Guia sobre tesis de maestria

8/13/2019 Guia sobre tesis de maestria

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B.- Do the exercises as described ..

EXERCISE 5:

1. If your supervisor tells you your introduction is too long, what are you likely to have too

much of, in terms of the parts of introductions given in this tutorial?If your supervisor tells you your introduction is too short, what are you likely to have too

little or none of, in terms of the parts of introduction given in this tutorial?

In both cases, too long or too short, that might happen in the historical background. For

instance you might have plenty of previous research relevant to your topic that you might

want to use, or on the other hand, it might be that when you look for previous

investigations you will find out that there is none or just very few.

Furthermore, another case where you might include too much text in your introduction is

when you relate your own experience with the thesis research or what it motivated you to

write about the topic and then you write many irrelevant ideas which you could easilyavoid or use for somewhere else in your thesis.

2. Many supervisors emphasize that you should give your own opinion, or include your

own voice in your thesis. Do you think an introduction is a good place to do this? Why or

why not? If you do, where would you give your own opinion/include your own voice?

Provide examples.

Yes, I think an introduction is a good place to present our own opinion or voice to the

reader. I think so, because it is important that our readers are confronted from the

beginning with the approach (es) we are adopting in the research. Then, I would give my

opinion or my own voice in the thesis statement due to the fact that this must show theemphasis I am putting and the direction in which I will lead the argument. Furthermore,

the thesis statement should show my perspective and make reference to the ways I am

going to support it. For example, in a text on how accurate the first bible translations are, I

would point out my perspective or approach on this issue, whether I approach the subject

from a religious or a semantic viewpoint.

Here, there is an example taken from a thesis paper on Assessing English Pronunciation.

The use of predefined criteria in assessment thus seems a good choice, but warrants the

question as to which criteria should be used, as pronunciation teaching covers so many

aspects that it seems impossible to tell which ones are mainly used in assessment.

In the example above, we can see how the writer introduces her own point of view.

3. In your experience with writing introductions, what issues have arisen for you? Have you

been c consciously aware of the way you structured your introductions?


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Actually, I do not have much experience writing introductions. I still remember myself

writing my bachelors thesis introduction. First of all, I did not know that the thesis

introduction chapter is the last one you write (in my bachelors thesis I tried to start

writing it first). Now I understand why it was so difficult. By means of this tutorial I have

learnt that first I write the body, then, the conclusion and then the introduction. Since this

will permit you to analyze the whole work, and discover the best way to introduce your

thesis to your readers. Secondly, I did not take into account the structure of an

introduction, now when I look back at my bachelors thesis I realize it is very different from

the structure we were given in this tutorial. For instance in this tutorial is shown that the

introduction chapter with regards the thesis statement is composed of eight parts, what it

makes it easier for us to formulate our introduction or at least part of it.

Another issue that has arisen is related to the primary and secondary aim. When analyzing

some of the theses, I have found out that we do not always need to place the aims of our

thesis in a sub chapter. For instance, I had learnt that it was always better and easier for

our reader if we placed the aims in a sub chapter so that we conveyed clearly what we aim

to prove with the research. Therefore, if I now had to choose where to place the aims ofmy research I would not place them in a sub chapter.

EXERCISE 6:

1. Why is there often no need to explicitly state your topic?

It is important to attract the readers attention to our thesis paper; therefore we do not

need to state our topic explicitly because they can discover it over the reading.

2. In what way would you show that your topic is interesting or relevant?

I would show that my topic is interesting or relevant by means of a quotation.

3. When discussing a field of research, when would you use the present perfect tense?

The present perfect is used when the research continues into the present or in case we

think that there are more recent studies in such field.

4. When discussing the conclusion of a study, when would you use the present perfect

tense?

We would use the present perfect when in first instance we have started the paragraph

with a sentence in the present tense, then, this is followed by a sentence in the present

perfect tense.

For example:

The new theory adopted by Russell startswith a model that has been

5. What could you put in your introduction instead of previous research when there is no

or little previous research in your topic?

When there is no or little previous research in my topic I would use a history of events.

6. In what way would you motivate your own thesis?

For instance, I would motivate my thesis by addressing questions that still need to be

answered in that field or by writing about a gap in previous research.

7. In which part of the introduction could you include your own personal experience with

your topic?


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The beginning of the introduction could be a good place and moment to relate ones

personal experience with the topic in case there is.

8. In the focus section of your introduction, you say what your thesis is not going to

include. True or False?

True. There you can also establish which specific area you are going to work through.

9. Would you prefer a suggestive or neutral thesis statement? Why?I would prefer a neutral thesis statement because I think it calls the readers attention

more than a simple declarative sentence or a simple question. I know that a suggestive

one can be also effective when commencing with If, however I am more inclined to the

neutral thesis statement since this is likely followed by a balanced discussion.

10.Give an example of a primary aim and a secondary aim.

Primary Aim:

The aim of this research is to get to know the methods used by English as a Second

Language Teachers in the Primary Schools in Rotterdam.

Secondary Aim:

Additionally, I wish to identify which methods are more effective in the learning process.

11.Would you find it difficult to state a value of your thesis? Why?

No. First of all I think my thesis will contribute to have a precise knowledge of how the

speech system works in order to perceive and produce sounds in the two different

languages such as English and Spanish.

12.Why is it a matter of debate whether you should include your principal findings or an

outline of your text in your introduction?

It is a matter of debate because the principal findings are also stated in the concluding

chapters of your thesis.

C.- Find four theses that have a preamble and/or acknowledgements.

Describe /compare them.

The four theses that have a preamble or acknowledgements are the following:

Thesis N 4Courtship and Conduct in Jane Austens Pride& PrejudiceThesis N6How English are the Non-Natives?

Thesis N 7Are we at Sixes and Sevens?

Thesis N13Travels through the Letters of no Commonplace Man

The authors of theses 4 and 13 decided to include an acknowledgements page. There, they

thanked the ones who supported them during the writing process of the thesis. They both were

short, they used less than the half of a page.Theses 6 and 7 contain both pages acknowledgements and preamble. The author of thesis 6

followed the same patron of the acknowledgements page as the authors of 4 and 13, with a

variation in the text length. However the author of thesis 7 has used the acknowledgement page

to also add information of his first steps elaborating the thesis paper. Regarding the preamble

page augmented by authors 6 and 7, I might say that they made use of this optional page because

they wanted to give a more general understanding and background of the subject matter to their


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readers. For instance, in thesis 6, the preamble page started with a subtitle which takes the reader

to a brief background of the investigation subject and to the previous research.

In case of thesis 7, the preamble is part of the introductory chapter. Here, the author gives reasons

for the elaboration of his thesis paper; he also let the reader know how the thesis has been

developed, as well as the connection between him and the investigation.

I like the way thesis 4 has been structured, the author only added the acknowledgements page,

followed by the introduction chapter where he presents his topic. In my opinion this structure is

more direct and goes to the point, to what the reader wants to know. However, as in the tutorial,

every author has the right to choose if he wants to make use of one of both of the pages

mentioned above.

D. - In detail, analyse the Introduction of the five theses you have selected.

Juxtapose them, draw parallels and indicate what the differences are.

Comment on the clarity (in detail, with examples) and indicate why certain

structure choices were made by the authors. Answer in some detail:analyse thoroughly, using the information given in item a, as well as your

own insight and intuitions.cd749b33-a806-

My analysis of introductions 1, 6, 7, 8 and finally 9.

