AEJ Special Edition December 2016 WIT Conference PDF

The Asian EFL Journal
December 2016
Special Edition
Women in TESOL International Conference
Senior Editors:
Paul Robertson and John Adamson
Production Editor:
Eva Guzman
December 2016 Special Edition
Published by the English Language Education Publishing
Asian EFL Journal

A Division of TESOL Asia Group
Part of SITE Ltd Australia
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Publisher: ELE Publishing

Quality Control and Good Governance: Dr. John Adamson
Production Editor: Eva Guzman
ISSN 1738-1460
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Table of Contents
1. Diah Kristina, Ph.D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 05-16

Branding Products and Services Linguistically
2. Santri E. P. Djahimo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17-30
Women Versus Men in Teacher’s Professional Development (A Case Study of the
Potential for Continued Professional Development for English Teachers in Rural
and Disadvantaged Schools in Indonesia)
3. Vanessa Petroj . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31-47
The Role of Native Languages on ESL Learning
4. Eunice Barbara C. Novio, MAWD / Josemari V. Cordova . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48-59
Gender Mainstreaming in EFL Learning: The Case of Vongchavalitkul University
5. Frances Shiobara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60-68
Where are All the Women?
6. Surti Nur Utami / Dwi Sulisworo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69-76
The Effect of Creative Reading Instruction: A Comparison of Technique between
Number Head Together (NHT) and Make a Match in Narrative Text at the Seventh
Grade of Junior Level
7. Ikhfi Imaniah / Aidil Syah Putra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77-89
The Strategy of Implementation of Bilingual Program of First Grade Students at
SD Islam Raudah
8. Huynh Ngoc Tai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90-106
Fostering Student-Writers’ Writing Self-efficacy with Wordle
9. Ratna Rintaningrum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107-119
Maintaining English Speaking Skill in Their Homeland through Technology:
Personal Experience
10. Martha Castillo Noriega / Mirna Romero Coloma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120-134
Regaining Leadership through Ontological Coaching for Female EFL Instructors
3
11. Hee Sio Ching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135-147

Direct vs Indirect indicators in Negotiation of Meaning among High Proficiency ESL
Learners: Gender Interaction
12. Xuying Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148-162

An Investigation of Teachers’Interpretations and Practice of Teaching Thinking
Skills in Chinese EFL classrooms
13. Kimberly Joy R. Villanueva . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163-172
The Bet, (A Pop Fiction): A Symbol of Achievement and Inspiration
14. Corazon Dauz Sampang, Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173-186
College Students' Essays: A Subject Analysis
15. Tanzil Huda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187-202
Gender-Based Communication Strategy
16. Yoko Kobayashi / Jitsuko Kitsuno . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203-212
Considering Professional Identity: A Case Study of a Female English Teacher
in Secondary Education
17. Rosalyn S. Herrera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213-268
Graphic Organizers as Effective Tools in Improving Reading Comprehension
in English
18. Mania Nosratinia / Niousha Nikpanjeh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269-292
Promoting Foreign Language Learners’ Writing:
Comparing the Impact of Oral Conferencing and Collaborative Writing
4
Title
Branding Products and Services Linguistically
Author
Diah Kristina, Ph.D.
Universitas Sebelas Maret, Solo, Indonesia
Bio-Profile:
Diah Kristina, Ph.D. is a Senior Lecturer at the English Department, Faculty of Cultural
Sciences. Her interests are English for Public Relations, Critical Discourse Analysis, and
Translation. Her current research is ‘Model of Persuasive English in the Online Promotion of
Tourism Destination in Central Java, Indonesia”. She can be contacted at
[email protected]
Abstract
The new paradigm of business has opened up a migration from industrially driven
economy to people driven economy. There is an obvious shift from rationality to feeling and
from objectivity to subjectivity. Consumer’s decision to purchase is strongly influenced by
emotional rather than logical consideration. With the use of technology, products and services
are connected to consumers on emotional basis in which the most compelling aspect of
human character namely, the desire to transcend material satisfaction and experience
emotional fulfillment is highly considered. The present small scale study aims at exploring
how this new paradigm of engagement between producers and consumers is realized
linguistically in advertorials, to what extent cultural notions contribute to the way the
producers communicate with their target consumers and how these insights are reflected in
their discoursal strategies. Besides, this study will also look at how the new millenium in
which chaos and unpredictability becomes a way of life, is perceived and then transferred
linguistically by making use of thought-provoking and innovative ideas in the promotional
discourse of the text producers. To achieve the objectives, eight advertorials of product and
services were scrutinized using an analytical lense of genre proposed by Swales (1990, 2000)
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and Bhatia (2004) and insights on branding from Gobe (2000). The textual and discoursal
analysis is informed by the four pillars of emotional branding advocated by Gobe namely
relationship, sensorial experiences, imagination and vision. The present study is expected to
be beneficial for the ESP, especially the teaching of business in English.
Keywords: emotional branding, genre, discoursal strategy, thought-provoking ideas
Introduction
In many occasions, the decision to buy something has been more emotionally driven than
logically done because “customers are thinking more with their heart or gut than with their
head” (Gobe, 2001:xvi). With that notion in mind, companies today begin to see the
importance of fostering a creative and caring business environment internally in order that the
employees are able to see the miracles of kindness and pass them on to their customers.
Sellers and buyers nowadays are engaged in a partnership basis in which the former reach out
the latter in a win-win relationship of which the issues of innovation, flexibility and cultural
relevance occupy the most significant position.
It is therefore crucial to put a set of clear and consistent features of the products and
services, a positive perception and concrete benefit that the customers and prospective
customers can obtain from these products and services. Those positive and beneficial mental
pictures should reside in the mind of the consumers to make them automatically remember,
mention, and be committed with the feeling of thrill, excitement and willingness to be loyal.
Unfortunately awareness on how to pass on the credentials and excellence of the products
and services when it comes to words and wordings seems to be low. Language as the
meaning bearer has not been used and functioned optimally resulting in the tendency to
describe and inform products and services rather than to promote them,to persuade and to
motivate people to pay attention to. The consequence is predictable; readers and viewers are
not interested and engaged with what is promoted let alone to purchase them as found by
Kristina (2015) in the online promotion of tourism destinations of Central Java, Indonesia.
The above mentioned phenomenon has urged the writer to write this article with the idea
to show that language can play much more strategic roles than just describing and informing.
With eight advertorials of cosmetics and body and skin care from in country and overseas, the
linguistic branding of those products and services are scrutinized and explained in terms of
language properties and discoursal strategies with some implications culturally.
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Branding and Image Building

Branding refers to a perceptual entity that is rooted in reality but reflects the
idiosyncracies of products and services. A brand resides in the minds of consumers (Kotler,
2001). Kotler further argues that a branding strategy is considered successful only when the
consumers have the answer to the questions related to particular products and services like
‘what the product/service does’, ‘who the product/service is’ and ‘why consumers should
choose that particular brand’.
In trying to respond to those questions, the answer should be strong enough to make
consumers believe that there are apparent significant differences in the products or services
provided by the brand than others. Argueably, a brand is a seller’s promise to deliver a
specific set of features, benefits and services consistently to the buyers.
In order to create a strong and impactful brand that resides in the mind of customers, the
Public Relations Officers (PRO) have to use the soul or DNA of the company as a milestone
to pass on a single message consistently and massively. From that starting point, they have to
think how would the reputation of the company is built and maintained by using verbal and
non verbal communication tools. In this context, reputation refers to the result of what you
do, what you say and what others say about you (PRA,1991:1, cited from Harrison, 2000:2).
A good and positive reputation requires trust from the consumers and eventually
credibility will be gained by the goods and services producers. An effort done to create trust
and credibility is called an image building effort (Kristina, 2011) and this attempt is carried
out by describing and claiming for excellence on a product or service, a state of being or an
achievement. An image building effort relies heavily on establishing credentials as the main
source of persuasion (Bhatia, 2004).
With respect to describing and claiming for excellence, a substantial description of a
product or service assists to establish trust. The description of what you do may take the form
of a descriptive address and a claim of excellence on the product, service, action or
commitment. Additionally, ‘what you say’ may mean any ideas, suggestions, or contributions
a company ever made with regard to what it produces in providing solutions to the existing
problems. While ‘what others say about you’ may take the form of a description about a
company made by customers or general public, the label and stigma they put on the company
and the company’s reputation that they acknowledge.
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Related Works and Their Relevance to the Current Work

