General English Course Research Articles

Effectiveness of Hybrid English Classes Using Multimedia-based Materials at a College Level: Managing the Post-COVID-19 Crisis

This study aims to identify the effectiveness of hybrid English classes using multimedia based-materials (MBM) on college students’ cognitive domain. In order to accomplish this purpose, this study focused on examining how college students’ achievement has been changed after engaging in hybrid English classes using MBM for a year. Among 80 college students who took a general English course for a year, 40 students in the experimental group engaged in both online classes using MBM and offline classes. The other 40 students in the control group took offline classes. After four times of achievement tests, collected test results were analyzed quantitatively by descriptive statistical analysis and a t-test using SPSS version 24. The results of data analysis revealed that hybrid English classes using MBM have a significant effect on students’ achievement. Based on the results, this study suggests some pedagogical implications for effective college English classes in the post-pandemic context.

Examining the Association of Grit Profiles With Big Five Personality and Achievement Among Iranian Foreign Language Learners.

Grit—trait-level perseverance and prolonged passion for primary goals—is related to several indicators of educational success such as academic achievement, engagement, and motivation. Although there is new evidence showing the beneficial effects of grit, most research has taken a variable-focused approach and consequently has failed to indicate how individuals with different grit profiles might have different academic results. The present study aimed to build on the existing literature on grit by investigating the relationship between grit, big five personality and L2 achievement. The participants of this study were 384 English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students from different academic majors studying at Yazd University. They had enrolled in General English (GE) courses. The results of the cluster analyses showed that there were three natural grit profiles (Cluster 1 = High Perseverance and High Consistency; Cluster 2 = High Perseverance and Low Consistency; Cluster = Low Perseverance and High Consistency) in the current study. The results of the multivariate analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that students belonging to cluster 1 had the highest scores on big five personality traits and L2 achievement. The results also showed that when taking academic exams, high perseverance of effort and low consistency of interest were related to higher level of neuroticism and lower level of consciousness. Our study has some theoretical and practical implications. Regarding the theory, this study is related to the existing grit literature by elaborating the relationship between grit profiles, big five personality traits, and L2A. Regarding the practice, our findings affirm the significance of developing and implementing the big five personality traits interventions in grit prediction.

A Showcase Study on ELF-oriented Classroom Practices in a General English Course

The lingua franca status of English in transcultural settings questions the orthodox pedagogical principles and mainstream approaches of English language teaching. To mirror the relationship between English as a subject matter and English as a globalised sociolinguistic phenomenon, some scholars call for revisiting the conventional approaches of pedagogy. Still, the response to the call for a transition from the monocentric methods of English language teaching is slow. Teachers have multiple concerns about how to incorporate a global dimension into a general English language course for undergraduates. The present study aims to address this gap by offering a practical example of how to address English as a lingua franca phenomenon in a general English language course. The study showcases classroom practices for raising awareness of today’s complexity of English use as a worldwide lingua franca. Ten Saudi undergraduates at a Saudi university participated in the study. The study shares the participants’ critical reflections on what they have learned from the course. Analysis of the participants’ reflections reveal that approaches based on complexity theory increased their familiarity with English linguistic diversities, developed their transcultural awareness and improved their ability to cope with English functional and contextual diversities. It is hoped that this showcase study can provide some guidance for the further implementation of a global dimension in other contexts.

The Impact of Flipped Classroom on Learning Outcome in a General English Course: Grammar and Vocabulary Gains in Focus

