Vol 16 no 2 february 2017 by ijlter.org

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International Journal of Learning, Teaching And Educational Research

Vol.16 No.2

PUBLISHER London Consulting Ltd District of Flacq Republic of Mauritius www.ijlter.org

International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research

The International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research is an open-access journal which has been established for the disChief Editor Dr. Antonio Silva Sprock, Universidad Central de semination of state-of-the-art knowledge in the Venezuela, Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of field of education, learning and teaching. IJLTER welcomes research articles from academics, edEditorial Board ucators, teachers, trainers and other practitionProf. Cecilia Junio Sabio ers on all aspects of education to publish high Prof. Judith Serah K. Achoka quality peer-reviewed papers. Papers for publiProf. Mojeed Kolawole Akinsola Dr Jonathan Glazzard cation in the International Journal of Learning, Dr Marius Costel Esi Teaching and Educational Research are selected Dr Katarzyna Peoples through precise peer-review to ensure quality, Dr Christopher David Thompson originality, appropriateness, significance and Dr Arif Sikander readability. Authors are solicited to contribute Dr Jelena Zascerinska to this journal by submitting articles that illusDr Gabor Kiss trate research results, projects, original surveys Dr Trish Julie Rooney Dr Esteban Vázquez-Cano and case studies that describe significant adDr Barry Chametzky vances in the fields of education, training, eDr Giorgio Poletti learning, etc. Authors are invited to submit paDr Chi Man Tsui pers to this journal through the ONLINE submisDr Alexander Franco sion system. Submissions must be original and Dr Habil Beata Stachowiak should not have been published previously or Dr Afsaneh Sharif be under consideration for publication while Dr Ronel Callaghan Dr Haim Shaked being evaluated by IJLTER. Dr Edith Uzoma Umeh Dr Amel Thafer Alshehry Dr Gail Dianna Caruth Dr Menelaos Emmanouel Sarris Dr Anabelie Villa Valdez Dr Özcan Özyurt Assistant Professor Dr Selma Kara Associate Professor Dr Habila Elisha Zuya

VOLUME 16

NUMBER 2

February 2017

Table of Contents Bug-In-Ear Technology to Enhance Preservice Teacher Training: Peer Versus Instructor Feedback .......................... 1 Nikki L. Hollett, Sheri J. Brock and Vanessa Hinton The Necessity for Assessment and Management of Speech, Language and Communication Needs to Take Account of Cultural and Multilingual Diversity .............................................................................................................. 11 Jonathan Glazzard Self-Fulfilling Prophecy on Employment Development of Individuals with Disabilities .......................................... 22 Li Ju Chen A Simulation-Based Model for Teaching Business Writing: Exploration and Applications ...................................... 35 Dr. Andrew Szanajda and Dr. Fang-Chun Ou An Exploration of Culturally Grounded Youth Suicide Prevention Programs for Native American and African American Youth .................................................................................................................................................................... 48 Rhonda G. Bluehen-Unger, Deborah A. Stiles, Jameca Falconer, Tammy R. Grant, Ericka J. Boney and Kelly K. Brunner SThe Feature of ATR and ATR Harmony in NiloSaharan Languages of Ethiopia ...................................................... 62 Wakweya Olani Gobena

International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 1-10, February 2017

Bug-In-Ear Technology to Enhance Preservice Teacher Training: Peer Versus Instructor Feedback Nikki L. Hollett, Sheri J. Brock and Vanessa Hinton Auburn University Alabama, United States

Abstract. Earbud technology has been used in teacher education to strategically increase learning outcomes and appropriate decisionmaking of pre-service teachers (PST) for over 60 years (Ottley & Hanline, 2014). Research on the integration of wireless communication in physical education teacher education (PETE) programs is limited, however needed to prepare PST for effective teaching. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of instructor and peer cues via Bug-In-Ear (BIE) technology on PST delivery of feedback and movement. Participants (n=16) in an introductory methods course taught 12 lessons to K-2nd grade children during a practical course experience while receiving a condition: instructor verbal cueing, peer verbal cueing, or control with no verbal cueing. Data collection included videotaping and coding lessons for performance feedback (PFB) and sector changes (SC) and individual interviews. Based on the occurrence of cues per minute, results found significance with PFB offered more frequently with instructor cues (F 2, 33 = 8.5, p= 0.001). Sector changes increased in the instructor and peer cueing conditions, but differences were not significant. Interview data revealed four major themes: (1) PST focused more on teaching when using BIE technology; (2) using BIE was sometimes distracting; (3) suggestions for improved implementation; and (4) differences in peer and instructor verbal cueing. Results support the beneficial integration of BIE technology into teaching methods within a PETE program. Keywords: teacher training; earbud communication; teacher effectiveness

technology;

wireless

Introduction Earbud technology has been used to help individuals gain the applied skills needed to be successful in the workforce for over 60 years (Ottley & Hanline, 2014). This kind of technology is referred to as a Bug-In-Ear (BIE) device or a Whisper-In-My-Ear (WIME) device (Farrell & Chandler, 2008), in which trainees insert the device into their ear, and the trainer or observer can speak to the trainee through the microphone on the transmitter. With BIE the trainee is not able to speak back to the trainer at the transmitter and the trainer does not have

to be visible, thus encouraging more flexibility and independency due to more indirect supervision. When using BIE to deliver immediate feedback, the individual is able to alter behavior and techniques instantaneously. Combining BIE with a virtual network can enable immediate feedback from remote locations (Gibson & Musti-Rao, 2016). Webcam and Skype are examples of technological advancements that make supervision of PST more convenient and realistic. Individuals can set up a webcam to face the classroom or gym, while the teachers or professors supervising can be in another classroom or school. Videoconferencing has been used in rural and international locations providing accessibility to those who are limited with resources and are isolated (Alger & Kopcha, 2009; Bullock, Gable, & Mohr, 2008; Scheeler, McKinnon, & Stout, 2012). More recently eCoaching or electronic coaching has been used for simultaneous supervision through the internet to the PST to provide immediate feedback during teaching (Coogle, Rahn, & Ottley, 2015; Regan, Weiss, & Evmenova, 2017; Rock et al., 2014; Scheeler et al., 2010). BIE technology can also be an effective tool to implement in the education setting when preparing pre-service teachers (PST) (Farrell & Chandler, 2008; Scheeler & Lee, 2002). BIE technology can be useful in providing a more independent approach for PST to learn, however attitudes toward the technology vary. For cooperating teachers, being able to use the BIE allowed them to “feel closer and more connected with their k-5 class without actually teaching…one of my major concerns is losing contact with my class, or watching them get out of control when not under my supervision…I now had control over my class and a better connection with the student teacher” (Farrell & Chandler, 2008, p. 3). Cooperating teachers also gained a stronger relationship with their PST personally and professionally by working as a team (Farrell & Chandler, 2008).

Aim and purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of instructor and peer prompts via BIE communication on PST feedback and movement. Specifically, researchers examined the frequency of performance feedback statements and sector changes during a series of teaching episodes. PST were also asked to reflect on the use of BIE technology and its influence on their teaching in interviews.

Background In this section, we aim to review the literature in classroom and physical education settings that have incorporated BIE technology into research designs. Justifications for the use of performance feedback and sector changes as the outcomes measured will conclude this part of the article. BIE in general and special education BIE technology has been used in research extensively in general and special education classrooms. Numerous studies have found BIE technology to work

effectively in providing feedback to change teaching behaviors of PST working in general classrooms and with special education students (McAfee, Ruhl, & Lee, 2006; Scheeler & Lee, 2002; Scheeler, McAfee, Ruhl, & Lee, 2006). Immediate performance feedback, as stated by Scheeler, McAfee, Ruhl, and Lee (2006), instantly stops teachers from practicing less effective teaching methods, permitting students to receive more effective instruction. However, immediate feedback can have a negative impact on the instruction the PST is giving by distracting the teacher. The authors also found that if the feedback is delayed or once the session is complete, the PST may continue the negative behavior throughout their field based experiences and in service applied settings (Scheeler et al. 2006). In a study by Goodman, Brady, Duffy, Scott, and Pollard (2008), BIE technology was utilized to provide immediate feedback to special education teachers in a K-8 classroom. Results showed rate and accuracy of effective teaching behaviors improved with the novice teachers that used BIE technology; during baseline period (without BIE) average accuracy was 58.3%, and during intervention (with BIE) average accuracy was 95.3%. Coogle, Rahn, and Ottley (2015) used BIE eCoaching through Skype to support effective communication strategies of early childhood special education teachers. Results indicated that immediate feedback through the use of BIE eCoaching improved the PST communication strategies with children with special needs in smallgroup activities. This outcome supports the use of BIE technology to give feedback from a distance to enhance the student teaching methods (Rock et al., 2009; 2012; Scheeler et al., 2010). BIE in physical education Research using BIE technology in physical education is limited to qualitative designs focusing on satisfaction of using the device while teaching (Fry & Hin, 2006; Kahan, 2002). Kahan (2002) studied communication characteristics, participant satisfaction, and attitudes toward BIE technology from the standpoint of a PST and a cooperating teacher (CT). Data collection included communication analysis, eight questionnaires (one after each lesson), and one exit interview for one PST and her CT over the course of one semester. Results found that communication in each lesson was of short duration (M = 15.8 s) and low rate (M = 0.25 communications/min) with the majority of communications being managerial and initiated by the CT. Interview data generated three themes to explain the characteristics of analyzed communication: CT and PST interpersonal and professional compatibility; role clarity; and commitment to perceived role function. Interpersonal and professional compatibility represented the balanced and compatible relationship between the CT and PST. Both participants exhibited an emphasized managerial teaching philosophy and similar attitudes on curriculum ideas. Role clarity explained the participantsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; sense of roles and responsibilities toward each other. The CT provided the advice, mentorship, and supervising that the PST needed in order to develop as a quality teacher. Perceived role function were different for both participants due to their status, and this reflected in their initiated communications. The CT perceived her role to critically observe and provide instructional feedback to the PST, whereas the PST perceived her role to be focused on her teaching and to develop her confidence and self-efficacy as a teacher. Thus, the number of PST

initiated communication was lower than the CT. The PST developed her skills as a teacher through the initiation of communication. “Over time, the student teacher’s teaching behaviors indicated that she had assumed ownership of the class in every facet and had adopted the cooperating teacher’s ideas such as beginning-of-lesson fitness games, time saving equipment-distribution routines, and organization of students for class that prevented or reduced off-task behavior and increased activity time” (Kahan, 2002, p.95). Kahan (2002) found the PST showed higher satisfaction when receiving instant feedback during the lesson. It was also stated the PST took ownership of the classes and was more comfortable after receiving peer coaching via wireless earbuds. PST reported that the discretion, immediacy, and feedback were cooperative, supportive, and offered great value to her teaching (Kahan, 2002). Furthermore, Fry and Hin (2006) used interactive wireless technology to allow PST (n= 21) to communicate with each other throughout their lessons, while measuring satisfaction in the role of a teacher and coach. The PST were enrolled in a Physical Education Teacher Education (PETE) program and were required to teach daily lessons over a four-week period. Data from a questionnaire reported PST had higher levels of satisfaction at the end of the four-week teaching block in the amount of communication (3.25 to 3.76), the content of communication (3.85 to 4.00), and satisfaction with the role as a student teacher (3.70 to 4.00). Results support PST being generally satisfied using the technology during their teaching experiences. Measuring teacher effectiveness in physical education When incorporating BIE technology into teacher preparation, it is important to identify criteria that determine teacher effectiveness. Since Medley (1979) primarily defined teacher effectiveness as having desirable traits and practicing effective methods in the classroom, researchers have focused on developing systematic methods based on these conceptions for measuring teaching (Rink, 2013). Rink (2013) described the shift from studying indirect teaching characteristics (teacher warmth, praise, flexibility) to studying more direct teaching characteristics (task-oriented, learning experiences, activity time, monitoring, and feedback) as more meaningful research. Providing feedback was a direct teaching characteristic identified as being positively correlated with student achievement (Rink, 2013). Additionally, analyzing sector changes provided a critical component of teacher movements within the classroom (van Der Mars, Darst, Vogler, & Cusimano, 1995). van der Mars, Darst, Vogler, and Cusimano (1995) measured teachers’ sector changes and performance feedback with students during lessons. Instead of focusing solely on communication between two people, van der Mars et al. (1995) wanted to establish a detailed database on certain dimensions of elementary physical education teachers’ involvement and active supervision behaviors, and also observe the relationship between teachers’ supervision and students’ activity engagement. Results indicated teachers gave frequent skill feedback (3.2 times per minute), which is greater than typical rates with cognizance both to students’ motor skill

performance and to basic class conduct (van der Mars et al., 1995). van der Mars and his colleagues (1995) also measured the amount of sector changes by student teachers through the use of video recording and found that on average, the teachers changed sectors 6.05 times per minute.

Methodology Sample Participants included 16 PST (Mage=21, M=9, F=7) enrolled in an introductory physical education methods course at a university in the southeastern United States. PST had no teaching experience prior to enrolling in this course. As part of the course, PST were required to teach 12 lessons consisting of fundamental motor skill instruction to children in K-2nd grade, each lesson with a duration of 15 minutes. PST videotaped all lessons and submitted them to the instructor at the end of the semester. Approval was granted by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) to conduct the research study. Design Using a quasi-experimental design, PST were systematically assigned to one of three conditions: (1) instructor verbal cueing – prompts from the instructor; (2) peer verbal cueing – prompts from a peer; or (3) control – no prompts. PST wore a BIE and wireless receiver clipped to their belt, while the instructor/peer provided verbal prompts by speaking into a wireless microphone transmitter. The BIE allowed the PST to hear feedback from the instructor/peer in response to their teaching performance. PST were provided with two brief statements concerning movement and feedback at the end of each minute which included one of the following dichotomous statements: “Good movement or move around” and “good performance feedback or give performance feedback”. The intervention required feedback to be delivered immediately to the PST by the instructor or a peer. Additionally, individual interviews were conducted with each PST. Data analysis

A research assistant without association with the methods course was responsible for coding all lessons for movement/sector changes (SC) and performance feedback (PFB). Sector changes were measured by the amount of movement throughout the lesson by the PST. All of the teaching areas were divided into four sectors by paint, tape, etc. PST were not informed of why the teaching area was divided into sections. Performance feedback was recorded when PST gave feedback relating to the students’ performance. For example, “Nice job keeping your elbow up.” Performance feedback was coded when the PST gave feedback to a group or individual regarding the performance of the activity or game. Performance feedback was not recorded when the PST was explaining instructions. Inter-rater reliability was established by the primary researcher and research assistant on four occasions: SC (97.8%); and PFB (95.4%). Data were converted to rate per minute to normalize lesson lengths. A Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) was conducted using SPSS

version 22. Interview data were transcribed and subject to standard qualitative methods in order to generate themes (Patton, 1990).

Results Overall, PST receiving verbal prompts performed more sector changes (peer 3.55; instructor 3.8) and gave more performance feedback statements per minute (peer .85; instructor 1.14) than PST who received no verbal prompts (control = 2.31; .55) (see Figure 1).

Figure 1. Rate per minute of targeted behaviors based on condition.

Results indicated significant differences for the instructor condition only, Wilk’s Λ = 0.656, F6, 62= 2.4, p < .05. Specifically, univariate analysis signified PST gave more performance feedback when the instructor provided cues (F 2, 33 = 8.5, p=0.001). Post Hoc comparisons using Bonferroni indicated the mean score of performance based feedback for the instructor condition (M = 1.14, SD = .33) was significantly higher than the peer condition (M = .81, SD = .30) and the control condition (M = .61, SD = .31). It is important to note the mean score was higher for the peer condition compared to the control condition, even though there was not statistical significance. Interview data revealed the following dominant themes: (1) PST focused more on teaching when using BIE technology; (2) using BIE was sometimes distracting; (3) suggestions for improved implementation; and (4) differences in peer and instructor verbal cueing. Pseudonyms were used to maintain anonymity. Theme 1: All 16 PST said they were more focused on teaching when receiving verbal prompts. One PST stated, “When I went back and watched the videos, I could tell after directions [prompts] were given I would give more feedback and move around more.” Another PST explained, “My best lesson was with the earbud in. It’s good to have someone keep you on track.” Other

representative comments included: “It helped me correct something I was doing right then, rather than later”; “I felt more on task and focused”; and “When I would use them it really helped with continuing to walk around. I wouldn’t realize that I was just standing instead of walking as much as I should.” Theme 2: 50% of the PST stated using the BIE device was sometimes distracting. In an interview one PST explained how the verbal prompts interrupted their teaching: “I had the ear piece in my ear during this teaching. It was...interesting. It helped to know how much time I had left but it was distracting when I was talking to a child or helping them and Sara would say something. It made me forget what I was saying to the child. I am not sure that I like it.” Another PST added, “When someone was talking in my ear when I was talking it threw me off.” Other comments addressed distractions related to the actual BIE device. A PST stated, “The cords to the earpiece always seemed to get in my way.” Similarly, a PST noted, “The ear piece would fall out sometimes and I thought that took away from the kid’s time,” and “The ear bud was annoying when constant static was coming through your ear.” Other PST seemed to be less distracted and made alternative comments such as, “It was a little difficult at first to adjust to the ear piece being in your ear as you are teaching but eventually you get used to it and almost do not notice it.” Theme 3: 50% of the PST gave suggestions to improve implementation. Comments focused on three main areas including device capability, timing of verbal prompts, and content of verbal prompts. Concerning device capability, one PST commented, “I wish it was more like a Bluetooth device so you didn’t have to worry about the clip and cords.” When considering timing of verbal prompts a PST remarked, “I think instead of reminding the teacher every minute…only speak to the teacher if they are not using feedback.” Finally, in addressing the required content of verbal prompts, one PST explained, “I think the ear buds are a good idea; however, I think it would be even more helpful if our partner were able to say anything to us, instead of limiting it to good movement/good feedback.” Another PST added, “I think it may be a little more helpful to work on different criteria each week.” Theme 4: Differences in preference between peer and instructor verbal cues is included as a theme in part due to an unanticipated absence of comments by PST. Most PST did not appear to notice differences or mention preference as a salient factor in their experience using BIE. The four PST that did mention preference noted partiality to instructor prompts. One PST explained: “The "Ear-Bud" device was interesting. I liked it the best when I did it with Dr. Anderson. It helped me keep on my toes about keep moving around and not just standing in one spot of the room. It also helped with giving the kids feedback. When I did it with my partner it wasn't as efficient as doing it with Dr. Anderson.”