Some works were found to be relevant with the current study, for example the work of
Purnanto (2002) on printed advertisements of used cars which made use of superlativism in
their strategies of persuasion by highlighting the good qualities of the promoted products
using specific lexical items such as ‘original body paint’, ‘excellent condition’, etc. Likewise,
Hajibah Osman (2005) did a study following Fairclough (1993) on the trend of
commercializing the academic products of the universities in Malaysia which was reflected in
their university brochures, Another work by Kusrianti (2008) on the grammatical cohesion in
the advertisements of Indonesian cosmetic products has a particular connection with the study
in question. In her study, she found that the promotion tools of cosmetics products employed
referential, elliptical and conjunctive cohesions. Page (2010) did a research on the linguistics
of self-branding and micro-celebrity in Twitter, especially the role of hashtags. This study
analyses the frequency, types and grammatical context of hashtags which occurred in a
dataset of approximately 92,000 tweets, taken from 100 publically available Twitter accounts,
comparing the discourse styles of corporations, celebrity practitioners and ‘ordinary’ Twitter
members. The results reveals that practices of self-branding and micro-celebrity operate on a
continuum which reflects and reinforces the social and economic hierarchies which exist in
offline contexts. Kristina (2011) studied the sales promotion letters and company profiles of
batik as a genre-set in the initial phase of formal business transaction of batik products. The
study concluded that the strong influence of the Javanese culture has made the profit making
orientation of batik business to be less explicitely stated. Besides, it showed very clearly how
the wider culture of the discourse community contributed to the framing and formatting of the
sales promotion letters and company profiles of batik in terms of lexico-grammar, cognitive
structuring, intertextuality and interdiscursivity. Chand and Chandery (2012) in their study of
advertisements using critical discourse analysis and semiotic analytical lense found that at the
face value, the advertisements were projecting notions of challenging the stereotypes related
with men and women. To add, they believe that the promotional texts have broken the old
norms and welcome the fresh ones embedded in stereotypical norms related to women.
Finally, the work of Kristina (2015) on the English online promotion of tourism destinations
in Central Java, Indonesia is also relevant to the present study. It addressed the rhetorical and
discoursal strategies in that online tourism promotion. She argues that a substantial
improvement is needed in the Indonesian online promotion of tourism destinations in order to
8
make them more persuasive and reaching out the audience with diverse verbal and non verbal
modifications and creativities for a more energizing and impactful language of persuasion.
Research Method
Particular sub-topics are set under the research method namely research design, data and
data resources, data collecting technique, data analysis, validity and reliability of data.
Research Design
The study in question belongs to descriptive-qualitative and explanative type of research.
Descriptive means that this research is an objective representation of phenomena investigated
by the researcher. The phenomena investigated were the macro and micro organizational
structures of cosmetic products and body and skin care services. The macro organizational
structure deals with the occurence of the main sections and their communicative purposes,
positioning of the segments (moves), and realization of the moves linguistically. In contrast,
the micro analysis covers the analysis of semantic components used in realizing the
communicative purpose of the texts under discussion and the branding strategies for image
building purposes.
Texts Used
The texts used were six online advertorials of cosmetic products and two online
advertorials of body and skin care services from domestic and overseas producers and
business practitioners. The cosmetic advertorials consist of L’Oreal Paris Revitalift, New
Pond’s BB Cream, Revlon Absolut Radiance+, The Body Shop, Mustika Ratu Biocell, and
Sariayu Martha Tilaar while the body and skin care advertorials are Impression Body Care
and Aluna Home Spa. The texts selected were considered representative in terms of strong
branding impacts (www.topbrand-award.com) of the products and services with relatively
loyal consumers.
Data and Data Resources
The data were words, phrases, clauses and sentences taken from eight online advertorials
of cosmetic and body and skin care brands retrieved from the internet in February 15, 2016.
Technique of Collecting Data
With regard to the nature of this study as a qualitative reaearch, explorations on the
phenomena taking place in the advertorial texts and contexts of the domestic and overseas
cosmetic and body and skin care brands lead to the techniques of collecting data as follows:
9
Content analysis refers to the data collecting techniques applied to online promotional
documents of cosmetic and body and skin care advertorials.
Direct observation was conducted by drawing insights from routine activities of the
researcher as a lecturer lecturing on printed and online public relations tools and media
relations communication.
Data and Data Analysis
The textual analysis of the data was informed by the genre analysis proposed by Swales
(1990) and the multi-dimensional approach introduced by Bhatia (2004).Textually, the eight
advertorials were scrutinized in terms of formulaic expressions and vocabularies, discourse
markers, rhetorical structures and discoursal strategies. Institutionally, the texts were seen as
media of engagement between the text producers and text consumers. Therefore, it is of great
importance to look at how the branding is realized into a specific set of features of the
products and services, the promise of benefits gained and services taylorly-made for the
consumers. The societal analysis is done by making some predictions and presumptions of
how the problems of old age in women is perceived and tackled differently as a consequence
of the text producer’s different cultural paradigms.
Validity and Reliability
Validity of the study is obtained from the fact that the sources of data were taken from the
internet with a title of advertorial set on top of each of the text, therefore they fulfilled the
face validity requirement. Besides, they were also triangulated in terms of different kinds of
data source and techniques of collecting them. Additionally, the reliability of the study is
achieved by making sure that the findings were consistenty relevant with the data collected
(Merriam, 1998).
Results and Discussion

Textually, establishing credentials is the most important discoursal strategy employed by
the advertorials (Table.1). Most of them identify this move explicitly, only The Body Shop
(TBS) does not have the move. Most probably TBS feels that their brand is strong enough
and has been widely recognized as a cosmetic producer who has a great concern to nature and
avoids the use of animal extracts and animal experiments.
Although stated implicitly behind the move of introducing the products, Revlon saw the
importance of establishing credentials as a strategic move to support their pressure tactics.
They even employ two moves of pressure tactics positioned at the initial and final parts of
10
their advertorial. Tipycally, pressure tactics is one of the most frequently found moves in the
western oriented promotional texts. However, in the last five years a stronger trend of using it
is more visible in Indonesian promotional prodcts. In this particular study, only Sariayu who
feels the need to employ the move of describing moral and cultural obligation. Likewise, in
the company profile of batik this move has been extensively used due to their strong
commitment to cultural preservation (Kristina, 2011).
In terms of branding the products linguistically, L’Oreal has been using the framework of
a cosmetic producer whose specific product (Revitalift) is the best weapon to combat lines
and wrinkles. Even, they promise that this revolutionary product provides a radical new
treatment because injections are no longer needed. The cultural paradigm as a conquerer to
the old age problems has been intensively used by L’Oreal in their dictions such as fight
against, weapon, revolution, radical new treatment and revolutionizing cream. Most
probably, this branding strategy is informed by the western values that nature-based problem
like lines and wrinkles should be solved with the attack and conquer approach. Ideologically,
the concept of good and attractive skin according to the text producer is the plumper and
young looking skin. The following table provides the distribution of moves and their
frequencies.
Table 1. Move structure of advertorials

No Name of Brand Kind of Business Move Structure
1. L’Oreal Product Establishing Credentials (2)
Motivating Prospective Customers (1)
Giving Pre-pressure Tactics (1)
Giving Pressure Tactics (1)
Soliciting Response (1)
2. Ponds Product Giving Pressure Tactics (1)
Describing Business (1)
Establishing Credentials (2)
Describing the Product (1)
Claiming for Advantages (1)
3. Revlon Product Giving Pressure Tactics (1)
Introducing the Product (1)
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Introducing the Preferred Product (1)

