Since the phenomenon of bilingualism is gradually increasing in the world, the
theory-driven and practically oriented investigation on bilingualism have increased
recently. However, a few studies have been conducted on the effect of bilingualism
on language learning in the multilingual and multicultural context of Iran. Therefore,
the main aim of the present study is to examine the effect of bilingualism on Iranian
EFL learners' listening comprehension in the case of Azeri-Turkish vs. Persian
students. The study employed a quasi-experimental design over 8 weeks with 44
female students assigned to one of the two experimental groups. To select bilingual
and monolingual groups, a biographical questionnaire was used. Then, Nelson
elementary proficiency test was administered to ensure the homogeneity of the
students. To fulfill the purpose of the study, 15 bilingual (Azeri-Persian) elementary
students in Fazilat high school in Ramian and 29 monolingual (Persian) elementary
students in Sama high school in Azadshahr were selected to participate in the
present study. Each group received 16 sessions of treatment in listening skill. Then,
the two groups' performance was compared on pretest and posttest consisting of a
multiple-choice and matching listening comprehension test. The results indicated
that there was no significant difference between the bilingual and monolingual
groups regarding their performance on listening comprehension, that is,
bilingualism did not affect listening comprehension.
The Effects of the Reading Aloud Approach on Reading and Listening Comprehension of Elementary Students with Reading Disability