• Title/Summary/Keyword: EFL Learners

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A Study on Examining Nursing Journal Abstract

  • Lee, Eunpyo;Shin, Myeong-Hee
    • English Language & Literature Teaching
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    • v.17 no.4
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    • pp.177-191
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    • 2011
  • This paper examines nursing professionals' English abstract to learn their preferences towards tense and voice choices. A total of 24 abstracts, completed reviews to be published by the editorial board members of the Korea Industrial Nursing Association, were analyzed for the study. Each sentence in the four parts of the abstract (Purpose, Methods, Results, and Conclusion) was examined and classified into active/passive voices, and present/past/present perfect tenses. Verbs were then further identified to see which ones were commonly preferred to state the objectives of the study, methods, and to draw conclusions. Hedging expressions in Conclusion were also examined. The results of the present study revealed that Purpose was mostly (79%) stated in the past tense with slight use (17%) of the present tense in the form of 58% active and 42% passive voice whereas Methods were dominantly (96%) illustrated in the past tense with preference of mixed active and passive voice. The Results were also preferably (92%) stated in past tense and Conclusion in both present and past tense. Verbs used by these nursing professionals seemed diverse; however, hedging appeared to be narrowly limited to a few expressions including suggest and should. More diverse English hedging expressions need to be taught at least college level writing so that the EFL learners and writers can have a better understanding of presenting statements in an appropriate level of caution, confidence, or uncertainty.

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Social Dimensions of Peer Interaction: Primary School Children Working with English Learning Software

  • Park, Heekyong
    • Korean Journal of English Language and Linguistics
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    • v.3 no.3
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    • pp.453-497
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    • 2003
  • The purpose of this study is to investigate social aspects of young EFL learners' interaction at the computer. Data were taken from the interactions of three pairs of fourth-grade primary school children who worked together on English learning software. Their interactions at the computer were videotaped and then all the talk produced by the students and the utterances emitted from the computer were transcribed. As for the analytical tools, the notion of ‘contextualization cues’ (Gumperz, 1982) and the concept of ‘positioning’ (Davies & Harre,1990) were employed. The analysis reveals that the roles of the students were not tied to a certain position, but rather dynamically changed during the course of interactive work according to the situation at hand. The dynamic changes in their positions were realized through various means; their capability in solving problems, their taking responsibility or assigning it to each other, or cooperation. There were also instances of peer teaching and motivated learning. In addition, the students showed autonomy in their learning activity. These findings suggest that both students in a dyad had their own place in performing task activities, contributing to solving problems and getting benefits from peer interaction. Furthermore, students' working together on English learning software may provide an environment which can promote cooperative attitude and responsibility for learning and enhance motivation and autonomy in their learning process.

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Korean EFL Learners' Reading Motivation and Their L2 Reading Behavior

  • Yang, Eun-Mi
    • English Language & Literature Teaching
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    • v.15 no.4
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    • pp.217-235
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    • 2009
  • This study aimed to explore how the Korean university students' reading motivation is related to their English (L2) reading behavior. The construct of the students' Korean (L1) and L2 reading motivation was investigated with the data obtained through the questionnaire from 120 sophomore students. A factor analysis was conducted to extract the major factors of motivation and determine the interrelationship among items in the questionnaire. As a result, 6 factors were extracted: Intrinsic Motivation for English Reading, Extrinsic Motivation 1 (Immediate Goal Orientedness), Extrinsic Motivation 2 (Integrative Orientation), Importance of L1 Reading, Intrinsic Motivation toward L1 reading, and Importance of L2 Reading Skill. The interrelatedness between the assessment results on the L2 reading behavior (reading amount, time and speed) and motivation factors was measured by correlation coefficients. It was found that Intrinsic Motivation toward English Reading was significantly related to the students' reading amount and Intrinsic Motivation toward Korean Reading had positive association with the students' reading time with statistical significance. Other factors did not show significant correlation with the students' reading behavior. In addition, the students' reading speed was significantly related to their reading amount as well, while reading time did not affect the speed gain.

