2014, Vol.15, No.3

Modern English Education 2023 KCI Impact Factor : 1.55

pISSN : 1598-0782 / eISSN : 2586-6141
https://journal.kci.go.kr/meeso

Utilizing narratives from diaries, this case study explores Korean college students'participation in a short-term study-abroad program from an activity theoreticperspective. In particular, the interest of the study is the participants' construction andreconstruction of their daily experiences centered on their motivation for programparticipation and its relation with the goals they set. Through the description of thedynamic nature of their experience building, the study identifies the factors influencingand being influenced by the participant's study-abroad experience. Two female college students were the participants of the study. Their diary entries were used as the primary data set. Pre- and post- program interviews and other relevant documents (e.g., program orientation materials, class materials, brochures, etc.) were collected as well. The collected data were coded and categorized through constant comparative methods (Bogdan & Biklen, 2003). Findings show that the motivation for program participation substantially influences their program participation behavior and attitude andsubsequently the quality of their experience. The findings simultaneously reveal theparticipants' home stay experience as a major social-environmental factor whichcontributes greatly to shaping each participant's journey of study-abroad experiences. Based on these findings, the study provides the implications and suggestions for what program designers and college officials should consider when planning a study-abroad program.

This study compares L2 micro-level rhetoric of supporting detail in argumentativewriting produced by learners from three East Asian countries. In order to answer theresearch question, three hundred TOEFL writing samples, one hundred from eachcountry, were analyzed. In the overall use of supporting detail, the Korean andChinese writers used Mentioning Advantage (MA) to the highest degree, while theJapanese writers used more Personal Experience (PE). Differences are also foundbetween the three countries in the use of supporting detail sub-categories. TheJapanese writers preferred the use of personal expressions, accounting forapproximately a half of their supporting details, combining Personal Preference(PP) and Personal Experience (PE). A significant number of Korean and Chinesewriters relied on Citation (CIT) and Anecdote (ANC) compared to the Japanesewriters; the Korean writers were found to favor the use of objective facts, in that theyused research data to support their main ideas, while the Chinese writers showed agreater dependence on traditional expressions such as proverbs. Although CommonKnowledge and Truth (CKT) is rarely used by the East Asian writers in this study,the Korean writers displayed a tendency to present it to a greater extent than writersin the other two countries.

To investigate differences in the use of communication strategies (CSs) betweendifferent genders, this study explored the CSs used by Korean college students wheninteracting with their peers. The 40 students who participated in the study were dividedinto 20 same-gender pairs, with each pair consisting of 2 females or 2 males. For datacollection, a questionnaire, a speaking task (an interview), and tape recordings wereemployed. Those 10 female-female and 10 male-male pairs had 2 interviews, each, andthe 40 interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed. For statistical analysis, afrequency analysis and a t-test were administered. As a result, it was shown that ingeneral, the students used a limited variety of types, adopting direct strategies the mostand interactional strategies the least, and, between the two genders, both female andmale students appeared to use the same types and frequencies. Accordingly, it wasconcluded that no gender-related significant effect was identified on the use of CSswith Korean college students. Suggestions were made about increasing opportunitiesfor interaction between the students themselves and training them in the use of CSs,especially focused on the interactional strategies and the other infrequently used onesin this study.