ReplyQuoteSet FlagAuthor:

R.A. Horna SanchezPosted Date:

Friday, November 5, 2010 3:36:37 PM CETEdited Date:

Friday, November 5, 2010 3:36:37 PM CET

Total views:4 (Your views: 3)

Dear fellow students,

Hereby, I submit my analysis of the second assignment.

Greetings

D. to be posted in blackboard.docx(62.925 KB)

I will analyse thesis N1, 6, 7, 8 and 9.

N 1 The English of Ethnic Minorities.

This introduction chapter was divided in five parts: Overview, Research Variables, Research

Questions Purpose and Thesis Outline.
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Overview

Paragraph 1:

In my experience as a teacher, I have noticed that especially pupils who are from a Turkish or

Moroccan background often seem to be having trouble when it comes to reading and listening

tests. These pupils are good at studying grammar and vocabulary and perform well in tests in

which they have to reproduce what they have learned. However, they seem to be having

difficulties with producing sentences in English that are grammatically correct and also with

reading and understanding English texts. It is a fact that these students often start their Secondary

School career with a language deficiency. (Gijsberts & Dagevos, 2009).

Analysis: Authors connection with the thesis subject.

Comment: She relates how her experience as a teacher led her to do this research.

Paragraph 2:

In this research, the underlying factors that contribute to this language deficiency will be studied.

It could be that these factors influence the acquisition of a third language as well. The written

English of students in the fourth year of a school for intermediate general secondary education

was analysed, to see if there are any differences in the number of mistakes and the kind of

mistakes that are produced by students from a Turkish/Moroccan, Hindu or Dutch background.

The results of the analysis were then compared with what was found in the literature regarding

the acquisition of second and third languages, as well as theories on the situation of ethnic

minorities in The Netherlands and the factors that determine their success in the educational

system.

Analysis: Focus of the thesis (in gray colour). Furthermore, she explains briefly the content of the

thesis.

Comment: In the highlighted sentence she presents the areas of the subject she is going to dealwith. However, the sentence is cumbersome and awkward. It fits perfectly with a bad example of a

focus sentence given in this tutorial.

She leads the reader attention to what it seems the thesis statement by stating: It could be that

these factors influence the acquisition of a third language....

She does not waste time describing what she is not dealing with.

Paragraph 3:

It is important to understand what the exact problems are that pupils from ethnic minority groups

come across when they learn English because this information might help to enable their teachers

to adapt their teaching methods accordingly. This will hopefully result in better problem solving

for teachers who have pupils with these specific problems.

Analysis: Importance of her topic and secondary aim.

Comment: She attempts to show why her research is worthwhile by using words such as the

highlighted above. However, she also uses words which indicate probabilities and no certainty,


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such as: might help, will hopefully. In my opinion, instead of using words like might, she should

be more emphatic and assure that her research will accomplish something important. It also

seems that her secondary aim is to identify the problems pupils are confronted with when learning

English. However, she does not clarify if she is certainly doing that in the research.

Clarity of the 3 paragraph above: In my opinion, she uses the Initial and Final position mistakenly.For example, the last sentence of the first paragraph gives information from a previous text, in

other words information that is inferable to the reader. Then, that sentence should not be placed

at the end as a final position. I assume that she did not place that sentence at the beginning, as it

would correspond, because she started telling her relation with the subject.

With regard to paragraph 3, I have noticed that she used the verb to be in her first sentence when

she could easily avoid using it and make her sentence clearer to the reader. For instance, she could

have written it using only an action verb, and then the sentences would read like this: It is

important to know the exact problems that pupils from ethnic minority groups comeacross .. or It

is important to know what problems the pupils from ethnic minority groupsfacewhen ....

Research Variables

Paragraph 1:

In order to find out if students from ethnic minorities perform less than Dutch students when

writing English, an error analysis was performed on the written English of Dutch students from

different ethnic backgrounds. All of the mistakes were categorised as either a transfer mistake, a

spelling mistake or a grammatical mistake. These three categories were also divided in several

sub-categories. Mistakes that were labelled as transfer mistake were split into 5 separate

categories: Dutch transfer mistakes, false friends, semantic mistakes, Dutch sentence

constructions and non-existent words and phrases. The first two categories consist of mistakes

that are made because of transfer of form, mistakes in the latter categories occur because of

transfer of meaning. Ringbom (2001) has made this distinction as well. All spelling mistakes that

were found form one separate category. Mistakes in verbs were labelled as tense mistake, while

all other grammatical mistakes were put into one category. By analysing the data, information was

obtained about the number of mistakes that students from different ethnic minorities make, as

well as information about the kind of mistakes they have produced. After having analysed the

data, the information that was obtained was used to see if it could be connected to theories on

second or third language acquisition or theories on the factors that determine the success of

students from ethnic minorities in the educational system.

Analysis: Methodology Introduction

Comment: It seems that this paragraph should better go to the Methodology chapter. I have seen

other theses whose introductions explain briefly the method they are using to prove what they

stated previously, but in this case the writer is telling the reader in detail what her methodology is.

Then, I insist that this paragraph would fit better the Methodology chapter since it is too explicit.


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Clarity: The first sentence is quite tangled and long. It strikes me as an example of frontal

overloading. I think this version of the sentence would be easier to read and understand.An error

analysis on the written English of Dutch students from different backgrounds was conducted in

order to find out if students from ethnic minorities perform less than Dutch students. I omitted the

last part of the original sentences when writing English because that is already mentioned when

she says analysis on the writtenEnglish. I have also noticed that she used the verb perform

twice in a sentence, which is not bad at all, but I have replaced it for another verb.

Research Questions

Paragraph 1:

This research looks at students of ethnic minorities in the Netherlands and their proficiency in

Dutch and English. The overall aim of this research is to gain an understanding of what the

underlying factors are that cause the language deficiency that pupils from ethnic minority groups

are often experiencing in the Netherlands and to see if these influence learning a third language.

In order to find this out, the following questions need to be addressed:

When learning English, do students of ethnic minority groups learn this as a second or as

a third language?

What are the underlying factors that are the cause of the language deficiency that pupils

from ethnic minority groups experience?

Do children from ethnic minorities produce more errors when producing written English

sentences than Dutch students?

What are the differences in mistakes that are being made by pupils from a Turkish,

Moroccan or Hindu minority when learning English compared to the mistakes that Dutch

pupils make?

Analysis: Primary aim

Comment: The sentence in gray tells what the primary aim of the research is. I would say that

when she says and(in the same gray sentence), it sounds like a kind of second aim but I am not

sure of that.

Clarity: The sentences within the paragraph are clear. So far in the paragraph, I have not found

any problem regarding the initial or final position.

Purpose

Paragraph 1, 2, 3, 4:

The aim of this research is to get an insight in the factors that determine the success of minorities

students when acquiring a second language, more specifically, English. This information could be

useful for English teachers, and could provide them with ideas for new approaches to their

lessons.


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Pupils from an ethnic minority background are often bilingual, and this could be a factor that has a

substantial influence on their acquisition of the English language. Many of these pupils speak the

native language of their parents when they are at home and therefore will only start learning

Dutch when they first go to school. Some of these pupils have difficulties with the acquisition of

the Dutch language when they are in primary school and often continue to struggle with this when

they are in secondary school. This could make it more difficult for these particular pupils to learn

other foreign languages when they are in school, especially given the fact that the instruction is

given in Dutch.

