The use of modal verbs to express hedging in student academic writing

Ge, Tianshuang

doi:10.32714/ricl.03.05

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…The use of computer-based corpus material is currently seen as a very useful methodological tool in linguistics and with the possibility of storing large electronic corpora on computers via concordance techniques as well as other computer-assisted methods (such as frequency analysis). Linguists can now observe characteristics and verify results, which are not apparent only by the use of the researcher's intuition (Ge, 2015;He, 2020;Ko, 2016;Leung, 2016;Nation, 2001;Reppen, et al, 2002;Sinclair, 2005;Szudarski, 2018;Tognini-Bonelli, 2010;Vaughan & Clancy, 2013). In simple terms, corpus linguistics can be defined as the study of "the compilation and analysis of corpora" (Cheng, 2012, p. 6), which are large collections of "naturally occurring language texts chosen to characterize a state or a variety of language" (Sinclair 1991, p.171).…”

Section: Corpus Linguistics and Esl Writingmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Corpus-based Analysis of Ten Most Frequently Used Part-of-speech Constituents in Descriptive Writing

Muhammad,

Sarjit Singh

2023

IJLEAL

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This study is set to examine variation in the use of Part-of-Speech (POS) constituents in the contents of descriptive writing by Nigerian undergraduates using a corpus-based approach. The objective is to identify the ten most-frequently-used POS constituents they used. It also aims to identify the level of frequency variation and distribution patterns of the POS constituents used based on gender and ethnic groups. This study adopted the EAP theory and the usage-based theory. The method applied is quantitative descriptive research design and the samples include thirty (30) Nigerian undergraduates that were identified via purposive sampling. The corpus is subjected to a computer-assisted corpus analysis (CACA) where 33, 274 words were tagged and compiled. The findings revealed NN, NN1, II, AT, JJ, TO, NN2, RR and CC as the student’s ten most frequently-used POS constituents, as they achieve higher frequencies. In terms of gender variation, the findings revealed that males achieved a higher frequency of the words used, as equated with females, even though the level of variation at 0.90% is below the statistical level of significance. Also, in terms of their ethnic groups, no significant level of variation was identified, although the Igbo attained a high frequency of words-usage compared to the Yorùbá and the Hausa. Among the theoretical implications derived in this study are the deployments of the corpus-based, genre-based, EAP and ESP-oriented approaches into Nigerian ESL classroom activities.

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Section: Corpus Linguistics and Esl Writingmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Corpus-based Analysis of Ten Most Frequently Used Part-of-speech Constituents in Descriptive Writing

Muhammad,

Sarjit Singh

2023

IJLEAL

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“…The presence of hedges, such as modal verbs (e.g. "would", "could"), is of considerable significance in English writing for mitigating arguments (Hyland 1996a;Hinkel 2005;Ge 2015) or sounding persuasive (Hyland 1996a;1996b) and, at the same time, establishing a cordial bond with the recipient of the text (Hyland 1996b;Neary-Sundquist 2013;Ge 2015). Ge's (2015) study shows that non-native writers overuse certain modal verbs, such as "should", and do not use "would" and "may" with the same purpose as native English speakers.…”

Section: Hedgingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using a Free Corpus Tool for Time-efficient Feedback on English as a Foreign Language reports

Hernández¹

2022

Miscelánea

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English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners often struggle with some of the elements and features of text composition, such as conventions, socio-cultural aspects like hedging, degree of formality or synonyms. This paper aims to provide, by way of exemplification, the application of a corpus-aided technique that helps teachers determine whether general task completion has been achieved in order to identify learners’ deficiencies in writing. This method was employed to consider lexical range (i.e. synonyms), cohesive devices and hedging strategies, including modal verbs, in the participants’ written outputs, a total of 93, in a higher education EFL classroom. To this end, the tool LexTutor (Cobb n.d.) was used to explore the corpus. The data gathered have been analysed following a quantitative approach. Findings indicate that, on average, learners’ productions met the indications in the instructions. Nevertheless, there was a tendency to use lower-level or simpler structures and words rather than opting for language exploration, thus prioritising accuracy. The present study raises the possibility that EFL teachers can offer general class feedback on students’ productions promptly and efficiently.

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“…El estudio de los verbos modales, y de la modalidad en general, en textos de especialidad no es realmente novedosa, como se demuestra en la literatura existente (cf. Giltrow 2005;Efstathiadi 2010;Cheng & Cheng 2014;Alonso-Almeida 2014;Ge 2015;Carrió-Pastor 2017;Álvarez-Gil 2018;Carrió-Pastor 2020a). La novedad de este estudio radica principalmente en la selección de dos secciones fundamentales del artículo de investigación para la recepción y el impacto de este como aportación científica, como son la introducción y la conclusión, y mi interés por los textos turísticos.…”

Section: Introductionunclassified

Los verbos modales en las introducciones y en las conclusiones de los artículos científicos de turismo

Domínguez¹,

Elena²

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The research article in the field of tourism studies has not been sufficiently studied, despite being a discipline strongly connected with a sector of economic growth for many countries. Other textual genres related to the tourism register such as the summary, brochures and web pages in the tourism register, the latter with great relevance for their clear social and economic impact of tourism studies, have enjoyed more scholarly attention. Scientific research in tourism, however, provides organisations, whether public or private, with relevant information for the improvement of the activity, which translates into recommendations that are often included in the conclusions of these studies. It is held, therefore, that there is a direct relationship between the development of the sector and empirical research, which, in turn, shows the interest in academic publications in leading journal. For this reason, this paper includes a formal characterisation of the genre into sections. This study is supplemented with a description of the recurrent lexicalgrammatical structures in each of the sections of the scientific article and the lexical and syntactic variables that characterise the text within the scientific register, both in terms of the complexity and the level of elaboration exhibited in the language used in these works. These structures are intended to signal the authors' perspective, among other aspects.

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The use of modal verbs to express hedging in student academic writing

Cited by 4 publications

References 0 publications

A Corpus-based Analysis of Ten Most Frequently Used Part-of-speech Constituents in Descriptive Writing

A Corpus-based Analysis of Ten Most Frequently Used Part-of-speech Constituents in Descriptive Writing

Using a Free Corpus Tool for Time-efficient Feedback on English as a Foreign Language reports

Los verbos modales en las introducciones y en las conclusiones de los artículos científicos de turismo

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