Relationship between teacher-led versus learners’ interaction and the development of pragmatics in the EFL classroom

In spite of the theoretical claims and research supporting the relationship between conversational interaction and language learning, the effect of interaction on the acquisition of pragmatic competence has received scant attention. This paper reports on the results of a study carried out to further understand the effect of teacher–students versus learners’ interaction on the development of learners’ pragmatic competence. The subjects included two groups of 12 students instructed in the use of requests. Group A was randomly assigned to learners’ collaborative language learning condition, and group B to teacher-led interaction on requests. Students in both groups were pre-tested and post-tested on their knowledge and use of requests. Results of the study examine the nature of collaborative dialogue in teacher–students and peer interaction, and support the claim that pragmatic knowledge may emerge from assisted performance.     

Interaction between the learners’ initial grasp of the object of learning and the learning resource afforded

Two studies are reported in this paper. The object of learning in both is the economic principle of changes in price as a function of changes in the relative magnitude of changes in demand and supply. The patterns of variation and invariance, defining the conditions compared were built into pedagogical tools (text, graphs, and worksheets). The first study is the latest in a series of studies aiming to test the fundamental conjecture of the Variation Theory of Learning that new meanings are acquired from experiencing differences against a background of sameness, rather than experiencing sameness against a background of differences. The study compares the learning outcomes under conditions consistent with the basic conjecture with the learning outcomes under conditions not consistent with the theory. The results support the conjecture. The second study shows, however, that the conditions that are consistent with the theory cannot be decided unless the learners’ pre-requisites for the task in question are taken into consideration. One set of the pedagogical tools was found to be highly effective for learners with a better initial grasp of the object of learning, while another set was found to be equally effective for learners with a weaker initial grasp of the object of learning. The two sets were equally ineffective when used for the “wrong” group of learners.     

Investigating Malaysian distance learners’ perceptions of their English proficiency courses

The paper describes a study that investigated Malaysian distance learners’ perceptions of their English proficiency courses. The approach used in this study was primarily a quantitative approach based on questionnaires, with a qualitative component based on semi‐structured interviews included to add depth and scope to the study. The questionnaires used were adapted from Entwistle and Ramsden’s Course Perception Questionnaire. ANOVA and factor analysis were used for analysing the questionnaire data. The interview data were analysed qualitatively by identifying main themes and patterns. While the analysis of the questionnaires and the interview data generated roughly comparable results, there were some interesting differences. The main difference was that the interviews demonstrated that the majority of the 13 distance learners interviewed would prefer more support and guidance rather than greater freedom as evident in the questionnaire data. The results of the interviews provide a useful supplement to the quantitative data and give us a better understanding of the factors that influence learners within a distance learning environment.     

Cultural content of three EFL textbooks: teachers’ and learners’ cultural preferences and cultural themes of textbooks

Cultural content analysis of EFL textbooks has received considerable attention in ELT pedagogy in recent decades. The current study investigated the representation of big “C” and small “c” cultural themes in three common EFL textbooks: Top Notch, Summit and Passages. The frequency analysis indicated that in Top Notch series, small “c” cultural themes of daily life, food, customs/norms and big “C” theme of geography were the most frequent cultural themes; while, in Summit and Passages, the most frequent small “c” cultural theme was values and beliefs. This study also investigated the correspondence between EFL teachers’ and learners’ cultural preferences on the one hand, and the match between their preferences and the cultural content of the books in question. 135 EFL learners and 36 EFL teachers responded to adapted questionnaires. The findings revealed that there were areas of match (mainly in small “c” themes) and cases of mismatch (primarily in big “C” themes) between learners’ and teachers’ preferred cultural themes and the cultural content of the textbooks analysed.     

The effect of flipped learning on EFL students’ writing performance,autonomy, and motivation

Education and Information Technologies - Though flipped learning has positively impacted teaching English writing, its usefulness in developing students’ English writing performance,...     

The impact of resilience on L2 learners’ motivated behaviour and proficiency in L2 learning

This exploratory study focused on the factors that constitute second language (L2) learners’ resilience, and how these factors are related to L2 learning by investigating what relation resilience may have to motivated behaviour and proficiency in English learning. A total of 1620 secondary school learners of English participated in a questionnaire survey. By analysing the quantitative data, five resilience factors were extracted: perceived happiness, empathy, sociability, persistence, and self-regulation. Confirmative factor analysis using AMOS proved that these five factors are distinctive constructs. Among the factors, persistence was identified to play the most influential role in L2 learning. Persistence showed the highest correlations with, and the strongest explanatory power for, motivated behaviour and English proficiency. It is suggested that resilience can be further explored as an individual differences factor in L2 learning, which is involved in L2 learning process and outcomes.     

