language Institute and foreign students in the United States. The essays…

This article draws on constructs in second-language acquisition, literacy, cultural, and media studies as theoretical bases for examining how networked technologies and fan culture provide a young English language learner (ELL) with a site for developing her English language and writing skills. During this process, she also develops an online…

Looks at the experience of a "Foreign Expert," assigned to teach English composition and literature in China. Explores the "meanings" of reading and writing following a tradition of Chinese scholarship that holds to the belief that language is meaning. (JK)

The tenth volume in a series, this publication is a collection of papers produced by college students in women's studies classes around the country. The major purpose of the collection is to provide teachers and students in the field with access to the products of classes other than their own. Most of the writings come from the humanities or from…

This book provides comprehensive resources for the critical discussion of major issues in learning to read Chinese from a child acquisition perspective. It is divided into 4 parts and 11 chapters. Part 1, "Theoretical Perspectives on Learning to Read" includes "Current Issues in Learning To Read Chinese" (Ovid J.L. Tzeng),…

This book presents a comprehensive and up-to-date account of the development of modern Chinese from the late 19th century up to the 1990s, concentrating on three major aspects: modern spoken Chinese, modern written Chinese, and the modern Chinese writing system. It describes and analyzes in detail, from historical and sociolinguistic perspectives,…

Investigated the persuasiveness of anecdotal and data-summary messages. The messages were read by most subjects (n=106) in less than 30 minutes. Short-term changes in intention and attitude resulted from the anecdotal message, whereas changes to individual beliefs were more long lasting. The data-summary messages produced no short-term or…

A discussion of the state of writing instruction in English as a foreign language (EFL) in China begins with a review of the history of instruction, and then looks at the current situation in Chinese schools. The focus in on political influences on the evolution of EFL composition instruction and on problems in the acceptance of contemporary…

Describes an extracurricular writing program launched in a Chinese university for English-as-a-Foreign-Language students. Particular emphasis is on "English corner," the most popular activity. (Author/VWL)

Reviews what has happened in the field of second-language teaching over the past decades and examines the development of the process approach to writing by comparing it with the traditional product approach. A critical evaluation of the new approach follows and forms the premise for recommending a philosophy of eclecticism. (41 references) (CK)

An American instructor taught a 5-week course on the family in American drama to a group of graduate English majors on the campus of Hebei Teachers' University in the People's Republic of China. The instructor learned as much about Chinese culture as the students learned about American culture. Lecture is the standard pedagogy even in graduate…

One of the major issues in intercultural discourse studies is the variation of discourse patterns across cultures. It has been reported that there appears to be a Western preference for a deductive pattern and a Chinese preference for an inductive pattern in discourse. However, it has also been pointed out that there is nothing inherently Chinese…

A university professor and director of a writing program found many examples of what he terms "colonialism" during his thirty years of teaching experiences in countries around the world. One such example was a former pupil in Hong Kong struggling to make her students memorize a poem called "London Snow" ("snow" is an…

Six 1980 issues of the TESOL Newsletter are presented. Topics include the following: preparing a written paper for oral presentation (Fraida Dubin); current trends in teaching English as a second language (TESL) (Ruth Crymes); ESL syllabuses (Carlos Yorio); teaching Black English (Lorraine Goldman); the state of certification and employment within…

"Chronicle of Higher Education" presents an abundant source of news and information for college and university faculty members and administrators. This November 5, 2004 issue of "Chronicle for Higher Education" includes the following articles: (1) "Measure Professor's Real Service, Not Lip Service" (Furman, Andrew);…