• No se han encontrado resultados

Estudio de Transferencia de Lenguaje a través de Portafolios Electrónicos Orales en Estudiantes de Inglés como Lengua Extranjera

N/A
N/A
Protected

Academic year: 2020

Share "Estudio de Transferencia de Lenguaje a través de Portafolios Electrónicos Orales en Estudiantes de Inglés como Lengua Extranjera"

Copied!
88
0
0

Texto completo

(1)Running head: A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. A Study of Language Transfer through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. Jenyffer Rocío Estupiñan Benítez Francy Katherine Herrera Parra. Universidad Francisco José de Caldas School of Science and Education Licenciatura en Educación Básica con Énfasis en Inglés Bogotá D.C. 2015.

(2) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. A Study of Language Transfer through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. Jenyffer Rocío Estupiñan Benítez rochiesj@hotmail.com Francy Katherine Herrera Parra Kathe-0906@hotmail.com. Thesis director: Eliana Garzón. A thesis submitted as a requirement to obtain the degree Bachelor in Basic Education Majoring in English. Universidad Francisco José de Caldas School of Science and Education Licenciatura en Educación Básica con Énfasis en Inglés Bogotá D.C. 2015. 2.

(3) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 3. “La Universidad no se hace responsable de las ideas, ni del contenido del presente trabajo debido a que éstas hacen parte única y exclusivamente de sus autores”. Capítulo XV, artículo 177, Acuerdo Número 029 de 1988 del concejo superior de la Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas..

(4) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 4. We dedicate this research project to our families, our professors, and to all those who have helped us to achieve this goal. We thank them for their advice, understanding, love, and support in difficult times. Without them, this accomplishment would have not been possible.. Jenyffer Estupiñan Katherine Herrera.

(5) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 5. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. Firstly, we would like to express our sincere gratitude to our advisor Professor Eliana Garzón Duarte, for the continuous support of this study and related research, for her patience, motivation, and immense knowledge. Her guidance helped us in all the time of research and writing of this document. We could not have imagined having a better advisor and mentor for our study.. Besides our advisor, we would like to thank Professor Fabio Bonilla for his insightful comments, encouragement, and for enlightening us the first glance of research. In addition, we thank him for the hard question which incented us to widen our research from various perspectives.. We thank our students who later became the participants in this study, for their continuous enthusiasm and willingness to participate through the process. For all the fun and happiness they shared with us.. Last but not the least, we would like to thank our families: our parents and siblings for supporting us spiritually throughout writing this document and our lives in general..

(6) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. Note of Acceptance. Eliana Garzón Monograph Advisor _____________________________________. Fabio Bonilla Juror _____________________________________. 6.

(7) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 7. CONTENT. INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................................... 12 CHAPTER ONE: STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM ...............................................................12 Statement of the problem ............................................................................................................. 13 Research question ........................................................................................................................ 15 Objectives .................................................................................................................................... 15 Rationale ...................................................................................................................................... 15 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ...............................................................................17 Interlanguage .............................................................................................................................. 17 Language Transfer........................................................................................................................ 20 Oral Production ...........................................................................................................................22 Oral Electronic Portfolios ......................................................................................................... 24 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH DESIGN ...............................................................................27 Type of Study .............................................................................................................................. 27 Context ...................................................................................................................................... 28 Participants ................................................................................................................................ 29 Role of the Researcher...............................................................................................................29 Ethical Issues………………………………………………………………………........……..30 Unit of Analysis ..........................................................................................................................31 Data Collection Techniques.........................................................................................................31 Data Collection Instruments…..................................................................................................... 32.

(8) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 8. Validity .................................................................................................................................... 35 Reliability ................................................................................................................................ 36 CHAPTER FOUR: INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN .......................................................................38 Vision of Learning .....................................................................................................................39 Vision of Language ....................................................................................................................41 Vision of Classroom ..................................................................................................................44 Approach …….………………………………………..…………………......…..........................45 Methodology..................................................................................................................................46 Language Focus ............................................................................................................................49 Pedagogical Implementation .........................................................................................................50 Teachable Question .......................................................................................................................50 General Instructional Objective.....................................................................................................50 Specific Instructional Objective.....................................................................................................50 Instructional Unit .........................................................................................................................51 Assessment …………………………………………………...……………………....….....……54 CHAPTER FIVE: DATA COLLECTION AND ORGANIZATION.............................................55 Data Interpretation .......................................................................................................................56 Data Analysis ..............................................................................................................................57 Phonological Transfer................................................................................................................. 58 Lexical Transfer .......................................................................................................................... 59 Syntax Transfer ………………….……………………………………………………………...63 CHAPTER SIX: FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS .................................................................70.

(9) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 9. CHAPTER SEVEN: LIMITATIONS AND FURTHER RESEARCH …………………….…..74 REFERENCES ………………………….…………………………………………..…………..77 ANNEXES ...................................................................................................................................80 ANNEX 1: Consent Letter ............................................................................................................80 ANNEX 2: Sampling Interval Chart..............................................................................................81 ANNEX 3: Teacher Journal ……..................................................................................................82 ANNEX 4: Lesson Plan ……....................................................................................................... 84 ANNEX 5: Assessment Chart…………………………….......……………………...…….…….87 ANNEX 6: Color coding example…………………………………………………...…….…….88.

(10) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 10. LIST OF FIGURES. Figure 1. First vs. Second Language Development……………….…………………..…………19 Figure 2. Data Collection Techniques…………………………………………………………....32 Figure 3. Date Collection Instruments …………………………………………...……….…......35.

(11) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 11. LIST OF TABLES Table 1. Traditional Assessment vs. Portfolio Assessment………………………...………….....25 Table 2. Instructional Unit……………………...……………………………………………......51 Table 3. Data Collection Schedule…………………...…………………………………………..55 Table 4. Categories and Subcategories…………………………………………….………….....57.