Another PST concurred by stating, “I liked it the best when I did it with Dr. Anderson.” A PST added, “It did make me a little more nervous when the instructor would talk to me but it really made me focus on what I was doing.” One PST mentioned receiving verbal prompts but was less partial by noting, “The ear bud was great with either my partner or Dr. Anderson…. I have to admit that I was pretty nervous when I did it with Dr. Anderson, but that was expected.”

Discussion This study confirms prior research on the effectiveness of BIE technology in teacher preparation settings. Teaching behaviors of PST can be altered when immediate feedback on teaching performance is given (Coogle, Rahn, & Ottley, 2015; Gibson & Musti-Rao, 2016; Scheeler & Lee, 2002; Scheeler, McAfee, Ruhl, & Lee, 2006). Specifically, in this study PST were more effective than the control group in increasing feedback and sector changes when provided with verbal cues from their instructor or peer using BIE technology. In interviews PST also identified the importance of immediate feedback on teaching behaviors and explained that it helped them correct performance in the moment rather than considering changes at a later date. Similar findings were noted in numerous teacher preparation studies by Scheeler and colleagues (2006; 2010; 2012), as well as Rock et al. (2014). BIE technology poses an assistive measure to promoting effective teaching behaviors, however as pointed out in interviews by PST in this study, communicative and technological strategies could be adjusted to ensure that distraction is less of an issue. Scheeler et al. (2006) noted similar findings and explained the teacher’s thought process can be interrupted when using BIE, which could have a negative impact on instruction. One potential suggestion is to provide verbal prompts when the teacher is not speaking, and timeliest during a pause immediately following a statement made by the teacher. While this technique may be more useful to provide less distractions, it does compromise the systematic nature in data collection of providing feedback in a precise manner such as the end of each minute. PST also noted the cumbersomeness of the wires of the BIE receiver, the earpiece falling out, and occasional static as distractions. An upgrade to more suitable equipment including a Bluetooth connection is certainly plausible and warranted. Another suggestion for improvement from PST was to allow verbal prompts on behaviors other than the specified criteria. Again, this could compromise the systematic procedures and variables in data collection, however the ability of novice PST to actively observe and provide appropriate and timely verbal prompts would be an interesting prospect to explore. In addition to mirroring the results of effectiveness and restraints of BIE technology, this study makes a unique contribution to the literature not evident in past research in that it compares the efficacy of prompts given by either a peer or instructor. Although significant differences were only found when comparing instructor cues to the control group for performance feedback, the rate per minute results were similar for peer and instructor prompts for sector changes

(3.55; 3.8) and performance feedback (.85; 1.14) respectively. This finding raises an important implication for using BIE technology in teacher training, particularly in teaching methods courses. Typically, the ability of the instructor to give immediate verbal prompts using BIE technology during a teaching episode is limited due to the pupil/teacher ratio in the course. Determining that peers can give comparable verbal prompts to the instructor on specified teaching criteria is relevant and essential in maximizing effective teacher development. One caveat to note, is three PST in this study did prefer instructor prompts to peer prompts, though this preference did not appear to influence performance.

Conclusion The results of this study show selected teaching behaviors can be increased when PST receive verbal cues using ear bud devices. However, effectiveness can vary slightly based on whether cues are given by a peer or instructor. An increase in targeted teaching behaviors were evident in all three conditions, but most prevalent with instructor verbal cues. Peer cues also noted an increase in use of targeted teaching behaviors, but not significantly like the instructor prompted cues. Overall, interviews showed PST felt positively about their experience using BIE, but also pointed out how future use could be improved to provide fewer distractions. Looking forward, even with past research utilizing wireless devices and video recording to observe teachersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; effectiveness, it is still unsafe to say if teachers are maintaining the effective behaviors they have learned. Future research should explore whether pre-service physical education teachers are retaining and continuing to implement effective teaching behaviors after intervention has occurred. Lengthening the time of intervention, and reevaluating months after intervention may allow PST to show their true effectiveness in teaching. BIE technology serves as an appropriate communication device for advancing effective teaching methods in teacher preparation programs.

References Alger, C., & Kopcha, T. J. (2009). eSupervision: A technology framework for the 21st century field experience in teacher education. Issues in Teacher Education, 18(2), 31-46. Bullock, L. M., Gable, R. A., & Mohr, J. D. (2008). Technology-mediated instruction in distance education and teacher preparation in special education. Teacher Education and Special Education: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, 31(4), 229-242. Coogle, C. G., Rahn, N. L., & Ottley, J. R. (2015). Pre-service teacher use of communication strategies upon receiving immediate feedback. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 32, 105-115. Farrell, A. C., & Chandler, D. (2008). Cooperating teachers impressions of the whisperin-my-ear (WIME) and traditional communication feedback methods for physical education in preservice teachers. Education and Human Development, 2(1), 1-9. Fry, M. F., & Hin, M. K. (2006). Peer coaching with interactive wireless technology between student teachers: Satisfaction with role and communication. Interactive Learning Environments, 14, 193-204.

Gibson, L., & Musti-Rao, S. (2016). Using technology to enhance feedback to student teachers. Intervention in School and Clinic, 51(5), 307-311. Goodman, J. I., Brady, M. P., Duffy, M. L., Scott, J., & Pollard, N. E. (2008). The effects of “bugin-ear” supervision on special education teachers’ delivery of learn units. Focus on Autism and Other Developmental Disabilities, 23, 207–216. Kahan, D. (2002). The effects of a bug-in-the-ear device on intralesson communication between a student teacher and a cooperating teacher. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 22(1), 86-104. Metzler, M. W. (1990). Instructional supervision for physical education. Human Kinetics. Regan, K., Weiss, M. P., & Evmenova, A. S. (2017). Using eCoaching to improve practice of novice teacher educators. Journal of Teaching and Learning with Technology, 6(1), 45-64. Rink, J. E. (2013). Measuring teacher effectiveness in physical education. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 84(4), 407–418. Rock, M., Gregg, M., Gable, R., Zigmond, N., Blanks, B., Howard, P., & Bullock, L. (2012). Time after time online: An extended study of virtual coaching during distant clinical practice. Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 20(3), 277-304. Rock, M. L., Gregg, M., Thead, B. K., Acker, S. E., Gable, R. A., & Zigmond, N. P. (2009). Can you hear me now? Evaluation of an online wireless technology to provide real-time feedback to special education teachers-in-training. Teacher Education and Special Education: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, 32(1), 64-82. Ottley, J. R., & Hanline, M. F. (2014). Bug-in-ear coaching impacts on early childhood educators’ practices and associations with toddlers’ expressive communication. Journal of Early Intervention, 36(2), 90-110. Scheeler, M. C., & Lee, D. L. (2002). Using technology to deliver immediate corrective feedback to preservice teachers. Journal of Behavioral Education, 11(4), 231–241. Scheeler, M. C., Congdon, M., & Stansbery, S. (2010). Providing immediate feedback to co-teachers through bug-in-ear technology: An effective method of peer coaching in inclusion classrooms. Teacher Education and Special Education: The Journal of the Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, 33(1), 83-96. Scheeler, M. C., McAfee, J. K., Ruhl, K. L., & Lee, D. L. (2006). Effects of corrective feedback delivered via wireless technology on preservice teacher performance and student behavior. Teacher Education and Special Education, 29(1), 12–25. Scheeler, M. C., McKinnon, K., & Stout, J. (2012). Effects of immediate feedback delivered via webcam and bug-in-ear technology on preservice teacher performance. Teacher Education and Special Education, 35(1), 77-90. van der Mars, H., Darst, P., Vogler, B., & Cusimano, B. (1995). Active supervision patterns of physical education teachers and their relationship with student behaviors. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 14(1), 99-112.

International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 11-21, February 2017

The Necessity for Assessment and Management of Speech, Language and Communication Needs to Take Account of Cultural and Multilingual Diversity Jonathan Glazzard Leeds Trinity University Leeds, England

Abstract. This paper argues for the need for a culturally responsive approach to the identification, assessment and intervention processes for multilingual children with speech, language and communication impairment. It highlights the potential for misdiagnosis and identifies the specific difficulties which may be evident and thus, potential indicators of language impairment as opposed to language difference. The paper critiques the standardised tests which are often used by therapists in the formal diagnosis process and argues that dynamic assessment offers the best potential for an accurate diagnosis. Keywords: Inclusion, Speech, Language, Communication.

Introduction This paper argues for the need for a culturally responsive approach to the identification, assessment and intervention processes for multilingual children with speech, language and communication impairment. It highlights the potential for misdiagnosis and identifies the specific difficulties which may be evident and thus, potential indicators of language impairment as opposed to language difference. The paper critiques the standardised tests which are often used by therapists in the formal diagnosis process and argues that dynamic assessment offers the best potential for an accurate diagnosis.

Defining Language Impairment and identifying key issues Ten percent of children in the United Kingdom have speech, language and communication needs (Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Keefe & Farrugia, 2016). A communication-rich environment is one of the most effective was of enhancing speech, language and communication (Glazzard, 2016). Children with speech, language and communication needs do not necessarily have cognitive delay (Glazzard 2016) and a range of assessment tools should be used for early identification of need (NASEN, 2014).

Language impairment has been defined as ‘the inability to learn language as manifested by deficits in expressive and or receptive language skills relative to age-matched peers who have comparable language exposure’ (Bedore and Pena, 2008: 1). It is a neurodevelopmental disorder (Rice, 2004) which affects approximately 7% of the population. Simultaneous bilinguals learn both languages before the age of 3 years (Paradis, 2010). In contrast, sequential bilinguals have their first language (L1) generally well developed prior to them learning a second language (L2) (Paradis, 2010). The dominant language is the one to which they have received most exposure. Development in the second language is not comparable to language development in age-matched monolingual peers (Bedore and Pena, 2008) and development in L1 may stall as L2 becomes more complex. Exposure to L2 and children’s socio-cultural experiences influence language development (Nelson, 1990). In many countries throughout the world speech and language therapy is a profession which is characterised by a largely homogenous workforce providing services to multilingual clients (Caesar and Kohler, 2007). In this context, therapists face significant challenges in relation to providing a culturally responsive service and there is limited research with practical significance to support therapists in overcoming these challenges (Verdon et al, 2015). These challenges are well-documented in the literature (Caesar and Kohler, 2007; Guiberson and Atkins, 2012; Williams and McLeod, 2012). The multilingual population is heterogeneous in that individual circumstances vary in relation to age of second language acquisition and level of exposure to language (Paradis et al 2011). There are some differences in the ways in which monolingual and multilingual children acquire speech and language (Grech and McLeod, 2012) and these differences can lead to false assumptions that multilingual children have disordered language and/speech. It is important to emphasise that if a disorder occurs it will be evident in all languages and not just the target language (Paradis et al, 2011). If the difficulties exist in only one language then this is described as a speech/language difference rather than a disorder (Kohnert, 2010). The speech and language therapist is responsible for the accurate diagnosis of speech/ language disorder rather than diagnosing a speech/ language difference. Vocabulary deficits are evident in both languages when there is evidence of language impairment (Bedore and Pena, 2008), including expressive and receptive delays. Delays in grammatical morphology, difficulties in relation to word meaning, word retrieval and word learning are comparable across languages (Bedore and Pena, 2008). Multilingual children with language impairment may also produce qualitatively different errors than the errors made by their monolingual peers (Bedore and Pena, 2008). This includes verb use (Jacobson and Schwartz, 2005) and patterns of grammatical production (Restrepo and Kruth, 2000). Identifying these errors may enable the therapist to make a more accurate diagnosis of language impairment.

The problems with standardised tests: a critique Speech and language therapists often use standardised tests to determine the presence of language impairment in combination with other methods (including observation and interviews). Thus, the validity of such tests is critical for accurate diagnosis. However, it has been argued that ‘there are few psychologically sound measures of language development in languages other than English and few bilingual clinicians’ (Pena et al, 2014: 2218). One of the pertinent issues documented in the literature is that speech and language therapists in English speaking countries tend to assess multilingual children’s speech in English only (Caesar and Kohler, 2007; Williams and McLeod, 2012) and this can often lead to misdiagnosis (Toohill et al, 2012). Studies have found evidence of cultural bias in tests (Sattler, 2001). Thus, cultural content and culturally specific knowledge is often embedded into test items (Warren, 2006) and this can detrimentally impact on the performance of children from multilingual backgrounds (Schon et al, 2008). This can result in the disproportionate representation of students from minority ethnic backgrounds in special education which has been a concern for over 30 years (Strand and Lindsay, 2009). Many standardised tests available for speech and language therapists are monolingual (Goral and Conner, 2013). The standardised norms are based on monolingual native speakers of English, whilst some tests are normed with monolingual speakers of another language (Goral and Conner, 2013). According to Bedore and Pena (2008) ‘the result is that bilingual children are often inappropriately compared to a monolingual norm’ (p.19). There are relatively few standardised tests which provide normative data from multilingual individuals (Goral and Conner, 2013) and given the heterogeneous nature of the multilingual population it would be extremely challenging to be able to find a test which is based on normative data which matches the multilingual individual being tested. Most tests are normed on monolingual individuals (McLeod and Verdon, 2014), which calls into question the validity of the results when the test is used on someone who is multilingual. There are also specific debates about the language proficiency of those administering the tests and the acceptability of code-switching during the assessment (Goral and Conner, 2013). There are few bilingual clinicians (Pena et al, 2014) which automatically places this group at a disadvantage. To address some of these issues the use of translation in test adaption and the development of local norms are common solutions (Bedore and Pena, 2008; Stow and Dodd, 2003; Taylor and Payne, 1983). However, these solutions are not unproblematic. Direct translation of tests into other languages assumes that language development is consistent across languages, which cannot be assumed (Bedore and Pena, 2008). Although there are similarities in language acquisition across languages there are differences which can affect test performance (Bedore

and Pena, 2008). For example, research has found that prepositions are more difficult in Spanish than in English (Zimmerman et al, 2002). Additionally, although translated tests may target linguistic forms of language impairment in the source language, they may omit aspects of the target language that might potentially differentiate between children with and without language impairment (for example, vocabulary use and narrative components) (Bedore and Pena, 2008). This is likely to be the case if item selection on tests is guided by the difficulties that children typically experience in the source language. When tests are adapted from English to other languages the markers of language impairment in the target language are often not addressed (Bedore and Pena, 2008). Most tests of language ability in English fail to meet the criteria for accurate diagnosis of language impairment (Spaulding et al, 2006). Tests which do accurately meet the criteria for accurate diagnosis select the items that children with language impairment find the most difficult (Perona et al, 2005). Most vocabulary tasks are not sufficiently challenging (Bedore and Pena, 2008

Dynamic Assessment Dynamic Assessment (DA) has been recommended as a strategy for assessing speech, language and communication needs in children from linguistically and culturally diverse populations (Hasson and Joffe, 2007). This approach is considered to minimise assessment bias due to lack of exposure to language (Laing and Kamhi, 2003) because the approach does not measure static knowledge which is subject to linguistic and cultural bias (Pena et al, 2014). Instead, DA focuses on the learning process rather than norm comparisons (Pena et al, 2014). It is the most commonly applied assessment approach for assessing children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (Laing and Kamhi, 2003) and research has suggested the value of this approach in assessing word learning (Pena et al, 2001), narrative production (Kramar et al, 2009) and categorisation (Ukrainetz et al, 2000). According to Goral and Conner (2013: 132) â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Dynamic assessment is a promising tool for differentiating multilingual children with PLI (Primary Language Impairment) from [those with] TLD (Typical Language Development) . Static assessment may not be accurate because multilingual children may demonstrate a wide range of performance in their current linguistic skills (Goral and Conner, 2013). Multilingual children may demonstrate a wide range of achievement in reaching typical developmental milestones (Goral and Conner, 2013) and achievement can be influenced by variables including age, language status, language input, pattern of exposure (sequential or simultaneous) and frequency of exposure (Goral and Conner, 2013). Therefore separating multilingual children with typical and atypical language development is inherently complex (Goral and Conner, 2013) and tenuous (Anderson and Marquez, 2009) because there may be overlap in errors between the two groups, for example in article use.

Dynamic assessment essentially measures the rate of change in performance (Goral and Conner, 2013) and information about the learning strategies employed by the child. Children with primary language impairment for example may attend to different features of words (Goral and Conner, 2013) compared to typically developing children and this may lead to more accurate identification of multilingual children with primary language impairment (Alt and Suddarth, 2012). Research has found that multilingual children with primary language impairment switched between languages more frequently than typically developing bilingual children (IIuz-Cohen and Walters, 2012). Additionally, this research found that multilingual children with primary language impairment code-switched twice as frequently from L2 to L1 than from L1 to L2 in contrast with typically developing bilinguals who code-switched equally in either direction (IIuz-Cohen and Walters, 2012). Dynamic assessment makes it possible to identify these errors as well as providing an indication of the rate of change in performance over time. Children with primary language impairment are often partly due to inefficiencies in memory and attention (Gillam et al, 2009; Pena et al, 2014). Dynamic assessment which incorporates clinical observation of strategy use as children are actively engaged in language learning can help to differentiate between multilingual children with language impairment and those who are typically developing. Attention and memory processes can then be systematically observed over time when children being to retell longer and more complex narratives (Pena et al, 2014). Dynamic assessment enables the clinician to gain insights into the learning behaviours of multilingual children with language impairment, thus making it possible to identify the underlying nature of childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s language difficulties and hence, their intervention needs (Pena et al, 2014).

