DigitalUM :: Browsing by Subject "EFL"

Browsing by Subject "EFL"

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Open Access
Age and type of instruction (CLIC vs. traditional EFL) in lexical development
(2016-06-28) Agustín-Llach, María Pilar
The present paper compares the vocabulary development of a group of CLIL and of traditional EFL learners along three years. The observation that a CLIL approach might provide with larger benefits in the long run vocabulary is the starting point of this study. We had learners in the two groups complete a letter writing task. These writings were then scrutinized for L1 influence in the form of borrowings and lexical creations. The frequency of the words in the letters was also object of analysis. Results revealed that CLIL learners perform slightly better but non-significantly better than traditional EFL along the three years. Furthermore, the evolution of L1 influence and word use also followed an expected improvement pattern as learners went up grade. However, our results do not provide evidence of a growing CLIL advantage with increasing experience. The young age and low proficiency of learners in the present study might be blocking this possible advantage found elsewhere.
Open Access
Are EFL writers motivated or demotivated by model texts and task repetition? Evidence from young collaborative writers.
(Universidad de Murcia, Servicio de Publicaciones, 2021) Lázaro-Ibarrola, Amparo; Villarreal, Izaskun
Studies on multi-stage writing tasks with adults and children have shown that model texts and task repetition aid language acquisition, especially when learners work in collaboration. However, these studies have not included measures of task motivation, which is vital in young learners (YLs) and could help develop a more comprehensive understanding of task effectiveness. The present study analyses task motivation in 24 EFL YLs writing in pairs during three sessions divided into a model group (MG) and a task repetition group (TRG). Results show that students’ task motivation is high in general but declines in the MG while it is maintained in the TRG. As for the motives, working together is the main reason students give to justify their positive scores. These results complete previous knowledge about models and TR, reinforce the value of collaborative writing and encourage the inclusion of motivation measures in task-based research.
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Beliefs about L1 use in teaching English: a comparative study of Polish and Spanish teacher-trainees
(SAGE Publications, 2020-09-16) Wach, Aleksandra; Monroy Hernández, Fuensanta; Métodos de Investigación y Diagnóstico en Educación
The study investigated the beliefs expressed by a sample of 206 Polish and Spanish teacher-trainees about the use of learners’ native language (L1) in teaching English as a foreign language (EFL). Quantitative and qualitative data from a questionnaire revealed considerable differences between the two nationality groups in their beliefs about both medium-oriented and framework-oriented functions of the L1 in an L2 classroom. Moreover, significant differences were found in the participants’ accounts of their prior EFL learning experience in terms of the L1–L2 proportion in teachers’ classroom language use. A possible interpretation of these findings relates trainees’ beliefs to the L2 educational cultures prevalent in different countries, pointing to a contextually-mediated complexity of teacher-trainees’ belief systems. The study adds to the existing research on the issues underlying L1 use in L2 teaching that are currently under debate by offering a cross-national comparison of teacher-trainees’ beliefs about the place of the L1 in L2 instruction.
Open Access
Child task-supported interaction in the Spanish EFL setting: research and challenges.
(2019-01-21) García Mayo, María del Pilar
Task - based language teaching research has expanded substantially in foreign language (FL) contexts but most research studies have been carried out with young adults in university settings, despite the fact that FL programs for children are on the increase worldwide. However, there is a clear lack of research - based evidence of what children actually do while performing tasks, which is cruc ial in order to make decisions about appropriate educational provision, to inform policy makers, and to maximize children's learning opportunities. This paper focuses on current research on children in task - based programs both in mainstream English as a Fo reign Language (EFL) and Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) contexts. It reviews studies that show how children successfully negotiate to make language meaningful, how they engage with the tasks and how they collaborate in different ways durin g task performance. Challenges and future research directions will be highlighted.
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Do English Language Teaching materials offer the vocabulary that students need? A content-based analysis of three textbooks
(Kare Publishing, 2017) Criado, Raquel; Filología Inglesa
The two-faceted nature of lexical frequency as the overarching factor in determining communicative usefulness and in contributing to vocabulary learning should be taken into account in language teaching textbooks. These constitute a basic tool of the teachers’ repertoire in Foreign Language Teaching (FLT) contexts. However, the number of textbooks’ lexical content analyses is not abundant and most of them yield non-positive results. The aim of the present study is to analyse the lexical profile of three wellknown English as a Foreign Language (EFL) textbooks which belong to the same series and which are targeted at adult learners. The analysis examines which words are presented and how frequently they are included to verify whether such textbooks comply with the aforementioned two-faceted nature of lexical frequency. For that purpose, the amount of the lemmas, types and tokens and the frequency levels of the types of each textbook were computed by means of the computer programme RANGE (Nation, Heatley & Coxhead, 2002). Afterwards, the number of the lemmas of the three textbooks was a) matched with the number of lemmas assumed by The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) (2001, 2017) in accordance with each textbook’s level and b) compared with the vocabulary growth rates (students’ lexical learning capacity) as determined by the specialised literature. Results showed that each textbook’s distribution of words per range was not entirely adequate in relation to their targeted levels of proficiency. Likewise, the textbooks exceeded the number of lemmas to be learnt from the perspective of both the quantitative requirements of the CEFR and learning rates. These results point to a certain authors’ pedagogical manipulation of the lexicon to comply with editorial space restrictions, which entails distorting the normal patterns of lexical distribution of texts.
