Theorising tertiary writing instruction: Accounting for the process, post-process, genre and critical literacies approaches

This discussion of theories of writing instruction arises from the context of teaching research writing to postgraduate students for whom English is an additional language. However, given the present diversity of the student body in all tertiary writing courses(as a result of the democratization and internationalization of higher education), it is argued that a principled evaluation of theories of writing instruction that places the academic literacy needs of the student writer as central is relevant to the wider field of tertiary writing instruction. As a basis for this review discussion, the paper proposes that student writers need to develop their knowledge and skills in three areas: discourse competence; identity and voice (within a specific academic community) and critical competence, and that the development of these three areas of writer competence is loosely sequential. The paper reviews four different theories of writing instruction is terms of their capacity to advance these areas of writer knowledge and skills; they are the process writing, post-process, genre-based and critical literacies approaches. The paper argues that a critical understanding of these theories and the ways in which they underpin currently available materials and teacher practice is essential if teachers are to be able to provide a well-argued rationale for assumptions, knowledge, skills and ideologies that underpin their courses

English in the mainstream: Heritage language or lingua franca?

This article examines fundamental assumptions that relate to the nature and role of the English language in Aotearoa New Zealand, including its use in society generally and in the school curriculum specifically. As a framework for this discussion, the article begins by considering the contrasting classifiers of languages as heritage language and lingua franca. The historical and cultural backgrounds of users of English in Aotearoa New Zealand are then briefly examined and the position is argued that the cultural (and in many cases linguistic) roles and use of English in New Zealand may lie somewhat closer to that of a lingua franca than a heritage language. This is followed by an examination of existing heritage language assumptions underpinning the approaches taken towards English in education and their consequences. Finally the article discusses how the mainstream approach to teaching and learning English, currently predicated on a heritage language view, may change if a lingua franca view of English were to be adopted

A role for genre-based pedagogy in academic writing instruction?: an EAP perspective

In this paper I discuss the use of genre as a theoretical construct in academic writing instruction in the context of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) courses. I begin by considering the notion of discourse competence as a concept that accounts for the knowledge elements and skills employed by expert academic writers, and then consider genre as a way of operationalizing the different elements of discourse competence knowledge for the purpose of writing instruction. I review briefly the diversity of approaches to theorizing genre knowledge, and then present the dual social genre/cognitive genre approach that I have used as a basis for research and course design in an EAP context. I exemplify this model by summarizing the key elements of two studies of research genres in which I have used this model. I conclude with a brief theoretical discussion of the issue of construct validity in relation to using the concept of genre in research that relates to writing instruction

The Refund Booth: Using the Principle of Symmetric Information to Improve Campaign Finance Regulation

On March 22, 2006, Professor of Law, Ian Ayres of Yale Law School, delivered the Georgetown Law Center’s twenty-sixth Annual Philip A. Hart Memorial Lecture: The Refund Booth: Using the Principle of Symmetric Information to Improve Campaign Finance Regulation. The article, The Secret Refund Booth, was co-authored with Professor Bruce Ackerman of Yale University. Ian Ayres is a lawyer and an economist. He is the William K. Townsend Professor of Law and Anne Urowsky Professorial Fellow in Law at Yale Law School and a Professor at Yale\u27s School of Management. He is the editor of the Journal of Law, Economics and Organization. Professor Ayres is a regular commentator on public radio’s Marketplace and a columnist for Forbes magazine and regularly writes opeds for The New York Times. He received his B.A. (majoring in Russian studies and economics) and J.D. from Yale and his Ph.D in economics from M.I.T. Professor Ayres clerked for the Honorable James K. Logan of the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. He has previously taught at Illinois, Northwestern, Stanford, and Virginia law schools and has been a research fellow of the American Bar Foundation. Professor Ayres has published eight books and over 100 articles on a wide range of topics

