Browsing by Author "Beriso, Italo (PhD)"

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    Analyzing Features of Newspaper Headlines And It’s Implications for Elt in Ethiopia
    (Addis Ababa University, 2001-06) Sahile, Shimeles; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    Analyzing features of newspaper headlines and finding out its implications for English Language Teaching (ELT) is part and parcel of descriptive studies done to produce course materials out of non-academic sources such as newspapers and magazines. The idea that non-academic texts should be used in the EFL classroom is so widespread that English for Academic Purpose (EAP) courses designed to prepare students for a particular discipline such as medicine or law, generally use materials relating to those disciplines. Thus, the current study has tried to show the contribution of analyzing features of newspaper headlines for producing supplementary teaching material ls to EFL students in general and to students dealing with courses in media in particular. To substantiate the objectives already set, the study reviews the available literature at three interrelated stages. The first stage presents types of media and the rationale for using them in language classrooms. The second stage discusses newspapers, which are types of non-technical media. This stage is so comprehensive that it tells us about kinds of newspaper, the rationale for using newspapers and the methodological basis of newspaper materials. The last stage, which is about newspaper headlines, attempts to highlight the language of headlines and the advantage of learning it. The data for the research in question has been newspaper headlines in The Reporter, a weekly local English newspaper. The headlines have been gathered from -fifty-four issues of The Reporter chosen as a sample. A table comprising different columns for listing down the headlines 1<1nder their respective components has been used. The headlines obtained have' been analyses at three but closely related stages. In the first place, the headlines· have been analyzed in terms of components they are taken from. Some components occur more frequently than others, and the nature of topics treated in each of the components varies. Some components consist of headlines accompanied by pictures while others are components that present news about the target speakers. The analysis made at the second stage identifies syntactic features that characterize the headlines. These include omission of function words, embedding of certain phrase and clause structures, over use of the present tense among headlines termed 'Type 1, omission of the verb be in headlines called 'Type 2', omission and post modifications among headlines known as 'Type 3', etc. Finally, the headlines have been also studied in terms of the non-linguistic features they exhibit. These are punctuation marks, abbreviations and capitalization.Based on the pedagogical implications drawn out a t each stage of the analyses , sample teaching materials have been designed with the Ethiopian Mass Media Training Institute students in mind. Thus , the implications of the analysis made at the first stage have been used to produce supplementary reading activities. The activities demand students to match headlines with paragraphs or components from which they are taken (Ac tivity 1 and Activity 2 respectively), match headlines with pictures a nd /or captions (Activity 3 and Activity 4), and decipher headlines without access to the accompanying articles (Activity 5). The implications at the second stage, on the other hand, have been sources of activities on grammar and oral practice. These are: labeling constituents and rearranging disorganized headlines (Activity 6), identifying direct from indirect speech (Activity 7 and Activity 8, No.2 and No.3), practicing syntax and learning abbreviations (Activity 8, No.1), interpreting verb less questions (Activity 10), identifying omissions and the use of tenses (Activity 11), and deducing major syn tactic features of headlines (Activity 12). The implications based on the analysis a t the third stage have been used for designing activities on oral practice and mechanics (Activity 13 and Activity 14), and on oral practice and capita ligation abbreviations (Activity 15 and Activity 16).
