Influence Of Learners Research Articles

Role of EFL Learners’ Perceptions of Task Difficulty in Complexity, Accuracy and Fluency: An Exploratory Case Study

This paper presents an investigation conducted in a public university in central Mexico into the possible influence of learners’ perceptions of task difficulty (TD) on levels of complexity, accuracy and fluency (CAF) during the performance of three tasks (personal information, narrative and decision-making tasks). Firstly, four learner pairs performed the three tasks, and their levels of CAF were measured. Secondly, the participants were interviewed retrospectively about which tasks they perceived as difficult and their reasons for such perceived difficulty. In combining the quantitative and qualitative analyses, the data reveal that task difficulty increases when a task is perceived not to be familiar by the learner. The relationship between task difficulty and familiarity also appears to influence the levels of CAF, promoting high levels of fluency and accuracy when the task is perceived by the learner as easy and familiar. The findings of this study provide support for a cognitive approach to task-based language learning and put forward the need to include learners’ perceptions of TD as a variable to investigate the relationship between tasks and the CAF dimensions.

Identifying L2 Developmental Indices while Controlling for L1 Effects: A Multilevel Ordinal Logistic Regression Analysis

This study aimed to identify second language (L2) developmental indices while controlling for the effects of first language (L1). More specifically, this study investigated the differences in the use of metadiscourse markers among learners from different L1 backgrounds. The following research questions were explored: (1) Which metadiscourse markers can be used as developmental indices to predict learners’ proficiency levels? (2) How strongly do learners’ L1s impact their L2 development? To answer these questions, multilevel ordinal logistic regression analysis was performed comparing the metadiscourse in English essays written by three Asian learner groups (i.e., Japanese, Thai, and Taiwanese). The results suggest that the frequencies of transitions and self-mentions are the best predictors of language development of metadiscourse categories. Additionally, this study showed that the multilevel regression model can measure the significance of each metadiscourse category more accurately than the single-level model. Therefore, we must consider the influence of learners’ L1s for precise detection of the linguistic features that predict their proficiency levels. Through this application of multilevel ordinal regression analysis to learner corpus research, this study illustrated the effectiveness of multilevel analysis for tracking the language acquisition process.

The Influence of Learners’ Cognitive Style and Testing Environment Supported by Virtual Reality on English-Speaking Learning Achievement

Although VR technology can provide an ideal learning and application environment for learners’ language skill acquisition, the learning performance of different types of learners in virtual environments and differences in their knowledge transfer ability from the virtual to the real environment still need further discussion. Therefore, we developed a VR English speaking training and testing system to understand the influence of cognitive style and test environment on the learners’ learning effect. The results indicated that: (1) the learning effect of the field-independent learners was lower than that of the field-dependent learners in the real testing environment, but significantly higher than that of the field-dependent learners in the virtual testing environment. Meanwhile, there was a more significant difference in the real and virtual learning effect between the field-dependent and field-independent learners; (2) there was a significant interaction between cognitive style and test environment in the learners’ learning effect. Besides, cognitive style and test environment had an influence on the spoken English learning effect based on VR. The field-independent learners were more likely to transfer what they had learned in the virtual environment to the real application.

Student Engagement in an EFL/SFL Speaking LMOOC during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Influence of Learners’ Social, Affective and Cognitive Dimensions

It is empirically demonstrated that Language Massive Open Online Courses (LMOOCs) contribute to the development of learners’ foreign language (FL) competences. Thus, it is not surprising that these courses have experienced exponential growth over the last decade, being English as a foreign language (EFL) one of the most demanded subjects by LMOOC learners. However, LMOOCs face low learner engagement rates, which might be influenced by learners’ proximal and distal variables. The present study contributes to the understanding of learner engagement in an English as a FL (EFL) and Spanish as a FL (SFL) speaking LMOOC during the COVID-19 pandemic. First, it aims to understand to what extent learner engagement in the course varied during the pandemic emergency period. Second, it aims to identify the aspects of the course that promoted learner engagement, related to learners’ cognitive, affective and social dimensions. The research context is TandemMOOC, an EFL/SFL speaking LMOOC offered annually by the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (Spain). Participants of the study were 2,585 enrolled learners in the TandemMOOC edition of 2019 or 2020. The study followed a mixed-method approach. First, data on learner participation was retrieved from the course system. Second, a post-course questionnaire with closed and open-ended items was administered to learners of the latter edition. Descriptive statistics on quantitative data and content analysis on qualitative data were carried out. Subsequent integration of findings showed that learner engagement in TandemMOOC increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, and revealed that aspects of the course linked to learners’ social dimension were the most engaging ones.

