Doctoral Dissertations
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Browsing Doctoral Dissertations by Author "Albakry, Mohammed"
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ItemAPPLICATION OF THE IRT AND TRT MODELS TO A READING COMPREHENSION TEST(Middle Tennessee State University, 2017-06-19) Kim, Weon Hee ; Elleman, Amy ; Jin, Ying ; Albakry, Mohammed ; EducationThe purpose of the present study is to apply the item response theory (IRT) and testlet response theory (TRT) models to a reading comprehension test. This study applied the TRT models and the traditional IRT model to a seventh-grade reading comprehension test (n = 8,815) with eight testlets. These three models were compared to determine the best model for a testlet-based reading comprehension assessment. The goodness-of-fit indices such as -2 log likelihood, Akaike information criterion, and Bayesian information criterion were utilized as model comparison indices. The standardized local dependence X2 statistic was computed for a comparison of local dependence among the three different models. Scatter plots were obtained to evaluate parameter-estimation consistency among models. Correlations and mean differences between the estimated parameters were also examined to detect and quantify the magnitude of inaccuracy due to the use of a worse-fitting model. Finally, items were evaluated based on the item parameters from the TRT models and compared to the results from the Coh Metrix.
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ItemArab American Poetry 1967-Present: Songs of Defiance and Hope in the Face of Arab-U.S. Political Tension(Middle Tennessee State University, 2014-11-14) Moqbel, Nedhal Saleh Mohsen ; Hibbard, Allen ; Johnson, Newtona (Tina) ; Albakry, Mohammed ; EnglishThis study examines Arab American poetry 1967-Present in light of the political tension between the United States and the Arab World. It explores the ways in which the Arab American community has been greatly impacted by such frequent political pressures as the Arab-Israeli conflict, violent events in the Middle East, and America's foreign policy in the region. The poems discussed in this dissertation reveal the community's collective anxieties, alienation, and fears due to hostility, anti-Arab racism, and media misrepresentation that often escalate during every crisis involving the U.S. and the Middle East. Analysis of these poems demonstrates a defiant response to a tense situation coupled with glimpses of hope for a better future. It also reveals the complexities of Arab American identity evident in the constantly ambivalent relationship between Arab and American contexts that is exacerbated by frequent political crises. Arab American poets address themes of war, violence, injustice, and hegemony, simultaneously touching upon deeper issues of belonging, hybridity, interrogation of identity, and reconciliation.
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ItemDUAL LANGUAGE WRITING ASSESSMENT AND ANALYSIS FOR UPPER ELEMENTARY SPANISH-SPEAKING ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS(Middle Tennessee State University, 2022) Yount, Karilena ; Albakry, Mohammed ; Kim, Jwa ; Fields, StacyIn public school classrooms across the United States, approximately one in ten students is learning English as a second language. These students, often referred to as English language learners (ELLs), comprise one of the fastest growing demographic groups in the United States, with approximately 5 million ELLs enrolled in public schools across the country. The majority of ELLs, however, do not exit high school with the proficiency they need to succeed, and standardized outcomes even at the elementary level show the beginnings of a discrepancy between ELLs and their native English-speaking counterparts. This troubling literacy achievement gap is particularly evident in the domain of writing and persists even after students have had several years of supplemental language support. This study seeks to address the writing gap and assessment issues by administering a dual language writing assessment designed for ELLs. The assessment was selected to meet the need for a multifaceted writing assessment that was normed and validated specifically for upper elementary Spanish-speaking ELLs. The study seeks to analyze in detail the writing of intermediate ELL (grades 3-5) in order to determine how the features of their writing differ from those used by native English speakers and the writing features students display in their native languages that maybe overlooked by English-only writing assessments. The purpose of study, however, is not to identify perceived errors, but rather to add to the understanding of second language writing for native Spanish-speaking upper elementary school students. Results of the study have wide-ranging pedagogical and cultural implications that could help inform instruction, educational policy, and teacher education as they relate to the writing assessment and instruction of multilingual learners in increasingly diverse classrooms.