Dutch pupils will learn English as their second language, but for bilingual pupils it is possible that

they are not experiencing second language acquisition like their Dutch peers are experiencing, but

third language acquisition. According to Cenoz and Jessner (2001), third language acquisition is

more complex than second language acquistion because the process of acquiring a second

language and the second language itself can influence the acquisition of a third language. If this is

the case, then there will also be a difference in transfer from the first language to the target

language, as in third language acqusition elements of the second language are also transferred to

the third language. The sort of mistakes that pupils make when they are producing sentences inEnglish will be looked at. If mistakes that Dutch pupils make are different from the mistakes that

pupils from ethnic minority groups make, then this could lay bare specific areas of learning a

foreign language that teachers might not yet necessarily be paying attention to at the moment.

Hopefully, this information will help them improve their lessons.

To acquire a better understanding of the position of pupils from ethnic minority groups in schools

in the Netherlands, the position of ethnic minority groups as a whole will be looked at, with a

particular focus on language. As said before, many pupils from ethnic minority groups have a

language deficiency when they start primary school, and this might influence their acquisition of

the English language. That is why it is useful to find out what the underlying factors are that are

the cause of this language deficiency. Furthermore, theories on the success of students from

ethnic minorities in the educational system will be studied. Apart from any problems with

language deficiencies, these will also help detect any other problems that students from ethnic

minorities encounter in the educational system.

Analysis: Redundancy of the primary aim, restate the thesis statement and focus.

Comment: In the first paragraph of this section, the writer only paraphrased the primary aim, the

same that has been already mentioned in the preceding paragraph. In the second paragraph, she

restates the thesis statement. At the same time, at the end of the paragraph it seems that she

attempts to state another thesis statement. In the third paragraph, she shows again what she is

going to be dealing with in her thesis and she also tries to set up another thesis statement almost

at the end of the paragraph.

The features of the fourth paragraph are almost the same as the ones mentioned in paragraph 3.

We see again repetition of the focus of the study and therefore it makes the reading tedious and

boring.


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Clarity: The sentences seem to be a translation of her original language. There is overloading in

most of the paragraph. She tried to explain something using long sentences instead of making

them shorter and more understandable. The paragraphs above look like paraphrasing of the

former sections.

Thesis Outline

Paragraph:

In chapter 2 of this thesis the theoretical background of second language acquisition and third

language acquisition will be discussed, as well as the difference of transfer in second language

acquisition and third language acquisition. The position of minority groups in the Netherlands will

also be looked at, as well as some theories on the factors that determine the success of ethnic

minorities in the educational system in The Netherlands. The methods of the research done

among students of a secondary school will be outlined in chapter 3. In chapter 4 the results of the

research will be analysed and discussed. Chapter 5 will deal with the conclusions of the research,

and recommendations for English teachers will be made.

Analysis: Outline of the thesis structure

Comment: She explains how the thesis is organized even though the reader is already familiar with

it since the thesis organization is already settled in the table of contents. Well, I think this is

optional because some readers tend to read the introduction first.

Clarity: Based on the information given by the instructor, I would say that the paragraph conveys

her objective, a little bit cumbersome though.

Overall Comment: I think the author of this thesis decided to divide the introduction chapter in

five sections so that the reader would find it easier and clearer the reading. However, she used the

same information too much. The introduction shows evidence of lack of previous research.

As far as clarity is concerned, there was not used the principles of Initial and Final position wisely

and there was overloading in many cases.

N 6 How English Are the Non-Native?

Preamble: Historical Background & Previous Research

English Pronunciation Teaching in the Netherlands

Paragraph 1, 2, 3 and 4

In the Netherlands, English as a second language (ESL) teaching has up until today almost

exclusively focused on British English (BrE), as it has in the rest of Europe. There are various


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reasons for this: geographical proximity, active British involvement in ESL practices (Van der

Haagen, 1998, p. 2; Graddol, 1997), and historico-political causes, such as the British

academic tradition and the Commonwealth (Dalton-Puffer et al., 1997). These reasons have

all contributed to the establishment and perpetuation of British English as a model for second

language learners. However, the balance is shifting. While British English has been the

dominant variety for centuries, American English (AmE) slowly but surely seems to be taking

its placeif it has not already done so. As much is evident in, for example, a dominant

presence of American English in media; Ladegaard & Sachdev (2006) found that in any given

week on Danish television, 43% percent of all television programs were American, versus a

meager 6% of British ones. Van der Haagen cites similar numbers for Dutch television: for

every 35 hours of television, she found, 17 were English, of which 15 were American (43% of

the whole).

The rise of American English and its supplanting of British English as the dominant

variety of English as the unchallenged world lingua franca (Celente, 1997, p. 298; cited in

Jenkins, 2003, p. 206) is a development which has been taking place rapidly since, roughly,

World War II (1939-1945). Reasons for this shift include increasing globalization (Graddol,

1997), which has diminished the relevance of geographical proximity, and a leading US rolein fields such as global politics, science, technology and commerce, all of which have further

established the leading role of Americans and, by extension, American English (Celente,

1997, p. 298). It may nonetheless be debated whether the shift from BrE to AmE as the

5 dominant English variety is still taking place or has already happened; while AmE is

omnipresent and widely-used already, outsider attitudes toward this variety seem not to have

shifted as rapidly, and AmE is still met with antipathy by great numbers of those who do not

speak English as their native language. Graddol (1997) is even careful to note that, despite

AmEs apparent predominance, an (ambiguous) orientation to British English (cited in

Jenkins, 2003, p. 206) is still prevalent in the majority of ESL countries, and that much of

the negative reaction to English in the world is directed towards the US (ibid.).

At the same time, it is impossible to outrightly dismiss AmEs cultural and social

omnipresence and widespread use; Bayard et al. (2001) reinforce this observation, noting that

the prestige model of RP is being replaced or at least supplemented by Nam *North

American English+ (p. 24). They perceive, for example, an increasing influence of AmE on

New Zealand English (NZE) lexicon, idiom and pronunciation, which they chalk up to the

inexorable influence of American global hegemony (p. 41). This hegemony, as attested, is

multi-faceted and complex, and it is difficult to gauge to what extent and in what way it

influences actual language use and attitudes. Ladegaard & Sachdev (2006) seek to translate

the various influences into a unified concept: ethnolinguistic vitality. A languages or

varietys vitality is defined by matters such as institutional support *and+ its high status (p.

93), in addition to the relative prosperity and size of the region or country the language or

variety is spoken in. Following Giles & Coupland (1991), Ladegaard & Sachdev see fit to

assume a more or less direct correlation between a languages or varietys ethnolinguistic

vitality, and the attractiveness to outgroup members (p. 93). Thus, a languages or varietys

vitality assures its own dispersion; the more prevalent the language or variety is, the more

readily it will be adopted.

At the same time, contradictory forces are at work. While especially popular culture is

increasingly being permeated with all things American, including American English


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6 language, BrE is still the variety of choice for language teachers in the Netherlands (Van der

Haagen, 1998, p. 2). Dutch learners are constantly bombarded with AmE, yet in classrooms

the focus lies on BrE. ESL practices seem fairly conservative and resistant to change;

furthermore, they are highly susceptible to historico-political motivations, as laid out before,

and the status quo; teachers seem little inclined to yield to linguistic trends taking place

outside of scholarly contexts. To aid teaching practices, it needs to be investigated to what

extent this dual influence affects the variety of English that learners actually speak, and

whether the context in which the variety is learned and taught is the only relevant factor, or

whether other factors are also at play.

