19
Randy Ingraham
English 401 Final Essay
Introductory Comments
The number of linguistic journals is overwhelming. I am continually amazed by the sheer quantity of information that’s produced in academia. The only way to fathom how this happens is to see it as a process of contextualizing questions each just sufficient enough to be different. There is no doubt that each journal offers worthwhile research, but the relationship between volume and return is questionable. For instance, as part of my Senior Concepts requirement in Anthropology, our class along with thirty-some other universities reviewed the Journal of Anthropology. (The purpose was to post synopses of all its articles to the internet.) Each student was responsible for reviewing and writing condensations of 2-3 journals per week as well as reviewing each other’s. What struck me was how little the content and methodology had changed over the past 100 years or so. What was common to most of these articles was a continual reconfiguring of questions within theoretical frameworks in such a way that questions could in fact be structured; in other words, a question emerged as a possibility of it being asked, almost like making questions by simply rearranging a few words. And what invariably occurred were intricate articles that reasserted methodologies and theoretical ideas, which often ended up looking like busywork. It’s bothersome to think that years of scholarly toil resulted in little more than curious twists to nothing very noteworthy. And what’s more, anthropologists do years of fieldwork, which makes one wonder if their motives were obligatory and perfunctory or intentional and passionate. It just seems that before all else, research comes down to structuring and answering questions according to the rules of publishing. However, the only way to understand and appreciate the proliferation of scholarship, is that it compels academics to stay involved, to continually reassert their skills, to reconfirm their abilities among peers, and for those reasons it’s justified.
Review of journals
Dialogue Journals: Interactive Writing to Develop Language and Literary: The differences between people from different cultures can be insurmountable when it comes to developing and finding a common ground for communication. This site is to help learners find a medium to express their experiences through English as a second language (ESL). Dialogue journals is an effective way for "interactive writing with a teacher or other individual" by opening up "new channels of communication…[in] natural contexts for language and literacy development." Through written communication the learner and teacher can directly relate "on a wide range of topics and in a variety of genres and styles." By interacting on a regular basis, what the teacher tries to encourage is effective communication about everyday life experiences, which helps the non-native speaker to better focus on concerns related to immediate and practical demands. This enables bilateral dialogue where each individual's abilities can be addressed on both language and cultural levels. By having a one-to-one relationship with the teacher, the learner can develop the language skills needed to function better in his/her new environment. "Because the teacher is attempting above all to communicate with the learner, the teacher's writing is roughly tuned to learners' proficiency levels." The correctness of writing is secondary to overall language development and interactive skills within society. The benefits are: "Extended contact time with learners, Management of classes with learners of varying language, ability, and interest levels, Assessment of learner needs and progress, Facilitation of language learning." The correctness of writing is an ongoing process where the teacher may rephrase the learners' questions by correcting their grammar, or by restructuring the words so the actual content of the questions are effectively conveyed.
I think this method of learning for ESL students is extremely effective because by writing it compels the writers to concentrate more on communication, it removes some of the intimidating influences of the classroom, and it allows the teacher to personalize responses and corrections. I think the internet classroom will become more common throughout academia once these benefits are experienced and appreciated.
http://www.cal.org/ncle/digests/dialogue_journals.html (note: a lowercase hyphen belongs between dialogue & journals)
Language and Cognitive Processes: The aims and scope of this journal is to provide "an international forum for the publication of theoretical and experimental research into the mental processes and representations involved in language use…[and] to provide an interdisciplinary approach to the study of language." Not only does it include experimental and developmental psychology research, but it considers information from "linguistics, philosophy, cognitive neuropsychology and computational modeling…in the form of experimental and observational studies, theoretical discussions, short notes and replies, and review articles." The journal was first published in 1985 to primarily develop a forum for "multi-disciplinary perspective on the psychology of language" that encourages discussions about "previously published findings." Also, in order to "stimulate debate," the editors invite "theoretical 'position papers' that present novel theoretical perspectives on either established or novel phenomena of relevance to the psychology of language…[so as] to foster genuine debate and to provide an outlet for theoretical innovation and discussion."