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ItemFrom Textbooks to Teachers' Perspectives: Building Chinese Students' Intercultural Competence through College English Teaching(Middle Tennessee State University, 2020) peng, zheng ; Albakry, Mohammed ; Kim, Jwa ; Elleman, AmyThe new Guidelines on College English Teaching of China (2017) specifies that College English content should promote “native culture” and build capacity for intercultural competence (IC) in order for Chinese students to meet the challenges of globalization. To investigate the impact of this 2017 educational policy on learning and teaching, the dissertation, divided into two parts, examined the cultural content of the 2nd and 3rd editions of New Horizon College English textbooks as well as students’ and teachers’ perceptions of IC and culture instruction. The first part addresses how Chinese college English textbooks represent cultural elements. It empirically compares the extent of coverage and the level of cultural material embedded within these two editions of the textbooks in order to determine changes in cultural content in English teaching textbooks in China. The second part investigates the perceptions held by teachers and students concerning of learning materials and teaching methods by administering a pre- and post-test Intercultural Sensitivity Scale (ISS) to 196 first-year university students as well as a questionnaire to 163 College English teachers in China. The results revealed that there has been a great improvement of cultural content in the 3rd edition compared to the 2nd edition in terms of the quantity and level of cultural content, but differences had little impact on improving students’ IC. As for teachers’ awareness and perceptions on culture teaching, 60% of teachers indicated “confident” or “somewhat confident” of integrating culture teaching in college English instruction; however, only a small portion of them teach culture regularly due to limited cultural knowledge and culture teaching methods. The research further reveals three major gaps in culture teaching: The gap between educational policy requirements versus implementation in practice, the gap between teachers’ high theoretical awareness versus low IC sensitivity of cultural content in textbooks, and the gap between teachers’ expressed desire for more cultural knowledge versus the shortage of available in-service training programs. This study has pedagogical implications for English textbook publishers, English teachers, and policy makers not only in China but also in other English as a foreign language (EFL) countries. It will contribute to the development of culturally appropriate College English textbooks by raising awareness of the importance of developing students’ IC and integrating learners’ own culture in language teaching materials. Furthermore, the results could help policy makers formulate appropriate and effective EFL policies in education.
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Item'Heads Bowed, Eyes Closed': Analyzing the Discourse of Online Evangelical Altar Calls(Middle Tennessee State University, 2016-03-19) Bryan, Clinton David ; Albakry, Mohammed ; Helford, Elyce ; Richey, Patrick ; EnglishThis discourse analysis study examines the final moments of selected online sermons delivered by America’s leading evangelical pastors and speakers, paying particular attention to the language employed in the presentation of Christian gospel tenets, the public invitation for salvation, the altar call that identifies new followers, and the benedictory prayer meant to conclude each preacher’s remarks to the faithful. Machin and Mayr (2012) provide the theoretical framework of multimodal critical discourse analysis, a social semiotics approach, for interpreting the lexical elements, the nonverbal communicative movements, and the optics of each video (if taped) to uncover the embedded power relations of the sermonic discourse and the myriad ways in which the preachers carefully construct personas for accomplishing certain rhetorical aims. By uploading these audio and video tracks to the Internet, ostensibly for the purpose of proselytization, these evangelical ministers have blurred the lines between insider and outsider language by foregrounding the types of in-group discourse normally reserved for religious services held within the confines of brick-and-mortar church buildings. Moreover, archived sermon videos become linguistic artifacts that last well beyond the time of the sermons’ performance on Sunday mornings. Putting these sermons online and thereby obliterating the narrow boundaries of the traditional evangelical church audience, these preachers have opened a fairly ossified discursive form, the evangelical altar call, to linguistic scrutiny that provides valuable material for scholars interested in contemporary American religious discourse and practitioners (i.e., preachers interested in gearing their lexical choices to the understanding of potential parishioners unfamiliar with this language). Using Kenneth Burke’s (1970) seminal definition of religious conversion as persuasion effected toward initiates’ adopting a new language spoken by the faith community, this study asserts that this corporate indoctrination into new ways of speaking begins with the salvific prayer.