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    The Effect of Training Students in Giving and Receiving Peer Feedback on Learners' Revision Types and Writing Quality: A Case Study of Second Year Students of: DEFENCE University College
    (Addis Ababa University, 2003-06) Assefa, Dawit; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    In the practice of peer feedback, it has been observed that writing teachers are not confident about the ability of their students in practicing peer feedback on their peers' essays. It has also been complained that the peers themselves are reluctant to comment on each other's writing. Others, however, argue that students can successfully practice peer feedback if they get appropriate training and guidance in how to exercise peer feedback in writing classes. The objective of this study was therefore to investigate the effect of training students in giving and receiving peer feedback on the revision types and their writing quality . The study focused on the case of ten second yea r students who were taking sophomore English language course. To gather information or data four essays of the succulents with two drafts each were mainly used. These were to evaluate the actual change in the revision types and writing quality. Questionnaires were also designed and administered to both the instructors and the students to identify the customs of feedback practice on the students' writing and to check the perception the students had before and after the training. The study took a month through the four essays together with two drafts each. The result of the data presentation and analysis shows that sign of improvements were observed in the types of revision made on t heir classmate's essays and the qualities of these essays were also realised since the writers used most of the feedback given by t heir peers on the higher concerns of their writings. It can be concluded that this was the result of the tra ining and the guidance given by the teacher. So, if students get proper t raining and continuous guidance in the practice and use of peer feedback or revision, they may be reliable reviewers of each other's drafts of t heir essays. To avoid the wrong perception the students may have towards their classmates' comments on their writing they might be briefed of the benefits of peer feedback. The result of this study could also be more reliable if other related studies could be made. Therefore we could suggest further study which may substantiate the current finding .
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    Evaluation of writing tasks: Grade Nine New Textbook in focus By Meron Mesfin Advisor: Dr.
    (Addis Ababa University, 2015-05) Mesfin, Meron; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    The main purpose of this study was to analyze the extent to which the writing tasks (activities) in the currently in use Grade 9 English textbook are well structured and organized in such a way that they could promote writing skills. The writing tasks were identified and analyzed base on the basic components of communicative tasks as well as the evaluation checklist for the communicative tasks suggested by Nunan (1989). Textbook analysis (content analysis), focus group discussion and questionnaire were the instruments used by the researcher, for availably sampled teachers and randomly selected students. To evaluate and interpret the data, the researcher wed qualitative methods. Findings of the study revealed that most of the writing activities do not fulfill many of the relevant criteria stated in the checklist which enable the students to communicate through writing in and outside the classroom. The findings also indicated although the goals (Objective) of the writing tasks clearly stated in the textbook for the students and teachers, they lack variety. Similarly, the contents as inputs are familiar to the students and satisfy the needs and interests of the learners but they do not provide enough information due to lack of adequate authentic materials together with their implementation. In a similar fashion, the activities in the course book satisfy the principle of meaningfulness, purposefulness, real worldliness and suitability of the use of pair/group work, yet they lack motivational values, variety, and authenticity; and are barley limited in including stages of tasks and topics raising high level of thought. Furthermore, the roles of students and teacher are clearly stated in the textbook, teacher’s guide and syllabus in giving guidance, facilitating and counseling roles to the teacher leaving the entire task to the learners. However, in a few activities the teacher’s roles are not clearly stated. Finally, the settings of the activities are flexible rather than fixed even if they do not provoke the use of pair/group work to a large extent. It is, therefore, recommended that textbook writers consider incorporating the six basic components of communicative tasks in the learner’s textbook when preparing the materials.
