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Title: Learning culture in the zone of proximal development: E-mail exchanges among foreign language learners.
Creator: Smasal, Marc., Florida Atlantic University, DuBravac, Stayc
Abstract/Description: Scaffolding is the assistance of an expert learner provided to a novice learner to fulfill a given task. This study examined scaffolding in email messages between non-native speakers learning about German culture. The instructor used Internet resources to teach aspects of the target culture to students enrolled in a second semester German course. Email exchanges between two separate classes of German students were designed to elicit scaffolding. Unlike previous studies that have concentrated...
Show moreScaffolding is the assistance of an expert learner provided to a novice learner to fulfill a given task. This study examined scaffolding in email messages between non-native speakers learning about German culture. The instructor used Internet resources to teach aspects of the target culture to students enrolled in a second semester German course. Email exchanges between two separate classes of German students were designed to elicit scaffolding. Unlike previous studies that have concentrated on the grammatical competence of the students, this study focused on the development of cultural competence as subjects discussed four topics of German culture via email messages. Scaffolded cultural help enables participants to develop an opinion about selected cultural issues. Scaffolded help was found in few email messages and the analysis suggests that participants discussed cultural issues by exchanging factual knowledge rather than providing scaffolded help. Concludes with considerations for further research and teaching.
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Date Issued: 2005
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/13240
Subject Headings: German language--Study and teaching, Culture--Study and teaching, Language and culture, Electronic mail messages
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Relations between Home Language Exposure and Vocabulary Development in Bilingual Toddlers.
Creator: Bridges, Kelly, Hoff, Erika, Florida Atlantic University
Abstract/Description: This study examined the relation between home language exposure from different household members, specifically older siblings, and English and Spanish vocabulary development in bilingual toddlers. The English and Spanish vocabularies of 38 toddlers (19 boys and 19 girls; Mage = 2.14 years, SD = .14) were measured. Parental EI?-glish use was found to be the strongest predictor of English and Spanish proficiencies. Among households in which the parents use less than 10% English, having older...
Show moreThis study examined the relation between home language exposure from different household members, specifically older siblings, and English and Spanish vocabulary development in bilingual toddlers. The English and Spanish vocabularies of 38 toddlers (19 boys and 19 girls; Mage = 2.14 years, SD = .14) were measured. Parental EI?-glish use was found to be the strongest predictor of English and Spanish proficiencies. Among households in which the parents use less than 10% English, having older siblings had no effect on English language proficiency but was associated with lower levels of Spanish proficiency.
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Date Issued: 2008
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00000728
Subject Headings: Bilingualism in children, Second language acquisition, Sociolinguistics, Interaction analysis in education, Language and culture
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Culture as a factor in the motivation of heritage speakers to study Spanish at the college level in South Florida.
Creator: Seiden, Carolina M., Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, Department of Languages, Linguistics and Comparative Literature
Abstract/Description: The purpose of this study is to understand culture as a factor in the motivation of heritage speakers of Spanish to study Spanish at the college level in South Florida. 59 participants divided into three groups of heritage speakers of Spanish at Florida Atlantic University at Boca Raton participated in a questionnaire survey, for a combination of quantitative and qualitative analyses. Subjects were grouped according to the degree of involvement in Spanish-related activities at the college...
Show moreThe purpose of this study is to understand culture as a factor in the motivation of heritage speakers of Spanish to study Spanish at the college level in South Florida. 59 participants divided into three groups of heritage speakers of Spanish at Florida Atlantic University at Boca Raton participated in a questionnaire survey, for a combination of quantitative and qualitative analyses. Subjects were grouped according to the degree of involvement in Spanish-related activities at the college-level. The instrument was a combination of Likert-scale questions as well as open-ended questions aimed at clarifying or expanding on topics presented during the Likert-scale part of the questionnaire. The findings of this study indicate that most heritage speakers understood culture as a part of their identity. Students who were enrolled in Spanish classes were not just looking to expand their Spanish knowledge, but to re-connect and re-establish links with their cultural heritage. Finally, those who chose not to study Spanish cite as their most important reason a dislike for the Spanish language. The results revealed the following implications for the heritage speaker curriculum: the need to address the unique demographic make-up of Spanish heritage speakers in South Florida; the necessity for a consistent and reliable methodology for the identification of heritage speakers, and; the importance of instructors' sensitivity to regional and social dialect variation.