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Individual Networks of Practice of EFL Learners at a Chinese University: Their Impact on English Language Socialization

  • Qi, Lixia;Kim, Jungyin
    • International Journal of Contents
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    • v.17 no.4
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    • pp.62-78
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    • 2021
  • This ethnographic multiple case study, based on Zappa-Hollman and Duff's construct of individual networks of practice (INoPs), explored English as a second language (L2) competence development and socialization process of a group of English-major undergraduates through their social connections and interactions at a public university located in an underdeveloped city in Northwest China. The study lasted for one academic semester and three students were selected as primary participants. Semi-structured interviews, student observations in English-related micro-settings, and associated texts were used to collect data. These data were coded to identify the thematic categories, and then data triangulation and member checking were conducted to select the most representative evidence to provide an in-depth description of students' perspective about mediating their English L2 socialization by their INoPs. Findings showed that factors in the formation of students' INoPs, including intensity, density, and nature, played significant roles in their academic or affective returns from their English learning, both of which had a substantial influence on the students' English L2 socialization. Considering that the macro-setting was a non-English, underdeveloped monolingual society, both educational institutions and individual students need to seek and create more English-mediated interactional opportunities to develop their English proficiency and adapt to local English learning communities.

Perceptions of preservice teachers on AI chatbots in English education

  • Yang, Jaeseok
    • International Journal of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
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    • v.14 no.1
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    • pp.44-52
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    • 2022
  • With recent scientific advances and growing interest in AI technologies, AI-based chatbots have been viewed as a practical learning aid for English language development. The purpose of this study is to examine preservice teachers' perceptions on the potential benefits of employing AI chatbots in English instruction and its pedagogical aspects. 28 preservice teachers majoring in English education were asked to use Kuki chatbots for a week with a guidance of a researcher and then report on their perceptions of AI chatbots in terms of perceived usefulness after use, applicability, and educational benefits and drawbacks. Emerging codes and themes were identified and evaluated using Thematic Analysis(TA) based on qualitative data from surveys and interviews. The findings show that six emerging themes were identified, encompassing perspectives on teacher, learner, communication, linguistic, affective, and assessment. The overall findings of this study revealed that AI-based chatbots can play a significant role as learning tools for stimulating interactive communication in a target language. Most preservice primary teachers acknowledge that AI chatbots can be useful as teaching and learning aids for both teachers and students. Furthermore, when applying various learner data to chatbot technology, such as learner assessment and diagnosis, a guided approach is necessary to perform a conversation appropriate for the learner's level and characteristics. Finally, as chatbots have a variety of benefits in terms of affective aspects, they may improve EFL learners' confidence in speaking English and learning motivation.

Development of a college English teaching and learning model in online synchronous/asynchronous platforms to enhance Competencies (실시간-비실시간 온라인플랫폼을 통한 역량강화중심 대학영어 교수-학습 모형 개발)

  • Lee, Myong-Kwan
    • The Journal of the Convergence on Culture Technology
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    • v.7 no.4
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    • pp.35-42
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    • 2021
  • The college English teaching-learning model in this study is intended to effectively apply dictogloss activities to enhance competencies such as communication, self-directedness, and cooperation by upgrading the utilization of various online platform functions. Dictogloss is a language teaching and learning activity that combines four functions (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) of communication. College English classes in this study focus on communication-oriented integrated English education. In this study, the teaching and learning is an online-based English integrated teaching-learning method based on constructivism theory. The model presented the roles of learners and teachers according to the seven procedures.

The Effect of Using WhatsApp on EFL Students' Medical English Vocabulary Learning During the Covid-19 Pandemic

  • Saud Alenezi;Elias Bensalem
    • International Journal of Computer Science & Network Security
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    • v.24 no.2
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    • pp.143-149
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    • 2024
  • The role of social networking mobile applications such as WhatsApp in enhancing second language vocabulary learning among English language learners continues to be a subject of interest for many scholars. The current study aimed at examining medical English vocabulary learning among undergraduate students using WhatsApp compared to learning vocabulary via the Blackboard platform during the Covid-19 pandemic. To this end, 108 medical students (51 males, 57 females) enrolled in a first semester English for a specific English course participated in the study. A quasi-experimental design was adopted for two groups. Fifty-three students participated in the WhatsApp group and 55 students formed the Blackboard group. A pretest-posttest design was employed to collect data. Results of t-test scores did not show a significant difference between the WhatsApp and Blackboard groups on a vocabulary test. Results of a survey that measured students' opinion of the use of WhatsApp as a platform for learning new vocabulary showed positive perceptions since participants thought that WhatsApp enhanced their learning experience.