4. The Body Shop Product Describing Mission (1)
Identifying Advertorial Developer (1)
5. Mustika Ratu Product Backgrounding Information (1)
Biocell Provoking Customers (1)
Describing Business (1)
6. Sariayu Martha Product Backgrounding the Business (1)
Tilaar Describing the Event (1)
Describing Moral & Cultural Obligation
(1)
7. ImpressionsBody Service Describing the Business (1)
Care Centre Establishing Credentials (1)
Detailing Services (1)
8. Aluna Home Spa Service Establishing Credentials (1)
Describing the Business (1)
On the other hand, Mustika Ratu Biocell perceives the old age problems as a natural
phenomenon that should be accepted no matter whether we are happy or upset about it (suka
tidak suka..). They even invite their customers to stop complaining about it (berhenti
mengeluhkan masalah) and do something through intensive facial care for a softer (halus),
gentler (lembut), and brighter (cerah) skin and promotes skin regeneration. Again, cultural
paradigm offers different spectacles in looking at things. The eastern perspective has made
this cosmetic producer selects acceptance approach to naturally-driven old age problems like
lines and wrinkles. However, this perception does not stop them from encouraging consumers
to do something to slowdown that process of getting old using their cosmetic brands.
12
A different branding route is taken by TBS to gain public mental acceptance by

highlighting their commitment to natural resources conservation. Anyone who is aware of
saving the earth planet presummably will turn to TBS instead of others. Verbally, they
employ wordings like commited to seeking, sustaining natural materials, using planet
resources wisely. Another angle is used by Pond’s to pass on messages and promises through
their current product of New Pond’s BB Cream as an instant and perfect taylor-made skin-
care solution which is expertly designed on the basis of numerous studies. The notions of
being instant, perfect, taylor-made and scientifically processed and developed have been the
verbal grounds of branding for this cosmetic product.
Revlon Absolute Radiance+ apparently captures their consumers’ attention by claiming
for excellence in terms of innovation (inovasi skin care terbarunya), short term solution to
skin problems in only seven days in simple (mudah) and practical ways (praktis). Those
promises to consumers are verbally constructed as branding strategies based on different
values.
Sariayu Martha Tilaar employs a moral and cultural obligation perspective with a
historical angle to attract their audience’ attention. This cosmetic producer believes that profit
making orientation in business should also cater for obligations to the community. By
verbally showing moral obligation (mempunyai tanggung jawab pada masyarakat) and
cultural obligation (mengangkat citra budaya bangsa) and a strong track record historically
(dimulai pada 1987), Sariayu would like to occupy a specific mental acceptance in the
consumers’ mind. To ensure public support, they also add testimony from an influential
Indonesian artist and designer.
The two body and skin care businesses whose branding strategies are about to be looked
at, the Impressions Body Care Centre and Aluna Home Spa, have different values to be
communicated through their advertorials. The former seeks to be mentally perceived as
having some positive excelences in terms of completeness and modernity of facilities owned
(terlengkap dan paling modern), convenience (kenyamanan) and high quality of service
(mengutamakan pelayanan). Besides, they also are proud of their sophisticated and current
equipments imported from US, France and Germany. With that branding strategy, it can be
inferred very clearly what segmentation of users they are aiming at. Even in their online
advertorial, they post a picture showing one of the most glamorous Indonesian artists,
Syahrini, as an attention getter for their visual branding promotion. In contrast, the Aluna
Home Spa employs another branding strategy by using short distance to town (hanya 5 menit
13
dari pusat kota), an oase in the middle of busy days (oase di tengah kesibukan kerja), homy
and convenience and traditional Javanese atmosphere (atmosfir tradisional Jawa yang kuat)
as promises and benefits that customers can gain when using their services.
After looking very closely at the eight advertorials of cosmetics and body and skin care
services, a slight difference in focus seems to be existing between these advertorials and that
of others. In the advertorial of Djarum Beasiswa Plus (Weekender Magazine, September
2011:7) for example, the component of editorial (story) is more prominent than the promotion
(advertisement) as studied by Kristina (2011). These cosmetic advertorials however,booze a
more promotional oriented tendency although they are using establishing credentials
extensively. To add, describing and detailing the business are two moves both occuring in
these advertorials studied and that of Private Banking (http://www.thefreelibrary.com).
Drawing insights from Gobe (2001) that branding designers are ambassadors between
corporations and the marketplace who link between the two using language of beauty and
emotions, the study in question found that most of the advertorials are functionally driven
than emotionally driven. Some of the cosmetic industries whose technological resources are
limited are likely to use people driven and emotional driven strategies in their branding and
image building. So far they have been functionally and emotionally present. The question
then is, would it be possible to transform what emotionally present into something
emotionally felt.
Conclusion and Implications

The close look at the cosmetic and body and skin care advertorials have made us realize
that branding is a total, serious and complicated work that needs a thorough consideration in
terms of internal and external values to be communicated. The internal and external publics
should be able to clearly indetify their features of visual appearance and linguistic realization
of products and services easily, gain real benefits and to be assured that promises are kept.
Those efforts are done mainly to get favorable public acceptance, mental acknowledgment,
support and loyalty.
The above mentioned challenges have offered many possibilities and opportunities for
business education specialists to raise awareness on the notion of interdiciplinary,
multidiciplinary and transdiciplinary of business nowadays. To be a business professional,
someone needs to have other knowledge in communication both spoken and written, printed
and audio visual..
14
In the context of teaching and learning business English in the classroom. the use of
authentic materials like advertorials will promote the communicative awareness of the
students because they are exposed to the real language use, topics and situations in which the
language that they have learned so far be put in practice.
With the genre perspectives in mind, students are exposed to linguistic features of
advertorials, the way the messages are presented in moves and steps and what specific
discourse markers used to show the verbal construction of language logically. Besides, they
are also able to asses how the relationship between producers and consumers is built and
realized linguistically, for example by making use of politeness markers, particular dictions
and rhetorics to impress, to persuade and to show positive attitudes.
In terms of the properties of business text in general, students need to have knowledge on non
verbal devices like graphs, charts, tables, etc. Therefore, “the ESP teacher is concerned not
with the skills as such but with the strategies to transfer”(Robinson, 1980:25). Regarding the
online promotion of products and services, limited space and synchronization of verbal and
non verbal properties for a more effective promotional effort again is another challenge
seeking solutions.
To sum up, further studies to cross-check whether the branding strategies employed by
business industries have been accepted by customers as intended are very much in need. In
depth interviews with business stakeholders would be one of the solutions recommended.
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Title
Women Versus Men in Teacher’s Professional Development (A Case Study of the Potential
for Continued Professional Development for English Teachers in Rural and Disadvantaged
Schools in Indonesia)
Author
Santri E. P. Djahimo
Nusa Cendana University, Kupang-NTT, Indonesia
Bio-Profile:
Santri E. P. Djahimo is an English lecturer of Universitas Nusa Cendana (UNDANA)
Kupang, NTT Indonesia, as well as a junior researcher majoring in the Teaching of English
Skills and Educational Innovation (teaching EFL) in Rural Areas. She can be contacted at
[email protected]
Abstract
This qualitative study investigates the potential for Continued Professional Development
for teachers in rural and disadvantaged schools in East Nusa Tenggara Province of Indonesia.
Three different rural areas in one of the provinces of Indonesia (East Nusa Tenggara
Province) were the places to conduct this study. The main purpose of this study is to examine
whether or not English teachers of these schools have any potential for Continued
Professional Development (CPD), taking into account the physical, cultural and socio-
economic contexts. It also aims at finding out if there is gender equality in CPD.
Additionally, it assesses whether or not teachers’ participation in CPD relates to individual
teacher characteristics, such as prior qualifications, gender, age, and years of teaching
experience. It also aims to examine the relationship between teachers’ CPD and the kind of
school they work in, including school size, the profile of the pupils in the school, and
eagerness to participate in CPD. The results show that all teachers express their
disappointment towards the lack of in-service training. In this case, not many teachers
teaching in rural and disadvantaged areas have potential for Continued Professional
Development (CPD). Theoretically, gender equality is an important issue to be considered in
17
CPD. However, practically, it has not been fully considered yet. Another finding is that there
is a strong relationship between these teachers’ prior qualifications, gender, age, and years of
teaching experience and their participation in CPD. There is no relationship between
teachers’ participation in CPD and the schools size and the profile of the pupils. In contrast,
there is a relationship between the teachers’ participation in CPD and their eagerness to
participate in it, and this eagerness relates to gender. This study only has limited aims and has
been conducted for a short period of time, that is why, there are some aspects dealing with the
long term issues are not observable.
Keywords: Continued Professional Development (CPD), Female Teachers, Male Teachers,

