GST 101A Use of English PDF

# GST 101A Use of English for First Semester 100l ## Use of English Course Outline ### Language - Language is arbitrary - Language is conventional - Language is dynamic - Language is systematic - Language is not instinctive ### Reading & Type of Reading - Scanning reading - Skimming reading - Ex...

# GST 101A Use of English for First Semester 100l ## Use of English Course Outline ### Language - Language is arbitrary - Language is conventional - Language is dynamic - Language is systematic - Language is not instinctive ### Reading & Type of Reading - Scanning reading - Skimming reading - Extensive reading - Intensive reading ### Listening Skills ### Dictionary & Its Uses - Generalised dictionaries - Specialized dictionaries ### Word Formation/Building & Processes - Morpheme - Derivational & Inflectional morpheme - Affixation - Compounding - Conversion ### Outlining ### Writing & Speaking Skills - Narrative essay writing - Descriptive essay writing - Expository essay writing - Argumentative essay writing - Letter writing # Reading & Type of Reading A primary means by which one acquires information is through reading. Aliyu (2006:47) define reading as "...a form of communication during which the contents, challenges and claims made by a writer are gone over by the reader who tries to capture the substance of the written material." Obah (1982:145) is of the view that in reading information is passed from the writer to the reader. Animasaun&Ibileye (2000:43) described reading as "...the ability to decode and comprehend intricate phonemic signs woven on the page of a paper or board. To be able to read, one should be able to differentiate letters and different sounds they assume." Reading is a literacy skill that can be learned and mastered. It involves visualizing and interpreting graphemes, characters, signs and symbols (graphological data) in print form, on paper or other writing materials. Many elements are involved in reading such as eye movement, mechanical, grammar, comprehension, summary, spellings etc. which make reading perhaps the most difficult language skill to acquire. Reading can only be effective if the reader has adequate knowledge of the alphabets and phonemes of the language the reading is been conducted. ## Purpose of Reading There is two general purpose of reading which includes but not limited to: - Light reading for pleasure - Serious study of textual materials Light reading may include works of popular fiction, prose, play and poetry, newspaper, magazines which are usually read for pleasure to while away time relieve stress and to kill boredom. Serious study, on the other hand, involves the reading of textual materials that bear a direct relation to the course of study. ## Types of Reading - Skimming - Scanning - Extensive reading - Reading for specific purposes Skimming is glancing rapidly through a text to determine its gist or substance. Scanning is glancing rapidly through a text to search for specific information. Extensive reading is a serious study of textual course materials in schools, colleges and universities. Reading can also be for specific purposes such as reading to prepare for test, assignments, examinations etc. As earlier stated, information seeking is the purpose of reading and of course, reading leads to intellectual enrichment and development. ## Factors Affecting Effective Reading/Faulty Reading Habits - **Finger pointing habit.** Some people cannot read unless they trace the fine prints of the reading materials with their hands. This is a faulty reading habit as it tends to slow down the reader. - **Vocalized reading.** This involves reading aloud to oneself the reading materials, this is also a faulty reading habit which tends to slow down the reader and the pace of assimilation not to talk of constituting a nuisance to other people around with noise. - **Reading under the influences of alcohol.** It's foolhardy to read under the influence of alcoholic substances which affect blood flow and consequently concentration. This is quite a bad reading habit. - **Regression.** This bad reading habit involves moving back as reading progresses. Many people are affected by this habit. They read two of three sentences and then move back to re-read the first sentence or phrase. This may be as a result of lack of concentration or the vocabulary of the text. - **Bad reading position.** Reading while standing or lying on the bed is a faulty reading habit. Reading while lying on the bed is an invitation to sleep. The position one takes the reading table and chair matters a lot in this regard. - **Eating a heavy meal before reading.** Taking heavy meals before a reading task will only induce sleep easily. Reading becomes difficult when one is already feeling heavy, drowsy and weak from the heavy meal. - **Other faulty reading habits include not reading until examinations are near, reading word for word and head movement while reading. All these are recipes for failing in the reading tasks.