The present study investigates 110 EFL teachers’ perception of the gravity of ten types of grammatical errors made by EFL learners in terms of acceptability. Moreover, it examines the relationship of age, gender, academic degree, years of teaching experience, and the highest level taught with the teachers’ judgements. Results revealed that the teachers’ evaluations form a hierarchy in which errors are placed at different gravity levels in accordance with their level of acceptability. Moreover, the three variables of academic degree, years of teaching experience, and the highest level taught had a positive correlation with the teachers’ evaluations. This study suggests that teachers should make their evaluations systematic, treat errors in accordance with their priority, and become aware of the factors that contribute to evaluations of grammatical errors.
Author : Musa Nushi
A Comparative Study of University and Private Language Institute EFL Teachers’ Familiarity with and Classroom Practicality Perceptions of Dynamic Assessment
The widespread prevalence of dynamic tools to assess English language achievement has led to burgeoning research on exploring different aspects of teachers’ beliefs toward Dynamic Assessment (DA). In the educational system of Iran, experts and researchers who have undergone second language education may verify that there is very little, if any, attention given to the perceptions held by instructors and teachers regarding Dynamic Assessment (DA). In an attempt to remedy this gap, the current study aimed to investigate the familiarity with DA of Iranian EFL teachers working in two educational settings (e.g., language institutes and universities). The study also set out to explore the teachers’ attitudes toward the practicality of DA in the two settings. To address the research questions, a sequential explanatory mixed methods design was employed. The instruments of this study comprised a questionnaire and an Email interview with 12 ELT assessment experts in order to have their interpretations of the research findings. The results of the t-tests showed no significant difference between the two groups of teachers in terms of their familiarity with DA and their attitudes toward the practicality of DA in the two contexts. In addition, content analysis of the Email interview data revealed that the ELT assessment experts’ primary arguments for the insignificant difference between the two groups in terms of the two variables related to the fact that DA has remained at the theoretical level, that there is a lack of teacher training in DA and the strict rules of Iran’s educational system which prohibit teachers from applying DA principles and procedures in their classes. The implications of the findings for teacher education, materials development as well as for program administrators, EFL teachers, and learners will be discussed.
Instagram-Assisted Learning of Collocations and Colligations: The Case of EFL Learners
Instagram, as a popular social networking platform, allows users to share photos and videos with
other users. This research investigated the effect of Instagram-assisted instruction on the learning
of collocations and colligations1 by Iranian EFL learners. Fifteen participants who were selected
based on a language proficiency test took part in this research. The participants were first pre-tested
on their collocational and colligational knowledge. The collocational and colligational items that
were answered incorrectly by 50 percent or higher were selected for treatment. Afterwards, the
researchers prepared nine videos, containing 41 collocational and colligational items, and posted
them on Instagram during a five- week instruction period. The participants were asked to watch
the videos, and carry out the related exercises in the caption section of the post, through the usage
of the comments sections on Instagram. After posting all the videos, the pre-test was run again as
a post-test. The results indicated a significant difference between the mean scores of the pre- and
post-test, highlighting the fact that the treatment had been effective. In addition, semi-structured
interviews were conducted with 10 participants in order to find out their attitudes towards
language learning via Instagram. The learners indicated a positive attitude towards using Instagram
for their language learning purposes. In conclusion, the research showed that Instagram-assisted
instruction, when properly implemented and designed, can be beneficial to the development of
second language learning.
Instagram-Assisted Learning of Collocations and Colligations: The Case of EFL Learners
Instagram, as a popular social networking platform, allows users to share photos and videos with other users. This research investigated the effect of Instagram-assisted instruction on the learning of collocations and colligations by Iranian EFL learners. Fifteen participants who were selected based on a language proficiency test took part in this research. The participants were first pre-tested on their collocational and colligational knowledge. The collocational and colligational items that were answered incorrectly by 50 percent or higher were selected for treatment. Afterwards, the researchers prepared nine videos, containing 41 collocational and colligational items, and posted them on Instagram during a five- week instruction period. The participants were asked to watch the videos, and carry out the related exercises in the caption section of the post, through the usage of the comments sections on Instagram. After posting all the videos, the pre-test was run again as a post-test. The results indicated a significant difference between the mean scores of the pre- and post-test, highlighting the fact that the treatment had been effective. In addition, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 10 participants in order to find out their attitudes towards language learning via Instagram. The learners indicated a positive attitude towards using Instagram for their language learning purposes. In conclusion, the research showed that Instagram-assisted instruction, when properly implemented and designed, can be beneficial to the development of second language learning.