The objective and experimental findings of language need to be continually critiqued by theoretical perspectives because science can only reduce empirical findings to infinitely small units, which cannot explain all of the cause-and-effect relationships between language and cognition. Therefore, theoretical interpretations are needed to render these findings understandable. Indeed, language must interpolate physical relationships, or to fit them into linguistic structures, so that pure science has purpose and meaning to humans. Too often, scientific finds are considered worthy simply because they medically improve human existence, however it's necessary to be mindful of the philosophical and ethical meanings of these results.
http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/pp/01690965.html
Unrestricted Online Literary Criticism & Language Journals: This site contains many literary areas primarily aimed at the "most reliable journals, i.e. associated with a university or college and which are peer-reviewed." Some of the ones of interest are CLCWeb: Comparative Literature and Culture: A WWWeb Journal, which is a quarterly publication from Purdue University concentrating on "book reviews, bibliographies and thematic issues, in the widest definition of the discipline of comparative literature and culture…It combines traditional comparative literature with comparative cultural studies."
http://clcwebjournal.lib.purdue.edu/
Early Modern Literary Studies: A journal of Sixteenth and Seventeenth-Century English Literature (EMLS) "examines English literature, literary culture, and language…and is committed to gathering and to maintaining links to the most useful and comprehensive internet resources for Renaissance scholars, including archives, electronic texts, discussion groups, and beyond." This journal is published three times a year.
http://www.shu.ac.uk/emls/emlshome.html
In the area of language and semiotics, Applied Semiotics is published out of the University of Toronto with a mission to "advance concrete investigation, rather than purely abstract, theoretical or subjective efforts; for…applied semiotics is considered here to encompass research on communicative structures and processes observable in actual literary (or other) tests."
http://www.chass.utoronto.ca/French/as-sa/index-e.html
In the language and teaching area there are Language Learning and Technology began in 1997 and is published three times a years. Its purpose is "disseminate research to foreign and second language educators in the U.S. and around the world on issues related to technology and language education." It is a "refereed" journal by scholars in language acquisition and technological assisted learning. The primary focus is "language learning and language teaching, and how they are affected or enhanced by the use of technologies." All articles have abstracts and are accessible at http://llt.msu.edu/
Kairos "is an electronic journal designed to serve as a peer-reviewed resource for teachers, researchers, and tutors of writing at the college and university level, including Technical Writing, Business Writing, Professional Communication, Creative Writing, Composition, and Literature." The goal of Kairos "is to offer a progressive and innovative online forum for the exploration of writing, learning, and teaching in hypertextual environments." This site is fascinating because it allows academics to exchange ideas with their peers rather than having to go through pre-publishing reviews, etc., which are obviously much more time consuming and reactive. The only drawback might be that others might incorporate these new ideas into their research without properly acknowledging its source.
http://english.ttu.edu/kairos/
In the area of postcolonial studies, North Carolina State University publishes Jouvert: a Journal of Postcolonial Studies three times a year. This is another refereed forum "for the interrogation of textual, cultural and political postcolonialisms…addressing the material and discursive realities of the twenty-first century." Each publication contains "essays and articles, perhaps some creative writing, and an annotated list of books received." This site would provide ongoing perspectives of how peoples react and trend after hegemonic release. Because cultural evolutions are so diverse, dynamic and continual there would be an interest in Jouvert as a source to possibly explaining some of the constant social problems witnessed throughout the world. And as postcolonial cultures mature, it would be interesting to see how they adjust in accordance with many of the ideologies used in academia, e.g. Marxism, Democracy, Totalitarianism, etc. http://social.chass.ncsu.edu/jouvert/
English Language and Linguistics: "The journal is concerned equally with the synchronic and diachronic aspects of English language studies and publishes articles of the highest quality which make a substantial contribution to our understanding of the structure and development of the English language and which are informed by a knowledge and appreciation of linguistic theory." The journal is published twice a year to include "articles and short discussion papers or squibs on all core aspects of English, from its beginnings to the present day, including syntax, morphology, phonology, semantics, pragmatics, corpus linguistics and lexis." It also contains reviews on current research in particular areas. http://www.journals.Cambridge.org/bin/bladerunner?30REQEVENT=&R…
Journal of Linguistics: This is an annual publication principally "concerned with all branches of theoretical linguistics, including syntax, morphology, phonology, phonetics, semantics, pragmatics and historical, sociological, computational, psychological, literary and applied aspects of language and linguistic theory." This journal also reviews other journals and books that making theoretical contributions and advances. The editors are from the following universities: University of Essex, University of Strathclyde, University of Edinburgh, and University of Durham.
