Recent researchers continuously stress on the importance of writing instruction in language learning. Therefore, there is an immense need to have an appropriate instrument to measure the writing instruction and the instrument has to be fully tested for validity. Therefore, we developed and validated an instrument using Rasch Measurement Model to assess two prominent approaches (product approach versus process approach) used in writing instruction contemporarily. We tested the instrument by computing its infit, outfit, item reliability, item separation, item difficulty and item discrimination. The results demonstrated that the instrument showed adequate estimates of reliability in assessing both the approaches used by teachers in ESL classrooms. The raw variance result showed that the accuracy of the items of product approach (85.7%) and process approach (63.7%) were excellent and good. The values of item reliability and item separation for product approach were 0.98 and 6.33, while process approach showed the item reliability and separation values of 0.65 and 1.37 respectively. The results showed that product approach is being dominantly practised that did not enhance students’ writing skills in the long run. To address this issue, we propose a new framework for writing instruction as a guide to ESL teachers.

This paper sheds some light on how the American Dream was galvanized with the discovery of America and how it was evolved into a glimmer of hope for social, sexual, racial, economic and religious equality, democracy, wealth and freedom, which sugars the pills of negative consequences of the American Dream. Considering that dream is something which has not been achieved yet, the American Dream is nothing less than a social criticism of society and a preview of their struggle for the rights that they deserved, and yet they did not have. Although the American Dream was launched innocently and optimistically for a better life, it fell short of expectations in the end. On the contrary, it turns to a nightmare haunting American people with the fear of intolerance of difference, violence, alienation, isolation, ostracism, scapegoating, discrimination, materialism and capitalism. In this paper, the low-down of the American Dream behind its dazzling display will be analysed through two plays: Arthur Miller’s The Crucible and Edward Albee’s The Zoo Story. Ultimately, it will be concluded that the American Dream is a bomb programmed to exterminate itself and only human virtues such as compassion, forgiveness, love, empathy and sacrifice can bring salvation to mankind in the grip of injustice, depression, emotional breakdown, moral decline, and social collapse.

Reading plays a significant role in language learning and information communication. This study investigated the influence of content schema on Chinese English learners’ reading comprehension. Participants were 20 freshmen with the same English proficiency. Schema theory was adopted as the theoretical foundation. The results showed that: (1) Content schemata enhanced L2 learners’ reading comprehension performance; (2) Content schemata had a positive impact on the comprehension of expository passages and little effect on that of narrative passages; (3) Proficiency level correlated positively with reading comprehension performance. But the insufficiency of language knowledge could be supplemented by relevant schemata. Based on the above, some suggestions are provided for the teaching and learning of English.

Each play is produced with the use of a different method, and one of the methods which has a significant influence on drama is constructed by Bertolt Brecht. According to him, the best way to show his reaction against the system and stimulate the audience to take action against such system is epic theatre. His aim is to create a conscious society. For this aim, he uses epic theatre to create a distance between the play and the audience so that the audience can gain a critical insight. The reason is that such distance makes the audience use their reasons not feelings, which creates the feeling of rebel against the system including politics, economy (Benjamin, 1969). This helps the audience question the system and give the strength to change it. In order to activate the audience, he uses certain techniques of alienation based on distance between the audience and the play in epic theatre (Akçesme, 2009). The Good Woman of Setzuan by Brecht is a significant play to analyse such techniques. With the techniques, he shows the injustice against the lower class and class distinction in the play. In other words, he leads the audience to question the capitalist society. Such techniques as giving a distant setting, the communication between the actor and the audience and the use of songs and verses can be observed throughout the play in order to break the illusion. Thus, this paper intends to analyse the techniques of epic theatre in the play The Good Woman of Setzuan to understand how Brecht break the automatized perceptions of the audience and show them a different world with the aim of rebel against the capitalist system.

