Saudi EFL Students’ Perceptions of Online English Achievement Exams in the Era of COVID-19

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, assessment and testing processes have been shifted to an online environment. Therefore, this unexpected shift requires more recent research in the field of online assessment. Based on this requirement, the present research aimed to explore female EFL students’ perceptions of an online English achievement exam by focusing on these dimensions: availability and accessibility, instructions, and mode of delivery. The participants were preparatory year students at the English Language Institute (ELI) at the University of Jeddah. To serve the research aim, the research used a mixed-methods approach. Students (n =49) participated in the quantitative phase by answering an online survey and 2 students were interviewed in the qualitative phase. The quantitative data revealed that the students had a positive perception of the online exam availability, accessibility, instruction, and mode of delivery. More particularly, the qualitative data explained that the clear online exam instructions and suitable mode of delivery have significantly improved these positive perceptions.

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Saudi EFL Preparatory Year Students’ Perception about Corrective Feedback in Oral Communication

English Language Teaching ◽

10.5539/elt.v9n12p47 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 9 (12) ◽

pp. 47 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Maha Alhaysony

Keyword(s):

English Language ◽

Corrective Feedback ◽

Oral Communication ◽

Immediate Feedback ◽

Proficiency Level ◽

Efl Students ◽

And Gender ◽

Main Instrument ◽

Preparatory Year ◽

The University

This study sought to investigate the attitudes of Saudi EFL students towards corrective feedback (henceforth CF) on classroom oral errors. The subjects were 3200 (1223 male and 1977 female) students enrolled in an intensive English language programme in the preparatory year at the University of Ha'il. A questionnaire was the main instrument. This study seeks to extend our knowledge by examining the relationship between CF and gender, proficiency level, and students’ track. The results revealed that students generally have a positive perception of oral CF. Further, delayed CF was more favoured than immediate feedback. Of the methods of CF used by the teacher, the students preferred asking for clarification, repetition, explicit feedback, metalinguistic feedback, elicitation, and recasting; the majority of them regarded no correction as a poor method. Although the students wanted all of their oral errors to be corrected, they reported wanting their serious errors to be corrected first, followed by frequent errors, individual errors, and then, less serious errors; less frequent errors was the least preferred category. Regarding the choice of correctors, students favoured teacher correction, then self-correction, and finally, classmate correction. As far as the three variables considered, the analysis of the data revealed that in sum, regardless of gender, students’ proficiency level, and track, all students had similar beliefs about CF and strongly favoured receiving frequent CF in English oral communication classes once they were made aware of the purpose, significance, and methods of CF. However, the findings of the study showed that there was a significant gender difference, with women responding to CF significantly more than men. Moreover, the results revealed that highly proficient students preferred CF more than students with a lower proficiency, although there were no significant differences for most of the items. Additionally, there were some significant differences among students with different tracks. Pedagogical implications, limitations of the study, and recommendations for further research are also discussed.

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Saudi Females Beginners’ Attitudes Towards Full-online Learning Through EFL Virtual Classrooms During COVID-19 Pandemic

Arab World English Journal ◽

10.24093/awej/th.274 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-34

Author(s):

Eilaf Eid Alotaibi

Keyword(s):

English Language ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Virtual Classroom ◽

English Language Teaching ◽

Negative Attitudes ◽

Virtual Classrooms ◽

Online Mode ◽

Efl Students ◽

Preparatory Year ◽

The University

Mastery of English is indispensable for students to pursue their university major in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, it is mandatory for Saudi undergraduates studying at the preparatory year programs to get high scores in the EFL course to be eligible to enroll in the Bachelor’s degree programs. However, the sudden shift to distance learning worldwide to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic affects the university beginners’ attitudes to learn EFL. This article examines the general perceptions of Jubail University College EFL female students’ towards learning English through full online mode. Also, the study displays the benefits and drawbacks the EFL students have encountered while using the virtual classroom during the pandemic. Their views were investigated through in-depth one-on-one interviews and focused group discussion done virtually by the author. The results reveal that the majority of students have formed negative attitudes toward EFL virtual classrooms and preferred traditional classrooms. In addition, the results present solutions suggested by the participants to enhance the quality of full-online English language teaching, which could be useful for EFL language instructors

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Saudi Females Beginners’ Attitudes Towards Full-online Learning Through EFL Virtual Classrooms During COVID-19 Pandemic

10.31235/osf.io/sxmbg ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Eilaf Eid Alotaibi

Keyword(s):

English Language ◽

Group Discussion ◽

Virtual Classroom ◽

English Language Teaching ◽

Negative Attitudes ◽

Virtual Classrooms ◽

Online Mode ◽

Efl Students ◽

Preparatory Year ◽

The University

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The impact of bullying on EFL students’ academic achievement at state Islamic universities in Indonesia

Englisia Journal ◽

10.22373/ej.v8i2.8996 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 120

Author(s):

Safrul Muluk ◽

Habiburrahim Habiburrahim ◽

Syarifah Dahliana ◽

Saiful Akmal

Keyword(s):