(12) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 12. Chapter One Introduction. Learning a foreign language requires acquiring a wide collection of linguistic components, which include but are not limited to vocabulary and grammar, as well as complex cultural and social dimensions, inherent to the native speakers of the language. Mastering the new language opens the doors to numerous opportunities to succeed in the world, but the path to become proficient in a second language is filled with all sorts of situations that could affect somehow the development of the process to become fluent. One of those situations is the transfer of language patterns from the native language (L1) to the target language (L2), which despite being a natural characteristic of the second language acquisition, causes difficulties in the communication when using the L2. In the recent years, language transfer has emerged as a very important area of study in second language acquisition. Therefore when we realized that the manifestation of language transfer in our English language students was highly strong, we decided to follow the interlanguage process, using oral electronic portfolios, as the tool to foster the use of the target language. This chapter presents the purpose and goal of our research study, the statement of the problem and, how and why this study took place. Consequently, it looks into discourse analysis and didactics of the English language, mediated by information and communication technology (ICT). The purpose of the study was to discover, understand and learn which types of language transfer are revealed through the use of oral electronic portfolios (OEPs), in EFL ninth graders..

(13) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 13. The goal was to search for answers on how an innovative pedagogical intervention based on the use of OEPs, evidences the language transfer phenomenon in ninth graders, at a public school. The issues that gave rise to this study are described in the following paragraph.. Statement of the Problem The present study emerged when we conducted a needs analysis in a public school, in Bogota, Colombia. It revealed that EFL students were not provided with opportunities to speak in the target language during the EFL classes. Thereby, this results in low proficiency regarding the students´ ability to speak effectively using English language. In addition, we observed that the classes were focused on writing and grammar activities, but there were nary chances for the learners to shape their oral production. As a consequence, the students had serious difficulties when asked to give an opinion or participate in a discussion. As it is well known, speaking is a key element in the communicative process. It is defined as an interactive process of constructing meaning that involves producing, receiving and processing information (Brown, 1994; Burns & Joyce, 1997). Unfortunately, this process was not successful in the EFL classroom, due to the impossibility of the students to utter a complete sentence grammatically correct, and comprehensible. In this order of ideas, it is important to highlight that speakers must be able to anticipate and then produce the expected patterns of specific discourse situations. They must also manage discrete elements such as turn-taking, rephrasing, providing feedback, or redirecting (Burns & Joyce, 1997). Nevertheless, the needs analysis revealed that those elements were completely absent in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classes. Furthermore, learners in EFL.

(14) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 14. classrooms should get as many speaking opportunities as possible, and their speaking time should slowly but steadily rise, so as to prepare them for various communicative situations. These opportunities were never given within the EFL classroom at the school where the study was conducted. Moreover, the students faced some other problematic situations. First of all, although there was a Language Resource Center (LRC), defined by the LRC project partners (2003) as: "... a center which provides services (including resources) and facilities for users in support of a specific goal or 'mission' related to language learning, teaching, applied linguistics or research into any of these areas.", it was not designed to support the development of the speaking skill, as it should do. In the center located at the school, students practiced grammar, reading, writing and listening, but speaking. We found an evident lack of activities designed to develop the oral production. On the second place, the curriculum was not designed to promote speaking. It was focused on the practice of grammar, writing and also but with less intensity, in listening. Therefore, we took action carrying out a research study which could be meaningful and contribute to shape students' oral production. Thirdly, the needs analysis showed that the learning activities carried out within the EFL classes were almost never related to students' real life, therefore, this situation led to a constantly demotivated learning atmosphere. Furthermore, the implementation of this research project also helped us to achieve our research goal, which was to answer inquiries about how an innovative pedagogical intervention, based on OEPs, could help ninth graders to shape their oral production. Consequently, we posed the following question:.

(15) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 15. Research Question Which types of language transfer are revealed through the use of oral electronic portfolios (OEPs), in EFL ninth graders? General Research Objective To analyze students‟ language transfer through OEPs. Specific Research Objective To identify and describe how the use of OEPs evidence language transfer in EFL students.. Rationale This research study was important to address because it contributed to improve the EFL learning process in the participants and in the school community in general. Due to the fact that its outcomes can be applied to EFL classes in other grades, it will help language learners, to shape their oral production. As teachers and agents of change, we implemented our study in order to help students to overcome the difficulty that they faced during the ESL classes, when required to express ideas through spoken language, and also to observe how OEPs affected the development of the students' oral production. Given the fact that the speaker's skills and speech habits have an impact on the success of any communication act (Van Duzer, 1997), this pedagogical implementation sought to have a positive effect in the students' learning process. By considering what good speakers do, which speaking tasks can be used in class, and which specific needs do the learners report, the researchers attempted to help learners to improve their speaking and oral competence..

(16) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 16. In the same way, through the implementation of OEPs, this study, aimed to help students to develop autonomy in their own learning process. Barootchi and Keshavarz (2002) and Nunes (2004) reported that portfolios encouraged EFL students to take ownership over their own learning and to engage in active reflection on the learning process, besides creating a favorable environment for the development of learner autonomy. Furthermore, this alternative assessment tool provided students with the opportunity to play an active part in meaningful communicative situations, ranging from simple imitation to conscious exchange and internalization of certain vocabulary items, pronunciation styles, grammatical points, communicative techniques, and at the same time, building strategies that will help them later on, when their English proficiency level will be in a higher level. Consequently, this study will bring benefits not just to our labor as teachers, but also as researchers. It will contribute to future research studies in our community and overseas, and in addition, it will be useful for other EFL teachers, who will be able to use and apply our pedagogical implementation in their classes, in order to improve oral production in the students. It is not a secret that many public schools face the same problematic described in this study; therefore, the present research study can help other schools to overcome similar difficulties..

(17) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 17. Chapter Two Literature Review. The purpose of the chapter is to present the constructs selected to work on this research proposal. Additionally, literature was reviewed so as to provide a justification for the topics selected to conduct the study reported on in this chapter. This chapter presents and illustrates the terms interlanguage, language transfer, oral production, and oral electronic portfolios, which are described and discussed, from the researchers' point of view, as well as from contributions made by important authors in language teaching, second language acquisition and oral communication.. Interlanguage As it is well known, the process of second language acquisition involves the development of communicative competence, which is constructed through a series of stages. Within those stages, there is a very important state where the target language (L2) is not fully acquired and thereby it is highly influenced by the first language: Interlanguage. This term was defined by Larry Selinker (1972) as a linguistic system evidenced when L1 learners attempt to express meaning in the target Language. This linguistic system encompasses not only syntax, morphology, and phonology, but also the pragmatic, lexical and discourse levels of the language. Additionally, Selinker (1972) introduced three main features of interlanguage, presenting the term as a permeable, systematic and dynamic system. In the following paragraphs, we will expand on each one of the characteristics. As it was mentioned before, the first characteristic is the permeability of the.

