Masters Degrees (Modern Foreign Languages)

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Browsing Masters Degrees (Modern Foreign Languages) by browse.metadata.advisor "Du Toit, Renate"

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    Anforderungen für eine Benutzeroberfläche eines elektronischen Wörterbuches deutscher Kollokationen für afrikaans-sprechende Lerner des Faches Deutsch als Fremdsprache
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2011-03) Reinhardt, Hilma Anka; Du Toit, Renate; Heid, Ulrich; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Available dictionaries involving Afrikaans and German do not satisfactorily deal with collocations. Therefore, this study recommends a theoretically grounded design of a user interface for an electronic dictionary of German collocations for foreign language learners of German whose first language or mother tongue is Afrikaans. In order to be able to do so, a set of requirements is drawn up, upon which the electronic collocations dictionary will be based. On the one hand these requirements give consideration to lexicographic factors relevant to the envisaged dictionary; on the other hand a theoretical basis for the presentation of the electronic dictionary according to usability principles and standards is established. The underlying definition of collocations will be discussed as one of the lexicographic factors constituting the learner dictionary of collocations. Being primarily aimed at Afrikaans speaking foreign language learners of German, their usage situation plays an important role. At an intermediate language learning level topics to be conversed about become increasingly complex. As collocations offer adequate means of expressing these increasingly complex ideas, the learners’ need of collocational knowledge increases, even more with regard to the language production than to the language reception. As collocations are not dealt with adequately in available dictionaries involving Afrikaans and German, there is a definite demand for an adequate dictionary for this user group. The envisaged learner dictionary’s function and type will be determined accordingly. In addition to the lexicographic factors underpinning the design of the user interface, international usability standards DIN EN ISO 9241 (amongst others) and practical recommendations for user interface design by Jakob Nielsen (amongst others) are discussed. This discussion makes provision for the theoretically grounded presentation of the envisaged electronic dictionary of German collocations in line with usability standards. Finally, giving consideration to the set of lexicographic and usability requirements drawn up, a user interface design is recommended for the electronic dictionary for foreign language learners of German whose first language or mother tongue is Afrikaans.
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    A case study investigating the essay writing skills of Eastern Cape Technikon education students using the Writing Process Workshop language software
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2005-03) Masha, Khanyisa Rose; Du Toit, Renate; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
    This research is based on a study which was made in order to investigate why the students who study Education at the Eastern Cape Technikon fail to acquire competence in essay writing, in spite of going through the Computer program that is being used by the Department of Communication. The name of this program is the Writing Process Workshop, and will be referred to as the WPW throughout the study. This program has been in use at the Technikon as a form of supplementary program for those students who were perceived to have shortfalls1 in their essay writing communication skills. This perception came about from the Department of Communication which decided that those students who scored less than 40% overall in (in language, not in content) their assignments, class works, and tests should go through the program and work independently, in the hope that their performance will improve. The study spans over two years, with the first year being the period where the researcher collected data in the form of written errors that the students made in their essays. The second year of the research is the period when the main research took place. During the second year of the research, the researcher observed the students as they went through the WPW for three months. Upon completing the program, the students were asked to respond to a questionnaire. In addition to the questionnaire, the researcher examined the student errors that occurred in the students’ essays throughout 2003 (while they were on the program, together with the ones from last year (2003). The reason for this was to determine if the errors that were present in 2002 are still present even after the students had gone through the WPW. The researcher then found that there was still considerable occurrence of the same errors in the students’ essays, a fact which led the researcher to deduce that very little improvement in the writing skills of the students has occurred between 2002 and 2003. To explain the above point further, the research findings indicated that the essay-writing competence of the subjects did not improve in spite of the WPW intervention.The researcher then went on to evaluate the program, using a set of guidelines2, and found it consistent with the requirements of the evaluation; and therefore ruled it out as the cause of the failure of students to improve their competence in writing. Based on the findings of the study, the researcher found that the students do not put conscious effort to apply what they have learnt in the program, and that some have not even completed the required tasks from the program. She also found that there is lack of integration of the software into the curriculum. Specific recommendations in Chapter 9 are given on how to facilitate this integration and to motivate the students to apply what they have learnt from the WPW to the mainstream essay writing exercises.
