Pub Date : 2021-05-11DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/97-116
Dwi Poedjiastutie, Velmi Mayaputri, Y. Arifani
The development of English language learning in any country is interdependent with its socio-cultural experiences. Learning is determined by the social, historical, economic, political, and cultural dimensions of its context. This study aims to explore the socio-cultural challenges of teaching English in a remote area. It was conducted in Pemana Island (East Nusa Tenggara) using the ethnography exploration. Pemana is one of the Indonesian government’s target locations for a teaching program to improve educational quality and overcome the problem of limited number of teachers in remote areas. This program involves bachelor degree holders of English being deployed to teach in the frontier, outlying and underdeveloped region. Several challenges of English teaching and learning emerge due to socio-cultural aspects. These include the economic situation of the society, the community beliefs about English teaching, and the ill-fitting curriculum with the social condition. The teaching implications are then discussed here.
{"title":"SOCIO-CULTURAL CHALLENGES OF ENGLISH TEACHING IN REMOTE AREAS OF INDONESIA","authors":"Dwi Poedjiastutie, Velmi Mayaputri, Y. Arifani","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/97-116","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/97-116","url":null,"abstract":"The development of English language learning in any country is interdependent with its socio-cultural experiences. Learning is determined by the social, historical, economic, political, and cultural dimensions of its context. This study aims to explore the socio-cultural challenges of teaching English in a remote area. It was conducted in Pemana Island (East Nusa Tenggara) using the ethnography exploration. Pemana is one of the Indonesian government’s target locations for a teaching program to improve educational quality and overcome the problem of limited number of teachers in remote areas. This program involves bachelor degree holders of English being deployed to teach in the frontier, outlying and underdeveloped region. Several challenges of English teaching and learning emerge due to socio-cultural aspects. These include the economic situation of the society, the community beliefs about English teaching, and the ill-fitting curriculum with the social condition. The teaching implications are then discussed here.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"32 1","pages":"97-116"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46567736","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-11DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/29-49
Siusana Kweldju
This exploratory case study focuses on the development and implementation of a task called the Inventive English Word Formation in Public Spaces for an undergraduate English Morphology course within the English Language Education program of a university in Indonesia. This task was created based on students’ feedback that they disliked the typical memory-based test, which was reported to have a significant strain on them. In that regard, this task was developed to replace the teacher’s lectures and achievement test to increase students’ learning engagement and understanding of the Word Formation theory. Students were asked to morphologically analyze how Indonesian people invented new English words in commercial signs in linguistic landscapes. Sixty students were involved in the task and they were put into groups of four. Each group was assigned to write a paper reporting how they identified and explained the types and subtypes of word-formation of the invented names. The findings suggested that although students found that the task was more meaningful and engaging than the usual learning procedure, the papers they produced showed that they were still not ready for the demand of academic reading and research skills associated with the task. This task, however, promises positive avenues that can be improved and explored in future studies.
{"title":"INCORPORATING LINGUISTIC LANDSCAPE INTO ENGLISH WORD-FORMATION TASK IN AN ENGLISH MORPHOLOGY COURSE","authors":"Siusana Kweldju","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/29-49","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/29-49","url":null,"abstract":"This exploratory case study focuses on the development and implementation of a task called the Inventive English Word Formation in Public Spaces for an undergraduate English Morphology course within the English Language Education program of a university in Indonesia. This task was created based on students’ feedback that they disliked the typical memory-based test, which was reported to have a significant strain on them. In that regard, this task was developed to replace the teacher’s lectures and achievement test to increase students’ learning engagement and understanding of the Word Formation theory. Students were asked to morphologically analyze how Indonesian people invented new English words in commercial signs in linguistic landscapes. Sixty students were involved in the task and they were put into groups of four. Each group was assigned to write a paper reporting how they identified and explained the types and subtypes of word-formation of the invented names. The findings suggested that although students found that the task was more meaningful and engaging than the usual learning procedure, the papers they produced showed that they were still not ready for the demand of academic reading and research skills associated with the task. This task, however, promises positive avenues that can be improved and explored in future studies.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"32 1","pages":"29-49"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42456417","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-11DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/1-28
Zahra Alimorad, Mina Farahmand
Willingness to communicate (WTC) in English is specifically important because L2 (foreign/second language) communication is considered to be a key factor in L2 learning. When the opportunity to speak English arises, there are generally two options: speaking or avoiding it. Several factors might exert influence on the choice of either option by different individuals. In this vein, the current study investigated the underlying factors that lead to (un)willingness on the part of Iranian EFL (English as a Foreign Language) tertiary students. Through a purposive sampling procedure, this classroom-based case study recruited and examined 10 EFL learners in Iran over a period of three weeks. Data were collected employing semi-structured interviews, classroom observations and stimulated-recall interviews. Thematic analysis was performed to identify common themes from the participating students’ ideas. Results reveal that participants’ L2 WTC emerges as a result of the complex, dynamic and non-linear interaction between individual, contextual, and linguistic factors. These three factors interdependently exerted either facilitative or inhibitive impacts on an individual student’s WTC in class at any point in time. The current study, therefore, reinforces the need for teachers to be aware of the multiple factors which lead learners to be more or less willing to communicate in L2 classrooms.
