Turkish EFL Learners Research Articles

L1 and L2 Summarizing Strategies Used by EFL Learners

This study aims to explore the frequency and effectiveness of summarization strategies used by Turkish EFL learners in both their L1 and L2 processes. Some 80 participants completed a self-report questionnaire and a summary writing task in both languages. Results revealed moderate use and effectiveness of summarization strategies in both processes, with positive correlations found between the use of certain strategies and summary criteria. These findings highlight the importance of teaching a variety of strategies to improve summarization performance in both L1 and L2 processes. The transferability of L1 summarization skills to L2 is also emphasized.

Assessing Tertiary Turkish EFL Learners’ Pragmatic Competence Regarding Speech Acts and Conversational Implicatures

Pragmatic competence is an indispensable component of communicative competence, which plays an essential role in human communication. When an individual is communicatively competent, he/she can carry out an effective conversation in social situations. Therefore, pragmatic competence establishes a compelling factor in English language learning as it permits second/foreign language learners to carry out successful conversations in real-life interactions outside the classroom atmosphere. The improvement of foreign language learners’ pragmatic competence will strengthen their communicative competence. The purpose of this paper is to assess foreign language learners’ comprehension of conversational implicatures by using a multiple-choice discourse test (MCDT) and their performance in a discourse completion test (DCT). Through the use of a quantitative analysis, 54 adult learners of English at C1 and B2 levels of proficiency defined by the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) in a university in Cyprus were tested on their use of implicatures and speech acts. EFL learners were more successful in the MCDT regarding the comprehension of formulaic and idiosyncratic features but received lower results in the DCT. As well as testing the proficiency level, this study was also designed to investigate the difference between the gender performances of the DCT and MCDT. The results revealed that there is no statistical significance between the male and female respondents in terms of pragmatic competence. Based on these results, the role of teaching pragmatics in EFL classrooms portrays a major aspect for a sustainable learning environment. Thus, the paper also illustrates suggestions for future research.

YouGlish as a pronunciation resource: Voices from turkish EFL learners

YouGlish as a pronunciation resource: Voices from turkish EFL learners

Black Lives Matter in an EFL speaking class

Abstract Critical pedagogy in ELT mainly aims to encourage learners to address current sociopolitical issues and speak up for change. Thus, encountering a real-world issue might aid in deconstructing a given order of discourse found in the textbooks and gaining a more realistic perspective. This reflective study was conducted at a Turkish university and is based on a participatory approach in which the teacher-researcher and sixteen learners collaborated to develop a mini-syllabus to discuss the American racial movement Black Lives Matter (BLM). Five themes (historical background, activism, current events, media, and online platform) regarding BLM were identified to encourage meaningful action as well as develop oral skills. The outcomes show that the learners voiced their ideas freely in a democratic setting and worked to extract specific lexical phrases. This study brings the topic of BLM into Turkish EFL learners’ setting and invites EFL learners to create meaningful action.

The correlation between EQ and Verbal IQ: The case of Turkish EFL learners

Verbal or linguistic intelligence is one of the types of intelligence that can be vital to acquiring both spoken and written language as well as using language to accomplish goals. The study can be categorized as a survey-based correlation study that sought to examine the relationship between two variables, namely, the verbal and emotional intelligence of learners, using gender as the moderator variable to demonstrate how gender differences affect the relationships between two dependent variables. 120 intermediate EFL male and female students from the Tokat Gaziosmanpasa ELT department's relevant classes held in the fall semester of 2022 were initially chosen to participate in the study. The Bar-On Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire's domestic version's items were administered to the subjects. According to the results of the present study, there was a strong positive and significant correlation between the verbal and emotional intelligence of male learners, indicating that participants with higher emotional intelligence levels appeared to be better language users and more effective communicators. Keywords : Emotional intelligence ; intelligence ; IQ ; linguistics.

Digital Storytelling in an Online EFL Course: Influences on Speaking, Vocabulary, and Cognitive Load

Digital Storytelling (DS) is an alternative instructional tool for language teaching to make the relevant process more engaging through the use of technology and to facilitate effective language learning. This single case study explored the impact of DS in an online EFL lesson on speaking and vocabulary achievement in consideration to cognitive load effect. The study utilized mixed-design analysis strategies as quantitative tests (pre-and post-vocabulary test, speaking evaluation rubric, cognitive load scale) with 33 Turkish EFL learners studying at tertiary level who participated in an online English course and interviews with 21 volunteers. Quantitative findings revealed increased vocabulary achievement after DS use and improved English-speaking skills in terms of spoken grammar, vocabulary use, fluency and coherence, and pronunciation after repeated DS use in three stories, despite high level of cognitive load due to technical incompetency of the participants. In addition, the results obtained from the qualitative data match with the results of the quantitative data in terms of positive evaluations on the impact of DS for vocabulary use, error correction, sentence formation, pronunciation, and self-study. DS can also be effectively used in online EFL education by eliminating the drawbacks of students’ digital incompetency at tertiary level. The results of this study are expected to shed light on the practitioners aiming to use DS in online language learning for teaching speaking and improving vocabulary achievement.

