Spoken Language Study: Example of an analytical paragraph
Second example of an analytical paragraph: Whilst many are critical of the modifications to standard English that many, particularly young, people make when they speak and communicate online; I contend that these language effects are in fact lively and...
Spoken Language Study – Explore Instant Messaging and Develop an Hypothesis
An exploration of the sophistication and richness of the way we modify and elaborate on standard English to enrich our interpersonal communication. First check you've completed Stage 1 Stage 2: Transcribe an instant messaging conversation and annotate it for all...
Spoken Language Study – Stage 1 – Gather Your Data
The first step in our spoken language study is to transcribe our spoken conversation, annotate it for the language features used, and write an initial paragraph explaining this language effect. This post also contains our exemplar transcripts and paragraphs
Spoken Language Transcript Practice
Today we will be exploring live spoken conversation – and generating our own transcripts. Watch this short video excerpt (from the film “FIT”) and try to write your own transcript of the conversation. https://vimeo.com/49708700 SAMPLE TRANSCRIPT: [gview...
Spoken Language Sample
In pairs or trios, find a quiet space and engage in a conversation about a controversial, or contentious topic – preferably one that you might commonly expect to discuss.
Dire Ambition: Course Outline
I am in blood / Stepp’d in so far, that, should I wade no more, / Returning were as tedious as go o’er.
Podcast
Listen to this course's companion podcast to help make sense of everything you find published here
Course Content
Choosing Dire Ambition as your English programme for Level 1 means that you probably like the world to see you as a political, more socially-conscious type; you’re probably irritated by injustice and your ironic humour has probably got you into trouble on more than one occasion… This programme will explore way ambition can destroy or empower groups and individuals. You’re not here to study English for the sake of it, you’re acquiring a set of skills that you will immediately put to use in life. You’ll need to think fast, question everything and be willing to speak up. You will be asked to challenge yourself as well as others, take risks and show ambition.
We’ll explore modern text communication and online language and compare this with your own speech to learn why, in spite of social attitudes to the contrary, these modern idiolects thrive.
We’ll read Macbeth and you’ll have the option to explore the impact of unfettered ambition in Lord of the Flies as well as the moral injunctions presented in the film Gattaca and its meditation on the consequences of human ambition. Throughout, you will be practising the key skills required to succeed in the NCEA examinations. In parallel to this everyone will be completing for homework their own longitudinal inquiry by investigating links between self-selected books, films and art and presenting these in written form.