Working in partnership with families: developing cultural responsiveness The Code of Practice for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (DFE, 2014) emphasises the importance of establishing effective partnerships with parents and carers at all stages of the process. These stages form part of a graduated response (DFE, 2014) which includes the following processes: identification and assessment of need; target setting; supporting the child to meet these targets; reviewing and evaluating progress. It is perhaps pertinent to note that parental referral to speech and language services is greater for monolingual children than it is for multilingual children (Stow & Dodds, 2005) so it is critical to ensure that parents are informed about the availability of services in their communities. It is critical that speech and language therapists are able to demonstrate cultural understanding to enable them to work effectively with different cultural groups (Bellon-Harn and Garrett, 2008). The starting point for this is for therapists to develop an awareness of their own cultural assumptions and to increase their knowledge of the values held by different cultural groups (Garrett & Pichette, 2000). This will enable therapists to understand more accurately the specific

barriers to developing effective parent partnerships. However, it cannot be assumed that values are shared across a cultural group. Therapists should therefore be willing to engage in cultural conversations with families in order to help them understand the cultural values that clients hold. The professional values of a therapist may not align with traditional family values. Whilst the therapist may view speech, language and communication difficulties as requiring specific intervention, family members may view these needs as an essential part of the childâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s identity (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008). Some cultural groups do not believe that they have a right to interfere with the childâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s biological characteristics and may seek spiritual intervention rather than clinical intervention (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008) to help the child. Other cultures may believe that clinical intervention may be counter-productive to the development of a positive and productive life (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008). Clearly, where cultural and professional values clash, the speech and language therapist plays a critical mediating role to help family members understand the necessity for clinical intervention. Some cultural groups may be reluctant for therapists to refer to child onto additional services due to fears that this might make the problem worse and they may believe that the problem will resolve itself (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008). In cases like this it is critical that the therapist establishes positive relationships with families in order to gain their permission for referral (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008). It is critical that the therapist develops a level of cultural understanding when working with clients from different cultures to enable them to manage the process of clinical intervention with cultural sensitivity and empathy. In this respect therapists need to understand traditional cultural values which will inevitably determine which family members are included in the process. Some cultures retain strong gender roles and this often determines who makes key decisions within the family. In Latino families the father is usually responsible for making decisions without any consultation with other family members (Brice, 2002). In African American cultures decision making processes are usually collaborative and involve all family members (Terrell & Hale, 1992). Native Americans place more emphasis on the role of women and elders as decision-makers (Portman & Garrett, 2005). For the therapist, understanding these cultural values will help them to decide who should be involved in the consultation process (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008). This process can take time and might involve an element of family counselling and therapists may therefore need to exercise a degree of patience whilst families come to terms with this. Once decision-makers have been established, the therapist needs to develop cultural understanding about the level of involvement that families might wish to have. In some Latino and Asian cultures the family may prefer to leave formal decision-making up to the therapist (Chan, 1998; Roseberry-McKibbin, 1995). Some Asian parents are less assertive and may prefer the therapist to work as an advocate in the best interests of the family (Huang, et al, 2004). In contrast research has indicated that first generation Chinese families may expect to be

advocates for their child and play a full role in any decision-making processes (Parette, Chuang & Huer, 2004). In addition to the dilemmas outlined is also the issue of how clinicians communicate with family members from different cultural groups (Barerra & Corso, 2002). Attitudes to non-verbal forms of communication (for example, eyecontact, hand-shaking, and proxemics) can vary across cultures (Adler, Rosenfeld and Towne, 1989), as can attitudes to verbal communication. In some cultures laughter and humour are critical to communication (Garrett et al, 2005) whilst silence may be valued in other cultures. Some cultural groups may prefer the clinician to communicate with them in writing (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008), although literacy levels need to be taken into account. Conversely, other cultures may prefer oral communication rather than written communication (Sileo & Prater, 1998). Essentially, families need to trust the therapist. They need to be able to trust that the therapist is working in their childâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best interests (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008). Therapists can establish this trust by explaining to families why specific interventions are needed. In the absence of this understanding, cultural mistrust can develop (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008) and families may choose not to participate in interventions which should be carried out in the home (Kaylanpur et al, 2000). Although families may not openly challenge the therapist for fear of being viewed as disrespectful (Hwa-Froelich & Wesby, 2003), cultural mistrust can manifests itself in families not complying with the recommendations made by the therapist. There is also potential for families to misinterpret the recommendations, resulting in families implementing interventions in the home in ways which do not address the identified need. Families from some cultural groups are likely to find the experience of working with a speech and language therapist stressful (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008). Some of this stress may be caused by families not understanding what the therapist is attempting to achieve. Additionally, families may not understand how the clinical intervention will support the child in achieving long-term aspirations which families have for their child. The therapist therefore has a critical role to play in establishing positive relationships based on trust, sensitivity and empathy. The therapist should always seek to minimise stress for families by explaining clearly how the intervention will benefit the child. The importance of therapists listening actively and attentively to multilingual parents has been emphasised in the literature (Verdon et al, 2015), including the need for the therapist to gain specific knowledge of dialectal variations (Verdon et al, 2015). Ultimately, the family, their culture and associated values, will determine what they want for their child (Bellon-Harn & Garrett, 2008). Involving families in open discussions which provide them with opportunities to share their own views and experiences of their child is one way of ensuring that therapists deliver a culturally responsive service (Sue & Sue, 2003).

Intervention

The impact of interventions can be maximised if the home language is used as the language of instruction (Kohnert et al, 2005). Additionally, intervention in all languages spoken has been found to have the greatest impact (Paradis et al, 2011). The choice of intervention and approach to delivering it will be influenced by the therapist’s ability to deliver an intervention in the home language (Kritikos, 2003) and the availability of bilingual staff to support the therapist in administering the intervention (Verdon et al, 2015). A community-based approach to intervention, where assessment and intervention take place in the community, outside the clinical setting, may help parents to feel safe and valued (Verdon et al, 2015) and may also address issues such as low-referral rates ( Stow & Dodd, 2003; 2005) and non-participation in intervention.

Conclusion This paper has argued that difficulties in relation to speech, language and communication impairment are evident in both the home language (L1) and the target language (L2) and therefore assessments of children’s performance in both languages is necessary for an accurate assessment. The paper has also argued that proficiency in L2 is affected by variables such as type and length of exposure to the second language as well as the age of the child and dynamic rather than static assessment enables therapists to ascertain the rate of progress over time as well as making it possible to assess language use within social and cultural contexts. This paper argues that therapists need to develop cultural knowledge, sensitivity and empathy when working with clients from multilingual populations. Values in relation to intervention may not be shared across cultures and the therapist will need to convince the family that intervention is necessary to support the child. This process is not unproblematic, given that families may be suspicious about the therapist’s motivations. However, a complete assessment cannot take place without including the perspectives of the parents. This paper has argued that therapists may wish to consider adopting a community approach to assessment and identification in order to support parents through the graduated response.

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International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 22-34, February 2017

Self-Fulfilling Prophecy on Employment Development of Individuals with Disabilities Li Ju Chen Chang Gung University Taoyuan, Taiwan

Abstract. This article considers the factors that contribute to being employed for the individuals with disabilities (IWDs). There are two dimensions that are commonly mentioned about the factors underlying IWDs poor employment performance, one is society factor, the other is IWD’s personal physiological conditions. However, this article claims it can be viewed from an alternative perspective. The mechanism responsible for this can be explained by the self-fulfilling prophecy: with a conviction of being accepting by society and the employment market (ASE), an IWD has more opportunities to obtain a job a short time after graduation. Based on self-fulfilling prophecy effect, this article proposes implications of employment transition services for IWDs. Keywords: individuals with disabilities; employment; self-fulfilling prophecy; transition services

Introduction Low employment of IWDs (Individuals with disabilities) is a problem prevalent in many countries all over the world. In the United States, 81 per cent of the overall population were employed, compared to only 32 per cent of IWDs (Carter et al., 2010). A survey of the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services in England noted that most IWD graduates were less able to enter into professional and full time employment than the general working-age population (Piggott & Houghton, 2007). In Taiwan, 22.5 per cent of IWDs over 15 years of age were employed while the unemployment rate was 4.14 per cent for all adults (Yang, 2009). Compared with the general working-age population, the poor employment achievement of IWDs is a concern in many countries (Carter et al., 2010; Ju et al., 2012; Piggott & Houghton, 2007). Is lower employment rate the fate of IWDs? There are two dimensions that are commonly mentioned about the factors underlying IWDs poor employment performance. The first dimension is the barriers caused by personal physiological conditions, including the level and category of the disability. If the disability status is the only critical factor in poor rates of gaining employment, there appears to be a direct explanation: the IWD’s

disability has undoubtedly caused the obstacles to employment; The second dimension involves the social factors including social unwelcoming conditions that make IWDs encounter unfair employment situations. Given these two conditions, which one cannot change, the IWDs have an inevitable result of poor employment status and there is no need for IWDs to make efforts to improve their employment potential; welfare policies are the best and only solution. However, it was agreed that policy intervention is not the fine solution. On the other side, it was found that an IWD’s internal conviction of being accepted by society and the employment market (ASE) is the real impact factor of an IWD’s employment status (Chen, 2015). The research provides support for the ‘self-fulfilling prophecy’ phenomenon which has been advocated in the humanities and social sciences in past decades. This article describes the self-fulfilling prophecy mechanism applied to IWDs’ potential employment, and guides readers to another perspective on interpreting IWDs’ employment predicaments.

Self-fulfilling Prophecy In 1928, W. I. Thomas proposed a sociological perspective idea that was later conceptualised as a ‘self-fulfilling prophecy’: the situation finally realised into the true when a person defined an affair is that meaning. What a person expects in advance is what he or she subsequently realises. Outcomes are associated with one’s expectations. This argument was much questioned initially: could an incorrect belief identified at the beginning actually become true in the consequence just because many people believed it, or because the incorrect belief was very strong (Wineburg, 1987)? It was with none scientific justification. In 1948, when Robert K. Merton first proposed the term self-fulfilling prophecy, the theoretical concept was systematically developed. Since the 1980s, many scholars and practitioners have believed that the self-fulfilling prophecy is a considerable force and a widespread phenomenon in society (Madon et al., 1997). Since then, this ‘magical’ viewpoint has been widely discussed in the stock market, the state of war, crime, etc., and has branched out into the fields of economics, psychology, politics, education and elsewhere. Thomas (1928) and Merton (1948) explained how the self-fulfilling prophecy works from a psychological viewpoint. According to Merton: Men respond not only to the objective features of a situation, but also, and at times primarily, to the meaning this situation has for them. And once they have assigned some meaning to the situation, their consequent behaviour and some of the consequences of that behaviour are determined by the ascribed meaning. (p. 194)

Thomas (1928) and Merton (1948) stated that once a meaning was attached to a situation, one’s subsequent behavior and its consequences were affected by the meaning attributed. Merton pointed out that when a mistaken belief is held by a person or a group of people, the mistaken belief becomes true in the end. This rule can explain social issues, including the financial meltdown, medical effects and racial discrimination problems. A self-fulfilling prophecy has two dimensions: one is that social beliefs, whether true or false, lead to the masses following blindly; an incorrect evaluation towards an event or person by the group encourages people to think in a particular way. The common expectations allow for potential social mobility and

then affects individuals’ actions. Social beliefs ultimately create the results expected by the majority. Another dimension of self-fulfilling prophecy is personal inner conviction; this inherent belief is moulded by prevailing social beliefs or by self-criticism. In either case, it will affect the individual’s intrinsic motivation to act, deprive of his or her activities and eventually affect the performance outcome. Although one’s individual actions is impacted by his or her belief directly in this process, actions are still profoundly impacted by the belief in the society. As shown in Figure 1, A impacts B, and B impacts C; this appears as a series of impacts. Here is thinking about whether it is possible to skip A and examine the impact of B on C directly. The self-fulfilling prophecy effect on the outcome of an event will have a different meaning.

Social belief

Individual belief

Individual

信念

performance outcome

Mass mobility

Individual action 行動

Figure 1: The impact of belief on action and its outcome

The Factors of an IWD’s Employment The barriers caused by disabilities either directly or indirectly affect an IWD’s progress in employment. These obstacles include the following.

Physiological Conditions Personal physiological conditions such as disability type and level are thought of as obstacles to one’s employment. Individuals with mild or physical disabilities have better development while individuals with severe disabilities, emotional disabilities, mental disabilities or multiple disabilities have poorer performance (Carter et al., 2010; Winn & Hay, 2009). If the physiological obstacle is the cause of poor development, IWDs will attain limited progress in employment as the disability condition is hard to change and it is meaningless to work hard. However, some studies have suggested that no relationship exists between employment status and physiological conditions for IWDs (Chen 2013; Bishop, 2005).

Social Conditions Much of the discussion on social conditions is about discrimination (Ju et al., 2012; Piggott & Houghton, 2007; Roessler et al., 2007). These studies have repeatedly pointed out that discrimination and prejudiced attitudes towards IWDs result in severely impaired social participation, which is the critical reason for IWDs’ poor gaining employment. To protect IWDs employment rights, many countries have set up social welfare policies, or job rights protection regulations to promote IWDs’ employment opportunities. At present, welfare and rights

policies for the promotion of IWDs’ employment, such as the 1963 Vocational Education Act, and the 1984 Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act in the United States, and the Disability Welfare Act in 1980 in Taiwan, have been in place for decades. However, these policies still cannot completely resolve the obstacles to IWDs gaining employment (Chen, 2015; Winn & Hay, 2009). So far the employment rate of IWDs is much lower than that of the average person. Clearly, social welfare policy alone is still not the only solution to IWDs’ employment issues.

State of Mind Scholars believe that the social support system and ASE are important factors for developing IWDs’ employment potential (Roessler et al., 2007; Winn & Hay, 2009). IWDs may believe that society has not accepted them and shape negative self-expectations during the seeking employment process (Hopkins, 2011). Hopkins pointed out that an IWD’s expectation is affected by the experiences of disability sake. In addition, IWDs may believe that the IWD welfare and rights protection policies mean that they are a social burden and make less contribution to society. Holding this belief strengthens their convictions about community charity and leads to a negative mental state.

Actions of IWDs The actions of IWDs are affected by their disabilities, which thereby affects their progress in employment (Chen, 2013; Babbitt & White, 2002). 1. Disability itself: Strauser et al. (2006) found that IWDs believed disabilities had a great impact on their career orientation. Hitchings et al. (2001) indicated that the disability type and its severity affected one's performance. Impairments such as physical disabilities, hearing impairments and severe learning disabilities often placed restrictions on movement and reduced exploratory behaviour in career development. 2. Academic performance: Some IWDs do not perform well in academic settings. They may have a comprehensive cognitive disability or have restrictions in learning inputs such as auditory stimuli, visual cues or operating performance. These often result in IWDs having poor academic or professional achievement that affects their career development. 3. Career activities: As with most people, IWDs who had a clear goal or took aggressive action towards their potential career had clearer career orientations and better achievement (Hitchings et al., 2001). These actions were encouraged in a career exploration process that included career scaling, workplace visits or gaining work experiences (Alverson et al., 2010). Employers often worry about IWDs’ work ability and this reduces their willingness to hire. Without work experience to prove work ability, IWDs will limit their employment opportunities (Kang et al., 2010; Piggott & Houghton, 2007; Winn & Hay, 2009). IWDs often take time for medical treatment or resist taking action because of psychological problems. These factors reduce positive actions in IWDs’ professional life (Chen, 2015; Piggott & Houghton, 2007). From one point of view, IWDs’ employment status is impacted by their disabilities: disabilities impact on social opportunities, personal psychological

states and the actions that determine individual employability and subsequent employment achievements. However, from another angle, one should not look at how the disability is an obstacle to social survival opportunities or its effects on employment, but instead look at how employment achievement is impacted by personal mental states and their related actions. Figure 2 shows a similar, but more nuanced perspective than Figure 1, where A has an impact on B, and B has an impact on C. It is feasible to see the impact of B on C directly. If the social conditions are set aside, it is possible to review how an IWDâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s action directly impacts on his or her employment activities. A surprising argument can be made concerning the self-fulfilling prophecy, which offers an analysis that goes beyond the traditional view of employment development.

type Disability

Psychology

level

Action Social conditions

Employment

Employability

outcome

A Figure 2: How disability impacts IWDs’ employment development

The Effect of the Self-fulfilling Prophecy on IWDs’ Employment When an IWD transits from school to the employment market, his or her anticipation of ASE was found to influence his or her development greatly (Hopkins, 2011). Carter et al. (2010) noted that IWDs’ beliefs whether society accepts them is the critical issue affecting their employment performance and career progression. The thoughts eventually becomes realized in accord with the self-fulfilling prophecy. In the self-fulfilling prophecy, the IWDs’ employment development may be divided into four steps (see Figure 3):

Belief of Acceptance Shaping Most people develop a negative belief – ‘I am not accepted by the society’ – think themselves cannot integrate into the community to which they belong. Roessler and colleagues (2007) found that people try to contribute to the society in order to obtain positive attitudes from the community. For the sake of gaining the benefits of well-being policies, IWDs may define of themselves as vulnerable in society; which makes them more sensitive to doubting whether society accepts them with sincerity. One study found that 27.8 per cent of IWDs before graduation, and 20.8 per cent of IWDs after graduation think of themselves as accepted by society. These perceptions did not vary by gender, disability category, disability level or academic achievement (Chen, 2015). When other IWDs shared their perception that there is discrimination in society against IWDs, or that workplaces regard IWDs as with poor abilities, then their belief in society acceptance tends to be negative. Individuals will hold negative attitudes towards opportunities to enter the workplace and negative expectations towards his or her performance outcomes. Madon et al. (1997) pointed out that when teachers teach for students with low academic achievement with much unpleasant learning experiences over a long time, these students will have low self-affirmation. Madon et al. explained that for these students, lack of friendliness in the environment made satisfactory learning performance more difficult to achieve. Jussim et al. (1996) found that African-Americans, individuals with low socioeconomic status and those with low academic achievement are more intensely affected by the self-fulfilling prophecy than others. These students are more sensitive to the strong messages generated by the mechanism of the self-fulfilling prophecy. The self-fulfilling

prophecy effect occurs more severely in IWDs because they have greater sensitivity about feeling accepted.