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Date Issued: 2008
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/77651
Subject Headings: Cognition and culture, Spanish language, Study and teaching (Higher), Spanish speakers, Language and languages, Study and teaching (Higher), Social aspects, Language and culture, Study and teaching (Higher), Social aspects
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Writing nation(s): A trans-Atlantic analysis of academic writing instruction.
Creator: Cirillo-McCarthy, Erica., Florida Atlantic University, Galin, Jeffrey R.
Abstract/Description: Only recently have US scholars looked at the rest of the world to see how other countries deal with the writing classroom, mainly because many other countries did not have a writing program or academic writing classes. However, the formation of the European Union (EU), particularly in 1992, brought about specific political and educational integration between member countries. The formation of the EU has changed the composition of the classroom in most continental European countries. In the US...
Show moreOnly recently have US scholars looked at the rest of the world to see how other countries deal with the writing classroom, mainly because many other countries did not have a writing program or academic writing classes. However, the formation of the European Union (EU), particularly in 1992, brought about specific political and educational integration between member countries. The formation of the EU has changed the composition of the classroom in most continental European countries. In the US, the effects of globalization in our classroom will change composition studies. Bringing in perspectives from countries that are dealing with globalization in a different manner will further the focus and research in the field. Government intervention, language barriers, student involvement, and multi-disciplinary influences continue to shape composition studies. By examining these issues in both national and international context, we can anticipate the results of a cross-national pedagogical exchange.
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Date Issued: 2006
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/13374
Subject Headings: Academic writing--Criticism and interpretation, English language--Cross-cultural studies, English language (Rhetoric)--Study and teaching
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Creating Spaces For Culturally Responsive Pedagogy Amid Standards Driven Curriculum In Secondary School English/Language Arts Classes.
Creator: Leichtman, Anala, Schoorman, Dilys, Florida Atlantic University, College of Education, Department of Curriculum, Culture, and Educational Inquiry
Abstract/Description: This hermeneutic phenomenological study emerged from concerns about the ways teachers’ pedagogical practices are affected by growing diversity in their classrooms and continuous education reform. Drawing on the perspectives of critical pedagogy and postcolonial literary theory, this study also explored the tension that exists between what students ought to learn in schools and what they actually learn. Data was gathered through two interviews and a classroom observation with each of eight...
Show moreThis hermeneutic phenomenological study emerged from concerns about the ways teachers’ pedagogical practices are affected by growing diversity in their classrooms and continuous education reform. Drawing on the perspectives of critical pedagogy and postcolonial literary theory, this study also explored the tension that exists between what students ought to learn in schools and what they actually learn. Data was gathered through two interviews and a classroom observation with each of eight high school language arts teachers in South Florida to gain an understanding of how they use their pedagogical practices to navigate changes that occur in the practice field and create spaces to utilize culturally responsive pedagogy in their implementation of the current secondary school English/Language Arts curriculum. Teachers’ reflections on their experiences, descriptions of the climate of their practice and how teachers create spaces for culturally responsive pedagogy were analyzed to consider how their pedagogical practices conform to or challenge the structural and normative assumptions of the practice field. Findings revealed that despite the constraints imposed on their pedagogy by education reform, including standardization of their practice, all teachers used culturally responsive pedagogy in their classrooms to achieve state mandated goals, albeit at a foundational level. While teachers unencumbered by standardized testing expressed higher levels of freedom to make pedagogical choices in their classrooms, all participants suggested that prescribed curriculum and resources could do more to represent students’ needs and growing diversity in schools rather than standardized assessments. Furthermore in their implementations of culturally responsive pedagogy, teachers continue to use students’ voices to represent standardized curriculum and universal literary themes rather than establishing them as curriculum in their own right. As such, this study’s findings extend discussions by educational and postcolonial literary theorists regarding whose knowledge has legitimacy as a part of curriculum especially in a practice field that emphasizes student performance at state mandated levels above all else.
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Date Issued: 2018
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013084
Subject Headings: Culturally relevant pedagogy., Multicultural education., Language arts (Secondary) Study and teaching
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Cultural conversations from Iran to America.
Creator: Ghoreishi, Setareh, Landes, Eric, Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, Department of Visual Arts and Art History
Abstract/Description: This thesis uses graphic design to explore the experience of an individual attempting to bridge two countries’ distinctly different cultures: Iran and the United States. Each has a particular political relation to the other in history. I am using graphic design as a tool to compare specific and various aspects of the two cultures and how these aspects impact each other based on my personal experience. I use design to explore my place in between two cultures and as a way to make sense of the...