The combination of translation theory and aesthetics has a unique position in the translation theories with Chinese characteristics. It is better to learn poetry or to translate poetry from the perspective of beauty. Dr. Wang Feng’s “Harmony-Guided Three-Level Poetry Translation Criteria” is one of the latest poetry translation theories in China, which provides a more comprehensive and effective perspective for poetry translation. This paper, taking several English versions of Li Bai’s “Hard Is the Journey (?)” as the object, explores how the "Eight Beauties Criteria" in Dr. Wang Feng’s “Harmony-Guided Three-Level Poetry Translation Criteria” can be applied in translation practice. It proves the practical value of "Eight Beauties Criteria" in the translation practice of classical Chinese poetry in better carrying forward its aesthetic thoughts and aesthetic charm, and better helping Chinese culture to go out.

With the development of Chengdu Economic Zone, practical business English talents are badly needed. Thus, the training objective for business English majors in Leshan Normal University should be Chengdu Economic Zone oriented to cultivate professionals with both business skills and English competence who can fluently use English to cope with business affairs. However, through the surveys of companies and enterprises in the Zone as well as the graduates in the university, it is found that the business English professional graduates still fail to fully meet the demand of the companies. There are still some problems in the practical training system in the university, such as sufficient practical training bases, lack of teaching staff with bi-expertise, and imperfect management and evaluation system for the practical teaching. The paper aims to study the construction of practical teaching system in business English major which can not only ensure the cultivation of satisfactory practical business English talents but also improve the graduates’ competitiveness.

Tang poetry has great poetic and aesthetic value. Based on the theories of cultural self-confidence and selective adaptation, the necessity and rationality of the English translation of Tang poetry will be discussed under the guidance of "Harmony-guided Three-level Criteria of Poetry Translation", and comparative analyses of five English versions of Li Bai’s “Changgan Xing” will be made. The study holds that "Harmony-guided Three-level Criteria of Poetry Translation" not only embodies cultural self-confidence, but also conforms to the spiritual essence of the theory of selective adaptation. It can effectively disseminate Chinese poetry and improve the soft power of Chinese culture.

The task-based Language teaching is the teaching theory put forward by foreign language teaching method researchers on the basis of the large quantity of studies and practice in the 1980s. It advocates learning from “doing-it” and the interactive learning styles: learning from experiencing, practicing, participating, communicating and cooperating. The national New Standard for English Curriculum advocates the implementing of TBLT in Junior High School in China. At present, many scholars have investigated the application in terms of teaching of reading, writing and so on, but only a few have involved the study about the application of TBLT in oral English teaching. Through the analysis of the present situation of oral English teaching in Junior High School in China, this thesis aims to solve the teaching problems by applying TBLT to oral English teaching on the basis of the previous study.

Museums play an important role in China’s communication with the world and demonstrate to some extent China’s soft power. As China further strengthens its international exchanges, more and more people hope to know China through its history and culture. However, due to the lingual and cultural distinctions, there are many unavoidable problems in translating Chinese relic texts (Source Text or ST) into English texts (Target Text or TT). As Eugene Nida said in his functional equivalence theory, the Target Reader’s (TR) comprehension and appreciation of the translation is significant. Therefore, in translating relic texts, attention should be paid to how the TR can understand and accept the content. This thesis aims at finding proper translation principles and methods by analyzing the translations of the relic texts in Hubei Provincial Museum from the perspective of the core concepts of functional equivalence theory. Through a study on the functional equivalence theory, the thesis finds three principles of translating relic texts: accuracy, readability and acceptability. An analysis of the relic texts of Hubei Provincial Museum has led to several translation methods including addition, omission, paraphrasing and rewriting, which help to achieve the functional equivalence of relic texts translation.