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ItemImpact of Multimodal Feedback and Formulaic Sequences on Improving Fluency of English Learners on Computer-Based Speaking Assessments(Middle Tennessee State University, 2021) Francois, Jennifer ; Albakry, Mohammed ; Kim, Jwa ; Fields, StacyWhile recent research has shown that multimodal feedback and use of formulaic sequences (FS) are effective in improving student performance on writing tasks, there is a dearth of studies on the impact of these aspects on computer-based academic speaking assessments. This dissertation seeks to fill this gap by examining the impact of both multimodal feedback and formulaic sequences (FS) on improving performance and fluency of adolescent English Learners (ELs) on computer-based speaking assessments. Students in this interactive sequential mixed methods study were randomly assigned to a group receiving asynchronous feedback or a group receiving synchronous video feedback. Both groups were evaluated using the WIDA Speaking Interpretive Rubric that analyzes speech holistically at the word/phrase level, sentence level, and discourse level. Students then engaged in a second speaking task and were evaluated using the same rubric. Results indicated that both groups showed significant overall improvements: asynchronous feedback (n = 12, Task One Mdn = 3.00, Task Two Mdn = 4.50, Z = 3.07, p < .001, r = .89) and synchronous feedback (n = 12, Task One Mdn = 3.00, Task Two Mdn = 3.83, Z = 2.59, p = .008, r = .75), with the asynchronous feedback group out-performing the synchronous feedback group. Furthermore, regression analysis indicated that formulaic sequences significantly predicted speech fluency (β = 1.01, t(46) = 9.65, p < .001). Formulaic sequences also explained a significant proportion of variance in fluency scores (R2 = .67, F(1, 46) = 93.20, p < .001). Results from this study can inform and optimize remote and face-to-face (F2F) instruction in academic speaking and the implications include not only potentially improving EL students’ skills on standardized measures of academic speaking performance, but also enhancing their linguistic skills in general education classes and improving their college and career readiness.
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Item“Please Make Your Tax-Deductible Donation Today”: Discourse Analysis of Email and Direct Mail Fundraising Letters(Middle Tennessee State University, 2018-04-11) Caudill, Kristi Lyn ; Albakry, Mohammed ; Pantelides, Kate ; Richey, Patrick ; EnglishThis dissertation examines the linguistic and rhetorical properties within organizational solicitation letters. While significant research has been performed on the linguistic analysis of specialized genre that share a specific set of goals and purposes, particularly academic genre, there is a dearth of research that combines both linguistic and rhetorical analysis within popular genres such as fundraising letters. To address this gap, this study investigates positioning in fundraising discourse through the linguistic lens of stance and engagement combined with the analysis of rhetorical appeals and moves. A corpus-based discourse analysis was performed on a representative sampling of fundraising discourse comprised of 340 direct mail and email solicitation letters spanning the years 2015-2017. Hyland (2005) provides the theoretical framework for the analysis of the linguistic features of stance and engagement while rhetorical analysis is informed by the work of multiple researchers (e.g. Connor and Gladkov, 2004; Connor and Lauer, 2010; Bhatia, 1998; and Upton, 2002). Results indicate that linguistic features of stance (e.g. hedges, boosters, attitude markers, and self-mentions) are more commonly used than the features of engagement (e.g. reader pronouns, personal asides, appeals to shared knowledge, directives, and questions), but the distribution of engagement features is fairly balanced within the fundraising corpus regardless of the discourse type (e.g. educational, environmental, and humanitarian) or political leaning of the organization. This can be attributed to the overriding need to forge a relationship with a potential donor. The findings also suggest that establishing personal connections is necessary to bridge the gap between the writer and the reader within this genre where there may not be shared discourse community. This connection is often achieved through the use of emotionally charged language and personal narratives as well as the strategic employment of rhetorical moves that include establishing credentials, expressing gratitude, and offering incentives. The research sheds light on the language of direct mail and email fundraising, furthers our understanding of the use of the elements of stance and engagement within organizational communication, and contributes to the growing body of research on genre analysis and variation.