Abstract - Academic article

This study investigates the influence of using corpus technology in L2 academic writing, the effects of this technolgy on language learning and approaches to L2 writing, and also, its individual experiences and contextual factors. It attempts to emphasize that the corpus approach not only can enhance learners’ awareness of lexico-grammatical patterning of texts, but also can foster inductive learning. The context was presented between students that come from a graduate-level advanced ESL academic writing course of the Dongguk University, Korea, but the researchers was focused in 6 cases, students from different nationalities, which four students were majoring in science-related fields (one in combined science and education); one was in education; and the other one in the humanities. The students received a course that was given by a veteran ESL professor; this course contained ten weeks, twice a week, and two and a half hour per day. After that process, the participants were interviewed approximately once every two weeks for an hour during the first quarter. Results did show that there are big differences between their fields of study; three of them just use the corpus for class writing assignments, while the others did not; another factor presented that the science majors students may have had less need for writing in their courses, and the three non-science majors students likely to require more writing and a wider variety of styles.

http://llt.msu.edu/vol12num2/yoon.pdf

How can I use the sentences reducing strategies?

Page 198

Schenker, in her article “Smart House”,Speak up 169, accounts in the future, thanks for technology, houses will be networked making people’s life easier and comfortable. Electronic devices will be connected to Internet and will have special chips to control housework, communications, shopping, bills or people social life. Disadvantages of having a networked house do not seem to be significant. People will just have to pay some extra dollars for the extra chips. Connection to Internet and the security to protect systems against pirating. Maintenance will not have to be afforded by people because service will repair themselves. The author concludes that the money spent by people will not mean much considering all the benefits of having a smart house.

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This study went through 1,600 marginal and comments written on 110 drafts of essays by 47 university ESL advanced students, considering pragmatic goals and linguistic features of comments. Drafts of individual essays were examined to observe the influence of the first draft commentary on the students’ revisions and asses the changes that were made in response to teacher’s feedback improved the essays. The author thinks that significant proportions of comments led to substantive student revision, and there were particular types of commentary were more helpful than others. The final results are suggestive of several important implications for L2 writing instruction and future studies on a vital neglected topic.

Paraphrasing

EXERCISE 1

Paraphrase each sentence. There may be more than one way to rewrite each one. Remember to change vocabulary , phrases and sentence structure wherever you can.

1. Despite their massive size, elephants are known for being agile

Elephants are agiles despite of their massive sizes

  2.-Because elephants consume up to 500pounds of food a day, they are able to strip a forest bare in no time.

Elephants consumes a lot of food a day and they can devastate a whole forest.

 3.-Over the centuries, lions have been used in art to represent power and magnificence

The power and magnificence in arts has been represented by lions

4.- Lions are social anumals with one dominant male in each pride.

Despite the dominant male, Lions are sociable animals

5.-George Washington Carver was a dedicated teacher, in adition, he was known as a talented artist, musician, and researcher who made valuable contributions to his people and his country.

The contribution of George Washington to the country and his people is not only as a researcher but in arts, music and education.

6.- Archibald Mcleish, known for his poetry, was appointed head of the Library of Congress by President Roosevelt in 1939

In 1939 President Roosevelt named to Archibald Mcleish as the head of the Library of Congress

Exercise 2

Read each paragraph and sate the main idea in your own words. If you find the main idea stated directly in the paragraph, be sure to use the paraphrasing techniques that you practice in exercise one.

1. There is plenty of water on the earth. In fact, there is enough water in this planet for everyone to have a huge lake. The trouble is that the water is not always found in the place where it is needed. In addition, much of the water is polluted or salty. Because of these problems, there are many people without sufficient water.

Main idea: Water and its problems.

    2.   New oil  supplies need to be found to replace those that have been used up. There is a constant search for new oil fields. oil hunters sink their wells wherever there are signs of oil. Each of these drillings costs thousands and thousands of dollars, and often there ir not enough oil to make it profitable. Nevertheless, the search for new oil never ebds.

Main idea: The expensive oil and the neccesity of finding new fields.

  3.  Quakers, a religious group known as the Society of Friends, have always worked for huamn causes.Before the civil War in the United States, they were against slavery and led the movement to help slaves escape from the southern part of the United States and seek freedom in the northern part. Today, they fight hunger and disease around the globe ands still aid peoplefleeing tyranny and war. Their beliefs  are based on the principles of pacifism and simple living.

Main idea: Quakers against war, tiranny and slavery.

Exercise 3

Let´s look at the following text. First, read the original essay several times to make sure that you understand each paragraph well. Then, fill in the outline. next, write a 100 word summary.

Students Rights.

The refuse of including students to the planification and organization of schudels and curriculum. Starting by, the choosing of a carrer, the students are never asked about what kind of carrer they want to study, there is no interview about it and they are placed according to the administrative committee, related to this point we may highlight the opportunity that students dont have to get the information of a semester or a school year, students dont know anything until the first class or the first day in the semester, they meet the professor, the subject and the planning. Also, students never can make an evaluation about the professors' skills, the way of teaching and even the planning of the exams, assignments and workshops, etc. The students have to be allowed of being envolved in the planning of curricula because if this depends the future of them.

... about the picture with the clouds and shadows

I think that the picture represente the clearest projection that we, as a future teachers, need to have at the time of giving classes. We must have the biggest responsability of teaching a group in a good way as posible as we can because our students will be reflected according to our behaviour, we must show an excellent skill in order toproject security and control of the group.

Main Idea

It is related with the statement that is created to give a more specific or implied the topic. Also, It can be defined as the most important thing that he/she wants you to understand about the topic. Main point of a story.

http://www.google.co.ve/search?hl=es&biw=1020&bih=529&defl=en&q=define:main+idea&sa=X&ei=d1bsTK__D4H7lwe9ie38AQ&ved=0CB4QkAE

Topic

It is refered to the main principle of a discussion, written or verbal. It is the subject or what are we talkin about. Some people, as learners writers, have to face with a non well-defined topic but the skilled writers have to present well-defined, focused and developed topics with the purpose of holding their readers' attention.

http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/processes/topic/pop2a.cfm