Flipped classroom establishes a framework for personalized education tailored to students’ individual needs by incorporating simple technologies of audio/video recordings into instruction. Considering the challenges General English (GE) students and instructors face such as time limitation, students’ low motivation and diverse learning preferences, there seems to be an urgent need for studies on flipped learning. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of flipped classrooms on Iranian EFL learners’ learning outcome in a GE course. As such, fifty students of engineering majors in two intact classes participated in the study and were assigned to a control (n=25) and an experimental (n=25) group. The experimental group received instruction in line with the principles of flipped learning while the control group was taught using the conventional method. The participants’ level of learning outcome was measured before and after the treatment by an achievement test consisting of two parts: grammar and vocabulary. The data were analyzed by Multivariate Analysis of Variance (MANOVA). The results revealed a significant difference between the two groups’ performance on the achievement post-test in general and in its two sections (grammar and vocabulary) in favor of the experimental group. Further analysis showed that the effect size for the intervention was large (ηp 2=.19>.14) for general learning outcome; however, as for the components of the achievement test, the effect size was found to be large for vocabulary section (ηp 2=.16>.14) and middle for the grammar section (ηp 2=.134<.14), respectively. Possible interpretations of the findings are discussed and certain implications and applications for GE instructors and materials developers are suggested.

In-House Professional Development Activities to Support English Language Teacher Development in Remote Schools

Professional development (PD) can have a profound effect on teachers’ teaching quality and student’s learning outcomes. PD activities can take place both within and outside educational institutions and range from formal to informal learning activities, including training and peer teaching. Many educational institutions encourage their teachers to take part in these PD activities; however, not all educational institutions can support their teachers to participate in external PD activities. To address this issue, some institutions, particularly those in remote areas, develop their own PD activities and offer them to their teachers internally. This article aims to elaborate on four in-house PD activities that have been implemented at one private English school in remote Cambodia. These PD activities include: (1) general English courses, (2) regular in-service workshops, (3) teaching methodology courses, and (4) informal collaboration in teaching and learning. The article concludes with implications for future research.

Student Insights Related to the Use of Simultaneous Speech Translation for Video Lectures in a University English Course

For native English-speaking teachers, the ability to overcome communication issues caused by not having the same first language as their pupils is a challenge, especially with low-level students. The increased use of video lectures due to COVD-19 has made this even more difficult. This study was conducted to investigate whether the use of Artificial Intelligence-powered interlingual Simultaneous Speech Translation subtitled video lectures could be a practical solution to overcome this challenge. To that end, 14 participants from a first-semester prerequisite General English course took part in this study. A semi-structured interview was combined with surveys and descriptive statistics, and data was analyzed through qualitative means of thematic, descriptive, and inductive procedures that relied on simultaneous analysis and category construction. Key findings were as follows: First, respondents found the subtitled videos to be highly satisfactory and fairly accurate. Second, respondents reported greater content understanding as the main advance and less emphasis on improving listening ability as the primary disadvantage. Third, the use of English instead of Korean subtitles or subtitling only certain sections of the video in Korean were the main suggestions for the future. Specific responses from the student interviews and future implications are discussed.

Tailored vs. Standard Curriculum and General English Achievement: A Study of Teachers’ Views

This study was conducted in two phases. The first one is the preliminary phase aimed at tailoring the standard curriculum based on learners’ needs analysis. The second one is the main phase, intended to evaluate the tailored curriculum based on teachers’ views. The participants in the preliminary phase of the study (tailoring the curriculum) were 346 non-native male and female undergraduate students who received the same Pre-Requisite General English course at their first semester in university. They were studying different majors, including Accounting, Architecture, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, and Mechanical Engineering. The participants in the main phase (evaluation of the tailored curriculum by teachers) were 10 non-native male (7) and female (3) teachers who taught the Pre-Requisite General English course through the tailored curriculum. The findings of the study supported the hypothesis that the teachers have a positive attitude toward using the tailored curriculum in teaching the Pre-Requisite General English course. It seems that the implementation of this tailored program, which is based on learner-needs-analysis, can enhance the effectiveness of the English for General Purposes (EGP) course, compared to the standard one.

