scholarly journals Challenges Faced by Female Students with Visual Impairments in Learning English as a Foreign Language: A Narrative Inquiry Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Waad Abdullah Almalki ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Narrative Inquiry ◽  
Curriculum Design ◽  
Visually Impaired ◽  
English Language ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Language Instructors ◽  
Foreign Language Instructors ◽  
Learning English

The English language is an international language used to enhance communication in all parts of the world. Countries that do not use English as their first language experience challenges while on international forums as their ability to communicate is curtailed. Females, especially those with visual impairment problems, are mostly affected. This study aimed to investigate the challenges faced by visually impaired female students when studying English at Taif University. The study adopted a narrative inquiry approach. The researcher randomly selected the study participants from visually impaired female students who had an average understanding of English. Data were collected by administering structured interviews. Online questionnaires were used to collect data from foreign language instructors. The study finding indicated that learners found learning English easy, though faced with challenges in the classroom, curriculum design that is not wholly inclusive of the visually impaired, and lack of learning materials such as PDFs, audios, and visuals. Simultaneously, foreign language instructors had not attended any course to teach English to the visually impaired. Based on the study findings, teachers and students required training to understand and handle the VI (visually impaired) students with more attention since there is no direct provision in the department.

scholarly journals A Study of EFL Students' Attitudes, Motivation and Anxiety towards WhatsApp as a Language Learning Tool

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamal Kaid Mohammed Ali ◽  
Wagdi Rashad Ali Bin-Hady
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
Students Attitudes ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Learning English

This study aimed to explore the impact of WhatsApp on enhancing Saudi EFL students' language skills and areas. It also investigated EFL students' attitudes, motivation, and anxiety towards learning English via WhatsApp. The sample comprised 55 male and female students studying English at the College of Arts, University of Bisha, Saudi Arabia. A closed-ended questionnaire was used to collect quantitative data from the sample. The results revealed that WhatsApp has a positive impact on learning English as a foreign language with a score of 3.9 as an overall mean. Students’ attitudes towards using WhatsApp for learning English scored 3.4, while the impact of WhatsApp on motivating EFL students to study English scored 3.6 in total. It was also found that WhatsApp reduced students’ anxiety with a score of 3.8 as the overall mean. Based on these results, the researchers suggest that WhatsApp should be activated at all stages of English language learning and teaching.

scholarly journals Effective Solutions for Reducing Saudi Learners’ Speaking Anxiety in EFL classrooms

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arab World English Journal ◽  
Suzan Hammad Rafada ◽  
Abeer Ahmed Madini
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Foreign Language Anxiety ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Speaking Anxiety ◽  
Language Classrooms ◽  
Saudi Female Students ◽  
English Language Institute

Foreign language anxiety plays an essential role in language learning and negatively impacts on the whole learning process. This research aims to explore the Saudi learners’ perceptions of speaking anxiety in language classrooms and provide some effective and helpful solutions for reducing it. The sample of this study involved 10 Saudi female students, studying their foundation year at the English Language Institute (ELI), King Abdulaziz University. Their ages range between 18 to 20 years old. To reach a richer insight and better understanding of the research phenomenon, a qualitative approach was conducted. For gathering data, ten semi-structured interviews with ten Saudi female students from levels 102, 103, and 104 were used and then thematically analyzed using Nvivo 10 software. The qualitative data found that Saudi female students do feel worried and anxious in foreign language classrooms when speaking the foreign language. However, they showed a positive attitude and a willingness to improve their English speaking proficiency level as a way of reducing anxiety by watching English movies, using English internet sites, traveling abroad and talking to native speakers, doing more presentations, practice reading English books and joining English institutes during summer vacation.

GRAMMATICAL CATEGORIES OF VERBS IN ENGLISH AND ALBANIAN

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (7) ◽  
pp. 2245-2249
Author(s):  
Suzana Ejupi ◽  
Lindita Skenderi
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Learning Process ◽  
English Learners ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Part Of Speech ◽  
Grammatical Categories ◽  
Learning English

