Sensitivity to differences between speech and writing: Hong Kong students' use of syntactic features in English.

• Other Authors: Chui, Sze Yan.
• Format: Others
• Language: English; Chinese; Chinese
• Published: 2011
• Subjects: English language > Spoken English; English language > Spoken English > China > Hong Kong; English language > Study and teaching (Secondary) > Chinese speakers; English language > Study and teaching (Secondary) > China > Hong Kong > Chinese speakers; English language > Syntax; English language > China > Hong Kong > Syntax; English language > Writing; English language > China > Hong Kong > Writing
• Online Access: http://library.cuhk.edu.hk/record=b6075097; http://repository.lib.cuhk.edu.hk/en/item/cuhk-344730

Analysis on most heavily overused and underused syntactic features shows that, when compared with native speakers, Hong Kong students favour the use of present tense, tentative style, simple noun phrase structure and explicit clause-relation marking in oral presentations. They prefer using present tense constructions, adopting pronouns for nominal functions and using an interactive tone in written essays. In both the learner speech data and the learner writing data, quite a number of the overused and underused syntactic features are closely related to the differences between speech and writing found in Biber (1988), hinting at Hong Kong students' inadequate sensitivity to mode differences in English. === Analysis on textual dimensions suggests that Hong Kong students' oral presentations differ from comparable native-speaker oral production by being more written-like in terms of the use of explicit/situation-dependent reference and the inclusion of abstract/non-abstract information. Hong Kong students' written essays deviate from comparable native-speaker written production by being more spoken-like in terms of the involved/informational focus and the use of explicit/situation-dependent reference. Moreover, both the learner speech data and the learner writing data bear some resemblance to common native-speaker genres in the opposite mode. === The present study clearly demonstrates that Hong Kong students have limited sensitivity to the conventional usage of syntactic features in spoken and written English. The teaching profession should help the students develop better sociolinguistic competence when teaching grammar, speaking and writing. Future research on second language acquisition should also focus more on the learners' sociolinguistic development so that second language learners' communicative ability can be better understood. === This thesis investigates Hong Kong secondary school students' sensitivity to differences between spoken and written English by examining their use of 67 syntactic features. A model specifying how native speakers vary their use of syntactic features across speech and writing, Biber (1988), has been adopted as the theoretical framework. Fifty-two oral presentations delivered by Form 6 students and 52 public examination essays written by Form 7 students, both of which total about 10,000 words, have been analysed. The students' performance is compared with native speakers' performance in similar spoken and written production on the level of syntactic features and the level of textual dimensions. === Chui, Sze Yan. === "December 2010." === Adviser: Gerald Nelson. === Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 73-04, Section: A, page: . === Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2011. === Includes bibliographical references (leaves 255-266). === Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. === Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [201-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. === Abstract also in Chinese; some appendixes also in Chinese.