Linguistic dimensions of l2 accentedness and comprehensibility vary across speaking tasks

This study critically examined the previously reported partial independence between second language (L2) accentedness (degree to which L2 speech differs from the target variety) and comprehensibility (ease of understanding). In prior work, comprehensibility was linked to multiple linguistic dimensions of L2 speech (phonology, fluency, lexis, grammar) whereas accentedness was narrowly associated with L2 phonology. However, these findings stemmed from a single task (picture narrative), suggesting that task type could affect the particular linguistic measures distinguishing comprehensibility from accentedness. To address this limitation, speech ratings of 10 native listeners assessing 60 speakers of L2 English in three tasks (picture narrative, IELTS, TOEFL) were analyzed, targeting two global ratings (accentedness, comprehensibility) and 10 linguistic measures (segmental and word stress accuracy, intonation, rhythm, speech rate, grammatical accuracy and complexity, lexical richness and complexity, discourse richness). Linguistic distinctions between accentedness and comprehensibility were less pronounced in the cognitively complex task (TOEFL), with overlapping sets of phonology, lexis, and grammar variables contributing to listener ratings of accentedness and comprehensibility. This finding points to multifaceted, task-specific relationships between these two constructs

Teachers as leaders in a knowledge society: encouraging signs of a new professionalism

[Abstract]: Challenges confronting schools worldwide are greater than ever,and, likewise, many teachers possess capabilities, talents, and formal credentials more sophisticated than ever. However, the responsibility and authority accorded to teachers have not grown significantly, nor has the image of teaching as a profession advanced significantly. The question becomes, what are the implications for the image and status of the teaching profession as the concept of knowledge society takes a firm hold in the industrialized world? This article addresses the philosophical underpinnings of teacher leadership manifested in case studies where schools sought to achieve the generation of new knowledge as part of a process of whole-school revitalization. Specifically, this article reports on Australian research that has illuminated the work of teacher leaders engaged in the IDEAS project, a joint school revitalization initiative of the University of Southern Queensland and the Queensland Department of Education and the Arts

What you think – What you do – What you get?: Exploring the link between Epistemology and PJDM in Cricket coaches

Decision making in elite sport has long been of interest, however only recently has the decision making process of coaches gained an increase in attention. Whilst a number of decision making models have been proposed, it still remains unclear as to how a number of these models may actually interact with one another as opposed to them being individual, discrete and isolated elements. This review is rooted within Cricket, given the idiosyncratic nature of the sport and the unique challenges faced by coaches within it. As a result, the review examines the existing literature around professional judgement and decision making (PJDM) and how this may be applied specifically to coaching in cricket. Secondly, we consider the integration of PJDM principles with coaches’ epistemology and the epistemological chain. Finally, against this theoretical backdrop, we offer some implications for current practice and future research in this demonstrably important and complex area

Accretion onto the Companion of Eta Carinae During the Spectroscopic Event: III. the He II 4686 Line

We continue to explore the accretion model of the massive binary system eta Carinae by studying the anomalously high He II 4686 line. The line appears just before periastron and disappears immediately thereafter. Based on the He II 4686 line emission from O-stars and their modeling in the literature, we postulate that the He II 4686 line comes from the acceleration zone of the secondary stellar wind. We attribute the large increase in the line intensity to a slight increase in the density of the secondary stellar wind in its acceleration zone. The increase in density could be due to the ionization and subsequent deceleration of the wind by the enhanced X-ray emission arising from the shocked secondary wind further downstream or to accretion of the primary stellar wind. Accretion around the secondary equatorial plane gives rise to collimation of the secondary wind, which increases its density, hence enhancing the He II 4686 emission line. In contrast with previous explanations, the presently proposed model does not require a prohibitively high X-ray flux to directly photoionize the He.Comment: ApJ, in pres