Linear nail growth rate is affected by various conditions, one of which is the level of blood flow. Our supposition was that topical minoxidil, which has vasodilatory properties, can increase the rate of nail growth. The aim of this study was to determine the impact of topical minoxidil on nail growth. A 5% topical minoxidil solution was applied twice daily to the fingernails of 32 participants. Two groups of 16 participants were randomly chosen. In one group, the applications were made to the right index and left ring fingernails, and, in the other, the left index and right ring fingernails. During each visit (weekly during the first month and every 2 weeks during the second month), the nail length of six fingernails (index, middle, and ring of both hands) was measured using a digital caliper. Beginning in the first week, the mean nail length of the treated nails was greater than that of nails in the untreated group with statistical significance. There were no systemic or cutaneous side effects. During the first month, the mean growth of the treated nails was 4.27 mm/month compared with 3.91 mm/month in the untreated nails (P = 0.003). These findings suggest that a 5% concentration of topical minoxidil can stimulate nail growth with increased growth beginning in the first week of application. The results may have important implications for the treatment of nail disorders; however, a comparable study involving participants with nail disorders is highly recommended.
Despite Thai students having studied English from the primary to tertiary level, Thais continue to have the lowest English proficiency levels among their ASEAN neighbors. This fact has raised serious concerns about Thailand's capacity to viably compete in the globalized economy. This paper reports findings of a quasi-experimental study designed to determine the effectiveness of employing CAinformed instruction in a Thai university English conversation classroom. Based on these findings and those found in two previous studies undertaken in the same institutional context, the authors provide an argument for the integration of CA within the CLT-centered university-level EFL classroom. This integration, the paper argues, raises learners' awareness of the genuine nature of naturally occurring conversation and, in doing so, can have a positive impact on their oral proficiency in English.
Despite Thai students having studied English from the primary to tertiary level, Thais continue to have the lowest English proficiency levels among their ASEAN neighbors. This fact has raised serious concerns about Thailand's capacity to viably compete in the globalized economy. This paper reports findings of a quasi-experimental study designed to determine the effectiveness of employing CAinformed instruction in a Thai university English conversation classroom. Based on these findings and those found in two previous studies undertaken in the same institutional context, the authors provide an argument for the integration of CA within the CLT-centered university-level EFL classroom. This integration, the paper argues, raises learners' awareness of the genuine nature of naturally occurring conversation and, in doing so, can have a positive impact on their oral proficiency in English.
This paper reports a preliminary study analyzing non-conventional language use in English manuscripts written by Thai academics and edited by the first author of the paper. The purposes were to classify the non-conventional language uses identified by the editor and to establish if there were common patterns of errors among the authors. The analysis identified the editor's reason for suggesting each change to a manuscript and a nomenclature was constructed based on 15 language structure categories plus five non-structure categories. The writers of the manuscripts sampled were also interviewed in English and a sample of their speech was analyzed based on the nomenclature in respect of structural errors. The numbers of each type and category were compared across writers, and within writers between their writing and speech. High and significant correlations between writers and moderately high and significant correlations within writers were found. The findings suggest directions for further study which may offer valuable insights into whether the use of language for academic purposes and its use as a spoken interpersonal medium are related or whether the two skills are acquired differently. Key wordsThailand, EAP, error analysis, English language learning. * Corresponding address: Michael Currie, 37/1 M6 Tambon Pawong, Ampur Muang, Songkhla 90100, Thailand. MICHAEL CURRIE, KEMTONG SINWONGSUWAT & KATHLEEN NICOLETTIVol. 4(2)(2016): [251][252][253][254][255][256][257][258][259][260][261][262][263][264] Sažetak Rad predstavlja preliminarnu studiju u kojoj se analizira nekonvencionalna upotreba jezika u rukopisima na engleskom jeziku tajlandskih profesora univerziteta, koje je lektorisao prvi autor ovog članka. Ciljevi rada bili su da se klasifikuju nekonvencionalne upotrebe engleskog jezika uočene od strane lektora, kao i da se ustanovi da li postoje zajednički obrasci grešaka među autorima. U analizi su predočeni razlozi lektora za predlaganjem svake izmene u rukopisu i formirana je nomenklatura zasnovana na 15 strukturnih i 5 nestrukturnih jezičkih kategorija. Autori rukopisa iz uzorka intervjuisani su na engleskom jeziku, a uzorak njihovog govora analiziran je na osnovu nomenklature strukturnih grešaka. Broj svake vrste i kategorije grešaka upoređen je po autorima, kao i kod pojedinačnih autora u pogledu njihovog pisanja i govora. Pronađene su visoke i značajne korelacije između autora i umereno visoke i značajne korelacije kod pojedinačnih autora. Rezultati ukazuju na pravce daljih istraživanja, pomoću kojih se može steći dragocen uvid u to da li su upotreba engleskog jezika za akademske potrebe i njegova upotreba u govornom mediju u vezi, ili se te dve veštine stiču na različit način. Ključne rečiTajland, engleski jezik za akademske potrebe, analiza grešaka, učenje engleskog jezika.
Encouraged by previous studies which recommended incorporating insights from Conversation Analysis (CA) into English conversation teaching to improve EFL students' oral proficiency, this paper reports on the findings from Phase I of a longitudinal study designed to investigate the impact of employing a CA-informed teaching (CA-T) model to improve Thai students' oral English proficiency. The aim of Phase I of this study was to engage local teachers in co-developing and piloting the CA-T model. In this phase, 16 purposively sampled primary and secondary English teachers from Thailand’s southern provinces participated in an intensive 6-day workshop designed to (1) familiarize them with the instructional value of CA insights and key features of the CA-T model and (2) assist these teachers in creating CA-T lesson plans. Following the workshop, teachers piloted the lesson plans, provided feedback on the implementation process, reported on the perceived effects of the lessons, and offered recommendations for improving the CA-T model. This paper describes the content of the workshop, shares teachers' feedback about the CA-T lessons and implementation process, and presents preliminary findings as to the potential challenges and benefits of employing the CA-T model in Thai primary and secondary classrooms.
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