Beliefs Impact Employability One’s mental state affects knowledge and attitudes, and thereby changes one’s actions; these actions ultimately have an impact on progress in employment. If an IWD thinks the labour market accepts them, he or she will be confident that the opportunity exists to obtain the same results as a person without disabilities. One will make efforts to acquire employment and contribute to society. On the other hand, if an IWD believes that society has negative attitudes and is unfriendly, he or she may believe there are no opportunities to achieve and intends to give up working hard to avoid wasting time. The individual then takes passive action and is unable to raise employability. It is found that in this case, progress in employment was not optimal, and the barriers to action were more intense (Madon et al., 1997). Further research found that no matter what the disability was, when an IWD felt high ASE, his or her actions were no different from the general population: aggressively cultivated their employability, captured employment information, and developed their job-seeking strategies. They experienced considerable confidence about their futures while at school, which made them take more positive actions; they also did not ask for much welfare support from the government and pursued a high quality of life. On the other hand, those IWDs who thought ASE is low gave up on working hard in order to achieve more meaningful survival. Given the reality they perceived, most did not rely on working hard but instead hoped to access employment-related social welfare, and were less concerned about cultivating employability (Chen, 2013). Wineburg (1987) pointed out that when an IWD has received the message from society that he or she is subordinate, that person will feel themselves to be poor and their performance will be poor. The perceptions of the general public inculcate profound values into one’s mind (Clark, 1955, p. 50, cited in Wineburg, 1987), thereby affecting the IWDs’ actions. As Wineburg stated, the effects move from ‘out there’ in society to inside individuals’ minds and become ‘embedded in the personality’ aided by the mechanism of the self-fulfilling prophecy (p. 28). In this effect of the self-fulfilling prophecy, expectation is an important element that profoundly impacts one’s next action. The direction of behaviour is not only caused by psychological factors, but also by practical considerations of survival. Although the perception may be wrong and the expectations unreasonable, the self-fulfilling prophecy effect still has a considerable impact on employment.

Employability Impacts on Performance Outcomes Same with other people, an IWD’s attitude has an impact on his or her efforts in employment; this affects employability and eventually affects employment outcomes. It leads some people to enter into the job market, while others have greater difficulty. According to a study in Taiwan (Chen, 2015), 40.4 per cent of college students with disabilities got a job after graduating if, when they were still in school, they believed ASE of IWDs was low. In contrast, 80.0 per cent of college students with disabilities got a job after graduating if they believed ASE of IWDs was high when they were still in school. The latter figure is close to the

general college graduates’ employment rate of 83.5 per cent in Taiwan (Chen, 2015; Ministry of Education, 2006). If IWDs considered themselves unaccepted by society and the workplace, they reduced their efforts and were less employable, which resulted in difficulties in acquiring a job. Given the self-fulfilling prophecy effect, ASE was not a direct cause in gaining a job or not; rather it was the action formed by the beliefs that affected an IWD’s employability, and thereby affected their employment outcomes.

Outcomes Strongly Affect Convictions The experience of entering the job market or working in the workplace continues to have an impact on IWDs’ convictions concerning ASE of IWDs. If an IWD has a negative belief originally, bad personal experience in the workplace makes the belief in non-acceptance stronger: ‘This society considers an IWD incompetent’ or ‘I was rejected no matter how hard I work.’ This belief then has an impact on subsequent actions, and repeatedly affects employment performance, which goes into circulation. As Wineburg (1987) put it, the inferior feelings have been formed and will be continued. The public’s conviction that IWDs are characterised by their poor employability has fostered a widespread social norm in society that has a recurring influence on IWDs’ progress in employment generation after generation. Chen’s follow up study found that one year after graduating from college, there was a marked change in the person’s beliefs about ASE of IWDs: for the IWDs who did not gain a job after graduating, 100 per cent of those who had thought that there was high ASE of IWDs before graduation, changed into holding a belief in low acceptance after graduating. However, no one who believed low ASE of IWDs before graduation changed into believing that ASE of IWDs was high; For the IWDs who acquired a job after graduating, 37.5 per cent, who thought there was high ASE before graduating, came to believe there was low ASE. Only 9.5 per cent, who believed low ASE of IWDs before graduation came to believe high ASE of IWDs after graduation (Chen, 2015). These findings show that after the IWDs left formal education, their experiences were likely to create more negative beliefs. This phenomenon may be because they themselves had bad experienced. Thus the conviction held about IWDs’ employability spreads to the social environment, where it has a specific impact on other IWDs entering the labour market. The prophecy has a circular impact on society (see Figure 3) and profound impacts on the IWDs in their search for employment.

Employability

Strategies

Plans

Attitudes

Self concept

Inside cognition

Belief in society’s acceptance

Society

expectancy

Outside information

Employment outcome

Expectations

Society’s expectations

Self concept Actions Personal experience Figure 3: Self-fulfilling prophecy concerning IWDs’ progress in employment

Employment Transition Service IWDs’ beliefs are influenced by others’ discriminatory stereotypes in society, which cause reciprocal feelings among IWDs and have an impact on IWDs’ expectations of the future. According to the self-fulfilling prophecy, these feelings are sufficient to make IWDs isolate themselves from the crowd and develop differently from others in employment. Wineburg (1987) pointed out that the effects of the self-fulfilling prophecy process are caused by environmental issues and the individual’s convictions; those who do not have positive expectations are sacrificed in the social structure, IWDs are innocent. Because of the self-fulfilling prophecy on IWDs’ employment, the employment transition service offers a new perspective: although disabilities create some barriers for IWDs, people are able to develop their employment resources despite their disabilities. This perspective creates another opportunity: Other than a victim in society, IWDs’ progress in employment is mainly restricted by themselves. As long as IWDs do not place limits on themselves by thinking themselves inferior before taking actions, they can develop their employment in the same ways as other people. The key point is whether a person is aggressively undertaking activities to develop job skills and get ahead in finding and keeping employment. An employment transition service for IWDs can offer the following assistance.

Changes in the External Social Environment Prejudices and stereotypes in society led some groups to be underestimated and subjected to uneven treatment (Madon et al., 1997). A social responsibility viewpoint as O’Hara noted in 2004: It is the first thing in a transition service’s policy to change people’s attitudes to reduce workplace discrimination against IWDs. This was quite a humanism concept in rehabilitation innovations. This

phenomenon needs recognition in national policy to uphold justice and encourage society to have more reasonable expectations and positive attitudes about IWDs (Eden, 1986). Employment supports in the social environment are expected to be consistent with the first chapter of the ‘Americans with Disabilities Act’ which states avoiding workplace discrimination against IWDs, and allow them to reasonably obtain and retain employment (Roessler et al., 2007). In such a policy, employers are guided to understand IWDs’ abilities, and to eliminate inappropriate attitudes so that IWDs make efforts without the hesitation to promote their employability and enhance their employment opportunities.

Perceived and Addressed Personal Beliefs It is difficult to change external conditions, so transition services should focus on IWDs’ attitudes, living strategies or life plans to cope with unfavourable external conditions. Scholars have advocated that there should be a curriculum to help those who suffer from the negative impact of the self-fulfilling prophecy to change their feelings into positive beliefs of themselves (Farmer, Allsopp, & Ferron, 2015; Marburger, 1963, cited in Wineburg, 1987). Another critical program is to improve self-determination and to promoting successful transitions (Farmer et al., 2015). When an IWD thinks he or she is not accepted by society, the service should identify the circumstances and guide the individual to adjust their attitude and cope with the social reality; this would minimise the impact of social rejection. Helping IWDs to avoid misunderstanding and negative behaviours but with self-confidence in response to social attitudes and social discrimination will help them attain better employment prospects.

Enhancing the Individual’s Employability In the process of the self-fulfilling prophecy, social conscience and self-concept shape personal conviction. Social conscience is part of popular convictions and is difficult for an individual to change. Self-concept can be adjusted by personal experience, achievement and thinking, which can be controlled by an individual. Madon et al. (1997) pointed out that when an IWD’s awareness of the environment is consistent with his or her personal self-concept, the self-fulfilling effect will be more intense. That is, if an IWD believes society think IWDs are poor performers, and they also think of themselves in this way, then the predicted effects of poor performance are very likely to occur. On the other hand, if one believes that society thinks IWDs are poor performers, but one does not think that of oneself, the predicted effects of poor performance will be less. An IWD is able to have more confidence in meeting employment conditions with high employability even if he or she think the external environment holds negative expectations about IWDs. The negative self-fulfilling prophecy effect is then reduced. Therefore it is a very good strategy to aggressively cultivate employability, for example, to perceive and find work opportunity (Martini, & Cavenago, 2017) will make the students have more opportunities to successfully transition from school to employment (Wehman, Sima, Ketchum, West, Chan, & Luecking, 2015). It will encourage IWDs to hold a positive self-concept that will enhance their opportunity to enter the job market.

Conclusion IWDs’ employment issues were much discussed according to the social model that has prevailed in past decades. It is thought that others’ prejudices against IWDs have created barriers and discrimination, resulting in difficulties for IWDs to participate fully in society. Unwelcoming and inadequately accessible facilities among employers have led IWDs to have much lower employment rates than the others. This article does not deny that these social factors have an impact on IWDs’ employment. However, the history of the social factors involved is a long one, and difficult for individuals to confront. For social changes to give IWDs fair employment conditions, IWDs should patiently look forward to the government establishing employment policies that initiates public acceptance, at least, with apparent acceptance. On the other hand, a factor which an individual can control is keeping any negative attitudes to himself or herself away. According to research and the self-fulfilling prophecy, it seems that IWDs’ negative self-perceptions and projections lead to their employment prospects being difficult to develop. Therefore, changing the individual’s attitude is the most direct and promising strategy for promoting IWD progress in employment. A statistic shows that from 1985, when the self-fulfilling prophecy was first analysed and discussed, nearly 400 related articles explored the effects of self-fulfilling prophecy in educational environments (Wineburg, 1987). Now, 30 years later, this topic is discussed in depth in other disciplines. However, the self-fulfilling prophecy was never applied to IWDs’ poor employment performance issues. The employment research pointed out that there is a significant relationship between IWDs successful employment after graduation and their convictions about ASE of IWDs before graduating. Of course, this conviction is not a direct factor concerning whether a person is successfully employed, but it is the driving force behind working hard or giving up. Thus shaping one’s employability differently and shape a different performance outcome in the workplace. In an employment transition service, IWDs should actively establish themselves as moving forward. To motivate IWDs to actively cultivate employability, namely, to strengthen the link between B and C in Figures 1 and 2, IWDs need to expect promising employment development. As an advocate in Reader’s Digest once said: ‘Self-fulfilling prophecy – the key to success. It was proved this magical power can greatly enhance one to have the intelligence, willpower and competitiveness to the success. The secret is: to expect’ (P34, Good & Brophy, 1977, cited in Wineburg, 1987). An individual’s behaviour tends to be influenced by his or her personal conviction: If a person thinks of oneself as others think of him (or her), that is what he (or she) becomes.

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International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 35-47, February 2017

A Simulation-Based Model for Teaching Business Writing: Exploration and Applications Dr. Andrew Szanajda Dr. Fang-Chun Ou Overseas Chinese University Taichung, Taiwan Abstract. The purpose of this work is to review the important role of technology and authentic assessment in the field of business writing, how it has come about and developed over time. A review of Business English writing classes indicate the digitization of classrooms has led to significantly higher student satisfaction and, even more impressive, greater academic achievement for students (Zhonggen & Guifang, 2016). Additionally, Spector et al (2016) discuss how technology can make assessments more engaging for today's students, largely due to resembling functioning in a real world workplace. Despite these advantages, there have been few sources that have illustrated how authentic assessment can be used for business writing, and how to teach or learn and how effective it is at achieving learning objectives and goals. This work offers a framework for study of simulation-based model for teaching business writing, beginning with a review of the research and scholarship on business writing and authentic assessment, and then explaining a framework that identifies key steps for future investigation while providing instructions for conducting research. Using simulations can prepare business students for future writing success in the rapidly shifting global marketplace. Keywords: Authentic assessment, Business writing, Simulations

Introduction Writing skills when engaging in doing business is an increasingly important skill owing to the volume of communications. Content knowledge of the field in which the business is making its mark is certainly important for any successful businessperson, but it is certain that communication is even more crucial for business success. Business today is more visible than ever before. Companies and corporate entities are accessible to their customers, for better or worse, and this has led to an increase in the amount of communication necessary by what were previously often faceless corporations in the eyes of the consumer. Brand presence will likely likewise demonstrate social media presence in multiple forms, complete with customer interaction on a day by day and

sometimes even minute by minute basis, as indicated online. Furthermore, in the age of the twenty-four-hour news cycle, business situations that once might have been written about or noticed only on a small scale often become news stories that require communication from marketing departments, publicity managers, or even the CEO. Along with all of these additional opportunities for communication in the world of business today, others abound based around the fact that individuals operate in an increasingly global business culture. Communication among national and often international stakeholders is a key point for business success, and that communication is developing in new and unexpected ways, ranging from Skype calls to emails. It is also becoming available in multiple languages. As increasingly more people move more easily in this era of globalization and the technology that accompanies it, it is increasingly more feasible that the people working on a project may never meet in real life or may not even speak all the same languages, but they must complete their tasks regardless, and must communicate effectively, sometimes in challenging circumstances, in order to reach their common objectives. With the business world's increased need for effective communication, it is naturally the case that companies are looking for candidates for positions who can fulfill this requirement. While speaking multiple languages is definitely an advantage for these applicants for business positions, English is in great part the lingua franca of business worldwide. Yet, even those who can write and communicate effectively in just this one language are not always easily found. MBA programs and undergraduate business programs have accordingly focused increasing attention in recent years on teaching business writing. From writing emails to creating effective presentations for marketing purposes, writing for business is notably different from the types of writing that most students learn in university courses, and this special skill is becoming increasingly more important. Teaching business writing takes many forms. However, there has hitherto been little examination in the scholarly community concerning authentic assessment as it can be used for business writing. Authentic assessment, with its focus on real-world tasks and products, would be ideal for functioning in business. The purpose of this work is to examine the importance of business writing for business learning, and discusses the crucial role of authentic assessment in keeping students engaged and in preparing them for real-life situations they will face as members of the workforce. A simulationbased model is proposed for teaching business writing that would allow students to experience the various contexts in which business writing is very important in as close to a real-life scenario as many classrooms would allow. A comprehensive review of the current literature related to business writing and authentic assessment is included, followed by presenting a model in which this method of understanding what students have learned can be helpful to both students and instructors.

Literature Review The intersection of business writing and authentic assessment has not been explored extensively in the scholarly literature on either topic, while both of these topics have been individually studied at in detail. However, these areas

of previous research must be examined and evaluated in order to determine the importance of a simulation model for teaching business writing. Communication in business is especially important since a great deal of business dealings is team-based, and therefore students will need to be duly prepared to enter a field in which they will repeatedly work in teams on projects. The clearer the communication between team members, the more effective these teams will be at both a collegiate/educational level and on a professional level with regard to their functions, as defined by Poysa-Tarhonen, Elen, & Tarhonen (2016). It is thus crucial for students to be able to communicate well with team members. This is what business writing is for, but business writing cannot exist in a vacuum. According to the consensus of the scholarly community, it must be grounded in traditional English language and writing instruction, especially for learners who are working in English as a non-native language (or L2). Quible & Griffin (2007) are concerned about a so-called lost generation of business writers, whose business acumen is high but they cannot communicate effectively. Writing instruction for business must therefore begin with writing instruction for its own sake.

English Instruction and Business Writing There is some disagreement regarding the proficiency needed in terms of business writing in students' preparation for successful careers in their individual fields. How and how much this skill needs to be taught are matters of debate, and different students and professors have differing ideas about these issues as well. In a study of students of Lebanese descent studying at the Lebanese American University, Bacha & Bahous (2008) found that students tended to perceive their writing skills as more satisfactory than their professors gave them credit for, and that they considered themselves to be sufficient competent to complete writing tasks that both Business and English department faculty members considered to be beyond their learning levels. Students also had different ideas from faculty regarding what business writing tasks were necessary and should be practiced. Despite these differences, both students and faculty in the study considered that business writing was important and, perhaps even more significantly, that both the Business and English department faculty should collaborate in teaching business writing. This is arguably even more important for students of English as a foreign language who are confronting the realities of the importance of effective communication in their field in a language in which they may not consider themselves to entirely competent about using. Good communication is not just based on the individual tasks that come with working in business, but is also based on a fundamental understanding of grammar, sentence structure, syntax, and other mechanics, and in many cases for EFL students, those writing techniques must be explicitly taught in English. Smith (2011) also noted that business students should not just write, but also read both business and unrelated material as a means of improving their writing skills. Being literate is helpful in communication, but this practice contributes to ensuring that students see good writing in actual practice, in terms of both style and mechanics. Bay (2010) argued for greater use of composition techniques in teaching professional writing. Writing as a

discipline in itself has much to do with successful business writing, and the teaching of good writing begins with the teaching of writing mechanics. The importance of English mechanics instruction as part of the business writing learning process cannot be overstated. Weldy, Maes, & Harris (2014) noted that first year university students recognise the importance of business writing, but they also tend to undervalue it, as well as consider that their skills are sufficiently suitable without there being a need for a great deal of further instruction. Their research presented a two-semester focused writing program that focused on a five-step writing process, in which students completed ten assignments. Students' understanding of the academic importance of business writing, as well as their grammar and the organisation of their writing, improved significantly at the end of this program, thus demonstrating the idea that teaching business writing along with teaching how important it is has a very significant component of conventional English teaching. When students are taught business writing with a process that necessitates careful use of language, much as they might be in a basic English class, they not only become better writers who are skilled at one way communication, but also with a greater understanding of the importance of business writing. Clear, prescriptive techniques for improving their writing, such as the 3D Writing Heuristic put forward by Hershey (2007) help students write more clearly and can provide students with specific directions to follow in order to become better writers. Washington (2014) makes an explicit connection between the globalisation of business and effective written communication, demonstrating the importance of written work for businesspeople in the twenty-first century. Effective writing skills are becoming more of a focus in business education programs throughout the United States, with three essential factors being identified: teaching writing to international students, faculty attitudes toward the teaching of writing, and workplace writing experience. Collaboration between business and English faculty and departments addresses all of these matters. International students can receive the explicit instruction in grammar and mechanics that they often need, faculty attitudes toward writing are improved with greater transparency and collaboration among faculty members, and workplace-type writing can be undertaken as part of class work assignments within this new model. English writing instruction in the traditional sense thus has an important role to play in terms of teaching students to write specifically in business contexts. According to Reardon (2015), 84% of students believe that their writing is adequate for the workplace without explicit instruction in either writing or business writing in particular, but it is clear that interventions such as those created by Weldy, Maes, & Harris can greatly improve students' skills. Stowers & Barker (2003) noted the same situation as Reardon - students believe that their writing skills are sufficiently useful for the workplace, although neither professors nor, more significantly, business owners who might hire them agree with this assessment. Stowers and Barker posit that motivation is a crucial part of having business students write better, and their work indicates that one way to motivate students is through the use of technology in the classroom.

