scholarly journals Language, Gender and Power in Chinua Achebe’s—There Was a Country and Chimamanda Adiche’s—Half of a Yellow Sun

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 82
Author(s):  
LAWAL M. Olusola
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Linguistic Expression ◽  
Feminine Gender ◽  
Powerful Means ◽  
Gender And Power ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Gender Belief ◽  
Language Influence ◽  
Gender Discourses

<em>The interconectivity of language in the analysis of ideological schemas of gender and power is remarkable. In every piece of texts, language is employed as an expression of ideology. Hence, there is no linguistic expression that is ideologically empty. Language is inspirable from the gender and power preoccupations of Chinua Achebe’s There Was a Country and Chimamanda Adiche’s Half of a Yellow Sun. In this paper, it is made succinct that both Achebe and Adichie deploy their English linguistic prowess with their traditional Igbo language colorations as an expression of power and gender discourses. Indeed, while it is deduced that Achebe, through the use of rhetorical and proverbial expressions, pursued a somewhat patriarchal gender and power ideological inclination in his memoir; Adichie, in her use of sublime language, exhibited her feminine gender belief in a rather subtle manner. Evidently, the two authors’ use of the English language with a heavy Igbo language influence is an index to the fact that language, apart from being a powerful means of expression of a writer’s ideological idiosyncrasy, is a source of power on its own; an instrument which both Achebe and Adichie deployed to show their different gender inclinations and power discourses in the selected texts.</em>

Self-Referent Thoughts in Exercise: The Self-Perception in Exercise Questionnaire

1997 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 195-205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marit Sorensen
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Physical Activity Level ◽  
Convergent Validity ◽  
English Language ◽  
Lifestyle Changes ◽  
Activity Level ◽  
Language Version ◽  
Social Comfort ◽  
And Gender

Adherence to lifestyle changes - beginning to exercise, for example - is assumed to be mediated by self-referent thoughts. This paper describes a pilot study and three studies conducted to develop and validate a questionnaire for adults to determine their self-perceptions related to health-oriented exercise. The pilot study identified items pertinent to the domains considered important in this context, and began the process of selecting items. Study 2 examined the factor structure, reduced the number of items, determined the internal consistency of the factors, and explored the discriminative validity of the questionnaire as to physical activity level and gender. Four factors with a total of 24 items were accepted, measuring mastery of exercise, body perception, social comfort/discomfort in the exercise setting, and perception of fitness. All subscales had acceptable internal consistencies. Preliminary validity was demonstrated by confirming hypothesized differences in scores as to gender, age, and physical activity level. The third study examined and demonstrated convergent validity with similar existing subscales. The fourth study examined an English-language version of the questionnaire, confirming the existence of the factors and providing preliminary psychometric evidence of the viability of the questionnaire.

A content analysis of gender representation in Malaysian children's literature

2008 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Ramesh Nair
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Children's Literature ◽  
English Language ◽  
Children’S Literature ◽  
Children's Books ◽  
Children’S Books ◽  
Minor Characters ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Mental Schemas ◽  
Selection Of

Children's literature serves as a powerful medium through which children construct messages about their roles In society and gender Identity is often central to this construction. Although possessing mental schemas about gender differences is helpful when children organize their ideas of the world around them, problems occur when children are exposed to a constant barrage of uncompromising, gender-schematic sources that lead to stereotyping which in turn represses the full development of the child. This paper focuses on how gender is represented in a selection of Malaysian children's books published in the English language. Relying on the type of content analysis employed by previous feminist social science researchers, I explore this selection of Malaysian children's books for young children and highlight some areas of concern with regard to the construction of maleness and femaleness in these texts. The results reveal Imbalances at various levels Including the distribution of main, supporting and minor characters along gendered lines and the positioning of male and female characters In the visual Illustrations. The stereotyping of these characters In terms of their behavioural traits will be discussed with the aim of drawing attention to the need for us to take concerted measures to provide our children with books that will help them realize their potential to the fullest.

scholarly journals Communication and language skills pay off, but not everybody needs them

2021 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiří Balcar ◽  
Lucie Dokoupilová
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
English Language ◽  
Effective Communication ◽  
Standard Deviation Increase ◽  
Job Requirements ◽  
Wage Returns ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Basic Level

