Metacognitive awareness in foreign language learning through Facebook

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 174-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ward Peeters
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Metacognitive Awareness ◽  
Learning Goals ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning Tasks ◽  
Social Media Platforms ◽  
Working Together ◽  
Set Up

While over the past decade social network sites have enabled both learners and teachers to set up various forms of online collaborative learning environments, there is an ongoing discussion on how collaboration through these social media platforms can be situated with regard to the development of metacognitive awareness (Li, Pow & Cheung, 2015). This paper presents a study on the development of learners’ metacognitive awareness of first-year English majors collaborating in a closed Facebook group. The theoretical framework for the development of metacognition, proposed by Gunawardena et al. (2009), was used to analyse the students’ metacognitive strategies when working together online. The study shows that students utilise the social network site to complete given learning tasks, and extend their use of the forum by setting new learning goals and socialising with their peers. The students show that, through peer collaboration, they are able to evaluate and plan their learning process online.

scholarly journals Tapping into the Educational Potential of Facebook: Encouraging Out-of-Class Peer Collaboration in Foreign Language Learning

2015 ◽  
pp. 176-190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ward Peeters
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Social Network Sites ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Peer Collaboration ◽  
First Year ◽  
Communicative Context ◽  
Educational Potential

Due to their social framework and often informal character, social network sites such as Facebook are believed to promote out-of-class learning by encouraging learners to participate in online peer collaboration. Yet, the evidence remains inconclusive when it comes to the effectiveness and students’ appreciation of collaborating via social network sites, which indicates the need for further research. The first part of the present paper discusses the ‘out-of-class’ use of a closed Facebook group by analysing the online communication behaviour of 119 first-year foreign language English majors at the University of Antwerp (Belgium) participating in a writing course. The assessed data (more than 4,000 Facebook posts and a post-questionnaire) suggest that the socio-communicative context of a Facebook group motivates students to learn collaboratively beyond the physical classroom walls. The remaining part of this paper investigates which conclusions can be drawn from this for increasing the effectiveness of independent self-access modules and study programmes blending self-access and classroom learning. Here, results hint at the fact that students attach particular importance to social network sites as support networks for sharing positive and critical learning experiences and language learning tips.

scholarly journals EXPLORING LANGUAGE INPUT OF THE READING TEXTS IN NORTHSTAR TEXTBOOKS FOR FIRST-YEAR ENGLISH-MAJOR STUDENTS AT UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES, HUE UNIVERSITY

2020 ◽  
Vol 129 (6B) ◽  
Author(s):  
Phuong Ngoc Quynh Tran
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Difficulty Level ◽  
First Year ◽  
Text Input ◽  
Language Difficulty ◽  
English Major ◽  
Language Input ◽  
Reading Texts

There are many studies on English Language Teaching materials evaluation, but very few investigate the language input of reading materials though text input is considered a primary factor for successful foreign language learning. This research explored the language input of reading texts in a book series used in teaching reading for first-year English-major students at a foreign language university in central Vietnam. It aimed at investigating text topics, genres, length, language difficulty level and students’ as well as teachers’ perceptions of the studied texts in an attempt to facilitate students’ reading comprehension. Thirty-two reading texts were studied using a descriptive analytical approach. Individual and focus group interviews were implemented with 15 students and 7 lecturers. The findings showed the textbooks incorporated a wide variety of topics which are interesting and familiar to students. Article was the most popular text genre. The text length and language difficulty level proved to be appropriate to students’ levels. The lecturers’ and students’ perceptions of the texts also supported the textbook analysis findings. These findings implicated the selected textbooks should be kept in the curriculum but need further adaptation. Besides, some suggestions were made to help ELT lecturers modify the text input effectively.

scholarly journals An Investigation into the Benefits of the Intercultural Approach to EFL Learning and Teaching: A Case Study of Taif University, KSA

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir H. Abdalla
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Language Education ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
Potential Benefits ◽  
Preparatory Year ◽  
Study Participants

The purpose of this study is to investigate the potential benefits of using the intercultural approach to teaching English as a foreign language in the preparatory –year programme (male branch), Taif University, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The intercultural approach is considered a viable means of foreign language education that seeks to address issues of culture in foreign language learning and teaching and how best to address them. Hence, this study intends to explore the attitudes of first year EFL Taif university students to the potential benefits of the intercultural approach to EFL. A sample of 200 EFL students participated in the study. Participants’ views on the topic of the study are collected via a questionnaire the researcher designed and administered to the participants. In addition, the views of 50 EFL instructors teaching in the preparatory programme were gathered by a questionnaire regarding the topic researched. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the collected data.

scholarly journals Metacognitive Awareness and Critical Thinking Abilities of Pre-service EFL Teachers

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (5) ◽  
pp. 116
Author(s):  
Dilek Cakici
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Thinking Skills ◽  
Critical Thinking Skills ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Metacognitive Awareness ◽  
Learning Context ◽  
Efl Teachers

The primary aim of current study was to investigate the possible relationship between Metacognitive Awareness (MA) and Critical Thinking Skills (CTS) in a foreign language learning context. In addition, this research aimed to probe the effect of gender and years of pre-service English language teachers on the relation between metacognitive awareness and critical thinking abilities. 218 pre-service EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teachers participated in the study. Metacognitive Awareness Inventory and Critical Thinking Questionnaire were employed to gather necessary data. Obtained results confirmed that there existed a highly significant positive correlation between MA and CTS. Besides, the results indicated that there was a strong relation between the years of pre-service EFL teachers and their MA and CTS. Seniors were found to be more metacognitively aware and critical thinkers than their counterparts. Conversely, it was revealed that there was no gender effect on both MA and CTS. Finally, certain suggestions were set for tertiary institutions to develop metacognition and critical thinking skills in foreign language classroom settings.