The Efficacy of Syllabi of General English Courses at Undergraduate Level in Bangladesh: An Evaluation

A good syllabus contributes to achieving better learning outcomes. Academic institutions often invest huge amounts in preparing the so-called 'panacea' of a syllabus hoping they could meet the demand of the highly competitive world. Now, however, educationists often get divided on what is instrumental to gaining a higher level of learning outcomes: Is it the quality of syllabus, or the kind of teaching approaches, or quality of teachers and learners, or good academic environment with a proper support system or a combination of all the above? While the academic process around the globe continues amidst these unresolved questions, teaching and learning English in Bangladeshi tertiary institutions for undergraduate students is no exception. Although almost all the students at undergraduate level take some sort of English language course like general English Language (GEL), or foundation English (FE) course, they fail to function when it comes to using the language in a real-life situation. This paper strives to trace out why the students cannot communicate in English properly even after 10 plus years of exposure to the language – 1/2 years at the tertiary level and 8 to 10 years at the primary and secondary levels. The research has adopted both quantitative and qualitative research methods and used two different questionnaires to collect data for the study. Delving into a thorough analysis of the existing syllabuses, the study contends that the syllabus cannot quite prepare the students to be able to function in English in a real-world scenario and, therefore, recommends a revamping of the syllabuses is necessary to produce pragmatic and pedagogical efficacy.

English Proficiency and Academic Achievement: Can Students’ Grades in English Courses Predict Their Academic Achievement?

Research into the relationship between English proficiency and academic achievement was built upon the concern of the academic success of international students studying in English-speaking countries, raising the question if such a relationship exists in domestic EFL learners studying at a university in their home country. This study, therefore, expands the exploration to the investigation among EFL learners in a non-English speaking country, i.e., Thailand by considering the variables at a micro-level across general English courses involving course grade and academic achievement–grade point average (GPA). The analysis involved the data of 2,150 students studying six different English courses from various academic majors. These results revealed significant correlations and strong predictive powers of students’ grades in English courses on their GPAs across a year of study and proficiency. The findings sustain the argument that although various factors affect students’ academic achievement, English proficiency seems to have predictive power. Nowadays English-medium instruction (EMI) has attracted a myriad of interests from universities in non-English-speaking countries. Therefore, the findings of this study suggest that improving students’ English proficiency would lead them to obtaining better academic

Blended Synchronous Instruction in General English Courses at a Korean University: Perceptions of Both Learners and Instructors

Blended Synchronous Instruction in General English Courses at a Korean University: Perceptions of Both Learners and Instructors 의 이용 수, 등재여부, 발행기관, 저자, 초록, 목차, 참고문헌 등 논문에 관한 다양한 정보 및 관련논문 목록과 논문의 분야별 BEST, NEW 논문 목록을 확인 하실 수 있습니다.

Let’s Judge a Book by its Cover: The Case Study of Active Skills for Reading

Textbook is an essential element of teaching and learning materials. After the teacher, textbooks are the most important factor in learning. Since textbooks act as an important material in teaching and learning, they need to be evaluated regularly. In the light of the foregoing, this study aimed to evaluate “Active Skills for Reading” using a researcher-made checklist and a structured interview. This book was being taught in six classes of Chabahar Maritime University as a general English coursebook. The goal of this study was to determine the suitability of the book as a general English course from the students’ and teachers’ perspectives. To this end, 150 students and 4 teachers were selected, and data were collected during two semesters in 2020. The quantitative data of the checklist were analyzed by calculating descriptive statistics using SPSS version 26, and qualitative data was analyzed through deductive content analysis. It was shown that the teachers and students believed that the appearance of the book is attractive, the content of the book is up-to-date and practical, and the goals are well defined. It was also revealed that although the textbook had some shortcomings such as lack of enough grammar sections in each unit, teachers felt the book was still appropriate for general English courses, especially for developing the reading skills. Generally, it was indicated that the textbook had met students’ needs for a general English course. The study ends with suggestions for general English teachers and materials designers.

