A2 coursework lesson - media text self-evaluation

Please complete the peer- and self-evaluation by swapping your media text with someone else (on-screen or a printed version), like we did for the analysis. Swap with someone who doesn't know what you are working on, so that they are answering the questions on the sheet without knowing the answers in advance. It doesn't hurt to write some positives, but the focus should be what the writer can improve on. Ask questions, quote unclear phrases, make suggestions (but don't tell them what to write).

When you get yours back, fill in the bottom box with what you have thought about since doing this exercise that you know now that you have to work on. You can do some edits first if you have time.

I will take a hard-copy in at the end of the lesson, but I don't mind if it has handwritten notes and edits on it. Put the evaluation sheet on top so I can see the comments first, then I won't have to duplicate them in my feedback.

Thanks.

A2 coursework: conclusion/evaluation

These sections of your coursework can be combined and I recommend this for the sake of keeping your word count low.

The conclusion/evaluation should explore your findings, noticing patterns, anomalies and significant aspects that can be (or cannot be) generalised (when you can generalise results, you are confident that a repeated investigation would find the same thing and/or that the finding is likely to be true of a wider pool of data e.g. all 10 broadsheet articles used a higher proportion of polysyllabic lexis than any of the tabloid articles, by at least 10%: this is fairly convincing as a generalisable finding to suggest that broadheets use a higher proportioin of polysyllabic lexis than tabloids; you might want to suggest why it might also not be generalisiable e.g. only certain topics were covered and it might not be true of other types of article). You are more likely to be saying why the findings can't be generalised and this will probably show more thought. If anyone says their hypothesis was proven, I will be very cross! Say to what degree your hypothesis was supported/contradicted.

You must try and examine why this would be the case, using tentative language and referring to context and any relevant theory that supports or contradicts your findings.

Evaluate which aspects of your investigation were interesting and why. Which aspects were flawed and what might have been a better approach (don't put your work down but acknowledge when something didn't work out as planned and see if you can explain why and what would have been more effective)? What might be an interesting approach to take to extend this research?

Show off your thinking -  be mature and reflective but not self-critical - don't leave the reader with a negative impression.

This rash of schools banning certain types of non-standard language use is worrying

It suggests that non-standard equates to WRONG and devalues language variety. By suggesting that a blanket ban is necessary to enable students to learn to "switch off" their dialect or sociolect and only use it when it is "appropriate" suggests that it is not appropriate generally. What other prescriptivist views are we hearing lately?

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/primary-school-bans-the-black-country-dialect--because-it-s--damaging--to-pupils-and-shows-a--decline-in-standards--144542450.html#TeCOJST

Good writing is a window into someone else's perspective

This is good writing:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/linda-tirado/why-poor-peoples-bad-decisions-make-perfect-sense_b_4326233.html

A2 coursework lesson 21.11.13

Work on coursework - please post the current version of your media text (whatever state it is in) by the end of the lesson so I can see a snapshot of your progress and make sure your results are shaping up so we can start conclusions on Tuesday.

Since I am absent (due to my illness this time, sadly, but Zachy is a little better, yay), if the absence register doesn't arrive by the hand of some kind staff member, please can someone go down and get it from the door of C101, or you can all, individually, troop down and sign it if no-one is feeling generous but no-one must sign for anyone else.

You could also go to the LRC and get out some wider reading on any of the key topics relevant to the summer exam. Remember to keep brief notes and a bibliography.

We will do the test on CLA on Mon.

work in my absence

Good morning! I am afraid that my little boy is ill today and I have had to stay home with him. I have set work, which is explained on the register on the door to the classroom. You sign to say you have read and understood (and will do) the work. I will be checking and you will be marked absent if you have signed but the work is not done.

Please note:

AS - coursework still needs to come in so I can pick it up tomorrow (on my desk in C102)
A2 - if someone has a problem finding the transcript for me, please transcribe a short Youtube clip and annotate/analyse the child's and the caregiver's language.

If you have any problems, please email me.

