The impact of scaffolding and nonscaffolding strategies on the EFL learners' listening comprehension development

2016 ◽  
Vol 110 (5) ◽  
pp. 447-456
Author(s):  
Mohammad Ahmadi Safa ◽  
Fatemeh Rozati
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-17
Author(s):  
Mahsa Assadi

This study reports a pre-experimental research on the impact of metacognitive instruction on EFL learners’ metacognitive awareness and their listening performance. To obtain the goal of the study, a group of 30 Iranian intermediate EFL learners, including 14 males and 16 females, were selected randomly. Their ages range from 20 to 24. The participants took part in 16 weeks’ intervention program based on metacognitive pedagogical sequence consisted of five stages. The metacognitive awareness listening questionnaire (MALQ), and a listening test were also used to find changes in metacognitive awareness and listening performance before and after the treatment. The results of comparing pre and posttests scores revealed that metacognitive instruction raised the learners’ metacognitive awareness and helped them improve their listening comprehension ability.


ReCALL ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Chi Yang ◽  
Peichin Chang

AbstractFor many EFL learners, listening poses a grave challenge. The difficulty in segmenting a stream of speech and limited capacity in short-term memory are common weaknesses for language learners. Specifically, reduced forms, which frequently appear in authentic informal conversations, compound the challenges in listening comprehension. Numerous interventions have been implemented to assist EFL language learners, and of these, the application of captions has been found highly effective in promoting learning. Few studies have examined how different modes of captions may enhance listening comprehension. This study proposes three modes of captions: full, keyword-only, and annotated keyword captions and investigates their contribution to the learning of reduced forms and overall listening comprehension. Forty-four EFL university students participated in the study and were randomly assigned to one of the three groups. The results revealed that all three groups exhibited improvement on the pre-test while the annotated keyword caption group exhibited the best performance with the highest mean score. Comparing performances between groups, the annotated keyword caption group also emulated both the full caption and the keyword-only caption groups, particularly in the ability to recognize reduced forms. The study sheds light on the potential of annotated keyword captions in enhancing reduced forms learning and overall listening comprehension.


2021 ◽  
pp. 136216882110218
Author(s):  
Mohammad Ahmadi Safa ◽  
Fateme Motaghi

Studies have documented the significance of scaffolding as a sociocultural theory driven type of assistance for the development of English as foreign language (EFL) learners’ language skills in general; however, the comparative efficacy of various cognitive and/or metacognitive scaffolding procedures for EFL learners’ listening comprehension development and progress has received scant attention. As a partial attempt in this regard, this study investigated the comparative efficacy of cognitive and metacognitive scaffolding strategies for EFL learners’ listening comprehension development. For this purpose, 90 intermediate level EFL learners aged 15 to 20 were selected to participate in this study. The participants’ actual proficiency level was assessed using a sample TOEFL Junior Standard test and relatively homogeneous classes of nearly 15 learners were formed and randomly assigned to two experimental conditions and a control one. The listening section of TOEFL Junior standard test was used as the pre- and posttest. While the learners in both experimental conditions worked in groups of three or four learners on some listening comprehension tasks, the participants of the first experimental condition received cognitive scaffolding strategies, and the second experimental group members were treated using metacognitive scaffolding strategies, the control group members received teacher-fronted non-scaffolding instruction. In addition to a listening comprehension posttest, a semi-structured interview was given to a number of participants of each experimental condition to explore their attitudes towards given scaffolding strategies. The analyses verified that metacognitive scaffolding strategies had a significant superior effect on EFL learners’ listening development compared to cognitive scaffolding strategies and non-scaffolding instruction. Furthermore, the analyses revealed that the EFL learners were generally more pleased with the metacognitive scaffolding procedures and viewed them as instructive, innovative, and effective for finding problems, better comprehension and increased readiness.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 94-113
Author(s):  
Akram Faravani ◽  
Ensie Taleb

Abstract The current emphasis on questioning techniques has inspired many EFL teachers to explore the impact of applying different pedagogical teaching strategies on the enhancement of thinking skills. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the influence of using higher order questioning technique on the listening comprehension achievement and critical thinking ability of Iranian intermediate EFL learners. To reach this end, 40 participants in 4 intact classes in Kish Air Language institute in Mashhad were selected and divided in two groups to be assigned into experimental and control group. The experimental group received higher order questions based on Bloom’s Taxonomy classification for 12 sessions. A pretest and a posttest of English listening comprehension test of TOEFL (TOEFL PBT) and California Critical Thinking Skill Test (CCTST) were administrated in both groups. 2 Independent sample t-tests were utilized to examine the data. Sample t-tests were run to compare the experimental and the control group means on the pretest and posttest of listening comprehension and critical thinking tests. The results surmised that there was a statistically significant difference between the pretest and posttest scores regarding listening comprehension and critical thinking in the experimental group. The results imply that using higher order questions as an instructional technique can enhance learners’ listening comprehension achievement and critical thinking ability.


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