The Influence of Learner's Grit and Growth Mindset on Perceived Educational Service Quality: Focused on Art Education

The Influence of Learner's Grit and Growth Mindset on Perceived Educational Service Quality: Focused on Art Education

To What Extent is Collocation Knowledge Associated with Oral Proficiency? A Corpus-Based Approach to Word Association.

This study examined the relationship between second language (L2) learners' collocation knowledge and oral proficiency. A new approach to measuring collocation was adopted by eliciting responses through a word association task and using corpus-based measures (absolute frequency count, t-score, MI score) to analyze the degree to which stimulus words and responses were collocated. Oral proficiency was measured using human judgements and objective measures of fluency (articulation rate, silent pause ratio, filled pause ratio) and lexical richness (diversity, frequency, range). Forty Japanese university students completed a word association task and a spontaneous speaking task (picture narrative). Results indicated that speakers who used more low-frequency collocations in the word association task (i.e., lower collocation frequency scores) spoke faster with fewer silent pauses and were perceived to be more fluent. Speakers who provided more strongly associated collocations (as measured by MI) used more sophisticated lexical items and were perceived to be lexically proficient. Collocation knowledge remained as a unique predictor after the influence of learners' vocabulary size (i.e., knowledge of single-word items) was considered. These findings support the key role that collocation plays in oral proficiency and provide important insights into understanding L2 speech development from the perspective of phraseological competence.

A Study of Vocabulary Learning Strategies in EFL Reading of High, Middle and Low Vocabulary Achievers of Thai Tertiary Students

This research investigated vocabulary acquisition (VA) and vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) use of Thai EFL graduates of a government university in southern Thailand through English narrative readings that inserted fifteen target words into each reading text. The main purpose of the reading treatment was reading comprehension skills. The study also examined implications for EFL vocabulary learning and teaching in Thai context. The sample of fifteen Thai EFL graduates was selected from one group of 40 first year students majoring in Accountancy from a southern Thailand government university. Data were collected using a semi-structured interview. The interview session was used to elicit information about their VLS use and vocabulary learning experiences. The interview forms after the reading treatment provided a greater insight into the interviewing process behind the participants’ VLS selection and showed how they deduced word meanings of unfamiliar English vocabulary in the narrative reading tasks. Research findings showed that Thai EFL learners in this study apparently show a greater preference for the translation, metacognitive regulation, memory and cognitive strategies than for the determination, metacognitive and social strategies. The findings demonstrate the indirect influence of learners’ previous English vocabulary learning on their English language skill development. In addition, this study suggests a close link between vocabulary learning strategy selection, vocabulary knowledge and language skill development in EFL context, especially southern Thailand.

Influence of Learners’ Practical Process Skills’ Competency on Their Attitude towards Biology

Learners' attitude towards biology is a key determinant of how students learn. Attitude development is a process that is influenced by what happens in and around the learners' learning environment. This study sort to establish the influence that biology practical process skills teaching approach (BPPSTA) has on learners' attitude towards biology in Gucha south sub-county, Kisii County, Kenya. The study was guided by two objectives: To establish the influence of BPPSTA on learners' attitude towards biology lesson when taught using BPPSTA as compared to when taught via the conventional methods and, to determine whether BPPSTA affects learners' attitude towards biology practical process skills. The Solomon's four non-equivalent control group design was used. The sample size comprised of 401 form two students out of a target population of 2,946. Data was collected using biology Attitude Questionnaire for Students (BAQS). Descriptive statistics using means and standard deviations were used for group comparison while t-test was used to test the hypotheses. The study found out that learners who were taught via BPPSTA had a more positive attitude as compared to those taught via the conventional methods. Therefore, BPPSTA had a positive contribution to learners' attitude towards both biology lessons and Biology Practical Process Skills (BPPS). The study findings may provide a baseline on the formulation of in-service training for biology teachers. The study recommends that biology teachers should often use BPPSTA so as to develop positive attitude among learners towards biology.