** To be successful in any reading task it is onerous to avoid all these pitfalls enumerated above. # Listening Skills Listening is the most primary of the four (4) language skills. Listening is essential to any communication activity. Osborn and Osborn (2000:60) are of the belief that listening is a "teachable skill if the listener works at it". Many scholars have defined listening from their different point of views. Some of these definitions are shared below: - Lubega (1987:175) opines that "listening is the perception of sounds and the ability to understand and evaluate what we hear. For Lynch and Mendelson (2001:196) listening involves "making sense of spoken language usually accompanied by other sounds and visual input with the help of our relevant prior knowledge and the context in which we are listening". - Ibrahim (2013:47) is of the view that listening is "the ability to distinguish between the sound systems of any language and the unfamiliar sounds in another given language." She further noted that "it is a dynamic personal activity in which the listener seeks out the intended meaning in a message through the recognition of the sounds uttered by the speaker and the interpretation of the relevance of what is being said or the topic of discussion. Listening can also be said to be that conscious effort to select the meaningful, important and relevant sounds and messages from the numerous sounds and messages that our ears perceive or receive. It is not everything we hear that is relevant or important to us. In a higher institution setting, in particular, we attend numerous activities such as lectures, seminars, conferences, drama and others which requires a highly specialized kind of listening. In order to be successful with these activities, we must focus listening attention on only the important meaning bearing sounds and messages. In a nutshell, listening is an active auricular process that involves the recognition, selection and comprehension of the significant items in a spoken discourse. ## Why do we listen? There is a correlation between listening and other communicative skills and sub-skills. We listen in order to be able to take good notes from a spoken discourse or make appropriate responses, participate intelligently in discussions, produce a good summary in writing or speech etc. ## Types of Listening There are two (2) major types of listening. They are the "one-way listening and the two-way listening." The one-way listening which is also called listening in order to learn; here the hearer listens with rapt attention to grasp gainful information from the message. This is the case in academic settings where speeches, lectures, seminars are delivered. Another situation of one-way listening is television and radio broadcast. The two-way listening also is known as "reciprocal or interactive" listening involves a two-way interaction where there are interlocutors and they hold a dialogue where both speak and listen to one another. Other categories of listening include discriminative listening, comprehensive listening, critical listening, emphatic listening, and appreciative listening (See Osborn and Motley, 1999.) ## Factors That Can Affect Effective Listening Factors that can affect effective listening may be an external source of interference such as the environment where the listening discourse is taking place which may be noisy, unfamiliar vocabulary being used by the speaker, the mode of presentation of the message of the discourse, jargon-filled message etc. may prevent effective listening. Another factor could be internal sources of interference, which may come from the listener's own attitude and may hinder effective listening communication. Osborn and Motley (1999) identified some examples such as personal concerns, bad listening habits. reacting to trigger words and negative attitudes. - **Personal concerns** could be anxiety, sadness, hunger etc. a listener who is worried, sad or hungry cannot listen effectively in such circumstances. These personal concerns would have to be resolved for the listener to be able to concentrate. - **Habits**: A listener with a bad listening habit of daydreaming may pretend to be listening to a speech but has the mind far away from the discourse. Some listeners would even be concentrating on the clothes and shoes and the diction of the speaker rather than on the content and substance of the speech. - **Attitudes**: Some listeners have a strong preconceived negative attitude to the speaker and are not interested in whatever he/she has to say no matter how important and beneficial the substance of the message is to them. - **Reacting to trigger words**: there are some words that can bring out strong emotional reactions in the listeners and caused them to be disturbed. Words that offend ethnic, tribal, religious and gender sentiments can overshadow communicative interactions. This wrong choice of words can destabilize the listening capacity of a person. ## How to improve listening skills We spend more time listening than on other cognitive processes such as speaking, reading and writing. If we do not possess the requisite listening skills, we will miss much of the information that we do need. Most of what we learn comes from lectures and what we hear so if our listening skills are well sharpened, we are indirectly sharpening the other cognitive and communicative skills as well. Good listening habits are enumerated below: - **Predicting what people are going to talk about.** This will engender rapt attention and good concentration. - **Guessing at unknown words without panicking.** Sometimes some unknown words may be bandied about in a discourse situation. The listener should look at the context in which the words are used and guess at the meaning. - **Identifying relevant points and rejecting the irrelevant one.