scholarly journals Oral Versus Written Feedback: Attitudes of Female Saudi University Students

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 84
Author(s):  
Jwahir Alzamil

Oral and written feedback have been found to be useful in learning English as a Second Language (L2). Yet it is not clear what form of feedback L2 learners prefer. This study therefore investigated 47 Saudi female university students’ attitudes to both oral and written feedback. The data was collected by an online questionnaire consisting of three constructs: a) attitudes to written feedback; b) attitudes to oral feedback; and c) attitudes to written versus oral feedback. In terms of the first, the results showed that most participants expressed positive attitudes to written feedback, which they would be happy to receive on all the mistakes they make in their writing. Most participants were also positive about oral feedback and wanted their teacher to correct all their speaking errors, including errors of grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary. However, participants did not want to be corrected in front of other students as this could make them nervous. Overall, most participants agreed that oral feedback helped them improve their English skills more than written feedback. But despite such a positive attitude, most participants still found oral feedback embarrassing. Knowing students’ perceptions of corrective feedback (CF) is vital, because negative attitudes to feedback could harm the language learning process.

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arab World English Journal ◽  
Riam K. Almaqrn ◽  
Abdulrahman M. Alshabeb

The aim of this study is to examine the attitudes of Saudi students of English towards proper pronunciation, and podcasts as a facilitator of proper pronunciation. It will discover the importance given to correct pronunciation, as well as gauging learners’ attitudes towards the possibility of introducing podcasts as a new language input tool for facilitating improvements in pronunciation. To achieve this, the previous literature in this area is reviewed, followed by presenting the results and analysing the data from an attitudinal questionnaire distributed amongst 23 Level 3 Saudi EFL learners from the department of English at Imam University. The questionnaire is divided into two parts- one concerning proper pronunciation, and the other podcasts. The data analysis shows that the participants, in spite of the low rate of improvement in their pronunciation, have positive attitudes towards the proper pronunciation of English. This outcome is compatible with previous studies` results, which assert that having a positive attitude towards a particular language and its speakers can improve pronunciation. The students were presented with a total of five podcasts related to their speaking and listening textbook for use over an eight week period, and at the end of this time they were requested to complete the questionnaire. The findings support the usefulness of examining learners` attitudes towards new Computer Assisted Language Learning (CALL) applications before using them in a practical way. The results show a high rate of acceptance of podcasts and that, overall, the students have positive attitudes towards them.


KIRYOKU ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 37
Author(s):  
Reny Wiyatasari

(Title: Language Attitudes Of The Speakers Of Uchinaguchi Dialect,  Shimakutuba Language In Okinawa Prefekture) This study aims to determine the language attitude of the speakers of the Uchinaguchi dialect, one of the dialects in Shimakutuba which is the language used in the Okinawa islands. Shimakutuba is one of the languages in the world set by UNESCO as an endangered language. Because the theme of this research is focused on language attitudes which is one of the topics in sociolinguistic studies, the data are collected using the questionnaire method through distributing questionnaires to respondents who are considered representative representing the research population and also using literature study methods. Then the data were analyzed using descriptive methods. Based on the results of the questionnaire, it was found that the language attitude shown by speakers of Shimakutuba was divided into two, namely positive attitudes and negative attitudes. A positive attitude consists of positive active and positive passivity.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicos Middleton ◽  
Constantinos Tsioutis ◽  
Ourania Kolokotroni ◽  
Alexandros Heraclides ◽  
Panagiotis Theodosis-Nobelos ◽  
...  

