Linguistics - Page 5

The Film Life of Pi as a Multimedia Tool in English Language Classrooms of Engineering Colleges in Gujarat- An ESP Approach

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314 views

Barnali Chetia1 & Dharna Bhatt2

1Assistant Professor, Indian Institute of Information Technology Vadodara. ORCID: 0000-0003-3243-2361.  Email: barnali@iiitvadodara.ac.in

2Research Scholar, Indian Institute of Information Technology Vadodara. ORCID: 0000-0001-9495-0346Email: dharnapandya@gmail.com

 Volume 12, Number 5, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n5.rioc1s23n6

Abstract

 ESP advocates the designing of special courses instead of one multi-purpose course, to suit the needs of different courses of students. The curriculum of English as a course in Engineering Institutes differs from other disciplines in Arts, Commerce and Science colleges. Use of films as a multimedia tool and as an ESP approach in English classrooms of Engineering Institutes has become inevitable. For many students, films are their initial contact with English-speaking culture and a fun way to relax and also learn at the same time. The present study tries to examine the use of films as a multimedia tool in the English language classrooms of Engineering Institutes of Gujarat. The film Life of Pi by Ang Lee is considered as a major instrument for the present study. The study was conducted on a sample of 315 students pursuing their B.Tech in different Government Engineering colleges of Gujarat, India. The study was accomplished by using the survey and observation method. The survey questionnaire was used as a major instrument for the data collection of the study. The results suggests that Films as a teaching tool motivates student to learn English in second language classrooms and also helps them to understand and enhance their second language skills.

Keywords: ESP, Second Language Acquisition, Multimedia, Life of Pi

Rethinking the India-Bharat Divide vis-à-vis COVID-19: Implications for a Sociolinguistics of Health Communication

291 views

Ajit Kumar Mishra

Associate Professor, Dept. of Humanistic Studies, Indian Institute of Technology (Banaras Hindu University) Varanasi, India Email: akmishra.hss@iitbhu.ac.in ORCID: 0000-0003-4839-1699

 Volume 12, Number 5, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n5.rioc1s8n1

Abstract:

Language plays an important role in the dissemination of critical health information across human societies. Taking a cue from the sociolinguistic nuances of the role of language in society, this study probes the India-Bharat divide in the COVID-19 scenario as a potential hurdle to the sense making practices necessary for successful health communication. By delving into the dichotomous linguistic relationship between India and Bharat, this study contends that in order for this sociolinguistic dichotomy to be resolved and health communication to be effective, it is important that all concerned must be in control of the same code. The study raises questions ranging from challenges for health communication with respect to the linguistically diverse population in the country, access to reliable health information, to the problem of incomprehensibility as a barrier to the availability of proper health information. Through qualitative content analysis of the COVID-19 health information terminology mediated through popular Hindi news channels during the first phase of lockdown in India and the corresponding outcome reports across digital platforms, the study analyses the India-Bharat divide and suggests sociolinguistic strategies that can tacitly turn the structural pluralism into an organic pluralism making heath communication in India smooth and discernible.

Keywords: COVID-19, comprehensibility, India-Bharat divide, health communication, sociolinguistics

Negotiating Scottish ‘distinctiveness’ (?): Unmasking the British Conquest and the Construction of Empire in the 19th Century Indian Subcontinent

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240 views

Subhashis Pan

Ph.D Research Scholar, Sidho-Kanho-Birsha University, Purulia, WB. Email: subhashis.pan6@gmail.com, https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9178-3607

 Volume 12, Number 5, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n5.rioc1s5n2

