A Review of Research on EFL Pre-Service Teachers' Beliefs and Practices

ABSTRACT: During the past thirty years or so, teacher education research has made significant contributions to the exploration of teachers ’ beliefs, and the relationship between teachers ’ beliefs and practices, which has produced important findings for both pre-service and in-service teacher education. This article reviews the research on pre-service teachers ’ beliefs and practices in the filed of teaching English as a foreign language (EFL), extrapolating the complex relationship between EFL teachers ’ beliefs and practices. It begins with a discussion about the definition of belief, followed by an overview of the research history on teacher beliefs in general. After discussing the basic components of EFL teachers ’ beliefs, this article summarizes the empirical studies on pre-service teachers ’ beliefs and practices since 1990s, which reveals the diversity of the studies on EFL pre-service teachers ’ beliefs. Finally, the article outlines three perspectives from which EFL pre-service teacher education can be informed. KEY WORDS: pre-service EFL teachers ’ beliefs, classroom practices, professional developmen

FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS OF THE SEISMIC BEHAVIOR OF THE ASSEMBLED LIGHT STEEL FRAME- LIGHT WALL STRUCTURES

In order to meet the needs of the development of low-rise assembly structure in rural areas, a fabricated light-weight steel frame-composite light wall structure is proposed in this paper. The light-weight steel frames are used to bear the vertical loads. The single-row-reinforced recycled concrete wall-boards are used as lateral members to resist most of the horizontal earthquake loads. The wall-board, EPS (Expanded Polystyrene) insulation modules, and fly ash blocks form the thermally insulated wall. Four fabricated lightweight steel frame-composite light wall structures and one light-weight steel frame (FRA) structure were tested under the low cyclic loads. The influence of wall reinforcement spacing and structural form (be it fly ash block or not) on the seismic performance of this new structure was analysed and the damage process of the specimen was simulated using the ABAQUS® software. The results show that the light steel frames and the single-row-reinforced recycled concrete wall-board can work well together. Furthermore, the structure has two clear seismic lines. Due to the use of EPS insulation modules and fly ash blocks, the structure has good anti-seismic and thermal insulation abilities. Reducing the spacing of bars or compositing fly ash blocks can significantly improve the seismic performance of the structure. The finite element method (FEM) calculations agreed well with the experimental results, which validates the proposed model

How is critical thinking incorporated in pre-service English teacher education in China?

*This project was conducted in cooperation with research partners in China: Dr Xiaohui Sun, School of Foreign Languages and Literature, Beijing Normal University Dr Hongying Zheng, School of Foreign Languages, Sichuan Normal University *Copyright remains with the authors.This project investigates how critical thinking is incorporated in English reading instruction in pre-service English teacher education in China, and how such pedagogical practice is entwined with contextual factors. All participants – both teacher educators and pre-service teachers – were recruited from two teacher training universities, except questionnaire respondents who were from various parts of China. A mixed-methods approach is adopted, including questionnaires, interviews, focus groups, and classroom observations. Findings of quantitative and qualitative analyses indicate that teaching critical reading is highly dynamic and complex. Some universities have embedded critical reading in curriculum design, while others largely rely on teachers’ own initiatives. In addition, variations exist regarding what and how critical reading is taught, owing to factors such as cultural influence, teacher educators’ expertise and perspectives, and support available for grassroots teaching. Furthermore, it is found that the test-oriented education system constitutes a key factor, not only resulting in underdeveloped thinking abilities among pre-service teachers, but also leading to divided views among them regarding teaching critical reading in future. Lastly, this study shows that gender is not considered as an affecting factor of engaging in critical thinking among pre-service teachers. Recommendations are proposed for pre-service teacher education in China and language support for Chinese international students in western universitie

