This is the first comprehensive account of the Appraisal Framework. The underlying linguistic theory is explained and justified, and the application of this flexible tool, which has been applied to a wide variety of text and discourse analysis issues, is demonstrated throughout by sample text analyses from a range of registers, genres and fields.

This is the first comprehensive account of the Appraisal Framework. The underlying linguistic theory is explained and justified, and the application of this flexible tool, which has been applied to a wide variety of text and discourse analysis issues, is demonstrated throughout by sample text analyses from a range of registers, genres and fields.

Phraseology, as explored in corpus linguistics, is important to the study of evaluative language. Corpus techniques reveal this phraseology and so assist in, for example, identifying modal meaning and intensifying phrases. The patterns identified by corpus techniques can be used in identifying and parsing instances of evaluation.

It is now an acknowledged fact in the world of linguistics that the concept of evaluation is crucial, and that there is very little – if any – discourse that cannot be analyzed through the prism of its evaluative content. This book presents some of the latest developments in the study of this phenomenon. Released more than a decade later than Hunston and Thompson’s (2000) Evaluation in Text, Evaluation in Context is designed as its sequel, in an attempt to continue, update and extend the different avenues of research opened by the earlier work. Both theoretical and empirical studies on the topic are presented, with the intention of scrutinizing as many of its dimensions as possible, by not only looking at evaluative texts, but also considering the aspects of the discursive context that affect the final evaluative meaning at both the production and reception stages of the evaluative act. The editors’ main objective has been to gather contributions which investigate the manifold faces and phases of evaluation by presenting a wide variety of perspectives that include different linguistic theories (e.g. Axiological Semantics, Functionalism or Politeness Theory), different levels of linguistic description (e.g. phonological, lexical or semantic), and different text types and contexts (e.g. the evaluation found in ironic discourse, the multimodality of media discourse or the world of politics, just to name a few). The volume can be of use not only for scholars who study the evaluative function of language, but also for students who wish to pursue research in the area.

Building on existing analytical frameworks, this book provides a new methodology allowing different language policies in international multilingual organisations (or “language regimes”) to be compared and evaluated on the basis of criteria such as efficiency and fairness. It explains step-by-step how to organise the evaluation of language regimes and how to design and interpret indicators for such evaluation. The second part of this book applies the theoretical framework to the evaluation of the language policy of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) division of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and the European Patent Office (EPO). Results show that an increase in linguistic diversity of the language regimes of patent organisations can both improve the efficiency of the patent system and lead to a more balanced distribution of costs among countries. This book is a resource for scholars in language policy and planning and for policy-makers in the international and European patent system.

This study seeks to demonstrate that throughout centuries of re-creation, linguistic devices have been used to support both the production and the reproduction of the romances. On the basis of this demonstration, it is argued that it is time to recognize these devices as evaluators and to include a discussion of evaluative mechanisms in the study of the Romancero tradition.

The authors describe evaluation as a way of understanding and developing language programs: the thematic and background section sets out the decision-making, quality management, and learning functions of evaluation. Case studies illustrate the diversity of evaluation contexts, functions and approaches, documenting the ways in which evaluation processes and outcomes inform and facilitate program development, and contribute to explaining how language and teacher education programs constitute opportunities for learning. The ways in which evaluation practice can be researched and developed to maximize policy, institutional and program effectiveness is included, and a comprehensive set of resources for those commissioning, undertaking or researching language program evaluations concludes the text.

This book brings together two related fields - language testing and language programme evaluation - in a way that no single introductory text has done, and seeks to encourage closer relations between the two in both academic curricula and professional practice. It introduces readers not just to basic concepts, but to some of the major social, educational and research concerns and activities that characterise language testing and evaluation. The book can serve either as a basic text for a taught course, or for self-study. All chapters include suggestions for further reading, and discussions frequently point towards possible explorations in classroom research and practice. A glossary of key concepts and a select annotated bibliography are provided. The book addresses the language teaching profession generally as well as students of applied linguistics and English language teaching.

This book presents evaluation cases from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) context, investigating the various facets of evaluation in different parts of the MENA region and beyond. In 19 chapters, it explores cases from Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Syria, the UAE, Turkey, Iran and Morocco. The book highlights the impact of evaluation on a range of stakeholders, arguing that it has repercussions at the individual, societal, economic, cultural and political levels, that it also has an ethical dimension, and that it is tailored to people’s needs, helping them to remain abreast of the effectiveness and efficiency of programs. Further, the book explores controversial issues concerning different evaluation themes, such as teacher and staff evaluation, assessment practices, text genre analysis evaluation, assessment of productive skills, textbook and ICT evaluation, evaluation of ELT certificates and programs, quality assurance, ESP needs analysis, assessment literacy, and dynamic assessment. It addresses key challenges, such as who the “right people” to implement evaluation are, and the appropriate use of evaluation results to avoid any misuse or harm to any stakeholder. In closing, the book calls for further research venues on the relevance of evaluation, testing and assessment in the MENA context and beyond.

A crucial aspect of any discourse is what the writer or speaker thinks about his/her topic - in other words, how the writer or speaker evaluates the topic. Evaluation in Text brings together work from many different perspectives, providing a unique profile of this important topic which will be essential reading for any student or researcher of Discourse Analysis. - ;This is an accessible and wide-ranging account of current research in one of the most central aspects of discourse analsysis: evalution in and of written and spoken language. Evalution is the broad cover term for the expression of a speakers - or writers - attitudes, feelings, and values. It covers areas sometimes referred to as stance, modality, affect or appraisal. Evaluation (a) expresses the speakers opinion and thus reflects the value-system of that person and their community; (b) constructs relations between speaker and hearer (or writer and reader); (c) plays a key role in how discourse is organized. Every act of evalution expresses and contributes to a communal value-system, which in turn is a component of the ideology that lies behind every written or spoken text. Conceptually, evaluation is comparative, subjective, and value-laden. In linguistic terms it may be analysed lexically, grammatically, and textually. These themes and perspectives are richly exemplified in the chapters of this book, by authors aware and observant of the fact that processes of linguistic analysis are themselves inherently evaluative. The editors open the book by introducing the field and provide separate, contextual introductions to each chapter. They have also collated the references into one list, itself a valuable research guide. The exemplary perspectives and analyses presented by the authors will be of central interest to everyone concerned with the analysis of discourse, whether as students of language, literature, or communication. They also have much to offer students of politics and culture. The editors open the book by introducing the field and provide separate, contextual introductions to each chapter. They have also collated the references into one list, itself a valuable research guide. The exemplary perspectives and analyses presented by the authors will be of central interest to everyone concerned with the analysis of discourse, whether as students of language, literature, or communication. They also have much to offer students of politics and culture. -