** Many lecture situations are full of relevant ideas and irrelevancies. The listener should learn to retain the relevant ideas and discard the irrelevant ones - **Listeners should also cultivate the habit of recognising different intonation patterns and uses of stress which give clues to meaning and to the social setting.** - **Recognising discourse markers such as "well, now, finally" etc. is the hallmark of a good listener** - **Above all, a good listener should learn to concentrate and avoid distraction.** - **A good listener must cultivate the right attitude to listening and avoid bias, sentiments and guard against emotional words influencing their judgments.** In conclusion, Listening is an important language skill and greatly aids effective communication. Without the ability to listen effectively, messages are easily misunderstood, communication is impaired and even life itself can be jeopardized. Listening is one very important communication skill we must all aim to master. Proper attention must be paid to the teaching of listening skills at all educational levels. # Writing and Types of Writing Writing as earlier depicted involves using characters, signs and symbols to represent speech sounds on paper or writing materials. Writing is a productive skill in language use and is regarded as a literacy skill. It is a skill which can be developed through practice. It is a strenuous but exciting and satisfying activity. It is also an interactive activity. Writing is a process involving a number of stages: 1. **Pre-Writing Activities**: these activities include choosing a topic, selecting and organizing ideas. These we engage in before the actual writing commences. 2. **Writing**: this is the actual writing of the texts in drafts. 3. **Editing**: this is the post-writing activity of proofreading to ensure an error-free piece. A good writing should have the following characteristics: - **A good degree of organization in the way the ideas and information are developed** - **An accurate expression of meaning (coherence and clarity)** - **The economy of words.** Verbosity and wordiness could make the piece tardy and awkward - **Simplicity.** Concise diction with simple sentences is the hallmark of a good write up - **A synthesis of the form, style content matching with the occasion and the audience.** - **Logical and coherent organization and expression of ideas.** ## Types of Writing The essay is a type of writing. According to Attabor (2013:140), "an essay is a prose form of composition whose intention is to expose events as detailed as possible to readers". Before going into the full writing of an essay it is important to plan it systematically going through the process of choosing a topic, limiting the topic and developing the outline in such a way that the topic is adequately covered. There are four essays types. These are narrative, descriptive argumentative and expository essays. ### Narrative Essay Writing This is an account of what has taken place presenting characters through description and dialogue and shows the characters in action. In a nutshell, the author tells a story which could be facts or fiction. History writers and journalist preferred this method of writing. A good narrative essay follows a storyline with an unfolding plot, keeps the reader in suspense, follows a sequential order, told vividly making real the characters and events with clarity and interesting episodes. In storytelling, exaggeration fables and untrue events are acceptable and can sometimes be written in an informal style depicting slangs and colloquial speech ### Descriptive Essay Writing As the name implies it involves description. Attempts are to describe events, objects, animals or human personalities. It's a type of expository essay as ascribed by Omachonu (2003:39). It also incorporates imagery and specific details organized either chronologically or spatially making use of figurative language and varied sentence patterns. ### Argumentative Essay Writing Also called the persuasive writing and is based on a reasoned discussion. It states the opinion of the writer and attempts to influence the reader or audience to agree with one's point of view on an issue. It is usually in the form of debate and the writer takes a stand either for or against a particular topic or issue. It's always an attempt to make others accept one's viewpoint. A good argument must be logical in focus and presentation of the points and present evidence to support the argument and also acknowledge contrary viewpoints and possibly nullify them with superior arguments that show their weaknesses. There must be an intellectual and emotional basis for whatever convictions one holds in an argument. ### Expository Essay Writing A type of writing in which the author's purpose is to inform or explain a subject matter to the reader. Explanations are given about a process or procedure. It explains terms, terminologies, ideas, concepts, theories, objects, events and human activities in a logical and simple manner. Types of expository writings are reports, analysis, critical reviews, brochures or explanatory literature that accompany merchandise, project reports and research papers. Expository writings may instruct, explain, define, inform or clarify. ### Letter Writing Letter writing or writing of correspondences can be broadly classified into two, namely: - Formal Letters - Informal Letters Formal letters are also known as business/public/official or business letters are letters which serve official or business purposes. They include letters in answer to an advertisement, to the press, to or within a business firm or public organization. ## Features of a Formal Letter - **The writer's address and date.