The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement

[Excerpt] The economic and strategic architectures of Asia are evolving. One part of this evolving architecture is the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP), a free trade agreement that includes nations on both sides of the Pacific. The existing TPP, which originally came into effect in 2006, consists of Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, and Singapore. The United States, Australia, Peru, and Vietnam have committed themselves to joining and expanding this group. The third round of discussions among the eight countries took place in Brunei, during the week of October 4, 2010. The third round saw the formal inclusion of Malaysia in the negotiations. Other architectures, such as the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, and the East Asia Summit (EAS) have both economic and strategic aspects. They can be grouped into two categories: (1) groupings that are Asia-centric in approach or origins and exclude the United States, and (2) those that are Trans-Pacific in nature and that include, or would include, the United States and other Western Hemispheric nations. The TPP is one vehicle that could be used to shape the U.S. agenda with the region. The United States, by signaling its intention to join the EAS and by working to elevate its relationship with ASEAN to a more strategic level, appears to be shaping regional architectures in a way that will be more inclusive and trans-Pacific in nature. Asia is viewed as of vital importance to U.S. trade and security interests. According to the U.S. Trade Representative, the Asia-Pacific region is a key driver of global economic growth and accounts for nearly 60% of global GDP and roughly 50% of international trade. Since 1990, Asia-Pacific goods trade has increased 300% while there has been a 400% increase in global investment in the region. The United States has pursued its regional trade interests both bilaterally and through multilateral groupings such as APEC, which has linked the Western Hemisphere with Asia. There appears to be a correlation between increasing intra-regional economic activity and increasing intra-regional political and diplomatic cooperation. Many observers view the more recent intra-Asian Association of Southeast Asian States (ASEAN) plus three—China, Japan, South Korea—and the ASEAN plus six (also known as the East Asia Summit)—China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, New Zealand—groups as having attracted more interest within the region in recent years. China\u27s rapidly expanding economy and Japan\u27s developed economy have made them attractive trading partners to many Asian nations. Until recently, many regional states also viewed the United States as having been distracted by events in Iraq and Afghanistaa This had led some to increasingly look to China and Japan as key partners. China may be shifting to a more assertive posture in the region, which may affect relations in the region. Secretary of State Clinton attended the East Asia Summit in Hanoi in October 2010 and President Obama stated he plans to attend the 2011 East Asia Summit in Jakarta. U.S. participation in the TPP involves the negotiation of FTAs with New Zealand, Brunei, Malaysia, and potentially, Vietnam. The United States currently has FTAs in force with Chile, Singapore, Australia, and Peru. Bilateral negotiations with New Zealand may focus on agricultural goods such as beef and dairy products. The possible inclusion of Vietnam has proven controversial from the standpoint of certain U.S. industry groups, such as textiles and apparel, as well as those concerned with labor, human rights and intellectual property issues. The involvement of Vietnam could add a higher level of difficulty, yet is illustrative of the challenges associated with developing a truly Asia-Pacific-wide trade grouping. All the potential parties may face complex negotiations in integrating the myriad FTAs that already exist between some TPP parties

Tissue-conducted spatial sound fields

We describe experiments using multiple cranial transducers to achieve auditory spatial perceptual impressions via bone (BC) and tissue conduction (TC), bypassing the peripheral hearing apparatus. This could be useful in cases of peripheral hearing damage or where ear-occlusion is undesirable. Previous work (e.g. Stanley and Walker 2006, MacDonald and Letowski 2006)1,2 indicated robust lateralization is feasible via tissue conduction. We have utilized discrete signals, stereo and first order ambisonics to investigate control of externalization, range, direction in azimuth and elevation, movement and spaciousness. Early results indicate robust and coherent effects. Current technological implementations are presented and potential development paths discussed

Hearing Without Ears

We report on on-going work investigating the feasibility of using tissue conduction to evince auditory spatial perception. Early results indicate that it is possible to coherently control externalization, range, directionality (including elevation), movement and some sense of spaciousness without presenting acoustic signals to the outer ear. Signal control techniques so far have utilised discrete signal feeds, stereo and 1st order ambisonic hierarchies. Some deficiencies in frontal externalization have been observed. We conclude that, whilst the putative components of the head related transfer function are absent, empirical tests indicate that coherent equivalents are perceptually utilisable. Some implications for perceptual theory and technological implementations are discussed along with potential practical applications and future lines of enquiry

Inside-outside: 3-D music through tissue conduction

Eliciting an auditory perception by means of mechanical transduction bypassing the peripheral hearing apparatus has been recorded as early as the 16th century. Excluding its audiometric use to assess ear pathology, bone and soft tissue conduction has received very little interest until the last two decades. Previous work during this time (Stanley and Walker 2006, MacDonald and Letowski 2006) has indicated robust lateralization is feasible via mechanical transduction. We have extended this, adding the front-back and up-down axes