The Effect of Learning Materials on Students’ Language Gain: An Empirical Study at Jazan University, Saudi Arabia

This study investigated the effectiveness of the English programme for year one students, at Baish Community College (Males, BCCM), Jazan Community Colleges (Males, JCCM and Females, JCCF), College of Engineering (Males), and College of Design and Architecture (Females). Research tools were a programme evaluation form and two short placement tests. This study focused heavily on the students’ progress of learning English. Two placement tests were used: one at the beginning of the semester, and the other on the second half of the semester with a two-month gap. The average of all groups on the first placement test was 18.5 out of 50. ANOVA analysis showed no significant differences between groups averages at p < 0.05 (p-value was 0.26). The level at the start is similar to all groups (homogeneous students). The second placement test showed a slight learning progress. The average of all groups was 21 out of 50, but with a high variation in percentages of gain amongst groups. Therefore, the second ANOVA analysis was conducted to examine the significance of the groups’ averages at p < 0.05. The analysis yielded a p-value of 0.0079. A third analysis was conducted on both tests to ensure further validity of the results; t-test for paired samples was used. All groups were positive except for Jazan Girls Community College which showed no progress at all.