Browsing by Author "Haile Michael"

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    African Literary Texts and Language Based Approaches in EL T: a study of motivation
    (Addis Ababa University, 1998-06) Abiye Daniel ; Haile Michael
    The Ethiopian English language learner seems to be less fluent in the freshman class over the last couple of years. What appears to be the root cause of these low grades is the lack of motivation in the language classroom due to the neglect of culturally appropriate material and the absence of a language-based approach. This thesis attempts to explore the contributions of African literary texts to the language classroom arguing that a socio-cultural approach to language learning is more viable. Ethiopian English does not exist as an institutionalized variety, however, within a Pan-African perspective the Ethiopian learner can identify with African Literatures in English and begin from a familiar schematic reality. This authentic schema, apart from motivating the learner, will help in the efficient use of their top-down processing, a quality that at present is lacking. An understanding of African Literature is also approached through an attempt of it's definition from a historical perspective, an asset the language learner can call upon from his cultural competence and which also powerfully influences the rules of discourse in communication. Furthermore, African literature is based on the supposition that there is a constant interaction between social and linguistic aspects in regards to the understanding of language. Therefore the educational goal is based on the understanding of cultural assumptions in the classroom, and views culture as a process of understanding and tolerating different perceptions . African literature, in this thesis, focuses on problematizing major themes and therefore, stimulating discussion dependent on cultural awareness and based on dialogue and negotiation. African literature is therefore viewed as a stepping stone from which the Ethiopian language learner begins from and moves towards other forms of discourse, that is, from the familiar towards the unfamiliar. The learner approaches African literary texts from a language-based perspective with an emphasis on communication and negotiation as a bases for language awareness. In other V words, African literary texts are seen from three perspectives: as text, as message, and as discourse. African literary text as text enables the language learner to examine language as system, and through a stylistic analysis be able to explore the different levels of language. However, though description is a fundamental beginning towards a closer understanding , the learner has to move on to the next level of text as message. On this level the student explores meaning in text on the semantic level and understands how the writer transmits his message through language. The third and most important aspect however, is through interpretative procedures where text is seen as discourse and the learner's response is most valued, here a pragmatic understanding of meaning is explored. In this case meaning only exists with learners active engagement with the text and in the ultimate pursuit of communication. Communication in turn, develops a better understanding of language. As students are equipped with their schematic knowledge, bottom-up processing or explicit awareness of language is dealt with in the tasks. The tasks therefore, have a major role to play in language learning, firstly, they are a means through which the learner communicates and negotiates meaning- an educational value, and secondly the learner is exposed to a more explicit awareness of language- a pedagogic value. Based on the assumptions of African literary texts and language-based approaches, this thesis also explores the motivational factors that influence language learning. The researcher feels that by using African literary texts and a language-based methodology the language learner will be more motivated to learn a foreign language. Models exploring motivation are reviewed and a synthesis between a psycho-educational model by Lambert and a socioeducational model by Gardner seem to be most relevant for this research. In this approach, cultural beliefs have a great influence on individual differences of which attitude and motivation are a part. Attitude and the aspect of orientation, which includes integration and instrumentality , seem to have a direct influence on motivation and situational anxiety, influencing foreign language learning. The ultimate outcome of learning a foreign language is reflected on self-identity both in linguistic and non-linguistic terms. Therefore, African literary texts, based on the social milieu of the learners, seems to assure that self-identity and VI may probably help to motivate second language acquisition. However the Ethiopian situation is unique because English is used only as a medium of instruction, questioning whether the integrative motive is the most influential in language acquisition. To conclude, the researcher feels that the use of African literary texts in the language classroom with a focus on a language-based approach communication, can help to foster motivation and break the 'culture of silence' in the Ethiopian language learner.
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    The Communicative V. The Traditional Approach to the Teaching of English Reading Comprehension At Addis Ababa University Freshman Level: A Comparative Study
    (Addis Ababa University, 1984-06) Haile Michael; Melaku Asfaw
    The purpose of this study was to find out the relative effectiveness of the tradfti.nal and c.mmunicative approaches to the teaching of English reading comprehension in developing the reading abilities of Addis Ababa University freshman students. An experiment, in which a sample population of one hundred and forty freshmen in six groups took part, was conducted for six weeks. Three of the groups formed the control group and the other three the ยท e~erimental~ A pre-test on reading com;rehension was given to both the control and experimental groups to see if there was any significant difference between the reading abilities of the two groups. Statistical tests showed that the differences were not significant. Two sets of teaching materials were prepared for both groups in 'accerdance with the pedagogical principles of the teaching methodologies in qu~ti .n. The control classes were taught reading comprehension in the traditional approach and the experimental classes in the~ .mmunicative approach. Three particirating instructors each taught one control and one experimental class respectively. A comprehension post-test was administered t~ both the control and experimental groups . Statistical tests showed that the average post-test score of the experimental group was significantly greater than that of thecontr.l group. Therefore the null hypothesis that there would not be any Si~lificant difference between the comprehension posttest results of the two groups attributable to the adoption of the communicative approach had to be rejected. The conclusion was drawn that the communicative approach is mere effective than the traditional approach in developing the reading abilities of freshman students at Addis Ababa University.