Processing of English Sentences Consisting of Frequency Adverbs by Japanese EFL Learners

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (11) ◽  
pp. 952
Author(s):  
Prabath B. Kanduboda
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Information Flow ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Information Structure ◽  
English Language ◽  
Decision Task ◽  
Parts Of Speech ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
L2 Learners

Previous studies suggest that, adverbs can have comparatively free positioning to that of other parts of speech in English language. This study focused on frequency adverbs which represent number of occurrences of an action or a condition. Since different positioning may produce relatively different meaning (or focus) of given sentences, processing of such sentences is assumed to be complex especially for L2 learners. Therefore, this study investigated how L2 learners process English sentences consisting of adverbs in different positions. The main goal of this study is to reveal which information-structure is mostly identified among Japanese EFL learners. A sentence-correctness-decision task was conducted with a group of university students (n=30). Stimuli were selected via a free-production written task. The data were analyzed using SPSS statistics with repeated measures (i.e., ANOVAs). A simple comparison between alternative ordering showed that, the sentences consisting of adverbs in between-positioning were processed faster to that of initial-positioning, assumable due to the different information flow. Thus, according to this study, English sentences consisting of frequency adverbs with the between-positioning [S (A (VO))] is likely to possess a high acceptability among Japanese EFL learners to that of initial-positioning sentences [A (S (VO))].

scholarly journals Use of Mobile Dictionary in University Students’ Class: A Study of Teachers’ Perspective in Pakistan

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 147
Author(s):  
Muhammad Din
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Learning Tools ◽  
College Teachers ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
English Class ◽  
English Language Teachers

Revolutionary changes have been brought about in teaching and learning environment with the introduction of electronic formats in classrooms. Mobile dictionaries are potentially valuable learning tools today. This study has strived to get insight into the prospects of using mobile dictionary in an EFL classroom of university students of Pakistan with reference to teachers’ perspective. The aims of this study are to know foreign language teachers’ point of view regarding the use of mobile dictionary in English class, investigate the challenges in introducing this e-tool and explore the benefits EFL learners can have through the use of mobile dictionaries in English class. To achieve the objectives of this quantitative study, the researcher has got a questionnaire filled by fifty English language teachers working at different government colleges in Pakistan. The questionnaire which was used to collect data from college teachers consisted of two sections. The first section comprised of fifteen questionnaire items on five-point Likert scale the second section consisted of two open-ended questions. The reliability of the first part of the questionnaire was computed through SPSS (XX). It has been found that most of the college teachers are of the view that the use of mobile dictionary in an EFL class of university students will help them learn vocabulary, pronunciation of words and word origin. These EFL learners can also access authentic content and develop their language competence through the use of mobile phone dictionary in the class. Apart from this, the participants have also pointed out some problems which can be a hindrance in using mobile dictionary in an EFL classroom in the context of Pakistan.

scholarly journals Getting to the Nitty-Gritty of Grit: A Descriptive Characterization of Gritty L2 Learners from Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan and Japan

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 133-155
Author(s):  
Mark R. Freiermuth ◽  
Chomraj Patanasorn ◽  
Latha Ravindran ◽  
Hsin-chou Huang
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Grounded Theory ◽  
University Students ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
English Language ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
Interview Data ◽  
L2 Learners

Understanding the make-up of gritty L2 students has garnered quite a lot of attention recently. In this descriptive narrative-based study, we looked at the interview data of eight English language learners who recorded high scores on a nine-item grit questionnaire. Specifically, two female university students each from Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand and Japan were interviewed and their interview scripts were transcribed and then coded looking for common threads to emerge from the data by applying the tenets of Charmaz’s (2006) Grounded Theory. The data show that beyond perseverance, gritty L2 students enjoy learning the L2, are consistently curious about the L2, are generally not bored by the L2, are confident using the L2 (not letting anxiety dissuade them), are extraverted—encompassing a strong willingness to communicate, have focused L2 vision and have had experiences and/or encounters that bolstered their L2 grittiness. As for encouraging L2 grit development, we suggest that good L2 classroom practice include frequent communicative activities so that students can see the practical side of learning a L2 with the hopes of strengthening their L2 vision.

scholarly journals “THANK YOU, IT REALLY MAKES MY DAY”: COMPLIMENT RESPONSES REVISITED

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 321-331
Author(s):  
Shofiyyahtuz' Zahro ◽  
Emy Sudarwati
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
English Language ◽  
English Literature ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Compliment Responses ◽  
Scale Down ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Literature Class ◽  
International English