Show moreThis thesis uses graphic design to explore the experience of an individual attempting to bridge two countries’ distinctly different cultures: Iran and the United States. Each has a particular political relation to the other in history. I am using graphic design as a tool to compare specific and various aspects of the two cultures and how these aspects impact each other based on my personal experience. I use design to explore my place in between two cultures and as a way to make sense of the exchange or replacement of culture that I perceive. Another aspect of my thesis emphasizes how western influences and technology are altering or eradicating traditions in Iran. This thesis demonstrates collation and confrontation of cultural and social elements through the application of design to a set of culturally symbolic objects. The goal is to utilize graphic design tools to elevate awareness about illustrating the cultural and traditional aspects of the two countries.
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Date Issued: 2015
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004444, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004444
Subject Headings: Cultural fusion, Graphic design, Identity (Psychology) -- Cross cultural studies, Language and culture, Sociolinguistics, Visual communication -- Social aspects, Visual sociology
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: A comparison of the Boston Naming Test and Miami Naming Test in an Afro-Caribbean population over the age of 55.
Creator: Keane, Florence., Florida Atlantic University, Tappen, Ruth M.
Abstract/Description: The Boston Naming Test (60 items) and the newly developed Miami Naming Test (76 items) are designed to assess naming deficits and word-retrieval capacities. These two tests were compared in a sample of 106 Afro-Caribbean elders. Analysis included inter-rater, test-retest reliability and internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha. The correlation between the scores of both raters on the Boston Naming Test was r=.9974 and r=.9984 on the Miami Naming Test. The test-retest reliability scores...
Show moreThe Boston Naming Test (60 items) and the newly developed Miami Naming Test (76 items) are designed to assess naming deficits and word-retrieval capacities. These two tests were compared in a sample of 106 Afro-Caribbean elders. Analysis included inter-rater, test-retest reliability and internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha. The correlation between the scores of both raters on the Boston Naming Test was r=.9974 and r=.9984 on the Miami Naming Test. The test-retest reliability scores were r=.936 for the Boston Naming Test and r=.931 for the Miami Naming Test. The alpha level for the Miami Naming Test was .95 and the Boston Naming Test was .94. The individual items for both tests were evaluated for their level of difficulty and the scores on the Miami Naming Test were compared to the Boston Naming Test and the Mini Mental State Exam results. Results indicated acceptable levels of reliability for both the Boston Naming Test and the Miami Naming Test. This study shed light on which items should be replaced or deleted and future directions for research on assessment of dementia on older adults of Afro-Caribbean background. This study was supported by Minority Supplement grant #NR07744-01 and was guided by design of the parent grant Culture Bias in Expressive Ability in Dementia funded by the National Institute of Nursing research.
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Date Issued: 2005
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fcla/dt/12178
Subject Headings: Language and languages--Examinations--Research, Aging--Psychological aspects, Medical care--Needs assessment, Dementia--Research--Cross-cultural studies, Educational tests and measurements
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Cultural Influences on Mother-Child Conversations in Monolingual European American, Monolingual Hispanic American and Bilingual Hispanic American Mothers.
Creator: Shanks, Katherine Alexandra Filippi, Hoff, Erika, Florida Atlantic University, Department of Psychology, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science
Abstract/Description: Adult-child interactions vary between cultures. For example, Hispanic parents are characterized by a more adult-centered style of interaction with children, while European American parents are more child-centered. Little is known about the influences cultural differences may have on the ways that Spanish-English bilingual parents speak to their children in each language. To address this question, 17 monolingual Spanish-speaking Hispanic American mothers, 22 monolingual English-speaking...
Show moreAdult-child interactions vary between cultures. For example, Hispanic parents are characterized by a more adult-centered style of interaction with children, while European American parents are more child-centered. Little is known about the influences cultural differences may have on the ways that Spanish-English bilingual parents speak to their children in each language. To address this question, 17 monolingual Spanish-speaking Hispanic American mothers, 22 monolingual English-speaking European American mothers, and 33 Spanish-English bilingual mothers were videorecorded in toy-play interactions with their children. The bilingual mothers and children were recorded in two sessions, one in which they were instructed to speak English and one in which they were instructed to speak Spanish. Using CHILDES programs, these interactions were transcribed and coded for properties of parent-child conversation known to be related to child language outcomes and hypothesized to reflect parent-centered and child-centered styles of interaction. The parent-child conversations of the two monolingual groups were compared in order to obtain baseline cultural differences in interaction style. The parentchild conversations of the bilingual mothers when speaking Spanish and when speaking English were compared in terms of the properties that showed differences between the monolingual groups. The conversations of the monolingual Hispanic American mothers were characterized by fewer maternal word types, and proportionately fewer maternal questions, and fewer child utterances than the conversations of the monolingual European American mothers. These differences were reflected in the comparisons of the bilingual mothers’ Spanish and English interactions with the exception of number of word types. The results are consistent with the hypotheses that (1) Spanish-speaking Hispanic American mothers use a more adult-centered style of interaction with their children compared to European American mothers, who use a more child-centered style of interacting with children and that (2) Hispanic American bilingual mothers reflect aspects of these cultural differences when speaking each language with their children.
