The Effects of Receptive and Productive Learning Tasks on EFL Learners’ Knowledge of Collocation and Meaning (original) (raw)
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English Language Teaching, 2011
This study attempts comprehensively to investigate the effect of form versus meaning-focused tasks on the development of collocations among Iranian Intermediate EFL learners. To this end, 65 students of Mashhad High schools in Iran were selected as the participants. A general language proficiency test of Nelson (book 2, Intermediate 200A) was used to measure their general language ability. Moreover, a teacher-made collocation test was implemented to examine the participants' collocation knowledge. Participants were divided into: form-focused instruction group (FFI), meaning-focused instruction (MFI) group, and a control group. The FFI group performed dictogloss task (DT) which focused on both target items and meaning. The MFI group assigned communicative task (pair /group discussion task) which did not required attention to the target items. The control group is designated as the Conventional Group, simply to reflect the fact that they did not receive focus-on-form instruction but rather received combination of explaining collocation or new vocabulary and reading a text silently to mention its main idea or answer to comprehension questions. The results revealed the fact that FFI group (dictogloss task) significantly outperformed the other two groups on the collocation test.
An Investigation of High School EFL Learners' Knowledge of English Collocations
Journal of Applied Linguistics and Language Research, 2021
Vocabulary knowledge is an important tool for second language learners. Specifically, in order to communicate effectively, learners need to know collocations, a group of associated words. This study investigated Thai high school learners' receptive and productive knowledge of English lexical and grammatical collocations. Three hundred and fourteen participants, who voluntarily participated in the study, were given four different measures of receptive and productive knowledge of English collocations. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data and a correlational analysis was also used to examine the relationship between receptive and productive knowledge of English collocations. The results showed that Thai EFL high school participants had relatively weak knowledge of English collocations, but performed better on receptive collocational tasks than productive tasks. Indeed, Thai EFL high school participants' receptive knowledge of grammatical collocations appears to be acquired first, followed by receptive knowledge of lexical collocations, productive knowledge of lexical collocations, and productive knowledge of grammatical collocations. A correlational analysis also revealed that receptive and productive collocational knowledge were interrelated. Taken together, these findings are consistent with previous studies showing that, like vocabulary, receptive collocational knowledge is acquired before productive collocational knowledge. This study provides insights into vocabulary acquisition and development along the receptive and productive continuum. Future research would benefit from longitudinal studies designed to examine more precisely this developmental continuum.
Although it is widely acknowledged that collocations play an important role in the field of second language acquisition, a number of previous studies have reported students" lack of collocational competence and the difficulties they encounter in learning and using collocations. The present study examines the productive and receptive knowledge of lexical and grammatical collocations among advanced Arabic-speaking learners of English. Furthermore, it investigates whether the language environment (ESL or EFL) has an influence on the acquisition of collocations. It also explores whether there is a significant difference between participants" performance on three types of collocations: verb-noun, adjective-noun, and verb-preposition.
An Investigation into the Developmental Patterns of Lexical Collocation among Iranian EFL Learners
Applied Linguistics Research Journal, 2019
It is commonly accepted that collocations are of utmost importance in the field of L2 acquisition. However, EFL/ESL learners' deficiency in knowledge of English collocations along with the trouble they encounter in learning and using them is well documented. Furthermore, it is not clear which pattern of lexical collocation (adjective + noun or verb + noun) exerts more degree of difficulty on learners. Therefore, the current study investigated the Iranian EFL learners' (N=56) receptive and productive knowledge of collocations in one hand and tried to analyze the degree of difficulty each pattern of lexical collocation (adjective + noun or verb + noun) brings to bear on learners, on the other. To measure the learners' knowledge of lexical collocation, the authors constructed, validated and used a 100 test, consisting of 50 multiple-choice and 50 blank-filling collocation items. Pearson correlation along with a series of pairedsamples t-test was run to analyze the data. The findings of the study showed that 1) the participants' receptive and productive knowledge of collocations are not significantly related to each other, 2) their productive knowledge of collocations lagged far behind their receptive knowledge of collocations, and 3) the participants' performance were similar on the two patterns of lexical collocation tested. The findings of the study suggest the need for a broader view of knowledge of collocations and adopting a pedagogical approach to the teaching and learning of this important aspect of L2.
The Effects of Vocabulary Learning on Collocation and Meaning
This study investigates the effects of receptive and productive vocabulary tasks on learning collocation and meaning. Japanese English as a foreign language students learned target words in three glossed sentences and in a cloze task. To determine the effects of the treatments, four tests were used to measure receptive and productive knowledge of collocation and meaning. The results showed that both tasks led to sig-nifi cant gains in knowledge with little difference between the size of the gains. When participants were grouped according to level, the productive task was more effective for higher level learners, and the receptive task was more effective for lower level learners. Mean scores on the productive tests were slightly higher for both tasks on the test of meaning than on the test of collocation. However, the fi ndings indicate knowledge of collocation may be acquired at a rate similar to that of meaning, and that tasks which focus on collocation, as well as meaning, may be effective.
The Impact of Corpus-Based Collocation Instruction on Iranian EFL Learners' Collocation Learning
Universal Journal of Educational Research, 2014
Over the past decades, studies of EFL/ESL vocabulary acquisition have identified the significance of collocations in language learning. Due to the fact that collocations have been regarded as one of the major concerns of both EFL teachers and learners for many years, the present study attempts to shed light on the impact of corpus-based collocation on EFL learners' collocation learning and awareness. 60 Iranian EFL learners, who participated in this study, were chosen randomly based on their scores in an OPT exam. There were two groups, experimental and control ones. The study examined the effects of direct corpus-based collocation instruction on EFL learners' collocation learning. For 15 sessions the control group received single-item vocabulary or, the usual work of their class and the experimental group received lexical collocation instruction as treatment. The same test as post-test was given to the learners when the treatment accomplished, and after that a t-test and kolmogorov-smirnov test between the pre-tests and post-tests were calculated. According to the results demonstrated by the statistical program, the effectiveness of the treatment was noticeable. This study suggests that direct corpus-based collocation instruction can be a worthy alternative. It demonstrated that the learners, who were in the experimental group, got aware of the existence of collocations, used them and learnt them properly, and they also started to find the collocation of every other word, which they learnt during the term, by themselves because the treatment appealed to them.