Working with English learners for many years, gives you the opportunity to encounter linguistic obstacles that they face while learning English language as a foreign language. Additionally, teaching for 13 years and observing the learning process, it enables you to recognize the students’ needs and at the same time, detect linguistic mistakes that they make, while practicing the target language. During my experience as a teacher, in terms of teaching and learning verbs in general and its grammatical categories in specific, it is noticed that Albanian learners find it relatively difficult the correct use of verbs in context and even more confusing the equivalent use of verbs in Albanian. Since verbs present an important part of speech, this study aims to investigate several differences and similarities between grammatical categories of verbs in English and Albanian. As a result, the Albanian learners of English language will be able to identify some of the major differences and similarities between the grammatical categories of verbs in English and Albanian; overcome the usual mistakes; gain the necessary knowledge regarding verbs and use them properly in English and Albanian.

scholarly journals Pronunciation Errors of Letter “G” in English Language Made by Saudi Undergraduate Students

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huda Alqunayeer
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
English Language ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Loan Words ◽  
Teachers And Students ◽  
English Language Teachers ◽  
Academic Year

The primary goal of the present study is to identify the problematic areas in the pronunciation of the letter “g” in English written words made by Saudi female learners of English as a foreign language, and the reasons for the weakness associated with mispronunciation of English written words which contain this letter. The population of the study was the female students (90 students) and their English language teachers (12 teachers) at the Qassim University during the academic year (2014-2015). There were two types of instruments used in this study. The first was a pronunciation test for the student participants in order to investigate the problematic areas of pronouncing “g” in different environments in different words; and the second a questionnaire for the teacher participants to provide comprehensive data about the causes of these errors of pronouncing “g” committed by EFL female students at Qassim University. Ninety female students were included for the pronunciation test and 12 teachers were asked to answer the questionnaire. Simple percentage was used for analyzing the data of recording words (pronunciation test). Results of the students’ recording words revealed that the participants mispronounced “g” before nasals (68%). According to the results of the teachers’ responses to the questionnaire suggested many factors that can cause difficulties for students in terms of pronouncing “g” in English written words. According to them, these difficulties are concerned with reading difficulties, nonstandard spellings, letters that follow “g” (many of them may become combinations), loan words, orthography (no correspondence between the English alphabets and their sounds). The researcher offers recommendations that might help teachers and students to overcome and reduce these mispronunciations of this letter in English written words.

scholarly journals Autonomy Perceptions from Teachers of English as a Foreign Language in Diverse Colombian Public Teaching Settings

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 148
Author(s):  
Dr. David Wealthy Guerrero
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
English Language ◽  
Research Question ◽  
General Purpose ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Teachers Perceptions ◽  
Research Production ◽  
English Language Teachers

<p><em>This qualitative descriptive case study reports the features in autonomy dynamics of three Colombian English language teachers in public schools in the District in Bogota Colombia. Three semi-structured interviews and reflective journals were used for data collection. The research question that guided this study was: What perceptions about autonomy do the three Colombian English language teachers have? The general purpose of this investigation was to identify the main features in teachers’ perceptions related to Autonomy. The specific objective was to identify the strategies that promoted autonomy in Teachers of English as a Foreign Language -TEFL- in different public schools in Bogota, Colombia. The study is, therefore, particularly significant as it can play a role in encouraging Colombian English as a Foreign Language -EFL- teachers to relate the factors needed to get a high quality in Education dynamics. Data indicated that the process heightened the teachers’ awareness of ‘self’ and practice. Autonomy also activated both the teachers’ ability to critically reflect on their context as well as focus on positive aspects of their practice through the willingness to improve their academic abilities and research production. Taken together, the findings serve as baseline data to further professional development in language assessment. </em></p><em></em><em></em>

scholarly journals The Islamic Values Implemented in the English Language Syllabuses for the First Three Grades in Jordan

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. p299
Author(s):  
Dr. Mohammad Dayij Suleiman Al.qomoul
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
English Language ◽  
Primary Grades ◽  
The Subject ◽  
And Behaviors ◽  
Language Textbooks ◽  
Islamic Values ◽  
Learning English

The study aimed at investigating the Islamic values basically (faith, worship, moral, and social) that could be implemented in the English language syllabuses of the first three grades in Jordan. The researcher revised those three syllabuses and found some fundamental Islamic values which affect the students’ behavior. “Words, phrases and sentences” are taken as original units for analysis and investigations. The subject of the study consisted of all the English language textbooks (Student’s Books and Activity Books) of the first three grades in Jordan. The sample of the study is the subject of the study itself, since the researcher analyzes all the English language books for the three primary grades in Jordan. The selected values are important in realization of goals and behaviors of learning, in general and in learning English as a foreign language, in particular. For values have the power of developing personality, which in turn, makes learning more effective and permanent. The findings of the study show that some fundamental Islamic values were implemented in these textbooks with some variation from one grade to another and some others are totally absent as shown in the Tables (1-5). Based on the findings of the study, the researcher attempts to figure out some remarkable suggestions and recommendations.

