Download PRACTICE MID ELEPHANTS KEY

PRACTICE MID TERM EXAM KEY
Elephants
Elephants are mammals. There are only two types – the bigger African elephant and the
Asian elephant. All elephants are large. A fully grown African male may be up to 4 metres
tall. A feature of the elephant is its trunk, which is a fusion of nose and upper lip. It serves
(‘serves as’ means ‘is’) as an arm and hand as well.
Elephants eat an enormous amount of food each day. They can devour vegetation covering
260 hectares in one day. A wide feeding area is vital for elephants, but they no longer have
large areas to roam. Another threat is from hunters. They kill elephants for their tusks.
Despite the dangers, there is hope for the elephant. There are now parks set aside where
elephants can live in a semi-wild state.
Source: Durkin, P., Ferguson, V., & Sperring, F. (2005). Text Types for Hong Kong
primary schools. Book 5 p.16. Hong Kong: Oxford University Press
PROCESS ANALYSIS:
red= material; blue = relational; green = existential Note: there are not really any
behavioural processes because the Behaver should be HUMAN (see the file on Process types
on Bb)….not penalized 
Complete the following text architecture description:
Grammatical
resources
Description of IDEATIONAL (= EXPERIENTIAL + LOGICAL)
MEANING
Patterns in
Field: ‘nature’ (specifically ‘elephants’ habitat’) is construed by eleplants,
NOUN groups
mammals, trunk, hunters, tusks, dangers,…NOTE: ‘nose, lip, area’ do not
necessarily construe meanings about ELEPHANTS (but will be accepted.
Grammatical Structure of noun groups:
Noun groups are mainly simple: e.g. all elephants, mammals, elephants.
However, there is some complexity: ‘A fully grown African male
[elephant]’ (pre-modified, ellipsed NP); ‘vegetation covering 260 hectares
in one day’ (post-modified NP); ‘the bigger African elephant and the Asian
elephant’ (co-ordinated NP); ‘an enormous amount of food each day’ (pre
and post-modification – OK, but pls note this is not such a good example
because the Head could be ‘amount’ OR ‘food’ depending on the type of
analysis). The most complex NP is ‘parks set aside where elephants can
live in a semi-wild state’.
The structure of the most complex noun group is (Function above,
word class below wording):
Head +
parks
NP
Post-Modifier 1
set aside
+ Post-Modifier 2
where elephants can live in a semi-wild state
ellipsed relative cl 1
rel cl 2
One example of nominalization (which is important in academic
language) is:
‘{A feature of the elephant is its trunk, which is} a fusion of nose and
upper lip…’ This is nominalization because it can be unpacked into another
word class or into a clause > …its trunk which evolved when nose and
upper lip became fused
Do the NPs help primary school students develop academic language?
That is, are the NPs ‘everyday’ or ‘non-everyday’?
Yes, the NPs help primary school students develop academic language
because there is some technicality associated with science/biology (e.g.
mammals, trunk, tusks, feature, vital, hectares, metres, area, state). Most
noun groups are non-abstract, though many are ‘technical’: e.g.
‘mammals’, ‘trunk’ and ‘tusks’. Abstract nouns are ‘feature, fusion, threat,
dangers’. Although the text construes a non-everyday meaning here
associated with science/biology, the level of the technicality is appropriate
for young students with guidance or use of visuals or a dictionary.
VERB group
patterns
Process types: (summarize your coded analysis above).
There are many relational processes, particularly in the first paragraph,
construing identification (Elephants are mammals; Another threat is from
hunters); and attributes (characteristics) of the elephants(all elephants are
large…may be up to four meters tall). There are also several material verbs,
mainly in the second paragraph construing the actions/behaviour of
elephants. Finally, Existential processes construe the existence of ‘kinds’
and ‘places’.
Structure:
Verb groups are generally simple (one element) except for ‘may be’, ‘can
devour’ and ‘can live’ which have two elements. Instances of negative
polarity e.g. ‘no longer’ may need translation/attention for young students.
Logical
meaning (=
inter-clausal
meaning)
Many clauses are simple/basic, and many are without internal conjoining,
again indicating suitability for younger students. However, there is a basic
clause joined to other clause by ‘but’, construing the contrast/adversative
logical relationship between the clauses i.e. ‘A wide feeding area is vital
for elephants, but they no longer have large areas to roam.’; NOTE: in
‘…the bigger African elephant and the Asian elephant…, AND …a fusion
of nose and upper lip’ the additive relationship is between WORD groups,
not between CLAUSES (no verb!). There are also ‘where’ ‘which’
construing a non-defining and defining inter-clausal relationship
respectively in the relative clauses. i.e. ‘A feature of the elephant is its
trunk, which is a fusion of nose and upper lip.’, ‘There are now parks set
aside where elephants can live in a semi-wild state.’
MOOD
Description of INTERPERSONAL MEANING
Exclusively Declarative (S^ F)), where the writer is positioned as ‘teller’
(of information) to the reader.
NOTE: You can only claim that declarative mood gives us a clue that the
text is for younger readers if you point out at the same time (or if it is
understood in the reader’s context), that ‘elementary, basic’ clauses are
defined by declarative mood.
TENSE & voice Because the tense is ‘present simple’, the writer construes (scientific)
meanings which are positioned as always true, where time is not relevant.
Present tense active voice is most frequent, construing the generalisable
factuality of the description (nature, habitat, danger).
MODALITY
Modal verbs are rare in this text - ‘may be’ is modality of probability. ‘A
fully grown African male may be up to 4 metres tall.’
‘Dynamic modality’ involves some attribute or characteristic of the
subject-referent, such as ability. (Collins & Hollo, 2000, p.81), i.e.
‘They can devour vegetation covering 260 hectares in one day.’
‘…elephants can live in a semi-wild state.’ (OK, but remember most
modern grammars see this as a marginal kind of modality).
Because there is so little modality, the writer positions the events as
‘factual’. NOT: Because this is an objective, factual text, there is
little modality! The text does not exist before the language/wording.
The wording MAKES the text.
PRONOUNS
Paragraph 1 (third line) – ‘it’ referring to ‘the trunk’
Paragraph 2 (first line) – ‘They’ referring to ‘Elephants’
Paragraph 2 (third line) – ‘They’ referring to ‘hunters’.
Because there are only third person personal pronouns, and no first person
(I) or second person (you) personal pronouns, the text is ‘impersonal’.
EVALUATIVE
wording
The writer’s ‘positive attitude’ to elephants is construed to some extent in
‘Another threat is from hunters’ and ‘there is hope for the elephant’.
[Description of TEXTUAL MEANING – not practiced in class, so not required]