Innovative teaching methods applicable at the classes of percussion instruments

About 100 years have passed since the first classes of percussion instruments appeared. In the early days, when professional training intended for percussion performers dated to, teachers faced a large number of problems, in particular, lack of a full set of percussion instruments in the classroom, the availability of instructive, educational, pedagogical and concert repertoire alongside scientific and methodological literature. As a result, the work of the first educators was based, first of all, on their personal pedagogical experience and many years of performing practice. In this regard, the appearance of the first teaching aids was a milestone in the development of professional training in playing percussion instruments. For a century-long period, not so much educational and methodological literature has appeared, which was conditioned by a number of objective and subjective factors. At the same time, each methodological manual has taken its rightful place in the development of teaching methods for playing the percussion instruments. However, time is relentlessly moving forward and, unfortunately, today, they have become less in demand, as they do not always meet the modern requirements and approaches to teaching how to play the percussion instruments. Today, Ukrainian scientists and teachers have free access to a large amount of information. Therefore, they have an opportunity to familiarise themselves with interesting developments of our foreign colleagues. However, in most cases, they cannot be used in domestic pedagogical practice, as they are not adapted to the current realities of the educational system of Ukraine due to various socio-economic and cultural factors. Thus, the issues related to the need to search for the most effective forms, methods, and approaches to teaching how to play the percussion instruments is of particular importance and relevance. The article is devoted to the methods based on the playing form of instructions which are used in schools of aesthetic education and, in particular, at the classes of percussion instruments. The purpose of the work is to present new promising areas in teaching percussion playing, based on the author’s pedagogical practice. These methods were used in the study: analysis, observation, deduction and induction. The following issues are considered in the article: the influence of learners’ age characteristics on the choice of teaching methods, the essence of the group form of training and its importance for activating the pedagogical process, traditional and non-traditional approaches to teaching / learning, as well as the analysis of the methods that are widely used in the author’s teaching practice at the classes of the percussion instruments playing. As a result of the study, some new ideas were proposed related to the training at the initial stage and the ways of their implementation by introducing the methods of collective listening, imitation, “playing with the ball”, “sweet tooth”, etc. into the pedagogical practice.

Motivation and Socio-Cultural Milieu of Second Language Learners: Considerations Involved in English Teaching

This study investigates the social, psychological, and cultural dimensions of motivation involved in learning English as a second language in Kuwait. It focuses on students’ experience of motivation, emotions, and their cultural background in search of differences and similarities presented by gender, type of high school, and year in university. The effects of motivation and learning experiences are discussed through using the perpectives of Gardner’s socio-educational model, whereas the influence of learners’ cultural context in second language learning is discussed through using Hofstede’s cultural model. Data were gathered by surveying undergraduate students from a private university in Kuwait, which yielded 233 completed questionnaires. The study employed quantitative methods using SPSS application for descriptive data analysis, correlation analysis, t-tests, and ANOVA. The descriptive statistics were calculated based on the data submitted by the students’ responses. The results revealed significant levels of integrative and instrumental motivation, emphasized by female students, which could be attributed to Hofstede's cultural dimensions of certainty, femininity, and collectivist society. Significant levels were also reported for English classes and English use anxiety, which may be attributed to Hofstede’s power distance, which accounts for the high respect accorded to teachers and teaching. Collectively, the results gained from this study provide guidance to disentangle the multitude of factors that affect English language learners. The findings reported in this study may help instructors who need to understand how learners’ cultural values influence the nature of instruction and point toward future research in analyzing multiple factors that assist language learning.