{"title":"A CASE STUDY ON WILLINGNESS TO COMMUNICATE IN ENGLISH IN THE IRANIAN TERTIARY EDUCATIONAL CONTEXT","authors":"Zahra Alimorad, Mina Farahmand","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/1-28","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/1-28","url":null,"abstract":"Willingness to communicate (WTC) in English is specifically important because L2 (foreign/second language) communication is considered to be a key factor in L2 learning. When the opportunity to speak English arises, there are generally two options: speaking or avoiding it. Several factors might exert influence on the choice of either option by different individuals. In this vein, the current study investigated the underlying factors that lead to (un)willingness on the part of Iranian EFL (English as a Foreign Language) tertiary students. Through a purposive sampling procedure, this classroom-based case study recruited and examined 10 EFL learners in Iran over a period of three weeks. Data were collected employing semi-structured interviews, classroom observations and stimulated-recall interviews. Thematic analysis was performed to identify common themes from the participating students’ ideas. Results reveal that participants’ L2 WTC emerges as a result of the complex, dynamic and non-linear interaction between individual, contextual, and linguistic factors. These three factors interdependently exerted either facilitative or inhibitive impacts on an individual student’s WTC in class at any point in time. The current study, therefore, reinforces the need for teachers to be aware of the multiple factors which lead learners to be more or less willing to communicate in L2 classrooms.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"32 1","pages":"1-28"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49599632","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-11DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/72-96
Wei Ann Ong, S. Swanto, Asmaa AlSaqqaf, J. W. Ong
Teachers who are reflective are found to be more able to develop themselves professionally. However, pre-service teachers were found to be in need of explicit instructions on reflective practice. This paper presents the results of an investigation on the use of the 5-step Cognition Practice Observation Reflection Action (CoPORA) reflective model among a group of Malaysian ESL pre-service teachers enrolled in an Institute of Teacher Education. A qualitative case study design was utilised, where the model was taught to a group of 13 pre-service ESL teachers who later completed the second phase of their teaching practice. The data for this study comprised the respondents’ entries in their practicum reflection forms, reflective video blogs and focus group interviews. Results showed that respondents have moved from engaging in the lower levels of reflection to a higher pedagogical reflection. They also responded favourably to the use of the 5-step CoPORA reflective model for its structured approach. Nevertheless, the respondents lamented their struggles in rationalising issues faced and in suggesting suitable solutions. It is proposed that the pre-service teachers were shown exemplars of critical reflection to help them see the level at which they ought to reflect. Alternatively, teacher educators can explore a dialogic or collaborative approach to reflection so pre-service teachers can work with one another to further develop their reflective practice.
