Correlations between Syntactical Knowledge and Writing Performance among Japanese English Learners

For Japanese learners of English, it is appropriate to spend time and energy establishing the foundation of English linguistic structure when considering that the linguistic distance between English and Japanese is the farthest apart. In this respect, it is relevant that grammar instruction remains centralized in Japan’s classroom settings, even amidst increasingly prevalent tendencies toward communicative learning through presentations and discussions. In fact, students generally spend a lot of time listening to grammatical explanations or solving grammatical questions. Meanwhile, it is a matter of question whether their metalinguistic knowledge is efficiently transferred into English production. Focusing on English’s syntactical features, which are distinctly different from those of Japanese, this study examined the correlations between metalinguistic knowledge (measured using three types of syntactic question types) and writing performance (evaluated using three aspects: accuracy, sentence variation, and clarity of expression). The results showed low-to-medium correlations among these factors. This indicated the need to strengthen a link between metalinguistic knowledge and writing skills. It is hoped that English education in Japan will undergo renovation to build a bridge between students’ school-level metalinguistic knowledge, and the practical English they will use in future professions

Syntactic Competence and Writing Performance : From Longitudinal Perspective

論文Article

Developing Writing Skills : Insights from Content- and Grammar-Based Assessment and Feedback

The ability to communicate one’s ideas and opinions clearly is of vital importance in today’s age of unpredictability and complexity. From a perspective of English writing pedagogy, university students need to be equipped with writing skills that represent their thought and ideas with clarity. However, it is doubtful whether English writing instruction in Japan, which has conventionally focused on grammatical assessment and feedback, has adequately helped students improve their writing skills to reflect their thoughts clearly. Therefore, this study attempts to examine the impact of assessment and feedback on students’ writing performance by dividing 69 students into two groups. Group A students were provided with grammatical and content assessment and feedback for their essays, while Group B students were given only content assessment and feedback. The results showed that both groups performed almost equally in grammatical assessment while Group B fared better in content assessment. This could be an indication that Group A students disturbed their attention between grammar and content, resulting in low assessment in content. Meanwhile, Group B students were successful in terms of content assessment while maintaining a certain level of grammatical accuracy. This outcome indicates the need for reconsidering assessment and feedback strategies to help students develop better writing skills for self-representation instead of continuing to emphasize traditional grammar-focused assessment and feedback

How Local Accuracy Influences Global Accuracy in the Context of Argumentative Writings Produced by Japanese University Students

In Japan, the focus of English education in both junior high and high schools has generally been grammar instruction. It seems meaningful, given the significant linguistic distance between English and Japanese. However, it is also important to make sure that grammatical knowledge is transferred into practical English production effectively. Nonetheless, there have been few experimental studies on the relationship between grammatical knowledge and production. This indicates that it is highly relevant to examine how grammatical knowledge affects English production at universities in Japan. This study used a quantitative analysis, structural equation modeling (SEM), to investigate the extent of influence of local accuracy (grammatical accuracy in a sentence) on global accuracy (comprehensibility of a sentence and of an essay as a whole). Items for analysis included 155 argumentative essays written on one of two recent social topics. Japanese English professionals evaluated the essays for local accuracy while native English teachers evaluated them for global accuracy. The result indicated a low relationship between local accuracy and global accuracy. Consequently, this study classified the essays into two groups; one with low accuracy and high global accuracy, and the other with high local accuracy and low global accuracy. The causes for the phenomenon were then explored, and practical strategies for the future were discussed including those on evaluation criteria and feedback