Analysis: Historical Background and motivation of the thesis.

Comment:In the first paragraph we can see clearly that the author explains what has been found

in previous researches and at the same time she uses that information to motivate her thesis by

showing a gap in it. The adverb however highlights the gap in previousresearch. On the other

hand, he presents the focus of the thesis. As we can see in the last part of paragraph four, the

author conveys the areas she is going to work on but at the same time that sounds like a primary

aim.

As we know the historical background should be organized chronologically. In the four paragraphs

she uses descending chronological order. This can be seen in the yellow highlights.

In regard to the use of tenses in the historical background, I must confess I do not understand why

she uses the present tense (in red) when she is suppose to use the present perfect tense in that

case.

Clarity: The paragraphs do not have any problems concerning normalization nor unclear

pronounce references.

Attitudes Towards BrE and AmE

Paragraphs: 1 - 6

Learner attitudes to different languages, dialects and accents have been the subject of many

language studies, and native and non-native attitudes towards different varieties of English

specifically have received much attention (see e.g. Giles, 1970; Dalton-Puffer et al., 1997;

Bayard et al., 2001; Scales et al., 2006; Hakala, 2007; Llurda, 2009). In these studies, most

often learners are presented with audio samples of speakers of different languages or language

varieties and are asked to rate them according to any number of (subjective) criteria, such as,

for example, cleverness, honesty or naturalness. By doing so, one can quickly gauge how

learners by and large regard different languages or language varieties, and how each of these

scores on different traits as well. The studies that have focused on English have generally

shown that both AmE and BrE are highly regarded varieties, receiving high marks on any

number of traits, but, usually, different traits.

Giles (1970; cited in Van der Haagen, 1998) investigated language attitudes toward

different English varieties among British English schoolchildren. A total of 177

schoolchildren rated 13 varieties of English in all, among which RP (for BrE) and GA (for

7AmE), on three 7-point scales: aesthetic, communicative and status (p. 5). On average, RP

scored the highest, followed by affected RP and then GA. Less standard varieties scored

lower by default. RP scored especially high on aesthetic value; however, it scored lower than


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other varieties on other traits. For instance, GA scored highest on communicative value. Thus,

while RP was by and large considered to be the most beautiful variety, the schoolchildren

considered it less apt for communication. This may raise a question of how communicative

value needs be interpreted; whether it is about general intelligibilityhow easy it is to the ear

or aptitude for everyday conversation. However, in either case it suggests that RP is a more

elite variety, and by extension a less accessible one. Such conclusions can certainly be

indicative of how non-natives may evaluate BrE and AmE.

More recently, Bayard et al. (2001) conducted a study in the same vein among

subjects from New Zealand, Australia and America, comparing AmE, EE (English English;

BrE), New Zealand English (NZE), and Australian English instead (AusE) for both male and

female speakers. On six-point semantic scales, the subjects rated recorded texts from eight

different speakers on thirteen traits to do with character, five to do with voice quality and four

to do with status. They found that Americans rated the AmE speakers highly, as might have

been expected; additionally, the American subjects assigned high points the male EE speaker

on traits such as competence and solidarity. Notably, the EE speakers trailed in the majority of

status and power variables. Australians rated the majority of accents highly, with the

exception of NZE; however, different accents were assigned high points on different traits.For instance, the male EE speaker was ranked highly on status, power and competence but

scored low on solidarity; both AmE speakers, by contrast, did score high on solidarity.

Likewise, the New Zealand subjects rated the EE male highly on competence but low on

solidarity; the American voices again received high points on solidarity. These results are

largely indicative of stereotypes associated with the British and the Americans and their

8respective accents: the British are considered competent and learned, but BrE may sound

affected and fake to non-British ears. Americans, by contrast, are not particularly considered

as competent and learned, but do sound much more genuine. Bayard et al. note that individual

traits of speakers not to do with accent may have influenced the results; the NZE male, for

instance, spoke particularly monotonously. As such, the results must be considered bearing in

mind that the likeability of the speakers, rather than their accents, determined the assessments.

Investigations into attitudes towards different varieties of English have been conducted

among non-native speakers as well, yielding similar results to the NS studies. Van der Haagen

(1998) found that several groups of Dutch high school students, from different regions and

school types, considered speakers of BrE to have a high social status, and they considered

British English as the norm variety. However, Britons were considered to be less dynamic

than speakers of AmE, with Britons being regarded as typically stiff upper lip people.

Americans are also considered to have a high social status; the key difference, however, is

that AmE is not considered to be the norm variety. Additionally, AmE is judged to be a more

laid-back variety of English than BrE. Learners responses to the survey question of which

variety they would like to speak and why so voice the same sentiments: those who prefer BrE

consider it as more polite, friendly, distinguished and educated than AmE. Meanwhile, those

who prefer AmE consider it to be cool, tougher, more relaxed and real (which resembles the

higher points being awarded to AmE on solidarity in Bayard et al.s (2001) experiment),

describing BrE as posh, stupid and rigid. These qualifications mirror the stereotypical views

expressed in NS research.

Ladegaard & Sachdev (2006) conducted a similar experiment among Danish students,

having them rate RP (BrE), Scottish English, Cockney, AusE and SA (AmE) on a number of


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traits. They found similar results. Danish students rated both speakers of BrE and AmE highly

though on different traits. Overall, the students considered BrE to be the most prestigious of

9 the tested accents: it received the highest ratings on all dimensions relating to status and

competence (p. 100). Additionally, it was considered by the subjects to be the most apt

model for learning the language. However, BrE received considerably lower ratings on traits

to do with integrity and solidarity, and it was found to be little socially attractive. The AmE

speaker, by contrast, was generally perceived as having greater personal integrity and social

attractiveness than the RP speaker (p. 101). These results, in combination with subjects

responses to open-ended questions about their preferred accents, suggest that to many of the

subjects, AmE is in fact the more appealing accent. While only 12.5% of the subjects

indicated that they preferred British culture over others, 36.5% indicated that they preferred

American culture. At the same time, several of the learners explicitly remarked that they

aimed for British English in their pronunciation, even if they found Americans more

exciting, more appealing and more relaxed (p. 102). As in other investigations, this

confirms the traditional and stereotypical view learners have of BrE as the norm variety;

moreover, this consideration also motivates them to aim for this variety, even if they find it

less appealing personally and socially. This somewhat conservative notion, then, is not only

deeply ingrained in teachers but in learners as well.

The found non-native attitudeswhich show no full-fledged preference for a variety

and are even paradoxical here and thereraise the question of what accent learners actually

speak. As may be evident, both BrE and AmE receive as many positive as negative

evaluations, which means that the scales are not automatically tipped in either direction.

Additionally, many learners seem to be more attracted to Americans in terms of culture,

personal integrity and social attractiveness, yet indicate that they aim for BrE still, since they

consider it the norm variety. However, even if they prefer BrE as a model for their own

English, they are barely confronted with it outside the school confines, as numbers cited

earlier indicate. BrE is prevalent within scholarly confines but is, basically, the minority

10 variety outside of educational environments. Even if learners wish to aim for BrE, theomnipresence of AmE as an inevitable influence on L2 pronunciation cannot be readily

dismissed, and it is in fact likely to influence their English a great deal.

Analysis: motivation of the thesis and thesis statement.

Comment: The sentences in gray convey the motivation of the thesis by raising a question. The

yellow highlights set out the thesis statement. This thesis statement implies that a discussion is

about to follow.

