Detecting breakdowns in local coherence in the writing of Chinese English learners

This paper introduces CTutor, an automated writing evaluation (AWE) tool for detecting breakdowns in local coherence and reports on a study that applies it to the writing of Chinese L2 English learners. The program is based on Centering theory (CT), a theory of local coherence and salience. The principles of CT are first introduced and then the design and function of CTutor are described. The effectiveness and reliability of the program was evaluated in a study that compared performance by CTutor and two human raters on the analysis of local incoherence and provision of revision on learner essays. Intermediate Chinese English as a foreign language learners (n = 52) were divided into two groups: one receiving CTutor feedback and the other receiving feedback from human raters. Learners in both groups completed three essays; each of which involved the submission of a first draft, revision with feedback on local coherence quality and re‐submission. Our results from the comparison between CTutor and human experts showed that this software tool is able to detect local coherence breakdowns with moderate accuracy (F₁‐measure is around 0.4). There was also little difference between participants' responses to CTutor feedback and human feedback in terms of revision behaviour, with both feedback modes resulting in similar revision pattern. Potential use of the program in instructional settings is discussed.     

Using track changes and word processor to provide corrective feedback to learners in writing

This study investigated the effect of computer‐mediated corrective feedback types in an English as a foreign language (EFL) intact class over time. The participants were 64 English majors who were assigned randomly into three treatment conditions that gave and received computer‐mediated corrective feedback while writing (track changes, word processor, and track changes and word processor) and one control group that neither gave nor received writing corrective feedback. Students sat to a pre‐test (week 1), immediate post‐test (week 8) and delayed post‐test (week 12) in writing. Results showed decrease in mean error and mean feedback in students' writing performance related to correcting 11 major error types on immediate and delayed post‐tests, indicating that there was a significant effect for feedback type in favour of the group that used a combination of track changes and word processor. There was also a significant effect for the computer‐mediated corrective feedback over the control group. Moreover, results showed that both mean error and mean feedback decreased significantly from pre‐test to post‐test (week 1–week 8), indicating that overall, there was a significant change over time.     

Participation,interaction, and academic achievement in an online discussion environment

Though online writing can be beneficial for diverse students in out-of-school environments, there is little consensus on the value of its use in schools. This study examined the online discussion of 48 fifth-grade students and their teachers over the 2009–2010 school year in a public school with large numbers of English learners. We collected students' statewide standardized writing and reading test scores, as well as an archive of all participants' discussion threads during the school year. Students' participation and interaction pattern in the online discussion environment over a school year was examined using growth model analysis and social network analysis. The effect of students' participation on their academic achievement was analyzed using multiple regressions. The results suggest that well-designed online discussions among linguistically diverse upper elementary students can result in increased participation and interaction, leading to language and literacy development.     

基于微机的CAD图形的参数化生成

在分析微机绘图软件 Auto CAD与高级语言之间的软件接口的基础上 ,讨论了利用微机实现参数化绘图的一种途径。用 Turbo C开发出一个程序实例 ,为计算机辅助绘图提供了一个新手段。     

Structuring the peer assessment process: a multilevel approach for the impact on product improvement and peer feedback quality

In order to optimize students' peer feedback processes, this study investigates how an instructional intervention in the peer assessment process can have a beneficial effect on students' performance in a wiki environment in first‐year higher education. The main aim was to study the effect of integrating a peer feedback template with a varying structuring degree. The present study involved three conditions: a no structure, a basic structure and an elaborate structure condition. Due to a clear hierarchical structure, in which over time (level 1), 168 students (level 2) are nested within 37 groups (level 3), multilevel analysis was performed to examine the effect of time, student and group level influences on students' peer feedback quality and product scores. The results revealed that both peer feedback quality and product scores increase significantly for all conditions over time, after multiple practice occasions. In addition, after several practice occasions, significant differences were found between the conditions in both peer feedback (elaborate higher than no structure) and product scores (elaborate and basic higher than no structure). Building on this, limitations, directions for future research and practical implications are presented.     