Open Access
Enseñanza no formal de ILE en un contexto desfavorecido. Efectos de las metodologías activas en las destrezas y actitudes comunicativas del alumnado
(Universidad de Zaragoza, Asociación Universitaria de Formación del Profesorado (AUFOP), 2024) Yuste-Primo, Raquel; Barranco-Izquierdo, Natalia; Sanz-Trigueros, Francisco Javier
El contenido de este artículo, inscrito en las lógicas de la inclusión social y la diversidad lingüística, presenta la investigación llevada a cabo en un contexto no formal de enseñanza de Inglés como Lengua Extranjera (ILE) a alumnado en situación de vulnerabilidad socioeducativa. El estudio de naturaleza cualitativa se centra en indagar el impacto de metodologías activas en el desarrollo de las destrezas y actitudes comunicativas en y hacia el Inglés como Lengua Extranjera del alumnado de Educación Primaria que acude a un Laboratorio de idiomas situado en un entorno urbano socialmente deprimido. Para la recogida de datos se emplean la observación directa participante de 48 sesiones y las entrevistas a profesoras involucradas. Desde un enfoque descriptivo e interpretativo, el tratamiento de las informaciones se realiza con la aplicación de la técnica global del análisis de contenido temático conforme a un sistema previo de categorías y subcategorías. Los resultados revelan efectos significativos de las metodologías activas en las destrezas y actitudes comunicativas, concretamente en la comprensión oral y en la participación respectivamente. Se concluye que tanto las destrezas comunicativas orales como las actitudes comunicativas de este tipo de alumnado en situación de vulnerabilidad socioeducativa mejoran con el empleo de metodologías predominantemente activas.
Open Access
Lexical language-related episodes in pair and small group work
(2017-06-28) Garcia Mayo, Maria del Pilar; Zeitler, Nora
The present study investigates whether learner set up in interaction, namely in pairs or small groups, influences the frequency and outcome of lexical language-related episodes (LREs) and L2 vocabulary learning. Thirty Spanish English as a foreign language (EFL) university learners took part in the study. They worked in four groups and seven pairs on the same collaborative writing task. Research was carried out on the course of five weeks as a pre- and post- vocabulary task and an individual writing task were administered to assess vocabulary learning and retention. The quantitative analysis of the data showed that there was no significant difference between the performance of pairs and groups, although the latter produced slightly more lexical LREs than pairs and were able to solve most of them correctly. However, from a qualitative point of view, the findings suggest that small group work leads to slightly better results than pair work as the different members obtain benefits from their peers' linguistic knowledge.
Open Access
Sustained content language teaching: insights from an ESL and EFL course.
(Universidad de Murcia, Servicio de Publicaciones, 2022) Reynolds, Barry Lee; Shieh, Jin-Jy; Ding, Chen; Ha, Xuan Van
Instructional settings (English as a second language (ESL) and English as a foreign language (EFL)) may provide different opportunities for learners’ meaningful language use. This qualitative study was designed to shed light on this issue. The data included multiple sources collected from a sustained content gastronomy language course taught in an American ESL and a Taiwanese EFL context. Findings revealed that various factors (e.g., themes, environment, and learners) contributed to learners from both contexts meeting course goals. The findings further indicate that it is not the ESL/EFL context but instead using a sustained content language teaching approach that incorporates theme-based instruction and dynamic units that ensures learners are provided opportunities for meaningful and purposeful language use.
