INSPT - PRODUCCIÓN ACADÉMICA DE GRADO
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Item Grammar practice and clt : the question of accuracy.(2011-12-13) Hazrum, Cristina; Casareski, AndreaThroughout the history of ELT (English Language Teaching), grammar has been assigned different degrees of relevance concerning its teaching and practice in foreign language classes. Furthermore, theoreticians and researchers have delved into the extent to which the form-focused practice of grammar in EFL (English as a Foreign Language) classes enhances the production of accurate structures in communicative activities. The present research paper explores this crucial issue and assumes that the mechanical practice of form might hinder accuracy in communicative output. Subsidiarily, it investigates the importance degree of the amount of mechanical practice and the possible differences between oral and written activities. To this aim, a study was conducted in 7 6th form courses in state-run primary schools in Educational District number 11 in the City of Buenos Aires, located in the neighbourhood of Flores. The methods employed were non-participant class observations, surveys to the teachers and content analysis of the students‟ work. The results reflected that the form-focused practice of grammar might impede accuracy in communicative practice. Moreover, the amount of mechanical practice might be negatively influential, whereas no significant divergence was found between the oral and written modes of production. Complementarily, more communicative practice seemed to be more useful in enhancing the production of accurate structures, which might carry important pedagogical implications: grammar forms might be successfully attended to within a communicative framework.Item Vocabulary lists vs. contextualized teaching of vocabulary: the question of retrieval, recall and use in written productions at colleges of education(2011-12-14) Masciotra, Romina; Ragno, SabrinaDuring decades, there has been growing interest in the realm of English Language Teaching (ELT) in connection to vocabulary learning and teaching. Some authors have shown that this concern was sometimes related to the influence these processes may have on students’ written productions and the learning of another language. The purpose of the present study is to address the following query: To what extent lexical items are taught through vocabulary lists or incidentally derived from context in Colleges of Education in the City of Buenos Aires and what effect do these two vocabulary teaching methods have on future retrieval, recall and instances of actual use in students’ written productions. Qualitative research was carried out in order to fully understand this phenomenon. In addition, quantitative techniques were implemented because they contributed to the understanding of the issue. In order to collect the data, a group of English Language teachers at Colleges of Education were interviewed, students attending the same Colleges of Education in which the teachers mentioned above teach English Language I were also surveyed, and samples of written productions by these students collected through a random sampling technique were also analyzed. Research results have shown that teachers agree that vocabulary should be given as part of a context, not in isolation. According to the teachers, this will help students build up the meaning of the items and better understand their collocations, the register in which they should be used, among others, but especially it will help them learn how to use the new vocabulary in their productions.Item An exploratory research on the new curriculum design implemented in the province of Buenos Aires as from 2008.(2011-12-15) Blanco, Sabrina; Zaffaroni, MónicaThe province of Buenos Aires implemented a new curriculum design (NCD) for English Language Teaching (ELT) in 2008. This exploratory research paper attempts to assess whether both the NCD and yearly syllabus design may be considered as vehicles that foster English Linguistic Imperialism by analysing their underlying criteria and purposes. A secondary aim deals with the linkages between the language pedagogy that underlies the NCD, which seems to be mainly based on Task Based Language Teaching (TBLT), and English Linguistic Imperialism. This paper reports the results of an exploratory study of content analysis to the NCD and twenty fourth form yearly syllabus designs and interviews to five teachers of English. The analysed syllabi only include morning shift syllabi from twenty schools in San Miguel, Buenos Aires province, Argentina. The five respondents interviewed are graduated teachers of English who work at five different schools in San Miguel. Their ages range from 26 to 58 and they have from 5 to 20 years of experience. The content analysis as well as the interviews evince hidden messages implied in the proposed methodologies and purposes. These results show that the NCD and the syllabi analysed as well as TBLT serve and propel English Linguistic Imperialism in state-run schools in San Miguel, in the province of Buenos Aires.Item The influence of written items in the construction of grammar tests(2011-12-15) Buedo, Jimena; Quinterno, MarianoTesting, as McNamara (2000) expresses, is a universal feature of social life and as such it attempts to examine how people perform in relation to others to make decisions about their social roles. This concept also applies to language testing, which involves gathering information and making judgement