 Abstract

India in the 19th century encapsulates a very different and contesting Scottish dimension to the expansion of British Empire. The Scottish legacy in the field of British colonial enterprise has been blurred over the time. Scotland, which was once a colony of the English, was incorporated in the Great Britain in the Union Act of 1707. But distinction between Scottish and English was never made. Thus, in the field of literature we do not find distinct Scottish identity of the contributors like- Walter Scott, R. L. Stevenson, Adam Smith, Thomas Carlyle- to name a few. They are placed in the ‘English literature’ without due emphasis on Scottish background and influence. Similarly, the common notion of the British imperial enterprise has masked the contribution of the Scottish administrators working under the British. Now, in the context of India when we talk about ‘Scottish Orientalism’, we need to focus on the already blurred identity of being ‘Scottish’ in the dominant English field. The Union Act (1707) between England and Scotland produced a space for the Scottish people to participate in the British imperial enterprise. This paper focuses to unmask the role of some of the Scottish scholar-administrators working under the British for a distinctively Scottish contribution to the expansion of the British imperial activities that helps to explore the nature of the intellectual and religious engagement. The study offers a distinctive Scottish Orientalist school as Scottish participation of empire remains open ended and it argues for a complex assessment of Scottish individuals who though shared some philological and philosophical interests and assumptions, nevertheless diverged in many other respects.

Keywords: Empire, hegemony, Orientalism, Scottish-distinctiveness, Scottish Orientalist school

Deconstructing Maternal Semiotic and Paternal Symbolic: A Psycholinguistic Perspective for Social Refinement

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222 views

Dhara Rathod

Department of Business and management, Institute of Advanced Research, Gandhinagar. Email: dhara.rathod87@gmail.com

 Volume 12, Number 5, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n5.rioc1s24n5

Abstract:

To examine the possibilities of reciprocal relationship of Semiotic and Symbolic in language processing, the present study attempts to analyze the psycholinguistic perspective as an essential tool for social refinement. When the select semiotic used for female which is maternal gets its signification in symbolic which is paternal was found affective. Genially, there should no such ideas as masculine or feminine in semiotic and symbolic. Consciously or unconsciously, female locates her priming words as an auxiliary and thereafter the psycholinguistic perspective for social change demands influence of semiotic and symbolic congruency for women empowerment in the globalized era. To transmit, receive and deform meanings of the words that have been used, misused and abused for females, the present study attempts to analyse select words through psycholinguistic filament of language learning. The finding suggests that this deconstructing psychic and linguistic change demands representation of right semiotic and symbolic interpretation of words at Mirror Stage of language processing.

Keywords: Psycholinguistic, feminism, semiotic, symbolic, maternal, paternal, signification, social refinement.

Exploring a Fourth Space for Composition Studies Research

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226 views

John R. Baker1 & Patrick Bizzaro2

1National Quemoy University, Taiwan. Email: drjohnbaker@yahoo.com

2Professor Emeritus, East Carolina University, U.S.A. Email: pbpp@auxmail.iup.edu

 Volume 12, Number 5, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n5.rioc1s24n4

Abstract

The research methods landscape has the potential to be quite diverse. However, the paradigmatic battles between the two empirical research camps (quantitative and qualitative) and the more recent embracement of mixed-methods research has narrowly focused many fields’ attention, including that of composition studies, away from other sorts of useful methods, such as theoretical research. To address this, this sequential two-part study compares and contrasts the (a) purpose, (b) instruments, (c) data, and (d) structure of quantitative and qualitative research. Drawing on this four-part structure, this study advances composition studies research methods literature by posing and testing a definition of theoretical research through an examination of full-length core composition studies texts (N = 12). The article concludes by explaining the study’s relevance to the field and offering directions for future research.