(18) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 18. interlanguage. In this feature, as Selinker stated, the learners' language system is permeable, meaning that the rules that comprise the learners' knowledge are not fixed, but are open to modification. In various aspects, many native languages, share this feature, in the sense that all language systems are permeable. Henceforth, interlanguage is different from the rest of the language systems in the permeability. The second characteristic describes interlanguage as dynamic, which means that it is constant change. Nevertheless, a learners' interlanguage does not move from stage to stage in a hectic way, instead, it slowly adapts the new acquired input to the target language system. This process occurs by introducing rule by rule, in specific contexts, and gradually extending it over a variety of linguistic contexts. The third one is that interlanguage is systematic. In spite of the instability of interlanguage, it is possible to detect the rule-based nature of the learner‟s interlanguage. The learner does not select accidentally from his store of interlanguage rules, but in predictable ways. Apart from the above mentioned characteristics, variability is another characteristic that cannot be neglected. At any one stage in his development, the learner operates according to the system of rules he has constructed up to that point. A crucial issue is why his performance is so variable. On one occasion he uses one rule, while on another he uses a different one. In an illustrative analogy about interlanguage, proposed by Tarone (1972), the author states that during the interlanguage state, the language learner can be seen as a chameleon. Its original green skin, represents the first language (L1), the color of the objective camouflage (tree trunk) represents the target language (L2). In this order of ideas, if the chameleon climbs on a tree trunk, it turns its skin into brown, which is the trunk color, but while it is changing colors, it.

(19) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 19. will still have a bit of green color, therefore its body will be a mixture of green and brown. That 'mixture' which is also the 'transition of color', represents the state of Interlanguage. In other words, it symbolizes the leap from the L1 to the L2. In addition we have decided to work with Saville-Troike's (2006) interlanguage definition, who defines interlanguage as a "transfer", meaning a transition that occurs when the learner uses his/her prior language L1 while learning the target language. The learning process that she defines is divided in three phases where we can find the process which L2 learners go through before having an effective communication (Multilingual competence) as well as a list with the major points of contrast between L1 and L2 learning process. These states are illustrated in figure 1. Figure 1. First vs. second language development. Taken from: Saville-Troike (2006). Introducing Second Language Acquisition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 17.. Thus, for the purpose of our study we decided to work with the intermediate states, which.

(20) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 20. cover all stages of basic language development. The first intermediate state, represented by the L1, includes the child grammar, maturation of the language, the input and the reciprocal interaction. Meanwhile, L2 includes language transfer, input, and the facilitating condition which involves feedback, aptitude, motivation, and instruction. Hence, these items are taking into account due to the fact that they facilitate students‟ interlanguage process in order to improve and enter the final state, which is the outcome of L1 and L2 learning, where students are able to differentiate both languages systems. Furthermore, Saville-Troike (2006) identifies two types of transfer: positive transfer and negative transfer. Positive transfer occurs when an L1 structure or rule is used in the target language and that use is appropriate or “correct” in the same. Meanwhile, negative transfer occurs when a L1 rule or structure is used in the target language and that use is inappropriate for that reason it is considered an “error”. In this process of transfer, the aspects of language involved are grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation.. Language Transfer According to Gass (1979), it is commonly known by both theoreticians and language teachers that when learners attempt to communicate in a second language, they often transfer elements of their native language, onto the speech patterns of the target language. Additionally, following Selinker (1966), an operational definition of language transfer can be given as a “process occurring from the native to the foreign language if frequency analysis shows that a statistically significant trend in the speaker‟s native language . . . is then paralleled by a significant trend toward the „same‟ alternative in the speaker‟s attempted production of the.

(21) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 21. foreign language sentences, phonetic features, phonetic sequences, etc.” At the same respect, Benson (2002), states that even though it is now generally accepted that language transfer occurs, it is a very complex phenomenon, "…which is not the only reason for error, nor does it always lead to error." Instead, it can lead to positive transfer when the two languages share areas that are identical or similar. It can also result in avoidance, when elements of the L2 do not exist in the L1, and additionally, it can promote different rates of development, as Benson (2002) states: "delay, when learners whose L1 contains a particular form spend longer at the stage of development than L1 learners whose L1 does not contain that form", or acceleration when both languages share common or identical features. Moreover, transfer occurs with a higher frequency in classrooms rather than in informal settings because outside settings do not provide enough opportunities for appropriate input and interaction. Furthermore, language transfer possesses some special characteristics. It decreases with proficiency due to the fact that in higher levels of communicative competence, the learner is closer to a native-like competence. Summarizing, language transfer is defined as the influence of the learner´s native language in the second language acquisition process. When the linguistic interference provides the learner with an accurate sentence or an appropriate use of the L2, it is called positive transfer. However, if the learner uses the L1 knowledge in the second language and this result in an error, this is a negative transfer. Finally, it is important to keep in mind that it occurs at all levels: phonology, syntax, lexis, pragmatics, and morphology..

(22) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 22. Oral Production As it is well known, speaking is fundamental for human communication. Although it is not the only means to deliver a message, it is the most used. For instance, let us think about all the different conversations people have during the day, compared to how much written communication the same people do during the day. In fact, in daily life, people speak more than they write, and that is why we decided, only for the purpose of this study, to give a strong emphasis to the development of oral production, and the interlanguage process faced by the L2 learner, relegating to a lower rank, the other known skills in acquiring a second language: reading, writing and listening. Regarding oral production, the Council of Europe (2001) distinguishes three types of activities: oral production, spoken interaction and oral mediation. With regard to the first type, it is stated that "oral production, occurs when speakers produce an oral text for one or more listeners, for example giving information to an audience in a public address. This may involve reading a written text aloud, speaking from notes, acting out a rehearsed role, speaking spontaneously, improvising […] or singing a song". And that is what we sought with this study, to help our students to produce effective oral communication. As a matter of fact, the goal of our teaching practices was to enable our students to communicate in English in an effective way. In the first place, it is imperative to get familiar with the term. Due to the broad number of definitions provided by different authors along the time, we decided to work with the ones that suit the purposes of our study, as well as the objective of our pedagogical implementation. Regarding this aspect, Nunan (1991) stated, "Success is measured in terms of the ability.

