Problem and goal. Amid the currently advancing (technological, social, techno-social) trends, prominent attention is drawn to skills and competences, which are universal for all spheres of activity -- soft skills, key competences. They are known as universal competences in Russian higher education. The aim of the article is to pinpoint universal…

This study explores how sectarian language prevalent on Arabic media shapes common Arab people's perceptions of sects such as Sunni, Shiites, and others. A sample of Arabic sectarian expressions was collected from social media, print media and TV channels. A sample of students and faculty was surveyed. Sectarian language was analysed according to…

This study explores multilingual international students' narratives of mobility and socialisation through online discursive spaces of interview conversations. Drawing upon an ecological approach to transnational narratives, the researcher analyzed international students' multiscalar interactions and transformations in sociospatial practices. The…

The paper is focused on the study of the interconnection of context and evaluative utterances in French. The assessment of different aspects of the world is viewed as a considerable part of human cognitive activities. Considering this, in the paper evaluative utterances are analysed in relation to logical, semantic, pragmatic and communicative…

Intonation plays an important role in understanding the intended meaning of speech since neglecting the study of intonation in the discourse leads to a misunderstanding of some pragmatic meaning. This study attempts to answer these two questions: what is the pragmatic function of the information tone types that are employed in Obama's speech…

Saudi Vision 2030 is a plan to steer the country towards prosperity through diversified economy, better government services and conducive environment for all to thrive. The study of wordlists, keyword lists, collocation analyses, identification of core issues on the basis of lexical fields and their reflection in 2018 English newspapers in Saudi…

Introductory "it" pattern, as in "it was found that," is of significance in academic writing but the use of introductory "it" might be challenging especially for native- and non-native students and non-native academic writers. However, few studies have been conducted to compare the use of introductory "it"…

Linking one's contribution to those of others' is a salient feature demonstrating interactional competence in paired/group speaking assessments. While such responses are to be constructed spontaneously while engaging in real-time interaction, the amount and nature of pre-task preparation in paired/group speaking assessments may have an influence…

Quantitative text analysis tools have become increasingly popular methods for the operationalization of various types of discourse analysis. However, their application usually remains fairly simple and superficial, and fails to exploit the resources which the digital era holds for discourse analysis to their full extent. This paper discusses the…

Teaching to students' local experiences is a tenet of good teaching in many contexts. This study explores the ways eight educators use local meanings in discourse. Through ethnographic work in an elementary school in the township of Roche-Bois, Mauritius, I examine teachers' words about students' localities. Articulating critical discourse…

The purpose of this research is to investigate the development of students' knowledge in the process of learning history. The research questions are as follows: (1) How do students construct their knowledge of history? (2) What main factors affect whether students accept or reject historical information? This research is a qualitative project…

This theoretical paper adopts the point of view of the audience of subtitled films and outlines a theory of subtitles as communicative agents within the participation structures of film reception. Based on examples from three Swiss fiction films -- "Heidi" (2015), "Heimatland" (2015) and "Der Goalie bin ig" (2014) --…

Much of the language at academic conferences is purely metaphorical, so it is important to understand the cultural-historical significance of the metaphors used in constructing organizational gatherings, especially the metaphor invoked by the town hall meeting. Town halls/meetings were spaces where members gathered for democratic rule in a…

From a discourse analytic approach, this study examines suggestion-response episodes in office hour interactions. The theoretical framework of relational work broadly informs the study. A total of thirty-eight office hour interactions constitute the primary data source, and the participants are 3 international instructors and their 34 Turkish…

This essay claims too much and too little for Critical Language Discourse, an interesting subject, but in my view not necessary as a separate topic from Needed Communications Skills Education. Those skills are best learned in context, working on specific challenges with specific audiences where there are particular communications problems to be…