Keywords: Theoretical Research, Composition Studies, Rhetoric

Federalism at the Crossroads: Crisis of the Linguistic Minorities in India

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245 views

Pritin Dutta

Assistant Professor in Political Science, Government General Degree College, Tehatta. Nadia, West Bengal, India. ORCID: 0000-0002-8834-1904. Email id: duttapritin11@gmail.com                                                                                                                                                                                 Volume 12, Number 5, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n5.rioc1s24n2

Abstract

Polyglot federations face a challenge in reconciling between the national identities and regional identities. Demand for a second States Reorganisation Commission (SRC) in India in 2015 by some groups bears testimony to this fact. On the question of political remapping in post-independence period, the constitutional ancestors sought to save India from another religious bigotry and the menace of casteism. The emergence of language as a viable alternative gained momentum in Nagpur session (1920) of the Indian National Congress (INC). But subsequent years encountered with a difficulty in adopting territorial solution for accommodating India’s multilingual identities. Pre-constitutional, extra-constitutional and constitutional arrangements have faced the challenge of linguistic accommodation. Dar Commission warned the risk of federal remapping with existing linguistic pocket corridors in the states. Inter-state migration has proliferated the problem over the years. Even the SRC could not provide adequate safeguards for large number of linguistic minorities living in all states (Kerala becomes exception with 97.03% linguistic majorities). There new minority emerged and accommodated but with limits. Census report of 2011 shows India having 19,569 languages which stood 1369 after linguistic scrutiny. Territorial machinations appear inadequate to satisfy all linguistic groups but only to incur huge expenditure. Indian federalism seems deficient in non-territorial power sharing which has succeeded in countries like Belgium in the form of Consociational representation. With its promise of inclusivity by means of a possible alternative it demands the attention of the policy makers as well as the academia.

 Keywords: Polyglot federations, political remapping, States Reorganisation Commission, linguistic minorities, Consociational Representation

Understanding the robustness of incidental vocabulary acquisition through reading: Qualitative insights from biolinguistics

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310 views

D. R. Rahul1 & R. Joseph Ponniah2

1 Research Scholar, National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli. ORCID: 0000-0002-4215-1769. Email: rahuldrnitt@gmail.com

2Professor, National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli. ORCID: 0000-0002-0618-6788. Email: joseph@nitt.edu

  Volume 12, Number 5, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n5.rioc1s23n2

Abstract

Studies have shown the potentials of reading on the development of language. Especially, the literature on second language reading is replete with evidence that unearths the incidental acquisition of vocabulary through reading. Free and pleasurable reading, which has a marked effect on the frequency of reading, contributes significantly to the incidental acquisition of vocabulary. However, only a few studies have explored the interconnection among vocabulary acquisition, free and/or pleasure reading, and the reading frequency. To this end, this study manifests the incidental acquisition of vocabulary through reading and foregrounds the importance of free reading, reading pleasure, and reading frequency for vocabulary development. By confirming the strong correlation between reading frequency and the vocabulary test scores of the participants we attest that the reading frequency is significantly associated with free and/or pleasure reading (in our case, liking towards self-selected reading). We also theoretically contextualize and support the argument of incidental vocabulary learning through reading from a biological perspective. Given that the acquisition of any language subskill is enabled by the amalgamation of nature and environment, insights into the biological system of reading implicates a better understanding of the incidental acquisition of vocabulary through reading.

Keywords: vocabulary, reading, incidental learning, pleasure reading, biolinguistics

Integrating ICT in English Language Teaching in Bangladesh: Teachers’ Perceptions and Challenges

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561 views

Nafis Mahmud Khan1,2 & Khushboo Kuddus2

1Division of Research, Daffodil International University, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Email: nafismahmud53@gmail.com

2School of Humanities (English), KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India. ORCID id: 0000-0001-8934-8924. Email: khushboo3133@gmail.com

  Volume 12, Number 5, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n5.rioc1s23n1

Abstract

The integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Education especially, in English Language Teaching (ELT) in secondary schools of Bangladesh has been existing for a decade now. However, the status of actual implementation is quite different from the adoption and initiatives taken to integrate ICT in ELT. Therefore, the study aims to investigate the secondary level English language teachers’ attitude towards integration of ICT in Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) and the factors inhibiting the use of it. Further, the paper attempts to examine the challenges faced by the secondary level English teachers of Bangladesh in using ICT in language teaching effectively. In an attempt to examine the attitude of teachers in using ICT in ELT, a quantitative research is designed with a close ended questionnaire to collect the data from a sample of 100 secondary English language teachers of various schools of Bangladesh. The data of the responses is quantified and is analyzed by SPSS 20 program. The obtained data from the questionnaire is examined in order to investigate the perceptions of the secondary level English language teachers towards ICT integrated language teaching and the challenges of the implementation of ICT in ELT. In conclusion, the outcome of the research would provide significant information about the attitude of the teachers towards ICT integration in ELT and the challenges faced by them and hence, the study would help the policy makers and the teachers to enhance the effectiveness of using ICT in ELT.