** This appears at the top right-hand margin of the page and the date follows two lines below the address. Abbreviations are strictly not allowed. The address may be written in block or indented forms. The block form is widely preferred in modern writing. The address may also be fully punctuated (Closed) or not fully punctuated (Open). Here are some example formats for address: **Block form** Department of English, Faculty of Arts, University of Abuja. P.M.B. 117, Abuja, Nigeria. 28th October 2018 **Indented/slanted form** Department of English, Faculty of Arts, University of Abuja, P.M.B. 117, Abuja, Nigeria. 28th October, 2018 **Another Block form** Plot 10001 Compensation Layout, Gwagwalada. Abuja, Nigeria. 28th October, 2018 **Another Indented/slanted form** Plot 10001 Compensation Layout, Gwagwalada. Abuja, Nigeria. 28th October, 2018 ## Basic Skills Required in Writing Basic skills are required. These are outlined briefly below: - **Clarity**: clearness of expression without indistinctness or ambiguity and easy to understand or intelligible is the hallmark of a good writing. - **Economy**: this is the management of words, phrases and sentences that make up the composition in a wieldy proportion. This is the relation between the number of words used and the amount of meaning conveyed. - **Accuracy**: this is the writer's grasp and correct use of grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary. Accuracy is comparable to fluency. - **Simplicity**: this has to do with the style. Too much of flowery speech or verbosity or high sounding words will put off most readers. Keep it simple. # Note Taking and Make-Making Most people cannot distinguish between note-taking and note-making. The two terms, to such people, can be used interchangeably. Note taking is the act of writing down the major points that we read from books or that we listen to during lectures. seminars, and conferences. Note taking is a vital skill required in undergraduate study or study at any level for that matter. A student should be able to select the relevant from the less relevant information in a text either spoken or written. You should always take notes while listening to a speech, talk or a lecture. no matter the medium of delivery. That is, if you listen to a lecture on a video or CD-ROM, you should be able to take notes. You should also take notes in discussion groups, seminars and tutorials. Good notes are a product of some well-established techniques and methodology. It is noteworthy that effective listening is the key to good note-taking. Note makingis an activity done during study time. You make notes from your textbooks, journal articles, newspapers, magazines, internet sources or study texts. ## Self-Assessment Exercise Going by the distinction made between note-taking and note-making in this section. tick (√) in situations when you will take notes and put (x) in situations where you will make notes. Do this for the situations listed below. 1. When reading a book in the library ☐ 2. When consulting an encyclopedia ☐ 3. When reading a recent journal ☐ 4. When in a distinguished annual lecture ☐ 5. When listening to a documentary ☐ 6. When you are in the reference section of a library ☐ 7. When listening to a budget broadcast ☐ 8. When consulting yellow pages ☐ 9. When in a crucial meeting ☐ 10. When consulting an open university directory ☐ ## The Skills of Note Taking 1. **Listen carefully to the lecture-** paying close attention is very important in note-taking. Don't just start writing as soon as the speaker starts speaking, without taking the pain to listen attentively to what the speaker is saying. 2. **Understanding-** try to understand what the speaker is saying before attempting to take notes; take notes when you understand the point. 3. **Put down the summary of the main points of the lecture.** Write the major points and not the irrelevancies. Do not write full sentences in note-taking. 4. **Abbreviations-** use abbreviations where necessary and possible. This saves time. Common note-taking abbreviations are listed below. - i.e = that is - V = verb - b/4 = before - Prep = Preposition/preparation - i/c = in charge - pronoun/pronounce, etc = and so on - synonyms viz=namely - idm = idom - sb = somebody - sgm = symbol, - symbiotic sth = something - fig = figure - abr = abbreviations - BrE = British English - b/c = because/became - Nig = Nigeria/Nigerian African/Africa - Conj = conjunction - det = determined/determine These are just a few. You can, on your own, find out many more. You can even create your own abbreviations. It is advisable that you should not fill up your notes with too many abbreviations that will make the notes incomprehensible. 