The influence of Prior Knowledge on Learning Scientific Terminology: A Corpus-based Cognitive Linguistic Study of acceleration in Arabic and English

The current paper expands on previous work done on the influence of learners’ language and pre-existing knowledge on understanding physics terminology by exploring the concept of ACCELERATION in Arabic and English. The study attempts to answer two questions: (1) what are the similarities and differences between the polysemy of Arabic تسارع (tasāruʿ) (acceleration) and the polysemy of English acceleration, and (2) to what extent do prototypes and factors motivating the conceptualization of تسارع (tasāruʿ) and the conceptualization of acceleration converge or diverge? To this end, Arabic and English dictionaries and corpora, the ArabiCorpus (Arabic Corpus Search Tool) and the British National Corpus (BNC), were employed. The dictionaries were surveyed to explore the various meanings of تسارع (tasāruʿ) and acceleration, while the ArabiCorpus and the BNC were employed to investigate the senses and to identify the most frequent collocates and so the prototypes of these terms. The meaning extension of the terms is examined on the basis of the cognitive mechanisms which appear in the corpora. Theoretically, the paper is informed by the prototype theory (Rosch, 1973; 1975), image schemas (Johnson, 1987), and conceptual metaphor (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980/2003). The results show that تسارع (tasāruʿ) (acceleration) and acceleration generally overlap in terms of polysemy, prototype, and images schemas as well as conceptual metaphor that organize the conceptualization of these terms. It was also found that both Arab and English speakers mix ACCELERATION up with SPEED and so misunderstand them in a scientific setting. The present findings have several implications for science curriculum design, education, and research on universal and culture-specific properties of language.

The effects of interaction types on learning outcomes in a blog-based interactive learning environment

ABSTRACT As the use of online learning has continued to expand, there has been a growing demand for advanced software or social sites that can enhance learning outcomes in online settings. It is important to explore how learner–learner, learner–teacher and learner–content interactions affect on learning outcomes while using the social sites such as Facebook, Twitter, WeChat, Blogs, etc. Although some prior research highlight that there is a demand for interaction in online courses, specific design tactics and empirical evaluation of the effects of interaction on learning outcomes in blog-based courses are lacking. Thus, a blog learning platform named “Learner’s Digest Blog” (LDB) was developed to facilitate the three types of interactions and enhance learning outcomes. A total of 26 learners participated in the blog-based interactive learning environment. The study addressed two research questions, and regression analysis was used to analyze the data. The findings indicated a significant influence between learner–learner interaction, learner–teacher interaction and learner–content interaction on subjective learning outcome. In contrast, there was no significant influence of learner–teacher interaction on objective learning outcomes, but learner–learner and learner–content did significantly affect objective learning outcomes. A significant relationship was also found between students’ subjective and objective learning outcomes.

Influence of learners’ prior knowledge, L2 proficiency and pre-task planning on L2 lexical complexity

AbstractAlthough differentiating between fluency, accuracy and complexity, while assessing L2 task performance, is becoming a standard practice, lexical complexity as a distinctive area has received less attention in the task-based language teaching (TBLT) literature. This study re-examines previous frameworks of lexical complexity and investigates three lexical dimensions,lexical diversity, lexical sophisticationandlexical density, using a structured 2 × 2 × 2 split-plot experimental design. The participants were divided into a non-planning group and a planning group and each group was further dichotomised into two proficiency levels. Each participant was assigned one familiar and one unfamiliar oral narrative task. The results show that one’s prior knowledge about a subject is associated with higher lexical diversity and sophistication, while pre-task planning promotes lexical density. The effects of proficiency seem to be largely overridden by the effects of prior knowledge and pre-task planning and show little impact on overall lexical performance. Interestingly, lexical diversity and lexical sophistication are independent of each other, and lexical density is moderately correlated with both lexical diversity and lexical sophistication. The results are discussed with reference to the Levelt model of speech production with some pedagogical implications on content-based language instruction. The exploration of the relationships between the lexical measures reveals a need for deeper and subtler characterisation of L2 lexical complexity.

