* Blog 016 - English Word Frequency - Intermediate Level

For ESL learners some knowledge of word frequency is useful. Online there are various sources of word frequency data, just as there are in printed media, such as the Longmans Dictionary of Contemporary English, or the Oxford Advanced Learners English Dictionary. These printed sources only note the 3,000 most frequently used words in both written and spoken English.

How about a resource that goes further, goes beyond 3,000 words, or beyond even 10,000 words...a resource that goes beyond 50,000 words, all the way up to the 86,800 most frequently used words in English. Content analysis of such a resource can nurture many insights into the English language and into the underlying language culture. Familiarity with such a resource may also aid your prioritization of vocabulary acquisition.

Such a resource can be found at Wordcount, a site that provides useful frequency information in a graphically unique way.

In the words of its author,

"WordCount™ is an artistic experiment in the way we use language. It presents the 86,800 most frequently used English words, ranked in order of commonness. Each word is scaled to reflect its frequency relative to the words that precede and follow it, giving a visual barometer of relevance. The larger the word, the more we use it. The smaller the word, the more uncommon it is.

WordCount data currently comes from the British National Corpus®, a 100 million word collection of samples of written and spoken language from a wide range of sources, designed to represent an accurate cross-section of current English usage".

You can access this resource at: http://www.wordcount.org/index2.html

Then Click "Launch Wordcount"

Find the ten most frequently used words in English, or the 100, or 1,000 or 10,000 most commonly used words. It can help you to gain an improved understanding of the language.

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* Blog 015 - "New Word" Candidates Related to "Blog"

New words enter mainstream English not as a torrent but as a trickle...a trickle that never ceases. "Blog" is a word that made it about four years ago. Other words associated with "Blog" are now candidates. Words like "Blogger", "Blogging", "V-Blog", "Audioblog", "Videoblog". There are even more candidates that can be imagined. Some are nouns, others verbs, adjectives or adverbs. Some may eventually denote something or connote a generally recognized idea, feeling or meaning.

Consider these randomly listed, potentially possible offspring, or potentially impossible "nonspring", of the "blog" word:

Mobileblog
Blogout
Moblog
Mymoblog
Myblo
Mblog
Blogav
Vlog
Blav
Myblog
Mymoblo
Blogness
Bloguity
Blogless
Blogic
Bloglessness
Blogization
Blogster
Blogiful
Blogister
Blogsister
Blogbro
Deblogged
unblogged
Eblog
Xblog
Blogon
Blogoff
Blogup
Blogin
dBlog
Blogshere
iBlog
Reblog
Anti-blog
Blogify
Blogification
Bloglessly
Blogly
Bloggy
Blogee
Bloguous
Blogation
Blogged
Blogist
Blogism
Blogistification
Bloggen
Blogive
Blogistity
Blognot
Blogination
Blogfree
yBlog
Blogistify
Bloggery
Blogland
Blogsy
Blogblog
Blablog
Blognify

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* Blog 014 HKEAA (Hong Kong Examination and Assessment Authority) supports Self-Access Learning

By the way, HKALE stands for "Hong Kong Advanced Level Examinations", which are administered by the Hong Kong Examinations and Assessment Authority (HKEAA).

Although the HKEAA has no connection whatsoever to this blog, its pronouncements about self-access learning are instructive. In the words of the HKEAA

"...learners at senior secondary level should be encouraged to move towards autonomy and independence. Teachers should see self-access learning as an integral part of students' learning experience. They should make an effort to integrate classroom and independent learning when planning and designing their English programmes. In the learning process, teachers can help learners to:

- learn how to learn;
- Make choices as to what, when and how they want to learn..."

HKEAA and the Curriculum Development Council


With these words in mind, hopefully this developing blog, modest in scale, will join many other resources in supporting self-access ESL learning for Intermediate level ESL students in particular, and for others seeking similar self-access resources.

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* Blog 013 ESL - 170 More... General English Listening Exercises

--Here is another useful 24/7 source of free, online, diverse, relevant, streaming, general English listening comprehension exercises suitable for Intermediate level ESL students.

--170 simple, intermediate and academic level listening comprehension exercises, including pre-listening, listening, post-listening quizzes, self-scoring access and comprehension assessment transcripts.

--Supported by both Real Audio and Windows media. The spoken English is clear and authentic. Some of the exercises are very short ( 2 minute conversations), so a daily 15 minute listening workout is possible.

--Why not try to work these exercises into the recurring section of your busy schedule? If you don't, you may be missing out !

Go here: http://www.esl-lab.com

Browse the site, then dive in...

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* Blog 012 English PreProCon

Prepositions, Pronouns, Conjunctions.

Some English words used as pronouns include:

I, mine, we, our, ours, us, you, your, your, yours, he, his, they, their, theirs, them, she, her, hers, it, its, who, whom, whose, which, that, what, this, these, those, all, another, any, anybody, anyone, anything, both, each, either, everybody, everyone, everything, few, many, more, most, much, neither, nobody, none, no one, one, other, several, some, somebody, someone, such, myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves, nothing

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Some English words used as prepositions include:

aboard, about, above, across, after, against, along, amid, among, around, at, before, behind, below, beneath, beside, between, beyond, but(meaning except), by, concerning, down, during, except, for, from, in, inside, into, like, near, of, off, on, onto, outside, over, past, once, through, to, toward, under, underneath, until, up, upon, with, within, without, according to, because of, by means of, in addition to, in front of, in spite of, instead of, on account of, prior to, as, since, unless


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Some English words used as conjunctions include:

Thereby, whereas, notwithstanding, thus, thereas, on condition that, and, but, or, nor, for, yet, either...or, neither...nor, now that, nor, both...and, not only...but also, after, although, that, since, as, as if, as long as, as soon as, because, before, if, in order to, in order that, so, so that, than, though, unless, until, when, whenever, where, wherever, while, if...then, even if, nevertheless, lest, in case, in case of, what's more, whereon, or else, however


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* Blog 011 - English - Writing - MetaSources Leading To MegaSources of Good Writing Samples

METASOURCES TO MEGASUPPLY
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Access to literally thousands of quality writing samples covering every conceivable topic, subject and interest can be found through the three meta sources listed below. Basically, these sources lead to a mega-supply of samples of good English writing.