5. **Symbols-** Use symbols where necessary or important- there are many symbols that you can use. Science and technology students use more symbols than the humanities students. Be familiar with the symbols in your field. Some of the symbols you can use in note-taking are presented below: - = equals to - & = and - ≠ = not equals to - ©= copyright - > = more than - @ = at - < = less than - * = asterisk - √ = correct/tick - TM = trademark - % = per cent - N = Naira - € = Pound Sterling - # = hash - = can be rewritten as - X = incorrect - ∑ = summation - % = in care of Fig. 1.1: Symbols for Note-Taking Note-taking activities during lectures are fast when symbols are used. Leave plenty of space between different headings and sub-headings when taking notes. The spaces are to be used for writing additional information or facts that you may discover after the lectures or during your own private study. Also, leave wide margins for later comments and related references. Emphasise key words, phrases, sentences and ideas by use of capitalization, underlining, colouring, asterisks, etc. Consistent use of headings and sub-headings, all add to what can make your notes attractive, pleasant to read and easy to learn. The following steps would enhance a concise, clear and logical record for easy recall and revision when necessary in note making. - Clear headings and sub-headings - Identifying the topic sentence(s) - Selecting the main points - Using apt and precise words - Good layout or structure - Brevity- use of symbols, abbreviations clauses, phrases etc. ## The Purpose of Note Taking and Note-Making Note-taking and Note making have similar, if not the same uses: - Improves focus and attention to detail. - Promotes active learning - Boosts comprehension and retention - Teaches prioritizing skills. - Extends attention span. - Improves organization skills. - Increases creativity. ## Outlining An outline is a detailed and vivid representation of the content and structure of a given piece of writing or utterance, whether spoken as in a lecture or written as in a book. All the important ideas are usually noted down in an outline. The outline usually contains the basic ideas plus the secondary ideas that are arranged in such a way that the relationship of the structure is shown vividly and graphically at a glance. The outline is described as being graphic or visual because it makes reading and revision fast and effective. In an outline, the major ideas are usually notated with roman numerals (1, 11. 111. etc.) the sub-division of secondary ideas is usually notated with capital letters beginning from A. B, C, etc. If these secondary ideas are further broken down into details, the set of ideas will be indicated with the numerals 1, 2, 3, etc. A subdivision of this level could be notated with small letters a, b, c etc. all these are graphically illustrated below: - I- Major ideas or points - A, B, C. Sub-divisions of l - 1,2,3, Sub-divisions of A. B. C - a, b, c. - Sub-division of 1.2, 3 - An alternative is to use numerals all through Here is an example of what this might look like in a table: | Level | Description | |---|---| | 1.0 | Main Ideas | |1.1| Sub-division of ­­­­1 | |1.2| Second Sub-division of ­­­­1| |1.2.1| Sub-division of ­­­­1.2| |2.0| Another Major Idea | |2.1| Sub-division of ­­­­2 | |2.1.1| Sub-division of ­­­­2.1| ## The Qualification of a Good Outline A good outline must as a matter of necessity have the following characteristics: - **Detailed**: a good outline should be sufficiently detailed - **Informative**: provide the necessary information about the subject matter - **Brief**: brevity is the key. ## The Use of a Good Outline - It is used to think out and organize a paper - The outline can make one see whether ideas connect to each other - What order of ideas works best - See the overall picture of the paper - Whether each point has sufficient supporting evidence - The outline will show where the paper has become disorganized. In conclusion, outlining provide the skeleton, on which you can build your writing. They are a structure so that ideas and thoughts flow logically and build towards a good and strong conclusion. # The Dictionary and Its Uses There is a mental compartment in the brain where all words in one's vocabulary are stored; this mental compartment is known as the "lexicon". It is from this term that the words "lexicology and lexicography" are derived. Lexicology and Lexicography is the science and art of compiling dictionaries. Dictionaries are a compendium of words or wordbooks in whose collections are the word arranged alphabetically and usually contains definitions, synonyms, word origins and etymologies, pronunciations, guides on usage with examples and the meanings of the entry words. It is noteworthy that dictionaries are not only in book forms as there are digital dictionaries. There are general dictionaries and specialized dictionaries. Specialized dictionaries include words in specialist areas or fields. Examples are "The English Pronouncing Dictionary" by Daniel Jones, A Dictionary of Phonetics and Linguistics etc. General dictionaries contain a full range of words in the language. Examples include Webster Collegiate Dictionary, Oxford Advanced Learners' Dictionary etc. ## The Uses of a Dictionary The dictionary should be a student companion and should be put to good use. Some of the uses of a good dictionary are enumerated below: - To look up the meaning of a word - Check up the spelling of a word - Finding out other grammatical information about a word - Finding the synonym or antonym of a word - Looking up the collocations of a word - Checking the