Role of Morphological and Metalinguistic Awareness on Reading among Turkish EFL Learners

This study investigates the effect of morphological treatment on morphological awareness and reading comprehension skill in a foreign language teaching. Experimental design was used in this study which was conducted with 74 freshmen who are studying at Translation and Interpreting Department. Following the Oxford Quick Placement Test and Nation’s Vocabulary Knowledge Test, the participants were divided into two groups as experimental and control groups. Before starting the training process, both groups were pretested with ‘Morphological Correction Test (MCT)’ and ‘Reading Comprehension Test (RCT)’. Following the completion of the pre-test, the treatment period of experimental group for 2 semesters started, while the control group completed the same exercises and studies without focusing on the morphological awareness. Behind the training, post-test study was applied to both groups and the differences were analysed. According to the results, the experimental group outperformed the control group in MCT and RCT. In other words, the morphological awareness of the experimental group increased efficiently; in addition to this, their reading comprehension skills developed as well. Besides, it can be said that the participants benefited effectively and consciously from the explicit training period of morphological awareness and this helped them improve their metalinguistic capacity.

Modeling skill-based foreign language learning anxieties as a single construct and testing its predictive aspect on foreign language classroom anxiety

The aim of the current study was two-fold: i) to investigate whether four skill-based foreign language anxiety scales used in the literature can be confirmed as a single construct, and ii) to explore to what extent this potential single construct can explain foreign language classroom anxiety. The participants included 385 Turkish EFL learners in a university context and data collection instruments were four skill-based anxiety scales and the foreign language classroom anxiety scale (FLCAS). The results of the correlated traits and second order analysis revealed that four skill-based anxieties were confirmed as a single scale, referred to here as the skill-based foreign language learning anxiety scale (SB-FLLAS), measuring a latent variable, foreign language learning anxiety (FLLA). In addition, the SB-FLLAS explained these four anxieties with a high predictive degree on the FLCAS at 88%, demonstrated through structural equation modelling. The current study presents this new practical scale, which could be used in the measurement of skill-based anxieties, and suggests several practical and research implications for foreign language anxiety.

A growing dilemma: English speaking anxiety-in-EFL classrooms: A review of research

The current study aims to discuss the current situation of research on speaking anxiety of EFL learners through some variables. The journals indexed in various databases were searched and 59 studies were selected for the review by considering (a) the participant selection process of the studies (b) the main causes of speaking anxiety in EFL classrooms (c) whether there is any difference according to some variables including level of proficiency, gender, and English learning background (d) how the participants perceive themselves in terms of speaking anxiety. It was found that the number of studies on speaking anxiety has been on the increase in the last decade. When it comes to the causes of speaking anxiety in the bunch of studies, the foremost and most reported cause of speaking anxiety is learners’ fear of making mistakes, being compared by others, proficiency level and gender type. As speaking one of the four skills to communicate in any language, it is important to find solutions to these questions and enhance the development of the EFL learners’ speaking skills. The findings yield important insights on Turkish EFL learners speaking anxiety in English for all the stakeholders ranging from teachers and learners. In addition, it is hoped that, from the sociological perspective, this paper will pave a way to rethink and criticize the local context in countries which do not include oral exams in their national standardized testing system and mandate receptive skills.

Beliefs about language learning and context: A case study of Turkish EFL learners at a Northern Cyprus University

Recently, the role of context as a determining force in shaping the beliefs and perceptions of language learners has been brought to the forefront in many studies. Although the language learning beliefs of Turkish students in the context of Turkey have been adequately investigated, lesser attention has been paid to the beliefs of Turkish students studying abroad. Thus, by adopting a mixed-method approach, the current study attempted to examine the learners’ beliefs of Turkish students in the context of Northern Cyprus. For this purpose, both quantitative and qualitative data were collected on a group of 56 Turkish-second language learners in the context under the study. The fındıngs indicated that Turkish students have varying beliefs toward language learning in the context under the study, which also varied from those of the Turkish students in the context of Turkey underscoring the dynamic, complex, and context-dependent nature of beliefs about language learning. Keywords: Beliefs; context; language; language learners; perceptions.