within a context of specific purposes and goals (Frendo, 2009). Testing is of critical importance in shaping the teaching process and the decisions about the students‟ performance. Therefore, this research aimed to find out to what extent the test results obtained by in-company intermediate students were influenced by the type of written item chosen by the teacher in the construction of grammar tests. The study also explored whether previous training in class affected the test takers‟ performance. The difference between closed-items and open tasks, between items presented in isolation and in context was also highlighted in the hope of raising awareness of the range of results that might be attained with different test formats. Findings showed that the type of test item chosen to evaluate in-company intermediate students‟ knowledge of grammar in the written medium appeared to have influenced their test results.Item The methods of correction of oral mistakes in phonetics i clases and the students´ self-image as oral language users(2011-12-15) Kjar, Rut María; Villareal, OmarIt is a common belief that students are affected by their teachers‟ corrections, and it is also assumed that the correction methods that a teacher uses can exert a negative influence on the self-image of the student who is corrected. Specialists have produced a number of academic papers positing that the manner in which a teacher corrects a student is extremely important so as not to produce a negative result. The present study explores the extent to which the methods of correction of oral mistakes in the Phonetics I classes at Colleges of Education in the City of Buenos Aires exert a negative influence on the self-image as oral language users of the students who take those courses. The study also examines whether the level of difficulty of tasks given to the students can negatively affect their self-image which consequently results in a deterioration of their oral language skills, whether the attitude of teachers when correcting oral mistakes influences the development of the self-image of the students and, whether teachers are aware of the need to provide positive feedback in the face of their students‟ oral mistakes. The results disproved the hypotheses because it was found that students valued the experience of being corrected by their teachers and that teachers were fully aware of the need to provide positive feedback which, as verified by on-site observations, they actually did.Item Assessing vocabulary: does test format influence test results?(2011-12-13) Castino, Mariana Vanesa; Quinterno, MarianoAssessment has become a relevant part of the teaching and learning process in the past few decades. However, much less importance has been given to the assessment of vocabulary than to other components of the language, such as grammar. As a consequence of this, little attention has been paid to the influence that the methodology used in a vocabulary test can actually have on the results obtained. This study is aimed to explore to what extent test format influences test results in the assessment of vocabulary. For this purpose, First Certificate in English (FCE) students were given three vocabulary tests and an interview was also given to those students who showed some divergence among the results of the three tests. The results indicate that test format can greatly influence the results obtained in vocabulary tests. The findings also suggest that the successive task administrations, evaluating the same key words, do not lead to a better test performance.Item THE teaching of reading skills in english for nursing purposes courses: integrated or segregated - skill instruction?(2011-12-22) Re, María Rosa; Zaffaroni, MónicaEn este trabajo se explora la enseñanza de la macro-habilidad de la lectura con respecto a su grado de integración con las macro-habilidades de la escritura, habla y escucha en cursos de inglés en tercer año de Enfermería en cuatro instituciones ubicadas en los municipios bonaerenses de San Isidro, San Fernando, San Miguel y Malvinas Argentinas. Como objetivo secundario, se investiga la viabilidad de la implementación de un curso de inglés para Enfermería que aplique el enfoque denominado instrucción basada en contenido. Se abordan algunos temas concernientes al área de inglés para fines específicos, el rol que cada macrohabilidad tiene en él y se analizan algunas de las ventajas y desventajas que poseen los enfoques de enseñanza de macro-habilidades en forma segregada, parcialmente integrada o totalmente integrada. Con el fin de triangular toda la información obtenida, se observaron veinticuatro clases de inglés para Enfermería, se encuestaron ochenta de sus estudiantes, se entrevistaron cuatro docentes de la materia y se encuestaron a otros diez en la zona y en localidades vecinas. También se entrevistaron diez enfermeros/as egresados de diversas instituciones y provenientes de diferentes clínicas/hospitales. Los resultados evidencian que la enseñanza de la macro-habilidad de la lectura se halla parcialmente integrada con las de la escritura, habla y escucha. También se observa que los docentes utilizan el enfoque centrado en las macrohabilidades enfatizando la de la lectura. Las respuestas revelan que podría ser beneficioso para los estudiantes y los enfermeros que se les enseñara la macro-habilidad de la lectura integrada totalmente con las demás macro-habilidades y, en consecuencia, la instrucción basada en contenido podría ser implementada en cursos de inglés para Enfermería.Community