High-Speed Message Routing Mechanisms for Massively Parallel Computers

現在超並列処理システム(MPP)は、伝統的なベクトルプロセッサやSIMDマシンの 牙城であった多くの分野に進出している。これらのシステムは、入手が容易な高性能 CPUの急激な進歩をうまく利用し、これらを数百～数千個接続して均質なマルチプ ロセッサのシステムとして構成したものである。しかし、これらのシステムの性能は、 現実の問題を解くときは必ずしも良くなく、常に公称の最高性能にははるかに及ばな いのが現状である。これらのシステムではプロセッサ間の通信はすべて相互結合網に よって行われるので、実現可能な最高性能を決める決定的な要素は相互結合網と、そ れに使われる通信機構である。 本論文ではMPPの相互結合網に使われる、効率的な通信機構を実現する2つの方法 を提案する。第1は「特急ルータ」の提案であり、これを相互結合網に用いた場合の 適合性を検註する。特急ルータは多重の単方向レジスタ挿入パスを利用して、時間 空間混合分割型ネットワークを実現するためのものである。異なる基数や次元数につ いて、特急ルータのスイッチ回路とバッファ回路の性能を予測するための正確なモデ ルを開発した。この結果、特急ルータは効率的な通信を行うためのすべての条件を満 足していることが確かめられた。さらに重要な点は、特急ルータはネットワークに故 障のある場合や、通信が錯綜する場合にも、低遅延時間、高スループットを損なわな い経路制御が行えることである。シミュレーションによって評価した特急ルータのの 性能は、これまでに発表された固定経路選択方式のルータより優れており、また他の 適応経路制御方式のルータに比べても、同程度あるいはそれを越えていることが確か められた。 第2は経路長制限方式のマルチキャスト通信の提案である。マルチキャスト通信は 多くの並列処理問題において速度向上に寄与する通信方式である。そこでワームホー ル通信方式において問題となるマルチキャスト通信におけるデッドロックの問題につ いて研究した。そしてこの問題を解決する方法として経路長制限方式のマルチキャス ト通信を提案し、この方式による通信性能をシミュレーションによって評価し、ユニ キャスト方式やマルチパス方式によるマルチキャスト通信の性能と比較した。その結 果、提案する経路長制限方式のマルチキャスト通信は、パリヤ同期のためのクラスタ へのマルチキャスト通信や、最近傍ノードへのマルチキャストや全ノードへの放送の 場合に、特に優れた解決法となることを明らかにした

How Local Accuracy Influences Global Accuracy in the Context of Argumentative Writings Produced by Japanese University Students

論文ARTICLEIn Japan, the focus of English education in both junior high and high schools has generally been grammar instruction. It seems meaningful, given the significant linguistic distance between English and Japanese. However, it is also important to make sure that grammatical knowledge is transferred into practical English production effectively. Nonetheless, there have been few experimental studies on the relationship between grammatical knowledge and production. This indicates that it is highly relevant to examine how grammatical knowledge affects English production at universities in Japan. This study used a quantitative analysis, structural equation modeling (SEM), to investigate the extent of influence of local accuracy (grammatical accuracy in a sentence) on global accuracy (comprehensibility of a sentence and of an essay as a whole). Items for analysis included 155 argumentative essays written on one of two recent social topics. Japanese English professionals evaluated the essays for local accuracy while native English teachers evaluated them for global accuracy. The result indicated a low relationship between local accuracy and global accuracy. Consequently, this study classified the essays into two groups; one with low accuracy and high global accuracy, and the other with high local accuracy and low global accuracy. The causes for the phenomenon were then explored, and practical strategies for the future were discussed including those on evaluation criteria and feedback

Correlations between Syntactical Knowledge and Writing Performance among Japanese English Learners

論文ARTICLEFor Japanese learners of English, it is appropriate to spend time and energy establishing the foundation of English linguistic structure when considering that the linguistic distance between English and Japanese is the farthest apart. In this respect, it is relevant that grammar instruction remains centralized in Japan’s classroom settings, even amidst increasingly prevalent tendencies toward communicative learning through presentations and discussions. In fact, students generally spend a lot of time listening to grammatical explanations or solving grammatical questions. Meanwhile, it is a matter of question whether their metalinguistic knowledge is efficiently transferred into English production. Focusing on English’s syntactical features, which are distinctly different from those of Japanese, this study examined the correlations between metalinguistic knowledge (measured using three types of syntactic question types) and writing performance (evaluated using three aspects: accuracy, sentence variation, and clarity of expression). The results showed low-to-medium correlations among these factors. This indicated the need to strengthen a link between metalinguistic knowledge and writing skills. It is hoped that English education in Japan will undergo renovation to build a bridge between students’ school-level metalinguistic knowledge, and the practical English they will use in future professions