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    An Exploration into Perceptions of Junior Secondary School English Teachers towards Communicative Language Teaching and Their Actual Classroom Practices: Grade 8 in Focus
    (Addis Ababa University, 2010-06) Debebe, Daniel; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    Researches reveal that teachers’ perceptions play an influential role in determining their professional behavior: the way they plan their lessons, the kinds of decisions they make, the way they react towards different methodologies and the specific method they apply in their classrooms. This study has, therefore, tried to present perceptions of junior secondary school teachers towards communicative language teaching (CLT) and their actual classroom practices with a special reference to Grade 8 English teachers. Both quantitative and qualitative methods of research have been used for the study. And the required data have been collected from twenty English teachers working in three different elementary schools using the three research tools: questionnaires, observations and interviews. Descriptive statistics such as mean, percentage and frequency have been utilized in analyzing the data obtained through the questionnaires while the observations and interviews were analyzed qualitatively in words. As a result, it has been found out that the aforementioned teachers have, in fact, a strong perception towards CLT in principle, but when it comes to practice, almost all of them have been found to fail in holding their strong perceptions towards the same. In other words, a clear mismatch has been noticed between teachers’ perception towards CLT and their actual classroom practices. And this is attributed to the multidimensional problems pointed out in the conclusion part of the paper. Mindful of the identified problems, therefore, an earnest and persistent supervision of the schools with regard to the implementation of CLT by the concerned government and non-government bodies is forwarded as a major recommendation at the end of the day
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    An Exploration into Perceptions of Junior Secondary School English Teachers towards Communicative Language Teaching and Their Actual Classroom Practices: Grade 8 in Focus
    (Addis Ababa University, 2010-06) Debebe, Daniel; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    Researches reveal that teachers’ perceptions play an influential role in determining their professional behavior: the way they plan their lessons, the kinds of decisions they make, the way they react towards different methodologies and the specific method they apply in their classrooms. This study has, therefore, tried to present perceptions of junior secondary school teachers towards communicative language teaching (CLT) and their actual classroom practices with a special reference to Grade 8 English teachers. Both quantitative and qualitative methods of research have been used for the study. And the required data have been collected from twenty English teachers working in three different elementary schools using the three research tools: questionnaires, observations and interviews. Descriptive statistics such as mean, percentage and frequency have been utilized in analyzing the data obtained through the questionnaires while the observations and interviews were analyzed qualitatively in words. As a result, it has been found out that the aforementioned teachers have, in fact, a strong perception towards CLT in principle, but when it comes to practice, almost all of them have been found to fail in holding their strong perceptions towards the same. In other words, a clear mismatch has been noticed between teachers’ perception towards CLT and their actual classroom practices. And this is attributed to the multidimensional problems pointed out in the conclusion part of the paper. Mindful of the identified problems, therefore, an earnest and persistent supervision of the schools with regard to the implementation of CLT by the concerned government and non-government bodies is forwarded as a major recommendation at the end of the day.
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    Exploring the Effects of Teachers' Beliefs about Grammar Teaching
    (Addis Ababa University, 2015-05) Tilaye, Aytenew; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    The main objective of this study was to explore the effects of teachers' perception of English language grammar teaching with reference to Nifas SilkLafto Sub –City government preparatory school teachers teaching English in the second semester of 2007 E.C .The subjects of the study were thirty one in which 12 of them were from Higher- 23 preparatory school while 10 and 9 of them were from FrieHiowt and Ginbot- 20 preparatory schools respectively. Subjects were selected using available sampling technique. Three kinds of data collection instruments were used in this study; namely, questionnaire, interview and observation. The data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively including descriptions, such as frequency counting and percentage. The findings indicated that the great majority of the subjects of the study were that their perception of grammar teaching has effects on English language grammar teaching in classroom. As the result, it is concluded that there is a deep woven correlation between teachers’ beliefs about teaching English grammar and their classroom practices of teaching grammar. So, the administrations of the three preparatory schools should assessed teachers based on structural approach. So, proper classroom observation system should be arranged in the schools to guide the teachers on the right time and proper language development program for parents should also be arranged so that the students can get better language exposure. As the result, providing additional and professional training so as to have directly related beliefs and classroom practices.