Li Qingzhao (1084-ca. 1155?) is widely lauded as the most celebrated and talented woman poet in the history of classical Chinese literature. This study, with the theoretical guidance of Dr. Wang Feng’s “Harmony-Guided Three-Level Poetry Translation Criteria”, focuses on a comparative analysis of the collected renditions of the ci-poem “to the tune of Tipsy in Flower Shade” at the macro, middle and micro levels, to further promote the translation and communication of classical Chinese literature. This study aims to exert far-reaching influences on the process of Chinese literature going global, which has unprecedented contemporary significance.

Tagore is a distinguished Indian writer and poet, and his works have never lost popularity around the world. Published in 1916, Stray Birds is one of the earliest translated poetry collections in China, of which the version translated by Zheng Zhenduo is highly regarded. However, Chinese poet Feng Tang translated Stray Birds in 2015 and his version soon became the subject of heated discussions among translation field and academic world due to his unique style and bold diction. Based on Lefevere’s manipulation theory, this essay offers an analysis of Feng Tang’s translation of Stray Birds, analyzing the influence of the manipulative factors, namely ideology, poetics and patronage on Feng’s translation methods and strategies. At present, most criticisms of Feng Tang’s translation focus mainly on translation theories and linguistic factors. From the perspective of manipulation theory, the study on Feng’s translation will not only provide new methods and ideas for the appreciation and translation of poetry, but also add more radiance on Stray Birds.

The Joy Luck Club written by Amy Tan depicts the lifestyle of foreign citizens of Chinese origin. It consists of many stories in which children born in the United States but educated in a Chinese way are destined to have some conflicts with their Chinese born parents due to different environments they were born in. This thesis, based on functional grammar put forward by Halliday, endeavors to focus on the analysis of the mother-daughter interaction in one of the four families—Jing-mei Woo’s family from the perspective of transitivity system so as to shed light on the personalities of these characters. After carrying out the corresponding analysis, a conclusion can be made that the daughter is a person with her own mind and she pursues freedom and independence all her life, while her mother is a person attaching great importance to the obedience from her daughter.

This paper spotlights one of the most influential Chinese American novels, ‘The Joy Luck Club’. Broadly adhering to the principles and orientations of Eco-discourse analysis and using Halliday’s systemic-functional grammar as a framework of analysis, this study uncovers ideologies pointing to an asymmetrical power structure between the mother and the daughter and discusses the underlying Chinese philosophy of mother, which helps daughter find her genuine identity. This paper concludes with revealing the true contradiction behind the conflict of mother-daughter, i.e., the two distinct value systems, and expect people to think and act ecologically, promoting the development of eastern eco-ideology.

Narrative strategies and discourse features correlate strongly with the characterization, thematic significance as well as rhetorical effect in narrative fictions. This paper will conduct a comparative study of Fu Weici’s and Li Jihong’s Chinese version of The Moon and Sixpence with particular reference to five examples from two narratological aspects, namely unreliable narration and narrative tense. Attention will be focused on to what extent and how relevant stylistic markers of these narrative features have been recreated in the target text. It is suggested that translators should always be sensitive enough to detect any stylistic markers of unique narrative features, identify their association with characterization, thematic and artistic value and reproduce them in the target text so as to ensure an optimal transference of their embedded rhetorical effect.