part of speech of a word - Finding out the history and origin of a word (word-etymology) - Finding out about the style/register of a word - Finding out correct pronunciation, etc. What we can observe from the extract as the kinds of information that a dictionary can give you is further explained as follows: Alphabetical order of words a, b, c; various meanings of a word as used in various contexts (in 1, 2, 3); the way the words are pronounced; these are put in slash / /e.g./konvikt/ convict. The part of speech of the word e.g. n = for a noun; the etymological information about the word e.g. lat. For Latin, Grk. for Greek, Fre. for French. The context in which the word is used e.g. (with 5th) meaning with something; Example of sentences in which the words can be used; The colloquial usage, if applicable; Figure of speech and idiomatic (IDM) expressions associated with the word; Different derivational forms of the word e.g. nation- national- nationality- A good dictionary is arranged alphabetically so it is easy to locate word entries. # Word Building and Processes A word building and processes fall within the domain of language study known as morphology. Morphology, simply defined is the study and analysis of the internal structure of words. It is also the study of rules governing the formation of words in a language. The basic concept of morphology is the "morpheme". Morphemes are the fundamental units in the study of word building and processes. It is the minimal unit of grammatical analysis. For instance in girls and friend, you can divide the first into meaningful units of girl and -s. the first is non-adult female while the second means more than one i.e. plural. In essence, girls are made up of two morphemes. On the other hand, a friend is made up of a single morpheme. This is because you cannot further separate or break down into units ## Morpheme Types Two types of morpheme exist generally. These are free morpheme and bound morphemes. Free morphemes can stand on its own or exist in isolation. They are also called independent morphemes and are usually a full word e.g. table, goat, dance, happy, write etc. Bound morphemes, on the other hand cannot stand alone and does not occur in isolation in an utterance. They can only be attached or joined to other morphemes (free) to derive their meaning. ## Functions of Morphemes Morphemes combine to form words. There is a role to play for each morpheme in this combination. Free morphemes can perform the function of "root" to which other morphemes can be attached e.g establish can serve as the root for the addition of -ment in establishment ditto for nation performing the role of root for the addition of-al in national and inter- (international). The root morpheme is the nucleus of any word-building process. It is also possible to have more than one root in an utterance e.g. blackboard is made up of two free morphemes black and board. Both can serve as the root for the addition of the plural bound morpheme -s in blackboards. The root morpheme can also perform the function of a "stem" when other morphemes are to be added to it. For example, nation performs the role of the stem to form national and national performs the role of the stem to form international and internationally is formed from the stem of international. ## Morphemes can be Inflectional or Derivational Morphemes can also inflectional or derivational in nature. Inflectional morphemes do not change the lexical word class of the root morphemes they are attached to but merely gives additional information such plurality and tense markers. Examples are boy - boys, play - played, box - boxes, child - children, ox - oxen. The inflectional morphemes -s, -ed, -es, -ren, -en do not change the word class of the root words that they are attached. ## Derivational Morphemes Derivational morphemes, on the other hand, do change the syntactic word class of the root morphemes that they are attached. Examples are play - player, ride - rider, teach - teacher (verbs to nouns), passion - passionate, boy - boyish, friend - friendly (nouns to adjectives) etc. ## Word Building Processes These are morphological processes by which new words are formed or created in language. There are many such processes in English and they include the following processes: ### Affixation One of the ways of creating new words in the human language is through affixation. This is a process whereby morphemes are added before or after a root. Affixes may occupy the structural position of prefix, suffix, infix, circumfix, interfix or suprafix. Not all these structural positions are productive in the English language. #### Prefix - This is a bound morpheme which is attached before a word or occurs after the root. Examples include im-possible, ir-regular, il-legal, in-elegant, mis-judge, ex-wife, un-holy, pre-school. dis-courage, non-performance, anti-virus, inter-racial etc. #### Suffix - This is a bound morpheme which is attached or occurs after the root. Examples include friend-ly, alcohol-ic, faith-ful, child-less, call-er, column-ist etc. #### Infix - This occurs in between two root morphemes. It's not so common or a productive process in English. But we do have examples such as brother-in-law, mother-in-law. viz-a-viz. #### Suprafix - Suprafix is a suprasegmental feature of the English language. Suprasegments are elements that are placed above the segment. They are also called prosody. An example is a stress placed on English segments in the following examples. 