The role of self-, peer and teacher assessment in promoting Iranian EFL learners’ writing performance

In the last decade, with the increased attention to learner-centred curricula, the topic of self-assessment and peer assessment has become of particular interest in testing and evaluation. The present study explores the role of self-assessment, and peer assessment in promoting writing performance of language learners. To do this, 157 intermediate TEFL (Teaching English as Foreign Language) students were assigned to five different treatments in five groups: four experimental groups and one control group. The first experimental group did journal writing as a self-assessment technique, the second group self-assessed their own writings, the third group employed peer assessment, and the fourth group had both self- and peer assessment. Moreover, there was teacher assessment in all experimental groups, except the fourth group, i.e., the self- and peer assessment group. In the control group, there was only teacher assessment. Also, at the beginning and end of the semester, all participants took a writing test. The design of the study was quasi-experimental, non-randomised control group, pre-test–post-test design. The results revealed that in the second and third groups, in which the students employed self-assessment and peer assessment, together with teacher assessment, we observed the maximum improvement in writing.     

Connections between learning and teaching: EFL teachers’ reflective practice

This study explores six Vietnamese, English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ reflections on their experiences of English language learning during the early 1980s to the late 1990s. Data collected in narrative interviews with the participating teachers revealed a wide range of issues that arose during their EFL learning, central to which was the prevalence of grammar-focused practices in all EFL classes. From their perspectives as EFL teachers today, the participants see their learning experience as a way of learning to teach. In particular, they pinpoint the negative aspects of language teaching at that time in the hope that their teaching practice today will not repeat the same mistakes. However, they also reflect on positive aspects, especially their influential teachers, to inform their teaching. Based on the findings, the study suggests that language teachers’ experience of language learning should be considered part of reflective teaching as well as of teachers’ trajectories of learning to teach.     

Growth mindset and reading proficiency of ESL learners: examining the role of students’ socioeconomic status using PISA 2018 Philippine data

European Journal of Psychology of Education - The growth mindset, or the belief that intelligence can be increased with effort, has been shown to be positively associated with improved learning...     

A Study on the Correlations Between Chinese EFL Learners’ Autonomous Learning and Their Cooperative Learning

Cooperative learning and learner autonomy have become heated topics in English teaching.Many researchers both at home and abroad have carried out the study on this field,and they proved that learner autonomy and cooperative learning are rel evant,cooperative learning can promote English majors’learning autonomy in terms of listening,reading,speaking,however,no obvious findings in vocabulary and writing.This study is conducted to prove the feasibilities and effectiveness of cooperative learning applied to foster first-year non-English majors’learning autonomy from the aspect of vocabulary and structure.The re sults of this study showed that cooperative learning was much more effective than traditional teaching approaches in fostering some positive affective factors.According to this research,cooperative learning can also improve learners’vocabulary and struc ture significantly.     

Using virtual reality to facilitate learners’ creative self-efficacy and intrinsic motivation in an EFL classroom

Education and Information Technologies - Following a mixed-methods approach, this study investigated the effect of a virtual reality (VR) creative project on EFL learners’ creative...     

The application of podcasting as an instructional tool to improve Turkish EFL learners’ speaking anxiety

The present study was designed to investigate: (a) the effect of podcasts in EFL students’ oral performance, (b) the effect of podcasts in EFL students’ speaking anxiety, (c) the relationship between speaking anxiety and oral performance, and (d) EFL students’ perceptions of using podcasts. This study was conducted in a high school in Istanbul, Turkey. The students in two ninth-grade classes in the subject school were given the anxiety questionnaire, consisting of 24 items related to general foreign language class anxiety and in-class activities. A total of 30 students with the highest anxiety levels were chosen among these students. The oral performances of these students were evaluated through the Test of Spoken English and the students were also interviewed about their speaking anxiety and their oral performances. For 12 weeks, the control group followed the course book and did the speaking activities in it, while the experimental group created podcasts in addition to those activities. At the end of 12 weeks, the participants were given the anxiety post-test, the post-interview, and the oral performance post-test. The perceptions of the students in the experimental group of podcasts were examined through three interviews during the study. The results of the study showed that students who used podcasts had higher oral performance and lower speaking anxiety levels than the students who didn’t use podcast; and there was a negative relationship between the participants’ oral performances and speaking. The analysis of the interviews on podcasts revealed that the students believed podcasts helped them feel not or less anxious, and more confident; improve their oral performances and pronunciation; and expand their vocabulary.     