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    Investigating Problems Related to Coopera Tive Learning in English Classes With Reference to Grade 10 Students of Fenote Birhan Secondary School
    (Addis Ababa University, 2011-06) Ghidey, Gebremedhin; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    The main purpose of this study was to investigate problems related to cooperative learning with reference to grade 10 students in Fenote Birhan secondary School in Adigrat town. Specifically, the study also dealt with identifying the roles that English teachers play to alleviate problems related to cooperative learning. To conduct the study, a descriptive survey method was employed. 118 students and 5 English teachers were subjects of the study. Student subjects were selected using random sampling technique. Three data gathering tools namely, questionnaire, interview, and observation were used to collect data for the study. Erggygn.q; andyerce~tage were used to analyze the close -ended data whereas qualitative data ana YSls . was used for open-ended questions, interview, and observation. The result of the study showed that there were several problems during cooperative learning in · English classes. In line with this, some students dominated cooperative learning. Majority of the students used their mother tongue instead of the target language. The time allotted for cooperative learning was very little. Students did not cooperate when they were grouped with those whom they were not familiar with. Students did not have good English ability to share ideas among themselves. Most students did not use their team praclice time effectively. Some students were misbehaving and malcing noise and disturbing others. The physical arrangement of classes was not suitable for cooperative learning as the chairs and deslcs were fixed. Similarly, the data revealed that English teachers disregarded some of their duties during different stages of cooperative learning. Based on the findings, it was concluded that dominating group by some students, students' low English ability, use of mother tongue, misbehavior, noise, insufficient time allotted by teachers, students' grouping unwillingness with others, in appropriate classroom arrangement, and students' inability to use the allotted time effectively were the problems encountered during cooperative learning in English classes. Hence, English teachers should consider thes~ problems and then should exert maximum efforts to promote students' cooperative learning.
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    Investigating the Role of Literary Texts in Developing Students’ Reading Comprehension with Specific Reference to Grade Nine Students of Bole Community Secondary School
    (Addis Ababa University, 2017-01) Belete, Yitagesu; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    The main objective of this study is to investigate the role of short stories for developing students’ reading comprehension. Hence, two groups of grade nine students learning at Bole Community secondary school were sampled for the purpose of this study. The students were then randomly divided into two groups– the control group and the experimental group. Both groups took identical Pre-Test which consisted of a selected reading passage from English for Ethiopia Grade Nine Text Book as well as a selected short story from the Brothers Grimm. Then, the control groups were taught by the researcher with the help of the text book and again the experiment group was taught by the researcher with the help of selected short stories from different books and internet materials. Then, the students were given similar post test to see if there is any difference after they have been taught with the help of the treatment. Moreover, at the end of the study the researcher distributed a questionnaire to the experimental group and asked the students to give their comment towards the short stories used with them to check their reflections towards the use of short stories. As the pre test descriptive and mean statistics and t-test output has indicated the experimental groups of students and the control groups of students have been at the same level. Since the p value of the result has indicated that there was no significant difference between the two groups of students it was observed that the two groups were at the same level at the beginning of the study. However, after applying the treatment of short stories, the experimental group of students performed better than the control group. The post test descriptive, mean statistics and t-test output indicates that there is significant difference between the two groups of the students. Since the p-value for the post test paired samples difference t -test significance (0.025) is lower than the standard significance level set at .05, it can be concluded that there is significant difference between the two groups of students. Therefore, since short stories can improve reading comprehension of students, it is recommended to apply them.
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    Is Contextual Vocabulary Teaching Being Effectively Employed in Grade Eleven
