http://hdl.handle.net/10361/13 2013-06-18T06:01:05Z http://hdl.handle.net/10361/2585 English vocabulary development of senior high school students : a study on the similarities and differences in motivation and skills between English medium and Bengali medium learners Biswas, Sohag The purpose of this study is to study the similarities and differences in motivation and skills between English medium and Bengali medium learners in English vocabulary development. People perform a job when it is rewarding. The word motivation refers to ‘willingness to do a job’; however some major types of motivation related to second language acquisition include intrinsic, instrumental, and social. Motivational factors are important determinants of learners’ success in second language acquisition in general and the development of various language skills, such as speaking, reading, writing and listening. There are numerous academic researches on motivation for English vocabulary development. Also, there are multiple standard questionnaires to examine major motivational constructs, such as Motivation for Vocabulary Learning Questionnaire (MVLQ). In this study, no particular standardized questionnaire has been used considering the fact that learners’ motivation for English language as well as vocabulary development varies according to particular culture of the society. However, to develop the questionnaire suitable for this study, a review of the current literature has been very useful. Upon administering a 30-item questionnaire on a total of 60 students (30 from English medium and 30 from Bengali medium), this study has examined vocabulary development goals of senior high school students. The questionnaire consists of 20 items to measure motivational factors not directly related to English Language skills and 10 items to measure motivational factors related to English Language skills, such as reading, writing, speaking and listening. 20 motivational factors not directly related to English Language skills mainly examine whether learners are willing to develop English vocabulary for pleasure and to improve their social interactions; impress parents, friends or teachers; improve personality; v and to be a global citizen through accessing more sources of information. In this study, 10 motivational factors related to English Language skills mainly examine whether learners are willing to develop English vocabulary to facilitate the development of spoken and written English; improve understanding of English language, literature, other texts as well as various audio visual forms of entertainment in English language; improve communication skills; and excel in academic and competitive exams. The empirical results depict that there are a number of similarities in motivation and skills between English medium and Bengali medium students although they are from two different streams of education. Both the English and Bengali medium students have placed higher importance of motivational factors related to English language skills than those not directly related to. In particular, there are four factors equally important to both English and Bengali medium students including to improve my spoken English; to improve my written English; to do good in SAT/TOEFL/IELTS exams; and to improve my understanding English texts. Interestingly, both English and Bengali medium students have placed similar lower importance on two motivational factors, such as to participate effectively in classroom activities; and to understand English movies, TV/radio programs and songs. This study points to the fact that highly motivated learners from both English and Bengali medium develop their English vocabulary skill from their inner urge and personal interest. While the most important motivational factors related to English Language skills for Bengali Medium students to develop English vocabulary is to improve my spoken English, English medium students have placed the highest importance on to improve my written English, which indicates that suggests that Bengali medium students face more difficulty in improving spoken English than their English medium counterparts due to different instructional and vi educational environment. English medium students have the advantage of interacting among themselves as well as with teachers in English. The similarities in motivation and skills for English vocabulary development among senior high school students in Bangladeshi Bengali and English medium students can be related to globalization and an ever increasing importance of English language in the global and domestic context. Conversely, the differences are rooted to some micro level environmental contexts, for example, English medium students have more opportunity to access more resources to develop English vocabulary skills and use the words they learn more frequently. Also, English medium students have extra pressure from their parents and teachers to develop English skills for academic achievement. However, the differences in motivational factors among Bengali medium and English medium students are narrowing day by day thanks to the increasing dominance of English and the spread of information technology. The findings of this study may be useful to educators in teaching English language to Bengali medium and English medium students in Bangladesh through adopting appropriate strategies as this study has identified most important and least important motivational factors influencing their vocabulary development. This study has also provided important insights about what language skills Bengali medium and English medium students want to develop via improving their stock of English Language vocabulary. Finally, this study recommends that it is essential to review the English Language teaching-learning processes adopted in Bengali medium so that the learning environment is more supportive. The students should be given more opportunity to communicate in English among themselves as well as with their teachers. Also, it is recommended that the curriculum needs to be updated so that students can engage in various types of interesting learning activities and thereby improve their self-confidence. Thesis submitted to the Department of English and Humanities, BRAC University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in English. 