University students represent a highly active group in terms of their social activity in the community and in the propagation of information on social media. We aimed to map the knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions of University students in Cyprus about severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) and Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) to guide targeted future measures and information campaigns. We used a cross-sectional online survey targeting all students in conventional, not distance-learning, programs in five major universities in the Republic of Cyprus. Students were invited to participate through the respective Studies and Student Welfare Office of each institution. The survey was made available in English and Greek on REDCap. Participation was voluntary and anonymous. The questionnaire was developed based on a consensus to cover the main factual information directed by official channels toward the general public in Cyprus at the time of the survey. In addition to sociodemographic information (N = 8), the self-administered questionnaire consisted of 19 questions, assessing the knowledge regarding the characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19, infection prevention and control measures (N = 10), perceptions related to COVID-19, for instance, whether strict travel measures are necessary (N = 4), and attitudes toward a hypothetical person infected (N = 2). Furthermore, participants were asked to provide their own assessment of their knowledge about COVID-19 and specifically with regard to the main symptoms and ways of transmission (N = 3). The number of students who completed the survey was 3,641 (41% studying Health/Life Sciences). Amongst them, 68.8% responded correctly to at least 60% of knowledge-related questions. Misconceptions were identified in 30%. Only 29.1% expressed a positive attitude toward a hypothetical person with COVID-19 without projecting judgment (9.2%) or blame (38%). Odds of expressing a positive attitude increased by 18% (95% CI 13–24%; p < 0.001) per unit increase in knowledge. Postgraduate level education was predictive of better knowledge (odds ratio (OR) 1.81; 95% CI 1.34–2.46; p < 0.001 among doctoral students] and positive attitude [OR 1.35; 95% CI 1.01–1.80; p = 0.04). In this study, we show that specific knowledge gaps and misconceptions exist among University students about SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 and their prevalence is associated with negative attitudes toward people with COVID-19. Our findings highlight the integrated nature of knowledge and attitude and suggest that improvements to the former could contribute to improvements in the latter.


2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-90
Author(s):  
Heri Mudra ◽  
Nurul Aini

The present study aimed to examine the attitudes and types of metaphorical perceptions of male and female prospective English teachers (PETs) towards their English learning process. Elicitation sheet with the prompt “English learning is (like) … because …” was used to collect the data. The data were qualitatively analyzed by listing, naming, categorizing, and determining the metaphors. The results of the elicited metaphors reveal that male and female PETs’ attitudes towards English learning process include positive, negative, ambivalent, and neutral perceptions. Both male and female PETs viewed English learning in different attitudes. Male PETs generated more negative attitudes than the positive ones, while female PETs produced more positive attitudes than the negative ones. The findings also show that the metaphors were categorized into several types such as enjoyable activity, construction work, movement/journey, experience, planting/farming, exploration, and things. These types of metaphor imply the importance of the socio-cultural background of the learners. In conclusion, the metaphors help to determine appropriate strategies, methods, and materials for English teaching and learning.


Author(s):  
Abdullah Syukur

A positive attitude is a powerful tool that fosters enthusiasm, promotes self-esteem, and creates an atmosphere conducive to learning. Achievement in a target language relies not only on intellectual capacity, but also on the learner’s attitudes towards language learning. Attitudes could be viewed as a tendency to respond positively or negatively towards a certain thing, idea, person, situation etc. The attitudes that the students should have are attitude towards the language, attitude towards learning the language, attitude towards the language teacher, and attitude towards school in general. This study focuses on discussing about encouraging students to have positive attitudes toward learning English.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-33
Author(s):  
Zabihullah Alimyar

AbstractThis study investigated Afghan students’ attitudes and motivation toward learning English at six different universities in Afghanistan. Several factors were believed to influence their success in learning English (i.e., motivation types as a major factor together with variables, such as gender, grades, fields of study, parental/teacher involvement, language learning anxiety and academic achievement). In searching for a reliable attitudinal profile of the subjects, quantitative research methodology was adopted along with mixed research techniques. The data was collected from 457 university students (273 male and 184 female) and 12 university EFL teachers through questionnaires and interviews. The findings showed that most of the Afghan university students held a positive attitude toward learning English and they were highly influenced by three types of motivation (i.e., instrumental, integrative, and intrinsic). Significant differences were found in the attitudes of students in terms of their fields of study, grades, and language learning anxiety. Interestingly, the findings also showed that some students were demotivated to learn EFL due to the propagation that English will no longer widely be used if NATO and US forces leave Afghanistan. It is suggested that EFL teachers should adopt motivational strategies in their classes to develop students’ positive attitudes and enhance their motivation toward learning EFL.


1998 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jake Harwood ◽  
Angie Williams

The study uses a recently-developed scale for eliciting perceptions, expectations, and evaluations of intergenerational communication. As predicted, it is found that younger adults expect to experience more anxiety, receive more complaining, and receive lower levels of attunement from an older adult who is portrayed as “despondent” than one who is portrayed as a “perfect grandparent.” In addition, younger adults with more negative attitudes toward older adults expect to experience more negative affect, anxiety, and communication apprehension, to feel more compassion for the older adult, and to receive lower levels of attunement and more complaining from the older adult than those with more positive attitudes. Surprisingly, younger adults with higher levels of young age identification expect to experience lower levels of apprehension, more attunement from the older adult, and to feel more compassion for the older adult than those with lower levels of age identity. These findings are discussed in terms of theoretical models of intergenerational communication, in particular the communication predicament model. In addition, younger people's feelings of having “helped” an older person are discussed in the context of intergroup theory.