Keywords: Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Communicative Language Teaching, Challenges, Perceptions, English Language Teaching (ELT).

Language Recognition and Identity Formation in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills

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359 views

Mereleen Lily Lyngdoh Y. Blah

Assistant Professor, Dyal Singh College, University of Delhi, E-mail: mblahs@gmail.com

 Volume 12, Number 5, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n5.rioc1s17n2

Abstract

The official use of any language by the administration and employment of the said language by the state whether through educational institutions and administrators as a standard literary dialect, gives it recognition. The Education policy adopted by the British and the choice of English being made the language of instruction throughout the country is made evident in Macaulay’s Minute of 1835 and is reiterated again more than a decade later in the Minute of 1847. From the very beginning English was associated with the administration and the benefits that it would bring but they failed to take into account the people who were unfamiliar with it. The categorization and later association of languages with religion, caste, community, tribe and class is evident in the various census undertakings as the official recognition became a determination of its status. In the Census of 1891, the Khasis and Jaintias are relegated as “two groups statistically insignificant”, considering the population and the number of people who spoke the languages associated with the communities. The use of the Roman script had by this time been, “thoroughly established” by the missionaries. The first few census data and later writings by indigenous writers helped cement the association of language with the community. The use of the vernacular in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills in Meghalaya, by the earliest missionaries, initially arose more out of necessity and convenience rather than by official decree. The choice and standardization of dialect and script in print however, helped solidify a Khasi identity. This paper seeks to look at the link between recognition of the standard language used in print and identity formation in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills and the relevance of language as a marker of identity today.

Keywords: Standardization, Print language, Language and Identity Formation, Khasi Identity.

Role of Code-Switching and Code-Mixing in Indigenous Communicative Contexts: A Study of The God of Small Things

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321 views

Sangeeta Mukherjee1 & Devi Archana Mohanty2

1Senior Assistant Professor, VIT University, Tamil Nadu, India. Orcid: 0000-0002-5488-2876. Email:  sangeetamukherjee70@gmail.com

2Assistant Professor, NIET, Greater Noida, India. ORCID: 0000-0001-7103-7079. Email: devi1archana@gmail.com

 Volume 12, Number 2, April-June, 2020 I Full Text PDF

DOI: 10.21659/rupkatha.v12n2.03

 Abstract

Communicative strategies like code-switching and code-mixing have interested researchers the world over. These strategies have traversed from real life situations to creative writings to social networking domains and are dominant in bilingual or multi-lingual societies for multifarious reasons. While majority of the research was conducted in the spoken form from the real-life contexts, a few were directed towards the written forms in literary genres and computer-mediated communication. However, a significant gap becomes noticeable and needs to be explored in Indian English fiction where creative writers have dexterously used these communicative strategies. Keeping the above in mind, the present paper attempts to analyze the role of these strategies in indigenous interpersonal communicative contexts in Indian English fiction. The text chosen for this purpose is Arundhati Roy’s TheGod o Small Things and the analysis is based on the grammatical and pragmatic explanation of indigenous words which mostly belong to the area of interpersonal communication. The study shows how the author has skillfully used these strategies to unravel the indigenous cultural and social customs and mindset of the people within a particular indigenous community as well as the role-relationship between the interlocutors in a particular communicative context.

Keywords: Code-switching, code-mixing, code-retention, interpersonal communicative context, pragmatic markers.

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