If you concentrate on navigating through these sites, you can find specific sources that can regularly feed your need to read and closely review essay and article samples in subject areas that interest you, motivate you and drive you through further, extended reading.

In this area, a little effort every day can add up to a lot of achievement within three or four months.


1. MetaSource Part 1

http://www.library.ubc.ca/ejour/

2. MetaSource Part 2

http://gort.ucsd.edu/ejourn/jdir.html

3. MetaSource Part 3

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/internet/resources/sourceofinfo.html#journ

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* Blog 010 - Transitions - Connecting Thoughts and Groups of Thoughts

* Blog 010 - Form 6 English - A - G - S - Transitions

Transitional Devices - Connecting Thoughts and Connecting their Groupings

Adapted from Purdue University Online Writing Lab

Transitional devices are like bridges between parts of your article, your essay, your text or your research paper. They are cues that help the reader to interpret ideas in the way that you, as a writer, want them to understand.

Transitional devices help you carry over a thought from one sentence to another, from one idea to another, or from one paragraph to another with words or phrases. And finally, transitional devices link your sentences and paragraphs together smoothly so that there are no abrupt jumps or breaks between ideas.


There are several types of transitional devices, and each category leads your reader to make certain connections or assumptions about the areas you are connecting. Some lead your reader forward and imply the "building" of an idea or thought, while others make your reader compare ideas or draw conclusions from the preceding thoughts.

Here is a list of some, but not all, common transitional devices that can be used to cue your reader in a given way.

What should you do about these 150 + sample transitions?

1. Find out what each one means.
2. Find out how each one is used.
3. Use the WordNet site for definitions.
4. Use the edict site for access to the concordancer at WordNet. Then you can find dozens and dozens of examples of each transition in use on the Internet by using the Concordancer to find those examples.
5. Write out some sample sentences using each transition. The more you work with these transitions, the more familiar they will become to you. This familiarity provides a foundation for your competent use of these "thought bridges" in your written English.

THE LIST:

To Add:

and, again, and then, besides, equally important, finally, further, furthermore, nor, too, next, lastly, what's more, moreover, in addition, first (second, etc.),

To Compare:

whereas, but, yet, on the other hand, however, nevertheless, on the other hand, on the contrary, by comparison, where, compared to, up against, balanced against, vis a vis, but, although, conversely, meanwhile, after all, in contrast, although this may be true

To Prove:

because, for, since, for the same reason, obviously, evidently, furthermore, moreover, besides, indeed, in fact, in addition, in any case, that is

To Show Exception:

yet, still, however, nevertheless, in spite of, despite, of course, once in a while, sometimes

To Show Time:

immediately, thereafter, soon, after a few hours, finally, then, later, previously, formerly, first (second, etc.), next, and then

To Repeat:

in brief, as I have said, as I have noted, as has been noted,

To Emphasize:

definitely, extremely, obviously, in fact, indeed, in any case, absolutely, positively, naturally, surprisingly, always, forever, perennially, eternally, never, emphatically, unquestionably, without a doubt, certainly, undeniably, without reservation

To Show Sequence:

first, second, third, and so forth. A, B, C, and so forth. next, then, following this, at this time, now, at this point, after, afterward, subsequently, finally, consequently, previously, before this, simultaneously, concurrently, thus, therefore, hence, next, and then, soon

To Give an Example:

for example, for instance, in this case, in another case, on this occasion, in this situation, take the case of, to demonstrate, to illustrate, as an illustration, to illustrate

To Summarize or Conclude:

in brief, on the whole, summing up, to conclude, in conclusion, as I have shown, as I have said, hence, therefore, accordingly, thus, as a result, consequently, on the whole,


For further information, including suggestions on how to use transitions more effectively, check out the OWL link on this blog, and at that site click the " Sentence Variety" link.

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* Blog 009 - Student's Writing Sample

* Blog 009 - Form 6 Student Composition Writing Sample - Examination Question - HKALE Format – Together with Teacher's Comments - September, 2006


Some Form 6 students in this Blog's audience wrote a composition under HKALE conditions. While these compositions are being graded, a sample composition with teacher's comments has been set out below for students to study. Students can compare a recollection of their own composition to this sample, and then closely read the comments made by the teacher. Students may consider whether these comments also apply to their own writing challenges.


Note: The instructions for the examination question were as follows:

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Write a composition on the topic set out below.
2. Write legibly and on every line.
3. You should write at least 500 words.
4. You are reminded of the importance of planning your essay and managing your time.
5. You must proofread your work.

There has recently been an increase in the number of Secondary 6 students granted early admission to university on the basis of their outstanding Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination results. Write an article for your school newspaper from your perspective as a Form 6 student. Give your views as to the benefits and drawbacks of the Early Admission Scheme for secondary schools, for students who have been admitted, and for students doing the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examinations.
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Below is a reproduction, in both form and content, of a “sample answer” that was hand-written in September, 2006, by a current Form 6 student, in response to the question above. Earlier this year this student received a grade of “A” in the 2006 Certificate Level English examinations. Following the sample answer is an assessment commentary written by a teacher.



Benefits and drawbacks of the Early Admission Scheme

The Early admission scheme has been launced for a few years in Hong Kong, which allows students with outstanding Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination results to get in university without taking Form 7 and the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examinations. It has been a controversial scheme that some people advocate it so much as they think it’s beneficial to students. Yet, some argue the scheme as an unfair one. I would like to share my views on its benefits and drawbacks for secondary schools, admitted students and students doing the HKAL exams.