(23) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 23. to carry out a conversation in the (target) language". Unfortunately, in the specific case of the population in our study, this condition was not being developed, due to absence of speaking activities within the English lessons, which led to unsuccessful communication. In the same way, Rahman (2010), points out, "speaking is the mode of communication most often used to express opinions, make arguments, offer explanations, transmit information, and make impressions upon others. Students need to speak well in their personal lives, future workplaces, social interactions, and political endeavors. They will have meetings to attend, presentations to make, discussions and arguments to participate in, and groups to work with. If basic instruction and opportunities to practice speaking are available, students position themselves to accomplish a wide range of goals and be useful members of their communities". That is the reason why oral production is a key element for this project. We wanted to help our students to build a bridge between the English as a Foreign Language classroom (EFL classroom), and their real lives, in order to strengthen oral communication, due to the undeniable fact that shows how the product of their oral skills is required to facilitate effective communication. Furthermore, according to The National Capital Language Resource Center (2003-2004), "the goal of teaching speaking skills is communicative efficiency. Learners should be able to make themselves understood, using their current proficiency to the fullest. They should try to avoid confusion in the message due to faulty pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary and to observe the social and cultural rules that apply in each communication situation". Based on what was presented above, we decided to work with oral production seen as efficient communication, understood as the ability to deliver a spoken message, in a successful way..

(24) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 24. Oral Electronic Portfolios It is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the role of technology in education, for this reason, integrating technology into teaching is a great way for an educator to increase the effectiveness of their lessons and build a better understanding and at the same time a better relationship with their students. Taking into account technology and its roll in education we have chosen oral electronic portfolios, as a tool to develop the tasks. At this regarding, MacDonald, Liu, Lowell, Tsai, and Lohr (as cited in Huang & Hung, 2010), define electronic portfolios as "multimedia environments where students can showcase the artifacts and reflections that represent their growth and competencies. This electronic portfolio activities were developed supported on the task based learning method. Tasks were applied as learning activities. As Willis (1996) defines, a task is "a goal oriented activity with a specific outcome, where the emphasis is on exchanging meanings no producing specific language forms". In this sense the oral electronic portfolio becomes an evidence of students' self-reflection, showing students efforts, progress and their achievements (Paulson, Paulson, & Meyer 1991). Moreover electronic portfolios tasks in comparison with traditional tasks are meant to involve students, making them active learners as showing in Table 1, proposed by the National Language Resource Center (NCLRC, 2008). In this table, it is possible to observe a comparison between the traditional assessment and the portfolio assessment characteristics..

(25) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 25. Table 1. Traditional Assessment vs. Portfolio Assessment. Adapted from http://www.nclrc.org/portfolio/2-1.html Traditional. Portfolio. Measures student‟s ability at one. Measures student‟s ability over. time. time. Done by teacher alone; student. Done by teacher and student;. often unaware of criteria. student aware of criteria. Conducted outside instruction. Embedded in instruction. Assigns student a grade. Involves student in own assessment. Does not capture the range of. Captures many facets of language. student‟s language ability. learning performance. Does not include the teacher‟s. Allows for expressions of teacher‟s. knowledge of student as a learner. knowledge of student as learner. Does. Student. not. responsibility. give. student. learns. how. to. take. responsibility. Implementing and using electronic portfolios provides students with the opportunity of having control of what they want to say and record, which can motivate and allow them to create more autonomy while working on a task. Moreover, using electronic portfolios, as Lankes (1998) states, is understood as a process where there is a final outcome. The first step one is called the developmental portfolio which provides evidence of students' growth. On the second place we have the proficiency portfolio, which demonstrates mastery of a learning objective. Thirdly, the showcase portfolio provides a venue for showing one‟s most accomplished work; and finally, the planning portfolio, allows students to prepare for a future event. In our case, the students' portfolio was a project based on the learners' educational perspectives related to their life objectives..

(26) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 26. Electronic portfolios provide teachers and students several numbers of advantages over other more traditional assessment. E-portfolios are easy to store, access, and transport. We as teachers are able to listen to an audio assignment numerous times, for instance, unlike during a face-to-face interview. Students are greatly motivated to use and create an electronic portfolio due to the fact they create a sense of ownership that comes with selecting the portfolio‟s contents according to the task, in our case, a reflective view about education after finishing high school..

(27) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 27. Chapter Three Research Design. This chapter describes the design of the study, by stating the type of study we used, as well as the context, the participants, the role of the researcher, the unit of analysis, the instruments and techniques, and how validity and reliability were handled during and after the study.. Type of Study This study was conducted using qualitative research. We consider qualitative research shapes our needs due to the fact that it can provide complex descriptions and information about the human side of an issue, in our case the main idea was to identify how students communicate in the target language by using correctly the grammar structures and the vocabulary. Moreover, by using qualitative research it is possible to produce more in-depth comprehensive information because it allows identifying and managing different variables inside the research. A good definition of this concept is provided by Key (1997), who defines the qualitative research as a process of gathering information for comparing, contrasting or making predictions. Based on our analysis of the problem, action research was selected as the approach to analyze the phenomenon. The main goal of action research is to determine ways to promote the development of our students lives (Mills, 2011). At the same time, action research contributes to the professional growth and development of our colleagues, and future studies. (Hensen, 1996;.