Teaching with Technology Reardon (2015) found that the use of computerized assessment technology for writing can be especially effective for business writers, who focus much more on the areas in which their writing is lacking, such as editing mechanics, when assessed in this manner. Notably, students agree with teachers on this issue, finding that computerized writing assessment can help them learn and remember the rules of grammar and editing, which could be their greatest shortcomings. Thus, assessment can actually become a useful part of the learning process for business writing in and of itself. Technology can also be useful in the sense of the "flipped" classroom, in which students learn at home, often through streaming videos or other forms of technology, and practice the skills they have learned in class thereafter. Zhonggen & Guifang (2016) found that flipped classrooms used specifically for Business English writing classes led to significantly higher student satisfaction and, even more impressive, greater academic achievement for students. Web 2.0 activities, including the use of social media and other interactive web applications, have also been found to lead to higher student satisfaction and greater student creativity, as well as to higher student self-efficacy, according to Liu, Lu, Wu, & Tsai (2016). Yen, Additionally, Hou, & Chang (2015) found that Facebook and Skype were effective learning tools that enhanced business studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; ability and comfort levels communicating in English, in a study of Taiwanese students. Using of technology in the business writing classroom thus has a wide range of positive effects for students that extend beyond simple mastery of the material. Peer evaluation of business writing tasks has been examined in literature sources at least since the publication of the work by Lynch and Golen (1992), but the methods of peer editing and writing collaboration have been greatly enhanced by technology that has since been developed. Lin, Yu, and Yang (2014) posit a model of cloud-based writing instruction and assessment that encourages collaboration among students and between students and faculty members. In their model, students work on documents and writing assignments in the cloud, such as with the use of Google Docs, and are able to see and comment upon each others' work as part of a peer review process and revise their own as needed while a greater range of skills are improved. This model of interactive learning has been found to be effective specifically for business writing, and has obvious applications to the real world, which, the authors point out, make it both more engaging and more effective as a strategy for teaching business writing. Even before the introduction of cloud technology, Forman (1991) emphasized the importance of collaboration in business writing, and technology has since allowed for this method of teaching, learning, and writing to have become a practical reality. According to Hanjani (2016), collaborative writing and making continuous revisions are especially helpful for learners working in a second language. The process of peer review and feedback, when applied gradually with an instructorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s guidance, empowers students and is an effective learning technique. Stoddart, Chan, & Liu (2016) took the idea of collaborative writing a step further, investigating the use of wiki-based writing for collaboration. Wikis allow students to share their knowledge with each other, with students all contributing to the class knowledge base and are enabled to edit and collaborate

on each other's writing. The resulting product can be used by future classes and students. This kind of writing, with its peer-editing component, is especially helpful for L2 learners, and wiki-based collaboration, along with cloud-based collaboration, is supported among practitioners as the best practices for business writing. Computers and technology clearly have a role to play in terms of learning to write in the business context, and this is further amplified by the work of Chang (2016), who examined e-learning as a teaching modality for aspiring entrepreneurs in Taiwan. His study found that students who went through an e-learning based training created better business plans, and noted that team-based learning, when led effectively, can lead to the achievement of learning goals. The burgeoning utility of the internet in teaching business writing is clearly evident, which is advisable, especially given how much business students will use online tools in their future careers. The real-world applications are evident.

Assessing Business Writing Effectively Even writing instruction that has components of traditional English instruction and is aided by technology may not be effective for every student, and in order to ensure that all students are learning what is expected and that programs are graduating students ready for the workplace, intensive and effective assessment is needed. May, Thompson, & Hebblethwaite (2012) note the importance of robust assessment for business writing, including the use of data analysis to determine whether students are coming away from their learning experiences with the requisite skills for success in future workplaces. One way to assess business writing is by having students both analyze and sometimes write case studies, and this has been found to be helpful for L2 learners in Russia, where Brattseva & Kovalev (2015) noted that reading and writing case studies was a tool to both teach and assess the learning of native Russian-speaking business students in English. They found that using such a method of assessment and learning helps students be more communicative, as well as helping establish a host of other positive traits: students also become more goal-oriented, more creative, and more decisive. If it is done correctly, assessment can then also contribute to the learning process for students of business writing. According to Giulioni & Voloshin (2014), the use of mini casestudies is perhaps even more useful for both learning and assessment In some instances, since these are less intimidating for students. The Role of Authentic Assessment in Learning Authentic assessment involves students creating results that have actual use and that imitate what they would do in real-world situations. Huba & Freed (1999) characterize authentic assessment as large part of their model of learnerfocused assessment on college campuses, noting that students learn more effectively this way and are more highly motivated to learn as well. Ullah & Wilson (2007) confirm the importance of student involvement in learning and in the assessment process for student success. Trevitt and Stocks (2012) argue for the use of portfolios as part of assessment, and these have the flexibility to be composed of a range of different results, which can lead to more authentic

assessment as students are tasked to create and complete the same items and tasks they would in a real world career context. One way to increase the authenticity of both formative and summative assessment for twenty-first century learners in particular is by using technology as part of the assessment process, and not just of the learning process, as is discussed above. Spector et al (2016) discuss how technology can make assessment more engaging for today's students in large part because it resembles what they will do in a real world workplace. Problem-based and inquiry-based learning, in which students learn organically and are assessed in ways that make sense in the real world, are, according to the study group that produced this study, the best practices for modern, tech-savvy learners. Experiential learning functions in conjunction with authentic assessment, and this is especially true in a business context. When so much of what students are learning is going to be used directly in the real world, learning by doing, and being assessed on the products they create, can be extremely helpful for students. Deeter-Schmelz (2015) discusses a unique corporate and academic integrated partnership in which students in a sales management course underwent a combination of role play, traditional learning of course content, and real-world application through interaction with corporate partners in order to learn business writing skills. These elements created an effective project in which students were able to learn and then to apply new skills in an authentic manner. This type of learning and assessment therefore definitely has a purpose, specifically in a business English classroom.

Simulations in Business Learning Moving away from the field of writing directly, it is clear that simulations are used consistently in business process and concept learning at both the university and the MBA level. Simulation programs are designed to give students authentic tasks on which they can practice and apply skills they have learned in the classroom. With the introduction of increasingly more effective technology, these learning modalities are becoming increasingly more common in MBA programs. Neely & Tucker (2013) found that they are considered effective by teachers and by students, although one caveat is that the learning that ensues may be difficult to assess. The authors found particular difficulty in quantifying and assessing indefinite "soft" skills, such as communication skills, in these simulations, in contrast to â&#x20AC;&#x153;hardâ&#x20AC;? skills, such as data analysis. Case-based in-basket writing tasks, in which students are asked to prioritize and respond to a variety of tasks given to them at the same time in order to simulate a real office working environment, have been found to be especially effective in eliciting business writing and in forcing students to give evidence of the various skills necessary for effective business communication. These case study based in-basket activities give what Stearns, Ronald, Greenlee, & Crespy (2003) call "contexts for communication," allowing for students to demonstrate their expertise in this otherwise difficult to assess area. Since simulations are already being used, adapting them to assess business writing in particular more effectively is a clear next step for research. Simulating writing-heavy tasks, using a peer editing component, writing and communicating collaboratively, and utilizing technology are all elements that

students must perform in such a simulation for it to be consistent with the best practices, as presented in the current literature. The simulation described below attempts to combine these elements into a cohesive model for assessing business writing via simulation activity.

A Simulation for Business Writing: Rationale and Procedures Learning through doing, as well as being assessed on real-world products (termed "authentic assessment," as described above), are touchstones of the business education model, but clearly any activity or procedure designed to teach business writing needs to do so in a manner that also incorporates some of the other best practices of business education, including collaborative teamwork and the introduction of writing and English-language elements outside of the sphere of business writing only. Such a simulation would need to include a great deal of opportunities for writing that would not just be technical, but also provide a wide scope for some of the conventions of general composition, such as descriptive wording. At the same time, teams within the simulation need to be able to work in groups to create products that have some meaning and can be assessed not just by a professor, but perhaps also by future potential employers as well. Students will gain writing skills, business experience, and self-efficacy as they are motivated by the completion of tasks that are analogous to the real world, and will come out of the simulation with a business plan that might even provide material for future class work or for their own ventures outside of the classroom. The simulation will begin with students divided into teams of four to six participants. The professor can decide whether to randomly assign these groups, or whether to pair specific students together at their discretion, depending on whether or not personal interaction is part of what is being assessed. It is preferable, all other things being equal, to put students in random groupings, since in the real world they will have to work with teams of diverse personalities and skill sets. However, to adapt this activity for a beginner group, a professor might choose to group individuals who will work well together, or whose strengths complement one another. For example, they might group someone who is comfortable with speaking in public with someone who has great ideas, but is not good at organising details, or someone who is effective at delegating and someone who is very detail oriented. Such a group might produce optimal learning for new business students within the context of the activity. Once students are grouped, their task is to develop a business idea. They will develop a product or service, create a written business plan, create and deliver a presentation to attract investors, create a mock social media presence for their new brand or service, and create position descriptions, interview questions, and a recruitment drive for potential employees of their new company. Throughout this process, students will use cloud-based computing to share and critique each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work, and assessment will be undertaken during this process.

Assigning Roles Students will be presented with a list of the various products that will be expected of them, as described above, and be asked to divide up the separate

tasks among the members of the team. They will then be asked to each produce a written rationale explaining why they have taken on their particular role and how this will contribute to the team's success. This will allow students to practice compositional writing outside of the regular parametres of business communication. Students should upload these files to the cloud folder the instructor has set up for each team, and should edit and comment on each otherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work. One aspect of the assessment of this stage of the project should involve whether or not students commented on and edited others' work, and whether or not students made changes to their own work in conformity with the comments that had been given to them. This can be tracked in a cloud-based editing program, such as Google Docs.

The Business Plan The business plan should be a written document aimed at investors, analysing the market of the specific product or service, and include analysis of how the product will differentiate itself (essentially a SWOT-type analysis) as part of the written document. The plan should outline the products or services that will be offered, the sales and marketing objectives and plans along with information about pricing and distribution as applicable, the general operations of the business, the composition of the management team and their expertise to bring the product or service to market, financial plans, such as an explanation of how much initial investment will be needed and what that money will be used for, and finally, an assessment of risks and competitors. Other elements of the business plan may vary depending on the particular business that the students have chosen to pursue. This document, whether it is worked on by one person on the team or by multiple team members, should be edited and commented on by all, as was the initial written part of the role assignment process described above. Finally, each student in the group should write an executive summary of the business plan, and students should compare theirs to others and critique each other's summaries, since this provides another avenue for practice in business writing.

The Presentation The presentation should include slides or PowerPoint, with the number of slides or length of the presentation being is at professor's discretion, and this might be one way to differentiate this project for different levels of learners. For example, an MBA group would do a different length and depth of presentation material than would a group of first year university students in an introductory class. The slides should come with speakers' notes as well as with handouts or materials that would be given to potential investors. Like other documents created, these should be edited by all of the students. The students involved in the creation of these particular materials should also submit a reflection document, which could take the form of a narrative in which they describe their choices and the way they went about the task, as well as discuss what they learned. Narrative writing is one of the conventions of composition that usually falls outside the parametres of business writing, but practice doing this can make for more literate and articulate students who are overall better communicators.

Social Media The next stage of the project relates to using social media. In today's internet-driven business environment, it is important for brands to maintain social media presence. Brands go so far as to pay social media "influencers" to promote their products in subtle ways, such as by featuring them in photos on Instagram or videos on SnapChat. There appear to be an ever-growing number of platforms, and these represent both an opportunity and a set of potential pitfalls for products and brands, since interaction with customers, for better or worse, is quicker, easier, and more public. In terms of the simulation exercise, social media strategising presents a way for students to explore these trends and for them to learn to further communicate in business terms. This task will consist of a written out social media plan, including discussion of which platforms to use, what kind of tone to take, post frequency, plans for growing social media presence, etc. This will be written as a comprehensive plan, and then the material will be vetted and become the subject of a shorter form of communication in the format of a memo in order to give students practice in writing this form. The memo and the fully described social media plan will both become part of the collaborative folder, and all group members will, as with other products, be responsible for editing and proofreading each other's work, while leaving constructive comments.

Hiring and Recruitment The final step of the simulation will involve hiring and recruitment. Students working on this stage will create a written out strategy document detailing hiring research, including potential salary ranges, a mocked-up organizational chart, text for hiring and recruitment ads, and potential interview questions, as well as model answers to these interview questions. At minimum, two students should work on this portion of the simulation, since one should write the interview questions and the other or others can then write answers. This gives students an opportunity to communicate business-related experiences and personal accomplishments succinctly and clearly, which is something that they will have to do both aloud in job interviews and in writing over the course of their careers. One possible extension of the simulation is to have a simulated "job fair" with another class in which students do mock interviews for the positions they are "hiring" for. If this is added to the simulation, then additional writing, such as a memo detailing the company and its products or services, could be provided to the "interviewer subjects" ahead of time, who would then use that writing sample to decide which companies they were interested in pursuing "jobs" at. Doing this with two classes of students would allow for both sets to create hiring materials and conduct interviews and to be the individuals seeking jobs. Writing a reflection on this experience could be an additional business writing sample, allowing for more practice with narrative writing, as well as with editing and giving feedback to peers. This stage of the simulation might be especially useful for L2 learners, because they would have opportunity to work not just on writing skills, as in other parts of the simulation, but also on public speaking and conversational

skills as well. For these learners, the intersection of writing and speaking can benefit both skill sets.

Assessment This project can be assessed in a number of ways, depending on what aspects of business communication and writing the professor would like any given group to focus on. It could even be done more than once, as an introductory project and a capstone project for a year long course of study, with different products or simulated services, for example, and the two experiences being compared. Within the simulation, there are opportunities for formative assessment by virtue of the writing products that each student turns in at the start along with the role assignments. They also should receive grades and feedback based on the commenting and editing they do of their peersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; work. It is important to note that assessment should be as collaborative as possible in order to realistically resemble the authentic assessments that students will face when they are in the workplace: the feeling should be that of going back and forth on a project with a supervisor, rather than the usual professorstudent dynamic. This adds to the reality of the simulation and also gets students to be more cognizant of their writing skill level (which the literature showed many overestimate), and of the importance of business writing and communications. Along with grades taken throughout the process for separate assignments, the final product of the activity is the entire portfolio of documents in final draft form, including the presentation, business plan, and all other elements detailed above. This can be a group grade, so that every member of the group receives the same amount of credit. This project is designed for students to get a combination of peer feedback, instructor feedback, individual formative and summative assessment, and group assessment, which are all to be based on their various writing and communication tasks.

Conclusion It is clear that simulations have an undeniably important place in the teaching of business practices, and this can certainly be extended to business writing. Business writing is one of the most important skills that todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s students need to learn, since communication is becoming increasingly more important as the business world becomes more globally focused and collaboration from office to office, and even country to country becomes more common as a result of increased pace of globalization, such as outsourcing of production by head offices to other countries. Taiwanese corporations shifting production to China or Vietnam are currently prime examples, and therefore this evaluation method could be of specific interest to Taiwanese business English instructors and students. However, business writing classes often involve activities that are not reflective of the business tasks students will have to take on in the real world. This is where authentic assessment comes into play, since this style of evaluation resembles tasks students may indeed have to take on in their future careers. Using simulation for business writing tasks specifically is not something that has

previously been examined in the existing scholarly literature, but the idea offers a wide range of possibilities for future applications and research. The common denominators of future studies need to be simulations designed with the best practices of business writing instruction in mind. Specifically, all versions of this project or related ones must use technology for both learning and assessment, as well as teach English conventions specifically and directly. Editing, and particularly peer editing, needs to be a part of the process within the simulations, as well. With these practices in place, simulation can be a successful way to teach business writing. Using simulations, it is to be hoped, can prepare business students for future writing success in the rapidly shifting global marketplace, in their first jobs and thereafter.

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International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 48-61, February 2017

An Exploration of Culturally Grounded Youth Suicide Prevention Programs for Native American and African American Youth Rhonda G. Bluehen-Unger, Deborah A. Stiles, Jameca Falconer, Tammy R. Grant, Ericka J. Boney and Kelly K. Brunner Applied Educational Psychology, Multidisciplinary Studies Webster University

Abstract. This exploratory paper recounts how students and faculty from multicultural graduate programs in psychology conducted intensive studies of youth suicide prevention programs and discovered that the manual known as the EBI Manual or the Task Force on EvidenceBased Interventions in School Psychology is an excellent research tool for studying prevention programs, but it has limitations. The manual illustrates how to evaluate whether or not an intervention program is scientifically sound, but not if it is culturally grounded. Our students and faculty want to be able to recommend to schools and agencies effective interventions for preventing youth suicide, but unfortunately, most evidence based-interventions have been designed for EuropeanAmerican, middle-class youth and most take a ―one-size-fits-all approach.‖ Although a few prevention programs seek to culturally ―tailor‖ existing programs to fit the needs of a specific youth population, tailoring programs for Native American and African American youth is not sufficient. It is necessary to use suicide prevention approaches that are community-derived and culturally grounded. In this exploratory study, we identify important themes in culturally grounded prevention programs; the themes include acknowledging historical trauma, encouraging spirituality, identifying risk and protective factors, and promoting cultural identity and community involvement. Keywords: Youth suicide prevention, Native American, African American.