    (Addis Ababa University, 2001-06) Seid, Ewnetu; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    The object ive of thi s stud y is to in vest igate whether eYT is be in g effecti vely employed in Grade 11. So, to achieve this objective a case contro l cross-sect iona l inte rven ti on type of stud y was conducted on rand om ly sele cted sa mple size of 100 s tudents (50 as experim e nt al an d 50 as co nt ro l) and on ten 11th grade En g li sh teachers of th e fo ur gover~me nt sch oo ls - ETSSS (No. I ), YI2SS , l eSS and M II SS - in Addis Ababa to determine whether eVT is bein g effect ive ly employed in Grade II amon g the study p opulation as it is exp ec te d. To make the objective of th e study achievable, th en , a prestructured and pre-tes ted questionnaire was administered to know the attitud e, knowle dge and practice of both teach ers and stud en ts pertaining to eyT. Moreover, classro om obse rvations were conducted whil e the Engl ish te achers, teac he rs embraced in the study, were teaching vocabulary to counter- check wheth e r th e re sponses prov id ed to the question s on th e qu estionnaire correspond to w hat was being observed during th e te achin g-l earn in g process . Y H owever, prior to di stributing qu estionnaires and conducting c lass room observat ions, a pre-test was administered to both groups - experim e ntal and , control groups - to see wheth er a statistically significant difference wou ld be obse rved with regard to g rad e achievements of th e groups at the outse t. L ate r, after the two g roups were found out to be th e sam e in their abi lity, because t-observed w as less th an t-critical (i .e. to < te = 0.88 8 < 1. 645 at P < 0.05 ) whi ch by the same token means 'there is no s tati stica ll y s ign ifi ca nt difference', lesso n s with regard to eVT were tau g ht to stud ent s in th e experimenta l group 'fo r a period of one and a half months. After th e inte rv eotio n or teac hing, th en, a post-test was admini stered to both groups - experimental and control groups - to see whether a kind of progress would be observed as a res ult of the int erven t ion. Then, from th e resu lt s of the post-te st, it was found out that stu de nt s in th e experim ental group sco red very high grades in terms of average ( i. e. 64.9) whereas those in the control group obtained only 49.7%, thou gh th e two groups were th e sa me in the ir ability before the interve ntion. Of course, a very strong stati stica l difference was also observed betwe e n the two groups; t~ observed was g reater than t-critical (to < te = 55.7 > 1.64 at P <0.05) on th e exp erimenta l group s sid e w hereas it was vic e versa on the co ntr o l gro up's s id e (to < te = 2 .5 < 2 .575 at P < 0.005). In general, the two gro ups, though they w ere equ a l in their abil it y a s the res ults of th e pre-tes t witness ed, differed widely in th e ir resu lts of the po st te Moreover, the responses of the students, in the experimental group, to the questions on the questionnaire also indi cated that CYT is not being effectively employed. However, on the contrary teachers, in their responses to the questions on the questionnaire, revealed as CYT is being effectively empl oyed. This depicts that there is a big discrepancy between what the teachers believe and what is being exercised perta ining to CYT. This find ing, hence, warrants the pol icy makers or other authorities concerned to take appropriate measures to correct or solve the problem as regards CYT as much as possibl e.
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    Students’ and Teachers’ Use Of English as the Medium of Instruction in Nekemte Town Grade 9 History and Geography Classes: Oral Interaction in Focus Tamiru
    (Addis Ababa University, 2013-06) Olana, Tamiru; Beriso, Italo (PhD)
    The use of English as the medium of instruction in the Ethiopian secondary schools seems an ignored study area. The objective of this study was, thus, to explore the extent to which teachers and students use English in relation to Oromo and Amharic at grade nine. Accordingly, it investigates the amount of students’ and teachers’ use of the TL; explores the subjects’ reasons for code-switching; and examines teachers’ help of students to use the TL. For the investigation, a mixed-method research approach is used under the umbrella of pragmatic paradigm of research design. One hundred and twenty students and four Grade 9 History teachers and Geography teachers were purposively selected for the study from two secondary schools in Nekemte town. The data were collected through students’ questionnaire, teachers’ interview and classroom observations. The data from the questionnaire were analysed using simple statistics (percentage and frequency), and the data from the interview and the lesson transcripts were analysed by using content analysis of the transcripts. The results indicated that the students’ use of the TL is 3.6% of the class time while that of their teachers’ is 62.2% of it. The data also showed that students switched code 4.9% of the class time while their teachers did so 29.3% of it, which indicated that teachers played the dominant role in using both languages. The data also indicated that the students switch code because teachers did not encourage them to use the TL. It also revealed that students’ inefficiency and lack of confidence and lack of time enforced them to use the local languages. The data from the lesson transcripts also showed that teachers and students switch coded for different reasons. Lastly, it was discovered that History teachers and Geography teachers hardly showed efforts to promoting students’ use of the TL. From the findings, it could be concluded that teachers need to be aware of the additional responsibilities of promoting students’ language skills and thus work in collaboration with English teachers in this regard. Similarly, students should try to use the TL in oral interactions in order to improve their oral proficiency.