TASK #1: READ THE PLAGIARISM WARNING. FAILURE TO USE QUOTATION MARKS OR GIVE CREDIT TO SOURCES WILL RESULT IN AN 'F' IN THE COURSE AND A REPORT TO STUDENT JUDICIAL AFFAIRS.

For this project, you will do a research paper or a hands-on analysis paper on a topic relevant to SLA theory, methods, or instruction.

Schedule

Before the end of Week 2 (9/30/11): Come to an office hour or make an appointment with me to discuss possible projects.
During Week 6 (10/24-28): Visit me in office hour (or make an appointment) to talk over your project and how you are doing so far. This visit is compulsory; failure to visit will result in a loss of 5 points from the paper grade.
Last class meeting (11/30 or 12/1): Paper due. No late papers will be accepted except in case of a documented emergency (e.g., illness or accident). Computer/printer problems do not count as emergencies.

Topic ideas

These are suggestions. If you have your own idea, or come up with an idea similar to one of these, talk it over with me.

• Error Analysis I: Find an English learner (adult) who is willing to work with you. This person must not be advanced in their knowledge of English; choose someone at intermediate or beginner level. First, research differences between English and the speaker's native language, and formulate predictions about errors you would expect to find based on these differences. Then, record the speaker and search for the predicted errors. I have detailed instructions for this project that I can give you.
• Error analysis II: Do the same, but instead of recording a speaker, ask a Cal Poly ESL composition instructor for copies of student compositions from a particular language background.
• Research the relative success of Prop. 227 in raising English proficiency and test scores in English Learners in public schools. You will find people arguing both sides of the issue; evaluate their arguments and see if you can come to a conclusion on whether or not Prop. 227 was a good idea.
• Research similarities and differences between first- and second-language acquisition.
• Research the current views on the usefulness of explicit grammar teaching in foreign language instruction.
• Research current knowledge on the competence of fluently bi-/multilingual people, for instance with regard to whether competence in each language is stored in separate areas of the brain.
• If you are hoping to teach English in a particular country, research the specific country. Research schools where you might potentially work; examine particular job offers for conditions and benefits; research living circumstances and cost of living; research necessary governmental requirements, such as visas, work permits, etc. In other words, do all the research you would need to do in order to decide whether teaching in this country is viable for you. The Internet is a wonderful resource for this kind of research nowadays.
• If you have already taken ENGL 497 and 498, interview 5-6 Cal Poly students who are enrolled in a foreign language class, either beginning or intermediate level. Choose students who have different teachers (and maybe are studying different languages). We can work together on a list of interview questions. Then, compare their reported experiences with the recommended teaching strategies of the communicative approach to language teaching. Is the style of instruction they are experiencing in accord with, for example, strategies to lower the affective filter? With recommended cognitive strategies for language learning? With other specific recommendations for techniques or methods?
• Study motivation in SLA, then formulate an anonymous questionnaire to administer to students in several foreign-language classes at Cal Poly. Ask them to report their grades in the language classes they have taken, and determine whether there is a correlation between level and type of motivation and grades they earn. I can help with questions for the questionnaire. You will need to ask permission of an instructor to distribute the questionnaires in a class.
• If you have access to a child that is being raised bilingually, study the home situation: interview the parents on their motivations for and techniques of inculcating the two languages; if possible, record the child on video in settings in which each language is used; then discuss that home situation and the child's language behavior in terms of research on raising children to be bilingual. If you do this project, you must keep your family's identity anonymous.
• YOUR IDEA HERE! Come discuss with me.

> FORMATTING INSTRUCTIONS     IF YOU DO NOT FOLLOW THE FORMATTING INSTRUCTIONS, YOU WILL DEFINITELY LOSE POINTS!  If there is something about formatting that you don't know how do, ask a friend, consult your word processors' HELP function, or ask me. I'm a Mac user, but I'll do my best to help PC users.

