Volume 14, Number 2, December 2017
Yasuko Okada, Takafumi Sawaumi & Takehiko Ito
Effects of Observing Model Video Presentations on Japanese EFL Learners’ Oral Performance (pp. 129–144)
As observing model videos can develop learners’ speaking (e.g. pronunciation and word/sentence stress) and oral presentation skills, this study explores its effects on Japanese university students’ performance with respect, in particular, to model videos of presentations. Two types of model videos were shown to 27 participants in two classes: in one class, more-proficient model videos were shown prior to less-proficient model videos; in the other, the order was reversed. In both cases, the videos were shown prior to the students’ second and third presentations. To examine any observational learning effects, the first, second, and third presentation scores obtained through self- and peer evaluation were analyzed quantitatively, while student responses to open-ended questions were analyzed qualitatively using text mining. The results indicate that there was no significant effect of any factor on the self-evaluation scores. However, peer ratings show that the third presentation was rated significantly higher than the first for the class in which students watched the less-proficient model videos before the more-proficient. The findings indicate that the observation sequence of the model videos may affect the development of learners’ performance, although the use of both more-proficient and less-proficient model videos in any order can improve learners’ cognitive, linguistic, and presentation skills.
Mohsen Ebrahimzadeh & Sepideh Alavi
Digital Video Games: E-learning Enjoyment as a Predictor of Vocabulary Learning (pp. 144–158)
The study examined e-learning enjoyment through a digital video game to see if it could predict high school students’ vocabulary learning. It also assessed the difference between those who played and those who watched the game. Participants of the study were male, high school, EFL students (N = 136, age 12–18) randomly assigned to two treatments: Players, who were exposed to the vocabulary through playing a digital video game and Watchers, who watched two classmates play the same game. After the treatment (one session a week for five weeks), an e-learning enjoyment scale and a vocabulary posttest were administered. In addition, researcher field notes were written down. Data analysis involved t tests, ANOVAs, and a standard multiple regression. The results indicated that e-learning enjoyment significantly predicted the variance in game-enhanced vocabulary learning. There was no significant difference between Players and Watchers. It is concluded that digital video games help language learners keep up through the sustained, long-term process of language learning by making it enjoyable. Also, the findings help identify better suited commercial video games for educational purposes and design more useful educational video games.
China is well known for its very large number of English learners, but most of them have suffered from foreign language speaking anxiety (FLSA) when expressing themselves orally in the language. FLSA has been scarcely addressed in the educational settings of China, especially in terms of the practical strategies for reducing students’ FLSA. In light of this gap, an investigation into the coping strategies for FLSA was conducted by drawing comprehensive data from 302 university students and 30 teachers of English at two universities in different parts of China. Questionnaire surveys and focused interviews were adopted to collect data and explore perceptions concerning FLSA. With these two cross-validated research methods, 32 strategies for reducing students’ FLSA were identified. These strategies were verified to be effective after being applied for a period of four months by the participants. The results of the study showed that persistent application of such strategies is of great significance in alleviating students’ FLSA and hence making their learning more enjoyable. The results and findings were also dis-cussed in relation to those from previous research in the field. Furthermore, the strategies verified in this study would provide important pedagogic implications for foreign language education involving English.
Jirapa Abhakorn
Language Syllabus from Student Teachers' Perspectives (pp. 175–186)
Although many countries in East Asia have continually improved English curriculum policies to upgrade the standards of English teaching and to stay competitive in the global economy, only a few have had the impact they projected, mostly because they lacked qualified school teachers. As the Ministry of Education in Thailand has promoted school-based English as a Foreign Language (EFL) curriculum and syllabus development to empower local school teachers to plan and design their own language education programs, not only in-service teachers’ but also student teachers’ perceptions play a vital role in determining their readiness to take the active role required by the educational reform policy. Through a focus group discussion, this case study aims to uncover Thai EFL student teachers’ perceptions of the language syllabus and the role of syllabuses in language teaching and learning. The results suggest that teacher training programs should develop a thorough understanding of language syllabuses for pre-service teachers, and prepare them for taking on the role of independent syllabus designers. This case study raises an awareness of the significant role of teacher education in developing autonomous teachers who can independently develop curricula and syllabuses, particularly in contexts where English curriculum and syllabus development used to be centralized.
