The Effect of Using Video Games on EFL Learners' Acquisition of Speech Acts of Apology and Request

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (5) ◽  
pp. 1019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahshid Shirazi ◽  
Seyyed Dariush Ahmadi ◽  
Ali Gholami Mehrdad
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Speech Acts ◽  
Pragmatic Competence ◽  
Placement Test ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Competence Test

This article presents a discussion about the inclusion of video game based pragmatic competence instruction as a facilitative tool to develop interlanguage pragmatic competence of Iranian EFL learners' acquisition of speech acts of apology and request. The question this article is intended to answer includes: whether using video game as a facilitative tool for developing interlanguage pragmatic competence have any effect on EFL learners’ acquisition of speech acts of apology and request or not. To answer this question, 40 Iranian intermediate EFL learners were selected via administering the Oxford Placement Test (OPT). Following the Jianda Liu pragmatic competence test (2004) that made test of apology and request speech acts were administered as the pre-test before the targeted speech acts were instructed to them for 8 sessions. The post-test of apology and request speech acts were then administered and data were analyzed via calculating ANCOVA and Mann-Whitney U test. The results indicated that the video game-based instructed EFL classroom showed positive progress in acquisition of apology and request speech acts.

scholarly journals Using Podcasts to Improve Second Language Comprehension in Iranian Language Classrooms

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 24
Author(s):  
Mohammad Davoudi ◽  
Mojtaba Rezaei
Keyword(s):  
Language Comprehension ◽  
Good Method ◽  
Placement Test ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Language Classrooms ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Experimental Group ◽  
Transcript File

<p>The present study aims at investigating the influence of podcasts (POD) on language comprehension of Iranian pre-intermediate EFL learners. An Oxford Placement Test (OPT) was administered to 60 male and female university students. The participants were considered as pre-intermediate learners and were divided into two groups (one experimental group and one control group). During the fifteen sessions of the treatment, thirty podcasts were presented to the two groups. The experimental group received just the audio file of the POD, and the control group received a different treatment which was the transcript file of the same audio podcast file of the experimental group. The results of the t-tests revealed that there was no significant difference in language comprehension scores across the posttest between two groups. Based on the interview results after the post-test, all of the participants (100%) agreed that both audio and the transcripts (written texts) were useful for them and claimed that it is a good method of improving language comprehension.</p>

scholarly journals Using video games for volcanic hazard education and communication: an assessment of the method and preliminary results

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. 1673-1689 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lara Mani ◽  
Paul D. Cole ◽  
Iain Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Volcanic Hazard ◽  
Pyroclastic Flows ◽  
Concept Design ◽  
Preliminary Results ◽  
Ash Fall ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Hazard Education ◽  
Sound Foundation

Abstract. This paper presents the findings from a study aimed at understanding whether video games (or serious games) can be effective in enhancing volcanic hazard education and communication. Using the eastern Caribbean island of St. Vincent, we have developed a video game – St. Vincent's Volcano – for use in existing volcano education and outreach sessions. Its twin aims are to improve residents' knowledge of potential future eruptive hazards (ash fall, pyroclastic flows and lahars) and to integrate traditional methods of education in a more interactive manner. Here, we discuss the process of game development including concept design through to the final implementation on St. Vincent. Preliminary results obtained from the final implementation (through pre- and post-test knowledge quizzes) for both student and adult participants provide indications that a video game of this style may be effective in improving a learner's knowledge. Both groups of participants demonstrated a post-test increase in their knowledge quiz score of 9.3 % for adults and 8.3 % for students and, when plotted as learning gains (Hake, 1998), show similar overall improvements (0.11 for adults and 0.09 for students). These preliminary findings may provide a sound foundation for the increased integration of emerging technologies within traditional education sessions. This paper also shares some of the challenges and lessons learnt throughout the development and testing processes and provides recommendations for researchers looking to pursue a similar study.

scholarly journals Using video games for volcanic hazard education and communication

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Mani ◽  
P. D. Cole ◽  
I. Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Volcanic Hazard ◽  
Pyroclastic Flows ◽  
Concept Design ◽  
Game Development ◽  
Ash Fall ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Hazard Education ◽  
Sound Foundation

Abstract. This paper aims to understand whether video games (or serious games) can be effective in enhancing volcanic hazard education and communication. Using the eastern Caribbean island of St. Vincent, we have developed a video game – St. Vincent’s Volcano – for use in volcano education and outreach sessions, aimed at improving resident’s knowledge of potential future eruptive hazards (ash fall, pyroclastic flows and lahars). Here, we discuss the process of game development including concept design, game development through to final implementation on St. Vincent. Preliminary results for game implementation (obtained through pre and post-test knowledge quizzes) for both student and adult participants suggest that a video game of this style can be effective in improving learner’s knowledge. Both groups of participants demonstrated an increase in score percentage (9.3 % for adults and 8.3 % for students) and when plotted as learning gains (0.11 for adults and 0.09 for students). This preliminary data could provide a sound foundation for the increased integration of emerging technologies within traditional education sessions.