Effectiveness of Mobile Assisted Pronunciation Training in the Acquisition of English Vowels, /o/ and /ɔ/

With the wide availability of mobile devices, efforts to accommodate these technological devices have been made in pronunciation training. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of mobile apps in improving the perception and production of the English vowels, /o/ and /ɔ/, which are difficult to discriminate and produce for Korean learners of English. The participants were 24 college freshmen enrolled in a general English course. They shadowed the model pronunciation from the application and corrected their production after instant feedback from the automatic speech recognition application. Their perception was evaluated in the preand post-tests, and the production was visually examined on the formant chart. The training was held for 5 minutes each day, for a month. The results showed that the training made positive effects on improving students’ perception of the target vowels. There was also some progress in their production although the improvement was not as noticeable as in perception. A discrepancy in the production was discovered between male and female participants with the latter performing better.

Modeling a General English Course Integrating Global Citizenship and Global Competence

This study aims to develop a general English course model that cultivates global citizenship and global competence, employing the backward design by Wiggins and McTighe. In order to situate the model in a historical context and thereby help us see its continuity to and distinctiveness from the existing methodologies, this study first explained how various historical teaching methodologies in the field of ESL/EFL were developed and adopted in a way that integrated the needs of the changing world of the past. Then various global citizenship education(GCED) models as an educational response to the multiple crises of the 21&lt;sup&gt;st&lt;/sup&gt; century were reviewed along with the significance of respective GCED models for the proposed general English course model. Considering that lifelong learning is crucial in the age of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, this model identifies the critical reading of media articles as a habit that prospective global citizens need to develop over the course of their lives. Thus the model includes core learning experiences for learners to engage in critical reading of media articles and figure out what it is like, so that they can keep practicing it over their lifetime. The kinds of global citizenship education featured in the proposed model are also explained. Following the backward design, the desired results are identified as (1) understanding globalization and global citizens, (2) understanding global competence, (3) understanding technology, and (4) understanding English communication. The assessment evidence is also identified and presented along with learning experiences and instructions developed in accordance with the desired results and assessment evidence.

Flipping an on-campus general English course: a focus on technology complexity of instruction and learners\u2019 levels of impulsivity

The current study compared the effects of two types of flipped instruction (FI) (low- and mid-tech) with two other class conditions, a blended course and a conventional teaching, on learning outcome of language learners with different levels of impulsivity in an on-campus General English (GE) course. To attain such a goal, four GE classes consisting of 100 freshmen (25 students in each class) were selected and organized into 3 experimental (mid-tech FI, low-tech FI, blended instruction) and 1 control group (conventional teaching). In low-tech flipped class, the students were provided with the vodcasts and podcasts of the instructor’s teaching. For the mid-tech flipped class, the podcasts and vodcasts were integrated into an educational website where all instructional and supplementary materials were available. The blended group accessed the educational website after the instructor’s teaching as the extension of the class activities. The control group received the GE conventional instruction (chalk and talk approach). The participants’ learning outcome was assessed by reading paper of Preliminary English Test and their level of impulsivity was measured by BIS-11. The quantitative data were analysed by a two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and the results revealed a statistically significant difference in reading proficiency of the four groups after the study, in favour of the mid-tech FI. Moreover, while the type of instruction had no effect on reading proficiency of students with different levels of impulsivity across groups, within group comparisons revealed that only mid-tech group members with different levels of impulsivity benefited equally from the instruction. The results of the qualitative data analysis revealed that the majority of students in both groups had positive attitudes towards the experience, although they expressed their needs for some modifications in teacher role, their own role, and the way the instructional materials are prepared and presented.

The Use of Online Instruction in General English Courses at Universities in a Local Area of Korea during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The Use of Online Instruction in General English Courses at Universities in a Local Area of Korea during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Teaching sociological subjects in English to university students: a case study of the Polish university