Without doubt, the ones most affected by the EAS are those who got six distinctions or more in the HKCEE. They are offered with an opportunity to get in university earlier, without taking the HKAL exams. In some ways, the scheme does benefit these outstanding students, as they can save one year of harsh examination and education in Form Seven. So they can get in university and so complete their degree courses one year earlier than the rest. It is advantageous to get in the society earlier and to be offered a good job.

However, the EAS has some drawbacks for them as well. The students who have been admitted are to lose experience in coping with different people and taking up posts in their Form seven school life. These are very important for us to prepare for university’s education. Moreover, the HKAL curriculum is much more harder than the HKCEE one. And their syllabus are so different, the HKAL is of a much higher level. Getting good grades in HKCEE doesn’t mean a person is ready for university and so can skip the HKAL. They will actually be unable to learn many things that are taught in Form seven. As a result, the admitted students may feel it hard or not capable for studying in university.

For secondary schools, The Early admissions scheme brings great impact on them too. The schools may benefit from the scheme to raise their reputation and status. When students of the school get good grades in HKCEE and being offered an opportunity to join the Early Admission Scheme, the school can use it as an attraction to get students joining the joining the school and build up reputation. It is because the good results of its students seem like the school’s effort. To the others, this means the school is a good college that can nurture students with high quality. On the other hand, the scheme brings drawbacks to the school. Admitted students will stay in their school for Form 6 before they can get in university. But then teachers are wasting their time and the school is wasting its resources to teach these students. It is like a temporary place for these students to stay, afterwards, they will fly away. Also, the school is losing these talents to serve the students and the school.

For the majority, which is the students doing the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examinations, the scheme is controversial to them. On the one hand, Hong Kong is a place of keen competition, especially in the secondary education system. Examinations are so harsh that hundreds of thousands of students are competing for limited university places. Through the Early Admission , strong candidates, as well as strong competitors are not going to do the HKAL exam. So, competition in examinations seem less keen and it would be easier for the students to get a seat in university. This is the point that I think the scheme might somehow benefits the students doing HKAL exams. But the drawbacks of it are money. It is unfair to them that they have to go through such a hard time in Form seven and doing the exams while their counterparts in the EAS are getting in university without taking any exams. It is unfair because the HKCEE results cannot reflect student ability in solving propblems, interpersonal skills, responsibility in taking up posts but their ability to do exams. In addition, it is really frustrating to see your friends so relaxed and privileged, while we, the majority of students in HK which are going to take the harsh HKAL exams, are working so hard to achieve our goals. It is certainly a bad phenomenon and it affects the learning atmosphere adversely. The EAS divides students into different classes according to their academic results, and it might give a wrong message to the students that exam results rule the world.

In conclusion, the Early Admission Scheme brings great impact to secondary schools, students who have been admitted and students doing the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examinations. Some of it is positive yet some of it is negative. For the benefits, secondary schools can build up their reputation and raise their status as their students join the scheme. Students who have been admitted can save time learning and doing exams to get in university earlier. And students doing the advanced level Hong Kong examinations are facing less keen competition. But there are drawbacks for them too. The secondary schools are losing talents and wasting resources. It might make admitted students feel difficult to study in university and cope with problems. It is unfair to the students doing the Hong Kong Advanced Level Examinations and it brings adverse effect on their learning atmosphere.

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Prefatory Comments - Teacher to Teacher

Any teacher who has to “mark” 90, unique, original, handwritten, three or four page, Form 6 compositions at a time, and grade over 1,000 other writing items each month, while attending to duties related to teaching and co-curricular activities, together with pastoral, monitoring, sharing, administrative, bureaucratic and other responsibilities, is not likely to find the time needed to produce a coherent, detailed, diagnostic analysis of the writing performance produced in each composition. If enough time was available a critique of a good student's article might have some similarities in form and content to the critique set out below.

This student's article has six paragraphs and approximately 900 words. Approximately 48 sentences were written in the time allotted, with an average of about 18 words per sentence.

The focus of the assessment of this writing is on how much has been done well, rather than on what has not been done at all.

Within the writing environment in which this examination article was done (Form 6 - Hong Kong), the writer would score fairly high. At the word, phrase, clause and sentence level the writer demonstrated good control over grammatical accuracy, a fairly wide range of grammatical structures and fairly well-developed vocabulary resources. This writer has acquired most of the important micro-level skills needed to write in a second language. There are lapses, but the communicative effect of the flaws is low. (For instance, the student wrote “ It might make admitted students feel difficult to study in university...” and frequently wrote “...get in university...”).

The content of this writing performance suggests that the major writing developmental challenges now faced by this student lies at the paragraph level and at the macro levels of theme generation and content organization of the writing piece, in other words, in the areas of unity and coherence within and between paragraphs, and in the overall organization of the article or essay. This type of challenge and the timing of its emergence within this student's writing skill developmental process is normal and natural now that the preconditions for macro-skill development, namely the micro-skill development at the word, phrase, clause and sentence levels, are fairly well established.

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General Teacher to Student Comments About This Writing Sample

To me this exercise was intended to elicit an opinion piece, not an expository piece. Having a clear focus on the purpose of the writing is important. The examination question asked the writer to “give your views”. In the generally accepted meaning of this phrase, the writer is clearly being asked to express his or her opinion. This exercise is intended to assess the writer's skill in writing an opinion piece, rather than in simply describing and explaining a phenomenon.

Knowing the purpose of the writing strongly influences the choice of content for the introductory paragraph. In an opinion piece the writer should, first, try to arouse the readers' interest, give some very brief background information about the topic and then express strongly the writer's thesis, or position, on the issue. The rest of the essay should develop that thesis by analyzing a unified set of sub topics, each coherently developed within a paragraph. All sentences within each paragraph should be unified, that is, they should only relate to the topic of that paragraph, and there should only be one topic in the paragraph. The order of the sentences within a paragraph should follow some pattern that is clear to the reader. In formulating arguments the writer should take a definite stand while remaining fair to the contrary point of view. The writer's arguments should be supported by evidence, and, if possible, try to refute evidence to the contrary. An attempt should be made to be convincing.