Gender Equality, Rural and Disadvantaged Schools
I. Introduction
There are many educational problems in Indonesia which can be considered as challenges
and barriers to the implementation of successful education. Several schools, especially the
ones in urban areas have already been in the stage of having successful education, yet not all
schools are lucky enough to get this kind of achievement. Most of schools in Indonesia are
still fall in the category of poor quality seen from many aspects, one of them is poor quality
of teachers in teaching. If teachers’ teaching quality is poor then it is undoubtedly said that
students’ quality and the overall of school quality are far from good as teaching is at the heart
of the schooling system and teachers’ teaching quality is as the root of school quality.
Many factors have contributed to teachers’ quality in teaching, including Continued
Professional Development (CPD). Not all teachers understand what CPD is and how it can
improve not only their teaching quality but also the students’ achievement. This is the main
reason why it is interesting to conduct the study on the potential for Continued Professional
Development for teachers in rural and disadvantaged schools in Indonesia. Rural schools
have been the focus of this study because there are so many obstacles in teaching (English) in
these schools, especially dealing with the issues of professional development.
English teachers must have good English skills and knowledge in order to be able to
transfer and share the knowledge to their students. However, not all English teachers in these
rural and disadvantaged schools have sufficient skill and knowledge to teach their students,
looking from the aspects of their English skills, their knowledge about teaching methods,
teaching strategies, teaching techniques, their creativity in designing interesting and various
18
teaching materials, and so on. Then there come questions such as, how can it be? why is that
so? how come? why are they able to become English teachers? and so on and so forth.
There are several logical explanations to answer the above questions, they are;
The way to recruit teachers (i.e English teachers) is not really appropriate; the test does not
really measure the competence of English teachers to be. All candidates from different
educational background have to do similar entrance test to become teachers of English,
mathematics, physics, geography, etc. In order to become an English teacher, one does not
have to join any English competence test but test of general knowledge.
The placement for teachers (either in urban or rural schools) does not really go through
“fair” system. Teachers are not distributed equally. Most teachers, especially, the good ones,
will be placed in urban schools, and the rest will be sent to rural schools. Teachers with good
qualification and great teaching quality will take place in urban top schools, and those who
are not really good will have to be satisfied with the placement in rural schools.
There are challenges and barriers to the implementation of successful education in rural
and disadvantaged schools in Indonesia, in relation to many constraints in teaching EFL
classroom (physical, socio-economic, and cultural). Physical constraint relates to the shortage
of English teachers as well as the teachers’ poor quality in teaching. Responding to the
English teacher shortage, many teachers who do not have qualification as English teachers
have to teach English. This mostly happens in rural schools.
Teachers tend to compare teaching English in their schools in rural areas and that in the
schools in urban areas. They compare the students, teachers, teaching techniques, and
resources. According to them, teaching in urban schools is better because they will get more
chance to improve themselves, which is true. It is a fact that teaching in rural areas will have
many kinds of limitation, such as; human resources, facilities, public services, etc.
Considering these limitations, not many teachers are willing to devote themselves to teach in
rural schools. Some say that they can hardly improve themselves when they teach in rural
areas.
Teachers are not really aware that the best way to improve students’ academic
achievement (i.e English skills) is by improving their teaching quality. For them, teaching
activities are similar to daily habits, so there is no need to be well prepared. They keep on
teaching similar lessons using similar methods for years.
The above-mentioned explanations can at least give a brief picture of the condition of
teaching and learning English in rural schools. These also lead to the issues of the potential
19
for teachers’ CPD which have been in a line with the aims of this study, which are, to
examine whether or not English teachers of these schools have any potential for Continued
Professional Development (CPD), taking into account the physical, cultural and socio-
economic contexts. It also aims at finding out if there is gender equality in CPD.
Additionally, it assesses whether or not teachers’ participation in CPD relates to individual
teacher characteristics, such as prior qualifications, gender, age, and years of teaching
experience. It also aims to examine the relationship between teachers’ CPD and the kind of
school they work in, including school size, the profile of the pupils in the school, and
eagerness to participate in CPD.
This study is considered important based on two main reasons. The two reasons why this
study is essential to be carried out are; first, it is important to introduce the concept of CPD to
English teachers in rural schools of Indonesia, and second, by introducing the advantages of
CPD, EFL teachers in rural areas can be assisted to find the way to enrich themselves in order
to improve their teaching quality that will give direct contribution to the quality of students’
outcome.
II. Literature Review

Many experts have studied as well as written about teachers’ Continued Professional
Development (CPD) because it is considered important to be carried out by all teachers. This
has to be done on a continuous basis, so once one becomes a teacher, s/he has to join any
professional development activities to support his/her teaching activities. This is supported by
Mukeredzi (2013:1) by stating that “teachers’ conceptions of what they learn and how they
professionally develop through their teaching roles are key to classroom practice and learner
achievement because they influence teachers’ pedagogic approaches and choice of materials,
content, and learner activities”. It is clear that there is a positive correlation between teachers’
professional development and the way they teach their students in the classroom (how they
choose the teaching materials, what methods and strategies they use in teaching, what kind of
activities carried out in the classroom, and so on).
However, not all teachers, especially those who teach in rural and disadvantaged schools
really understand what professional development is and why it is important for them. In this
study, it is considered as physical constraints in teaching English in rural and disadvantaged
schools in Indonesia. This issue can be related to the deficiencies and challenges of teaching
in rural schools (Arnold, Newman, Gaddy, & Dean, 2005; Pennefather, 2011; Wedekind,
20
2005). Professional isolation is another physical constraint in teaching in rural schools.