(28) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 28. Osterman & Kottkamp, 1993; Tomlinson, 1995). Context This research study was carried out at a public school in Bogota, Colombia. It was specifilly conducted in ninth grade. The school's mission states: " La IED está inspirada en el pensamiento liberador que promueve la formación integral de la mujer en la autonomía, creatividad, responsabilidad y análisis crítico de la realidad , que les permita plena participación con calidad y calidez en todas las esferas de la vida, mediante procesos de cooperación en la enseñanza-aprendizaje con base en las competencias educativas orientadas a desarrollar su proyecto de vida para participar activa y eficazmente en todos los ámbitos de nuestra sociedad.. Its vision is: " En el año 2015 la IED será una institución líder en procesos de enseñanzaaprendizaje cooperativo y modelo en la formación de mujeres con calidad humana, autónomas, críticas, responsables, creativas e independientes; capaces de usar el conocimiento y las habilidades adquiridas en el desarrollo empresarial, dominio básico del inglés y aplicación de tecnologías en la construcción de su proyecto de vida que le permita pleno liderazgo para adoptar decisiones políticas y desempeños eficientes en todos los espacios de la vida y así trabajar por el bienestar de la comunidad y contribuir en la transformación de la sociedad". From the observation of the physical learning environment we found that, even though the chairs and desks within the classroom were in good shape, the classroom was very small for the number of students attending the subject. The room was not provided with any multimedia device, and all what the students had, as interactive resource, was the board..

(29) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 29. Participants This research study was conducted at an official school with a target population of 38 students from which six girls were selected as the participants, using a systematic random sampling method. Their ages were between 14 and 17 years old. These six students were offered a consent letter for their parents or legal tutor, to approve their participation in this research study. A copy of this letter can be seen in Annex 1. We decided to use Systematic Random Sampling (SYMRS), in which Johnson and Christensen (2010) state that while it is truth that participants are selected from an ordered target population, the skip interval used to select the sample, ensures randomness. Detailed information about the selecting process is presented in Annex 2. In this particular case, participants were organized in a list which includes 20 students who volunteered to participate in the study. From the 20 volunteers, we selected 6 participants by dividing the number of potential sampling units in the defined target population, by the number of units desired in the sample. The required skip interval was calculated using the following formula, adapted from Johnson and Christensen (2010):. Role of the Researcher In the present study, ethics were understood as the sense of right procedures within the research process. This means, we as researchers were motivated by the desire to respect and care about our participants, and also to be honest as humanly possible, accurate, nonbiased and.

(30) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 30. truthful in all phases of the study. Furthermore, we were committed not only to the participants but also to the data collection process, because as Stake (1994) observes, "Qualitative researchers are guests in the private spaces of the world" (p. 244), which suggests that we are intruders in the lives of our participants, and it is our responsibility to ensure their well-being.. Ethical issues In order to fulfill what was mentioned before, we based our codes of ethics on two issues: informed consent and confidentiality. Informed consent is described as "the provision of information to participants, about the purpose of the research, its procedures, potential risks, benefits, and alternatives so that the individuals understand this information and can make a voluntary decision whether to enroll and continue to participate" (Emanel et al. 2000, p 2703). A consent form was offered to the tutor and parents of our participants, given the fact that they are minors. In the same way, the institution where the study was conducted was informed about the research. In addition, confidentiality was based on the principle of respect for autonomy (Beauchamp & Childress 2001), and on the fact that individuals should have the right to "maintain secrets deciding who knows about them" (Israel & Hay 2006, p 78). In our study, confidentiality was crucial due the participants' age, and also to the fact that they are teenagers, which will affect their participation, if they feel they are being exposed. To ensure confidentiality we will not record the participants and we will not reveal their names or other confidential data. Finally, at the end of the study, we provided the participants and the institution with a fully copy of the research study and the findings..

(31) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 31. Unit of analysis The unit of analysis for this research study was the students' voices in relation to oral production, in terms of effective communication, which is understood as the correct use of grammar and pronunciation that the participants have while communicating in the target language.. Data Collection Techniques During the implementation of this study we used different techniques, in the light of Burns and Hood (1995), who provided us with a set of options, from where we selected: Document collection, understood as several sets of documents relevant to the research context. In our particular case, we collected, lesson plans, teacher's journals, classroom texts, and assessment tasks. These techniques helped us to keep a track of what the students produced in terms of oral skills, during the implementation of the present study. Interviewing, as stated by McNamara (1999), may be useful as follow-up to certain respondents to questionnaires, and further investigate their responses. The adoption of this technique helped us to observe and analyze the participants' English level of proficiency and how they used the target language. In addition, interviews were particularly useful to understand the participant‟s experiences, due to the fact that they made easier for us to pursue in-depth information around the topic. They were developed in a face-to-face manner, conducted as planned and unplanned interactions, where it was sought to explore the students' opinions and thoughts about the topics and tasks developed during the pedagogical implementation Observation which was used to watch and note classroom events, happenings and.

(32) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 32. interactions. Through this technique, it was possible for us to analyze different situations that emerged during the development of the pedagogical implementation, and that were key factors in the collection of data. Recordings, used to keep track of students' oral production, and also to record important situations occurred in the research and pedagogical context, in order to examine, analyze and interpret what emerge as relevant data for the study.. Figure 2. Data collection techniques. Document collection. Recordings. Data collection techniques Freeman , D (1998). Interviews. Observation. Instruments In accordance with the techniques explained before, the instruments used to gather data were carefully selected, in order to make possible for the researchers to collect the most important event and situations which could possibly lead to answer the research question, stated.

(33) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 33. previously. Thereby, we focused on the use of the following instruments: oral electronic portfolios, teachers' journals, transcriptions, and finally, audio and video recordings. Oral electronic portfolios have been in use for some time, especially in teacher education programs (Wilhelm et al., 2003). Early portfolios served as a means of providing a central location or collection point for traditional paper files, videocassettes, etc., which means they contain all the students' production coming from a task or the classroom itself. However, in the current research study the main idea was compiling and analyzing the students' voices and effective communication coming from a specific task. To do so, we planned a pedagogical intervention developed for the period of six weeks, with a frequency of two days a week, during the students' EFL class schedule. At the beginning of each class, we would deliver an EFL lesson, applying Task Based Approach with a communicative focus. The final task of each class was recorded in each student oral portfolio. At the end of every week, we collected the recordings and analyzed them, searching for relevant data, and also assessing the students' oral production, in order to provide them with meaningful and significant feedback. Therefore, in the week following the previous lesson, we would take some minutes of the class to give the students comments on their performance, followed by a group debriefing where general feedback was provided, based on data gathered from the oral electronic portfolios. Besides, some students were given the option to share with the group the tasks developed during the previous lesson. In that way, all students had an opportunity to use the target language to communicate with their classmates. Teacher journals were used as an account of teaching/learning plans related to oral production activities, and classroom occurrences, including feelings, reactions, reflections, and.