The Influence of Learner's Motivation and Attitudes on Foreign Language Learning among Malaysian Students in UPSI

The Influence of Learner's Motivation and Attitudes on Foreign Language Learning among Malaysian Students in UPSI

个体关于加工流畅性的信念对字体大小效应的影响

个体关于加工流畅性的信念对字体大小效应的影响

The influence of learners' perceptions of virtual humans on learning transfer

Virtual humans are often integrated into novel multimedia learning environments. However, little is known about learner's perceptions of the agents or the relationship between the perceptions and learning. In this study, the authors revise the Agent Persona Instrument, a measurement tool designed to examine how learners perceive pedagogical agents. The factor structure of the revised instrument was evaluated with confirmatory factor analysis. Next, k-means clustering was used to examine how participants' ratings on the instrument cluster into groups based on their perceptions of the virtual human. After describing the qualities of the clusters within the data, linear regression was used to examine to what extent the cluster membership influenced participant's scores on a transfer test of learning. The results indicated that cluster membership only explained a small amount of variance in transfer test scores. This study provides a revised instrument for measuring pedagogical agent persona. It implemented a novel method for investigating perceptions of pedagogical agents using k-means clustering which was able to identify two unique groups of participants based on their perceptions of the agent. Finally, it presents empirical results indicating that learner's perceptions of the agent had a small influence on their learning outcome scores.

The Influence of Learners’ Socioeconomic Status on Learning English as a Foreign Language

The Influence of Learners’ Socioeconomic Status on Learning English as a Foreign Language

Are Filipino Students’ L2 Learning Goals Performance- or Mastery-oriented? An Explanatory Sequential Analysis

Whether students’ goals for learning English as a second language (L2) are oriented towards performing better than others or mastering one’s skills had not been traditionally investigated in language motivational research. Premised on Pintrich’s (2000) revised achievement goal theory, this explanatory sequential research (Creswell, 2014) examined the influence of learners’ goal orientation in L2 to their writing and speaking performances. 162 Filipino students enrolled in an English for Academic Purposes (EAP) course in a University in Manila participated in the study. They initially accomplished the Goal Orientation in A L2 Scale (GOALS) developed to fit the current context, a= .93. Then, they took two language tests, i.e., a group conversation in English for L2 speaking and an individual essay for L2 writing. Both were administered in the EAP classes as an entry requirement. Analyses yielded significant results on the influence of goal orientation on both speaking and writing. Results suggest that students with a performance orientation to L2 learning performed significantly better than those with either a mastery or a multiple goal orientation. In keeping with the sequential design, the researchers proceeded with semi-structured interviews among nine purposefully selected respondents to understand the quantitative results in greater detail. The follow-up interviews focused on two aspects of the statistical results: maladaptive influence of multiple orientation and the adaptive influence of performance orientation in L2 learning. The paper closes with implications for research and language teaching.

The Influence of Learners’ Motivation and Attitudes on Second Language Teaching

Learners’ motivation and attitudes have great impact on the second language learning and teaching. This thesis first introduces the theories concerning learners’ affective factors and then gives a brief definition of motivation and attitude .In order to reveal the co-relation between motivation and attitude of language learners and the second language teaching, the research designs two questionnaires to investigate the students’ learning attitude and the attribution for success or failure. Through discussion of the two surveys, the teaching tips in respect of a learner’s motivation and attitude are recommended with the purpose of eliminating students’ negative emotional reactions as well as developing students’ autonomous learning abilities. In summary, this paper intends to improve the teaching effect by means of exploring the influences that a learner’s motivation and attitude bring about to foreign language teaching.

Teachers’ perceptions of the influence of learners’ undisciplined behaviour on their working life and of the support of role-players

Unacceptable behaviour by learners in South African schools is a major concern for all stakeholders in the teaching profession. This explains the increased interest in the role and responsibility of teachers in managing problem behaviour and the effect of this behaviour on educators’ quality of life in the workplace. This research posed the following questions: Does inappropriate student behaviour affect teachers’ working life, and if so, to what extent? Is the prevalence of undisciplined behaviour higher amongst boys and in multicultural schools? What is the influence of learners’ disruptive behaviour on teachers? How do teachers experience support from role-players? A questionnaire was used to obtain information for answering these questions. Although the findings of this research indicated that not all teachers experience excessive emotional reactions that may contribute to stress, it appeared that undisciplined behaviour was the source of irritation, made demands on teachers’ temper and caused aggression. The majority of teachers reported that they enjoyed sufficient support from the school’s governing body, but they were not satisfied with the support from parents and the department of education. In spite of the high percentage of teachers who indicated that undisciplined behaviour impacted on their job satisfaction, the majority do not consider leaving the teaching profession.