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    (E-) Learning by doing : Integrierter und handlungsorientierter Einsatz neuer Medien am Beispiel Goethe-Zentrum Kapstadt
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2009-03) Jakus, Matthias; Du Toit, Renate; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
    As computers increasingly seem to gain importance and have become a useful tool to carry out everyday routine tasks and to facilitate communication, task-based and student centred approaches of foreign language teaching and learning need to evaluate how computers can be integrated into the classroom to equip students with the necessary skills they need to master the challenges which may come with these new technologies. Since CALL (computer assisted language learning) -research has also suggested that computers can assist both students and teachers by enhancing L2 learning activities and by providing useful tools to complete them, it seems like there is no way computers can not play a role in L2 teaching and learning today. This thesis aims to give an overview of the use of computer applications in the L2 classroom and illustrates them by giving practical examples for a specific learning environment, namely the Goethe-Zentrum Kapstadt. As informed use of computers in a CALL scenario must be based on a thorough understanding of L2 learning processes, this thesis also provides a critical overview of general L2 teaching and learning theories as well as CALL research in particular. As a theoretical framework may vary according to the specific conditions of the learning environment a description of the Goethe-Zentrum is also given and considered as a criterion for the development and integration of learner-centred and task-based CALL activities at the Goethe-Zentrum.
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    The enlightened Chinese characters : a cognitive approach of computer assisted Chinese character learning
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2006-03) Yang, Wan Chi (Ada Yang); Du Toit, Renate; Yu, Amy; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
    With continuing advances in technology, computer-assisted instruction provides opportunities for individualized, interactive learning. In the research paper, I employed the theoretical framework of CALL and the philosophy of cognitive psychhology to promote learner autonomy in the second language aquisition of Chinese...
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    Die evaluering van 'n nuutgeskepte luisterprogram vir postbeginner studente
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2007-12) Beukes, Vernita; Du Toit, Renate; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Afrikaans and Dutch.
    This study contributes to the growing field of CALL. The Authorware programme focus on postbeginner students’ listening skills in an attempt to increase the number of students that complete their studies at Stellenbosch University. The study investigates different types of listening, which forms the backbone for the accompanying programme.
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    Improve your essay writing : the essential guide
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2005-12) Malie, Tebogo Ma'Khopotso; Du Toit, Renate; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The application designed is an attempt to solve the problems that students face in writing well balanced academic essays. These are essays that are correct in structure and form, coherent and cohesive, well referenced, and not plagiarised. These concerns are addressed in five basic units. These are "Where to Start", "The Basic Structure", "Paragraphing", "Referencing" and "Exercises". The exercises serve as a summary of all the units. This application derived out of the needs of the students of the University of Botswana. The content was a result of a needs analysis done through observation and interviews. The evaluation of the application was done by the students themselves and fellow students at Stellenbosch University.
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    Vocabulary : it's all about words working together : an interactive multimedia program to improve senior phase English first additional language learners’ functional vocabulary through an increased understanding of everyday authentic texts and classical and contemporary poetry
    (Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch, 2008-03) Ekron, Anna Cecilia; Du Toit, Renate; University of Stellenbosch. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Modern Foreign Languages.
    The continuing decline in Matriculation pass rates is a matter of concern for government, educators, parents and students in South African schools. According to official statistics, only 8% of South Africans are mother-tongue English speakers, yet English is the chief language of learning and teaching in South African schools. Researchers relate the poor pass rate to inadequate proficiency in English of both English First Additional Language learners and some of their teachers. Research has further revealed a significant positive correlation between reading comprehension and academic achievement. Consensus exists among researchers about the necessity of a basic vocabulary (variously estimated at 2000 to 3000 words and more) for developing the necessary reading comprehension. Theories and approaches regarding the development of vocabulary, however, are sometimes diametrically opposed to one another. Among the most conflicting theories are those which advocate the acquisition of vocabulary by guessing the meanings of words from the context as opposed to those favouring conscious and deliberate vocabulary teaching, which may include lists of words. The current study briefly investigates underlying problems, theories, methods and approaches to enhancing learners’ vocabularies. Conclusions are applied to the development of an interactive, multimedia program for improving learners’ functional vocabularies. The content of the program is based on authentic texts and simulations of situations which call for language interaction. This is supplemented with extracts from classical literary works and poetry and entertaining verses which present possibilities for use in vocabulary building.