The conclusion of the piece should resolve the issue first expressed in the introduction. With brief, fresh expressions, the writer should recall the purpose of the article, his or her thesis or view on the matter, and then express in three or four sentences why the writer thinks his or her position is reasonable. In reiterating his or her position, the writer should use new expressions that have the same meaning as his or her original expressions in the preliminary arguments. The effect of the writer's conclusion should be to clearly signal to the reader that the writer has completed the composition, and that it is finished, not simply abandoned.

When writing a composition under examination conditions some students recall and rely upon guidelines such as these:

1. In the introduction make a clear statement as to the purpose of the writing.

2. A paragraph is a series of sentences developing a single subtopic related to the main topic of the article or essay, so make sure in this type of writing that in the paragraphs forming the body of the article or essay each paragraph has one main idea.

3. Within the paragraph the main idea should be developed with additional, detailed information that is presented in an orderly way, in accordance with some criterion of organization that is made evident to the reader.

4. The information in the paragraph should be unified, that is, it should all relate to the subtopic stated in the topic sentence of that paragraph.

5. Use transition expressions to bridge gaps between sentences within a paragraph and between paragraphs. Try to avoid using trite, clichéd transition expressions such as Firstly, Secondly..., and steer away from other over-used, threadbare transitions such as “Moreover”.

6. Ensure that each main idea treated in each paragraph is directly related to the topic as a whole.
7. Is there some obvious order of development to the whole article or essay?
8. Is the title of the article interesting and suggestive of the main idea of the article or essay?
9. Have all mechanical errors been removed and is the presentation of handwriting readable and neat?

Having recalled these guidelines, let's return to the sample article for some more specific comments:

In this student's composition the title is, ah...well..., boring ! It is not a good rouser of interest and curiosity in the reader. Remember, the goal of this writing exercise is to demonstrate English writing proficiency, not to fulfill a mandatory bureaucratic order.

1. In the introductory paragraph, some background information is given. The writer then states that he/she would “like to share his/her views about the benefits and drawbacks for schools, admitted students and other students”, but in the article the writer does not stick to that purpose but instead strays into simply describing a series of benefits and drawbacks. This introductory paragraph does not have a strong focus, does not arouse reader interest, and does not announce the writer's stand or thesis on the issue. This introductory paragraph is therefore, weak.

2. In the second paragraph, the writer's focus is fairly tight, coherent and unified. One problem however, is that there is no signal given to the reader about the rationale for dealing with this particular subtopic at this place in the article. Where is this writer going with this information? Why is it being dealt with at this point in the article? Is it because it is very important? Is it because it is not very important? What rubric is the writer using to organize the presentation to the reader of all the information in this essay? The rubric should not be secret. It should not be hidden from the reader. The reader is an essential partner in any communicative process involving the transmission of writing. The reader is the object of transmitted writing. Let the reader know, quickly and clearly in this short article, where you are going in this "cognitive hike"! As well, in this article the writer states that the admitted students are the ones most affected by this process, but no evidence is offered for this statement. It could just as easily be said that the students who were not admitted, were the ones most affected, not only because their number greatly exceed the number of admitted students, but also because as a result of not being admitted after Form 6, all of them risk wasting a year of their youth in Form 7, a public education year that will be abolished shortly after these students complete it.

3. In the third paragraph apparently the writer has temporarily lost focus of the purpose and thesis of the article. There are no signals to the reader communicating the purpose of the content and positioning of the particular information contained in this paragraph. There is no smooth transition to the next subtopic.

4. In the fourth paragraph there is no smooth transition from the last subtopic and no smooth transition to the next subtopic, the one that follows this paragraph. The focus of the fourth paragraph is the subtopic that deals with the impact of the program upon secondary schools. The content of this paragraph is unified and fairly well structured, and the message is coherent.

5. In the fifth paragraph the content generally is poorly organized. There is no transition from the previous paragraph and no transition to the last paragraph of the body. This paragraph is too long, not because there are too many words but because there are too many disorganized words. This paragraph could have been organized into two paragraphs dealing with two subtopics, each one of which could have then been more tightly organized, unified, and made coherent, instead of bouncing the reader from one disconnected idea to another.

6. The content of the concluding paragraph adds little if anything to the value of this article. It is simply a mechanical paraphrase of some information expressed earlier. There is no exhortation to resolve the issue in a certain way. There is no fresh expression of the writer's point of view. This article is abandoned rather than completed.

This student has potential to excel in his or her ability to use written English to accomplish complex tasks. Close study of good essay models, thousands of which can be found on the Internet, and further writing practice using those models as reference, can accelerate further development of writing skills.

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* Blog 008 - OWLS Online

Online Owls

- Online Writing Labs

There are many Online Writing Labs. One of the best is the one created and maintained by Purdue University, in Lafayette, Indiana, U.S.A. For ten years this Internet-based writing lab has been helping ESL (English as a Second Language) students for free. Many of the resources assembled on that site are interactive, and of course are available 24/7 for students' use.

This site, with hundreds of pages, is rich in resources covering grammar, writing and composition, and they include detailed, coherent explanations, online, gradable exercises, and other coverage of a wide range of questions and issues that ESL learners meet at various benchmarks of their English language learning process.

This site can be particularly helpful to Form 6 students preparing for the English HKALE.

I heartily recommend that you acquaint yourself with this site as soon as possible by taking a first step, to wit: click on the link and then spend a long time just navigating through the many realms and territories of English language study that are found at this location.

Hopefully you will devote the time and effort needed just to get an initial sense of what's there, and of what you could, and maybe should, integrate into your personal program of English studies to help you address those specific gaps you already know about in your ability to use English to accomplish diverse, communicatively intensive tasks.

The Home page for this site is found at:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu

Another link within this site can be found at:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/esl/eslstudent.html#quizzes

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* Blog 007 English Listening Practice - Free - 600 Hours of A-Level Oral English - Many Genres

ESL 2006-2007

Spoken English Practice Resources, continued:

Qualitative Listening Practice

Here is a resource for Form 6 students who want to drive their own development with regard to English language communicative skills. You do it, you grow. You don't do it, you miss out, again !