Learning to LOLIPOP

2010 ◽  
pp. 176-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Bruen ◽  
Juliette Péchenart ◽  
Veronica Crosbie
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Undergraduate Research ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Electronic Version ◽  
First Year ◽  
European Language ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Intercultural Studies

The focus of this chapter is twofold: firstly, on the development of an electronic version of a European Language Portfolio, known as the LOLIPOP ELP,1 and, secondly, on its integration into a study and research skills module for first-year students on the BA in Applied Language and Intercultural Studies at Dublin City University. The chapter begins with an introduction to the concept of a European Language Portfolio (ELP) in the context of current trends in foreign language learning and teaching. It then describes the development and key features of the LOLIPOP ELP. It explains how it was integrated into a first-year, undergraduate research and study skills module focusing on elements of course design and assessment. Finally, the chapter concludes by analysing the output from the participants in this study which indicates that they appreciated the opportunity to engage with the LOLIPOP ELP and found it beneficial to their language learning although issues remain around its design and integration into an academic programme.

scholarly journals Integrating Content and Language in Business English Teaching in China: First Year Students’ Perceptions and Learning Experience

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 86 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine Ruth Martyn
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Difficulty Level ◽  
First Year ◽  
Business English ◽  
English Teaching ◽  
First Semester ◽  
Teaching Learning

Content and language integrated learning (CLIL) is a key construct in Business English teaching in universities in China today. While there is a plethora of articles on implementation in European contexts, there is limited evidence in the literature of the teaching/learning experience in other foreign language learning environments—despite its wide application in, for example, south-east Asia and China in particular. As CLIL programs have been developed in a variety of ways to meet the unique needs of learners and societal expectations, the context of teaching and learning is critical. This paper focuses on the perceptions and learning experiences of students in a first year, first semester course, Introduction to Contemporary Business, in a Chinese university. Lesson observations, questionnaires, and interviews explore the experience of learners. While most students found the course very challenging in their first semester, they met the challenge. Coping with both language and content is always a double challenge: most students found their Introduction to Contemporary Business their most difficult course, yet they perceived it as manageable and worthwhile. Students coped with the difficulty level in two main ways: either by spending much time in review and translating the textbook prior to class, or by focusing on the teacher’s PowerPoint slides after class—as they considered these were the key points and the textbook was too difficult. Suggestions for a closer integration between language and content within CLIL courses are offered, such as a case-task-based approach, a greater variety of input, and the role of content teachers in English enhancement.

scholarly journals The ‘unforgettable’ experience of foreign language anxiety

2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 120-128
Author(s):  
Morana Drakulić
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Language Anxiety ◽  
Foreign Language Anxiety ◽  
First Year ◽  
Learning Context ◽  
Language Classroom ◽  
First Year University

Foreign language anxiety (FLA) has long been recognized as a factor that hinders the process of foreign language learning at all levels. Among numerous FLA sources identified in the literature, language classroom seems to be of particular interest and significance, especially in the formal language learning context, where the course and the teacher are often the only representatives of language. The main purpose of the study is to determine the presence and potential sources of foreign language anxiety among first year university students and to explore how high anxiety levels shape and affect students’ foreign language learning experience. In the study both the questionnaire and the interviews were used as the data collection methods. Thematic analysis of the interviews and descriptive statistics suggest that most anxiety-provoking situations stem from the language classroom itself.

scholarly journals Does bilingual experience influence statistical language learning?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose Aguasvivas ◽  
Manuel Carreiras
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Rule Learning ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Word Segmentation ◽  
Experimental Task ◽  
Learning Tasks ◽  
English Bilingual ◽  
Experience Effects ◽  
Experience Effect

Bilingual experience may confer advantages in statistical language learning tasks. Given that SL tasks can measure different aspects of foreign language learning, which aspects benefit from bilingual experience is still largely unexplored. Here, we compared a Spanish monolingual and two (Spanish-Basque and Spanish-English) bilingual groups across three well-established SL tasks. Each task targeted a different aspect of foreign language learning as a proxy—i.e., word segmentation, morphological rule generalization, and word-referent learning. In Experiment 1, we manipulated sub-lexical phonotactic patterns to vary the difficulty of three SL tasks, and the results showed no differences between the groups in word segmentation. In Experiment 2, we included non-adjacent dependencies to target affixal morphology rule learning, and again there were no differences between the groups. Finally, Experiment 3 addressed word learning using a more challenging audio-visual SL task combining exclusive and multiple word-referent mappings. We observed a bilingual experience effect only for the exclusive mappings but not for the multiple mappings. These results suggest that bilingual experience might mainly exert influences on statistical language learning at the lexical level. We discuss these findings by contextualizing SL as a cognitive mechanism, an experimental task, and a proxy for foreign language learning, highlighting the strengths and limitations in detecting bilingual experience effects.

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