Clarity: In my opinion, the writer has used the thematic patterning principle: Continuous

Progression in order to organize his paragraphs. For example the second sentence of the first

paragraph draws inferences from the theme of the previous sentence. This is good to some

extent, because it formulates accumulative picture of the topic in presenting a descriptive or

analytical message.

Non-Native Language Attitudes and Acquisition

Paragraphs: 15

As of yet, little research has been conducted into learner attitudes and acquisition of different

L2 varieties. Instead, SLA and sociolinguistic research has long focused primarily on ultimate


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success in the acquisition of L2, and how ultimate success and motivation are related, though

the balance is shifting. Clement & Gardner (2001, cited in Ladegaard & Sachdev, 2007),

among others, have suggested that success in second language learning is critically

influenced by the students identification with the target language group (p. 93). If a

learners ability to identify with the target language group influences the ultimate level of

attainment to any extent, it seems far from unreasonable to suggest that it also lies at the basis

of other types of intra-learner variability, such as the acquisition of different varieties. How

exactly learner motivation influences acquisition, then, can be gathered from the numerous

investigations into ultimate attainment. However, to simply suggest that a match or mismatch

of a learners identity and the target language groups (perceived) collective identity is or can

be a simple predictor of level of attainment would be too blunt a generalization. Ongoing

research into (social) identity has established that identity is anything but fixed: Norton (2000)

characterizes it as, essentially, unfixed, variable and even paradoxicaland, crucially, as a

construct. It is then not so much a mismatch between the identities of the learner and of the

target language group that would affect learning, but rather an unwillingness to change (that,

in turn, may be caused by any number of things), since a mismatch of identity can be solved

by a change in identity.

Learners, then, seem to be active and selective agents (Watson-Gegeo, 2004, p.

339). If they are willing to, they can adapt to the practices and customs of the target language

group, but they can just as well decide not to do so (see, e.g. Duff, 2007). What defines

whether or not learners are willing to adjust is, needless to say, a complex yet important

matter; why some learners are eager to acquire the L2 (and its culture), whereas others

straight-out refute the L2 (and the culture) altogether (see Norton (2000) and Bremer et al.

(1996) for two different accounts), is an essential question in SLA research. There are two

essential factors in SLA, namely the non-native learner, and the native target community.

Each of these variables exerts some influence on the acquisition process. What must then be

noted here is that a learners motivation (or lack thereof) is not the only relevant variable;

additionally, the motivation of the target community (for instance, to adopt new members) isalso highly relevant, in part because it co-defines a learners motivation. As may be obvious

from this, SLA is highly dependent on the interplay between learner and target community. A

learner may be initially willing to acquire the L2; however, a target community may be

indifferent or even hostile to learners (more complexly, the learner may only perceive the

target community as suchit need not be so). Regardless of the learners motivation, then,

the unwillingness of the target community to adopt learnersand offer them ample

opportunity to participate and, through participation, acquire)may debilitate, halt, or revert

the acquisition process. Additionally, the target communitys disinterest or hostility may also

exert an influence upon the learners motivation the learner may (or will) feel disinterested

him- or herself as a result, and may choose to reject the target community and the L2.

Target communities seem rarelyif evergenuinely hostile to learners. Nonetheless,

some learners do successfully acquire the L2, whereas others still choose to refute it

altogether. Toohey & Norton (2001) suggest that learners willingness to invest in the L2

ultimately stems from their anticipation of being able to enhance their conception of

themselves and their desire of the future (p.312). In other words, learners seem generally

unwilling to invest in the L2 (and are, as a result, unsuccessful) if there is nothing to gain.

These gains, of course, are variable, and can (and will) differ per learner. McKay & Wong

(1996, cited in Mitchell & Myles, 2004), for instance, found that the Chinese learners of L2


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English in their study had a large variety of goals set for themselves: whereas some would

only desire to be good students, others were intent on acquiring conversation skills to

converse with (English-speaking) peers, and so on. While these types of motivation may

seem, in themselves, unsurprising (the notion that learners who learn a language only for the

sake of learning it are rarely successful is already widespread), it is Toohey & Nortons

interpretation of their workings that is insightful. Learning the L2, they argue, offers the

possibility for the learner to reshape his or her identity as desired; firstly, this reinforces the

idea that identity is flexible as argued by Norton (2000). Secondly, it also confirms the idea

that a mismatch of identity between learner and target community can, simply, be resolved by

reconstructing that identity.

As attested, the theoretical emphasis so far has been on ultimate acquisition: whether

learners are successful at acquiring the L2. However, adaptations for other types of variability

within L2 acquisition, such as the acquisition of different varieties, also seem possible.

Varieties such as BrE and AmE may, in themselves, not constitute different languages for

learners to acquire, but they certainly have their own respective language communities, each

with unique customs, culture and *+. As such, the choice learners make for one or another

variety may be closely related to their (possibly stereotypical) view of the target varietyscommunity. Indeed, this is exactly what seems to happen: Van der Haagen (1998), in addition

to mapping learner pronunciation, also conducted a survey in which learner motivation was

assessed. It appeared that acquisition of different varieties on the one hand, and attitudes

towards these varieties on the other, were indeed related: those who perceived BrE as a polite

13 and esteemed variety leaned towards BrE in their pronunciation; those who thought higher of

AmE leaned towards that variety. Intuitively, this seems obvious, yet the empirical truth of it

confirms and validates intuition and hunches and can so guide language teaching practices.

For instance, teachers could attempt to improve learner pronunciation not only through drills

and formal linguistic descriptions, but also through cultural asides and image building.

Marketing a variety as such is exactly what, as Graddol (1997) describes, British governments

are doing; yet their canvassing certainly seems to yield results, as the dominant variety, atleast in academic and scholarly contexts, still is BrE.

Further major influences on accent choice are pragmatics and language aptitude.

Pragmatics can be defined as what the learner finds easiest or most convenient; language

aptitude as a learners inherent ability to learn a language or an aspect of it, including

pronunciation. It is tempting to think that accent preference, and subsequently pronunciation,

is motivated by ideology. While this may hold true for perception, production is a different

matter altogether. Perception requires no action on behalf of the learner; production, on the

other hand, requires a learner to produce. However, if what needs to be producedan L2

sound, for instanceproves difficult to attain, ideological convictions may prove not to be

very strong. Here, pragmatics will come into play: rather than clinging hard and fast to an

unattainable norm, a student will instead opt for a variant that is easier to produce, such as a

variant from the L1, or a variant from a different L2 variety that is closer to an L1 sound.

However, whether the attainment of an ideal L2 variant will prove difficult is highly

dependent on a learners language aptitude, which is unrelated to general aptitude or

intelligence (Parry & Stansfield, 1990). If a learners language aptitude is particularly high,

learning an L2 will prove relatively easy for them; much easier than for those with low

aptitude. As a result, they will be able to pursue the norm they choose fairly successfully, and

their success in attaining native-like L2 pronunciation will not be constrained by pragmatics


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or other considerations outside of what they consider their ideal or norm. It may thus be

expected that learners will behave differently depending on their language aptitude, especially

concerning success and inter- and intra-variable variability, i.e. variability between variables

(AmE for one, BrE for another) and variability within variables (AmE for one word, BrE for

another).

Analysis: More background, previous research of the study and more thesis statements.

Comment: Once again, the author starts motivating his thesis by writing about gaps in previous

research. Lets see for example what the initial sentence of the first paragraph says (in gray).