The link described here, which comes from the largest, most resourceful library in the world, provides more than 400 free English language webcasts of monologues, dialogues, conversations, interviews, reviews, critiques and other formats, involving ordinary people and some famous people, covering a fairly wide range of timely, relevant topics, and, as such, it provides a useful audio database of listening practice resources for the second language learner who aspires to engage in tertiary level study at an institution where English is the medium of instruction.

You can listen to any one or more of these webcasts as often as you want, whenever you want.

You may find transcripts for some of these Webcasts, if you search hard enough.

I hope you explore this resource. It is commercial free. Hopefully, among the 418 topics, there will be some that interest you.

You may not comprehend as much as you would have liked upon your first listen, but you can listen again, closely, as often as you like.

You can practice repeating some of the sentences. You can listen with your friends and then discuss the topic afterwards, among yourselves, in English, to practice your speaking skills, using new information.

It's a no-brainer...the more you listen closely to good spoken English, the stronger your listening comprehension skills will become. CSI on TV is not good spoken English. It is not HKAL. Four hours a month spent watching and listening to that program is yet another four hours a month of forever lost qualitative listening time between now and your HKALEs.

The link again, is:

www.loc.gov/today/cyberlc/results.php?cat=1&mode=a


Try saving it and using it on a regular basis. Work smart, work hard...have fun...

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* Blog 006 - Writing - Weekly Journal Sampling Academic Vocabulary - Recurring Assignment

Form 6 A G S English 2006-2007

Freestyle writing with an academic vocabulary edge....

Starting with the month of October, 2006, to and through June, 2007, in this class you are obliged to write and submit a Journal entry of at least 300 words in English (a thousand words is O.K. too), in batches of two (2) assignments, to be handed in to me , through the homework monitor (with defaulters listed), on the 7th and 21st day of each month (if that is not a school day, then the next school day thereafter).

The entries may be printed or neatly handwritten. No whiteout, thank you. Use paper from the two ring binder, or if you really insist, and can't yet wean yourself from the bound scribbler, then it may be submitted that way as well, at least for now.

Clearly identify yourself on each separate page you hand in. Number the pages, and staple them. Include enough blank paper for comments to be written.

Give each piece of writing a title.

For now, you choose the topic.

Consciously try to exercise your imagination in the choice of topic and when assembling the message you wish to communicate.

Cognitively organize and proofread your piece before you write it.

Consciously try to reduce reader strain.

Seriously consider obtaining a peer review by a classmate before writing the draft that will be handed in.

The more you write, the the more you grow.

Don't copy from any other source.

One Proviso:

Each piece of writing must correctly employ at least eight (8) words taken from the Academic Family Vocabulary List handed out in September (e.g. the spelling used for each chosen word must correctly signal the grammatical function intended for that word). The words so selected and used must be underlined. No word so chosen may be used again in any subsequent piece of writing submitted as a journal entry.

At the end of the writing, the Academic words chosen should be listed, and beside each entry should be written the intended grammatical function of the word, i.e. the part of speech intended, together with a simple definition taken from the WordNet dictionary server at Princeton University.

Your Journal entries will not be proofread by me. There will be no marking of grammar, usage, mechanics, style, coherence, unity or any other variable. The Journals will be read by me, and some general comments made that may guide some of your future writing outputs.

No marks will be added to nor detracted from your term mark as a result of these pieces of writing.

The gain you achieve through serious effort will be to extend your writing skills and confidence. That will be your reward, not marks. The penalty for superficial, shallow efforts, will be the loss of precious time available to you to extend your writing abilities before your final HKALE examinations assess the level of those abilities.

Some of the purposes of this exercise are to extend your capacity to produce more writing each week, provide additional practice in cognitive proofreading, create further opportunities for you to apply your imagination to the needs of a communicative task ,and finally, to promote the exercise and extension of your overall written communicative skills in English.

These instructions may be amended later as experience with this assignment develops.

I look forward to reading your journals... Have fun....

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* Blog 005 - Listening - University Radio - Comprehending Diverse Contexts and Styles of Spoken English

ESL 2006-2007

* Expanding Listening Comprehension Skills

* Raising Self-Awareness of Contemporary Social Issues

* Gaining Access to the World's Coolest Music Programs

All can be done by Frequently Accessing University Radio, to Experience:

(1) Diverse Content (i.e. Oral English Content that Changes on a Daily Basis and From Region to Region)

(2) Content that is Appropriate to Reinforce upper Intermediate and Advanced levels of English Language Proficiency

(3) Content that is Often Archived so that You May Access It at Your Convenience and as Often as You Want for Practice Purposes

and Finally,

(4) Content that is Free.

What More Could A Student Want !

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LISTENING RESOURCES YOU CAN RELATE TO...

Unlike so-called "University Radio Stations" in certain countries, which are completely controlled by university authorities, and which only permit students to broadcast to fellow students on a campus through a P.A.system (i.e. loudspeakers located outdoors and in dormitories), University Radio Stations in more open countries are engineered, produced and operated solely by university students working voluntarily on a part-time basis.

Like many commercial radio stations, these university student-based stations tend to broadcast on the FM band, and they are governed by the same national broadcasting regulations that govern commercial radio. In other words, these university radio stations broadcast to the general public, to homes, cars and businesses, and they broadcast on the Internet as well.

This genuine kind of University Radio has been around for more than 50 years, and on the Internet for the past six years.

These stations are operated by tertiary level students who are generally between the ages of 18 and 24.

The programming created by the students is diverse, intelligent and contemporary. Many programs are archived so that you can listen to them at your convenience, any time.

Some of these stations operate 24 hours a day.

At some stations the voluntary part-time work-force of students numbers more than 200.

The costs of running these stations is financed by listeners, in the local communities where these stations broadcast, making donations. In other words these stations are listener-financed.