―…this debris of historical trauma, family trauma, you know, stuff that can kill your spirit, is actually raw material to make things with and to build a bridge. You can use those materials to build a bridge over that which would destroy you.‖ From Crazy Brave by Joy Harjo, Mvskoke Nation poet ―…i found god in myself and i loved her i loved her fiercely‖ From "For Colored Girls who have considered suicide when the rainbow is enuf" by Ntozake Shange, African American poet

Poets such as Joy Harjo and Ntozake Shange recognize the connections between suicidal ideation and cultural trauma and loss; they know about the importance of culture, spirituality, and community support in promoting wellness, healing, and suicide prevention. In contrast, psychologists, psychiatrists, and public health researchers often overlook or minimize the importance of these factors. They are more likely to focus on the rigor of scientific studies and ignore cultural issues in youth suicide. The insights of Harjo and Shange about suicide and suicide prevention may be derived from their imaginations, observations, and cultural experiences; the insights of psychologists and other scientists may be derived from new research studies as well as systematic reviews and meta-analyses of existing scientific studies; however, there appears to be one variable which is not systematically integrated into these one-size-fits-all approaches. That one variable is culture. It is, of course, important for scientists to conduct studies, review studies and then identify evidence-based suicide prevention programs because adolescent suicide is a major health concern and the third leading cause of death for adolescents and the second leading cause of death for adolescents who are Native American. Although not as high as the rates for American Indians, we also need to be concerned about African Americans because suicide rates among young African Americans have increased in recent years (Bennett & Joe, 2015; Matlin, Molock, & Tebes, 2011). Although not systematically integrated into the research literature, a few articles do recognize the importance of cultural differences. For instance, a 2008 article in the American Psychologist called for the exploration of ―the implications of culture for the development of suicide prevention and treatment interventions‖ (Goldston, Molock, Whitbeck, Murakami, Zayas, Nagayama, & Hall, 2008, p. 14). A 2011 article titled, ―Suicidality and Depression Among African American Adolescents: The Role of Family and Peer Support and Community Connectedness‖ found that ―very few studies… have examined the relationship of peer support and suicidality among ethnic minority adolescents‖ (Matlin et al., 2011, p. 110). A 2016 book chapter, ―A Culturally Informed Approach to American Indian/Alaskan Native Youth Suicide Prevention‖ found that some scientifically sound suicide prevention programs fail to bring about lasting change because they are culturally disconnected (LaFromboise & Malik, 2016). Our Graduate Program’s Interest in Youth Suicide Prevention The authors of this article are graduate students and faculty associated with applied educational psychology and school psychology programs that study evidence-based interventions for social, emotional, and behavioral challenges. In this article we explore the topic of culturally grounded suicide prevention programs and we also chronicle how we began to question the standard approach to youth suicide prevention.

Our graduate course studying suicide prevention programs. For several years, Webster University‘s applied educational psychology and school psychology programs have offered a one-credit hour graduate course in which students carefully examine suicide prevention programs. The course prepares students to research and evaluate evidence-based interventions and to make recommendations for program adoption to schools and agencies. Within the content of the course, the authors, who have enrolled in or lectured in the course, examined and rated the effectiveness of programs using the methods described in the course readings, especially an article on suicide prevention programs by Miller, Eckert, and Mazza (2009). The article by Miller and colleagues (2009) takes a public health perspective and reviews thirteen studies using a four-point scale to rate the evidence on eight methodological indicators. These are ―measurement, comparison group, statistically significant outcomes, educational/clinical significance, identifiable components, implementation fidelity, replication, site of implementation‖ (Miller et al., 2009, p. 172). In their article, Miller and colleagues gave one of the studies - the Zuni Life Skills Development Program study - high praise because it was multimethod, provided strong evidence for outcome measures, and was culturally tailored. This study was one of two ―universal suicide prevention programs‖ they reviewed that ―demonstrated the highest methodological rigor‖ and this was ―the only study to adopt a culturally tailored approach to developing a school-based suicide prevention program for us among Native American youth‖ (Miller et al., 2009, p. 178). We at Webster University were pleased with ourselves and our collaborative efforts to come together as a class to address the sensitive topic of youth suicide. We were pleased with ourselves because we thought we were teaching and learning about best practices in the graduate course. In our suicide prevention programs course, we thought we were being culturally aware and sensitive because course readings included the entire article, ―The Zuni Life Skills Development Program: A School/Community-Based Suicide Prevention Intervention‖ (LaFramboise & Lewis, 2008). We also ―patted ourselves on the back‖ because a guest speaker for the course introduced an article, ―SchoolBased Suicide Prevention with African American Youth in an Urban Setting‖ (Brown and Grumet, 2009). Questioning our graduate course studying suicide prevention programs. For the first two times that we taught the suicide prevention course, it went as planned. The course changed in 2013, when our graduate student and first author of this article, Rhonda Bluehen-Unger, enrolled in the suicide prevention course. She expressed concerns about the culturally ―tailored‖ approach in the Zuni Life Skills Development Program. Since that time, she has convinced all of us that suicide prevention programs need to be culturally grounded, not culturally tailored.

Methods As a result of comments from Rhonda Bluehen-Unger, Webster University‘s applied educational psychology and school psychology programs began to think about best practices in suicide prevention programs in a different light. We began rereading the course materials, especially the Evidence-Based Intervention (EBI) Manual, the Procedural and Coding Manual of Division 16 and the Society for the Study of School Psychology Task Force. We also expanded our course readings to include more systematic review articles, more articles about culture and suicide prevention, two participatory action research (PAR) articles, and some non-scientific, but culture-specific articles and websites devoted to suicide prevention for Native American and African American youth. Redoing the Literature Review Three of the authors worked on identifying more studies about youth suicide prevention. We conducted bibliographic searches using the PsycINFO and ERIC databases. We conducted multiple searches in these databases with the following terms: suicide, suicide prevention, culture, cultural, African American, Black, Native American, American Indian, Ethnic Minority. In addition to the computerized searches, we looked at the reference lists for all of the useful studies we found. We also reviewed the following journals: Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, American Journal of Public Health, Journal of Adolescent Research, Journal of Black Psychology, American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research. Another excellent source for us was the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, Library & Resources (http://www.sprc.org/library_resources/items/diversity-suicidal-behavior). We also investigated articles and books about culture and youth suicide that are not part of the mainstream, evidence-based scientific literature.

Results and Discussion Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses We found that most scientific studies about youth suicide prevention do not even mention cultural considerations and have no insights for Native American and African American populations. One example is ―Hot Idea or Hot Air: A Systematic Review of Evidence for Two Widely Marketed Youth Suicide Prevention Programs and Recommendations for Implementation‖ (Wei, Kutcher, and LeBlanc, 2015). We studied this rigorous review of the following youth suicide prevention programs: Signs of Suicide and Yellow Ribbon. The review used scientific evaluation techniques and was guided by Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). According to its website, ―PRISMA focuses on the reporting of reviews

evaluating randomized trials, but it can also be used as a basis for reporting systematic reviews of other types of research, particularly evaluations of interventions‖ (See http://www.prisma-statement.org/Default.aspx). The review by Wei and colleagues was systematic and comprehensive and yet there is not one mention of culture, cultural identity, or culturally informed practice. Task Force on Evidence-Based Interventions in School Psychology (EBI Manual (2nd edition, 2009) We decided to more carefully study the second edition of the EBI Manual. The second edition has twelve methodological indicators (rather than eight) and includes the addition of cultural validity to existing types of research validity. Unlike the PRISMA checklist, which does not include culture, the EBI Manual (2nd edition) includes the importance of cultural considerations in psychoeducational interventions. The EBI Manual describes cultural considerations, but ―prevention science‖ research in the United States has focused on White/European American populations. ―Despite evidence of considerable racial/ethnic variation in adolescent suicidal behavior in the United States, research on youth of European American descent accounts for much of what is known about preventing adolescent suicide‖ (Joe, Canetto & Romer, 2008, p. 354). In contrast to the earlier (1st) edition, the EBI Manual (2nd edition) emphasizes multicultural and diversity issues. A search for ―cultur*‖ in the EBI Manual (2nd edition) yielded 141 results. The word culture(s) appears 31 times, cultural(ly) appears 97 times, acculturation appears 9 times, social-cultural 3 times, and multicultural 1 time. Page 7 of the second edition of the EBI Manual states, ―Thus, cultural validity features are included within this revision of the Manual. Intervention studies will be evaluated to the extent that they provide deeper descriptions of the cultures and values of those involved with the research, including the participants, collectors of data, and researchers.‖ The EBI Manual (2nd edition, p. 7) requests ―reviewers of the empirical literature be especially sensitive to cultural diversity and issues surrounding the context of intervention implementation in schools and community settings.‖ The EBI Manual (2nd edition) does include culture, but regrettably it omits the consideration of these central aspects of culture: religion, spirituality, and historical trauma. Our study is an exploration of the effectiveness of culturally grounded suicide prevention programs. During our explorations, we discovered that even though the second edition of the Task Force on Evidence-Based Interventions in School Psychology (EBI Manual (2009) omits spirituality, religion, and history, it does provide some useful methods for evaluating the effectiveness of culturally grounded suicide prevention programs for Native American and African American youth.

One-Size-Fits-All Approach We read five articles that appear to take a ―one-size-fits-all approach‖ to suicide prevention. These articles were written by Cooper, Clements, and Holt (2011), Freedenthal (2010), Robinson, Cox, Malone, Williamson, Baldwin, Fletcher, and O‘Brien (2012), Wei and others (2015), and Wyman, Brown, LoMurray, Schmeelk-Cone, Petrova, Yu, Walsh, Tu, Wang, and others (2010). The ―one-size-fits-all approach‖ assumes that any youth suicide prevention program might be appropriate, meaningful, and effective for many youth populations. The article by Robinson and others (2012) does not discuss culture at all, but their systematic review includes reviews of programs from other countries and the review notes that, ―Black or African American‖ was the race/ethnicity of the participants in one of the studies. In fairness, the article by Cooper and others (2011, p. 697) does mention the, ―important factors that contribute to teen suicide include issues such race.‖ And yet, merely mentioning the that race is an important factor is not sufficient; according the EBI Manual 2nd edition (2009, p.36), “Culture is defined as the shared norms, values, beliefs, practices, and behaviors relevant to the target population; and reflects cultural experiences that extend beyond the traditional categories of race, ethnicity, and language to encompass the shared experiences of any group.‖ Cultural values have a huge impact on how one thinks about life and death. Culture impacts how individuals give meaning to factors that contribute to suicidal behavior. In addition to omitting discussions of cultural factors, the five articles that appear to take a ―one-size-fits-all approach‖ to suicide prevention also omit any discussion of religion or spirituality. (In fairness, Cooper et al. includes the words religion and religious, but there is no discussion). These topics would not be especially relevant for most prevention programs, but they do seem to have relevance for the choice to take one‘s own life. ―Spirituality/religion, as one aspect of culture, is a frame that gives meaning (about life and death). To uncover reasons for living is crucial to suicide prevention‖ (Bullock, Nadeau, & Renaud, 2012, p. 1912). Culturally Tailored Approaches In our explorations, we attempted to follow best practices for the literature review process. Although we know that there is ongoing research on the topic of youth suicide prevention programs for Native American and African American youth, we only found one published scientific study of the effectiveness of a culturally tailored suicide prevention program for Native American youth (the Zuni Life Skills Development Program) and we could not find any published, evidence-based articles that establish the effectiveness of a culturally grounded suicide prevention program for African American youth. LaFramboise and Lewis (2008, p. 347) described the cultural tailoring as a ―unique feature and strength‖ of the Zuni Life Skills Development Program. This program is listed as an evidence-based program on the website of the

Suicide Prevention Resource Center and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substances Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). (http://www.sprc.org/bpr/section-i-evidence-basedprograms#sec1listings) On the website list of evidence-based suicide prevention programs and practices, the Zuni Life Skills Development Program is the only program with ―Adaptations.‖ All of the other evidence-based programs have the following words under ―Adaptations‖: ―No population- or culture-specific adaptations were identified by the developer.‖ Another listed evidence-based program, the Model Adolescent Suicide Prevention Program (MASPP), was developed for a ―small American Indian tribe in rural New Mexico‖; unfortunately MASPP has the following words on the website, ―Adaptations: No population- or culturespecific adaptations were identified by the developer.‖ Molock and others (2008, p. 323) noted that, ―To date, there appear to be no published studies of effective suicide prevention programs or treatments specifically tailored for African American youth.‖ We couldn‘t find any published studies of evidence-based prevention programs, although we do know that there is ongoing research on this topic. Culturally Destructive Research, Prevention, and Intervention Programs ―One-size-fits-all‖ and ―tailored‖ are terms that describe how clothing fit. One-size-fits-all approaches and cultural tailoring work on the surface. They are the ―outer clothing‖ of suicide prevention and not the ―deeper descriptions of the cultures and values‖ described in the EBI Manual (2nd edition). These surface approaches, which are often developed by researchers and interventionists who are not part of these cultures, can be harmful to Native American and African American communities. In her writings, anthropologist Dr. Beatrice Medicine criticizes much of the research that has been done by ―other people‖ on Native Americans. ―[American] Indian communities have not significantly profited from other people‘s research because its focus has been on problems [such as] suicides… The uncritical proliferation of ‗helping programs‘ limits knowledge and comprehension of Indian families even more. It has been, and is, profitable for universities, service agencies, and tribal groups to obtain funds to intervene and attempt to change the ‗pathological‘ character of Indians and their life-styles… Previous natural helping service systems – curing societies (Iroquois) and women‘s craft guilds (Cheyenne)… no longer function as mutual aid societies‖ (Medicine, 2001, p. 256). There is evidence that not only do the needs of Native American youth differ from the general population, but also there is variation among Native American tribes. A study conducted by Bolton and colleagues titled ―A Comparison of the Prevalence and Risk Factors of Suicidal Ideation and Suicide Attempts in Two American Indian Population Samples and in a General Population Sample‖ found that, ―Suicide attempts without suicidal ideation

were found to be more common in the American Indian samples than in the general population‖ (Bolton, Elias, Enns, Sareen, Beals & Novins, 2014, p.4). As stated by Goldston et al, 2008, p. 21), ―There are major cultural differences between different Native American groups.‖ Not surprisingly, Bolton and colleagues (2014) also discovered differences in suicidal behaviors, including ideation and attempts among the Northern Plains and the Southwest tribes they studied. In comparison, the Southwest tribe was significantly more likely to report suicide attempts than the Northern Plains tribe. Culturally specific programs are needed. According to Medicine (2001), Native Americans should not be categorized as a single group. With more than 562 federally recognized tribes in the United States and Canada, the ―one-size-fits-all‖ approach to suicide prevention will not work for all Native American youth. Some scientists have raised concerns about research and interventions that target African Americans. ―Cultural mistrust must be considered when designing suicide prevention initiatives for ethnic minority populations… A case in point, African Americans with high levels of cultural mistrust will expect that members or institutions of the dominant culture will not treat them [fairly]‖ (Joe et al, 2008, p. 360). ―Decades of individual and institutional racism affecting the black community, along with failed social efforts to eliminate discrimination, may contribute to the perception that race-related obstacles will prevent goal attainment‖ (Hirsch, Visser, Chang, & Jeglic, 2012, p. 123). When developing programs ―the roles of racism, segregation, neighborhood influences, and other forms of discrimination‖ must be acknowledged. (Joe et al., 2008, p. 358). Culturally Grounded Suicide Prevention Programs Although we did not find any empirical, scientific studies of the effectiveness of the culturally grounded approach, we did find several studies that indicated what might be important in culturally grounded suicide prevention programs for Native American and African American youth. As suggested by the poets Joy Harjo and Ntozake Shange, cultural trauma and loss are important considerations, as well as community, hope, and spirituality. Harjo (2012) acknowledges the significance of trauma and suggests that it can become the ―raw material to make things with and to build a bridge.‖ In Shange‘s poem (1977, p. 63) ―the lady in red‖ decides not to commit suicide and explains ―i found god in myself & I loved her/ I loved her fiercely [sic]‖. The 2008 article by Goldston and others (p. 14) includes these cultural considerations that are similar to those highlighted by the poets Joy Harjo and Ntozake Shange, ―Several cross-cutting issues are discussed, including acculturative stress and protective factors within cultures; the roles of religion and spirituality and the family in culturally sensitive interventions; different manifestations and interpretations of distress in different cultures; and the impact of stigma and cultural distrust on help-seeking.‖ As suggested in the 2014 article by White and Kral, we are rethinking youth suicide and ―embracing multiple frameworks for making sense of youth distress and suicide‖ (p. 131).