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Date Issued: 2019
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00013414
Subject Headings: Mother and child, Mother and child--Cross-cultural studies, Language Development, Hispanic Americans, European Americans, Conversation
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Stan in Prague.
Creator: Waldron, Justin., Department of English
Abstract/Description: We all use our language as one of our main modes of communication. Stan Klipper, the progatonist of Stan in Prague, found himself in a position where language has failed him, yet with the lack of language, his other senses have also failed him. When Stan was sent to Prague on a vague business trip, he decided to hire a translator to help him close the language gap, which in his case was huge. With his translator, Ihar, and Ihar's girlfriend delha, Stan maneuvers his way through the cramped...
Show moreWe all use our language as one of our main modes of communication. Stan Klipper, the progatonist of Stan in Prague, found himself in a position where language has failed him, yet with the lack of language, his other senses have also failed him. When Stan was sent to Prague on a vague business trip, he decided to hire a translator to help him close the language gap, which in his case was huge. With his translator, Ihar, and Ihar's girlfriend delha, Stan maneuvers his way through the cramped streets of Prague, to open the lands of the Prague suburbs and into his own confusion.
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Date Issued: 2012
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3359284
Subject Headings: Conduct of life, Translating and interpreting, Social aspects, Language and culture, Intercultural communication
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Multicultural education and high school English teachers: a teacher awareness study.
Creator: Hamilton, Rebecca, Weber, Roberta K., Florida Atlantic University, College of Education, Department of Curriculum, Culture, and Educational Inquiry
Abstract/Description: Multicultural education has been mandated in the state of Florida as part of State Mandate 1003.42. In order for this mandate to be implemented, it is necessary for teachers to know what effective multicultural education is and how it is to be implemented. This study was designed to find out what English teachers know about the state mandate and multicultural education and how they use multicultural education in their classrooms. High school English teachers in one South Florida school...
Show moreMulticultural education has been mandated in the state of Florida as part of State Mandate 1003.42. In order for this mandate to be implemented, it is necessary for teachers to know what effective multicultural education is and how it is to be implemented. This study was designed to find out what English teachers know about the state mandate and multicultural education and how they use multicultural education in their classrooms. High school English teachers in one South Florida school district participated in an online survey, and 11 of those respondents also participated in a follow-up personal interview. According to multiple scholars, there are three categories for multicultural education: Recognition, Transformation, and Action, with Recognition serving to recognize and respect other cultures without any change to the mainstream curriculum and instruction, Transformation serving to transform the curriculum and instruction to reflect students and their various cultures while introducing them to others and meeting the various instructional needs of the students, and Action motivating students to take action to bring about social justice. Overall, high school English teachers’ understanding of effective multicultural education is on the Transformation level. The survey found that high school English teachers use multicultural education on the Action level; however, the follow-up interviews did not support that finding. Also based on the interviews, teachers are willing and eager to learn more and would like the district to implement their suggestions to help with their learning.
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Date Issued: 2015
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004376, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004376
Subject Headings: Cultural pluralism, Curriculum planning, Educational equalization, English language -- Study and teaching (Secondary), English literature -- Study and teaching (Secondary), Ethnicity -- Study and teaching, Multicultural education -- Case studies, Teachers, Training of
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Cross-cultural stories of race and change: a re-languaging of the public discourse on race and ethnicity.
Creator: Oliver, Eloise D. (Kitty), Florida Atlantic University, Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters, Department of Languages, Linguistics and Comparative Literature
Abstract/Description: A progressive discourse on race is impeded by several factors: debates on the reality or unreality of the term race itself; discussions of ethnicity that tend to marginalize a discussion of race; the view by majority members of society that race is a topic for discussion principally by minorities; and the lack of models for non-confrontational public conversations on the subject. In the process, a discussion of racial change rarely enters the discourse beyond brief responses in opinion polls....