There, she uses the word little to highlight the gap. Later on in the last paragraph, as we can see

highlighted in red, the writer sets out two sentences that have the structure of a thesis statement.

Clarity: I have noticed that the writer makes use of quite few parentheses when he wants to add

something to a sentence. I am sure she wants to make the sentences clearer. However, she makes

them a bit confusing.

Overall Comment:

After reading the whole introduction chapter, I believe that this thesis has more than one thesis

statements and lacks of a clear primary and secondary aim. It is true that the reader should be

confronted with thesis statement along the reading and that it is nicer if the latter implies rather

than state but in this case it was hard to find out if they were thesis statements or simply the focus

of the thesis.

N 7 The English of Ethnic Minorities.

Preamble

Analysis: Background information about the subject in question.Comment: First of all, I think this section should have been placed out of the introduction chapter.

I believe this a good piece of a preamble page, she only needed to add the part corresponding to

acknowledgements.

Clarity: While reading, you can see that it has flow. Therefore, the reading is enjoyable. She used

simple but clear sentences. She mixed both continuous and linear progression. In the second

paragraph, the second sentence exposes an example of continuous progression. It makes

inference from the first one by alluding inconsistencies in grading. Then, we can also observe

linear progression in the third sentence of the same paragraph mentioned above. That sentence

refers to computer based pronunciation, which is the focus in the preceding sentence.

Introduction

Paragraphs: 1 -5

If you wish to be confronted explicitly with grading differences, this thesis will do just that as it

investigates the issues that underlie the grading of pronunciation. Specific emphasis is put on the

evaluation of English pronunciation by Dutch students of English, a procedure which is tested via a

listening experiment.


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Acquiring a certain accent and level of pronunciation has more importance in the

Netherlands than in most other countries, where mutual intelligibility with other non-

native and with native speakers is often the most prominent aim and where native-like

pronunciation does not often have high priority. This makes the evaluation of

pronunciation a relevant object of study, since teachers beliefs about varieties of Englishmay cause a bias in their grading.

Dutch students of English Language and Culture are set a norm which they are required to

approximate in order to pass their pronunciation tests. It is in these tests that problems arise,

because the students pronunciation is graded by such a heterogeneous group of people that

grades can vary enormously depending on the teacher. For students, this is problematic, because

they assume that their grades are based on set criteria1, and that the more their pronunciation

resembles that of a native speaker, the higher their grades will be.

This controversy is not just common to language studies; in various disciplines grading problems

have been a topic of debate. Ganiel & Hofstein (1981), who studied the grading practices ofteachers of physics felt that achieving a better consensus amongstteachers when evaluating a

particular student was necessary, and that it should be solved that the personal preferences and

biases of each teacher play a major role, and [that] different teachers may tend to emphasise

different components in their assessment (p. 582). Indeed, in their study, the use of well defined

criteria led to a significant decrease in the standard deviation of the grades of the students that

were assessed. The use of predefined criteria in assessment thus seems a good choice, but

warrants the question as to which criteria should be used, as pronunciation teaching covers so

many aspects that it seems impossible to tell which ones are mainly used in assessments. As

Jenkins (2004) summarises, pronunciation teaching typically covers any or all of the following:

consonant and vowel sounds, changes to these sounds in the stream of connected speech, word

stress patterns, rhythm, and intonation (p. 109), but it would be a stretch to assume that to all

these features equal attention is paid when pronunciation is evaluated.

The current research determines how grading practices differ among faculty and which errors

cause lower grades. A hierarchy of the most important pronunciation errors is constructed on the

basis of criteria as they are reported by faculty. Via a listening experiment, teachers from various

universities across the Netherlands were asked to explain in detail on the basis of which criteria

they assigned a certain grade to the pronunciation of a student. Furthermore, they were asked

questions in order to clarify their views on pronunciation in general. Analyses of the data reveal

certain trends, which make it possible to determine for what reason it is that a student may get a

pass when judged by one teacher but a fail when evaluated by another.

Analysis: Focus, announcement and explanation of the thesisComment: The first paragraph presents the angle that the writer is going to adopt in the thesis.

She says that she will be evaluating the English pronunciation from a grading perspective. She also

makes a quick reference to the instrument she will use in order to accomplish her objective.

The second paragraph begins with the explanation of announcement of the topic, followed by the

focus of the thesis. Focus of the thesis: evaluation of the pronunciation; in other words, she is

going to deal with that subject along the thesis process.


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In regard to the third chapter, I can see that she brings out an inadequacy in previous

pronunciation test so that she can call the readers attention.

The fourth paragraph has to do with previous research in the thesis paper.

Finally, the last paragraph directs the attention to the thesis statement, the same that is placed at

the beginning.

Clarity: From my point of view, she makes good use of subordinate sentences. For example, the

last sentence of paragraph 4 shows the subordinate sentence in a final position. Therefore, the use

of clear made the paragraph understandable.

Research Themes

Paragraph:

The key theme underlying this thesis is the influence teachers personal ideas and ideals have on

their opinion of what good pronunciation of English is for a Dutch student of that language.

Educators can focus on teaching their students a language as a means of communication, in which

case they pay little attention to factors that do not disturb intelligibility. Others may feel that they

should teach their students the English language, which causes these teachers to focus in detail onsegmental issues. Yet other teachers may want to convey to their students a means of gaining a

new identity, of gaining access to a new group in society. Either, if any, of these possibilities raises

the question of which norm these various types of teachers set for their students. Gaining more

insight into the norm that is set is therefore the second theme that is of interest. Whereas

Smakman (2006) rightfully argues that in language, standard can be defined as meeting the

most dominant linguistic norm within a speech community (p. 5), our speech community is not

very neatly defined, and thus the norm might become hazy.

Analysis: More focus of the thesis.

Comment: Here, the author brings out the focus of the study again. She says that the thesis will be

dealing with the influence teachers per Once more here, she motivates her thesis by rising a question hat is followed by the other area

she will be dealing with during the research.

Clarity: So far as it concerns the paragraph clarity, there is no comment.

Other Relevant Themes

Paragraph:

As indicated in the previous paragraph, personal beliefs may influence grading practices, but these

in turn could well be influenced by personal factors, such as gender, teaching experience and

native language.

Gender influence is noticeable in many fields of study, and the educational sciences have

successfully proved its importance in many areas of teaching, including assessment. Gender will

therefore serve as a sub-theme throughout this thesis.

Teaching experience is also a theme that is of importance to this study. Self-confidence may be

greatly enhanced by having extensive experience in the teaching profession. This expertise, which

inevitably only grows over the years, will influence the way in which teachers grade. Teachers may

develop intuitions over the years which their inexperienced colleagues lack.


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Speaking a language as your mother tongue will influence your perception of the pronunciation of

students of that language, because you know like no one else what it should sound like, and how

the students pronunciation influences how they are perceived by native speakers. Additionally,

native English speakers who teach in the Netherlands are also aware of what it feels like to learn a

new language and how that influences their identity and sense of belonging. On the other hand,

non-native speakers of English are more likely to have been taught pronunciation rules than their

native English colleagues. This, too, could influence perception and grading.

Analysis: Partof the Introduction subtitle

Comment: In my opinion, this section could have been easily summarized and placed at the

beginning of the chapter.

Research Questions:

Two main research questions form the basis for this thesis, namely:

1. Is there a correlation between teacher-related variables and pronunciation grading practices?

2. How are the various pronunciation features judged by different groups of teachers?

Comment:This is very direct way of stating the research questions.

