Szövegek közelről; nyelvtanulás: képzés és képzetek; kutatásmódszertan a gyakorlatban: WoPaLP 3

Dióhéjban, címszavakban ezek a témák fémjelzik a Working Papers in Language Pedagogy (WoPaLP) legújabb, 2009 végén megjelent számát. A WoPaLP – az ELTE Angol-Amerikai Intézetének angol nyelvű, lektorált tudományos folyóirata – 2007-ben indult az ELTE Nyelvpedagógia PhD Program keretében, s azóta immár harmadszor jelenik meg. Az eredetileg elsősorban a program résztvevői számára publikálási lehetőséget biztosító on-line kiadvány (http://langped.elte. hu/Wopalpindex.htm) mára szélesebb körben is ismert és elismert, vonzó publikálási fórummá vált

‘UNDER THE MAGNIFYING GLASS’: STUDENTS’ PERSPECTIVES ON ORAL PRESENTATIONS AND ANXIETY IN THE EFL CLASSROOM

This research was prompted by a perceived conflict between the pedagogical implications of research into anxiety in the context of second language (L2) learning and some of the instructional practices employed in language classrooms. It examines learner anxiety in relation to a frequently used classroom activity: the oral presentation. The participants were Hungarian university EFL students’ (N=39), who, as part of their course requirements, were asked to give a 5-10 minute classroom presentation in one of their regular language development classes. To examine students’ affective responses to this experience, data were collected in two phases. To have a quick survey of their immediate reactions, right after their talk participants were requested to rate on ten-point rating scales (1) how pleasant/unpleasant they felt during the presentation and (2) how much anxiety they experienced. To elicit an in depth account of their perceptions of and feelings about presenting their talks, they were invited to reflect upon their experiences in more detail, answering a set of open-ended questions within 24 hours. Based on participants’ self-ratings of anxiety and overall feelings during the talk and their post-presentation reflections, the paper explores how anxiety-provoking it is for students to give an L2 classroom presentation, what the specific sources of anxiety over oral presentations are, and how important a role anxiety plays in shaping learners’ subjective experience of delivering a speech in the target language. Giving insights into participants’ views on the gains and pains of oral presentations the study has important implications for foreign language teachers.  Article visualizations

TWO HEADS BETTER THAN ONE? PAIR PRESENTATION IN THE EFL CLASSROOM – A PANACEA FOR ANXIETY?

While the role of emotions in language learning is getting more and more attention in second language research, relatively few studies have investigated emotions related to specific classroom activities. This mixed-method practitioner research examined tertiary-level EFL learners’ affective reactions to a specific type of oral presentation: the pair presentation. The aim of the study was to examine whether making a classroom presentation feels to be a more positive and less anxiety-provoking experience if done in pairs rather than individually. 33 English Studies students were asked to choose a presentation partner and give a 10-20 minute joint presentation in one of their regular language development classes. Immediately after the talk, they were asked to indicate on two 10-point rating scales how pleasant/unpleasant they felt during the task and how much anxiety they experienced. Additionally, they were invited to reflect on their experiences in greater depth within 24 hours, responding to a set of open questions. The results of the study are discussed in comparison to those of an earlier investigation in the same setting, which focused on the emotional experience of individual presentation (Tóth, 2019). While the numerical findings suggest that presenting with a partner is neither less anxiety-provoking nor a substantially more positive experience, the post-task reflections show that most participants approve of the idea of pair presentation and only a minority of them prefer individual presentation. Providing insights into the complexities of learners’ emotional experiences and the practicalities of how they prepared for the joint presentation, the study sheds light on these conflicting results and has important implications for language teachers. Article visualizations

Szövegek közelről; nyelvtanulás: képzés és képzetek; kutatásmódszertan a gyakorlatban: WoPaLP 3

Dióhéjban, címszavakban ezek a témák fémjelzik a Working Papers in Language Pedagogy (WoPaLP) legújabb, 2009 végén megjelent számát. A WoPaLP – az ELTE Angol-Amerikai Intézetének angol nyelvű, lektorált tudományos folyóirata – 2007-ben indult az ELTE Nyelvpedagógia PhD Program keretében, s azóta immár harmadszor jelenik meg. Az eredetileg elsősorban a program résztvevői számára publikálási lehetőséget biztosító on-line kiadvány (http://langped.elte. hu/Wopalpindex.htm) mára szélesebb körben is ismert és elismert, vonzó publikálási fórummá vált