Show moreA progressive discourse on race is impeded by several factors: debates on the reality or unreality of the term race itself; discussions of ethnicity that tend to marginalize a discussion of race; the view by majority members of society that race is a topic for discussion principally by minorities; and the lack of models for non-confrontational public conversations on the subject. In the process, a discussion of racial change rarely enters the discourse beyond brief responses in opinion polls. This study proposed the Race and Change Dialogue Model to facilitate the exploration of how race operates in society on an interpersonal level in everyday lives of people across cultures and how changes in racial attitudes occur over time. Theories of race and ethnicity, language, effective communication strategies, and social change provided a starting point, but a "re-languaging" approach was used to advance the innovative nature of this work. In audiorecorded oral histories for public dissemination and interviews in a documentary series on public television, cross-cultural narrators were provided with a safe rhetorical space to tell their stories and to be heard, and a framework of "racenicity" allowed for the discussion of the intersectionality of race, ethnicity, class, and culture as fused aspects of the same issue. An environment was created that enhanced effective communication of a difficult subject. Despite the challenges that arose in the patterns of talk about racial change, the door has been opened to bring change into the dialogue in a more prominent way that moves the discourse on differences in more productive directions. An alternate model for public discussions on race as "racenicity" was created that has the potential to build coalition in the U.S. and has implications for other societies as well.
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Date Issued: 2009
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3337184
Subject Headings: Pluralism (Social sciences), Discourse analysis, Psychological aspects, Language and culture, Social change, Ethnic relations, Psychological aspects, Race relations, Psychological aspects
Format: Document (PDF)

Title: Entre Nebrija y Valdâes: un diâalogo gramatical sobre el castellano renacentista.
Creator: Lewis, Ron., Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College
Abstract/Description: The two earliest grammars of the Castilian language are the Grammar of the Castilian Language by Antonio de Nebrija and the Dialogue of the Language by Juan de Valdâes. The former was published in 1492, a historically paramount year for Spain, while the latter was completed in 1535 but not published until two centuries later. Working with edited texts of both grammars, secondary sources regarding the lives of Nebrija and Valdâes, and information about the history of Spain, this thesis...
Show moreThe two earliest grammars of the Castilian language are the Grammar of the Castilian Language by Antonio de Nebrija and the Dialogue of the Language by Juan de Valdâes. The former was published in 1492, a historically paramount year for Spain, while the latter was completed in 1535 but not published until two centuries later. Working with edited texts of both grammars, secondary sources regarding the lives of Nebrija and Valdâes, and information about the history of Spain, this thesis explores the linguistic substance of both works, evidence of the authors' personal attitudes and dispositions that influenced their works, and the political and social context surrounding all of these factors. The purpose of this investigation is to gain further insight into the Grammar and the Dialogue, as well as the history of Spain and the historical development of Castilian.
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Date Issued: 2010
PURL: http://purl.flvc.org/FAU/3335108
Subject Headings: Criticism and interpretation, Criticism and interpretation, Spanish literature, Criticism and interpretation, Language and culture, History
Format: Document (PDF)

FAU Theses and Dissertations (11)	+ -
Honors Student Theses (1)	+ -

Language and culture (7)	+ -
Social aspects (2)	+ -
Sociolinguistics (2)	+ -
Academic writing--Criticism and interpretation (1)	+ -
Aging--Psychological aspects (1)	+ -

Bilingualism in children (1)	+ -
Cognition and culture (1)	+ -
Conduct of life (1)	+ -
Conversation (1)	+ -
Criticism and interpretation (1)	+ -
Cultural pluralism (1)	+ -
Culturally relevant pedagogy. (1)	+ -
Cultural fusion (1)	+ -
Culture--Study and teaching (1)	+ -
Curriculum planning (1)	+ -
Dementia--Research--Cross-cultural studies (1)	+ -
Discourse analysis (1)	+ -
Educational equalization (1)	+ -
Educational tests and measurements (1)	+ -
Electronic mail messages (1)	+ -
English language (Rhetoric)--Study and teaching (1)	+ -
English language -- Study and teaching (Secondary) (1)	+ -
English language--Cross-cultural studies (1)	+ -
English literature -- Study and teaching (Secondary) (1)	+ -
Ethnic relations (1)	+ -
Ethnicity -- Study and teaching (1)	+ -
European Americans (1)	+ -
German language--Study and teaching (1)	+ -
Graphic design (1)	+ -
Hispanic Americans (1)	+ -

Catalonia (1)	+ -
Prague (Czech Republic) (1)	+ -
Spain (1)	+ -
United States (1)	+ -

16th century (1)	+ -
Classical period, 1500-1700 (1)	+ -

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