Collaborative Writing on Google Docs: Effects on EFL Learners’ Descriptive Paragraphs

Google Docs has recently been suggested as an efficient collaborative tool for group writing. This experimental quantitative study, including pretest-treatment-posttest design, aimed at comparing the effects of collaborative writing on Google Docs and individual writing practice on EFL learners’ descriptive paragraphs. The participants were 48 Turkish EFL learners at pre-intermediate level of proficiency, based on their performance on Oxford Placement Test. The participants were assigned to two groups. One group, including 24 participants, experienced collaborative writing on Google Docs plus researchers’ comments as feedback (CWGD group). The other group, including 24 participants, experienced individual writing practice plus researcher’s direct corrective feedback (IWP group). The results of the independent samples t-test indicated that the CWGD group significantly outperformed the IWP group. In conclusion, collaborative writing Google Docs environment can enhance the writing skill of the EFL learners. Therefore, the study highly recommends utilizing collaborative writing on Google Docs to practice English language writing skill.

INVESTIGATING THE COMPARATIVE EFFECTS OF SUSTAINED SILENT READING, ASSISTED REPEATED READING, AND TRADITIONAL READING

This quasi-experimental study aims to investigate the effects of Sustained Silent Reading (SSR), Assisted Repeated Reading (ARR), and Traditional Reading (TR) instructions integrated into an EFL reading program on EFL reading comprehension, silent reading rate, reading motivation, and attitudes toward EFL reading, by also addressing the potential effect of proficiency level. Adopting a mixed-method pretest-posttest research design, this 10-week study was conducted with mixed-proficiency university-level Turkish EFL learners divided into three experimental groups. A method incorporating 150-minute SSR or ARR instructions into the 150-minute intensive reading instruction in two groups was implemented, as compared against a TR group that received 300-minute traditional intensive reading instruction weekly. Data came from a reading comprehension and rate test, reading motivation questionnaire, participant reflections, and interviews. Findings indicated that SSR yielded significant benefits for reading comprehension of both low and high-proficiency participants. Moreover, SSR and ARR showed positive effects on intrinsic reading motivation, whereas TR contributed slightly to extrinsic reading motivation. Regarding the possible effect of proficiency, while SSR yielded more advantages for higher-proficiency learners, ARR and TR were comparatively more beneficial for lower-proficiency learners. Implications for pedagogy and future research for university-level EFL reading classes are discussed.

Sources of Turkish EFL Learners’ Foreign Language Reading Anxiety

The purpose of this study was to investigate possible sources of reading anxiety experienced by Turkish EFL learners. The participants of the study were 50 first year university students studying at the English Language Teaching program of a public university in Turkey. The study employed the explanatory sequential mixed methods design. First, the quantitative data were collected through Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale (FLRAS), and then the qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews for the purpose of better understanding quantitative data findings. For analyzing the quantitative data, each participant's mean score from FLRAS was computed. As for the qualitative data, the transcribed interviews were analyzed using the constant comparison method, for which the researcher identified the recurring themes through coding, prioritizing and connecting the pieces of data. Results indicated that the participants of the study, in general, experience a moderate level of FL reading anxiety. The following three main categories of FL reading anxiety sources were identified with their ten sub-categories: (1) personal factors (inappropriate reading strategy use, lack of self-confidence, high expectations), (2) features of the reading text (topic familiarity, unknown vocabulary, complex reading structure, text length, figurative language), and (3) reading course (compulsory reading, exam).

Sources of Turkish EFL Learners’ Foreign Language Reading Anxiety

The purpose of this study was to investigate possible sources of reading anxiety experienced by Turkish EFL learners. The participants of the study were 50 first year university students studying at the English Language Teaching program of a public university in Turkey. The study employed the explanatory sequential mixed methods design. First, the quantitative data were collected through Foreign Language Reading Anxiety Scale (FLRAS), and then the qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews for the purpose of better understanding quantitative data findings. For analyzing the quantitative data, each participant's mean score from FLRAS was computed. As for the qualitative data, the transcribed interviews were analyzed using the constant comparison method, for which the researcher identified the recurring themes through coding, prioritizing and connecting the pieces of data. Results indicated that the participants of the study, in general, experience a moderate level of FL reading anxiety. The following three main categories of FL reading anxiety sources were identified with their ten sub-categories: (1) personal factors (inappropriate reading strategy use, lack of self-confidence, high expectations), (2) features of the reading text (topic familiarity, unknown vocabulary, complex reading structure, text length, figurative language), and (3) reading course (compulsory reading, exam).