(34) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 34. observations, where the participants were protagonists. The journals were written at the end of each class, using notes and comments gathered through the session. Teacher journals were key instruments for this study because when seen as a reflective practice, they create opportunities that help teachers to think about their practices, their students, and the situations around them. This process often illuminates problems, misunderstandings, and confusions and helps determine new growth, independence, and responsibility for learning (Strong, Silver, and Perini 2001). (Annex 3) Transcriptions of students‟ recordings, as Freeman (1998) points out, are understood as written representation of verbal recordings, using conventions for identifying speakers and indicating pauses, hesitation, overlaps or any necessary non-verbal information. In the present study, they were additionally used in order to identify speakers' oral production in terms of effective communication. We also used conventions and color coding to identify speakers' verbal and non-verbal information, which gave us important information for the analysis of the students' oral production while going through the interlanguage stage. The transcriptions were made after listening to the recordings that the participants saved in the oral electronic portfolios. Audio and video recordings were also used because recordings of verbal interaction occurred naturally within the EFL classes, and gave us the opportunity to access and examine the data over and over. As Freeman (1998) states, “one of the advantages of gathering data with video recording is the objective point of view”. These recordings were made in audio and video formats to make possible not only to listen but also to observe the class, in order to identify possible situations missed or left out,.

(35) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 35. during the observations and during the complexion of teacher journals. These recordings were made during the development of each class, and were analyzed twice before writing the teacher journals, in order to analyze important data that could have been left out. Figure 3. Date collection instruments. Oral electronic portfolios. Teacher journals. Data collection instruments Transcriptions of recordings. Audio and video recordings. Validity Validity was seen as the degree to which qualitative date accurately size what, we as researchers, try to measure. In the same way, for this particular study, validity represented how a test measures what it is intended to measure. Thereby, we established trustworthiness by addressing the credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability of the findings. In addition, we followed Maxwell's (1992) criteria for validity of qualitative research, in which the author proposes five main concepts to apply: descriptive validity, interpretive validity, concern for the participants' perspective, theoretical validity, generalizability, and evaluative validity. Moreover, the validity of the study was supported by Lincoln and Guba's (1985) criteria for validity of qualitative research: credibility, transferability, dependability and confirmability..

(36) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 36. Thus, we adopted the following strategies, in order to support validity in our study: Data triangulation helped us to collect data from multiple sources, such as interviews, questioners and others. As a result, the information obtained was more objective, which prevented us from including personal bias in the study. We used member checking, in order to include our participants in the analysis of the findings. To do so, we presented the information in a group session, where all the participants were able to share their thoughts and opinions, as well as to give us feedback on the preliminary and final findings. Collection of audio recordings to corroborate and double check situations and events that were relevant for the study, and to find pieces of information that otherwise, could have gone missing. Peer debriefing to ensure validity on our study, so we met with our mentors, tutors, and other fellow researchers in order to dialogue and discuss information regarding research decisions. This allowed us to have external point of views, as well as third party thoughts on our study. And audit trail to keep a detailed written account of all our research procedures.. Reliability In this study, reliability was seen as the extent to which our research findings could be replicated. In our particular case, the research findings can be reapplied due to the fact that several public schools face very similar problematic situations. Therefore, to enhance the reliability of our study, we adopted the following strategies: thick description, modal category and multisite designs. Furthermore, in order to ensure reliability, we used the following techniques: The investigator’s position: understood as assumptions and theory behind the study,.

(37) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 37. participants selection, and social context from which data were collected. (LeCompte and Preissle, 1993) Triangulation: use of multiple methods of data collection and analysis. Audit trail: description in detail about how data were collected, how categories were derived, and how decisions were made throughout the inquiry..

(38) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 38. Chapter Four Instructional Design. This chapter gives an account on how we implemented this project in a school in Bogotá D.C., during our pedagogical experience. This instructional design was created, in order to give a complete illustration of our visions of language, learning and classroom. Additionally we included the question and the objectives which addressed our work, and finally we explained the methodology and the instructional unit. To start, as it has been described before, we applied a learners' needs analysis, which revealed that ninth graders at this school were not provided with opportunities to speak in the target language during the EFL classes. Thereby, this resulted in a low proficiency regarding the students´ ability to speak effectively using English language. In addition, we observed that the classes were focused on writing and grammar activities, but there were no chances for the learners to shape their oral production. As a consequence, the students had serious difficulties when asked to give an opinion or participate in a discussion. As it is known, speaking is an interactive process of constructing meaning that involves producing and receiving and processing information (Brown, 1994; Burns & Joyce, 1997). Speakers must be able to anticipate and then produce the expected patterns of specific discourse situations. They must also manage discrete elements such as turn-taking, rephrasing, providing feedback, or redirecting (Burns & Joyce, 1997). Furthermore, learners in, an English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom, should get as many speaking opportunities as possible, and their speaking time should slowly but steadily rise so as to prepare them for various communicative.

(39) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 39. situations. The needs analysis also revealed that these opportunities are never given within the EFL classroom at the school. As teachers and agents of change, we implemented our study in order to help the students to improve the difficulties they had while communicating in the target language.. Vision of Learning It is well known that language learning is a mental process which cannot be observed in any direct or tangible manner. It is possible to observe the teaching procedures and learning activities, but not the process of learning itself. This situation involves consequences for the main participants of the learning process: teachers and learners (Tudor 2001). It is not a secret that teaching is a goal-oriented activity, and the goal is to create conditions which help students to develop the ability to use a language effectively, thus everything related to this activity (materials, activities, interaction, etc) has the purpose of support effective learning. The present pedagogical intervention observes learning from the experiential vision, developed by Tudor (2001). Let us begin by stating that it can be seen as learning by doing, and it is related to the naturalistic form of learning. It entails at least two main factors; the first one is the exposure to the target language as well as the exposure to fairly substantial amounts of input in the language. The second is the use of language for communicative purposes. In few words, it revolves around direct experience of the target language for communicative purposes, as a basis for learning. This type of learning vision rests on five main principles, which are described as it follows:.