Abstract The importance of communication skills is increasing on the labour market and a further strengthening of this trend is expected due to Industry 4.0. This development will have significant consequences for individuals’ employability, requirements on educational outcomes and gender equality. This article employs data from a representative survey of Czech employees (N = 1,500) replenished with information on requirements on their communication skills (Effective communication, Czech language and English language) in order to explore (a) the distribution of communication skills requirements on the labour market, (b) personal and job characteristics related to work positions requiring highly developed communication skills, and (c) wage returns to these skills. The results show that one standard deviation increase in job requirements on communication skills is connected with 5.8% wage premium. However, not everybody needs well-developed communication skills. Only a quarter of employees needs highly developed effective communication, Czech and English languages, while there is also a quarter of employees that needs only a very basic level of communication skills. The results also revealed that females perform more communication-intensive occupations than males do. Cognitive skills and the need to excel represent other significant factors correlated with higher job requirements on communication skills.

School-Based Education Programs for Preparing Children for Natural Hazards: A Systematic Review

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Hamed Seddighi ◽  
Homeira Sajjadi ◽  
Sepideh Yousefzadeh ◽  
Mónica López López ◽  
Meroe Vameghi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Natural Hazards ◽  
Emergency Preparedness ◽  
Disaster Preparedness ◽  
English Language ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
School Based ◽  
Disaster Education ◽  
The Difference ◽  
And Gender

Abstract Schools have a significant role in disaster education to children. This study investigates the research works about school-based education programs in order to discover challenges and best practices. We conducted a systematic review of English language papers published in peer-review journals. The search identified 2577 publications and 61 articles meeting selection criteria and included in the review. Reviewed studies indicated that disaster education in schools is effective but yet insufficient in many countries. Lack of equipment, financial resources, policy gaps, and teachers’ knowledge are common problems in programs. Main outcomes of this systematic review are showing methods used for health emergency preparedness of children of different ages and gender differences in school-based disaster preparedness, as well as the difference in their lifesaving skills in disasters. This study shows that some disaster education programs reported in the papers reviewed were not high-quality enough, which may lead to insufficient preparedness of children in disasters and consequently may put their health at risk, considering the increasing number of natural hazards.

‘I'm Telling You … The Language Barrier is the Most, the Biggest Challenge’: Barriers to Education among Karen Refugee Women in Australia

2012 ◽  
Vol 56 (2) ◽  
pp. 126-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula G. Watkins ◽  
Husna Razee ◽  
Juliet Richters
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Education ◽  
Well Being ◽  
English Language Education ◽  
Barriers To Education ◽  
Refugee Women ◽  
Education Participation ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Impact

This article examines factors influencing English language education, participation and achievement among Karen refugee women in Australia. Data were drawn from ethnographic observations and interviews with 67 participants between 2009 and 2011, collected as part of a larger qualitative study exploring the well-being of Karen refugee women in Sydney. Participants unanimously described difficulty with English language proficiency and communication as the ‘number one’ problem affecting their well-being. Gendered, cultural and socio-political factors act as barriers to education. We argue that greater sensitivity to refugees' backgrounds, culture and gender is necessary in education. Research is needed into the combined relationships between culture and gender across pre-displacement, displacement and resettlement and the impact of these factors on post-immigration educational opportunities. Training is needed to sensitise educators to the complex issues of refugee resettlement. The paper concludes with recommendations for service provision and policy.

LEXICAL AND SEMANTIC CHARACTERISTICS OF ABBREVIATIONS IN MODERN ENGLISH NEWSPAPER DISCOURSE AND TRANSLATION STRATEGIES

2021 ◽  
pp. 131-136
Author(s):  
С.Б. Фомина
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
English Language ◽  
New York Times ◽  
The New York Times ◽  
Translation Strategies ◽  
Powerful Means ◽  
Typical Type ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Lexical Composition ◽  
The Guardian