Teachers often see this issue as the major concern for not having a long-term teaching period
in schools in rural areas (Roberts, 2005). Other disadvantages of teaching in rural schools are
dealing with lack of cultural activities, long-distance travelling, and limited facilities (Boylan
et al., 1993:112). Despite the disadvantages, there are also some advantages gained by
teachers who teach in rural areas, such as; the quiet, safe, healthy, and more caring rural
environment (Boylan, et al., 1993:112), rural schools usually have smaller class size which
makes possible for teachers to pay attention to students individually and this will create a
good teacher-student relationship (Arnold, 2001:34), and teaching in rural schools can create
more adaptable, confidence, and independent teachers (the Isolated Children’s Parents’
Association-ICPA, 1999:16).
Teaching English as a Foreign Language (EFL) in Indonesia is not easy. It is even more
difficult to teach EFL in rural schools in this country. Professional English teachers are
needed to face this situation. In fact, there is a shortage of skilled and highly qualified English
teachers. Most English teachers are not really aware of how important it is to be well
prepared to perform in the classroom. In order to be able to implement appropriate teaching
practices, these English teachers have to deal with CPD (Porter&Brophy, 1988). The older,
the better or the more senior a teacher is, the better s/he can teach is not necessarily true as
better instruction is not automatically created by having much experience. The improvement
of teachers’ instruction will be gained through several aspects, such as; having better skills as
well as good teaching strategies, understanding the lessons, and being able to explain the
lessons to students in such a way to make them easy to understand (Hill, 2009).
In Indonesia, there are two major problems in conducting activities for teachers’ CPD.
First, although many activities for teachers’ CPD are offered, but not all teachers can
participate in those kind of activities. The number of participants is usually based on quota,
so only representative teachers can join. Second, the activities themselves sometimes can not
fulfill teachers’ needs as not all activities are based on teachers’ needs analysis. This has also
been stated by several experts. These experts argue that many available programs of CPD for
teachers do not really meet the challenges and asnwer the questions of educational reform
movement (Corcoran, 1995; Darling-Hammond, 1995; Hiebert, 1999; Lieberman, 1996;
Little, 1993; Sparks & Loucks-Horsley, 1989 in Birman, et al., 2000).
Despite all the constraints, teachers’ CPD is essentially needed because teachers’ quality
is critical to students’ success as has been studied by Goldhaber (2002), and Goldhaber,
21
Brewer, and Anderson (1999) with the result that students can have great knowledge and
understanding if they are taught by high qualified teachers. In short, CPD is urgent for
teachers who want to improve their teaching quality that will directly lead to the
improvement of students’ achievement. In this study, the focus will be on whether or not
English teachers in rural schools in Indonesia have potential for CPD and other factors
dealing with teachers’ professional development.
III. Methodology
Subject
The study took place in East Nusa Tenggara Province in Indonesia, and the participants
were nine English teachers of three different schools in three different rural areas (three
teachers for each school). Here are the features of the respondents: Gender (5 female teachers
and 4 male teachers), Educational Qualification (2 undergraduates, 4 diplomas, and 3 senior
high schools), Ages (1 teacher’s age between 26-35, 2 teachers’ ages between 36-40, 2 other
teachers’ ages between 41-45, and 4 teachers’ ages between 46-50), and Years of Teaching
Experience (2 teachers have been teaching for 3-5 years, 1 teacher has been teaching for 6-10
years, 2 teachers have been teaching for 11-20 years, and the other 4 teachers have been
experiencing in teaching for 21-30 years).
Data Collection
Questionnaire, interview, direct observation, and field-note have been used as the
instruments of this study (the type of interviews was semi-structured with fixed-alternative _
yes/no_ and open-ended questions), observation sheets as well as field notes (done on a
continuous basis and in narrative genre) as the main instruments in order to obtain greater
clarity in classroom practices and a true picture of opinions or feelings.
IV. Discussion
Based on the findings, many teachers in rural areas complain about having lack of a
professional development program, which is teacher training. There are many kinds of
teacher training held by educational institutions but not all teachers are included. The
committee usually invites only one or two representative from each school or even each
region. In this case, the same old teacher, who is considered as senior, will always get the
invitation and participate in the trainings. In this case, gender is not the main concern but
seniority.
22
There are several other issues can be raised here about the potential for teachers’ CPD in
rural and disadvantages schools in Indonesia as discussed in the following part.
It can be said that not many teachers in rural schools have potential for Continued
Professional Development (teachers in urban schools have better opportunity to join CPD
programs). This makes teachers in ruras areas keep on comparing themselves to their fellow
teachers in urban areas. Some of them feel unsatisfied with all the facilities and services
provided in rural areas and think to move out to teach in urban schools. They think that they
will have better opportunity to develop themselves well when they teach in urban areas. This
can be seen in the following sample of interview extract:
Interviewer: If you’re given a chance to say something to the government through

Educational Department, what would you say?
Teacher: Eem..I’d say to them to give more training for teachers, especially, in
rural areas by inviting all teachers, not only the same old senior teachers, and also pay more
attention to the references. We want more references, not only one, to make us more creative
in creating our teaching material.
Interviewer: Are you happy teaching here?
Teacher: I can’t say I’m happy if I complain a lot and keep comparing myself to my
other lucky friends who are teaching in urban schools. They can do whatever they want; they
can join any kind of teacher trainings and workshops and they can even continue their study
to Master Degree because they are so close to the university…
This teacher seems to be pessimistic about whether or not there is a potential for
Continued Professional Development for teachers, but they do hope that one day the
government will pay more attention to all teachers in rural areas, in terms of involving all of
them in teacher training activities. This is one of the reasons why many teachers are not
prepared to implement appropriate teaching practices as stated by Porter&Brophy (1988).
This teacher also seems frustrating when she answers the question about whether or not she is
happy teaching in that school.
However, there are few teachers in rural schools who can make their own effort to join
CPD activities. They pay by themselves to join any kind of seminars for teachers and even
for continuing their study to higher levels (those who graduated from Senior High School and
Diploma continue to undergraduate level, and teachers with Undergraduate qualification
23
continue to Masters Degree). Some of them have applied for scholarships to continue doing
their Masters Degree abroad. But the problem is sometimes it is hard for them to get leaving
permission from their headmasters or other decision makers. Why? One of the basic reason is
very classic, that is, some teachers might stop being teachers and changing profession to be
able to move to urban areas after getting their Masters Degree. In other words, the decision
makers assume that continuing their study or pursuing to a higher degree is only a stepping
stone to a more lucrative career for these teachers, which automatically makes them leave
their teaching activity.
Another finding has been revealed after going through some discussions and questions
and answers about teachers’ Continued Professional Development (CPD) that there are some
teachers do not even know what CPD is and what it is for. This fact leads me to the
conclusion that being teachers do not automatically make them know and understand what
teachers’ Continued Professional Development is and why it is needed. For those who
understand about Continued Professional Development, especially young and junior teachers,
they express their disappointment towards the lack of in-service training. They also complain
that they almost never join any out-of-school training because of the quota system. The’same
old/senior teachers’ always represent them in their schools or regions to join any kind of
teacher training activities held by the government. This makes them hard to improve any
aspects of teaching as the main part of their profession and always use the traditional ways in
teaching that have been inherited by their seniors. The quotation can be seen below:
Interviewer: What specific aspects of your teaching are you currently working to improve?
Teacher: None, I guess. My others fellow teachers and I just do the things that have
been done for many years in this school.
Interviewer: What have you been doing so far in teaching and learning process?
Teacher: Not much.. We come to the classroom and mostly write the lesson on the
board and ask the students to copy down in their note book.
Interviewer: Do you do any other teaching activities besides writing on board? Asking
questions, explaining, or playing games maybe?
Teacher: Other activities, like asking questions and explaining the lesson can only occur
after the students write everything in their note book.. if we still have time.
The traditional way of teaching and learning activity still exists in these three schools,
which is writing everything on the board and asking students to write down in their note
24
books. Sometimes, that activity is carried out without further explanation by teachers.
Actually, there used to be two teachers who have come up with a great idea to teach in a
different way, that is to use supplementary materials, such as games and pictures but it failed
eventually and they have started doing like what other teachers do. Unfortunately, there is no
clear explanation about why there is not any further implementation of their good idea.
Another issue about teachers’ CPD found through the interview is that the representative
teachers to join any trainings do not have much contribution on the improvement of teaching
and learning in their schools. Not much implementation and sharing to other fellow teachers
after joing the trainings. This has been revealed by one teacher in the interview:
Interviewer: Any contribution from teachers who’ve joined training or workshop to the
teaching-learning process in the classroom?
Teacher: No contribution at all.. Only one teacher out of 4 English teachers in this
school always joins the training and workshop held by the government..but after coming
back from the training, he never shares with us whatever has been learned and the way he
teaches his students is similar to what we have been doing for years. No change at all.. We
explain and ask our students to write whatever written on the board in their notebooks.
There is no particular consideration about gender equality in teachers’ Continued