THE EFFECT OF COLLOCATIONS ON AZARI TURKISH EFL LEARNERS`READING COMPREHENSION
Collocation is one of the most problematic areas in second language learning and it seems that if one wants to improve his or her communication in another language s/he should improve his or her collocation competence. Unfortunately, almost no study has been done in terms of its efficiency among three levels including elementary, pre-intermediate and intermediate. The present study aimed at investigating the effect of teaching collocations on Turkish EFL learners`reading comprehension and its efficiency on elementary, pre-intermediate and intermediate level. For this purpose, 60 students were chosen from English institutes at elementary, pre-intermediate and intermediate levels. Their level of English proficiency was determined on the basis of their scores on a proficiency test. Three intact classes were randomly selected as the experimental group. Due to proven collocation effect on student reading ability, control group was not included in this study. Results of one-way ANOVA indicated that there isn`t any significant differences among the three groups. The findings of the current study shed light on the effect of teaching collocation on EFL learners reading comprehension. The result of this study can be used to inform ESL\EFL teachers and researchers interested in improving their students collocation and have doubt which level in much more effective. The finding that participants in this treatment groups achieved collocation knowledge in all three groups may encourage teachers and researchers in the ESL\EFL field to teach collocation in all three level with confidence that students can benefit from that. INTRODUCTION Vocabulary and grammar are both indispensable aspects of knowledge that second language (L2) learners need to acquire. The importance of vocabulary in communication cannot be iignored, as emphatically stated by Wilkins (1972) without grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed .The primary concern of L2 vocabulary has largely been single, orthographic words, and Moon (1997) claims that it is natural to focus on the word as the primary unit when discussing vocabulary knowledge, and that dictionaries give an aid to reinforce this focus. It is clear that knowing many words is a merit for all language learners. However, certain learner categories need to attain native-like command of an L2. As a result, especially for advanced learners, e.g. university-level students, teacher students, translators and other professionals, possessing a large vocabulary per se is simply not enough. This has been pointed out by Wray (2002) to know a language you must know not only its individual words, but also how they fit together. Thus, in order to be able to communicate effectively, in addition to knowing many words and their more frequent, core meanings, learners must acquire knowledge
The Effects of Teaching Lexical Collocations on Speaking Ability of Iranian EFL Learners
Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 2013
The present study aimed at a) investigating the effect of teaching collocations on the speaking ability of EFL Iranian Learners, b) examining the relationship between the participants' knowledge of collocations and the participants' use of collocation taking into consideration, and c) finding out participants' attitude towards teaching collocations. To this end, after administrating the Quick Placement Test (QPT), 40 intermediate L2 learners were selected out of 80, and assigned to two experimental and control groups. For pretests, collocation test and collocation interview were run. Then, Collocation in Use was taught to the experimental group as a treatment. After collocation instruction, another collocation test and interview were conducted on both experimental and control group. The result of paired sample t-test showed that the participants' speaking ability in the experimental group significantly improved in posttest. The analyzed data also revealed that after the collocation instruction in experimental group the participants' performance in interview increased too. Moreover, the result of ANCOVA displayed that the participants had positive attitudes towards explicit instruction of collocations. This study has theoretical and pedagogical implications in the field of foreign/second language teaching and learning. It can be considered as a solution for language teachers, constantly searching for the better ways to train native-like speakers.
Examining ESL Learners’ Knowledge of Collocations
International Journal of Applied Linguistics and English Literature
It is generally agreed that collocational knowledge is an important language form for language learners in order for them to be proficient and fluent in the target language. However, previous studies have reported that second language (L2) learners lack collocational competence and they encounter difficulties in learning and using collocations. The present study not only investigates the overall collocational knowledge of Malaysian ESL learners, but more specifically, their productive and receptive knowledge of lexical and grammatical, which so far have not been further explored. Additionally, the ESL learners’ performance on three different types of collocations: verb-noun, adjective-noun, and verb-preposition is also investigated. Results of the study reveals a few interesting findings with respect to the Malaysian ESL learners’ overall knowledge of collocations, in particular their productive and receptive knowledge of collocations in relation to the three different types of coll...
Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 2013
Words do not co-occur haphazardly and in fact lexical patterns are different. This difference in the lexical patterning causes potential problems in speaking. The present study intends to see if receiving treatment on the use of lexical collocations affects the pre-intermediate EFL students speaking proficiency. To achieve this aim, 50 pre-intermediate students of Iran Language Institute, Ahvaz branch were chosen and divided into two groups. In the instruction period of ten sessions, the experimental group received instructions on five common lexical collocation patterns such as Verb+ Adverb, Noun+ Verb, Verb+ Noun, Adverb+ Adjective, and Adjective+ Noun. Both groups took the same test before and after the treatment to measure their knowledge of collocation patterning. They also participated in a speaking task to assess their use of lexical collocation and overall oral proficiency. Results showed that the instruction of lexical collocation had a positive effect on the learners speaking proficiency and a moderate effect on their use of lexical collocations. This suggests that receiving instruction on the use of lexical collocation patterning can be effective in the enhancement of EFL students' language skills, specifically, their oral proficiency.