An inventory of invasive alien species in China

Invasive alien species (IAS) are a major global challenge requiring urgent action, and the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity (2011–2020) of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) includes a target on the issue. Meeting the target requires an understanding of invasion patterns. However, national or regional analyses of invasions are limited to developed countries. We identified 488 IAS in China’s terrestrial habitats, inland waters and marine ecosystems based on available literature and field work, including 171 animals, 265 plants, 26 fungi, 3 protists, 11 procaryots, and 12 viruses. Terrestrial plants account for 51.6% of the total number of IAS, and terrestrial invertebrates (104 species) for 21.3%. Of the total numbers, 67.9% of plant IAS and 34.8% of animal IAS were introduced intentionally. All other taxa were introduced unintentionally despite very few animal and plant species that invaded naturally. In terms of habitats, 64.3% of IAS occur on farmlands, 13.9% in forests, 8.4% in marine ecosystems, 7.3% in inland waters, and 6.1% in residential areas. Half of all IAS (51.1%) originate from North and South America, 18.3% from Europe, 17.3% from Asia not including China, 7.2% from Africa, 1.8% from Oceania, and the origin of the remaining 4.3% IAS is unknown. The distribution of IAS can be divided into three zones. Most IAS are distributed in coastal provinces and the Yunnan province; provinces in Middle China have fewer IAS, and most provinces in West China have the least number of IAS. Sites where IAS were first detected are mainly distributed in the coastal region, the Yunnan Province and the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The number of newly emerged IAS has been increasing since 1850. The cumulative number of firstly detected IAS grew exponentially

Downregulation of Nuclear Protein H2B Induces Salicylic Acid Mediated Defense Against PVX Infection in Nicotiana benthamiana

Histone H2B protein is not only structurally important for chromosomal DNA packaging but is also involved in the regulation of gene expression, including the immune response of plants against pathogens. In this study, we show that the potato virus X (PVX) infection resulted in the reduced expression of H2B at both the mRNA and protein level in Nicotiana benthamiana. Tobacco rattle virus (TRV)-based virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) was then used to down-regulate the expression of H2B in N. benthamiana and tests showed that the titre of TRV was similar in these plants to that in control treated plants. When these H2B-silenced plants were inoculated with PVX, the virus spread more slowly through the plant and there was a lower titre of PVX compared to non-silenced plants. Abnormal leaf development and stem necrosis were observed in the H2B-silenced plants, which were alleviated in H2B-silenced NahG transgenic plants suggesting the involvement of salicylic acid (SA) in the production of these symptoms. Indeed, quantitative reverse transcription (qRT)-PCR and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectroscopy (LC-MS) results showed that endogenous SA is increased in H2B-silenced N. benthamiana. Thus, downregulation of H2B induced the accumulation of endogenous SA, which was correlated with stem necrosis and a decreased accumulation of PVX in N. benthamiana

Mutations in Orai1 transmembrane segment 1 cause STIM1-independent activation of Orai1 channels at glycine 98 and channel closure at arginine 91

Stim and Orai proteins comprise the molecular machinery of Ca(2+) release-activated Ca(2+) (CRAC) channels. As an approach toward understanding the gating of Orai1 channels, we investigated effects of selected mutations at two conserved sites in the first transmembrane segment (TM1): arginine 91 located near the cytosolic end of TM1 and glycine 98 near the middle of TM1. Orai1 R91C, when coexpressed with STIM1, was activated normally by Ca(2+)-store depletion. Treatment with diamide, a thiol-oxidizing agent, induced formation of disulfide bonds between R91C residues in adjacent Orai1 subunits and rapidly blocked STIM1-operated Ca(2+) current. Diamide-induced blocking was reversed by disulfide bond-reducing agents. These results indicate that R91 forms a very narrow part of the conducting pore at the cytosolic side. Alanine replacement at G98 prevented STIM1-induced channel activity. Interestingly, mutation to aspartate (G98D) or proline (G98P) caused constitutive channel activation in a STIM1-independent manner. Both Orai1 G98 mutants formed a nonselective Ca(2+)-permeable conductance that was relatively resistant to block by Gd(3+). The double mutant R91W/G98D was also constitutively active, overcoming the normal inhibition of channel activity by tryptophan at the 91 position found in some patients with severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID), and the double mutant R91C/G98D was resistant to diamide block. These data suggest that the channel pore is widened and ion selectivity is altered by mutations at the G98 site that may perturb α-helical structure. We propose distinct functional roles for G98 as a gating hinge and R91 as part of the physical gate at the narrow inner mouth of the channel