scholarly journals Communicative Techniques Used by EFL Learners to Accomplish Strategic Proficiency

Author(s):  
Omran Abushama

Effective communication is of paramount importance in all aspects of life. To achieve this, verbal and nonverbal techniques may be utilized. These techniques are called Communication Strategies (CSs). The primary objective of this study was to investigate the verbal and nonverbal communication strategies used by EFL (English Foreign Language) learners in the classroom to enhance their communication ability and to achieve strategic proficiency in their communication. It also explored which strategies are more effective or successful for accomplishing strategic proficiency in communication and for compensating the limited knowledge. Data came from two sources: questionnaires which were accomplished by the 20 student participants and 2 teacher participants and an observation administered by the researcher. The results showed that the most common communication strategies used are repetition and paraphrasing, while the less used strategies are literal translation and nonverbal strategies. The findings also confirmed that paraphrasing, repetition and replacing words are more effective than literal translation and nonverbal strategies. In addition, the correlation analysis revealed that the greater experience students have in learning English, the more strategies they use and the Pearson correlation approved that paraphrasing clearly correlated with years of learning English, r = .44, p = .05. Therefore, the communicative technique paraphrasing is used by the students who have greater experience in learning English confirming that using it is dependent on the years or the experience of learning the language.

2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 149
Author(s):  
Zulfadli Aziz ◽  
Ika Apriani Fata ◽  
Syarifah Balqis

This research aimed to investigate communication speaking skill strategies applied by two groups of English foreign language learners in two boarding senior high schools in Aceh, Indonesia. Of the successful group, there were 52 learners and of the less successful group 24 learners. To collect the data, this study employed the observation sheet adapted by Tarone(1978), which determined nine categories of communication strategies; approximation, word coinage, circumlocution, literal translation, language switch, mime, appeal for assistance, topic avoidance, and message abandonment. The students were observed during their speaking class. The result of this research is the literal translation, approximation, and language switchbecome the most frequent strategies used by the less successful learners. It implies that the students have had difficulties communicating in the target language. On the other hand, successful learners prefer to use approximation, literal translation, and appeal for assistance strategies. It implies that the students tend to speak and communicate well, if not yet fluently. Based on the findings, it is suggested that English teachers should introduce several communication strategies for both groups of learners to improve their effective communication.


Author(s):  
Fadhila Yonata ◽  
Dewi Amalia Saptani

In tackling casual conversation, most foreign language learners have problems in negotiating the intended meaning smoothly. One of the reasons is the lack of optimization of communication strategies to compensate communication breakdowns.  This study attempts to reveal Indonesian advance English learners actual competence in engaging in a casual conversation. The data were taken from two recorded conversations lasted for 15 minutes which were then transcribed and analyzed with respect to communication strategies by implementing spoken discourse analysis. The percentage of kind of communication strategies results suggest that filler is the most frequent strategy used by speakers, followed by repetition, appeal for help and self-repair. These findings show that the participants have enough linguistic resources but having problem in verbalizing their mental concept due to insufficient practice.


2015 ◽  
Vol 31 ◽  
pp. 23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evelyn Sample ◽  
Marije Michel

Studying task repetition for adult and young foreign language learners of English (EFL) has received growing interest in recent literature within the task-based approach (Bygate, 2009; Hawkes, 2012; Mackey, Kanganas, & Oliver, 2007; Pinter, 2007b). Earlier work suggests that second language (L2) learners benefit from repeating the same or a slightly different task. Task repetition has been shown to enhance fluency and may also add to complexity or accuracy of production. However, few investigations have taken a closer look at the underlying relationships between the three dimensions of task performance: complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF). Using Skehan’s (2009) trade-off hypothesis as an explanatory framework, our study aims to fill this gap by investigating interactions among CAF measures. We report on the repeated performances on an oral spot- the-difference task by six 9-year-old EFL learners. Mirroring earlier work, our data reveal significant increases of fluency through task repetition. Correlational analyses show that initial performances that benefit in one dimension come at the expense of another; by the third performance, however, trade-off effects disappear. Further qualitative explanations support our interpretation that with growing task-familiarity students are able to focus their attention on all three CAF dimensions simultaneously.Au sein de la littérature relative à l’approche fondée sur les tâches, on évoque de plus en plus d’études portant sur la répétition des tâches pour l’enseignement de l’anglais langue étrangère aux jeunes et aux adultes (Bygate, 2009; Hawkes, 2012; Mackey, Kanganas, & Oliver, 2007; Pinter, 2007b). Des études antérieures semblent indiquer que les apprenants en L2 profitent de la répétition de la même tâche ou d’une tâche légèrement différente. Il a été démontré que la répétition des tâches améliore la fluidité et qu’elle pourrait augmenter la complexité ou la précision de la production. Toutefois, peu d’études se sont penchées davantage sur les relations sous-jacentes entre les trois dimensions de l’exécution des tâches : la complexité, la précision et la fluidité. S’appuyant sur l’hypothèse du compromis de Skehan (2009) comme cadre explicatif, notre étude vise à combler cette lacune en examinant les interactions entre les mesures de ces trois éléments. Nous faisons rapport du rendement de six jeunes âgés de 9 ans qui apprennent l’anglais comme langue étrangère alors qu’ils répètent une tâche impliquant l’identification de différences. Nos données reproduisent les résultats de travaux antérieurs en ce qu’elles révèlent une amélioration significative de la fluidité par la répétition de tâches. Des analyses corrélationnelles indiquent que l’amélioration d’une dimension lors des exécutions initiales se fait aux dépens d’une autre; cet effet de compromis disparait, toutefois, à la troisième exécution. Des explications quali- tatives supplémentaires viennent appuyer notre interprétation selon laquelle la familiarité croissante que ressentent les élèves avec une tâche leur permet de se concentrer sur les trois dimensions (complexité, précision et fluidité) à la fois.