{"title":"PROMOTING REFLECTIVE PRACTICE VIA THE USE OF 5-STEP COPORA REFLECTIVE MODEL: A CASE STUDY OF EAST MALAYSIAN ESL PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS","authors":"Wei Ann Ong, S. Swanto, Asmaa AlSaqqaf, J. W. Ong","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/72-96","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/72-96","url":null,"abstract":"Teachers who are reflective are found to be more able to develop themselves professionally. However, pre-service teachers were found to be in need of explicit instructions on reflective practice. This paper presents the results of an investigation on the use of the 5-step Cognition Practice Observation Reflection Action (CoPORA) reflective model among a group of Malaysian ESL pre-service teachers enrolled in an Institute of Teacher Education. A qualitative case study design was utilised, where the model was taught to a group of 13 pre-service ESL teachers who later completed the second phase of their teaching practice. The data for this study comprised the respondents’ entries in their practicum reflection forms, reflective video blogs and focus group interviews. Results showed that respondents have moved from engaging in the lower levels of reflection to a higher pedagogical reflection. They also responded favourably to the use of the 5-step CoPORA reflective model for its structured approach. Nevertheless, the respondents lamented their struggles in rationalising issues faced and in suggesting suitable solutions. It is proposed that the pre-service teachers were shown exemplars of critical reflection to help them see the level at which they ought to reflect. Alternatively, teacher educators can explore a dialogic or collaborative approach to reflection so pre-service teachers can work with one another to further develop their reflective practice.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"32 1","pages":"72-96"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49616217","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-11DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/167-182
Razieh Gholaminejad, M. R. A. Sarab
In this commentary, we begin with the discussion on a brief history of academic wordlists. Adopting a comparative perspective, then, the merits and demerits of the Academic Word List (AWL) (Coxhead, 2000) and its competing counterpart the Academic Vocabulary List (AVL) (Gardner & Davies, 2014) are presented. We also explore whether the AWL can still be considered as “the best list” (Nation, 2001, p. 12) for improving academic words, or whether its counterpart is reasonably “the most current, accurate, and comprehensive list” (Gardner & Davies, 2014, p. 325). The comparison was made in terms of twelve aspects: corpus size, types of corpus texts, sources of corpus texts, text balance, disciplines included, counting unit, wordlist items, method for excluding highfrequency words, minimum frequency, method for excluding technical words, sequence of list items and lexical coverage. The comparison reveals that the AVL is far from complete and cannot replace the AWL. The results of the comparison can have implications for practitioners and course developers.
{"title":"A COMPARISON OF THE ACADEMIC WORD LIST AND THE ACADEMIC VOCABULARY LIST: SHOULD THE AVL REPLACE THE AWL?","authors":"Razieh Gholaminejad, M. R. A. Sarab","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/167-182","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V32I1/167-182","url":null,"abstract":"In this commentary, we begin with the discussion on a brief history of academic wordlists. Adopting a comparative perspective, then, the merits and demerits of the Academic Word List (AWL) (Coxhead, 2000) and its competing counterpart the Academic Vocabulary List (AVL) (Gardner & Davies, 2014) are presented. We also explore whether the AWL can still be considered as “the best list” (Nation, 2001, p. 12) for improving academic words, or whether its counterpart is reasonably “the most current, accurate, and comprehensive list” (Gardner & Davies, 2014, p. 325). The comparison was made in terms of twelve aspects: corpus size, types of corpus texts, sources of corpus texts, text balance, disciplines included, counting unit, wordlist items, method for excluding highfrequency words, minimum frequency, method for excluding technical words, sequence of list items and lexical coverage. The comparison reveals that the AVL is far from complete and cannot replace the AWL. The results of the comparison can have implications for practitioners and course developers.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"32 1","pages":"167-182"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47154729","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-09-28DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/162-180
B. Cahyono, T. Rahayu
There have been a lot of research studies on the role of motivation in education and language learning. However, research on the role of motivation in the area of EFL (English as a foreign language) writing is a rare undertaking. This study aimed to examine the correlation between EFL students’ motivation in writing and their writing proficiency. It also compared female and male students in terms of their motivation in writing and their writing proficiency. This study involved 55 university students of English department (17 female and 38 male students) who were required to write essays and respond to a motivation in writing questionnaire. The results showed that there was a high correlation between the EFL students’ motivation in writing and their writing proficiency. It was also revealed that there were significant differences in the motivation in writing as well as writing proficiency of the female and male students. The findings of this study suggested that the EFL students who had a higher level of motivation in writing had better writing proficiency. The study also showed that female students outperformed male students in terms of both motivation in writing and writing proficiency.