Academic Achievement ◽

Social Life ◽

English Language ◽

Language Education ◽

English Language Education ◽

Triggering Factors ◽

Efl Students ◽

Classroom Bullying ◽

The University ◽

The Impact

Issues and incidents of bullying may take place, regardless of time and place, notwithstanding at Islamic education institutions. This study is aimed at finding out types of bullying and their triggering factors taking place in the university classroom; examining steps taken by lecturers to anticipate and prevent classroom bullying; and analyzing the impact of bullying on EFL students’ academic achievement. This mixed-methods study involved 546 students and 30 lecturers of the English Language Education Department at three state Islamic universities in Indonesia; Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah in Jakarta, Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Kalijaga in Yogyakarta, and Universitas Islam Negeri Ar-Raniry in Banda Aceh. Both surveys and interviews were employed to collect the required data. The findings elucidate that physical, social, verbal, and racial are among the most common emergent bullying incidents the students experienced. Revealing the triggering factors of bullying, the data show that competition in academic and social life, differences in thoughts and appearances, lack of understanding of bullying meaning, and lack of regulation are pointed as the source of bullying. The findings also indicate that bullying influences students’ academic achievement; bullying incidents have driven their victims into four pathetic conditions: less confident, stressed, anxious, and passive. Some steps are applied by the lecturer to prevent and handle bullying; they are: providing classroom regulation, being a counselor for students, enforcing the regulation, and massive socialization.

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The Use of OUP E-learning System in Teaching English Language in the Preparatory Year at the University of Dammam, Issues and Challenges

Design, User Experience, and Usability: Novel User Experiences - Lecture Notes in Computer Science ◽

10.1007/978-3-319-40355-7_14 ◽

2016 ◽

pp. 147-156 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Saad S. Alamri

Keyword(s):

English Language ◽

Learning System ◽

Teaching English ◽

E Learning ◽

Preparatory Year ◽

The University

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An Empirical Study of Reading Habits and Interests of Saudi University EFL Learners

International Journal of Linguistics ◽

10.5296/ijl.v7i2.7034 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 7 (2) ◽

pp. 1 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Hussam Rajab ◽

Alhasan Al-Sadi

Keyword(s):

Language Proficiency ◽

English Language ◽

Future Research ◽

Small Scale ◽

Reading Habits ◽

Efl Learners ◽

Academic Reading ◽

Preparatory Year ◽

The University ◽

L1 And L2

This small-scale, quantitative study investigated the reading habits and interests of Saudi English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) students at a university-level preparatory year program (PYP). The study aimed to identify certain habits and preferences of EFL learners with regard to various personal practices of the reading process in first language (L1) as well as in second language (L2). The study utilized a custom-designed, 10-item questionnaire on a Likert scale format in order to gain more insights into the manners with which students may or may not approach reading. The participants were newly-registered, male and female students (n=330) on the university PYP course with mixed English Language proficiency. Analysis of the data collected using descriptive statistical tools indicated several issues relating to the reading habits in general, including students’ lack of interest as well as lack of motivation towards ‘academic reading’ in both L1 and L2. However, the analysis revealed a greater level of engagement in reading in social media contexts. The study has several implications for future research and pedagogy in EFL reading as well as implications for the EFL classroom.

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Exploring Writing Errors Problems from EFL Lecturers’ Perspectives at University Level

International Journal of Linguistics Literature & Translation ◽

10.32996/ijllt.2021.4.2.13 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 4 (2) ◽

pp. 106-110

Author(s):

Abdurrahman M. Alfahadi

Keyword(s):

English Language ◽

Contextual Effects ◽

Intervention Strategies ◽

Pedagogical Practices ◽

Remedial Action ◽

Spelling Errors ◽

Efl Students ◽

University Level ◽

The University ◽

Writing Errors

The purpose of this study was to identify the probable reasons for these spelling errors form EFL lecturer’s perspective and to tackle spelling problems. was hoped the results would suggest remedial action the lecturers and the students might take to address the problem of spelling. The findings revealed the main reasons for the spelling errors made by Saudi university students which includes the interference of Arabic when learning English, the nature of the English language itself, for instance, its irregularity and limited rules, and other contextual effects like the inadequacy of the university English language syllabus and classroom instructions in terms of teaching spelling rules. The participants in this study suggested various possible strategies to address the problem of spelling; for instance, academic intervention strategies such as ways to engage the learners and pedagogical practices that could help EFL students learn English better.

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Teachers and Students’ Perceptions on the Effectiveness of the Writing Task in the Foundation Year at the ELI

Studies in English Language Teaching ◽

10.22158/selt.v6n4p360 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 360

Author(s):

Reem Alsanie ◽

Wafa’a AlRezqi ◽

Danyah Al-Sayeud ◽

Nadia Shukri

Keyword(s):

English Language ◽

Writing Skills ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Writing Classes ◽

Teachers And Students ◽

King Abdulaziz University ◽

Negative Perceptions ◽

Preparatory Year ◽

English Language Institute ◽

Writing Task

The current study investigated the perceptions of Saudi female teachers and their preparatory year students on the Writing Task (WT) used in the English Language Institute (ELI) at King Abdulaziz University (KAU) in Jeddah, KSA. To obtain a deeper insight, mixed methods were used through quantitative questionnaires and qualitative semi-structured interviews. While quantitative data were analysed using a descriptive SPSS analysis, qualitative data were analysed using a thematic analysis by NVivo. The sample consisted of 50 students (mean age: 19) and 6 teachers with different qualifications and years of experience. First, a questionnaire was distributed to elicit student’s perceptions on the WT then the 6 teachers were interviewed. The results indicated that the students had negative perceptions towards the effectiveness of the WT and that it was not beneficial in developing their writing skills, unlike some of the teachers who expressed positive views towards the WT. The findings offer future instructional implications that will help in enhancing the WT of the ELI. Some of these implications indicate that extensive writing classes must be given to students to improve their writing skills and that the writing topics must be contextualised and taken from the students’ daily life to keep them interested.

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