Why should learners of English read? Norwegian English teachers' notions of EFL reading

This article presents findings from a study investigating Norwegian lower secondary English teachers’ reasoning about their classroom reading practices in English as a foreign language (EFL). What notions of EFL reading do these teachers express? How do they explain their priorities? Based on perspectives from critical discourse analysis, the article shows how teachers negotiate their notions of reading at the intersection of past and present understandings and their everyday school realities. Specifically, it illustrates how features of their discursive practices may help maintain understandings of what is perceived as intrinsic and less relevant to EFL reading.     

The effects of diagrams and time-compressed instruction on learning and learners’ perceptions of cognitive load

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of diagrams and time-compressed instruction on learning and learners’ perceptions of cognitive load. The following design factors, visuals (visuals and non-visuals) and time-compressed instruction (0%-normal paced, 25, and 50%) were presented to 216 university students to analyze learning in a multimedia environment. Participants listened to audio instruction of the heart and those in the visuals condition viewed 19 diagrams that corresponded to the verbal instruction. The dependent variables consisted of four achievement tests: drawing, identification, terminology, and comprehension. Review behaviors (back and replay buttons) and learners’ perceptions of cognitive load served as additional dependent variables. The results of this study indicate that listening to normal or moderately compressed (25%) instruction in a multimedia environment supports learning. At these speeds, cognitive load is not increased thus allowing learners to gain a conceptual understanding of the material.     

Teacher and learners’ belief in a just world and perspectives of discipline of Grade 4 - 8 learners in South African schools

In the present study, we examine the personal belief in a just world (PBJW) for teachers and learners in predominantly Afrikaans-speaking South African schools, and the relationship between teachers’ PBJW and their perception of problem behaviour in the classroom. The study is informed by national debates of school violence in South African schools, and international debates on zero-tolerance policies to address school violence. Our findings suggest that teachers’ PBJW predicts their perception of problem behaviour in classroom behaviour in four areas, namely challenging authority, disrespecting rules and authority and teacher negativity. Teachers with a strong PBJW were more likely to view classroom behaviours as problematic. Children generally reported that their teachers were fair and just and liked them. However, boys were more likely to have experienced trouble with their teachers and to view them as unfair and unjust. We discuss the significance of the findings in terms of school violence and also mention gendered interpretations to school violence.     

‘Elite’ career-changers and their experience of initial teacher education

This study explores the motivation of ‘high-status’ professionals to change career and enter teaching, and their experience of undertaking initial teacher education (ITE) programmes in England. The study builds on previous research which found that career-changers are disproportionately more likely to fail to complete their ITE studies, and that those who do complete the transition into teaching frequently experience frustration with some aspects of induction and often feel undervalued by their new colleagues. The participants in this study were largely positive about most aspects of their ITE experience, and felt their professional background enabled them to be resilient when faced with the challenges of transitioning from being an expert in one domain to novice in another. However, they report variable experiences of mentoring, and for some, a sense of their previous experience being under-appreciated by ITE tutors and schools. The study also finds little evidence of personalisation built into ITE programmes to take account of the distinctive needs of career-changers. This paper concludes that the current policy focus adopted in England and in many other countries on entry quality may detract from the more fundamental issue of ensuring ITE programmes provide the flexible and personalised professional learning environments that enable a diverse range of entrants to flourish.     

Individual flipped learning and cooperative flipped learning: their effects on students’ performance,social, and computer anxiety

The purpose of this study is to differentiate the effect of cooperative learning strategy integrated with a flipped learning (FL) model from sole FL implementation in promoting students’ performances while decreasing their social and computer anxiety in an undergraduate course. As a method, a classical experimental design is used. The participants were from the department of English Language and Literature, and Translation and Interpretation. Students were randomly assigned to individual FL (the control group) class; and FL with cooperative activities (experimental group) class. The groups were randomly assigned as experimental and control by tossing a coin. The implementation took 10 weeks. Students’ performances (grades), social anxiety, and computer anxiety were dependent variables of the study and they were compared through multivariate analysis of variance. The results indicated that there is no significant mean difference between groups’ performances; however; the group of FL with cooperative activities had less social anxiety, but no significant change occurred at their computer anxiety level.