{"title":"EFL STUDENTS’ MOTIVATION IN WRITING, WRITING PROFICIENCY, AND GENDER","authors":"B. Cahyono, T. Rahayu","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/162-180","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/162-180","url":null,"abstract":"There have been a lot of research studies on the role of motivation in education and language learning. However, research on the role of motivation in the area of EFL (English as a foreign language) writing is a rare undertaking. This study aimed to examine the correlation between EFL students’ motivation in writing and their writing proficiency. It also compared female and male students in terms of their motivation in writing and their writing proficiency. This study involved 55 university students of English department (17 female and 38 male students) who were required to write essays and respond to a motivation in writing questionnaire. The results showed that there was a high correlation between the EFL students’ motivation in writing and their writing proficiency. It was also revealed that there were significant differences in the motivation in writing as well as writing proficiency of the female and male students. The findings of this study suggested that the EFL students who had a higher level of motivation in writing had better writing proficiency. The study also showed that female students outperformed male students in terms of both motivation in writing and writing proficiency.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"31 1","pages":"162-180"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48943155","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-09-28DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/342-359
Amelyn A Thompson, W. Renandya
The role of gesture in second language acquisition (SLA) has recently become a promising area of research, characterized by the growing number of empirical research studies that examine the potential of incorporating gestures in such areas as the teaching of grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. This paper focuses on how gesture can be productively used to help students notice and subsequently correct their pronunciation errors, both segmental and suprasegmental errors. First, a critical review of the literature is presented in which we carefully explore recent research on oral corrective feedback and the role that gesture plays in facilitating comprehension and acquisition. Next, pedagogical implications are considered in which we discuss a pedagogical framework that language teachers can use as a guide for incorporating gestures in pronunciation instruction. Finally, future research possibilities are discussed, including suggestions for more robust research design and new areas to investigate.
{"title":"USE OF GESTURE FOR CORRECTING PRONUNCIATION ERRORS","authors":"Amelyn A Thompson, W. Renandya","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/342-359","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/342-359","url":null,"abstract":"The role of gesture in second language acquisition (SLA) has recently become a promising area of research, characterized by the growing number of empirical research studies that examine the potential of incorporating gestures in such areas as the teaching of grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. This paper focuses on how gesture can be productively used to help students notice and subsequently correct their pronunciation errors, both segmental and suprasegmental errors. First, a critical review of the literature is presented in which we carefully explore recent research on oral corrective feedback and the role that gesture plays in facilitating comprehension and acquisition. Next, pedagogical implications are considered in which we discuss a pedagogical framework that language teachers can use as a guide for incorporating gestures in pronunciation instruction. Finally, future research possibilities are discussed, including suggestions for more robust research design and new areas to investigate.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"31 1","pages":"342-359"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41782181","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-09-28DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/277-301
Abouzar Rajabpour
Many universities in the Middle East, for instance, Shiraz University in Iran and Sultan Qaboos University in Oman have been running M-reader, a free Internet site which helps educational institutions to manage extensive reading (ER), as a way of including Extensive Reading in ELT classes for years. In spite of few attempts to evaluate this online tool based on different aspects, no studies have focused on students’ ideas toward the pros and cons of M-reader and how it can be improved. Hence, using a large sample, the present study sheds some light on potential advantages and drawbacks of M-reader and, ultimately, presents students’ comments on how to idealize this popular Extensive Reading tool. A mixed-method design was used in data collection and data analysis. The study shows that M-reader is a popular online platform among students despite some potential drawbacks.
{"title":"STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF M-READER","authors":"Abouzar Rajabpour","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/277-301","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/277-301","url":null,"abstract":"Many universities in the Middle East, for instance, Shiraz University in Iran and Sultan Qaboos University in Oman have been running M-reader, a free Internet site which helps educational institutions to manage extensive reading (ER), as a way of including Extensive Reading in ELT classes for years. In spite of few attempts to evaluate this online tool based on different aspects, no studies have focused on students’ ideas toward the pros and cons of M-reader and how it can be improved. Hence, using a large sample, the present study sheds some light on potential advantages and drawbacks of M-reader and, ultimately, presents students’ comments on how to idealize this popular Extensive Reading tool. A mixed-method design was used in data collection and data analysis. The study shows that M-reader is a popular online platform among students despite some potential drawbacks.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"31 1","pages":"277-301"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47446696","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-09-28DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/302-321
M. Razavi, Abbas Pourhosein Gilakjani
This study investigated the effect of teaching cultural content on Iranian intermediate English as a foreign language (EFL) learners’ reading comprehension. To this end, 60 intermediate EFL learners from Shokouh Institute in Motelqu, Mazandaran, Iran were selected randomly and assigned to two groups, namely the control group and experimental group; 30 participants in each group were chosen based on their performance using the Oxford Placement Test (OPT). This study used a quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest control group research design. After the OPT, the reading comprehension pre-test was given to the participants to check their initial reading comprehension. During a six-week treatment period, both control and experimental groups received the same routine lesson plan of the institute but only the experimental group enjoyed the culture instruction in order to test its effect on learners’ reading comprehension improvement. At the final stage, the post-test was given to check their reading comprehension after the six-week treatment period. The data were analyzed using an Independent Samples T-test and a series of paired Samples T-tests. The results of this study showed that receiving cultural content instruction improved learners’ reading comprehension. In general, the results of experimental group supported the effect of teaching cultural content on Iranian learners’ reading comprehension.