Nowadays, the role of English in teaching sociology has been increasing significantly, as far as the English language is an international medium of academic communication worldwide. Polish universities also follow this global trend. Students are offered not only general English courses but also specialised facultative courses in English. Taking into account the last one, a reflexive qualitative research has been carried out at the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology, the Maria Grzegorzewska University in Warsaw. The objective of four face-to-face expert interviews with the academic teachers was exploring teaching methods and techniques, as well as difficulties in the process of teaching sociology with the use of English as a foreign language. An expert interview was designed starting from the teaching background, followed by teaching reflections on their didactic practice and ending with the academic teachers’ thoughts on the role of English in sociology. The following issues were considered: 1) methods and techniques of incorporating English in teaching sociology to Polish students; 2) strategies of motivating students to use English in sociology; 3) the perception of difficulties; 4) reflections on empowering students.The research results in the field of the sociological facultative English-based courses revealed the dominance of some ways of using the language over others. All experts acknowledged that they aimed to develop sociological English through the communicative and task-based approaches. They engaged students in reading sociological texts and critically discussed them. Some of the academic teachers referred also to watching and listening to native speakers as important ways to activate students during their classes. Moreover, the experts took into account students specific interests and encouraged them to prepare a presentation or to write a short essay. Some experts used also the collaborative methods when students were involved in group projects and group presentations. In general, the experts developed interesting and important topics of social life and research to strengthen the students’ intrinsic motivation. It was noticed that the presence of foreign students becomes a reasonable factor of improving English-based communication among Polish and foreign students in classroom. The experts pointed out that there were various linguistic, psychological and institutional barriers in teaching sociological subjects in English for Polish university students. Nevertheless, they tried to overcome those obstacles whenever it was possible.

The Effect of Concept Map on Improving English Reading Comprehension Skill of Medical Students’ in General English Language Course for Deep and Permanent Learning

The Effect of Concept Map on Improving English Reading Comprehension Skill of Medical Students’ in General English Language Course for Deep and Permanent Learning

‘Do as WE Do’: Teaching World Englishes in a General English Course to Thai Students

The spread of English throughout the world has led to the language acquiring the status of an international language and has also led to the emergence of many varieties of English in different parts of the world, commonly referred to as world Englishes (WE). In this regard, WE advocates are making efforts to raise awareness of English diversity and have highlighted the need for learners and educators to develop positive attitudes toward such diversity. In order to promote greater awareness and more positive attitudes in language-learning classrooms, various WE-informed pedagogical principles for language teaching have been developed by WE practitioner-researchers. However, research building on the growing body of reports on English language teaching (ELT) classroom innovation and how to better share such innovation in practice remains scarce in some under-researched contexts, such as Thai classrooms. Consequently, the present study aims to address a gap by offering a practical example of how to incorporate WE into an English language learning course for university students in the English as a foreign language context. To further justify its significance, the study also shares the written reflections of students on their experiences with WE-oriented learning activities. These reflections revealed positive attitudes toward linguistic diversity and their improved understanding of the sociolinguistic reality of English after taking part in the innovative WE-oriented learning activities. The present study showcases innovative classroom practice that differs completely from the traditional classroom in terms of its particular focus on raising the awareness of WE, and it is also hoped that such classroom practice may provide some guidance for the further implementation of WE in other ELT contexts.

Guided discovery learning, personality traits, and speaking confidence of Iranian Intermediate EFL Students

The current work aims to examine the association between Guided Discovery Learning (GDL) and personality traits and speaking confidence of Iranian EFL learners in terms of their gender. The study was conducted based on a quantitative-descriptive research method and quasi-experimental design. Accordingly, 60 participants were chosen in terms of convenience-random sampling from two language institutes in Tehran. They included both female (N=30) and male (N=30) of general English courses and were in the age range of 15 to 34 years. The results revealed that extraversion made a significant contribution to the self-confidence of Iranian EFL learners. Also, the guided discovery resulted in a more realistic classroom with an atmosphere like daily life as the learners were more active and responsible. Our findings might have significant implications for the curriculum and material designers to incorporate the GDL principles and students’ personality traits.

The Effect of Concept Map on Improving English Reading Comprehension Skill of Medical Students’ in General English Language Course for Deep and Permanent Learning

The Effect of Concept Map on Improving English Reading Comprehension Skill of Medical Students’ in General English Language Course for Deep and Permanent Learning