В статье рассматриваются лексико-семантические характеристики сокращений современного англоязычного газетного дискурса на материале англоязычных электронных изданий The New York Times, The Guardian, Forbes, The Independent, The Telegraph, Sunday-Times, особенности их функционирования. Газетный дискурс представлен как сфера функционирования различных сокращений, а именно контракций, усечений, блендинга, аббревиаций. Предметом выступают сокращенные лексические единицы, их функционирование в современной прессе и стратегии их передачи с английского языка на русский. Обработка фактического материала позволяет произвести количественный анализ лексики и определить наиболее характерный тип аббревиаций для текстов СМИ, определить их функции. Анализ материала позволяет фиксировать тот факт, что среди рассмотренных лексических единиц, именно аббревиатуры преобладают в современном газетном дискурсе, что подтверждает влияние событийности на изменение лексического состава языка и является мощным средством его пополнения. Функционирование образно-оценочных и культурно-маркированных сокращений в газетном дискурсе может как облегчать, так и усложнять восприятие информации. Однако сокращенные лексические единицы содержат широкий информационный потенциал, что позволяет фиксировать основное значение текста в памяти получателя и влияет на восприятие информации в нужном автору направлении. Словарь, включенный в текст, приобретает как информативное, так и эмоционально-оценочное значение. ____________________________ © Фомина С.Б., 2021 The article observes the lexical and semantic characteristics of abbreviations of the modern English-language newspaper discourse based on material of the English-language electronic publications from of The New York Times, The Guardian, Forbes, The Independent, The Telegraph, Sunday-Times, discusses the functioning of abbreviations. Newspaper discourse is presented as the sphere of functioning of various abbreviations, such as contractions, clipping, blending, abbreviations. The subject is abbreviated lexical units, their functioning in the modern press and strategies for their transfer from English into Russian. Factual material analysis allows carrying out a quantitative analysis of the vocabulary and determine the most typical type of abbreviations for media texts, their functions. The analysis of the material proves quantitative superiority of abbreviations that prevail in modern newspaper discourse that confirms the influence of eventfulness on the change in the lexical composition of the language and is a powerful means of replenishing it. The functioning of figurative and evaluative and culturally-marked abbreviations in newspaper discourse facilitates and complicates the perception of information at the same time. However, abbreviated lexical units contain a wide information potential, which allows fixing the main meaning of the text in the receiver's memory and affects the perception of information in the direction the author needs. The vocabulary included in the text acquires informative and emotionally evaluative value as well.

Health Problems of Third Gender in Naulo Bihani, Pokhara

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-87
Author(s):  
Krishna Prasad Tripathi
Keyword(s):  
Health Problems ◽  
Health Condition ◽  
Interview Schedule ◽  
Feminine Gender ◽  
Bacterial Diseases ◽  
The Third ◽  
Gender Minorities ◽  
Witness Violence ◽  
Third Gender ◽  
And Gender

The third gender is in many cultures made up of an individual, considered male at the time of birth, but change on feminine gender role or sexual role when they grow up and vice versa third genders and homosexual are the group of people who are not allowed to talk about their sexual and emotional preferences in public. The study health problems faced by the third gender of Naulo Bihani, Pokhara raises the genuine questions regarding the demographic and health condition of that third gender. All 60 residing there were the sample of data collection through census method by using interview schedule with open and close questions. Observation and KII were done with the management committee of Naulo Bihani, Pokhara, and sister organization of Blue Dimond Society Kathmandu. It attempts to raise consciousness of human rights on the sexual and gender minorities, witness violence, abuse and rape. All the respondents suffered from viral and bacterial diseases; 78.33 percent suffered from protozoa infection. Only fifteen percent respondents were suffered from Syphilis. But no one was suffered from HIV AIDS. They felt social discrimination and tell them Hijara and so on. It is justification to advocate their right in the society so the researcher tried to make a research on the topic.

Assessment of Language Learning Strategies in Technology-Enhanced Learning Environment

2020 ◽  
pp. 83-99
Author(s):  
Wagdi Rashad Ali Bin-Hady ◽  
Abdu Al-kadi ◽  
Ali Abbas Falah Alzubi ◽  
Hassan Saleh Mahdi
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
English Language ◽  
Cognitive Strategies ◽  
Technology Enhanced Learning ◽  
Language Learning Strategies ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
And Gender

This chapter reports on the Yemeni and Saudi EFL learners' use of language learning strategies (LLSs) in technology-mediated language learning contexts. The study examines whether nationality and gender play a significant role in using LLSs on electronic platforms. The study adopted a correlative design in which 100 Yemeni and Saudi university students were recruited to respond to an online close-ended questionnaire. Drawing on Oxford's classification of learning strategies, the findings of this study showed that metacognitive and cognitive strategies were used more frequently compared to the other LLSs. Moreover, the findings of t-test showed a significant difference in the use of LLSs attributed to nationality in favor of the Saudi learners and no significant difference in the choice of LLSs attributed to gender. The study provided some suggestions for EFL learners to benefit from technology in their English language learning.

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