Purpose of the study: This study was aimed at investigating the students’ attitudes and perception toward the use of Duolingo in Learning English Methodology: A mixed-method design ...(quantitative-qualitative) was employed in this study. 60 undergraduate students of Syiah Kuala University participated in this study. They were chosen by using purposive sampling techniques. In obtaining the data, questionnaires and interviews were implemented in this study. In the question area, there were 16 close-ended questions adapted from Yang (2012a) and Garcia Botero and Questier (2016) designed using the Likert scale method. Besides, 3 interview questions were asked to 10 chosen students to deeply reveal their perception in using the Duolingo. Main Findings: The result indicated that most students have a positive perception of the use of Duolingo in learning English (Mean=4.0). This study has found that students view Duolingo as a useful and helpful application and a motivational tool in learning English. One of the more significant findings to emerge from this study is the inconsistency between the students’ perception and their acts in using the application. Their positive view on the use of Duolingo was contrary to the fact that they are lacking time in using the application. Applications of this study: This study is intended to shed some lights on how the students perceive their experiences in learning English after using the Duolingo as a part of their out of class engagement. Novelty/Originality of this study: The students’ motivation to learn English outside of the classroom can be enhanced through the use of the Duolingo in mobile phones.
The present study examined the effect of mobile assisted language learning (MALL) on Iranian EFL learners' idiom learning and perceptions of classroom activities. To do so, this study was carried out ...in six classes at Imam Reza International University in Mashhad, Iran. The participants included 114 BA students of Teaching English field. The present study was quasi-experimental that utilized a mixed methods research design. It contained a control group with 45 participants and an experimental group with 69 participants. MALL for teaching idioms via Telegram was considered as a treatment in experimental group. In the present study, Telegram app was chosen because the researcher, the teachers, and the participants had similar experience of using this app. Pictures, texts, audio, and video files, were used as the materials in teaching idioms. Students’ Perceptions of Classroom Activities scale designed and validated by Gentry and Gable (2001) and translated into Persian and validated by Ghanizadeh and Jahedizadeh (2015) was used for assessing students’ perceptions of classroom activities (interest, choice, joy, and challenge). Twelve students in experimental group sat for an interview which was audio and video recorded. In the interview sessions, students were asked about the experience of informal learning in this research, the materials used, pros and cons toward the channel and MALL. The results demonstrated the effectiveness of mobile phone usage in enhancing EFL university students’ idiom learning as well as in students’ perceptions of classroom activities with the highest differences observed in challenge and joy perceptions. The results of the qualitative phase were also in line with those of the quantitate phase.
This study aimed to examine the factors that potentially impact the self-directed use of mobile English learning resources (MELR). The participants were 206 Chinese undergraduate EFL learners at ...Yangzhou University in Mainland China. Applying and modifying the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), this study involved six constructs, including students’ performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, perceived playfulness, and behavioral intention to use MELR. The structural equation modeling (SEM) technique was adopted to analyze the data collected from the questionnaire. The findings showed that facilitating conditions acted as the most significant predictor of behavioral intention to adopt MELR, followed by effort expectancy, perceived playfulness, and performance expectancy. However, social influence did not have significant effects on students’ use of MELR. Pedagogical implications for teachers and students were also presented in the end.
Traditional L2 pronunciation teaching puts too much emphasis on explicit phonological knowledge ('knowing that') rather than on procedural knowledge ('knowing how'). The advancement of ...mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) offers new opportunities for L2 learners to proceduralize their declarative articulatory knowledge into production skills more efficiently through systematic practice. Within the framework of skill acquisition theory, and using a mixed-methods design including production tests, articulatory awareness quizzes, and a semi-structured interview, this study aims to investigate the effectiveness of using an augmented reality (AR) filter app during pronunciation practice to improve Chinese L2 students' segmental production and articulatory awareness of the targeted English consonants (dark/É«/,/ð/and/θ/), and their attitudes towards this application. The experimental results indicate that the app with AR technology, facial detection technology, and digital zoom technology played a positive role in promoting students' segmental production and raising their articulatory awareness. The interview results show that the AR filter helped to alleviate the learners' speaking anxiety and embarrassment related to interacting with the teacher for corrective feedback, and encouraged daily practice by providing more fun. Combining all the qualitative and quantitative results, we conclude that an AR filter app can offer academic, psychological, and social support for L2 pronunciation skill learning.