A2 Coursework lessons Tuesday 12th and Friday15th

Media text work is your top priority but I would like you to do some wider reading, so I am pointing you in the direction of emagazine (they have a facebook page, which updates you on some interesting articles but we have a subscription to the online version of the actual magazine).

The logon and password are: emagazine11  yx647wh

This information is also on the Moodle AS Language page, if you need to use it again and can't find this post. Remember to keep updating yourself on AS content, theory and terminology throughout this year.

Tuesday: The article I would like you to read and make notes on (either handwritten or on your blog) is a Language Change article that uses some phonetic transcription (so you can see how it would be useful for both key units). The article is called "World Englishes..." and starts on p.23 of this season's edition (issue 61 - September - just click on the fromt cover in the top right of the website). The question to really think about is 'how is English changing because of the speakers who use it?'

Then go on to your media text. You can intersperse some grammar work on Grammar Bytes or similar, or do some AS work or CLA work alongside it, but keep busy and focussed.

Friday: I will hopefully have marked your investigations by Tuesday, so in preparation for that, I would like you to read another emagazine article - one that looks at investigation data and gives an overview and results analysis. Please make notes on how findings are evaluated in depth and the language used to explore the data tentitively. Notice how the close analysis is of the statistically significant or anomalous findings. You should follow this structure in your investigations. The article is on page 52. Write on your blog which aspects of your data you will look at closely and why.

Then continue with your media text, gammar work etc.

A2 coursework lesson in B202 Tuesday 5th and Friday 8th (includes tips for conclusion/evaluation)

Tuesdays and Fridays will be coursework lessons for the first couple of weeks of this term and then we will be using the computers mostly for CLA. We will be in B202 every week.

I am taking in a hard copy of your coursework at the end of today's lesson. First, we are going to look at a good example of an investigation (I have included the media text that we will look at later, so keep hold of these). Once we have seen some ideas, I want to use today's lesson for you to read someone else's intro/methodology/analysis and make some constructive comments on the peer assessment sheet I will give you. You will hand in the sheet with your coursework draft. Read and edit your own work again in the light of those comments, even if that means crossing out and writing things into a draft you have already printed. It will take me a couple of weeks to mark these.

Our next task is conclusion/evaluation but this will be very much a rough, rough draft until you have some feedback on your analysis, so post it to your blog but I won't be taking that in for a couple of weeks, after you have redrafted it.

Tips:

• Give an overview of your understanding of the data in context and how it relates to theory.
• If you have discovered anything theory did not tell you to expect, explore why in context.
• How effective were the approaches that you used (from data and theory selection/collection to analysis headings tothe investigation focus) - try not to be too negative but be thoughtful and suggest what might have been more effective in order to find out more/something different.
• If you choose to look at how you could deepen or extend this investigation to make the findings more convincing, try and evaluate the new methodology to show why it would be better.
• Make sure the reader comes away impressed with your thoughtfulness and thoroughness.
• Round it off so it finishes cleanly.

Then we shall get the media text done (start this week and finish next week). You could use some of your computer room time to read more of the type of text you are going to write and/or do further research. Do that before you complete your media text first draft.

an 'otel or a hotel? (Language change issue) Guardian article

This rings true for me: Rosen says in this article that, "When people object to the way others speak,... it is nearly always because of the way that a particular linguistic feature is seen as belonging to a cluster of disliked social features."For me, it is like the way you find a name objectionable if you know someone with that name that you don't like.

http://www.theguardian.com/science/shortcuts/2013/nov/04/letter-h-contentious-alphabet-history-alphabetical-rosen

A2 phonological development useful webpage

This is the best table I have found for phonology - really clear examples:

http://www.home-speech-home.com/phonological-processes.html

Avoid the Dark Playground at all costs!

We've all been there. Just heed the wise words of Wait but Why:

http://www.waitbutwhy.com/2013/10/why-procrastinators-procrastinate.html?utm_source=List&utm_campaign=873615b44e-WBW+%28MailChimp%29&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_5b568bad0b-873615b44e-42133465