scholarly journals The Realization of Complaint Strategies among Iranian Female EFL Learners and Female Native English Speakers: A Politeness Perspective

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Atefeh Eshraghi ◽  
Mohsen Shahrokhi
Keyword(s):  
Speech Acts ◽  
Social Power ◽  
Great Influence ◽  
Native English Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Placement Test ◽  
Contextual Variables ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Completion Test

<p>Speech acts are interesting areas of research and there has been much research on speech acts. Complaint is a type of speech act and how to use it in interaction is important to EFL learners. The complaint strategies employed by Iranian female EFL learners and female English native speakers were compared in this study. Also, the effects of contextual variables (Social distance and Social power) on the choice of complaint strategies by Iranian female EFL learners and female native English speakers were studied in this research. Thirty Iranian female EFL learners and thirty female native English speakers participated in this study. The two instruments which were used in this study included Oxford Placement Test (OPT) and Discourse Completion Test (DCT). The (DCT), as an open-ended questionnaire was administrated to them to elicit complaint speech acts. Then, the collected data were analyzed according to a modified taxonomy of complaint strategies proposed by Trosoborg (1995). The results indicated that there was a significant difference between Iranian female EFL learners and female native English speakers in terms of using complaint strategies. Iranian female EFL learners used indirect complaint, while female native English speakers used the direct complaint more frequently; and contextual variables had a great influence on complaint strategy choice by participants of two groups.</p>

scholarly journals Investigating the Interplay between Age Range and Vocabulary Learning among EFL Learners

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 238
Author(s):  
Hamed Barjesteh ◽  
Lida Farsi
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Placement Test ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Post Test ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
Age Range

The present study aimed to examine the relationship between age range and vocabulary learning among pre-intermediate Iranian EFL learners. To this aim, 50 pre-intermediate Iranian EFL learners, male (N= 20) and female (N=30), were selected from a private language institute based on their performance on the Oxford Placement Test (OPT). They were divided into two groups: teenager and adult learners. Before intervention, a pretest of vocabulary was conducted to determine students’ vocabulary knowledge.  Then, vocabularies were presentenced in dialog, word power and reading texts using a monolingual dictionary in five sessions interval for the both groups. After the intervention, a post-test of vocabulary was administered to examine the possible improvement. The data obtained from the administration of the pre-test and the post-test were analyzed using SPSS software. The results revealed that there was no significant relationship between the performance of teenager and adult groups in their vocabulary learning; and there was no significant difference between the performance of teenager and adult groups in their vocabulary learning. This research potentially has some implications that may help English language teachers, students, EFL learners and educational syllabus designers.

scholarly journals Improving Upper-intermediate EFL Learners’ Communicative Competence through Authentic Materials

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 956
Author(s):  
Mohammad Hossein Keshmirshekan
Keyword(s):  
Language Learners ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Placement Test ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Authentic Materials ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Course Content ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Experimental Group

The present study aimed to investigate the effects of authentic materials on enhancing Iranian English as a foreign language learners' communicative competence. To this end, 106 upper-intermediate participants out of 136 were selected based on their performance an Oxford Placement Test (OPT) and randomly assigned to two equal groups- one experimental group and one control group. Then a pre-test was administered to assess the participants' communicative competence at the beginning of the course. Then, the experimental group received the treatment. The control group was taught the course content using the regular communicative method through which students received teacher-course from the textbook. After the treatment, the two groups took the post-test. The data analysis through paired and independent sample t-tests revealed that the experimental group outperformed the control group on the posttest. In other words, teaching authentic materials showed to have a significant effect on improving learners' communicative competence. The implications, limitations, and suggestions of this study are explained at the end of the study.

scholarly journals EFFECTS OF USING ENGLISH PODCASTS ON IDIOMS AND VOCABULARY LEARNING OF IRANIAN EFL LEARNERS

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Golyas Akhavan Tabatabaee ◽  
Ehsan Rezvani
Keyword(s):  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Placement Test ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Intermediate Group ◽  
Attitudes Toward Learning ◽  
Post Test ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Standard Deviations