2013-03-31T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10361/2584 Reasons and necessity of private tutoring in English for Bangla medium primary school students in Bangladesh Manzoor, Samia Private tutoring in English is a major phenomenon in Bangladesh. A large number of students receive private supplementary tutoring in English in Bangladesh. Payment-based private supplementary tutoring has also spread all over the world, both in developed and developing countries-from east to the west. The aim of this study is to find out the reasons and necessity of private tutoring in English for Bangla medium school students in Bangladesh. Besides, It will be also investigated that private tutoring has any positive effects or not. To conduct this research, thirty five respondents were surveyed successfully with a written questionnaire. And classroom observation was done successfully to find out where there was any lacking in English teaching or not. The findings from the survey show that most of the primary level learners receive private tutoring and they are satisfied with the English lesson provided by their private tutor rather than their school teacher. But learners should not fully depend on private tutor. Private tuition has both positive and negative effects. Parents and learners should recognize the importance of private tutoring in English and also be aware about negative effects of it. Thesis submitted to the Department of English and Humanities, BRAC University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in English. 2013-04-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10361/2583 Implementing learner autonomy through communicative activities performed in CLT classroom : an investigation of the learner's preferred activities which are carried out in CLT classroom and the potential of these activities to promote learner autonomy Islam, Sabrina Anjum Learner autonomy is in the heart of CLT approach. It is one of the central issues of Communicative Language Teaching. According to Holec’s (1981) definition learner autonomy means “ability to take charge of one’s own learning”. Developing capacity for taking responsibility for one’s own learning is claimed to be beneficial to learning (Benson, 2001, p.109). In fact, there is a belief that autonomous language learners are better language learners (Benson, 2001, p.2). The goal of Communicative Language Teaching is to enable learners to communicate in the target language. “Learners use the target language a great deal through communicative activities such as language games, role play and problem-solving tasks” (Larsen-Freeman,2000,p.129). Activities of the CLT based classroom are designed to improve learner’s communicative competence. This study tries to find out which activities performed in CLT based classroom are believed to be most useful in promoting learner autonomy. Thesis paper submitted in a partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Applied Linguistics and ELT April, 2013 2013-04-01T00:00:00Z http://hdl.handle.net/10361/2581 The representation of Language, Race and Ethnicity in Shakespearean tragedies Afreen, Nusrat Language, race and ethnicity are the leading themes of William Shakespearean’s time. He portrays these aspects in his great plays. Shakespeare shows us the colonial problems in many ways but the presentation of language; race and ethnicity are unique in the plays of The Tempest, Othello and The Merchant of Venice. Colonization of nations generally dominates their resources, labor, and markets, may also impose socio-cultural, religious and linguistic structures on the indigenous population. I intend to explore these issues in my dissertation, and show their use in Shakespeare. The first chapter explores language and its representation as well as the linguistic imperialism in Shakespeare’s play, The Tempest. I will discuss colonial presentation of language used a tool in Othello and The Merchant of Venice, too. In the second chapter, I intend to how race is introduced as a colonial subject in Shakespeare’s play Othello. The chapter will examine racial inequality imperial rule, racial discrimination, new racism, racial complex, inferiority and superiority, identity crisis in the play of The Tempest and The Merchant of Venice. In the third chapter, I intend to look at the portrayal of ethics specially based on religion and belief in Shakespeare’s play The Merchant of Venice. Here, I will discuss Shakespeare’s presentation of cultural domination, English imperialism, cultural conflicts and representation. I will also show the resistance, usurpation, superiority of European culture, slavery, cultural difference and the relation between colonizers and colonized in Shakespeare’s play The Tempest and Othello. The conclusion will provide a view of Shakespeare’s conception about language, race and ethnicity in the context of the colonizing process. Thesis submitted to the Department of English and Humanities, BRAC University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in English. 2013-04-01T00:00:00Z