Complimenting is a typical speaking act and the method in which it is responded to can vary based on the culture of the speakers as well as the influence of other circumstances. The purpose of this study was to provide a more in-depth knowledge of compliment response research based on how it is used by university students learning EFL in everyday life. Furthermore, this study also aims at finding out if exposure to another culture affects university students learning English as a second language while responding to compliments. The data were garnered using data elicitation method by complimenting the participants’ look, possession, character, or aptitude. The finding found that the participants used ten types of responses; listed from the most frequently used type of compliment responses to the least used type of compliment responses: Comment Acceptance (8), Appreciation Token (2), Comment History (2), Question (2), Praise Upgrade (1), Reassignment (1), Return (1), Scale Down (1), Disagreement (1), and Qualification (1). According to the data, the majority of students in an international English literature class at Brawijaya University are likely to accept the compliments. Students tend to take compliments by thanking them and then making related comments. English-speaking countries consider a simple "thank you" to be an adequate response to a praise. This present study also confirms that short term encounterance with foreign culture exposure slightly affect EFL learners’ way of responding to compliments. This shows that the students learn the English language culture in terms of compliment.

scholarly journals Question Formation Problems Encountered by Students of English as a Foreign Language: A Case Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 12-16
Author(s):  
Fatima Elnaeem Mohammed
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
University Students ◽  
Significant Influence ◽  
Word Order ◽  
English Language ◽  
First Language ◽  
Past Tense ◽  
Parts Of Speech ◽  
Question Formation

This study aims at identifying the problems that face Sudanese university students in forming questions for communicative purposes in the English language; It is an investigation of the difficulties the students find in constructing questions correctly and accurately. Types of errors were analyzed on different linguistic levels. The results have shown that the area of confusion includes the use of the verb ‘be’, present and past tense, parts of speech and word order. The methodology used in this study was based on the students' feedback; linguistic analysis of the questions they formed. The main findings proved that the students face difficulties in forming questions resulting from the fact that their first language has a significant influence on learning English as a foreign language in general and forming questions in particular.   

scholarly journals The Effect of One-way and Two-way Tasks on Iranian EFL Learners’ Lexical Learning

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 953
Author(s):  
Saeedeh Shadabi ◽  
Mohammad Golshan ◽  
Sima Sayadian
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
English Language ◽  
Task Group ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Group Knowledge ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Lexical Learning ◽  
The One ◽  
Task Types ◽  
Age Range

This study investigated the effect of one-way and two-way tasks on lexical learning of Iranian pre-intermediate EFL learners. Participants included 40 male and female Iranian EFL learners with the age range of 11-21, at the pre-intermediate level and from two English language institutes. They were assigned to two experimental groups: a one-way-task group and a two-way-task group. Knowledge of the intended lexes was established by a pre-test. The experimental groups underwent different treatments for eight 30-minute sessions during which they told stories based on the picture-cued stories. After the treatment, a post-test and a delayed post-test were administered. The results of the one-way repeated measures ANOVAs indicated that both one-way and two-way tasks had a significant effect on the learning of lexis. Meanwhile, gain scores of pretest, posttest, and delayed posttest were compared using independent samples T-tests. It indicated that two-way tasks, compared to one-way tasks, were more effective in the retention of lexes. The findings of this study could attract the attention of material developers to include one-way and two-way tasks in the books. Teacher trainers and EFL teachers could utilize similar task types in the classroom and could provide EFL learners with an effective way of vocabulary acquisition.

scholarly journals Effective Teaching Strategies to Eliminate Spelling Problems Among Saudi English Language Undergraduates

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 317
Author(s):  
Dheifallah Altamimi ◽  
Radzuwan Ab Rashid
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Effective Teaching ◽  
Teaching Strategies ◽  
English Language ◽  
Learning Experience ◽  
Pedagogical Practices ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Effective Teaching Strategies ◽  
English Spelling

Saudi university students who learn English as a foreign language face multiple difficulties during the process of learning especially while mastering writing skill and its component (spelling). This paper aims to explore the most recommended teaching strategies to eliminate the Saudi university students’ spelling errors. The research participants were 15 students in English Language Department at Tabuk University and 15 English language lecturers from the same department. Group structured interviews were designed for the lecturers and students. The findings reveal that, there are different effective teaching strategies to master English spelling such as, practicing spelling, lecturers’ pedagogical practices and Learners’ Engagement. This paper concludes that, the spelling problems of EFL learners could be addressed by a variety of intervention strategies such as, instructors should be introduced to a range of teaching methods such as simulation situations where they can experience problems arising from poor spelling and roleplaying .Students should also be encouraged to engage in the learning process by setting tasks like, learning the spelling of a few selected words, which they can test each other on in pairs class and so evaluate their own and their peer’s work. This paper hoped that, the findings revealed in this study will help the policymakers in taking necessary actions in improving the learning experience of Arab learners of English.

scholarly journals Developing Communication Skills Through Motivation Among Acharya Nagarjuna University Students

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 15
Author(s):  
Tulluri Venkateswarlu ◽  
Professor M Suresh Kumar
Keyword(s):  
University Students ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
English Language ◽  
Important Variable ◽  
English Language Learning ◽  
English Learning ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Learning English

The present study analyses and determines various orientations of Acharya Nagarjuna University students for learning English. The descriptive and correlational approaches were used to investigate the participants’ motivations. The researcher adapted questionnaires available from the literature to quantitatively collect data. The results show that university students are highly motivated to learn English and therefore, it suggests that motivation is an important variable that shapes learners' idea about English language learning. The results also show that students of different gender and majors had different perspectives about English learning. The conclusions and recommendations of the present study provide platform for future investigations into EFL learners’ motivation in other areas of India with regional medium students or in similar settings in ESL speaking countries to find out differences in students' orientations.