Purpose of this study

Paragraph:

Although some have argued that communicating effectively with native speakers is the main

objective second language (L2) learners of English should have and that therefore their opinion is

most important, their teachers are the ones who judge their pronunciation in the first place, whichis why students should know what their norms are. By modifying those elements of pronunciation

that are believed to be most important to faculty, students can achieve higher grades, which in

turn may increase their self-esteem and dedication to acquiring an even better level of

pronunciation. It is therefore one of the main purposes of this study to determine which speech

features are deemed most important by faculty. Additionally, an aim of this study is to determine

why and how differences between teachers cause a disruption in grading. This will provide the

necessary clarity that is needed for teachers to see what they can change if their aim is to send out

a coherent message to their students. A description of variation in grading will illustrate to

students of English which aspects of the English language are judged most severely and will cause

a deduction on the grade if present in the students speech.

Education

The most important area for which this research may be of interest is education. Because of this,

the main purpose of the current study is to clarify the differences that exist between teachers, and

which are the cause for the problems that currently exist with regard to the way in which

pronunciation is at present evaluated at Dutch universities. Knowing there are problems will not

solve them, but creating more awareness will stress the need for change. Giving insight into

evaluation methods will help students feel more confident that their grades do not depend on


20/26

anything but their level of pronunciation. Teachers, too, will feel more confident if the grades they

assign are objective and clear to their students.

Analysis: Primary and secondary aim

Comment: Theprimary and secondary aims are founded in the end of the first paragraph. In the

second paragraph, there is a late attempt to show the importance of her thesis.

Clarity: There is frontal overloading in the two initial sentences of the second paragraph.

Overview

Paragraph:

This thesis consists of two parts; Part One will discuss the context as well as the literature which is

needed to contextualise the data, the methodology and a discussion of the results of the pilot-

study that was undertaken as a basis for this thesis. Part Two discusses the data and results, and

will give a conclusion, as well as recommendations for further research.

In Part One, Chapter 2 introduces the relevant literature. Sections 2.2 and 2.3 will each deal withone of the main themes that underlie the study. In sections 2.4, 2.5 and 2.6 the literature relevant

to the sub-themes will be discussed. The design of the test and the way it was administered to the

respondents, together with a description of the way the data were analysed, form the topic of

Chapter 3. In Chapter 4 an overview of the pilot study will be given. The results will be discussed so

as to make clear how it influenced the core experiment with regard to the selection of the

speakers and the design of the listening experiment.

In Part Two, Chapter 5 will present and discuss how grades differ among teachers. These results

will be related to the themes that are important for this study; as such this discussion will

contribute to an answer to the research questions. Chapter 6 will discuss how teacher-related

variables influence which criteria are used and Chapter 7 will focus on the creation of a hierarchy

of most important errors. Finally, in Chapter 8 conclusions will be drawn with regard to the results

presented in Chapters 5, 6 and 7. Also, recommendations for future research will be made.

Analysis: Thesis structure outline

Comment: In this case, the author considered convenient to explain how her thesis is organized. I

assumed that she wanted to make it easier for the reader to understand the content of her thesis.

Nevertheless, I would have avoided this last section, since the table of contents reaches the same

purpose.

Clarity: Since the structure of the thesis follows an order, this paragraph is well organized.

Overall comment: In general, I think this introduction satisfies its purpose and it is well structured.

I would have avoided some information though.

N 8 Whats in a word but what we call an infix?

Introduction

Paragraph 1:


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Infixation is a topic familiar to students of linguistics in terms of usage: they have probably heard

phrases such as (1), taken from the television series Sex & the City (first broadcasted in 1998).

(1) Carrie: Do you believe in love at first sight?

Mr. Big: Absofuckinglutely.

Analysis: Explanation of the topic.

Comment: Use of example to establish what her topic is going to be about.

Clarity: Theparagraph is clear and easy to understand the message of the author.

Paragraph 2:

At the same time, infixation is still unfamiliar; they may not be aware that it is a systematic

linguistic process, moreover the term is overshadowed by the well-known and much more

frequent processes in English word formation:prefixation and suffixation. Even the Oxford English

Dictionary (OED) fails to define infix without referring to these other processes (2).1

(2) A modifying element inserted in the body of a word, instead of being prefixed or suffixed tothe stem.

Analysis: Justification of her research.

Comment: She explains why she came out with the research.

Clarity: There is connection between the first paragraph and the second one.

Paragraph 3 and 4:

Infixation itself is a rare process (Ultan 1975) not at all immediately associated with English.

Indeed, Sapir (1921: 75) goes even further and claims that this very curious type of affixationknown as infixing *...+ is utterly unknown in English.2 Nonetheless, the OED lists

absobloominglutely (1909) as an actual entry under absolutely: with an expletive infixed *into the

word+ for humorous emphasis. This is the first record in the OED of an expletive infix. The date of

the second entry is very close: the first record of absoballylutely is dated only five years later in

1914. This proves that the process of (expletive) infixing must be at least over a century old. Taboo

might skew older studies of English word formation, but it is seems likely that infixes, or at least

their productivity, are a relatively new addition to the English word forming processes. At the

moment, their popularity seems to be rising, though mainly in spoken language.

A recent example is (1), in which Mr. Big adds emotional intensity to his response. However, unlike

what the OED claims, the infix does not merely add humorous emphasis: this suggests that either

a new meaning has emerged or the meaning of the infix has changed. Furthermore, Snoop Dogg

released a single called Tha Shiznit (an izz-infixed form of Shit) in 1993, and Kidd Chris released

his song My Biznitch is the Shiznit (where both bitch and shit appear with izz as an infix).3 This

was not their attempt of being humorous, but being tough.

Analysis: Historical background of the topic.

Comment: She describes what it has been achieved in the field of her study.


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Clarity: She has organized this component in ascending order. First she mentions some studies

from 1975 and then she continues showing more recent studies.

Paragraph 5:

However, throughout (English) morphology learning books, the process of infixing is an unpopular

topic, although speakers of English, having heard the infixes mentioned above, are able to

productively create new words with them. Carstairs-McCarthy (2002) and Pinker (1999) both

discuss forms of affixing in English, but fail to mention the process of infixing. Plag (2003: 101) only

mentions an approach of infixing in a short paragraph, but also says that *m+orphologists usually

agree that English has no infixes. However, Ruszkiewicz (2002: 133, 164) argues that infixation in

modern English *...+ makes use of free morphemes and that English has never used bound

morphemes as infixes. My own research shows that English does have a process that can be

called infixing, and crucially, it does also use bound morphemes. It is a process that has become

more productive over the last decades. I will illustrate this by discussing the traditional accounts of

infixation, and recent additions popularised by (contemporary) slang and television. Furthermore,

my research will provide an historical overview of the origins of the different infixes, as well as

discuss their meaning and sociolinguistic background. However, the main goal is to propose auniform model for the different kinds of infixation in English.

Analysis: Motivation of her topic, thesis statement and primary and secondary aim.

Comment: I highlighted with gray colour the motivation, with red the thesis statement, green for

the primary aim and yellow for the secondary aim. The thesis statement does not imply. She

presents the secondary aim before the primary.

Clarity: The paragraph clear.

Paragraph 6:

I will start out with the historical linguistics of the infixes in section 1, followed by a discussion ofthe meanings in section 2. In section 3, I will focus on the users and productivity of the infixes.

Section 4 and 5 will deal with the traditional accounts of infixing, and my proposal for a uniform

infixation model respectively.