Many students find it hard to acquire and convey messages due to the lack of mastery in vocabulary. Since vocabulary plays a major role as the basic requirement to learning a language, its mastery became vital in learning English. On the other hand, lack of vocabulary impedes students’ understanding in reading comprehension texts especially in second language classrooms. Therefore, this study was conducted in order to obtain information regarding the effectiveness of using flip book in increasing Year 3 pupils’ mastery of vocabulary in English. This study investigated the use of flip book approach in helping the students to improve vocabulary through fun and meaningful learning. 15 participants were involved in the action research who were selected from a suburban school in Malaysia. Survey, written documents and field notes were used as the medium of data collection. The results showed significant positive changes in the performance of the students from time to time. Flip book approach was found to help the weak students who faced problems in understanding the meaning of the vocabulary taught in the classrooms. This study suggests that students need to enhance the mastery of the vocabulary in order to have a good grasp of the language including the four skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Reflective teaching is a relatively important issue in the field of teachers’ continue professional development. In this study, the author reviewed previous studies that investigated reflective teaching had positive influence for teachers’ progress in the long run. There were 13 different experiments analyzed in this article. Through a series analysis, five positive impact factors of reflective teaching were extracted: (a) Reflective teaching is correlated with the coefficient of the teacher’s CPD, (b) Teachers using reflective teaching will enhance teaching energy and confidence, (c) Teaching journal writing causes positive effects on the promotion of teaching quality, responsibility and consciousness, (d) Positive reflection attitude, academic qualifications and the overseas study experience promote the efficiency of teacher’s CPD, and (e) Based on group reflective discussions, teachers have more enthusiasm to share their thinking and get some new and creative teaching methods. Whereas, this study also showed that lack of theoretical knowledge restricts the teacher’s autonomous reflection ability. In addition, the researcher pointed three implications are used for teaching in class. Firstly, the reflective consciousness should be cultivated. Secondly, teachers need to focus on the combination of reflection theory and teaching practice. Thirdly, school and society should supply training activities and relax the environment for English teachers to enhance the quality of their reflection.

This study attempted to examine the effects of flipped classroom instruction on Iranian EFL learners writing skill. To fulfill the objective of the study, 48 Iranian upper-intermediate participants were selected through administrating the Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT). Then, they were divided into two groups; one experimental group and one control group. Then, both groups were pretested by a writing test. After that, the researcher put the participants of the experimental group in a flipped classroom. The flipped classroom was equipped with Internet, computer and projector and participants in this classroom were allowed to bring their Smartphones to the classroom and use them during learning. The control group was exposed to traditional instruction in the class. This procedure continued till the last session. The results of independent samples t-test and one-way ANCOCA revealed that the experimental group outperformed the control group on the post-test. In addition, the results showed that there was a significant difference between the performances of the experimental group and the control group on the post-test.

Production-oriented approach (POA) is a kind of teaching theory aiming at overcoming the disadvantages of "separation of learning and application" in foreign language teaching in China. With Chinese characteristics, it is suitable for middle and senior foreign language learners. In order to improve the teaching effect of current College English Comprehensive English, this paper will proceed from the current situation of College English teaching, based on the teaching concept of POA, explore the applicability of POA in College English comprehensive classroom, and carry out the teaching design from the three stages of pre-class, while class and after class. In addition, this paper puts forward targeted teaching suggestions for the teaching of College Comprehensive English course, in order to take the classroom as a practical process of cultural and language socialization, truly implement the concept of humanistic quality education, and cultivate a number of foreign language talents needed by the society.

With the booming development of tourism, tour-guide English has gradually been favored by many people. Some studies about tour-guide English are increasing. The essay is based on the guide words about Xiamen in the aspect of SFG, especially the five processes of ideational metafunction. The guide words about Xiamen simply introduce some scenic spots including Gulangyu Islet, the Sunlight Temple, memory hall of Zheng Chenggong and so on. The guide words is analyzed through the material process, mental process, relational process, verbal process and existential process so that convey new information to readers and preferably understand English text about guide words.

The present study was an attempt to see if there is a relationship between the Emotional Intelligence of the teachers and their attitudes toward Code Switching in Iranian EFL classes. Why some teachers use code switching in an EFL class and some others ignore it, is so challenging at the face of any foreign language class. The population in this study comprised of 140 individuals. To determine the sample size of EFL teachers, total numbering and simple random sampling method were used respectively resulting in the selection of 80 English teachers including 40 female and 40 male teachers. The mother tongue of the participants was Turkish/Persian ranging between the ages of 20 and 30.To collect the required data, first, two types of standard questionnaires were given to the participants; one of the questionnaires encompassing questions about code switching and the other one about the emotional intelligence. The reliability of both questionnaires was already established. According to the obtained results by means of SPSS software, it was shown that there was not any correlation between teachers’ emotional intelligence and code-switching and the educational outcome of EFL students in Iranian context. The results of the present study will pave the way for more accurate EFL classroom conduct and also other factors of the related issues in question could be considered by some other researchers.