2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 700
Author(s):  
Noura Nasser Muhammad Alawaji

Writing is one of the four main language skills that are given emphasis in Second Language Learning. Summary writing is often viewed as a difficult and a challenging skill in learning a second language, which may result in negative attitudes forming, both toward summary writing and to writing in general. The main purpose of this study is to investigate students’ perceptions and problems related to collaborative summary writing in a university in Saudi Arabia. The study involved five undergraduate EFL Saudi female students as a case study and who were exposed to writing course participated in this study. The students were given different collaborative writing tasks during the semester and completed one summary writing task collaboratively for the purpose of this study. Then their views about the task were recorded via semi-structured interview. The findings suggest that most of the participants express positive attitudes toward collaborative writing and consider it beneficial for improving different aspects of writing skills, second language proficiency, and confidence. Several problems occurred during the process of collaboration, and these are also identified and discussed.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Talal Waleed Daweli

This study focuses on a Saudi English as a foreign language (EFL) context. It employs Google Docs as an educational tool to engage Saudi EFL students in online peer review to address some challenges faced instructors when they implement peer review in class. The main goals of the study are examining what kinds of corrective feedback that Saudi EFL students provide when they edit their peers’ texts in Google Docs, how they can improve their texts based on the collaborative online peer review, and what their attitudes are toward using Google Docs as an online peer review tool. The study utilizes Google Docs, an online questionnaire, and an interview as research tools; after thematic analysis, the results show that Saudi EFL students focus on local and global writing issues and provide different types of corrective feedback that aid them to improve their writing. They have positive attitudes toward using Google Docs in peer review. This tool allows them to engage in an online social environment outside the classroom, feel as critical editors, adjust their writing, and avoid embarrassment. The results also suggest that hierarchical power in the classroom and students’ prior beliefs and experiences can impact their responses to the given feedback from teachers and peers. This study recommends instructors to integrate online peer review as a genre and move beyond low-stakes genre in EFL writing courses at the university level.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 53-70
Author(s):  
Kento Nakachi

A fruitful discussion on language learning strategies has taken place in the field of second language research. However, little is known about grammar learning strategy (GLS) use (Pawlak, 2013, 2018, 2020). The present study explores GLS utilized by 145 English-major university students with Grammar Learning Strategy Inventory (GLSI), a data-collecting instrument developed by Pawlak (2018, 2020). In addition, the current study examines TOEIC scores extracted from 27 student participants to investigate if there is any correlation between GLS use and TOEIC scores. The descriptive data analysis revealed that cognitive strategies used when coping with corrective feedback were the most commonly utilized strategies while affective strategies were the least. Furthermore, the correlational analysis demonstrated that five strategies from metacognitive, cognitive, and affective GLS showed a weak-to-moderate correlation with TOEIC scores (p < .05). The present study concludes with an emphasis on strategy instruction and the necessity of further investigation using GLSI. 第二言語研究の分野において言語学習方略については多くの議論がなされてきた。しかしながら, 文法学習方略(GLS)の利用についてはほとんど研究がされていない(Pawlak, 2013, 2018, 2020)。本研究では, Pawlak(2018, 2020)によって開発されたGrammar Learning Strategy Inventory(GLSI)を用いて日本で英語を専攻する145名の大学生によるGLSの利用について探究する。加えて, 本研究では27名の学生から得られたTOEICの得点を基に, GLSとTOEICスコアとの間に相関があるのかを考察する。記述データ分析では, 修正フィードバックの処理に関わる認知方略が最も利用されていた一方で, 情意方略が最も利用されていなかったことが明らかになった。さらに相関分析では, メタ認知方略, 認知方略, 情意方略に含まれる5つの方略とTOEICの得点との間に弱から中程度の相関(p < .05)があることが分かった。本稿では, 最後に方略指導とGLSIを用いた更なる研究の必要性について述べる。


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