scholarly journals Using Pictionary Game to Increase Learners’ Vocabulary Mastery in English Language Instruction

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-51
Author(s):  
Welliam Hamer ◽  
Ledy Nur Lely
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Language Instruction ◽  
Smart Board ◽  
Unsatisfactory Result ◽  
Classroom Activities ◽  
English Language Instruction ◽  
Learning English

This article aims at sharing information on how pictionary game is used to increase the learners’ vacabulary mastery in the process of teaching and learning. It is clear that vocabulary is one of components of English language. When the learners are reading, they need to master vocabulary related to certain topic. Therefore vocabulary is important thing in learning English. However, mastering English vocabularies is not easy. English is foreign language in which learning English is often considered to be difficult to comprehend. This problem can be seen from the unsatisfactory result when learning English. The learning processs commonly used in the classroom just puts the teacher as a center of learning. It means that the teacher always dominates him/herself to teach, not to focus on how the learners learn effectively. This makes the learners passive and less interested in following the course of learning. In fact the learners’ interest is the most important factor in the study. Interest can be developed if the learning process run with fun, vary, and conducive athmosphere. There are many factors that can support the existance of an increase in the study, i.e. teachers, learners, materials, media, methods, and other learning sources. One factor that can help the learners learn vocabulary is the use of pictionary game. In this study, pictionary game is a classic game of drawing and guessing pictures. Pictionary game can also increase the imagination of learners, where learners are asked to draw according to the word given by the teachers. Things that are needed to play pictionary game are a list or card of vocabulary items, whiteboard, calkboard, or smart board and markers. Pictionary game will help learners to get involved in classroom activities. Other advantages of using pictionary game can be concluded that it provides fun language practice in the various language skills.

scholarly journals The Effect of Blended Learning in Enhancing Female Students’ Satisfaction in the Saudi Context

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 190 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Al LHassan ◽  
Nadia Shukri
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Blended Learning ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Proficiency Level ◽  
Level Of Satisfaction ◽  
The Future ◽  
Efl Students ◽  
Students Satisfaction

The present study intended to investigate the effect of utilizing Learning Management System (LMS), Blackboard® on enhancing English as a Foreign Language (EFL) female students’ satisfaction in the Saudi context. It is found that the effectiveness of utilizing the supplementary materials on Blackboard® is leading up to EFL students’ satisfaction. Since, Blended Learning (BL) model could stimulate a classroom setting with activities that are carried out under flexible and engaging manner. The sample consisted of ninety-eight students from proficiency level -104. The data of the study was collected using a questionnaire to identify students’ level of satisfaction. The results revealed that students’ satisfaction was apparent as their positive responses outweighed their negative responses mainly in terms of richness of learning resources, opportunity to interact in foreign language, appropriateness and variety of content, and ease of using Blackboard®. Based on the results, the study recommends considering the positive assets and challenges to plan the future of both teaching and learning English language effectively. The study suggested several areas to be investigated in the future such as examining the motivational behavior of both the teachers and the students and finding out the factors that will affect the environment of BL in EFL.

Designing an English Curriculum for Everyone

2018 ◽  
pp. 87-108
Author(s):  
Angela Bailey ◽  
Nayibe Rosado ◽  
Lourdes Rey
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Foreign Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Broad Spectrum ◽  
Curriculum Design ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Policies ◽  
Language Curriculum ◽  
English Curriculum ◽  
Foreign Language Curriculum

In this chapter, the authors demonstrate a practical view of a foreign language curriculum development in Colombia. Within the chapter, they give a brief description of language policies that guided the curriculum; a discussion of the research framework, methods, and data collection; and a reflection of the choices made with regard to education, language, and language learning. By triangulating existing policies, contextual and conceptual needs analyses, and existing classroom practices, the authors demonstrate a collaborative and flexible means of meeting foreign language teaching across a broad spectrum of inconsistencies. Conclusions review and discuss the importance of maintaining an open and adaptable perspective throughout foreign language curriculum design while establishing and creating a working, flexible English language curriculum.

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