Using Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory of human development as the framework, this study explores how the ecological context of student teachers affect their belief development during the teaching practicum. Findings reveal that during the teaching practicum, student teachers interacted directly or indirectly with their ecological environments, including students, parents, mentors, supervisors, school policies, culture and social trends, which led them to develop, confirm, integrate, discard, or modify their beliefs. Findings also reveal that ecological environments may not only encourage but also impede student teachers’ belief development depending on what kind of influences they exert on them. Lastly, findings suggest that although macrosystem locates the most distant in student teachers’ ecological environments, factors within it may exert a huge influence on other environments and thus have a huge impact on student teachers. Based on the above findings, this study calls upon more opportunities for student teachers to participate in real-world professional practice so that they can put their beliefs to test. More training is also needed for mentors and supervisors to support student teachers’ belief development.

In formal TESL courses, Phonetics, Linguistics, Grammar as well as Psychology are taught. However, Neuroscience, the study of the brain, is necessary for ESL teachers for future professional development to meet the rapidly changing needs of the students at all levels in the digital era. Designing educational practices without knowledge of the brain is like “an automobile designer without a full understanding of engines” (Hart, 1999). Based on the neurological evidence of processing of English and Chinese words in the bilinguals’ brain, Sham (2002) found a new Dual Coding (Paivio, 1986) model for designing CSL teaching materials that best fits young learners’ limited capacity of the brain by reducing their cognitive load (Sweller et al., 1998). Although little research linking neuroscience and learning, Guy and Byrn (2013) emphasis on the understanding of neuroscience of working memory has positive effects on motivating students learning. Direct implication of neuroscience by language teachers has been found difficult, but interdisciplinary study of neuroscience, psychology and education is fruitful (Coch et al., 2007) and there has a great impact of neuroscience on teaching and learning including its implication for ESL college classroom (Sousa, 2010). This paper reviews current research of neuroscience, psychology integrating with ESL teaching and learning, and provides the adult students’ feedback of learning IELTS through the design related to neuropsychological findings in order to demonstrate how significant neuroscience is on TESL. In other words, understanding of neuroscience facilitates ESL teaching and benefits ESL teachers’ professional development in future (247 words).

The present research study attempted to provide an interpretation of George Orwell’s Animal Farm as an outcry against false revolutionary leaders who go back on their promises and turn into dehumanized dictators even worse than the dictators against whom they and their fellow revolutionaries rebelled. To achieve that objective, the researcher read the novella critically within its socio-political context and traced the transformation of the leading character, Napoleon, who stands for such revolutionary leaders. The data of the current research were all extracted from Orwell’s Animal Farm. The researcher used content analysis to analyze the selected data and developed an analytical comparison through which he closely examined Napoleon’s character before and after the revolution. The findings of the study revealed that Napoleon was an opportunistic revolutionary who used the revolution to an evil end. Napoleon’s dramatic transformation from a noble revolutionary into a ruthless, corrupt ruler proved that Orwell’s novella can be read as an attack on false revolutionary leaders who become dehumanized despots, far worse than the dictators whom they aspired to replace with democratic leaders.

Katherine Anne Porter was awarded Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and National Book Award for her most important works The Collection of Short Stories which include 27 short stories, nine of which are Miranda stories consisting of Old Mortality, The Old Order and Pale Horse,Pale Rider. Miranda stories give an account of the life experience of three generations of females in Miranda family, including Miranda’s grandma, aunt Amy and Eva and Miranda herself. Combined with the background of Potter’s life and feminist movement in the United States, this paper analyzed the existence status and the images of female characters in Miranda family, and explored the process of female consciousness, which will help comprehensively understand Potter’s works and her female’s awakening.