The bottom line here is that you can access these sources of good oral English at any time.You can listen to these stations on your computer at home. You can listen to these stations play in the background on your computer while you work on other things.

These stations have a programming schedule which you can consult to select the programs you want to hear. Some programs involve interviews dealing with social issues, while others involve sports, technology, science, relationships, music of different genres, current affairs and other subjects.

The programs are hosted equally by male and female students.

Many university radio stations archive past interviews, thus providing a great reservoir of listening exercises for you. Many of the interviews are with musicians. Other interviews involve social issues. Hey, guess what...it's all free for you to use to strengthen your English listening skills. You can replay the interviews over and over until you understand them. You can even communicate with some of the students who host these programs. Work smart, have fun... It's up to you whether you use these resources. You control your body...you control the development of your mind...would you want it any other way? So do it... !

The following links represent a sample of these stations.

The sample links below, and other similar links you can find through a Google Advanced Search, offer you access to listening content that is generally of A-Level quality, live, relevant to your stage of life, of diverse and ever-changing content, commercial-free and cost-free.

Of course, only you can decide whether to use this resource on a regular, continuing basis.

Try listening to the station of your choice at least 30 + minutes a day. The formats include monologue, duologue, group and talk radio. Try different stations from different regions to familiarize yourself with different English Accents and diverse audio content. Control is yours, through your own computer. Work smart, have fun...

University Radio Links:

Britain Sample:

Britain York University Radio www.ury.york.ac.uk

Britain Cambridge University Radio www.cur1350.co.uk

Britain Nottingham University Radio www.urn1350.net

U.S.A.

University of Hawaii at Hilo www.radio.uhh.hawaii.edu

Canada University Radio all operated by students 19 to 24 years old...

Ontario Universities

CHRW University of Western Ontario
CKMS 100.3 FM University of Waterloo
CKCU Carleton University; Ottawa, ON
CHUO FM 89.1 (University of Ottawa)
CFRC Queen's University; Kingston, ON
CFFF Trent University; Peterborough, ON
CIUT University of Toronto; Toronto, ON
CHMR Mohawk College; Hamilton, ON
CFRU University of Guelph; Guelph, ON
CJAM University of Windsor; Windsor, ON
CFMU Hamilton, Ontario

British Columbia Universities

CJSF Burnaby, BC, Community-based campus radio. Programming is streamed on web site.
CITR University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC
CFUV University of Victoria; Victoria, BC
Kootenay Coop Radio (KCR 93.5 FM) On this station you'll hear just about everything from bluegrass to freaky audio art with some social commentary in between. It's ecclectic, too eccletic in fact for the likes of Britney Spears and Ricky Martin. It is the true voice of the Canadian Kootenays.

Alberta Universities

CJSW University of Calgary, Calgary, AB
CKUA Radio Network Innovative web site featuring alternative radio sources. Plays everything from jazz to country and blues to bluegrass. Listeners donate voluntarily more than $2-million a year to keep it alive.
CKUL University of Lethbridge; Lethbridge AB
CJSR FM88 CJSR FM88 is Edmonton's volunteer-run college/community radio station, broadcasting 24-hrs a day

Saskatchewan University

CFCR Saskatoon, SK

Manitoba University

UMFM Hit Free Radio Winnipeg Campus Radio

Eastern Canada Universities

CFMH University of New Brunswick,Campus Radio Saint John 92.5 FM
CHMR Memorial University of Newfoundland (St John's)
CFXU Saint Francis Xavier University; Antigonish, NS
CHSR University of New Brunswick; Fredericton, NB
CHMA Mount Allison University; Sackville, NB

U.S.A. University Radio Stations

Columbia University Radio in New York www.columbia.edu/cu/wkcr

U.S.A. Top ninety-three University Radio Stations in popularity

SITE LISTINGS By Popularity

Sites 1 - 20 (of 93) (see 2 3 4 5 below for the remaining 73 of the links)

WCSB 89.3 - Cleveland State University www.wcsb.org
KALX 90.7 - University of California, Berkeley Broadcasting in a free form fashion from UCB, supported by listeners and run by volunteers.www.kalx.berkeley.edu
WERS 88.9 - Emerson College Offers noncommercial programming with a broad musical mix.www.wers.org
WPRB 103.3 - Princeton University www.wprb.com
Zilo.com Features original entertainment for college students including sketch comedy, reality TV, live event sports, and more.www.zilo.com
KFJC 89.7 - Foothill College@dir.yahoo.com/.../College_and_University/Community_and_Technical
WHRB 95.3 - Harvard University www.whrb.org
KSJS 90.5 - San Jose State University Programming includes a wide range of eclectic info and music.www.ksjs.org
KBSU 90.3 - Boise State University Public radio serving southwestern Idaho, eastern Oregon, and northern Nevada.www.radio.boisestate.edu
WEMU 89.1 - Eastern Michigan University Featuring news, blues, and jazz.www.wemu.org
KZSU 90.1 - Stanford University@dir.yahoo.com/.../News_and_Media/Radio
KVRX 91.7 - University of Texas at Austin@dir.yahoo.com/.../University_of_Texas_at_Austin/News_and_Media
WCBN 88.3 - University of Michigan@dir.yahoo.com/.../University_of_Michigan/News_and_Media
KAMP 1570 - University of Arizona Broadcasting college radio news, sports, and music.www.kamp.arizona.edu
WGTS 91.9 - Columbia Union College www.wgts.org
WRTC 89.3 - Trinity College Trinity College radio.www.wrtcfm.com
WMUA 91.1 - University of Massachusetts Amherst www.wmua.org
KWMU 90.7 - University of Missuori - St. Louis St. Louis public radio. NPR station offering news and talk.www.kwmu.org
KUOI 89.3 - University of Idaho Free-form radio station owned and operated by the Associated Students of the University of Idaho (ASUI).http://kuoi.asui.uidaho.edu
KPSU 1450 - Portland State University@dir.yahoo.com

1 Links for the Next 73 stations: 2 3 4 5 Next

Other Worldwide College and University Internet Radio Broadcasting Stations (Some include Podcasts in their repertory)

For a listing of another 800 + university radio stations in 12 countries (including about 700 more in the U.S.A.) click the following link.

http://dir.yahoo.com/News_and_Media/Radio/Stations/College_and_University/By_Region/Countries/

The Choice is Huge...the choice is yours...

