Elsya : Journal of English Language Studies

Discourse of Intertextuality in the Language of Political Advertisements in Selected Nigerian Newspapers

2024-02-28T11:36:53+00:00

Though Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) has been used extensively by scholars of ideological discourse to deconstruct the rhetoric of Nigeria's political leaders and the media's portrayal of power and ideology, it has yet to be applied to the language of Nigeria's political advertisements. While taking into account the rhetorical effects of intertextuality on the masses, this paper investigates the aspect of intertextuality in Critical Discourse Analysis as a discursive strategy projected tactically to reflect power struggle and the ideological assumptions of the authors of the advertisements. This study uses Norman Fairclough’s and Teun van Dijk’s traditions of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) and political theories as its theoretical basis. Thirty political advertisements were collected from February and March 2007 issues of The Guardian, The Nation, and The Punch; out of which ten were purposively chosen and analysed for this research. This research analyses the data on the language of political advertising in Nigeria to see how power and ideology are represented via rhetorical strategies in the intertextual connections of language use in Nigerian politics. Therefore, the results of this research show that Nigerian politicians have both overt and covert influence over the electorates by employing manifest intertextuality as a rhetorical mechanism that can alter the meaning or interpretation of discourse/text in the mental model of the masses in order to carry out certain discourse functions, each of which has been found to have distinct ideological implications that the politicians are either unaware of or choose to ignore.

Speech Acts on Nigerian Classroom Discourse: A Discourse Analysis Approach

2024-02-28T11:43:15+00:00

A lot of speech acts have been misused by many classroom discourse participants and as a result of this, discourse exchanges are characterized by the use of disjointed and unplanned acts, interference, overloaded acts, incessant slot fillers and the like. Again, wrong applications of speech acts by the instructors are indirectly transferred to the students, who imitate them in the course of learning. Also, if the misinformed discourse participants write, their malfunctioned written speech acts may be shown in their scripts. This study therefore investigated how discourse participants apply the speech acts in technical classrooms. Data were randomly selected from lessons taught in selected technical classrooms in Lagos State, Nigeria, and the instrument for data collection was participant observation. The Speech Act Theory and Pragmatics were the theoretical frameworks for this research. One of the major findings showed that discourse participants, specifically the instructors, applied overloaded representatives that originated from retroactive interference of L1 to L2 and that resulted in the learners’ inability to understand the instructors’ teaching. I recommend that discourse participants (especially the instructors) should carefully select simple words that fit the class that they teach. They should also study their students and apply words in a direct way to assist students to comprehend easily as they learn.

Influence of Introverted and Extroverted Personalities on English Learning Interaction for Elementary School Students

2024-02-28T11:45:51+00:00

This study examines how introverted and extroverted personalities impact the interaction of learning English at the elementary school level in Indonesia. By using a quantitative method approach through surveys, this research seeks to understand how students' personality traits affect their involvement in learning English. 300 fifth grade public elementary school students in Cirebon City were given a personality assessment questionnaire to identify introverted and extroverted students. Information about students' English learning interactions was collected through observation and self-report measurements. Data analysis used to analyze survey data using multiple linear regression assisted by SmartPLS version 3 includes the use of descriptive statistics, Outer Model Testing and Inner Model Testing. The study revealed that introvert students tend to experience higher levels of anxiety and prefer solitary learning, while extrovert students show more enthusiasm and prefer group activities in English learning interactions. Introverted and extroverted students face challenges in their language learning, such as expressing themselves and finding opportunities to practice. This finding has important implications for English language education in Indonesian primary schools. Educators can use these results to tailor instructional approaches and create inclusive learning environments that meet the diverse needs of introverted and extroverted students. Understanding the influence of personality on language learning interactions can also lead to strategies that enhance student engagement and facilitate effective language acquisition. In conclusion, this study highlights the influence of introverted and extroverted personalities on the interaction of learning English in Indonesian elementary schools. These findings contribute to the teaching of English that teachers should give different treatment to students considering that students have introverted and extroverted personalities.