Analysis: Brief outline of the Thesis structure. A late attempt to show the focus of her research

topic.

Comment: First, she sets out the content of the thesis paper and then she tries to expose the

focus of each section in order to call the reader attention.

Clarity: No observation in this chapter.

Overall comment: I like this introduction. I think it is small and it still fulfils its purpose. The author

could have just put in order some information and the introduction was perfect.

N 9 Contactinduced vs. externallyinduced language change.

In this thesis paper, the introduction chapter has been divided into 6 parts:


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1. Introduction

In the first paragraph, the author shows what she the objective of her research is. She also

provides the reader with a background of the topic, a bit of the content of the thesis paper

and previous research as well.

In the second paragraph, we are confronted with the focus of the thesis. I mean it seems

to be that but I am not sure, since it is quite confusing.

The third paragraph has to do with the primary and secondary aim. There, she also

motivates her thesis my highlighting a gap in a previous research.

Analysis:Historical background, primary and secondary aim and motivation of the thesis.

Comment:The last paragraph is quite clear to the reader

1.1Overview

In this section, the readers make clear her variables of study.

Comment: She begins this section describing the historical background again. The, almost

at the end, she explains what it is related to variables.

From my view, this section is quite entangled and makes the reading unpleasant.

Clarity: First of all, she uses difficult sentence constructions. For example, in the first

sentence of the second paragraph, she could have expressed that with a simple sentence.

Secondly, there is frontal overloading in the paragraphs.

1.2The slovenian language situation in a nutshell

1.3Short historical recap 11

Comment: These two sections are basically historical background and previous research

information. I understand that we might find a lot of previous research related to our

topic but we need to select information which is appealing to our readers.

1.4Theoretical background and research questions 13

Once again, more previous investigations. She also sets out what the topic is not going to

deal with. If I was here, I would have stated clearly what the thesis is going to deal with

instead of making the reading more tedious with information that is not super relevant.

This section concludes with the questions that will be answer along the research.

1.5Hypotheses.

Here, we find the secondary aim.

1.6Research variables


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Explanation of the variables that will be used on order to fulfill the purpose of the thesis

paper.

Overall Comment:

This introduction conveys what it will be discussed further in the research. However, all

that information is widely spread along all the section analyzed.

I know that it is nicer if we give our reader the information little by little in order to make

the reading more appealing. However, that is dangerous when the information is not

really well organized.

Similarities and differences of the analyzed thesis:

All the theses that have analyzed belong to the linguistics field. Thesis 1, 7 and 8

contain long introductions, while theses 6 and 9 are long.

Theses 1, 7 and 9 are similar regarding the structure of the introduction. I think this

is because the authors wanted to give a clear overview of what the thesis itself was

going to be about.

On the other hand, the author of thesis 6 based all the introduction chapter in

historical background and previous research.

In case of thesis 8, I can say that it has a very short introduction. However, we can

find the fundamental components in it.

With regard the clarity, I can conclude that the longer the introductions were the

more mistakes in frontal overloading were founded.

F. - In the discussion board, comment on one other students

introduction analyses of the theses.

These are the titles of theses of the other students analyses:

analyses theses 1, 2, 3, 6, 9ReplyQuoteSet FlagAuthor:

B. BergmannPosted Date:


Friday, November 5, 2010 3:24:25 PM CETTotal views:
http://reply%28%27_1231299_1%27%29/http://replywithquote%28%27_1231299_1%27%29/http://replywithquote%28%27_1231299_1%27%29/http://www.blackboard.leidenuniv.nl/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=email_user&MF=true&course_id=_97356_1&conf_id=_130702_1&forum_id=_123114_1&message_id=_1231299_1&nav=db_thread_list_entry&thread_id=_1231299_1&nav=db_thread_list_entry&user_id=_330744_1http://www.blackboard.leidenuniv.nl/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=email_user&MF=true&course_id=_97356_1&conf_id=_130702_1&forum_id=_123114_1&message_id=_1231299_1&nav=db_thread_list_entry&thread_id=_1231299_1&nav=db_thread_list_entry&user_id=_330744_1http://display%28%27_1231299_1%27%2C%27_1231381_1%27%2C%27layer_42_0%27%29/http://www.blackboard.leidenuniv.nl/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=email_user&MF=true&course_id=_97356_1&conf_id=_130702_1&forum_id=_123114_1&message_id=_1231299_1&nav=db_thread_list_entry&thread_id=_1231299_1&nav=db_thread_list_entry&user_id=_330744_1http://replywithquote%28%27_1231299_1%27%29/http://reply%28%27_1231299_1%27%29/


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10 (Your views: 4)Hi guys,Better late than never: my analysis. If anyone reads it: have fun!Bloeme

1. The English of Ethnic Minorities (1)

2. Refusal Strategies of Chinese Englishlearners(2)

3. Language Shift of the Qingdao Dialect(3)4. How English are the non-natives(6)

5. Contact induced vs externally induced language change(9)

Comment on your analysisReplyQuoteSet FlagAuthor:

R.A. Horna SanchezPosted Date:


Friday, November 5, 2010 4:20:57 PM CETTotal views:2 (Your views: 2)

Parent Post

I will basically comment on your comparison -conclusion of your analysis of theses 1, 9 and then I will gofurther with thesis 6.

First of all I disagree with you in these two points.

1. Thesis 6 does not have an introduction at all.

2. Thesis 9 has only a few mistakes.

While you affirm that 6 dont have an introduction at all, I say that it has. I based my statement on thebasic parts of an introduction found in such thesis.

For example, in the last paragraph of the section Attitudes Towards BrE and AmE, we find the thesisstatement of the topic. At, the beginning I was also a bit confused, but after reading twice I couldrecognize it.

I think we might say that thesis does not count with a well organized nor structured introduction eitherbut I could not affirm that it lacks of an introductory chapter.

Furthermore, from your point of view thesis 9 does not have many mistakes. However, I found quite afew mistakes. First of all, the writer uses too much information, information that could beeasily summarized and placed in only one section. She does not mention the aims of the research clearlyeither. I have also found sentences that are ambiguous and difficult to understand.

Finally, I agree with you on your analysis of thesis 1. I also think that the author has quite few mistakeson the clarity, but almost all the authors have made the same mistakes. I think it is important to highlightthose mistakes that can help us to avoid making the same mistakes when elaborating our thesis paper.

However, from the theses I chose to analyse, I could understand this much easier than number 9.
http://reply%28%27_1231381_1%27%29/http://replywithquote%28%27_1231381_1%27%29/http://replywithquote%28%27_1231381_1%27%29/http://www.blackboard.leidenuniv.nl/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&forum_id=_123114_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_130702_1&course_id=_97356_1&message_id=_1231299_1http://www.blackboard.leidenuniv.nl/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&forum_id=_123114_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_130702_1&course_id=_97356_1&message_id=_1231299_1http://www.blackboard.leidenuniv.nl/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&forum_id=_123114_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_130702_1&course_id=_97356_1&message_id=_1231299_1http://www.blackboard.leidenuniv.nl/webapps/discussionboard/do/message?action=list_messages&forum_id=_123114_1&nav=discussion_board_entry&conf_id=_130702_1&course_id=_97356_1&message_id=_1231299_1http://replywithquote%28%27_1231381_1%27%29/http://reply%28%27_1231381_1%27%29/


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I would like to say that this tutorial has also taught me that I do not need to write difficult sentences inorder to convey an idea. The more simple and clearer the sentence is, the nicest the reading is.

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