http://www.journals.cup.org/bin/bladerunner?30REQEVENT=&REQAU…
Journal of Child Language: This journal primarily focuses on "the scientific study of language behavior in children, the principles which underlie it, and the theories which may account for it. The international range of authors and breadth of coverage allow the journal to forge links between many different areas of research including psychology, linguistics, cognitive science and anthropology. This interdisciplinary approach spans a wide range of interests: phonology, phonetics, morphology, syntax, vocabulary, semantics, pragmatics, sociolinguistics, or any other recognized facet of language study." It is interesting that the editor is from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology because many questions about language do involve etiological inquiries and evolutionary explanations, thus the incipient stages of language development in children would be a viable area for information. This publication also contains a section of reviews and research articles from various other areas.
http://www.journals.cup.org/bin/bladerunner?30REQEVENT=&REQAU…
Applied Psycholinguistics: This journal is published four times a year and is concerned with "research papers on the psychological processes involved in language. It examines language development and defects in adults and children with and without developmental disabilities." The articles "address the nature, acquisition and impairments of language expression and comprehension, including writing and reading…[in various fields to include] linguistics, psychology, reading, education, language learning, sociology, speech and hearing, and neurology." It would appear this journal deals more in measurable differences of language proficiency determined by frequency data at various points in development. The interfacing of this kind of information with theoretical issues may limit and thereby sharpen speculative interests typically associated with theory. "In addition, issues include reviews of important new books, problem-oriented reviews of important or emergent areas, discussion of previously published papers, and methodological notes." Journals dealing with application offer a sense of scientific substantiation to language, which creates dialectic between factual information and what that information doesn't answer.
http://www.journals.cup.org/bin/bladerunner?30REQEVENT=&REQAU…
Journal of Semantics: "Publishes articles, notes, discussions, and book review area of academic research into the semantics of natural language. It is explicitly interdisciplinary, in that it aims at an integration of philosophical, psychological, and linguistic semantics as well as semantic work done in logic, artificial intelligence, and anthropology." Since this publication deals with "questions of comprehension and interpretative sentences, texts, or discourse in natural language," it is more theory oriented and crosses "traditional discipline boundaries. "Empirical relevance, sound theoretic foundation and as well as methodological correctness" are the criteria used to determine acceptance for publication.
http://www3.oup.co.uk/semant/scope/
Another journal from the UK published by the University of Leeds is Language and Literature aimed at "covering the latest developments in stylistic analysis, the linguistic analysis of literature and related areas." Some of the topics include "literary and non-literary stylistics, the connection between stylistics, critical theory, linguistics and literary criticism, and their applications in teaching to native and non-native speaking students." It also includes a book review section and a discussion section on "new and controversial contributions to the study of language and literature."
http://www.sagepub.co.uk/journals/details/j0012.html
The English Teacher is an international journal with a panel of referees from University of Nottingham, Assumption University, Leeds Metropolitan University, and National University of Singapore. Its aim and scope "is designed primarily as a pragmatic resource for professionals involved in primary, secondary or higher education…[and to] explore the similarities and differences of teaching English in Asia to teaching English in a wider international context." Specific areas include "the efficacy of various curriculum designs and methodologies, the place for culture in the classroom, the contribution of technology to the overall learning environment, experimental and innovative projects, structured versus unstructured (or semi-structured) lesson plans, teaching devices of language (e.g. figures of speech, clichés, images)," etc. In the face of globalization this journal may offer various insights into effective language learning in the Asian market, which is certainly of interest with China becoming more of an economic influence throughout the world. By having a source for "successes and flops in the classroom," possibly better methods will be employed more quickly in ELT.