Joan Cutting

Rote Learning in Chinese Culture: Reflecting Active Confucian-Based Memory Strategies

In studies of the language-learning strategies used by Chinese learners, rote learning (RL) is often the main subject, linked to the legacy of Confucianism, which has been influential for 2500 years. In both Western and Eastern cultures RL is seen as mechanical repetition (Biggs, 1997; Parry & Su, 1998): (usually disapproving) memory or habit, rather than understanding. To learn something by rote, or rote learning, means learning something in order to be able to repeat it from memory rather than learning it in order to understand it. (Cambridge International Dictionary of English, 1995: 1235)

Introduction to Vague Language Explored

The danger of being known as someone who is fascinated by vague language is that you run the risk of friends and colleagues using it just to humour you. Thus a University of Edinburgh colleague once ended an email to me, ‘See you whenever it is, if not before,’ and another, also from the university, engaged me in this email exchange: Colleague: So do you know about the charity ceilidh at St Brides Centre Saturday week then? Me: On 4th yeah — are you going? Colleague: I’m certainly thinking about it. I’m inclined to. How’s that for being wishy-washy?

Spoken Grammar: vague language and EAP

Studies of spoken English have traditionally focused on language with explicit meaning, and the reports dealt cursorily and unsystematically with implicit or vague language with highly context-dependent meaning. The result is grammar reference books and English as a Foreign Language text-books with little emphasis on this aspect of informal spoken language. Yet, in daily communication, a great deal of what is intended to be communicated is implicit and can be taken for granted. Crystal and Davy (1975: 111–12) acknowledged that ‘lack of precision is one of the most important features of the vocabulary of informal conversation’ and ‘the use of lexical vagueness is undoubtedly a main sign of social and personal relaxation … the “choice” of the vague lexical item is conducive to maintaining the informal atmosphere of the situation’. This chapter argues that implicitness is an essential feature of spoken grammar, lexis and discourse structure, that it demands a systematic study of its inter-related parts, and that it should be a central part of the model taught to students of English as a Foreign Language, so that they can be helped to communicate on all levels with their interlocutors.

‘Doing More Stuff — Where’s It Going?’: Exploring Vague Language Further

In this chapter, I describe my model of VL and focus on the social dimensions, discussing my studies on the influence of the function, depth of relationship and gender. Next, I point to several areas that still require investigation, my aim being to inspire others to research, and I also summarize suggestions made by contributors in this volume. The chapter then explores, in depth, applications of findings about VL. I outline ideas that abound in the literature, add my own ideas vis-a-vis TEFL, and again I summarize suggestions made by contributors to the volume.

BAAL/CUP Seminars 2009.

The Moray House School of Education, The University of Edinburgh, UK; 7–8 May 2009 The seminar, organised by Joan Cutting and Brona Murphy, aimed • to bring together researchers involved in both emergent and established academic corpora (written and spoken) as well as linguists, lecturers and teachers researching in education, be it language teaching, language-teacher training or continuing professional development in language awareness, all of whom may be new to corpora and its applications; • to explore the possibilities of working together with researchers in speech recognition and synthesis, and other specialists in technological innovation; • to provide an opportunity to disseminate the latest developments in academic language corpora. The seminar strengthened links between institutions and created networks for researchers to explore ways that corpora can help to study general classroom practice and be used as part of language classroom teaching. It attracted 30 participants from universities in the Czech Republic, the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Japan, Switzerland and the UK; there were two plenary papers and 14 individual papers.