Professional Development. The fact that group of women outweighs men in CPD is not
because of the inequality of the quota system but self-motivation and willingness.. In this
case, women are more motivated to join any kinds of CPD than men. It is not because they
are more in quantity but they are more willing to develop themselves in any way they can.
This can be seen from the interview extract below:
Interviewer: Do you think there’s a gender equality in professional development among

teachers here?
Teacher: Well, there are 5 English teachers here, consist of 4 females and 1 male. My
female friends and I like to join any kind of teacher trainings and/or workshops, even if we
have to spend our own money on those activities. The male teacher is not really interested in
those kind of activities, maybe because he’s a senior teacher.
Based on the interview and observation, it can be stated that actually, in these three schools,
the group of women outweighs men in both quantitative and qualitative ways. Quantitatively
25
speaking, the number of female teachers is more than male teachers. Looking from
qualitative aspect, women surpass men in having higher degree of education. More women
than men pursue to their higher degree (i.e. Master Degree).
Generally speaking, all teachers from these three schools think that all teachers in rural
areas are pessimistic about the potential for continued professional development for teachers.
These teachers believe that that kind of opportunity is just for teachers in cities. This can be
the reason why educational quality in rural areas is left far behind that in cities. Teachers
think less about their own professional development than about how they can make students
like the subject and understand the lesson better. There was a strongly expressed hope that
one day the government, through the Educational Department, will pay more attention to
professional development for teachers in rural and disadvantaged areas.
There are several aspects relate much to the potential for teachers to participate in CPD
which relate to individual teacher characteristics, they are:
Prior Qualification
There’s a strong relationship between teachers’ prior qualifications and their level of
participation in CPD. Those who have more motivation to undertake CPD programs /
activities are the ones who are holding undergraduate degree. The higher their degree, the
better their perception about teachers’ CPD.
Teachers who graduated from universities (undergraduate level) tend to have more
concern on this issue. Some of them are junior teachers who are willing to include themselves
in CPD activities in order to professionally develop themselves as professional teachers.
Teachers graduated from diploma or the level of Senior High School do not really care
about CPD. These teachers are mostly senior teachers who think that there is no point for
them to join this CPD programs because they are about to retire. Although nowadays, few of
them have to go back to university to get their undergraduate certificate to be acknowledged
as professional teachers, they do not really think that it is a way to professionally develop
themselves but a requirement that must be fulfilled.
Gender
There’s a strong relationship between gender and their level of participation in CPD.
More women than men are willing to join the CPD programs.
26
Female teachers are better in motivating themselves to join CPD, both quantitatively and
qualitatively.
Female teachers are more active in joining any kinds of PD activities. They even make
efforts to pursue to higher degree of education, by either financially supporting themselves or
applying for scholarships.
Age
There’s a strong relationship between age and level of participation in CPD.
Teachers between the ages of 25-45 (productive ages) tend to be more active in dealing with
CPD. Senior teachers, especially, those whose ages over 55 tend to ignore the issue of CPD.
The younger, the better in implementing what has been learned. Junior teachers have more
tendency to be active and creative in implementing new teaching techniques and methods
than the senior ones.
Years of Teaching Experience

There is a strong relationship between teacher’s years of teaching experience and the
level of participation in CPD. Some of them see teaching as a part of their daily activity that
does not have to be changed or improved. They have been using similar teaching method for
years and this gives negative influence to the junior teachers.
Teachers who have been teaching for more than 25 years have lower motivation to join
CPD programs / activities. On the other hand, junior teachers, who have been teaching less
than 15 years or even shorter, have more effort to develop themselves through CPD
programs.
Eagerness to Participate in Continued Professional Development

There is a strong relationship between teachers’ eagerness to participate and their
participation in CPD. This point is indeed important in teachers’ level of participation.
Teachers will join this program if they are eager to participate. Their eagerness comes from
their positive perceptions of Continued Professional Development. When they see this CPD
as a positive and beneficial program, they will have good motivation to join all the activities
relate to this CPD program.
Beside individual teacher characteristic, there are two other aspects dealing with the kind
of school the teachers are working which are also important to consider, as follows:
27
School Size and Profile of the Students

There is no relationship between school size and teachers’ participation in CPD. The size
of schools where they are teaching does not have any effect on the teachers’ level of
participation in joining CPD programs. It might have indirect effect but it does not contribute
directly to the teachers’ level of participation.
There is no relationship between the profile of the students and teachers’ participation in
CPD. This aspect also does not have anything to do with teachers’ level of participation.
There is a strong relationship between teachers’ eagerness to participate and their
participation in CPD. This point is indeed important in teachers’ level of participation.
Teachers will join this program if they are eager to participate. Their eagerness comes from
their positive perceptions of Continued Professional Development. When they see this CPD
as a positive and beneficial program, they will have good motivation to join all the activities
relate to this CPD program.
Looking at the findings, it can be argued that there is an inconsistency in them. The
results of the questionnaire and interview show that junior teachers, who are mostly females,
are better in undertaking Continued Professional Development programs, which means that
they have to be better in implementing what has been learned through all the activities.
However, based on the result of the observation, there are no differences in the teaching
performances between senior and junior teachers and/or male and female teachers. Perhaps
this is what one of the teachers means in the interview by saying that in teaching and learning
process, they just do whatever has been implemented by their seniors. In fact, teachers have
to be able to improve themselves better through CPD in order to improve their teaching
quality and their students’ quality as a result. This is supported by Mukeredzi (2013) when
she says that teachers’ professional development is the key issue in classroom practice (i.e.
teaching and learning process in the classroom) and learners’ achievement (i.e. the students’
quality). The more teachers professionally develop themselves, the better they are in teaching
quality and the greater their students will be in learning.
When it comes to the issue of gender equality, it can be stated that there is no equality in
teachers’ Continued Professional Development in these three schools, but it is not seen from
the gender aspect but the seniority. So, gender equality is not the main concern in teachers’
CPD. Nevertheless, if we compare women and men in teachers’ Continued Professional
Development then women are more powerful in doing this. They have showed that they make
more effort than men to include themselves in CPD programs, including joining educational
28
seminars for teachers, participating in workshops for teaching as well as researching and
writing research reports and articles, and pursuing to higher degree of education.
V. Conclusion
Through this study, it has been found out that most of the teachers of rural schools in East
Nusa Tenggara Province in Indonesia are pessimistic about the potential for CPD since there
is no ‘Fair Play’ system in selecting the teachers to join the PD activities. A better system of
management has to be applied in this case. Although there is no issue related to gender
equality in the potential for teachers’ Continued Professional Development, there exists
another issue of equality related to senior versus junior.
Teachers have to really know what Continued Professional Development is and how it
can contribute to their professional life as well as their students’ achievement. By knowing
these, there will be no more ignorance about professional development and teaching quality
from all teachers, either senior or junior, male or female.
Finally, it can be concluded that teachers’ quality is critical to students’ success, that’s
why, improving teachers’ quality through Continued Professional Development is an
important strategy for improving students’ achievement. Teachers who have already
undertaken any CPD programs or activities are very much hoped to be able to professionally
implement whatever has been experienced through the programs in the teaching and learning
process in classroom. This way will contribute directly to the improvement of the students.
VI. References
Arnold, M. L., Newman, J. H., Gaddy, B. B., & Dean, C. B. (2005). A look at the condition
of rural education research: Setting a difference for future research. Journal of
Research in Rural Education, 20(6). Retrieved from http//jrre.psu.edu/articles/20-
6.pdf
Arnold, P. (2001). Review of Contemporary Issues for Rural Schools. Education in Rural
Australia, 11(1) 30-42.
Birman, Beatrice, F., Desimone, Laura., Porter, Andrew, C. (2000). Designing Professional
Development that Works. Educational Leadership, May 2000. EBSCO Publishing.
Boylan, C., Sinclair R., Smith, A., Squires, D., Edwards, J., Jacob, A., O’Malley, D. &
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Nolan, B. (1993). Retaining teachers in rural schools: Satisfaction, commitment, and