'convict - con vict, address - add ress. rebel - re bel, pervert - per vert etc. the stress placed on the first syllables in all the examples make them nouns while the stress placed on the second syllable in all the example make them verbs. "Interfix" and "Circumfix" are not productive processes in English but may be found in some other languages of the world. ### Blending Blending is a morphological process of creating a new word by combining parts of two or more existing words in the language. This results from two elements fusing to form a new word or construction. They are sometimes called coinage. Examples of blends in English include: - breakfast + lunch = brunch - motor+hotel = motel - television + broadcast = telecast - teleprinter + exchange = telex - smoke + fog = smog - camera + recorder = camcorder ### Clipping Clipping is the process of creating a new word by shortening another word. It is an informal shortening of a word often to a single syllable. It involves some element of reduction in the length of a word. Examples of clipped words in English include exam (examination), ad (advertisement), flu (influenza), telly (television), gas (gasoline), Prof (professor), lab (laboratory), math (mathematics) plane (airplane) etc. ### Compounding Compounding is a process of combining two or more formerly independent root morphemes to form a single word. The two base forms are added together to form a new word. Compounds in English include: - black + bird = blackbird - milk + maid=milkmaid - land + lord = landlord - nation + wide = nationwide - head + master = headmaster It is noteworthy that compounds in their overall meaning are not always equal to the meaning of the individual words that constitute their makeup. ### Acronyms Acronyms are formed from the initial letters of a phrase name. It is possible to create new words from the initial letters of a set of other words. Acronyms often consist of capital letters as in the following examples: - NATO = North Atlantic Treaty Organization - UNESCO = United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization - RADAR = Radio Detection and Ranging - NEPA = National Electric Power Authority - AIDS = Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome - WHO = World Health Organization ## Borrowing One common way of creating new words in a language is by borrowing. This is a process whereby words are taken from a source language to fit into the vocabulary of the target language. This usually happens as a result of languages in contact. English has borrowed a lot of words from other languages such as Latin, French, Chinese, Greek, Russian, Arabic, Japanese, Portuguese, and German etc. Words like restaurant, regal, petite, fiancée were borrowed from French. Words like hara-kiri, geisha were from Japanese. Kow-tow is from Chinese. Marmalade is from Russian. Fiesta, renegade, siesta from Spanish. Loco parentis, Victoria, faux pas from Latin etc. ### Reduplication This is a type of compounding in which the root morpheme is copied either fully or partially as exemplified in the following: - goodygoody - wilynily - huffpuff - hocus-pocus - wackojacko ### Neologism Neologism also is known as coinage is a process whereby new words are added into the language by creating new words to name new products and technological inventions which with the passage of time gains currency within a speech community. Examples are trade names like Xerox, Kleenex, that have become everyday words in the language. Xerox is the trade name of a photocopy making company and today is used to refer to the process of photocopying in general. Kleenex is also the name of a type of tissue paper but now it denotes every kind of tissue paper in general. Other morphological word-building processes include conversion whereby a word changes its part of speech e.g. from the verb to noun, a Back-formation is a process where the derived form is longer than the base root from which it is was created. # Speaking Skills Speaking or speech is a verbal mode of expression. It involves the use of significant sounds that must be heard or understood. According to Omachonu (2013:54) "good speech production and delivery are not achieved in a day. It takes a while to master the art" The study of sounds used in the language is called phonetics. Speech or speaking is, therefore, the art of using organs of speech to produce meaningful sounds for a communicative purpose. ## Organs of Speech These are articulatory organs in the body that are used in the production of speech sounds. It is interesting to note a waste product (spent air) from the lungs is extremely useful for the speaking aspect of life. The organs in the body are also primarily designed for other biological functions but have speech superimposed on these functions. The lungs, the glottis, the soft palate, the hard palate, the alveolar ridge, the tongue, the teeth, the lips, the larynx, the pharynx, the nasal and oral cavities are such articulatory organs. ### The Lungs The lungs are the powerhouse of speech production (Gimson, 1980). When the lungs expand it sucks in oxygen and when it contracts, it pushes out carbon-dioxide. The expelled air generates an airflow that moves through the windpipe to go out through either the oral cavity or nasal cavity.