Work hard, work smart, have fun with good listening...

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* Blog 004 - Part 2 Raising Self-Awareness of Contemporary Social Issues, Expanding Lexical Resources, Developing Comprehension and Writing Skills

Raising Self-Awareness of Contemporary Social Issues, Expanding Lexical Resources and Developing Further English Comprehension and Writing Skills By Using Online Vocabulary Resources and Tools to Analyze and Comprehend A-Level Newspaper Articles Taken From Qualitative Online Daily and Weekly Newspapers and Magazines. -

You say that you want to develop your English language skills to the proficiency point where, for you, English is an effective, productive working language in your day-to-day life... a proficiency level English proficiency examinations are designed to certify, if present in your examination performance?

You say that you can't find enough interesting articles to read?

- Articles that vary from 1,000 words in length to 3,000 + words?

- Articles that always use academic level vocabulary that you need to know for tertiary level studies or for business English applications?

- Articles that cover a multitude of social issues and themes that frequently find their way into reading, writing, listening and oral examination content themes?

- Articles that are full of ideas, arguments, information, and just plain good writing? Articles that are meant for the aspiring, tertiary-level learner?

- Articles that are not “canned”, but are real?

- Articles that are for real people who live outside of the four walls of a school?

- Articles that are powerful examples of, and exercises in, good, authentic English language communicative skills?

In many ESL schools students are obliged to subscribe to the local printed daily newspaper. For instance, in Hong Kong, many of the secondary school students pay for a subscription to the South China Morning Post (SCMP). The South China Morning Post is an easy read, but that is not the test you need to pass in an English proficiency examination such as TOEFL, IELTS, SAT, GRE, GMAT or other similar English proficiency assessments. The English used in many local newspapers is too simple. The range of vocabulary is not designed for an academic audience. Frequently almost all of the vocabulary used in such newspapers can be found in the list of the 2,000 most frequently used words in English.

There is a high cost of lost opportunities if you spend most of your reading-study time coasting through such material. The time you spend in such reading means you lose opportunities to expose yourself to more suitable vocabulary, more appropriate grammatical range and structure, and the higher level coherence and cogency found in first year tertiary level English medium academic texts.

In other words, you need something more rigorous. Something that, day in and day out, does not deviate from Academic level vocabulary and grammatical structure and range. Something richer, deeper and more diverse. Something that is far more original, resourceful, reliable and useful for your needs.

There are hundreds of good online sources that can meet your needs. Here is but a small representative sample from five countries. The following eight links connect you to over 500 free, well-written, original, current articles per week. Hey, that’s 25,000 + original articles per year! Free! (Why buy a monthly magazine subscription that charges you about $1 HK for each stale article !)

The topics in these freebies are diverse, timely, cogent and helpful to your language skill development.

The sample sources meet the Academic vocabulary proficiency standards tested in the A-S Level examinations. But for starters, if you want to read something less demanding, there are thousands of choices available. Choose what you want to read. If you don't use this power, the process of developing your English language skills will remain stagnant.

These newspapers are produced by huge, reliable, resourceful organizations, in a highly competitive environment, and are read worldwide by millions.

Tapping into these sources, connects you to cutting edge commentary about what matters in the world today. It loads you with information and ideas you can draw on later when you are tested in reading comprehension, writing and speaking in your AS English Examinations.

All you need to do is find a way to integrate daily contact with these sources into your schedule, so that you can and will consult them on a regular basis. Reading five articles a day, every day, is a reasonable goal. You can do it if you really care as much as you say you do about developing your English language communicative skills.

Paste these links to your home computer, as favorites, or desktop shortcuts. I hope you use them all the time.

These links, and others like them, enable you. They empower you. Now it is up to you to use them. The more you do, the more your second language communicative skills will develop.

You need to migrate now from a state of passivity to a routine of self-generated, self-tailored learning activity that can help you to get to where you want to be language-wise. Go for it...you have what it takes !

These links (which represent only a small sample of what is available online), of sources of appropriate level text "streams" I referred to above are as follows: Just click on the link:

New York Times www.nyt.com

Los Angeles Times www.latimes.com

The Economist www.economist.com/printedition

The Times of London From Britain www.timesonline.co.uk/global

The Chicago Tribune www.chicagotribune.com

Novosti (From Russia) www.en.rian.ru

Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com

The Toronto Star - Canada www.thestar.com


These links could be bookmarked or saved to your desktop to facilitate frequent access to well-written, short-length, veracious articles that deal with social and business issues of international importance, using vocabulary that is appropriate for the upper intermediate and advanced ESL learner.

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* Blog 003 - Newspaper Article Analysis Assignment: WhenWhatWhere

English Assignment 2006-2007

With regard to the assignment created in the previous Blog entry (002), the content theme and geographic location of the newspaper source for each assignment is listed below.