Acknowledging Trauma, Encouraging Community Efforts and Finding Spiritual Solutions While stressful events occur daily for most individuals, the word ―trauma‖ is used to describe emotionally painful and distressing experiences or situations that overwhelm people‘s ability to cope, leaving them powerless (American Psychiatric Association, 2000). Although the terms ―intergenerational trauma‖ and ―historical trauma‖ have been used interchangeably, community health experts make distinctions. Both forms of trauma span multiple generations, but intergenerational trauma refers to familial trauma and historical trauma is on a larger scale. Experiences and events associated with history‘s traumatic impact are the experiences of American Indians after European colonization and the experiences of African Americans during slavery (Coyle, 2014; Mohatt, Thompson, Thai, & Tebes, 2014). Historical trauma theory proposes that ―populations historically subjected to long-term, mass trauma – colonialism, slavery, war, genocide – exhibit a higher prevalence of disease even several generations after the original trauma occurred‖ (Sotero, 2006, p. 93). Native Americans. ―The effects of these historical injustices are still apparent in Indian Country today‖ (Gray & McCullagh, 2014). A participatory action research (PAR) study of Inupiat youth, suicide, and cultural loss found that historical trauma and racist policies have negatively impacted the Inupiat youth and led to one of the highest suicide rates in the world. Through community meetings involving elders and youth, new understandings of youth suicide and suicide prevention were developed. In the future, suicide preventions programs and practices will be based on ―collective resistance and cultural re-creation‖ (Wexler, 2006, p. 2947). Working in collaboration with the University of Washington, the Suquamish Tribe and Port Gamble S‘Kallam Tribe also used a participatory research approach. This university/community/tribal research group also acknowledged that historical trauma was a contributing factor to mental health challenges faced by American Indian and Alaska Native people (Donavan, Thomas, Sigo, Price, Lonczak, Lawrence, Ahvakana, Austin, Lawrence, Price, Purser, & Bagley, 2015). The group created a culturally grounded social skills intervention for substance abuse and wrote an article titled, ―Healing of the canoe: Preliminary results of a culturally grounded intervention to prevent substance abuse and promote tribal identity for Native youth in two Pacific Northwest Tribes.‖ According to the authors (2015), preliminary results suggest that the program increased the participants‘ sense of hope and optimism and knowledge of substance abuse. For Native Americans, cultural spirituality, but not Christianity, may be a protective factor. A study of spirituality and attempted suicide among American Indians found that a commitment to Christianity was not associated with suicide attempts, but a high level of commitment to cultural spiritual orientation was associated with a reduction in self-reported attempted suicides (Garroutte, Goldberg, Beals, Herell, Manson, 2003).

According to the Suicide Prevention Resource Center, ―The Sweet Grass Suicide Prevention Project on the Oglala Lakota Nation includes Culture, Collaboration, and Coaching‖ (See http://www.sprc.org/grantees/oglalasioux-tribe). In article in the Lakota Country Times by Amanda Takes War Bonnet (2009) describes the Sweet Grass Project as a culturally grounded suicide prevention program (http://www.lakotacountrytimes.com/news/2009-0901/front_page/001.html). According to the article, ―the name 'Sweet Grass' came from Jess Taken Alive, Hunkpapa Lakota, ‗who said the answers for our youth are amongst us within our culture. Understanding the use of sweet grass with prayer alone could save a youth, by teaching them to acknowledge oneself and the world we are in through prayer." The Sweet Grass Project almost lost federal funding because the Project has not significantly reduced youth suicide. According to an article written by Brandon Ecoffey in 2015, the Sweet Grass Suicide Prevention Project was given a one-year extension by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA). The U.S. Department of Education states that the Sweet Grass Project officially ended on December 31, 2015 (Elaine Janis, personal communication, March 6, 2017). Sweet Grass continues largely because of the efforts of locals such as Elaine Janis, formerly of the Sweet Grass Project. Elaine Janis volunteers her own time and money to help and work with children at-risk for suicide on the Pine Ridge Reservation. The Sweet Grass Project has evolved to include even more traditional healing practices and more involvement of teenagers in youth suicide prevention. For American Indian/ Alaskan Native youth, LaFromboise and Malik (2016, p. 235) recommend the American Indian Life Skills Development Curriculum (AILS). ―Rather than being a one-size-fits-all intervention, the AILS encourages interventionists to incorporate traditional and contemporary worldviews of the tribes and communities they work with into the curriculum without compromising the core psychological components of the program or displacing the skills training outlined in the manual.‖ The AILS program also seeks to identify culturally unique protective factors as well as risks factors. African Americans. Urban African American youth have many risk factors for suicidal behavior: ―poverty, exposure to violence, high rates of depression and irritability, and substance abuse‖ (Brown & Grumet, p. 116). Understanding the culture and/or cultural issues when examining the suicidal behavior allows an increase in the ability to provide better and more appropriate services (Joe et al., 2008). Religion and spirituality are central to African American culture (Chatters, Taylor, Lincoln, Nguyen, & Joe, 2011; Taylor, Chatters, & Joe, 2011). In the article ―Developing Suicide Prevention Programs for African American Youth in African American Churches‖, Molock and her colleagues discuss the important role that the Black Church could play in suicide prevention programming for African American youth (Molock, Matlin, Barksdale, Puri, & Lyles, 2008). ―The Black Church refers to those independent, historic, and totally African American controlled denominations that constitute the core religious experience of the majority of African American Christians‖ (Molock et al., 2008, p. 325). The Black Church could play an important role in

prevention for three reasons. First, African American churches have a long history of helping community members. Second, African Americans report that they are highly religious and religiousness is associated with positive mental health outcomes. Third, the Black Church is influential and can engage and retain families. ―Churches are the sociocultural context in which many African Americans already engage in help-seeking behaviors (Molock et al., 2008, p. 326). In churches youth receive moral direction, access to important role models, and opportunities to enhance social skills. In addition, ―sermons, listening to religious music, and reading religious texts, all provide messages of optimism, hope, existential meaning, and personal worth and salvation which may help individuals cope with difficult life circumstances and protect again suicidality‖ (Chatters et al., 2011, p. 349). In addition to serving as a cultural foundation of African-American culture, the Black Church ―provides youth with moral direction, normative bearings, spiritual experiences, [and] access to role models‖ (Molock et al., 2008, p. 324). Nevertheless, it is important to recognize that the Black Church is not monolithic; nor is it the sole social support for African American youth. Although the Black Church can fill important roles in suicide prevention, a ―onesize-fits-all‖ approach to suicide prevention will not work for all African American youth. The protective effects of social support for African American youth are well documented. A mixed methods study of African American male adolescents found that, ―social support among African American boys may play an important role in lowering depressive symptoms, particularly when these youth face stigma regarding mental illness and service use‖ (Lindsey, Joe, &Von Nebbit, 2010, p. 9). Key protective factors for suicidal behavior in Black adolescents include family support, peer support, and community connectedness (Matlin et al., 2011). Better mental health and psychosocial well being for Black adolescents are predicted by family, school, and religious integration (Rose, Joe, Shields, & Caldwell, 2014). Conclusion Several years ago Surgeon General David Satcher described the increasing rate of suicide among ethnic/racial minority groups as an emerging public health problem (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1999). In 2017 we still need to respond to the Surgeon General‘s ―Call to Action to Prevent Suicide.‖ We find that suicide prevention programs for Native American and African American youth must be culturally grounded, not just culturally tailored. We also find that prevention programs must be designed by those who know the culture and who are familiar with culturally specific beliefs and practices. All suicide prevention programs must address mental health concerns and involve peers, family, and community members. Suicide prevention programs for Native American and African American youth must also incorporate culturally relevant religion/spirituality, which are the frame that gives meaning to big issues such as life and death, historical trauma, resilience, and transformation.

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Suicide Prevention Resource Center (2013). Suicide among racial/ethnic populations in the U.S.: Blacks. Waltham, MA: Education Development Center, Inc. Retrieved March 13, 2016 from http://www.sprc.org/library-resources Takes War Bonnet, A. (2009). Sweet Grass Project OST Suicide Prevention Program. Lakota Country Times. http://www.lakotacountrytimes.com/news/2009-0901/front_page/001.html Task Force on Evidence-Based Interventions in School Psychology (2nd edition, 2009) Procedural and coding manual for review of Evidence-Based Interventions. Retrieved from Indiana University website: http://www.indiana.edu/~ebi/documents/_workingfiles/EBImanual1.pdf Taylor, R. J., Chatters, L. M., & Joe, S. (2011). Religious Involvement and Suicidal Behavior Among African Americans and Black Caribbeans. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 199(7), 478-486. doi:10.1097/nmd.0b013e31822142c7 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1999). The surgeon generalâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s call to action to prevent suicide. Washington, DC. Wei, Y., Kutcher, S., & LeBlanc, J. C. (2015). Hot idea or hot air: A systematic review of evidence for two widely marketed youth suicide prevention programs and recommendations for implementation. Journal of the Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 24(1), 5-16. Retrieved April 21, 2016. Wexler, L. (2006). Inupiat youth suicide and culture loss: changing community conversations for prevention. Social Science & Medicine, 63, 2938-2948. White, J. & Kral, M.J. (2014). Re-thinking youth suicide: Language, culture, and power. Journal for Social Action in Counseling and Psychology,6 (1), 122-142. Wyman, P. A., Brown, H., LoMurray, M., Schmeelk-Cone, K., Petrova, M., Yu, Q., Walsh, E., Tu, X., Wang, W. (2010). An Outcome Evaluation of the Sources of Strength Suicide Prevention Program Delivered by Adolescent Peer Leaders in High School. American Journal of Public Health, 100(9), 1653-1661.

Correspondence should be addressed to the second author, Dr. Deborah A. Stiles, Applied Educational Psychology, Multidisciplinary Studies, Webster University, 470 East Lockwood, St. Louis. Missouri, USA, 63119, stilesda@webster.edu

International Journal of Learning, Teaching and Educational Research Vol. 16, No. 2, pp. 62-75, February 2017

The Feature of ATR and ATR Harmony in NiloSaharan Languages of Ethiopia Wakweya Olani Gobena

PhD Candidate of Linguistics Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia Abstract. Within the prominent vowel systems in Nilo-Saharan languages, Advanced Tongue Root (ATR) feature plays significant part in the phonological system of the languages. This review attempts to assess the studies on ATR contrasts and ATR harmony in the phonetic and phonological characteristics of the languages in Ethiopia. Some of the languages with accessible study outputs were considered under analysis in this review work; based on the studies, the fundamental ATR related characteristics of the languages were provided, and the relevant discussions were made accordingly. The information from the relevant studies is presented systematically and comparatively so that the readers find it easily understood; hence, the paper will have its intended linguistic value for the further researchers and other beneficiaries. Finally, some generalizations were drawn and recommendations were forwarded. KeywordsË? harmony, ATR systems, Nilo-Saharan, vowel, phonology, phonetics

1 Introduction 1.1 Background and Justification As a part of vowel system in phonological phenomena of languages, the vowel feature that is called Advanced Tongue Root (ATR) has been confirmed to be the widely attested system in Nilo-Saharan languages especially in Africa (Billington, 2014; Ko 2012; Casali, 2008). This paper attempts to provide extended definition of ATR contrast and to assess ATR harmony in some NiloSaharan languages in their formal and functional characteristics. Nilo-Saharan languages are spoken in eastern Africa stretching to the central and northernhalf part with the speakers of about 60 million Nilotic people (2010 figure). Many languages constituting about 206 in number are members of the NiloSaharan family in the east and central Africa (Ethnologue) some of which are located in the southern and south-western Ethiopia; the paper focuses on the

Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages. The Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages are spoken by the minority groups most of which are recently attracting the attention of linguistic researchers. From the Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages, my sketchy assessment touches upon Nuer, Majang, Mursi, Murle, Gumuz, Komo, Me‘en, Baale, Anywa1, and Shabo, whose phonological property, as a proto-linguistic phenomenon, is relevant for distinguishing vowel systems on the basis of the Tongue Root in identifying vowel sounds as groups. The ATR feature was first attested in Niger-Congo languages in 1960‘s, and it was later found in the overwhelming majority of Nilo-Saharan languages which is, nowadays, considered as the main feature in its compatibility with their vowel systems as of most languages in the family (Aralova, 2015). In the earlier times before the ATR terminologies were introduced, description of vowels were done by using ―raised‖/―unraised‖ distinctions claiming the raising of the tongue in production of the vowels, but the studies afterwards came up with the notion of ATR not only with raising of the tongue but also advancement and larynx expansion on the basis of phonetic and phonological aspect of describing the vowel sounds in particular language(s). Ladefoged, (1964:39f) addresses the enlargement and expansion of opening between back of the mouth and throat, retraction or raising of the tongue body for distinguishing the vowels on the basis of phonetic characteristics by using the acoustic and articulatory records of cine-radiology film, and the distinction corresponds to [±ATR] feature of the present day. As a shared feature of some vowels, ATR is a distinctive feature that conveys about three notions, and these are forwardness of the tongue (advancement), raising of the tongue (root state) and enlargement of pharyngeal cavity (expansion) with larynx lowering in the production of vowels (Morton, 2012). A vowel sound that involves the points indicated is considered to be [+ATR] whereas the others are described as [-ATR] ones on the basis of the particular language‘s phonetic and phonological characteristics because a basically ATR language shows [±ATR] distinction (Mahanta, 2007). However, few languages like Anywa as described in Reh, (1996) may happen to show the distinction as [+ATR] and Neutral/plain or the other way round. Some studies like Turton and Bender (1976), and Triulzi, et. al. (1976) of Mursi and Berta languages respectively use the traditional distinction of vowels as tense and lax contrasts in Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan family. In addition, Tefera, (1989) distinguishes vowels of Shabo language, a nine vowel system, as tense and lax contrast in describing the grammatical sketch of the language. However, the literature puts that the terms tense/lax are somehow different from the [±ATR] distinction of vowel both in phonetics —acoustic and articulatory nature and in phonology —co1

The term has been spelt differently in different languages varying as Anuak, Agnwa, Anyua, Anywa, and this paper uses the spelling Anywa throughout the writing.

occurrence restriction (Ladefoged, 1964; Ladefoged and Maddieson, 1996). Thus, the current studies focus on ATR feature of the languages which is considered inclusive, instead of the traditional feature, tense/lax contrast, provided that the language allows such vowel system. In the phonetic characterization of ATR distinguishing from tense/lax features, Ladefoged and Madieson, (1996) illustrates that tense/lax distinction is about muscular tension and voice quality whereas ATR is about tongue root position and some pharyngeal settings so that the phonetic system of [±ATR] is different from that of tense/lax contrast of vowels. Therefore, they happen in different characterizations in their acoustic and articulatory properties As Tiede, (1996) substantiates the point by Magnetic Resonance Image (MRI) method of identifying the phonetic (acoustic and articulatory) correlates of the vowels in their distinctive variation related with ATR feature. It shows that levels of the articulatory characteristics, sagittal form related with tongue position and the axial form related with pharyngeal cavity expansion, pertaining to [±ATR] is different from the tense/lax feature as observed in a sample language; what‘s more, it has been observed that tense/lax distinction differs from [±ATR] feature in its acoustic aspect in which the formant variation of tense/lax is larger than the difference in [±ATR] contrast. The involvement of voice quality in the ATR feature also has been an issue of argument between linguists. Some descriptions like Ladefoged and Maddieson, (1996), and Duerksen, (2004) indicate that ATR distinction goes with some particular phonation type as auditory characteristics of vowels. Stewart‘s (1967) [±ATR] distinction connects the [+ATR] vowels with creaky, and the [-ATR] ones with breathy voice qualities (Stewart, 1967 cited in Aralova, 2015). Indicating the attempts so far to connect ATR feature and voice quality in languages, Aralova, (2015) and Casali, (2008) state that auditory distinction (voice quality) is much more complicated than that of [±ATR] distinction so that these features are worth said to be parallel features in vowel systems because the [±ATR] contrasts do not clearly correspond to particular and separate phonation type in languages. As phonological characteristics of ATR feature, vowels with similar height, backness and roundness can be distinguished by using a binary feature [±ATR]; moreover, the [±ATR] distinction happens to be the initial units for the occurrence of ATR harmony which rather justifies the ATR feature as its phonological nature (Billington, 214). On the basis of terminological concepts of ATR, the phonological system ATR harmony represents the occurrence of all [+ATR] vowels or all [-ATR] ones in a word as a phonotactic appropriateness and smooth utterances (Ko, 2012; Casali, 2008; Mahanta, 2007). According to Mahanta, (2007), ATR harmony happens on the basis of three major factors: morphological factors (through affixation processes), or phonological factors

(harmonizing as dominant-recessive2 system in a word), or positional factors (position of the cause or the triggering vowel in a word as determinant). The study divides the ATR harmony into two types as superclose (left-to-right) harmony and mid (right-to-left) harmony according to direction of the harmony, and languages choose their harmony domain and type as per their individual phonotactics. Mous, (1986) claims the ATR harmony of the morphological factor results from Well Formedness Condition by representing the harmony in notational formula. The phonological feature of East African Nilo-Saharan languages is considered to be [+ATR] dominant in the ATR harmony system so that the [+ATR] vowels happens to influence in most of the languages (Casali, 2008; Noske, 2000; Lojenga, 1986). The recently developed researches of Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages treated their phonology most of which touched upon the ATR feature because the languages exert such feature as their proto-familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s system. These languages are mostly nine-vowel and ten-vowel systems with few seven-vowel system languages almost all of which are pertinent for ATR distinction of the vowels (Otero, 2015; Moges, 2007), and the languages have been studied for their ATR features by many researchers so far. However, they need to be comparatively assessed for their standards and levels of description with sufficient data and detailed explanations. Hence, this paper provides typological information of the Nilo-Saharan language in Ethiopia in terms of structural typology and/or genetic category.

1.2 Objectives The present paper tries to address the following specific objectives in relation to some studies of ATR contrast and harmony in Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages: a) Assessing the ATR contrast and harmony systems and types described in the languages. b) Comparing the coverage level and depth of the studies concerning ATR systems. c) Identifying gaps or the overlooked parts of the ATR harmony descriptions. d) Forwarding recommendations for the gaps in the descriptions (if any).

1.3 Significance Even though the paper work seems to deal with a broad issue referring to studies on Nilo-Saharan languages of Ethiopia, the comparative consideration of the studies on these languages puts a precious asset for the future researchers of 2

The term dominant-recessive is a compound noun that conveys dominant (the harmony triggering vowel or the couse) and recessive the changed vowel in ATR harmony.

these languages because this paper provides the general picture of the protolanguage in terms of their ATR harmony. It also adds knowledge to the language users, students and teachers. In addition, it can be a base for the classificatory and/or structural typological studies that might be conducted on Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages in the future. The country‘s curriculum, especially the local educational institutions may make use of this paper as holistic information of the languages.