Tania Tagle, Claudio Díaz, Mark Briesmaster, Mabel Ortiz, Lucía Ubilla & Paulo Etchegaray
Pre-Service EFL Teachers’ Beliefs about Teaching Writing: A Case Study in Two Chilean Universities (pp. 187–200)
The objective of this article is to identify the beliefs of 37 prospective EFL teachers in their final year of a teacher training undergraduate degree program in two Chilean universities about the teaching of writing. At the same time, it attempts to recognize the source of these beliefs. Data were collected through a semi-structured interview. The data were analyzed through the qualitative analysis software ATLAS.ti, following the coding and categorizing of the data. The results of this study suggest that the participants possess beliefs concerning the teaching of writing production based on the use of grammar and vocabulary, the replication of text types, and the consideration of successive stages at the moment of production. At the same time, it was identified that these beliefs were acquired within the contexts of school instruction and university training. It is suggested that teacher training programs encourage new teachers to implement practices based on the communicative approach to the teaching of the skill, urging them to critically reflect on their tradition-based beliefs.
Mojgan Rashtchi & Mohammad Ali Mohammadi
Teaching Lexical Bundles to Improve Academic Writing via Tasks: Does the Type of Input Matter? (pp. 201–219)
This study aimed to investigate the impact of teaching lexical bundles (LBs) on the academic writing of Iranian EFL learners. Therefore, a mixed methods study in three phases was designed. In phase one, an experimental group (n=10), in phase two, an experimental and a control group (n1=n2=26), and in phase three, two experimental groups (Cloze Task and Input Enhancement) and a control group took part (n1=n2=n3=20). We designed 11 cloze tasks, the format of which was modified during the study based on the data from the retrospective questionnaires and the analysis of the participants’ writings. The result of the paired samples t-test in phase one showed a significant difference between the pre- and post-writing tests of the group, and the qualitative analysis of the writings led to modification of the format of the cloze tasks. In phase two, the independent samples t-tests on three posttests (general, rehearsed, and unrehearsed topics) showed that the experimental group outperformed the control group. The participants’ insightful comments regarding the type of the treatment and format of the tasks led to the improvement of the study in phase three. The results of the MANOVA pointed to the superiority of the Cloze Task group on the three types of posttests to the Input Enhancement and Control groups. The study showed that cloze tasks are useful for teaching LBs and can improve learners’ academic writing. The study has implications for EFL university students and teachers who seek ways to facilitate learning and teaching of academic writing.
Putu Suarcaya & Wigati Dyah Prasasti
Investigating Students’ Critical Reading:Critical Literacy in EFL Setting (pp. 220–232)
This study, aimed at investigating the EFL university students’ critical reading from the perspective of critical literacy, was conducted in one of Indonesian state universities. There were 12 EFL college students participating in the study. The students’ written and verbal responses were analysed on the basis of content analysis. The findings reveal the students’ critical stance in their ability to bring meaning to the text by reconstructing and deconstructing the text, and a combination of both. The language acts used to show their critical stance were negating, comparing, and confirming the values promoted in the text.
The present qualitative study examines the construction and negotiation of English learners’ agency and identity situated in the development of vocational English (VE) materials in which both teachers and students were involved in design processes: planning, enacting, and evaluating. It looks specifically at (1) to what extent teacher-learner driven ESP materials development helps students construct and negotiate their agency and identity and (2) in what ways the students respond to negotiated and participatory learning as the outcome of the school-level ESP materials development project. Findings shed some lights on students’ agency exercise and identity enactment as the students participated in the development processes. From agency and identity perspectives, ESP materials development is a socially complex, multi-layered, and fluid process, representing students’ interests and roles. The contribution of the present study is to provide empirical evidence regarding how student capacity and social roles contribute to teacher-student driven ESP materials development. Further ethnographic action research is needed to investigate how both teachers’ and students’ agencies and identities are constructed and negotiated in language curriculum development in general and in language materials development in particular.