Open Access
The use of poetry for EFL: exploring the beliefs of primary school trainees
(Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, 2020-03-02) Férez Mora, Pedro Antonio; Coyle Balibrea, Yvette; Maurandi López, Antonio; Didáctica de las Ciencias Matemáticas y Sociales
This study explores the perceptions of primary EFL (English as a foreign language) trainee teachers on the potential of poetry as an instrument to enhance their knowledge of English. The aim was to determine whether or not learners’ opinions coincided with theoretical principles established by scholars in favour of using literature in EFL classrooms. An 18-item questionnaire was distributed to 270 trainees to obtain quantitative and qualitative data on alleged linguistic, motivational and intercultural benefits. The results confirm that trainees believe poetry-based English lessons to be more useful for developing language skills, pronunciation, grammatical and lexical knowledge than for intercultural or motivational gains. The present study contributes to the academic expansion of the field in two main ways: i) by providing evidence which empirically tests the predominantly theoretical drive of work available to date; and ii) by offering a systematic and holistic exploration of the potential advantages of poetry which goes beyond the methodologically inconsistent and fragmentary views offered by existing research. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Open Access
Trainees’ beliefs about the use of cinema as a tool for EFL
(2025-01-02) Sánchez-Auñón, Estefanía; Férez Mora, Pedro Antonio; Monroy Hernández, Fuensanta; Métodos de Investigación y Diagnóstico en Educación
Despite the growing presence of cinema in the classroom and the multiple benefits it has been proved to have for the teaching of English as a foreign language (EFL), the implementation of films in the English lessons is still an under-researched area, particularly, as regards instructors’ views on the adequacy of this material. Thus, the present study delves into trainees’ beliefs (N = 121) regarding the potential of cinema for EFL before and after analysing a film-based lesson plan. Questionnaires, open-ended questions, and focus groups were employed to obtain quantitative and qualitative data on the perceived linguistic, intercultural, and motivational advantages of films. The results reveal that, at the outset of the research, trainees held cinema especially useful for eliciting linguistic and intercultural knowledge. However, they were unaware of how to exploit this textual modality and considered some of its characteristics problematic for class use. In the post-analysis stage, the participants assigned similar rates of importance to the three analysed dimensions, reflecting an even more favourable attitude towards this resource. This positive change trend seems to stem from a broadened awareness of the proper exploitation of film after examining the lesson plan provided. Pedagogical and research implications are also defined.
Open Access
Verbal Evidence of Task-related Strategies in EFL: Children and Adult Interactions
(Universidad de Murcia, Servicio de Publicaciones, 2020) Azpilicueta-Martínez, Raúl
The benefits of task-based interaction in Second Language Learning (SLL) have been made increasingly evident in the literature. However, unlike adult studies, only recently has interaction research on EFL children grown in popularity. Most children-based research has focused primarily on Negotiation of Meaning, while other age-related aspects, including a more comprehensive analysis of how adults and children perform and resolve tasks, remain relatively unexplored. This paper addresses this gap by analysing the similarities and differences in the task-related strategies of twenty children aged 8 and 9 and fourteen adult L1-Spanish EFL learners at low levels of competence in paired interaction. Results provide evidence of clear age-related differences, as adults were more consistent and approached the task in a more predictable and efficient fashion. Findings also point to task repetition as a key factor leading to a more successful performance in both groups, even more markedly in the case of children.
Open Access
Videoed storytelling in primary education EFL: exploring trainees’ digital shift
(De Gruyter, 2023-05-17) Férez Mora, Pedro Antonio; Coyle Balibrea, Yvette; Didáctica de la Lengua y la Literatura
This study explores the challenges and benefits primary education EFL trainees (N = 28) reported when designing and videoing a storytelling session originally intended to be conducted offline with young learners. This change of scenario was caused by the COVID-19 crisis. The data for the study were derived from the trainees’ written reflections, focus group interviews, videos of instructional sessions and student-authored multimodal videos, which were explored to interpret trainees’ creative processes while engaged in multimodal composing. The results indicate that trainees hold videoed storytelling to have a similar number of challenges and benefits as face-to-face storytelling. However, two of the reported advantages, enhanced creativity and self-confidence, sit at misconceptions based on trainees’ limited knowledge of the pedagogical potential of multimodal resources. The findings have important educational implications in helping develop a pedagogy of videoed storytelling, while also highlighting the need for teacher training programs to specifically target the development of teachers’ competence in multimodal pedagogy.
Open Access
Why should we care about sound symbolism in EFL learning?: Two pilot studies
(2017-06-28) Roig-Marín, Amanda
Given the importance of the phonological and lexical components of the language in L2 learning, this article discusses an innovative, holistic approach to learning these two components of the language based on the existence of "sound symbolism"-the interrelation between sound and meaning-in English. In particular, it describes how and why the study of sound symbolism can be advantageous to EFL learners. This claim is grounded in empirical data gathered from two pilot studies carried out in two educational settings (a secondary school and the University of Alicante). The results suggest that knowledge of sound symbolic principles underlying the English language can enhance lexical storage and semantic prediction

Browsing by Subject "EFL"

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