This study is an attempt to explore the potential effects of using podcasts on idiom and vocabulary learning of Iranian EFL upper and lower intermediate learners as well as their attitudes toward learning via podcasts. To achieve the goals of the study, 100 participants who are made homogeneous in terms of language proficiency using an Oxford Placement Test (OPT) are selected, and are subsequently divided into four groups: two experimental groups and two control groups. Those students whose scores fall two standard deviations above the mean are considered as the upper intermediate group and those whose scores fall two standard deviations below the mean constituted the lower intermediate group. Then, researcher make vocabulary and idiom pre-tests are administered to assess the learners� knowledge of the target vocabulary and idioms prior to treatment. As for the treatment, the students in the control group are taught conventionally using the readings in an ELT textbook, whereas the experimental groups� learners are taught using podcasts containing idioms and vocabulary in focus. Finally, the learners are given a post-test parallel in form to the pre-test. The findings indicate that the learners who are taught via podcasts outperformed the control group on the post-test. Moreover, the findings show that learners have a significantly positive attitude toward learning via podcasts. The results will have implications for EFL teachers and materials developers.

scholarly journals Impact of Integrating Task-Based Learning and Functional Approach to Empower Learners’ Communicative Competence

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 39-54
Author(s):  
Tri Nguyen ◽  
Trang Xuan Phuong Dao
Keyword(s):  
Speech Acts ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Functional Approach ◽  
Traditional Teaching ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Communicative Functions ◽  
Post Test ◽  
The Impact

Enhancing EFL learners’ communicative competence is a time-taking process to reach certain levels of interacting with different communication participants. However, in the tertiary education in Vietnam, traditional teaching approach with the task-based learning does not thoroughly focus on the language use but on the strategies to perform the tasks. Hence, the functional approach has been applied to boost learners’ awareness of their language delivery thanks to communicative functions and notions. The new mode of teaching concentrates on what communication participants desire to convey and why they make use of those speech acts. This paper aimed to explore the impact of the integration of task-based learning and the functional approach, and learners’ perspective towards the implementation of such approach combination. With the application of the mixed method of qualitative and quantitative approaches, the data were collected via a pre-test and a post-test, survey, and 32 interviews with the participation of 100 students whose major is Business Administration at a university. The findings reveal that adding the functional approach to the existing teaching method could enhance students’ overall speaking competence, especially their fluency and discourse management. Additionally, the application of the functional approach received positive feedback from the learners.  

Investigating the Impact of Integrating Vocabulary Exercises Into an Adventure Video Game on Second Vocabulary Learning

2020 ◽  
pp. 073563312096375
Author(s):  
Hao-Jan Howard Chen ◽  
Hsiao-Ling Hsu ◽  
Zhi-Hong Chen ◽  
Andrew G. Todd
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Learning Environment ◽  
Video Game ◽  
Computer Games ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
New Words ◽  
Adventure Game ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Game Developers ◽  
The Impact

Many studies have found that computer video games can offer a facilitative vocabulary learning environment. Among different types of computer games, adventure games have received much attention because of their rich input and immersive learning environment. However, some researchers have indicated that because of the characters’ fast-talking speed and many new vocabulary, more lexical supports should be provided in the games. This study thus developed an adventure game with two versions. One version was an adventure game and the other was the same game supported with vocabulary exercises. Two classes were randomly assigned to play two versions of the game and to take a pre-test, post-test, and delayed post-test. A survey was also conducted to investigate the participants’ perceptions. The results showed that both groups acquired new words, but the experimental group performed significantly better in both the immediate and delayed post-tests. These findings indicated that the adventure game alone can help participants acquire new words. However, the inclusion of word-focused exercises further helped learners retain more new words. Thus, it is suggested that game developers can incorporate word-focused exercises into video games. The additional exercise can allow learners to benefit from both implicit and explicit vocabulary learning.

scholarly journals The Effect of Neuro-linguistic Programming Coaching on Learning English

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hayat Eid Alroudhan
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Placement Test ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
Interpersonal Communications ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Neurological Processes ◽  
And Control ◽  
Experimental Group

NLP is an interpersonal communications model based on the belief that language is strongly inter-connected with neurological processes and behavioral patterns adopted through experience and the power of this connection can be harnessed to acquire the skills in exceptional people. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the efficiency of NLP for language learning and investigate its potential role in learning the English language. By using primary and secondary sources and implementing the Oxford Placement Test, as the pretest and the post-test on the experimental and control groups, the effect of the NLP coaching treatment sessions on the experimental group of female Saudi EFL learners was investigated for two months. The findings of this study reveal that NLP not only provides the techniques and solutions to the problems, but it also enables teachers to form their own flexible responses to the specific problems. In this study, NLP coaching proved to have a significant effect on EFL learning, however, further research is needed to confirm the findings of this innovative study.

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