The use of technology in language learning has been going on for a long time. Many technological characteristics are currently utilized in language learning as a result of the rapid growth of ...technology. MALL is one of them. This study aims to review integrating MALL in English language teaching (ELT). The study employed a systematic review checklist as a method. Findings suggest that MALL has a good impact on students' English language development, which leads to positive outcomes, according to the overall findings. Parents, teachers, and students expressed an interest in promoting MALL in ELT. Teachers were enthusiastic about MALL and felt that it could be utilized to teach English. MALL also had a positive influence in educational contexts, with students enthusiastic about utilizing it in English classes. They also believe that MALL provides them with numerous benefits when performing their tasks. Due to the challenges teachers and students encounter in applying and using MALL in ELT, such as psychological, pedagogical, and technical limits, stakeholders are expected to develop solutions and policies to achieve effective technology-oriented learning in ELT. Keywords: Systematic review, MALL, ELT
This study investigated the benefits of Mobile Instant Messaging (MIM) through an analysis of grammatical, lexical and mechanical accuracy as well as syntactic complexity in second-language learners' ...writing. A WhatsApp group was created where 80 Spanish students taking a B1 English course participated in a daily interaction during six months. A quasi-experimental research design with an experimental and control group and a pre-post test was followed. Students were divided into two main groups according to treatment type with 40 students in each group. This research focused on the interaction in the application and attempted to measure, through a qualitative and quantitative analysis, the students' degree of writing development. The ratios of lexical, grammatical and mechanical errors as well as error-free clauses per clause and error-free T-unit per T-unit indicated significant differences between the control and experimental group in terms of accuracy. Nevertheless, measures of syntactic complexity together with lexical diversity were not conclusive as the independent parameters for syntactic complexity showed no significant differences between the two groups. WhatsApp constitutes a powerful educational tool to encourage second language interaction among participants and its tremendous potential to activate students' involvement remains one of the least exploited functionalities of mobile phones.
This study examines the relationships among intrinsic motivation, critical variables related to technology adoption, and students’ behavioral intention in mobile-assisted language learning (MALL). To ...test the hypothesized model through a path analysis, 169 survey responses were collected from undergraduate students who were foreign language learners of English in a Chinese research university. The results indicated that although intrinsic motivation did not have a direct influence on students’ behavioral intention in MALL, it had a positive influence on students’ behavioral intention through the two intervening variables, perceived usefulness and task technology fit. Perceived ease of use, however, was not associated with students’ behavioral intention directly, nor was it predicted by intrinsic motivation. The findings suggested proper instructional design that is aligned with and supports the language learning task was important to increase students’ behavioral intention to adopt mobile devices for language learning.
This research aims to examine students' perceptions of the benefits and constraints of using Virtual Interpreting Practice (VIP), a mobile-based virtual reality application for bi-directional ...English/Chinese consecutive and sight interpreting learning that was developed within the project. Thirty-one Chinese university students participated in an in-depth interview. Based on a thematic analysis, six main types of benefit were identified: (1) interpreting and language proficiency, (2) authentic and immersive interpreting practice, (3) learning flexibility and effectiveness, (4) learning experience, (5) cognitive development and (6) affective development. While some constraints relating to functionality and design were identified, the students generally perceived VIP as a useful tool for improving both interpreting and language competencies, facilitating situated and simulated learning, increasing learning opportunities and efficacy, creating a joyful and ubiquitous learning experience, enhancing independent learning and critical thinking as well as boosting their motivation and confidence.
Focus on forms (FonFs) is a pedagogical approach in Instructed Second Language Acquisition (ISLA) that emphasizes students' conscious and direct attention to learning target language features in ...isolation and outside their meaningful context. FonFs has been employed extensively in foreign language vocabulary instruction, and earlier studies reported positive results for such interventions. The present study investigated mobile-assisted FonFs in the context of English for Academic Purposes (EAP) to address the vocabulary learning needs of Iranian EFL students and examined developments in receptive and productive knowledge of academic words. In doing so, the participants in the experimental learning condition (
= 22) were exposed to academic vocabulary using digital flashcards on their mobile phones, and those in the control group (
= 15) used word lists. The participants' vocabulary knowledge was tested using different measures before and after the treatments, and the results were compared using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). The findings indicated that mobile-assisted FonFs was effective in receptive and productive vocabulary learning, and the experimental group outperformed the control group in the post-tests. The effect size of the observed differences was also large; however, differences in productive aspects of academic vocabulary knowledge were associated with smaller learning effects for mobile-assisted FonFs. The study contributes to the growing body of knowledge on mobile-assisted language learning and highlights some implications for teaching academic vocabulary
mobile-assisted FonFs.
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