Reconstructing Language Tests: A Comparative Study for Improved Assessment

2024-02-28T11:56:49+00:00

In the realm of educational systems, language testing plays a vital role in assessing a learner's language abilities. Ensuring the reliability and validity of such tests is crucial to provide an accurate gauge of proficiency and depth of learners' knowledge. However, modifications are necessary for testing methods to cope with the ever-evolving landscape of teaching methodologies while maintaining their effectiveness. This study employs a comparative analysis approach between an original and a reconstructed English language test, following the guidelines of the 'Kurikulum Merdeka' for 11th-grade students. Utilising Bloom's Taxonomy as a framework, both the original and reconstructed tests are evaluated with respect to cognitive complexity and coverage of various cognitive skills. The implemented modifications in the test demonstrated a significant enhancement in the overall effectiveness and alignment with broader cognitive skills. Two key modifications, expanding the multiple-choice answers from four to five and realigning questions to span various cognitive levels as per Bloom's Taxonomy, were found to be effective in increasing the complexity and scope of the test. This, in turn, led to a more comprehensive engagement of students in the test. The study concludes that the reconstructed test format, when compared to the original, offers a more effective overall assessment structure. Its more challenging nature stimulates critical thinking, deep understanding, and creativity among learners, thereby promoting improved language assessment and a better understanding of teaching-learning processes. It underscores the necessity of periodic improvements and modifications in test designs, ultimately contributing towards more precise and effective language testing.

Narrative Structures and Cultural Intersections: Exploring Malind Anim Folklore through Reader Responses

2024-02-28T12:41:24+00:00

This study is a literary research that used a reader-response approach, which can open insights into the reader's view of a literary work, to find the results of literary receptions in the Folklore of Malind Anim, an indigenous community that inhabits the southern Papua region. The study of the people's stories of the Malind-Anim community is still minimal, so this research is expected to trigger community’s enthusiasm to know the culture that is reflected in the People's Stories of the Society of Malind-Anim and also to be the material of policy-determining consideration in the efforts to preserve the stories of the people of the Anim. Questionnaires are given to 20 readers before reading Malind Anim's People's Stories, containing items that measure the level of readers, then they were invited for a semi-structured interview after reading to see the readers' response to the values in the people's stories of the Malind-Anim community. The research was divided into two phases. First, a structural approach to the work of People's Stories of Malind Anim society, where the researchers used heuristic and hermeneutic methods to find structure and literary elements. In the second phase, to investigate the implications of the work on the reader, the reader response approach was used to extract literary values from the reader's point of view. Results show readers at the developing level can only interpret values in general, such as religion, education, and the environment, and readers at the developed level can interpret that the folklore of the Malind Anim community has three main dimensions that readers can interpret at these levels: Environmental Protector, Gender Equality, and Mitigation.

Digital Conversation Analysis on Screen-Captured Data: Comparing Instagram Online Discourse on Smartphone vs Laptop

2024-03-06T09:38:19+00:00

The study of online discourse on social networking sites (SNSs) is a relatively recent field of study where most of the methodology to study online conversations has been derived from spoken conversation analysis (CA). This study attempts to contribute to the development of digital conversation analysis by analysing screen-captured data of publicly available online conversations on Instagram on April 2020. 186 screen-captured data are analysed with digital conversation analysis to discuss and compare the turn-taking, repair, action formation, action sequencing and the role of technology on the production of online conversations. Results show tentative proof that the screen-capture method of data collection has a unique strength in that it gives researchers insight onto the moment-by-moment production of the online conversation that is not available from the traditional method of transcribing. The novelty of this digital CA research is the comparison between smartphone- and laptop-version of screen-captured data, specifically how the different medium affects the production of online discourse of the same SNS.

ELSA Speak: Piquing Demotivated Students to Self-Improve Their Pronunciation with an AI-powered English Speaking Coach

2024-03-19T08:42:23+00:00

The heightened global expectation of English proficiency is equally matched with the demand for students of this generation to be adept at handling technology, leading to the boom of artificial intelligence application in education. This paper is a contribution from a local teacher’s attempt to adapt and use an AI English speaking coach called ELSA Speak. This study determines the impact of using the app in enhancing junior high school students’ speaking skills through a pre-experimental study and establish a state-of-the-art understanding of the extent of the collective exploration of this AI. The first research design is a pre-experimental study and utilised the quantitative analysis approach, involving 23 third-grade pupils from MTs Zia Salsabila Percut Sei Tuan as the sample. The second research design is a systematic literature review of a total of 491 papers published from 2015 to 2024. Findings from the primary data proved that ELSA Speak app effectively enhances students' speaking proficiency in five aspects (grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, fluency, and content) and successfully held the attention of students whose history prior to the use had very low motivation to learn and practice English as a foreign language. However, the systematic review revealed that this type of study is the furthest point of current investigation on ELSA Speak app, and thus calls for the need for more robust studies to develop a better understanding of whether the short-term success of using the AI can last for long-term and in what other ways can it be integrated into the teaching syllabus.