scholarly journals The Roles of English Language and Imagined Communities of a Facebook Group

2015 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Latisha Asmaak Shafie ◽  
Aizan Yaacob ◽  
Paramjit Kaur Karpal Singh
Keyword(s):  
Social Network ◽  
University Students ◽  
English Language ◽  
Native Speakers ◽  
Imagined Communities ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Electronic File ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Global And Local ◽  
Esl Learners

Social network sites are the networked public places for university students. The most famous social network site in Malaysia for university students is Facebook. University students spend a lot of their time navigating collapsed contexts with global and local audience. Thus, Facebook is the most appropriate site to investigate ESL learning acquisition through L2 learners’ interactions and digital footprints. The study investigates the roles of English language and the types of imagined communities of ten L2 learners at a public university. Transcripts of a Facebook group’s online discussion and semi-structured interviews were analysed using qualitative data software Atlas.ti 7. The findings reveal that the key informants are invested to learn English due to its roles in Malaysia. English language has four dominant roles such as the language for their future employment, the language of instruction, the lingua franca and a tool of empowerment. The research also indicates the imagined communities of the key participants are fluent local speakers, fluent non-native speakers and native speakers. The results of the study provide present needs of ESL learners that will enable insights to language instructors, course designers and curriculum designers in facilitating effective language acquisition. instructions give you basic guidelines for preparing camera-ready papers for conference proceedings. Use this document as a template if you are using Microsoft Word 6.0 or later. Otherwise, use this document as an instruction set. The electronic file of your paper will be formatted further. Define all symbols used in the abstract. Do not cite references in the abstract.

The relationship between the morphological knowledge and L2 online processing of derivational words

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 402-418
Author(s):  
Taiping Deng ◽  
Jiawei Shi ◽  
Hongyan Bi ◽  
Susan Dunlap ◽  
Baoguo Chen
Keyword(s):  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Masked Priming ◽  
Decision Task ◽  
Morphological Knowledge ◽  
Rule Based ◽  
Online Processing ◽  
L2 Learners ◽  
Knowledge Group ◽  
L1 English

Objectives/Research Questions: Two experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of morphological knowledge on second language (L2) online processing of derivational words by Chinese first language (L1)–English L2 learners. Methodology: Experiment 1 was performed at the single word level with a masked priming paradigm using the lexical decision task. Experiment 2 was conducted at the sentence level with a self-paced reading paradigm. According to their performance on the morphological knowledge test, the Chinese (L1)–English (L2) learners were grouped into two groups: a high morphological knowledge group and a low morphological knowledge group; and these were matched for proficiency. Data and Analysis: Data were analyzed using a repeated-measures analysis of variance. In Experiment 1, mean response times and accuracy of the derived suffixed primes were analyzed between the two groups. In Experiment 2, mean response times in the regions of interest were analyzed between the two groups. Findings/Conclusions: In Experiment 1, results showed that a full priming effect was evident in the group with high morphological knowledge, indicating application of rule-based decompositions, whereas this effect was not observed in the group with low morphological knowledge. In Experiment 2, the group with high morphological knowledge had a significant processing cost in processing the derivational words, suggesting the employment of rule-governed decomposition. These results suggest that morphological knowledge plays an important role in online L2 morphological processing. Originality: In L2 morphology literature, the current study empirically explored the role of morphological knowledge in derivational processing. Significance/Implications: The study suggested that improvements in morphological knowledge can facilitate the rule-based processing of L2.

scholarly journals Effects of PowerPoint Presentation on Vocabulary Learning among Iranian senior high school EFL learners

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 30-38
Author(s):  
Abolhassan Nazari ◽  
Omid Tabatabaei
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
English Language ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Text Book ◽  
Parts Of Speech ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Experimental Group

This paper investigated the effect of PowerPoint Presentation on Iranian EFL learners Vocabulary in Chaharmahal Va Bakhtiari province. To this end, 100 Iranian high school EFL learners were selected based on their performance on PET. Then, the participants were randomly assigned into two groups (experimental and control).A pretest of vocabulary consisting words extracted from their text book was administered to determine their vocabulary knowledge prior to the treatment. Ten categories of word families were selected out of the students’ text book. Afterwards, some PowerPoint presentation slides including synonyms, antonyms, parts of speech, collocations, idioms, inflections, and relevant images were designed. The word categories were taught to the experimental group using PowerPoint slides while the same words were instructed to the control group without using PowerPoint slides. To uncover the effect of treatment, a posttest similar to pretest but in reshuffled order in options and items was administered. An independent- samples t-test was employed for the analysis of the data. The results showed that there was a significant difference between experimental and that of control groups’ performance in that experimental group`s participants outperformed those of the control group. The study provides implications for language teaching pedagogy, curriculum developers, English language teachers and tutors.

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