(40) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 40. Message focus points that language learning activities should focus primarily on the processing and communication of messages, by promoting message conveyance and communicative practice as effective means of stimulating the learning process. Some common activities in this principle are role-play and simulation, which demand the student to assume certain communicative role and to use language in conformity with the interactive or functional criteria established by the role in question. Message focus is probably the most important single feature of an experiential view of learning because it asks learners to use the language to achieve goals or to share insights, as opposed to presenting the language as an object of study in its own right. Holistic practice involves the simultaneous manipulation of a variety of communicative parameters and levels of linguistic information, which reflects a multi-dimensional nature of normal communication. The centre point of learning is thus, the ideas which are to be conveyed or the task to be performed. The use of authentic materials asks for the use of contextualized materials which could be interpreted also as the use of real language. Krashen (1985) and Krashen and Terrel (1983) emphasize the importance of authentic input in language learning, pointing to the role which input plays both in child language acquisition and in naturalistic learning. The development of communication strategies aims to focus students' attention on message content, to help them to find themselves having to discuss messages within their existing knowledge of the language. This calls for the use of strategies by which learners can make the most of their existing resources. The use of collaborative modes of learning involves collaboration among learners.

(41) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 41. towards a shared goal. For instance, it uses drama production projects, which help the learners to maintain the interaction with others and also creates conditions in which productive learning conditions are likely to arise. In addition, it is important to take into account the experience in context, given the fact that what constitutes a personally meaningful "experience" of the language, depends on various aspects of context, of which the learners' habitual modes of study, also on their contact with attitudes to the target language and on their individual goals, among others.. Vision of Language For the present pedagogical intervention, language was seen from a functional perspective, in which Tudor (2001) states that "...language learners are social actors whose learning goals are defined by the contexts in which they will be required to use the language and the messages they wish to convey in these contexts". Given the results revealed after conducting a needs analysis in the school where the project was developed, it was found that students had serious difficulties when speaking in the target language. This situation unveiled a failure in the communicative competence in which Hymes (1972), places language within its social context as a means by which speakers in a community express concepts, values and perceptions that have a specific meaning to them as members of a speech community. That notwithstanding, was not reflected in the speech acts performed by our population, therefore, we have assumed language from a functional perspective, in which we sought to establish a pedagogical intervention that will enable learners to operate effectively within the relevant speech community..

(42) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 42. At the same respect Tudor (2001) mentions that, "The basic assumption in Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is that students are learning a language in order to be in position to do something in or with this language." Regarding this statement, it was found that, despite students at this school were learning English as a foreign language, they were not in position of using the language, and what is more, they were not able to use it in any specific context, when it comes to use the oral competence. Regarding the described situation, the adoption of language from functional perspective was necessary and pertinent for these courses. As Tudor (2001) points out, language is a means of accomplishing a number of pragmatic goals. Therefore, our course focused on the skills and functions which were more likely to be used by learners, in the target language. In order to develop the final project for this pedagogical implementation, the main target skill was speaking, although components of reading, writing and listening were included as well. On this basis, the target skill was developed and assessed in terms of a number of communicative functions such as greeting and introducing simple ideas, asking and answering basic questions, expressing thoughts and wishes in non-complex ways, describing by means of easy sentences, among others. Elements of vocabulary, grammar, and phonology were certainly included, in order to support and facilitate the use of the language, and therefore the strengthening of the oral production. To support the ideas above, it is important to mention that Tudor (2001) also affirms "The functional perspective on language and its expression in language teaching has a high degree of both intuitive plausibility and face validity. For many language learners, the language is first and foremost a means of achieving certain functional goals, e.g. reading specialist material, settling.

(43) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 43. in to a foreign country, or performing professional tasks such as answering the phone or providing information to customers". In regard to this statement, we found that the vision of language from a functional perspective is highly suitable for the purposes of the present pedagogical intervention, given the fact that in the Colombian context, English is taught as a foreign language. As a result of that, learners use English not as a tool to communicate in daily life, but as a tool to perform only specific tasks regarding the language. For instance, reading an academic text, playing a video game, or understanding a song, in the target language. In addition, English is taught most of the time, as part of the curriculum of the schools with no apparent meaningful purpose for the students, thus it has little relevance for the learners and thereby, leads to a lack of interesting in mastering the language. Within our pedagogical implementation, we sought to fill the classes with a meaningful purpose for the students, so the learning process became appealing and interesting for them. To do so, we implemented activities developed from a functional perspective of the language. We created a learning atmosphere in which students felt willing to engage in the target language (TL) activities, with genuine personal involvement, propitiated by a functional use of the language which contained a high degree of reality, in the students' minds. They were required to talk about their professional choice for their future life, using language elements of grammar, vocabulary and phonology, given during the development of the course. Furthermore, Tudor (2001) asserts that "the pedagogical response developed in mainstream CLT involves the practice of communicative oriented activities which are intended to bring the language and students' likely uses of it alive in the classroom". Considerations of this.

(44) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 44. nature are what support the connection we established between the communicative function of the language and contents with real life components, for the present course. Finally, and perhaps the most significantly reason why we used language from a functional perspective, was due to our vision of language as a means of communication, rather than a linguistic system. As a result of this perspective, we view the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom, as a communicative classroom. This vision will be immediately discussed in the next paragraph.. Vision of Classroom Regarding our vision of classroom, we adopted the communicative classroom, proposed by Tudor 2001, in which the author presents the language classroom as a place of communication where the target language is used as an instrument of learning, turning the classroom into a place of communication and a comfortable setting to develop communicatively-based learning. In addition, Tudor (2001) states that the goal of classroom for communication, is to make the classroom a meaningful training environment for real world communication. As a consequence, we adopted the communicative potential in the classroom, to transform the learning setting into a classroom for communication which observes the classroom as communication itself. This allowed the researchers to reinforce the link between the classroom learning and the real contexts where students are required to use the language. At the same respect, Tudor (2001) holds that the classroom needs to be seen as a 'social as well as pedagogical reality'. Meaning that while the formal function of the classroom is pedagogical, 'the way in which this role is understood and defined is influenced by a variety of.

