Comparative investigation of the effect of cooperative group size on Iranian EFL learners' writing proficiency and attitudes

Abstract

This study scrutinized the comparative effect of cooperative group size (pair-work vs. group work) on Iranian EFL learners’ writing proficiency and their attitudes towards this form of learning. To do this, 60 homogenized participants took part in this study and they were randomly assigned to two experimental groups (20 in pair-work, and 20 in group work) and one control group (20 participants). Before the treatment, they all had one writing task which was used as the retest. The experimental groups went through collaborative writing and the control group was based on the usual mainstream class procedure for 10 writing topics chosen based on their preferences. They all had the final writing task after treatment which was used as the post-test. The result of the independent samples t-test showed that pair-work and group did have a positive effect on the writing, but pair-work turned out to be more efficient than group work. In the interview section, it was revealed that the main reason was the dynamism of the group and the structure of the interaction among the peers in the pair work and the group work that made the difference. Keywords: Attitudes; cooperative group size; EFL learners; writing proficiency