A diagnostic test for students entering a computer-assisted learning curriculum in French

Axiomatic in computer-aided instructional strategies is the goal of individualized instruction. In foreign language instruction, however, the kinds of individuation needed are particularly complex. Most college-level students of a foreign language have had some prior training. Yet their proficiency in the so-called four skills (reading, writing, speaking, listening-comprehension) is rarely uniform.Traditionally, placement tests have been used to determine the appropriate course in a multicourse sequence. The student with some prior language training takes the test and, on the basis of a composite score, is told to register for foreign language 1, 2, 3 or 4. Some placement tests provide subscores for one or more of the four skills. Unfortunately, no existing placement tests give the precise diagnosis needed to interface with a CAL curriculum. In a CAL context, an overall score is not sufficient. To make most effective use of instructional time, scores relating to the student's ability to handle particular features of the language are crucial. One needs to know which language features the student is able to manipulate adequately and those which he cannot. With a complete profile of the student's language skills, CAL units can be used to ‘fill in the gaps’ and to assure a smooth transition into the course sequence.Such a diagnostic test has been implemented for French on the PLATO system at the University of Illinois, Urbana campus. A 2-h test provides a profile for each student's performance using a matrix of 300 lexical, morphological and syntactic cells. Furthermore, the test indicates the student's proficiency in reading, writing and listening skills (an audio device is used for the latter).Instructors and students report their satisfaction with the program. Students especially like the ease with which the answers are entered and reviewed before they are submitted for evaluation. Instructors appreciate the detailed profiles and the sensitive partial answer scoring algorithm.Although presently used for diagnostic testing for French, the testing strategies employed in EXAM can be adapted to other foreign languages.     

Computer-based reading and writing across the curriculum: Two case studies of L2 writers

Since the early 1980s, second language (L2) writing specialists have been examining possible roles for computers in L2 writing instruction. How, and to what extent, L2 students use computer for academic literacy purposes beyond the writing classroom, that is, across the curriculum, has not received much attention. Because a common goal of L2 college level writing courses is to prepare students to write in these other domains, an awareness of computer-based literacy activities in non-L2 writing courses is essential to the cause of helping L2 writing instructors connect what students learn in their courses to how they write (and read) in other courses. This paper describes research aimed at contributing to such awareness: a qualitative study of the computer-based reading and writing activity of two undergraduate English as a Second Language (ESL) students beyond ESL writing courses.     

语句相似度计算在主观题评判中的应用

在网络考试系统中对主观题自动评判运用自然语言识别技术是计算机领域的一个研究热点。结合中文分词方法,在基于《知网》知识库的词语相似度算法的基础上,运用数学上求解最优指派问题的匈牙利算法建立句子和句群的相似度计算模型,并根据句子相似度值给出主观题正确分数评判。     

Computer- vs. paper-based tasks: Are they equivalent?

In 1992, Dillon published his critical review of the empirical literature on reading from paper vs. screen. However, the debate concerning the equivalence of computer- and paper-based tasks continues, especially with the growing interest in online assessment. The current paper reviews the literature over the last 15 years and contrasts the results of these more recent studies with Dillon's findings. It is concluded that total equivalence is not possible to achieve, although developments in computer technology, more sophisticated comparative measures and more positive user attitudes have resulted in a continuing move towards achieving this goal. Many paper-based tasks used for assessment or evaluation have been transferred directly onto computers with little regard for any implications. This paper considers equivalence issues between the media by reviewing performance measures. While equivalence seems impossible, the importance of any differences appears specific to the task and required outcomes.     

Second language writing research and pedagogy: A role for computer logging?

This paper considers the use of keystroke logging software to investigate how writers interact with the task of writing on the computer. The research focuses on second and foreign language writing, drawing on studies from a variety of contexts from school to university, involving both academic and communicative tasks. The observation of writing through this means of data capture allows access to a mass of detailed information about a range of aspects of the planning, formulating, and revising processes of individual writers. It prompts investigation, at one level, of the writer's interaction with the computer itself during the writing event. The interaction may be further investigated in terms of both social and discoursal dimensions as the writer grapples with topic, audience, genre, social and cultural constraints, as well as language.The interactivity of the logging tool offers researchers the opportunity to explore not only the actions that writers take but also the conscious strategies they employ as they compose. Replaying the writing session with writers, that is, using stimulated recall, reveals insights into the writers’ perceived attention and strategies to address such issues as content, discourse organization, language and metacognitive concerns.There is considerable overlap between the use of this software from a research perspective and its potential as a pedagogic tool. The application of computer logging and stimulated recall in the classroom is presented as a means of promoting self-assessment, metacognitive awareness, and learner autonomy among second language writers.     