A Model for Teaching Film Literacy through Movie English (영화영어를 통한 영화리터러시 교육방안)

  • Seo, Ji-Young
    • The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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    • v.21 no.6
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    • pp.779-790
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    • 2021
  • Film literacy comprises the process of producing a new creation through understanding the elements that make up a film, the content of a film, and a critical and creative thinking process. Film literacy is employed in fields such as composition, science, social studies, and geography, and, additionally, it is used to cultivate humanities literacy and critical thinking skills. Yet despite the large proportion of the film script in the movie, it is not easy to find literacy education cases that use film English as a teaching method. Film English is a practical and authentic material, and is suitable as an English learning material in an EFL context like Korea. However, the approach of using films to teach and learn differs according to the content and genre of a film. Thus, the teacher may have a difficult time organizing and preparing for class. This study suggests six class activities that can be commonly applied to English classes using films based on the areas of critical, cultural, and creative (3Cs) activities. Four hundred and five college students taking Movie English classes participated in the present study and frequency analysis was conducted to find out their preferences through a questionnaire survey. The results from conducting class activities in university liberal arts classes suggest that the most preferred activities of students are related to cultural, critical, and creative, in that order. Creative activities that are far beyond English instruction utilizing various digital tools or providing additional reading materials can be a burden on learners.

Understanding Language Learning Strategies, Language Learning Beliefs, and English Listening Achievement of Korean Undergraduate Students (대학생들의 언어학습전략, 언어학습믿음과 영어듣기성취 이해)

  • Cho, Hyewon
    • Journal of Digital Convergence
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    • v.16 no.3
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    • pp.37-45
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    • 2018
  • The purpose of this study was to understand language learning strategies use, language learning beliefs, and listening achievement of Korean EFL learners. The participants was sixty-nine university students who enrolled in blended learning classes for English listening. Data was collected and analyzed to see if there were any differences in strategies and beliefs between students who improved their listening test score and those who did not. The results showed that students showing improvement at the post-test used more language learning strategies and had a high level of motivation. Statistically significant correlation was found between motivation and strategies such as cognitive and meta-cognitive strategies.

Using Multimedia to Improve Listening Comprehension in the EFL Classroom

  • Park, Seung-Won
    • English Language & Literature Teaching
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    • v.8 no.2
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    • pp.105-115
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    • 2003
  • The four skills of a language are basically required for a communication. They are very important for a learner to develop the balanced language acquisition. Today both listening and speaking skills are emphasized in the global era rather than reading and writing proficiencies. The reason is really why the learners' communicative competence is more needed than the accurate knowledge of a structure in the language. For this reason, the listening comprehension should be taught effectively using the following strategies. First, the sound difference of a language must be taught. Language is a complicated process to convey the comprehensive meaning combined with the internal and external factors of a language. In other words, the meaning for the sound of language should be transmitted by the unit of vocabulary and syntax. Second, a good listening comprehension requires the familiarity and much experience with a lot of English words to understand English sentences unconsciously. Third, as understanding the structure of language is effective for the listening comprehension, the better listening comprehension can be possible through the meaningful exercise. Fourth, the compound process of listening comprehension requires the comprehensive understanding of language, but not the separate understanding of language. Fifth, the appropriate application of the multimedia courseware helps improve the listening comprehension better than that of the existing audio, video, tape recorder and so on. Using multimedia courseware is useful as follows: A learner is able to take as much lesson as he/she wants. It does take little time to repeat about what he/she takes a lesson. It gives the lively picture with the native speakers' voices. It gives him/her(a learner) a feedback effect continuously through the interaction of computer. It controls his/her lesson in accordance with the level of a learner.

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