{"title":"THE EFFECT OF TEACHING CULTURAL CONTENT ON INTERMEDIATE EFL LEARNERS’ READING COMPREHENSION ABILITY","authors":"M. Razavi, Abbas Pourhosein Gilakjani","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/302-321","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/302-321","url":null,"abstract":"This study investigated the effect of teaching cultural content on Iranian intermediate English as a foreign language (EFL) learners’ reading comprehension. To this end, 60 intermediate EFL learners from Shokouh Institute in Motelqu, Mazandaran, Iran were selected randomly and assigned to two groups, namely the control group and experimental group; 30 participants in each group were chosen based on their performance using the Oxford Placement Test (OPT). This study used a quasi-experimental, pretest-posttest control group research design. After the OPT, the reading comprehension pre-test was given to the participants to check their initial reading comprehension. During a six-week treatment period, both control and experimental groups received the same routine lesson plan of the institute but only the experimental group enjoyed the culture instruction in order to test its effect on learners’ reading comprehension improvement. At the final stage, the post-test was given to check their reading comprehension after the six-week treatment period. The data were analyzed using an Independent Samples T-test and a series of paired Samples T-tests. The results of this study showed that receiving cultural content instruction improved learners’ reading comprehension. In general, the results of experimental group supported the effect of teaching cultural content on Iranian learners’ reading comprehension.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"31 1","pages":"302-321"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47026365","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2020-09-28DOI: 10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/181-203
W. Hsu
Schmitt and Schmitt (2014) labeled the first 4000 to 9000 word families as mid-frequency words and stressed their importance based on Nation's (2006) estimate that for adequate comprehension of a variety of authentic texts, knowledge of the first 9000 word families is necessary. Subsequent to this vocabulary goal is to determine what can be read extensively to increase vocabulary progressively since most words cannot be mastered through only one exposure. This research aimed to investigate how much TED talk transcripts input is needed to encounter most of the first 9000 word families for learning to occur. It first measured the vocabulary levels of TED talks for their potential as extensive reading material for mid-frequency word learning. The results show that TED talks reached the 5th to 6th 1000-word-family level at 98% lexical coverage. Corpus sizes of 0.3 to 4.8 million words of TED transcripts provided an average of 12+ repetitions for most of the words from the first 4th to 9th 1000 word families. The figures may serve as a reference for learners in extensive reading programs to decide how much effort they should make to read TED talk transcripts voluminously to reach a certain vocabulary goal.
{"title":"CAN TED TALK TRANSCRIPTS SERVE AS EXTENSIVE READING MATERIAL FOR MID-FREQUENCY VOCABULARY LEARNING?","authors":"W. Hsu","doi":"10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/181-203","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.15639/TEFLINJOURNAL.V31I2/181-203","url":null,"abstract":"Schmitt and Schmitt (2014) labeled the first 4000 to 9000 word families as mid-frequency words and stressed their importance based on Nation's (2006) estimate that for adequate comprehension of a variety of authentic texts, knowledge of the first 9000 word families is necessary. Subsequent to this vocabulary goal is to determine what can be read extensively to increase vocabulary progressively since most words cannot be mastered through only one exposure. This research aimed to investigate how much TED talk transcripts input is needed to encounter most of the first 9000 word families for learning to occur. It first measured the vocabulary levels of TED talks for their potential as extensive reading material for mid-frequency word learning. The results show that TED talks reached the 5th to 6th 1000-word-family level at 98% lexical coverage. Corpus sizes of 0.3 to 4.8 million words of TED transcripts provided an average of 12+ repetitions for most of the words from the first 4th to 9th 1000 word families. The figures may serve as a reference for learners in extensive reading programs to decide how much effort they should make to read TED talk transcripts voluminously to reach a certain vocabulary goal.","PeriodicalId":37036,"journal":{"name":"Teflin Journal","volume":"31 1","pages":"181-203"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-09-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46553791","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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