The effect of blended learning on the development of clause combining as an aspect of the acquisition of written discourse by Jordanian learners of English as a foreign language

This study investigates the effect of blended learning on the development of clause combining as an aspect of the acquisition of written discourse by Jordanians who are learning English as a foreign language. Sixty participants majoring in English language at the University of Jordan took part in this study. The participants were divided into treatment and control groups, and the experimental design of a pretest and posttest was employed to test the effectiveness of blended learning on the ability of these participants to combine clauses in English using parataxis or subordination through a writing task. The results reveal that the treatment group outperformed their control group counterpart on the posttest in terms of verb morphology, distinguishing between nucleus and subordinate clauses, use of parataxis, use of subordinate clauses for temporal reference and to structure information, among others. The results also show that the use of technological devices improved students' attitudes to learning clause combining and made the learning process easier and more enjoyable. We suggest that blended learning develops the techniques of clause combining by learners of English as a foreign language, which in turn enhances their discourse knowledge in the target language and positively affects their ability to package information.     

A Model to Disambiguate Natural Language Parses on the Basis of User Language Proficiency: Design and Evaluation

This paper discusses the design and evaluation of an implemented user model in ICICLE, an instruction system for users writing in a second language. We show that in the task of disambiguating natural language parses, a blended model combining overlay techniques with user stereotyping representing typical linguistic acquisition sequences captures user individuality while supplementing incomplete information with stereotypic reasoning     

Effects of digital dictionary format on incidental acquisition of spelling knowledge and cognitive load during second language learning: Click-on vs. key-in dictionaries

Recent research has shown that students involved in computer-based second language learning prefer to use a digital dictionary in which a word can be looked up by clicking on it with a mouse (i.e., click-on dictionary) to a digital dictionary in which a word can be looked up by typing it on a keyboard (i.e., key-in dictionary). This study investigated whether digital dictionary format also differentially affects students' incidental acquisition of spelling knowledge and cognitive load during second language learning. A comparison between a click-on dictionary condition, a key-in dictionary condition, and a non-dictionary control condition for 45 Taiwanese students learning English as a foreign language revealed that learners who used a key-in dictionary invested more time investment on dictionary consultation than learners who used a click-on dictionary. However, on a subsequent unexpected spelling test the key-in group invested less time investment and performed better than the click-on group. The theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.     

The effects of a theory‐based summary writing tool on students' summary writing

This paper focuses on the design and evaluation of a theory‐based computer‐assisted summary writing learning environment called Summary Writing‐PAL (SW‐PAL). The SW‐PAL was developed based on four aspects: summarizing strategies, learning theories, prior knowledge, and cognitive load. A quasi‐experiment that involved 58 undergraduates majoring in Computer Science was conducted to examine the effectiveness of SW‐PAL in writing summaries. Two intact classes were selected with 28 and 30 students in control and experimental groups, respectively. The conventional teaching approach was employed in the control group, whereas the SW‐PAL was introduced to the experimental group. Pretest and posttest were administrated to both groups. The findings indicated that SW‐PAL improved students' summary writing performance. A significant variance was noted between intrinsic and extraneous cognitive load among students with varying levels of English proficiency in the experimental group, signifying that the SW‐PAL is more suitable for students with lower language proficiency.     

VisualTPL: A visual dataflow language for report data transformation

Data transformation, an important part of report generation, converts the layout of source data into a new layout suitable for presentation. Many report tools have been developed for end-users to specify data transformation. However, current report tools only support a limited set of report layouts. This paper proposes a visual dataflow programming language, called VisualTPL, to resolve this problem. Data transformation is accomplished by writing graphical dataflow programs, which manipulate tables as first-class objects with a set of extendable table operations. A report tool, called VisualTPS, has been developed to offer an easy and intuitive end-user programming environment. Reports with sophisticated layouts can be created through top-down decomposition and incremental development. An evaluation has been conducted to assess end-users' performance with VisualTPL. The results indicated that end-users could learn VisualTPL in a short time and create complicated report layouts all by themselves. And, in comparison with a commercial report tool, VisualTPL offered end-users similar performances and was preferred over the commercial tool.     