October 15, 2006

A. The Major Health Crisis in Africa...Aids // From any newspaper based in an African country.

B. Cheating on Public Exams // From any newspaper based in an Asian country, excluding Hong Kong.

October 28, 2006

A. Pollution: Strategies for Successful Management// From any Newspaper based in Canada

B. Dangers of Biotechnology//From any Newspaper based in the United States

November 15, 2006

A. Tutorial/Cram Schools in Asia//From any Newspaper based in Asia, excluding Hong Kong

B. Counselling by Radio--Dangers and Opportunities//Any Newspaper based in Hong Kong or Taiwan

November 28, 2006

A. Race Relations in Hong Kong// Any Newspaper based in Asia

B. The Reorganization of the Family - Cohabitation Trends Among Young Couples//Any Newspaper based within the European Union


December 15, 2006

A. University Life Today in Japan// Any Newspaper based in Japan, Korea or Taiwan

B. Tertiary Level Student Financial Aid in Asia// Any Newspaper based outside of Hong Kong

December 28, 2006

A. Public Housing in Hong Kong// Any Newspaper based in Asia, North America or South America

B. Solutions to Pollution in Hong Kong// Any Newspaper


January 15, 2007

A. The Cultural Rise of South Korea// Any Newspaper based in Asia outside of Hong Kong

B. Distance Learning-Challenges and Solutions// Any Newspaper outside of Asia

January 28, 2007

A. University Education in Africa - Problems and Solutions// Any Newspaper based in an African Country

B. Child Care in Hong Kong - Challenges and Trends// Any Newspaper based in Asia

February 15, 2007

A. Road Traffic Safety in Hong Kong - Problems and Solutions// Any Newspaper based in Asia

B. Conservation of Historical Sites - International Practices// Any Newspaper based outside of Asia

February 28, 2007

A. Does Hong Kong Really Need a Bill of Rights?// Any Newspaper based outside of Hong Kong

B. Genetically Modified Foods - Policy - Europe vs United States// Any Newspaper based in Europe or the United States

March 15, 2007

A. Cross-Border Food Safety Standards and Practices - Mainland China and Hong Kong//Any Newspaper based in China

B. Terrorist Threats in Asia - International Views// Any Newspaper based in a country outside of Asia

March 28, 2007

A. Hong Kong's Birthrate - Local and Regional Views// Any Newspaper based in Asia

B. Preparations for the 2008 Olympic Games - International Involvement// Any Newspaper

April 15, 2007

A. Illegal Drug Use in Asia - Problems and Solutions //Any Newspaper based in Asia

B. Government Control of Student Population Levels in Hong Kong Universities - Good or Bad?// Any Newspaper

April 28, 2007

A. In Hong Kong Is Use of the English Language in Decline?// Any Newspaper

B. The Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons - Can it Be Controlled? Should it Be Controlled? // Any Newspaper based outside of Hong Kong

May 15, 2007

A. The Apple iPhone Is Coming - Do You Really Need One? // Any Newspaper

B. Should Hong Kong Open Its Doors More To Immigrants?// Any Newspaper based in Asia

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* Blog 002 - Analysis of International Online Newspaper Articles - Recurring Assignment

English Assignment 2006-2007

Raising Self-Awareness of Contemporary Social Issues, Expanding Lexical Resources and Developing Further Comprehension and Writing Skills By Using Working English to Analyze and Report on Self-Selected International Online English Newspaper Articles - Recurring Assignment

THE TASK:

1. Take note of the particular topic assigned for each due date, and the geographic zone (city, region, country or continent) designated, from which an appropriate online newspaper and newspaper article is to be selected.

2. Select appropriate newspapers in the zone from the Yahoo list of thousands of English language online newspapers at this link:

http://dir.yahoo.com/News_and_Media/Newspapers/By_Region/Countries/

3. Scan for articles that are suitable to your own highest and best reading comprehension level, and that contain some A-level academic vocabulary as found in your Academic Vocabulary List handout.

4. For each particular assignment select one of those articles, of 500 to 1,000+ words in length, and print it. The article should have a title, be printed on A4 paper with pages numbered, and include (i) the date the article was posted; (ii) clear and traceable identification of its Internet source; and (iii) the name of the author, if disclosed. The article should not be abridged nor amended in any way.

5. Closely study the article and then select four (4) to eight (8) (or even more), "Academic" words new to your vocabulary, words that are also present in the above-mentioned Academic Vocabulary List. On the printed copy of the article clearly underline each of the chosen words.

6. Now, perform a "work-up", which in this case involves (a) presenting a proper definition of each chosen word consistent with the sense used in the article, (b) indicating its part of speech, (c) writing three (3) original sentences using that word as defined. (The definitions are to be taken from a unilingual English dictionary, and must include two complete contextual excerpts taken from the Concordancer tool of the Wordnet site, excerpts in which the word is used in at least a similar, if not identical, sense); and (d) stating a synonym and an antonym (if one exists) for each defined word.

7. Finally, the "Work-up" shall include (e) three (3) questions posed by you, that elicit information particularly relevant to the article topic but not answered in the article, and (f) an original commentary, composed by you, on subtopics in the article that are of particular interest to you. The commentary must not summarize the article, but rather, should contain some of your views, opinions and critical comments that arise from your comprehension of, and reaction to, the author's message. The commentary needs to be 250 to 450+ words in length.

8. Each assignment should be presented by attaching to the printed article the work-up, including your commentary, both of which should be digitally printed or neatly hand-written on A4 paper, stapled together, dated, with your Chinese and English name, class, and class number written on the first page. All pages should be numbered. No use of correcting fluid (white-out) is permitted on any part of the assignment submitted to the teacher. Assignments submitted with correcting fluid will be returned, ungraded, to be re-done and submitted sans correcting fluid.

9. Four (4) articles are to be submitted each month, without exception, commencing with the month of October, 2006, continuing to and including the month of June, 2007. The articles shall be submitted in batches of two (2), on the 15th day and the 28th day of each month, and if any of those days do not fall on a school day, then on the next school day thereafter.

10. The assignments will be collected by the Homework monitor of each class on the respective due dates and placed on my homework shelf, together with a student list showing the number of articles being submitted by each student, with a specific reference to the names of students who did not submit articles or who submitted articles deficient in number.

11. When the assignments are returned to you, they should be filed in a special section of your two-ring English binder, and indexed in a timely way, and in an appropriate form, at the front of the binder.

12. A list of geographic zones and subject content targets for each month will be posted on this site before September 30th, 2006.

13. These instructions may be amended or upgraded from time to time as the need arises.

Remember that in written communications, form, content, grammatical range and accuracy, style, graphic presentation and neatness all count.

Good Hunting...Have Fun... !

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