distance education n
alsodistance learning
the linking of learners and teachers in different locations and often in real time,
by telephone, telecast, satellite, computer and other technological support,
or through the use of learning packages. Distance education usually has four
characteristics: the physical separation of teacher and learner, the influence
or control of an educational institution, the involvement of some form of
media, and two-way communication in some form. Distance education is
widely used both for the delivery of language courses and language teacher
education courses.
see also e-learning, online learning
distinctive feature n
(in phonology) a particular characteristic which distinguishes one dis-
tinctive sound unit of a language (see phoneme) from another or one group
of sounds from another group.
For example, in the English sound system, one distinctive feature which
distinguishes the /p/ in pin from the /b/ in bin isvoice^1. The /b/ is a voiced
stopwhereas the /p/ is a voiceless stop (see voice^2 ).
In generative phonology, distinctive features play an important part in the
writing of phonological rules. The features are generally shown in the form of
a binary opposition, that is the feature is either present [+] or absent [-].
For example, vowels and sounds such as / l /, /n /, and /m /, where the
air passes relatively freely through the mouth or nose, have the feature
[+sonorant] whereas sounds such as /p /, /k /, and /s /, where the air is
stopped either completely or partially, have the feature [– sonorant].
see also binary feature
distractor n
any of the incorrect options in a multiple-choice item. In item analysis,
a distractor efficiency analysisis conducted to investigate whether the dis-
tractors are functioning as intended (i.e. attracting test takers into choosing
incorrect options when they do not know the correct answer). This analysis
needs the percentage of test takers in high, mid or low ability groups who
chose each correct or incorrect option to be calculated per each item.
Provided together with both item facilityand item discrimination
indices, the result of the analysis helps test developers to better decide which
items to keep, revise, or discard.
see also key, test item, multiple-choice item
distractor efficiency analysis n
see distractor
distractor efficiency analysis