Automated computer-based feedback in expressive writing

Previous studies indicate that changing pronoun use can moderate the health benefits of expressive writing. Participants who change their pronoun use from essay to essay benefit more from the exercise. The current experiment attempted to improve the expressive writing paradigm by altering subjects’ focus (specifically self- and other-related focus) through text-based instructions. The automated language-based system was simple to implement, and it successfully changed participants’ pronoun use, but the intervention had no mood-related or subjective benefits. While the automated intervention system has promise in guiding people’s natural writing, future research must address the broader question of the inherent links between language use and substantive psychological change.     

Multi‐dimensional asymptotic waveform evaluation method and adaptive hopping technique

The multi‐dimensional asymptotic waveform evaluation (MD‐AWE) method is proposed as an extension of the conventional one dimensional asymptotic waveform evaluation (1D‐AWE) method. It can be applied in parameter analysis of structures, particularly with multiple variables, at which repeated calculations are required. The MD‐AWE is proposed at first, and then an adaptive hopping technique similar to the complex frequency hopping (CFH) technique to expand the approximation region of MD‐AWE is delivered, and this technique also helps to reduce the memory usage by taking lower order of MD‐AWE. In the end, two examples are given with good results, which show the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed method. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J RF and Microwave CAE, 2008.     

Formative computer-based feedback in the university classroom: Specific concept maps scaffold students' writing

Formative feedback can be regarded as a crucial scaffold for students' writing cohesive texts. However, especially in large lectures students rarely receive feedback on their writing product. Thus, computer-based feedback could be an alternative to provide formative feedback to students. However, it is less clear, how computer-based feedback should be designed to help students writing cohesive texts. For that purpose, we implemented three different computer-based feedback methods within an authentic large lecture class. We investigated effects of the format (outline versus concept map) and the specificity (specific versus general) of the feedback on students' perceived difficulty and the generation of cohesive texts. We found that specific concept map feedback was perceived as less difficult as compared to the general feedback or the specific outline feedback. Additionally, students who received specific feedback wrote explanatory texts that were more cohesive as compared to students with the general feedback. However, the format of the feedback (concept map versus outline) did not account for improvements of cohesion. Evidently, specific concept map feedback can be regarded as an efficient scaffold to provide cohesive explanations.     

Studying L2 writers’ digital writing: An argument for post-critical methods

Because the fields of digital writing and second language (L2) writing both have rich methodological traditions, researchers designing a study that examines issues at the intersection of these two fields have multiple methodological traditions to draw upon. Recognizing the choices that researchers face, we advocate adopting post-critical methodologies, as articulated by Patricia Sullivan and James E. Porter for these digital/L2 inquiries. A post-critical approach, we believe, enhances these studies by emphasizing their interdisciplinary and ideological nature. After defining what a post-critical methodology entails, we connect it to recent research trends in digital writing, L2 writing, and L2 studies. To help future researchers design digital/L2 writing studies, we explain the implications of these approaches.     

The effects of social messaging on students' learning and intrinsic motivation in peer assessment

This study aims to gain a better understanding of how the newly arisen social messaging may impact the practice of peer assessment. Seventy-nine ESL (English as second language) students reviewed each other's English essays in three peer assessment groups: a three-member group using wiki (wiki group), a three-member group using social messaging (small messaging group), and a six-member group using social messaging (big messaging group). Data analysis suggested that peer assessment facilitated by social messaging can be at least of the same effectiveness as wiki-facilitated peer assessment on ESL students' writing skills and intrinsic motivation. In addition, the findings indicated that students in the small messaging group outperformed students in the big messaging group on essay writing and reported a significantly higher rating on perceived competence, a positive indicator of the behavioural measures of intrinsic motivation, than students in the big messaging group.