Effects of Recasts, Explicit Correction and Metalinguistic Prompts on L2 Knowledge of the English Past Tense

Abstract

This study examined the effects of three different types of corrective feedback (CF) on the acquisition of declarative/procedural knowledge of the English past tense in a foreign language (FL) classroom setting. The participants comprised Japanese university students, and five classes were assigned to recasts, explicit correction, metalinguistic prompt, task-only, and test control groups. The first three groups performed tasks designed to elicit past-tense forms and received CF. The task-only group performed the tasks without any CF, while the test control group completed pretests and posttests only. Participants’ declarative and procedural knowledge of the past tense was measured at the pretest, immediate posttest, and delayed posttest. The results generally showed that recasts and explicit correction were effective for the development of declarative knowledge of the structures, while metalinguistic prompts were beneficial for the development of procedural knowledge. Thus, metalinguistic prompts would be one of the best types of feedback to provide in an FL classroom setting to help learners develop procedural knowledge of past-tense forms. However, to effectively develop their declarative knowledge of past-tense forms, recasts and explicit correction should also be provided.