Cross Linguistic Influence: The Case of Adjective and Preposition Collocations

The impact of previously learned knowledge on newly learned knowledge has long been recognized and named as interference. Interference in language is the influence of a previously learned language on any target language. Named as language transfer, this notion may render the learning process harder for the learners and results in fossilization in some cases. Thus, researchers and language teachers should consider this influence and find ways to repair the damages it might cause. In order to provide the field with a study that analyses the effect of cross-linguistic influence in terms of Turkish EFL learners, this study attempts to pinpoint English adjective-preposition collocation that may induce language transfer by utilizing a test that assesses the aforementioned type of collocation knowledge of 291 Turkish EFL learners. The findings have revealed that; indeed, some collocations result from language transfer and a list that contains transfer inducing collocations have been presented.

Üst bilişsel Dinleme Farkındalığı Ölçeğinin Türkçe Uyarlama Çalışması

It has been acknowledged that the role of metacognitive awareness in foreign language learning is significant as it includes monitoring and regulating cognition to complete a task in a foreign language successfully. The metacognitive awareness of foreign language students has been investigated to understand and provide evidence for a better understanding of language acquisition process in line with four main language skills. In particular, the relation of metacognition with listening skill has been investigated with Vandergrift et al. (2006) with a scale which is one of the reliable and valid instruments. Since the scale was developed in English, its implementation in the Turkish context required the necessity of translation and adaptation into Turkish language. Therefore, the aim of this study is to adapt the Metacognitive Awareness Listening Questionnaire to Turkish and provide reliability and validity results. To this end, 344 Turkish EFL learners participated in the study. The results showed that the scale had one-factor structure and worked better with 3 items (3rd, 8th and 16th) omitted. The final version of the Turkish version yielded reliable and valid results for future references and implementation in the field.

Investigation of collocational priming in tertiary level Turkish EFL learners’ mental lexicon

Much research in EFL context investigated language use of the learners in terms of lexical combinations but failed to recognize collocations in terms of psycholinguistic framework. Inspired by Lexical Priming Theory, the current study both emphasizes that collocations are not only textual but also psychological phenomena and underlines that non-native-like language use by EFL learners may stem from the fact that collocations are not mentally represented as a single unit in mental lexicon. Thus, a lexical decision task was designed where the participants were asked to classify the words flashing on their screens as words/ non-words. Reaction times concluded that verb-noun collocations are not primed in the learners’ mental lexicon. Mixed effects modelling analysis demonstrated the frequency of the prime words in collocations had a significant effect in the process. The findings were discussed in the light of vocabulary acquisition theories, and suggestions were provided for further research.

The Effect of Using De-contextualization and Semi-Contextualization Teaching Techniques on Turkish EFL Learners’ Vocabulary Learning

We are now surrounded by information from television, the internet, and digital media. Multimedia connects us to diverse languages and civilizations. The usage of a variety of forms of multimedia has a number of advantages for foreign language acquisition. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which using television programs and subtitled television shows as semi-contextualized strategies aids vocabulary retention during language acquisition. This research was performed at a Turkish government university. The teacher divided the classes into two experimental groups ranging in age from 18-20. The research began with the administration of a pretest. Then, the newly concentrated terms were taught using two distinct teaching techniques: decontextualized and semi-contextualized instruction. The study was conducted during a semester in 14 sessions. After teaching the new terms using the two strategies, an instant post-test was conducted at the end of sessions. A delayed post-test was conducted three sessions later. Following that, the participants' scores were statistically examined. The study's findings indicated that there were no significant differences in vocabulary teaching strategies between semi-contextualized (TV program) and decontextualized (board monitoring). It should be emphasized that the researchers, as English teacher, anticipated differences between two strategies (preference for semi-contextualized technique) based on their own teaching experience.

The Effect of Semantic Context and the Task Types on Turkish EFL Learners Use of English Articles: A Comparison of Pre-Intermediate and Intermediate Level Learners

The Effect of Semantic Context and the Task Types on Turkish EFL Learners Use of English Articles: A Comparison of Pre-Intermediate and Intermediate Level Learners

Turkish EFL learners’ interpretation of metaphors

Abstract This study investigated Turkish EFL learners’ conceptual socialization in terms of their interpretation of English metaphors in three categories; a) conceptually and linguistically similar, b) conceptually similar, linguistically different, and c) conceptually and linguistically different metaphors. Data were collected through sentence level and situation-based tests. Learners’ responses were analyzed by comparing them to the native English speakers’ (NES s). Findings indicated that Turkish EFL learners could only benefit from the situational information when the metaphors were either conceptually or linguistically similar, and their performance differed very much from NES s in terms of correct interpretation of the metaphors. These results underline EFL learners’ lack of exposure to target culture and interaction with native speakers and thus the importance of non-native English speaking teachers (NNEST s) in EFL contexts as the most valuable source of the target language conceptual system.