2 Methodology Procedural structure was followed to assess the nationally and internationally available studies conducted on ATR system of Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages going through comparative form of analyzing the relevant studies. First, survey of the available works was carried out, and identified for putting them under analysis. The identified works are hierarchically considered under analysis on the basis of their content and breadth so that descriptions of vowels that focused on individual languages were treated before the comparative works that involve more than one language. Based on the compiled inferences, the gaps within and among the studies were then identified for which recommendations were forwarded.

3. Results and Discussion Most of the Nilo-Saharan languages have the feature vowel harmony in which ATR harmony is a component part (cf. section 1.1). Though most studies pertaining to ATR harmony and the relevant languages were done focusing on individual languages, few of them tried to identify the commonalities and differences some of the Nilo-Saharan languages exert in their typological features in terms of genetic classification and/or diachronic structural category. Among the relevant works many of which are recent ones, the available and easily accessed studies of few Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages have been analyzed herewith. Few earlier works were also considered in the analysis. In the description of Anywa vowel system, Bender, et. al. (1976), Lusted, (1976) and Reh, (1996) identify the vowel system as voice quality distinction between breathy and plain sets instead of ATR contrast, but Reh slightly touches the concept of ATR and its connection with voice quality. Bender, et. al. (1976) identifies the language as seven vowel system /i, e, ɛ, a, ɔ, o, u/ in which all have long correspondents except /e/ which Lusted omits it out claiming the language as six vowel system. Studies of Bender and Lusted show the plain and breathy vowel distinction for four of the vowels in the language as /i, ї/ /ɛ, ё/ /a, ӓ/ /o, ӧ/ with two diphthongs /ie/ and /iї/; however, they don‘t say anything about ATR system of Anywa. On the other hand, Reh, (1996) states that [±BRV] in Anywa embodies breathiness/[BRV] itself and ATR feature

considering that they go hand in hand. According to Reh, [+ATR] vowels which involve breathy voice correspond to neutral (non-breathy) vowels in the ten vowel system identified has [+BRV] —/i, e, ᴧ, o, u/ and [-BRV] —/ɪ, ɛ, a, ɔ, u/. Although, Reh‘s description somehow involves the ATR feature in the language as a vowel distinguishing system in the language, connecting ATR feature with voice quality tends to remain controversial as stated in Casali, (2008) and Aralova, (2015). It also conveys the notion of vowel harmony in terms of voice quality harmonization process instead of ATR feature indicating that [+BRV] is extended to the adjacent vowel in the domain of root or stem in Anywa. Both of the descriptions seem to be focusing on voice quality with little acoustic characterization without ATR contrasts of the vowels; perhaps, that may be the reason for their difference in setting the number of vowel phonemes in the vowel systems. Otero, (2015) described the concept of ATR and its harmony in Ethiopian Komo in a relatively detailed way. It identifies the language as a seven contrastive vowel system /i, ɪ, ɛ, a, ɔ, ʊ, u/ that separating into two sets as [+ATR] vowels/i, u/ and [-ATR] vowels-/ɪ, ɛ, a, ɔ, ʊ/. It also states the existence of phonemic contrast in the language with ATR feature of the seven vowel system as uncommon property which is mostly found in languages of East Africa. Besides the phonemic seven vowels, Otero considers the phonetic surface [+ATR] vowels [e, ə, o] as allophonic correspondents of the [-ATR] vowels /ɛ, a, ɔ/ so that the language becomes a ten vowel system on phonetic ground. Table 1: Phonemic and phonetic vowels (Otero, 2015: 214) [+ATR] +HIGH

-HIGH

[e]

[-ATR] u [o]

+HIGH

-HIGH

[ə]

After identifying the language as phonemic and phonetic variation, Otero‘s description indicates ATR harmony systems in terms of directionality and dominance systems in the language. According to this study, Komo‘s ATR harmony is typically anticipatory occurring in mono-morphemic words and across morpheme boundaries as well - the [+ATR] vowel imposed to the preceding adjacent [-ATR] vowels. It illustrates that root or stem vowels are often assimilate to the [+ATR] suffix vowels though some [-high, -ATR] and [+high, -ATR] vowels of suffix may happen not triggering the harmony. Example: yɛ̀k-ír

[yèkír] ‗He sows‘

yɛ̀k-úk [yèkúk] ‗sow.PFV‘

harmony

[+ATR]

tɔ́g-í [tógí] ‗You taste‘

tɔ́g-úk[tógúk] ‗taste.PFV‘

hám-á [hámá] ‗I yawn‘

hám-ʊ́ [hámʊ́] ‗yawn.VEN‘

harmony dàd-án

[dàdán] ‗We refuse‘

dàd-ʊ́[dàdʊ́] ‗refuse.VEN‘

Otero, (2015: 215) Therefore, sometimes the [+ATR] and [-ATR] vowels can possibly occur in the same word in Komo without any ATR harmony process in the same environment. It states that the progressive [+ATR] harmony is lacking in the language, but the language exhibits [-ATR] progressive harmony in which the [+high, -ATR] root/stem vowels /ɪ, ʊ/ impose their feature rightwards to the suffix [+high, +ATR] vowels in a productive fashion. In general, Komo shows [+ATR] anticipatory harmony, and [-ATR] progressive harmony in the domain root, stem or word but not beyond word though the word can be either monomorphemic or multi-morphemic. Majang, the northern surmic language, is identified as ten-vowel system (Moges, 2007) - /i, ɪ, e, ɛ, a, ᴧ, ɔ, o, ʊ, u/ unlike the considerably untenable six-vowel system /i, e, ɛ, a, o u/ set by Bender, (1983). Moges‘ study came up with the generalization that ATR distinction of the ten or nine vowels can work for Southwestern surmic and northern surmic (Majang) languages of Nilo-Saharan family most of which are spoken in Ethiopia. It divides the vowels into two sets as [±ATR] distinction with no restriction of their co-occurrence (members of different sets) in one root or stem or word so that the process of ATR harmony doesn‘t need to take place. According to this study, absence of ATR harmony in Majang might have resulted from diachronic language phenomena as cognate systems of the proto-surmic evidence indicates. The nine-vowel system, Majang, is considered to have –ATR harmony process as described in Pearce, (2008), but it claims subtlety of the harmony system because the expected reduction resistance of [–ATR] vowels and the phonetic quality change (reduction) of the [+ATR] vowels as in other languages are unnoticeable so that the generalization for Majang to have a vowel harmony is less reasonable on the current synchronic description status. Nuer is better considered for the significant distinction of voice quality rather than ATR systems as described in Duerksen, (2004) and Moges, (1995). They identify the language as seven vowel system /i, e, ɛ, a, ɔ, o, u/-plain/nonbreathy vowels with their corresponding breathy vowels, but the latter description contains three more centralized breathy vowels having no corresponding plain vowels with the absence of breathy-high-back vowel which makes the number of breathy vowels exceed that of the plain ones.

As stated in Turton and Bender, (1976), Mursi is a language with five vowel system with the lax counterpart for each plain vowel in allophonic distinction as /i, e, a, o, u/ and [ɪ, ɛ, ə, ɔ, ʊ]. The so called allophonic variations are equivalent with the present days [-ATR] vowels in the genetically related languages. On the other hand, Triulzi, et al. (1976) considers Berta as a language with basically five vowel system; however, there exists the tense and lax contrast for each vowel which is considered as allophonic variation just in the same way with Mursi‘s as described in Turton and Bender. In connection with the up-to-date dominance of ATR feature in contrast with those two works of the year 1976, their description can be construed to be controversial because of the unpopular ATR feature in time and scantiness of the studies. In contrasting descriptions, Gumuz is considered for the general vowel harmony rather than ATR system because it is claimed to be a six-vowel system (Ahland, 2012; Pearce, 2008). The contrast is that Pearce states the vowel harmony in Gumuz on its starting point claiming that there is no vowel harmony attested so far, but Ahland describes the vowel harmony of Gumuz in two ways as total and partial degrees on regressive basis with exception of [ə] which undergoes total assimilation regressively or progressively, but it doesn‘t say anything about the particular ATR system of the language. Example: NoG (North Gumuz) PHONEMIC

PHONETIC

Ahland, 2012:

60) /d-é-bit-á/ → [d-í-bɨt-á]

(Anticipatory)

AFF-FUT-descend-3SG.INTR ‗he will descend‘ The change of vowel /é/ of phonemic word into /í/ in the phonetic word is the partial regressive or anticipatory assimilation of vowels. The focus is on the vowel harmony without describing the ATR system in few languages like Gumuz as described in the above studies maybe due to sketchiness of the works or the real language structure. Tefera, (1989) provides a simple and sketchy description of vowel systems in Shabo identifying its [eight] vowels /i, e, ɪ, ᴧ, a, ɔ, o, u/ five of which occur with the long correspondents. The five vowels /i, e, a, o, u/ having the long forms are considered ―tense‖ in the study. This is all about vowels as conveyed herewith, but any in depth investigation may find it exhibiting ATR system because the so called ―tense‖ in this study is perhaps empirically [+ATR] type that somehow is a gap just like most earlier literature distinguishing tense/lax sets instead of [±ATR] in the relevant languages.

In Murle, Arensen (1982) identifies only seven vowels /i, e, ɛ, a, ɔ, o, u/ considering [ɪ] and [ʊ] as allophonic variations, but Moges, (2005) asserts that Murle is a nine-vowel system /i, ɪ, e, ɛ, a, ɔ, o, ʊ, u/ with phonemic relevance providing empirical illustrations, and these are described in [±ATR] distinction.

Murle vowel phonemes (Moges, 2005ː 122) i

ɔ a

[+ATR]

[-ATR]

The study indicates that the phonemic vowel length is also attested in Murle. Regarding vowel harmony, the study explains that the vowels are harmonized comprising the [+ATR] and [-ATR] sets in which [a] happens with both sets. The dominant vowel type [+ATR] triggers the harmony in both directions (progressive and regressive) changing the [-ATR] vowels in root, stem and word. In addition, the [+ATR] vowel suffixes are dominant over the [-ATR] vowel roots and stems in harmonizing them. (1)

Singular ʊ́tːʊk

Plural utːuɡːe – tːì

Gloss ‗mouth‘

Moges, (2005ː

124) lɔ́lɔ́ ɠɔ́ɔl kɛ́ɛŋ (2)

lólój – ok ɠóól – ók kééŋ – ti

Singular imperative mɪ́ʧ ŋʊ́ʊk kɛ́ɛp tɛ́ɛt

‗rainy season‘ ‗road‘ ‗belly‘ Plural imperative

í – mìʧ - it ú – ŋúuɠ – it e – kːééɓ – ìt é – tːéeɗ – it

Gloss ‗play‘ ‗pull‘ ‗count‘ ‗cut‘

The [+ATR] suffix vowel is the dominating set over the [-ATR] vowels in the roots, and the root vowels are harmonized with the vowels of the suffixes as shown in example set (1) above. Moges indicates the second set of examples as the plural structure through the prefix and suffix in the discontinuous morpheme V…VC in which the suffix containing [+ATR] vowel triggers the

harmony by changing the [-ATR] vowels in the roots; the vowel prefixes are just formed through duplicating the first vowel in the roots. Moges, (2001) asserts the predominance of ATR distinction and ATR harmony in almost all Nilo-Saharan languages extending to the wider range of East African vowel systems as a common linguistic feature. For instance, it recognizes the commonest nine-vowel system /i, ɪ, e, ɛ, a, ɔ, o, ʊ, u/ for Baale and Murle in southwest Surmic languages dividing into [±ATR] sets with mutual exclusion in one morpheme. The vowel /a/, in Baale, has the surface form [a] because it doesn‘t have a [+ATR] counterpart so that it is not restricted from free cooccurrence with the [+ATR] vowels in the same root. For the rest of the vowels in the language, ATR harmony takes place with dominance of [+ATR] feature in the domain of root, stem or words with dominant suffix [+ATR] spreading to a preceding root with [-ATR] vowel. The study identifies the southeast Surmic languages like Chai, Mursi and Me‘en as seven vowel system languages with absence of the vowels /ɪ/ and /ʊ/ from the nine vowels indicated for the southwestern Surmic. As stated in Moges, (2001), the Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages, with some exceptions whose vowel systems are not synchronically and diachronically well treated in the descriptions, involve the ATR contrast and ATR harmony in their phonological systems of vowels. Within the general grammatical description of the Surmic languages, Bender, (1977) states that the vowel system of the languages is easier than that of the Nilotic types claiming that the Surmic languages follow basic five vowel systems with the additional lax vowels like /ɛ/ and /ɔ/ with consideration of ə in few others. On top of this, the Surmic languages are considered for having very less features of tense/lax and voice quality phenomena unlike the Nilotic types in the family. Most of the earlier descriptions, like this one, are under broader topics that their way of analyzing and characterizing is too sketchy to come-up with convincing statements especially on the very specific, but inclusive, issues like ATR systems.

4. Gaps and Controversies The recently research attracting areas, Ethiopian Nilo-Saharan languages, have been described predominantly in terms of their grammatical and lexical properties in which some of the descriptions treated phonological patterns even with little works of phonetic outputs in the languages. The proto-linguistic typology of these languages in phonetic and phonological patterns particularly on ATR features of the languages has been comparatively stated by Moges (2001) that tremendously contributes in such scanty and few relevant works; apart from this one, there is no any comprehensive and comparative study of the Nilo-Saharan languages, especially in Ethiopia, that conveys ATR systems so that typological distinction of the languages as their group and sub-group is

lacking. Casali, (2008) calls on the study on ATR system of Nilo-Saharan languages asserting its urgency because most of the languages are yet to be studied for identifying their typological categories and for assessing their commonalities and differences among the languages. As far as the accessible pertinent studies indicate, many Nilo-Saharan languages in Ethiopia are less described in terms of exhibiting ATR contrast and ATR harmony. The languages like Dinka, Mebaan, Shilluk, Suri, Bodi, Kwegu, Shita, Nera, Tishema are not well identified in their detailed phonetic and phonological properties and the particular ATR systems; it seems there is a wider gap in this linguistic area attracting many more researchers. The need for more studies is not only for the absence or insufficiency of phonetic and phonological description but also for rationalizing and/or changing the described ones. For instance, Kunama is considered as five-vowel system which needs to be justified for why it deviates from the majority in the same family. Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s more, in the languages like Gumuz as in Ahland (2012), the phonological patterns of the vowels are described from which the particular ATR feature (as a specific part of vowel system) is missing. Perhaps, such studies lack detailed description. In connection with this, co-occurrence of the vowels in terms of ATR features in notational explanations is necessary for more effective and detailed understanding of their phonological systems. This is needed especially for the low vowel /a/ because it lacks its +ATR correspondent in many nine-vowel system languages. In addition, in some languages, environment restrictions are relevant for the ATR harmony processes and their phonological patterns. Universality of the ATR distinction of vowels and ATR harmony across the NiloSaharan languages in Ethiopia is under question because of some non-exhibiting languages in the same family. Perhaps, such irregularity arises from diachronic background of the language in sociolinguistic (contact) phenomena. A case in point, the presence of ATR contrast in Majang with the absence of vowel harmony process as stated in Moges, (2001) can, perhaps, be considered as a token for some missing features overtime. Another point of concern to have remained subtle is the connection between ATR contrast and voice quality distinction in Nilo-Saharan languages realizing if they are the co-occurring features or autonomous properties in a given language. As stated in Reh, (1996) for Anywa, the two features occur together which is partly supported by Moges, (2001) saying that the voice quality follows the ATR distinguished vowels (eg. +ATR vowel is followed by breathy voice) with the claim of less commonality in all languages. Thus, it is worth considered under the controversy until sufficient studies provide justifications on this regard.

5 Conclusions In the vowel systems of Nilo-Saharan languages in Ethiopia, ATR distinction and its harmony systems are less studied on the basis of phonetic (acoustic, articulatory and somehow auditory) properties; even the phonological studies are scanty and seeming incomplete in most cases so that the available resources do not suffice for trustworthy generalizations. However, it is proto-linguistically intuitive that ATR feature is compatible in the Nilo-Saharan languages from the existing descriptive indications. ATR harmony can occur within a morpheme or in the form of cross-morphemic process; affixal dominant ATR sets trigger harmonizing the recessive vowels in the root or stem. The binary vowel feature ÂąATR distinguishes the two sets in terms of tongue advancement, and it usually is an indication that the languages also exhibit ATR harmony in which vowels of different ATR sets never co-occur in a word. The [+ATR] vowel sets usually happen to be the dominant ones in the ATR harmony processes whether the harmony is within a morpheme or across morphemes. The overwhelming majority of the languages are nine-vowel systems with few ten-vowel and sevenvowel system languages all of which are phonologically compatible for ATR contrast and hence ATR harmony processes. There are still few other languages described to be deviating from such vowel system commonalities like Gumuz and Kunama whose grounds need to be explored.

6 Recommendations A comprehensive research needs to be conducted particularly on ATR systems of the Nilo-Saharan languages in Ethiopia because there is no separate and detailed description on this specific issue; the existing ones all just treat the ATR system in the other broader topics like phonology of a language or even the broader topic, Grammar. On the same concept, the feature ATR system, the general languages of Nilo-Saharan family need to be comparatively studied and typologically well identified by characterizing the common and different ways of behaving among the languages. Another interesting issue that attracts more research is the historical and sociolinguistic phenomena for justifying the few languages that deviate from the regular forms of ATR systems in the family. Identifying and classifying the occurrence patterns on the basis of synchronic and diachronic studies equips the researchers and other concerned bodies with the overall picture of the family and its sub-groups as well. Hence, effective and efficient educational syllabuses as well as books can be prepared accordingly for the benefit of native speakers of the languages and the country, Ethiopia. Since the languages are spoken in the remote areas of Ethiopia around the border of the country, it needs researchers to sacrifice much effort and money so

that the national and international research funds should be mobilized towards studying these languages and bringing them to their standard level, at least, in relational concept. In addition, I suggest establishment of a research center in the language areas (if there is no any) so that the interested individuals can get to work on studying and characterizing the languages and contributing to the growth and structural well-being (like maintaining the structure —protecting from change overtime).

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