PRINT THIS OUT AND USE IT AS A CHECKLIST:

• _____  No cover page or report cover. IDENTIFY the publisher, GRADE LEVEL, and title of the materials AT THE CENTER TOP OF THE FIRST PAGE. This can be your paper title. Your name, major, our course number, and the date you hand the paper in should be in the upper left-hand corner of page 1. It's OK to number page 1.
• _____ Black ink.
• _____  Length: 10-12 pages, excluding photocopies.
• Format: The paper must be
  • _____  typed
  • _____  double-spaced (not 1.5; check your line spacing)
  • _____  you MUST number typed pages, and not by hand (photocopies may be left numberless)
  • _____ The only font I will accept is a 12-pt. Times font: Times, Times Roman or Times New Roman. If your paper is in a different font, I will hand it back to you to change the font and you will lose points.
  • _____ 1" or 1.25" margins all around.
  • If you do not know how to change these settings in your word processor, FIND OUT. Your paper will lose points if you do not conform to these requirements. Word processing programs such as Microsoft Word come with a Help  manual that gives decent instructions for most basic operations, such as setting margins, finding and replacing text, breaking to a  new page, etc. Take advantage of these.
• _____  Sections: Divide your paper into sections according to each part I-V above; do not make it one continuous essay. Put your subtitles in boldface; set them at the left margin (not centered). Skip ONE line (hit Return twice, then type) above and below the heading.
• _____  Do not skip a line between paragraphs within a section; indent paragraphs. Word processing programs allow you to set an indent for a single paragraph. It will continue to use that indent unless you format a paragraph in a different way (for instance, centering a long quotation). If you want to return to your normal indent, you have to once again format the next paragraph you start.
• _____ Watch out for very long paragraphs. A single paragraph should not take up half or more of a page. Break to a new paragraph and indent the new paragraph.
  
• _____  Avoid starting a new section at the very bottom of the page; if you have room only for a subtitle, break to a new page. Use the "Insert Page Break" command. Use your print preview feature (under "File" or "Print") to check pagination before you print out your final draft. In a word processor, a "manual page break" is one that you command the program to put in, instead of letting it decide where to break to a new page. Your print feature should also have a "preview" option that you can use to see exactly what the printed document will look like.
• _____  If you give examples of words in your discussion, italicize them, for example: "This activity directs students to build a word web of words that relate to the sea, such as fish, wave, current, ocean, seaweed, voyage, etc."
  

> PROOFREADING AND EDITING At whatever level you eventually teach or write in your career, you will be expected to conform to the current standards for formal grammar, spelling, punctuation, paragraph formatting, etc. Expectations are particularly high for language arts and English teachers. College professors vary a great deal in their expectations in this regard, but the state standards for both teachers and schoolchildren expect full compliance. I also expect full compliance.

• Use the spell-check function of your word processor. However, do not follow its instructions regarding hyphens ( - ). If you are unsure of a hyphen, check a dictionary. Do not use the grammar checker; 50% of its recommendations are likely to be wrong.
  
• Consult my  Editing Tips page for help with typical grammar, word choice, and punctuation problems. If I find the problems described on the Editing Tips page in your papers, you will definitely lose points.  Concentrate on the following:
  • Hyphen vs. dash
  • Punctuation around citations of works you are referring to.
  • Punctuation around however.
  • Use of colon (:), not semicolon (;) before a list.
  • Overuse of the words within and prevalent. In 9 out of 10 cases, in serves the purpose; synonyms for prevalent include common, frequent, (is/are) found throughout ... , widespread, etc.
  • APOSTROPHES. Use them correctly.
  • The by problem: see the first item under "Grammar Snafus."
  • (Not on Editing Tips page yet) Commas and quotation marks. You DO NOT NEED a comma every time you use quotation marks. Commas are needed ONLY when the quotation follows a quoting verb, such as say, write. Even in the case of these verbs, if they are followed by that, no comma is needed after that. For example: On p. 62, Rubba writes that "correcting young children's language is, nine times out of ten, a waste of time."
  • GET STARTED LOOKING AT THESE AND PRACTICING THEM NOW. Your Reading Question responses are a great practice opportunity; you will notice that I make corrections on them (these don't count against your grade for the assignment, however).
• More guidance is available in usage guides such as the MLA style manual and numerous college writing manuals, and the Purdue sites listed above. You can also come to me or send a short e-mail if you have a question.
• Take advantage of our WRITING LAB, Bldg. 10 room 130, 756-6032. Tutors are there to help you remedy problems (NOT edit or proofread your paper). If you want their help, make an appointment, and go there with a draft with enough time to make revisions they recommend. The Writing Lab is there to help you and you will be welcome there! Their web address is http://www.calpoly.edu/~wrtskils/writlab/. Tutors from the Writing Lab are now holding hours in the Library, room 202B, Monday - Thursday - 6 p.m. - 9 p.m. Your Reading Question responses give you a great opportunity to look over a short text with a tutor.

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