Abstracts of Major Papers in This Issue

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s of Major Papers in This Issue

Knowledge vs.Non-Knowledge:An Empirical Study on the Context-Sensitivity of Knowledge Sentences,by ZHOU Xiang &LIU Longgen,p.32

The context-sensitivity of knowledge sentences has become one of the central topics in experimental philosophy (of language) and experimental epistemology.The present study aims to investigate whether the truth-value judgments of knowledge sentences vary with context and which factor(s) may impact folk judgments about knowledge ascriptions/denials.Ninety-three postgraduates from eight universities in Shanghai were randomly selected to participate in a questionnaire survey,which includes three pairs of contrastive cases (six in total).SPSS was run to produce the descriptive statistics and paired sample t-tests.The findings have provided some evidence for the context-sensitivity of knowledge sentences.After the survey a follow-up interview was conducted with ten participants selected from the survey takers and the possible factors which may influence the use of knowledge sentences were finally analyzed with the help of our interview data.

Introducing a Discursive Approach to News Values,by HUAN Changpeng,p.45

This paper intends to introduce a discursive approach to the study of news values.It first reviews previous approaches to news values in the field of journalism and communication studies; then it focuses on news values and news language.The newly introduced discursive approach is subsequently applied to examine news values as discursively constructed two cases studies.One case examines the construction of news values in a specialized corpus of news reporting on bushfires in Australia; and the other case examines the construction of news values in the coverage of the Eastern Star Accident in the Guardian and China Daily.The affordances and constraints of the discursive approach are discussed and suggestions for future research are recommended.

A Comparative Analysis of Acquisition and Attrition Sequence of Relative Clauses，by NI Chuanbin,p.52

“An Inventory Measuring Attrition Sequence of Relative Clauses” was employed,by recruiting investigate 175 Chinese college graduates,to explore the attrition rules of relative clauses by comparing with acquisition sequence from the previous studies.The following conclusions were derived: (1) Both L1 and L2 learners of different mother tongues share a similar acquisition sequence of relative clauses,that is,the relative clauses of Object(antecedent)-Subject(relative pronoun) are acquired first,followed by those of Object(antecedent)-Object(relative pronoun) and Subject(antecedent)-Subject(relative pronoun) .The last acquired are those of Subject(antecedent)-Object(relative pronoun).(2) The attrition sequence of English as a second language mirrors their acquisition sequence,and this discovery agrees with Jakobson’s Regression Hypothesis，that is,first acquired,last attrited.

An Integrated Approach to Foreign Language Teaching—A Study Based on Mosaic College English: An Integrated Course,by YANG Feng,p.60

In the background of China’s “Going Out”,college English teaching should be oriented towards the training of English learners with language proficiency,critical mind,communicative skills,cross-cultural awareness,and international vision.In response to the current situations and demands and on the basis of comprehensive investigations into related theories on language acquisition and teaching,Mosaic College English: An Integrated Course is compiled.The paper is an introduction to the course book with its focus on the interpretation of the mosaic-like integration of multiple elements in language learning,such as input and output,the instrumental function and humanistic concern,basic and high requirements on language competence,English for General and Academic Purposes,traditional course books and e-learning resources,learning efficiency and its assessment.These pairs are flexibly and dynamically combined under the framework of an integrated approach to language teaching,which is designed to enhance learning efficiency as its core goal.