Signaling components in the cold stress response of barley

As a consequence of climate change, occurrence of erratic weather conditions is increased generating temperature, drought or osmotic stress for cereals and other cultivated plants causing significant loss of production and decrease of yield. This phenomenon intensified the need for enhanced abiotic stress tolerance in cereals. To improve the adaptation ability of the crop plants, it is very important to understand how these plants are able to percept environmental signals and how these signals are converted to molecular response in the plants. Thus, the investigation of the major signal transduction mechanisms and identification of signaling components involved in abiotic stress tolerance is very important not only in model organisms, but in cultivated plants as well. In the present work components of the phospholipid signaling were identified and investigated in barley and their influence on the cold response was also studied. In details, a phosphatidylinositol transfer protein and a phosphatidylinositol 4-kinase were identified in barley using homology search and their biochemical and cell biological characterization was performed. Moreover, the role of this signaling pathway in the cold regulation of the CBF transcription factors was also studied

Az apoptózis és a fagocitózis összefonódása = Link between apoptosis and phagocytosis

Szervezetünkben naponta több 10 millió sejt hal el apoptózissal. Kísérleteinkben azt vizsgáltuk, hogyan hangolódhat össze in vivo az apoptózis és az apoptótikus sejteket eltakarító fagocitózis mértéke. Vizsgáltuk ebben a vonatkozásban egy az in vivo apopto-fagocitózis során mind az elhaló sejtben, mind a makrofágban kifejeződő multifunkcionális fehérje, a transzglutamináz 2 (TG2), a lebomló sejtekből és a fagocitáló makrofágokból is felszabaduló adenozin, és a makrofágok differenciációjában és az apoptózis szabályozásában is szerepet játszó retinoidok szerepét. Megállapítottuk, hogy a TG2 sejtektől függően, különféle biológiai funkcióban segítheti vagy gátolhatja az apoptózist. Elhaló sejtekben és az eltakarító makrofágokban együttesen megjelenve, viszont biztosítja, hogy az apoptózis és az eltakarítás hatékonyan folyjék, és se gyulladás, se szövetkárosodás ne kísérje a folyamatot. A tímusz mint modell szervet tanulmányozva, ahol a képződő timociták 95%-a elhal, bizonyítottuk, hogy mind az adenozin, mind a retinoidok jelen van, és gyorsítja mind a timociták apoptózisát, mind a fagocitózis hatékonyságát. Az adenozin emellett hozzájárul az apoptótikus sejtek gyulladásellenes hatásának csökkentéséhez is. Adataink arra utalnak, hogy vannak közös molekulák az apoptózis és a fagocitózis program szabályozásában, amelyek lehetővé teszik ezek összehangolt működését, és így gyógyszer targetmolekulák lehetnek. | In a human body every day several 10 million cells die by apoptosis. In our experiments it was investigated how is the in vivo rate of apoptosis is balanced by the capacity of the clearance mediated by professional macrophages. In this context the involvement of a multifunctional protein, transglutaminase 2 (TG2) previously shown by us to be coupled to the in vivo apopto-phagocytosis program, that of adenosine released by dying cells and engulfing macrophages, and that of retinoids, known to regulate both apoptosis and macrophage differentiation were investigated. We have shown that TG2 depending on the cell type and using its different biological activities can both promote and inhibit apoptosis. When the protein appears in both apoptotic and phagocytic cells, the protein ensures that both apoptosis and phagocytosis proceeds efficiently, and no tissue injury develops. Using thymus as a model organ, in which 95% of the thymocytes produced die, we have shown that both retinoids and adenosine are present, and accelerate both the apoptosis of nonselected thymocytes and the efficacy of phagocytosis. In addition, adenosine is a soluble mediator that mediates the anti-inflammatory effect of apoptotic cells. Our data demonstrate that there are common regulator molecules in the apoptosis and phagocytosis program that harmonize the two processes, and thus might be potential pharmacological target molecules