lifestyles. Rural Education Issues: An Australian Perspective, Key Paper 3. Retrieved
from http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED365499.pdf
Goldhaber, D. (2002). The mystery of good teaching: Surveying the evidence on student
achievement and teachers’ characteristics.” Education Next 2(1): 50–55.
Goldhaber, D., Brewer, D., & Anderson, D. (1999). A three-way error components analysis
of educational productivity. Education Economics 7(3): 199–208.
Hill, Heather C. “Fixing Teacher Professional Development,” Phi Delta Kappan 90 (20)
(2009), available at
http://www.pdkmembers.org/members_online/publications/Archive/pdf/k0903hil.pdf.
Isolated Children’s Parents’ Association (ICPA). (1999). Submission to the National Inquiry
into Rural and Remote Education. Retrieved from
https://www.humanrights.gov.au/sites/default/files/content/pdf/human_rights/rural_re
mote/natsub4.pdf
Mukeredzi, T. Grace. (2013). Professional development through teacher roles: Conceptions
of professionally unqualified teachers in rural South Africa and Zimbabwe. Journal of
Research in Rural Education, 28(11),1-16. Retrieved from
http://jrre.psu.edu/articles/28-11.pdf
Pennefather, J. (2011). Landscape shapes mindscape: Partnerships as agency in a community
of learning. In F. Islam, C. Mitchell, N. De Lange, R. Balfour, & M. Combrink (Eds.),
School-University Partnerships for Educational Change in Rural South Africa (pp.
211-230). Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press.
Porter, A. C., & Brophy, J. E. (1988). Good Teaching: Insights from the Work of the Institute
for Research on Teaching. Educational Leadership, 45(8), 75-84.
Roberts, P. (2005). Staffing an empty schoolhouse: Attracting and retaining teachers in
rural,remote and isolated communities. Sydney: NSW Teachers Federation.
Wedekind, V. (2005). Report for UNESCO on conditions affecting rural teachers in South
Africa. Pietermaritzburg: University of KwaZulu-Natal.
30
Title
The Role of Native Languages on ESL Learning
Author
Vanessa Petroj
PhD candidate
University of Connecticut, USA
Bio-Profile:
Vanessa Petroj ([email protected]) is a PhD student in Linguistics and a tutor in the
Writing Center at the University of Connecticut. She is interested in syntax, language
interaction, and language acquisition from a bilingual perspective. She is also responsible for
tutoring and organizing ESL workshops within the Writing Center.
Abstract
With increasing numbers of international students in US universities, the multicultural
and multilingual population faces a spectrum of challenges: from adjusting to the American
education system, to mastering academic English language skills. The complexity of
language learning depends not only on the target language (i.e. English) but also on the native
language of the learner. More importantly, linguistic (i.e. grammatical and pronunciation)
differences between English and the student's native language play a crucial role in predicting
which area(s) of English will be more challenging to master. In order to provide effective and
practical learning, language instructors should be aware and understand those differences.
This paper focuses on three of the most commonly problematic grammatical areas in ESL
learning: the article system (1), plural (2), and tense morphology3):
(1) John broke a/the window.
(2) I have one brother/two brothers.
(3) She likes/liked Maria.
Seemingly trivial in English, speakers of languages that lack these structures (e.g.
Chinese, a language with very little inflectional morphology) tend to show a pattern of errors
31
in both speaking and writing. In addition to demonstrating these issues, the paper offers
practical strategies for identifying patterns and working through the errors; and while the
presentation will focus on a small set of languages, this comparative approach can be applied
to nearly any language learning situation.
Keywords: ESL, TESOL, interlingual errors, language influence
1. Introduction
All ESL learners have one common goal: they all are aspiring to learn English as a
foreign language. This, however, is one of the few areas where ESL learners can be treated as
a homogeneous unit, as they learn English for different purposes and are looking to reach
various levels of proficiency. As educators, our goal is to give the learners the best instruction
and experience to help them reach their individual goals.
An important area where ESL learners differ is their age and previous language
experience and competence. The age of a student is relevant to the teaching approach and
strategies in that it may influence various teaching methods, ranging from the time students
can devote to a lesson, to the type of instruction that would be the best fit for them.
Additionally, age is of further importance because of the way in which learners absorb a new
language system. This is where the distinction between language acquisition (LA) and
language learning (LL) is crucial: while LA represents a subconscious process of acquiring
structural patterns and vocabulary items (Chomsky, 1965), LL entails direct instruction and
conscious learning. The main (and the most relevant) difference between these two processes
is that LA relies on no language background, while LL relies on learning by making
connections between two language systems and, often, by translating during this process.
Given that LA starts at birth and continues until puberty, and that multiple languages can be
acquired at same time, the age at which a learner is exposed to an L2 is directly linked to how
that L2 is processed. In other words, the way in which children process a foreign language
(while still having the ability to acquire rather than learn a new language system) is different
from adults (whose acquisition period has passed, therefore leaving language learning as the
only possibility). This means that, for adults, L2 (in this case, English) learning is an
individualized process with specific characteristics influenced by their L1 (native language),
during which they will experience interference and influence from their already acquired and
established L1.
32
1.1. Native language

A crucial area that represents the peak of diversity among ESL learners is the different
native language that each student may bring into the classroom. Consequently, what areas of
English will be more problematic for a student (or a group, if they share a native language) is
highly depended upon the characteristics of their L1 and whether the features of L1 and L2
are identical, similar, or completely different from each other. It is widely known that L1 is
always present in a student's mind (Cook, 2002), therefore language influence during the
learning process is both consequential and inevitable. This influence gives rise to either
positive or negative transfers that affects the learning experience and the ability to master a
certain concept in L2, leading to so-called interlingual errors1 (Jackson, 1981). This being an
empirical fact, the most practical question is how we can use language influence and turn it
into a productive benefit rather than let it be an obstacle in the teaching and learning process.
The main focus of this paper is on answering this question, as well as introducing ways
for instructors to familiarize themselves with how students' L1 can provide guidelines for
detecting and tackling some of the most problematic areas during the ESL learning. This
paper is based on in-class observations during ESL Workshops held at the University of
Connecticut Writing Center. These workshops target international undergraduate and
graduate students who come from various parts of the world. According to the University of
Connecticut Admissions Fall 2012 statistics, the international student body at the University
of Connecticut is represented by 98 countries, the top 3 countries2 based on the number of
students being China, India, South Korea, Taiwan, and Turkey (Figure 1):
China
37% India
39%
South Korea
Taiwan
Turkey
13%
3% Other
2% 6%
Figure 1: Top 5 countries representing the international student body at the University
of Connecticut (Fall 2012)
1
An interlingual error is defined as "an item or structure in the second language manifests some degree of
difference from, or some degree of similarity with the equivalent item or structure in the learner's first
language". (Jackson, 1981)
2
Excluding English-speaking countries like Canada, United Kingdom, and Australia
33
Due to space restrictions, only a limited set of errors and languages 3 will be discussed,
however, this comparative approach can be further developed and applied to nearly any
language learning situation. The issues that are going to be covered are related to the noun
phrase in Section 2 and the verb phrase in Section 3; Section 4 will conclude this paper.
2. The Noun Phrase

The areas that will be covered in this section are English articles and plural morphology.
2.1. Articles
Any ESL instructor is aware of the notorious English article system as one of the most
problematic areas for L2 ESL learners to master. There are two linguistic reasons for this:
1) Rules
Rules of article use described in language textbooks are imprecise and incomplete due to
many exceptions and different usages that cannot be covered by those generalizations.
2) Crosslinguistic variation
The article system varies crosslinguistically, i.e. the article system in the student's L1 might
be similar to English, different, or, non-existent. As stated above, students' L1 influences
their L2 learning, therefore the variation in the article system has a big impact on what kind
of errors will occur more prominently.
With respect to this, there is a crucial structural distinction between languages that have
versus those that lack articles. In formal linguistics, the noun phrase is represented either as a
Determiner Phrase (DP) (1a) - if a language has articles, or as a Noun Phrase (NP) (1b) - if it
lacks articles. Therefore, NP languages are assumed to have less structure due to the lack of
the DP layer4 (1) (Fukui, 1988; Corver, 1992; Zlatić, 1997; Chierchia, 1998; Lyons, 1999;
Baker, 2003; Bošković, 2008a, 2012; a.o.). The DP/NP distinction is more commonly known
as the DP/NP parameter setting and structurally looks as follows:
1)
a) DP language b) NP language
DP NP
D0 NP boy
the boy
boy
3
Languages that will be considered in this paper are: English, Chinese, Serbo-Croatian, Japanese, American
Sign Language (ASL), Italian, Romanian and German.
4
Determiner-like elements (e.g. demonstratives) that are usually considered to occupy a D position in DP
language have alternative structural positions in NP languages (cf. Bošković, 2008)
34
Having either parameter setting set in a language influences the rest of the grammatical
structure in that language. So, while this parameter setting directly refers to whether a
language has (DP) or lacks (NP) articles, additional properties in fact piggyback on this
distinction5. Crucially, due to the chain reaction that follows the setting of any parameter,
analyses and predictions can be made regarding what areas of the English grammar may be
more problematic for speakers of some languages, but not other. Table 1 shows what
languages will be considered while looking at this issue, as well as whether they have or lack
an article system:
Table 1: Article system in selected languages