10.29007/5xsb ◽  
2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alicia Martínez-Flor ◽  
Esther Usó-Juan

Studies analysing the positive role of pragmatic instruction in formal settings have increased over the last decades. Within this area of interventional pragmatics, some studies have particularly examined whether the effectiveness of the instruction implemented is sustained over time. In order to shed more light on the long-term effects of instruction, this research investigates English as a Foreign Language learners’ use of complaining formulas not only after immediately receiving instruction, but also two months later. Results show that learners keep using a variety of appropriate complaining formulas two months after having participated in the instructional period. These findings are discussed and directions for future research suggested.


Author(s):  
Shiva Grami ◽  
Mahmood Hashemian

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of paper and e-dictionaries on Iranian intermediate learners' reading comprehension. To this end, 90 female English Foreign language learners were randomly selected and assigned into 2 experimental groups (e-dictionaries and paper dictionaries groups) and 1 control group. All the groups took a pretest using no dictionaries. After 2 weeks of treatment design for the experimental groups, all the 3 groups took part in the posttest. The experimental groups did their task with their relevant dictionaries, whereas the control group did their task without using any kind of dictionary. Data were analyzed through analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) and paired samples t test. Results showed that the participants’ reading comprehension improved from the pretest to the posttest in both experimental groups. Results also indicated that the learners in the e-dictionaries group outperformed those in the paper dictionaries group. The outcome of study reveals that e-dictionaries could improve students’ reading comprehension by motivating them, shortening the time of searching words and reading a text, and increasing the number of look ups. 


2017 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 489-503 ◽  
Author(s):  
Majid Elahi Shirvan ◽  
Nahid Talebzadeh

Abstract Foreign language learning anxiety has been the target of many studies in the field of applied linguistics, but, with the dynamics turn in the field, attempts have been recently made to uncover the dynamics of anxiety English as a foreign language (EFL) learners go through, especially within the moments of their conversational interactions. Within these interactions, dynamics of anxiety might emerge in different patterns under the influence of the status of the participants’ interlocutors and their familiarity with them. This study explores the dynamics of EFL learners’ anxiety while interacting with different interlocutors from an idiodynamic perspective. The participants of this case study were two female freshman students, taking a speaking and listening university course, who were interviewed by four interlocutors with different status and level of familiarity. Following an idiodynamic method, they self-rated their anxiety fluctuations under the influence of each interlocutor throughout each conversation followed by stimulated recall interviews regarding the explanations of the changes in their anxiety during the conversations. The results showed both change and stability in the participants’ anxiety under the influence of the interlocutors’ familiarity with the participants and their status as well their verbal and nonverbal feedback. The explanation of these changes based on the main properties of complex dynamic system theory is discussed.


2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 1053
Author(s):  
Ehsan Alijanian ◽  
Saeed Ketabi ◽  
Ahmad Moinzadeh

Negotiation of meaning refers to interactional work done by interlocutors to attain joint understanding when a communication difficulty comes about. This study uses a qualitative perspective to consider the development of participant utterances in interaction in every moment. 10 English as a foreign language learners in a language school in Iran were chosen to participate in a dictogloss activity in which they were required to describe a certain word. The interaction features in their lexical language related episodes were analyzed. The results indicate that students use a wide range of interaction features in their collaborations. These features help learners generate a scaffolding structure in the LLREs in which meaning discovering is made. The use of interactive features fostered metalinguistic awareness and encouraged learners’ self-regulation.


2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. p490
Author(s):  
Khalid Al-Seghayer

Learning English as a foreign language (EFL) is both a promising endeavor and a challenging undertaking. All language learners encounter unique challenges in the process of learning English, and Saudi EFL learners are no exception. This article identifies the unique and multifarious challenges Saudi EFL learners face, and explores the multidimensional causal factors in the progression of the challenges they face most commonly. The analysis first tackles the considerable challenge of accurate spelling, followed by a discussion of the challenges Saudi EFL learners encounter when learning to read and write in English. This discussion addresses challenges in sociolinguistic competence and English pronunciation arising from multivariate factors, and concludes by offering measures to help Saudi EFL learners overcome these characteristic challenges and promote their trajectory toward successful acquisition of EFL.


Author(s):  
Marsya Aprila Tayibnapis ◽  
Lina Meilinda ◽  
Yessy Purnamasari

Collocations are one of the problems faced by EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners when learning English language. This study is intended to help the EFL Learners and non-native English speakers to add knowledge about collocations. Therefore, this study is aimed to find the use of lexical collocations and their meaning. This study used a descriptive qualitative research technique. The source of the data is eleven articles from eight sections in seventeen.com. om the research, there were 79 lexical collocations and they were classified as six out of seven types that Benson et al. (2010) proposed. The data showed that the most used type is L3 (adjective + noun) and the least used is L4 (noun + verb). The meaning of the lexical collocations was defined from the contexts. 


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