(45) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 45. social agents'. Within this perception, the classroom is designed to create a condition where students can improve their ability in learning the target language, to use it for real communication. Thereby, communication is not something that happens in the outer world, but also a process which occurs in the social environment, which we call classroom (Tudor 2001).. Approach In Task-Based approach, learning is developed through performing a series of activities as steps towards successful task realization. By working towards task realization, the language is used immediately in the real-world context of the learner, making learning authentic. This approach puts the task to be completed during the language learning process. According to Willis (1996), a task is “an activity where the target language is used by the learner for a communicative purpose (goal) in order to achieve an outcome." In here, problems are given to learners to be solved using the target language as a task to be completed individually or collaboratively. The teacher facilitates the language needed to succeed the task. In this case traditional teacher-centered approach is thrown away since this approach will let the learners to be active in seeking the appropriate forms and in. It offers an alternative for language teachers. In a task-based lesson the teacher doesn't pre-determine what language will be studied, the lesson is based around the completion of a central task and the language studied is determined by what happens as the students complete it. The lesson follows certain stages. Pre-task The teacher introduces the topic and gives the students clear instructions on what they.

(46) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 46. will have to do at the task stage and might help the students to recall some language that may be useful for the task. The pre-task stage can also often include playing a recording of people doing the task. This gives the students a clear model of what will be expected of them. The students can take notes and spend time preparing for the task. Task Cycle During the task phase, the students perform the task, typically in small groups, although this is dependent on the type of activity. And unless the teacher plays a particular role in the task, then the teacher’s role is typically limited to one of an observer or counselor—thus the reason for it being a more student-centered methodology. Planning Having completed the task, the students prepare either a written or oral report to present to the class. The instructor takes questions and otherwise simply monitors the students. Report The students then present this information to the rest of the class. Here the teacher may provide written or oral feedback, as appropriate, and the students observing may do the same.. Methodology This instructional design was elaborated to help the participants, to improve their speaking skills, therefore to communicate effectively in the target language. To do so, the researchers implemented oral e-portfolios, based on a Task-based approach, combined with elements of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT), which supported the development of the speaking skill. In order to make the course more meaningful and appealing for the students, it.

(47) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. 47. was designed based on a series of mini projects which lead to a final project, about the professional career choice that the students made for their own lives. As it is known, Communicative language teaching is an approach that emphasizes interaction as both the means and the ultimate goal of study. That was the reason why it was selected as the basis for the theory of teaching in the current research. Additionally, this approach makes use of real-life situations that require communication. In it, the teacher sets up a situation that students are likely to encounter in real life. Unlike the audio-lingual method of language teaching, which relies on repetition and drills, the communicative approach motivates students by leaving them in suspense as to the outcome of a class exercise, which will vary according to their reactions and responses. The real-life simulations vary from day to day. Students' motivation to learn comes from their desire to communicate in meaningful ways about meaningful topics. Margie S. Berns, an expert in the field of communicative language teaching, states that "language is interaction; it is interpersonal activity and has a clear relationship with society" In this regard, language study has to look at the use (function) of language in context, both its linguistic context (what is uttered before and after a given piece of discourse) and its social, or situational, context (who is speaking, what their social roles are, why they have come together to speak)" (Berns, 1984). Richards (2006), also makes important contributions regarding Communicative language teaching. He states that communicative competence includes the following aspects of language knowledge: •. Knowing how to use a language for a range of different purposes and functions..

(48) A Study of Language Transfer Through Oral Electronic Portfolios in EFL Students. •. 48. Knowing how to vary our use of language depending on the setting and the participants. within the communicative situation. •. Knowing how to produce and understand different kinds of text, such as, narratives,. interviews and reports, among others. •. Knowing how to maintain communication by implementing different communicative. strategies, when there are limitations in one's language. CLT is usually characterized as a broad approach to teaching, rather than as a teaching method with a clearly defined set of classroom practices. As such, it is most often defined as a list of general principles or features. One of the most recognized of these lists is David Nunan’s (1991) five features of CLT: •. An emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction in the target language.. •. The introduction of authentic texts into the learning situation.. •. The provision of opportunities for learners to focus, not only on language but also on the. learning process itself. •. An enhancement of the learner’s own personal experiences as important contributing. elements to classroom learning. •. An attempt to link classroom language learning with language activities outside the. classroom. These five features are claimed by practitioners of CLT to show that they are very interested in the needs and desires of their learners as well as the connection between the language as it is taught in their class and as it used outside the classroom. In this light, any teaching practice that helps students develop their communicative competence in an authentic.

Figure

Figure 1. First vs. second language development. Taken from: Saville-Troike (2006). Introducing Second Language  Acquisition
Table 1. Traditional Assessment vs. Portfolio Assessment. Adapted from http://www.nclrc.org/portfolio/2-1.html
Figure 2. Data collection techniques
Figure 3. Date collection instruments
+4

Referencias

Documento similar

Astrometric and photometric star cata- logues derived from the ESA HIPPARCOS Space Astrometry Mission.

The photometry of the 236 238 objects detected in the reference images was grouped into the reference catalog (Table 3) 5 , which contains the object identifier, the right

In addition to traffic and noise exposure data, the calculation method requires the following inputs: noise costs per day per person exposed to road traffic

The objective of this study is to carry out a descriptive analysis in order to define and understand the concept of corporate social impact and analyze different methodologies

In addition, precise distance determinations to Local Group galaxies enable the calibration of cosmological distance determination methods, such as supernovae,

Cu 1.75 S identified, using X-ray diffraction analysis, products from the pretreatment of the chalcocite mineral with 30 kg/t H 2 SO 4 , 40 kg/t NaCl and 7 days of curing time at

Authors: Pedro Manuel Moreno-Marcos, Dánae Martínez de la Torre, Gabriel González Castro, Pedro J.. Muñoz-Merino and Carlos

Government policy varies between nations and this guidance sets out the need for balanced decision-making about ways of working, and the ongoing safety considerations