Two combinations of language pairs will be discussed below based on whether they consist
of two DP languages, or a DP and an NP language.
2.1.1. English (DP) and Romanian/Italian (DP)
Let's begin with DP languages, by comparing English with Romanian and Italian. Although
there is an article system in all three languages, the difference in their usage is highly likely to
cause interlingual errors. For example, when expressing generic meaning in English, both
(2a) and (2b) are grammatical. In other words, expressing a generic meaning in English is
done by using the definite article in singular, but not in plural:
2) English
a) The tiger is a dangerous animal.
b) Tigers are dangerous animals.
In contrast, to express generic meaning in Romanian and Italian (3), the definite article has to
be used both in singular and in plural.
3) Romanian/Italian
a) The tiger is a dangerous animal.
b) The tigers are dangerous animals.
5
For a more comprehensive explanation of this phenomenon and a list of generalization, I refer the reader to
Bošković (2012).
35
An even more curious variation occurs when the definite article is used in the object position.
More precisely, in English, the sentence in (4),
4) I like the tigers.
means "I like those specific tigers.". In Romanian and Italian, the equivalent of the sentence
in (4) still has a generic interpretation and can mean "I like tigers in general."
2.1.2. English (DP) and Serbo-Croatian (NP)
As mentioned above, some languages have a similar article system to English, while others
have no article system at all, like Serbo-Croatian. This difference can be seen in simple cases
like (5). For example, English has two different ways of expressing definite or indefinite
meaning, giving rise to two separate interpretations.
5) English
a) John broke a window.
b) John broke the window.
While the indefinite article a (5a) gives the meaning 'there is a window that John broke',
when the definite article the is used (5b), the interpretation changes to 'there is a specific
window that John broke'. In Serbo-Croatian, however, there is only one way to express what
English does in (5), and the rest, in this case, can be inferred from the context6:
6) Serbo-Croatian
John broke window.
This crosslinguistic variation logically leads to the following:
EXPECTATION:
Speakers of languages that lack articles will show
inconsistencies when learning the usage of the article system
in English.
2. 2. Plural
Let's take a brief detour from articles and consider the second issue that occurs prominently
with English language learners: the plural –(e)s in English. This area is especially
problematic for speakers of languages with little inflectional morphology (e.g. Chinese,
Japanese, ASL, etc.). Table 2 shows what languages will be considered in looking at this
issue, as well as whether they have or lack a morphologically marked plural system:
6
In other cases, demonstratives or prosody may be used for disambiguation.
36
Table 2: Plural system in selected languages7

Consequently, the following can be stipulated:
EXPECTATION:
Speakers of languages that lack the English-type plural
will have a harder time supplying the plural morpheme
-(e)s in English
Similar to articles, there is also crosslinguistic variation in the plural system, that is, there are
different ways to form plural across languages. This is illustrated in Table 3, followed by
examples below:
Table 3: Forms of expressing plural in selected languages
English, for example, forms plural by adding the suffix -(e)s to singular nouns8, as in (7b):
7) English
a) I have one brother.
b) I have two brother-s.
ASL and Japanese, however, can form plural by reduplication, that is, by reduplicating the
noun that needs to be pluralized.
8) ASL
a) I have one brother.
b) I have two brother brother.
7
() denote optionality
8
Exceptions: irregular plural
37
'I have two brothers.'

9) Japanese9
a) person
b) person person
'people'
Interestingly, in Chinese, although plural is not very common, there is a morphological
marker for animate nouns which seems optional. When no morphology is present, Chinese
nouns can be interpreted as either singular or plural (9a) (depending on the context), however,
when the morphological marker -men follows an animate noun, it is obligatorily interpreted
as plural.
10) Chinese
a) nanhai
'man / men'
b) nanhai-men
'men'
Given this very specific rule, a prediction can be made:
PREDICTION:
Chinese learners will be more successful in supplying
plural for animate nouns.
2.3. Definiteness across languages

Going back to the notion of definiteness as one of the main roles of articles, it has been
documented that languages with no article system can compensate for the lack thereof by
expressing definiteness through other elements. In the following subsection, I will illustrate
the alternative ways of expressing definiteness in Chinese and Serbo-Croatian (both
languages without article systems) and how they affect the ESL learning process.
9
Reduplication usually denotes collective plural, which is why the reduplicated noun 'person' yields the
meaning of 'people' and not 'two (or more) persons'. Additionally, Japanese has another form of expressing
plural, more specifically "associative plural", through the seemingly optional morpheme -tati. While some
researchers claim that this form is similar to the Chinese plural form -men that denotes definiteness Zhang
(2008), Nakanishi (2004) shows that this is not always necessarily so. While -tanti excludes singular
interpretation and denotes plurality, it can be encountered with both definite and indefinite readings. excluding it
from being inherently definite. For comparisons between the Chinese plural marker -men and Japanese -tati, I
refer the reader to Ishii (2000) and Kurafuji (1999, 2003).
38
2.3.1. Definiteness in Chinese

Recall the curious case of Chinese optional plural for animate nouns. As it turns out, while
the morpheme -men may be optional in expressing plural, there is additional grammatical
information associated with it. Namely, this morpheme is also a marker for definiteness. So,
in cases where English would use the definite article and the plural suffix -(e)s to express a
definite plural noun (11), the Chinese equivalent looks like (12):
1) English 12) Chinese
the boy-s nanhai-men
‘the-men’.
Therefore, a new prediction arises:
PREDICTION:
Chinese learners will be more successful in supplying
the definite article for plural animate nouns.
2.3.2. Definiteness in Serbo-Croatian

Serbo-Croatian is also a language without articles, and, therefore, it is fair to assume that it
has other ways of expressing definiteness. While Chinese does this by using a plural marker
(12), Serbo-Croatian expresses definiteness through adjectives which come in two forms:
short and long. These two forms are considered to correspond to definite/specific and non-
definite/non-specific interpretation respectively (Aljović, 2002; Despić, 2011; Talić, 2013),
as illustrated in Table 4:
Table 4: Forms of adjectives in Serbo-Croatian

This means that where English uses (in)definite articles to distinguish between definite and
indefinite contexts as in (13), Serbo-Croatian does this by using a short-form (14a) or a long-
form adjective (14b).
13) English: 14) Serbo-Croatian:
a) a tall guy a) visok momak
b) the tall guy 'a tall guy'
b) visok-i momak
'the tall guy'
39
What English and Serbo-Croatian share here is the means to express definiteness, however, it
is done through different grammatical categories. Nevertheless, the concept of 'definiteness'
exists in both languages, so a new prediction arises:
PREDICTION:
Serbo-Croatian learners will show differences in supplying
articles when adjectives are present in an NP.
This prediction was borne out with an experiment conducted in Trenkić (2004). The
experimented included two groups of Serbo-Croatian native speakers learning English (A &
B), and a group of native speakers of English (NS). Learners from group A were in their 7th
year, group B in their 8th year of English instruction, and NS served as a control group. Both
A and B groups had the task of translating a text that included 35 non-modified and 10
modified definite NPs, and 9 non-modified and 13 modified indefinite NPs, while the NS
were asked to complete a cloze test of the same text. The main results are represented in
Figure 1 for 'the' omission and Figure 2 for the omission of 'a(n)' (adopted from Trenkić,
2004):
Figure 2: Omission of the with non-modified (35) and pre-modified (10) singular nouns
40
Figure 3: Omission of a(n) with non-modified (9) and pre-modified (13) singular nouns
In summary, the results showed that Serbo-Croatian learners were statistically more likely to
omit English articles with nouns modified by adjectives than with non-modified nouns. This
language-specific prediction is proof of L1 influence (Serbo-Croatian) on L2 (English)
learning, which supports the prediction above.
3. The Verb Phrase

This section discusses English tense morphology and different tense interpretations across
a selected set of languages, with the main focus on the differences between English and
Chinese. In English, tense is expressed through the suffixation of the morphological tense
markers:
Table 5: Tense markers in English

To express present in English, the present tense marker –(e)s is used for 3rd person singular
(15a), whereas no tense morphology is used in all other cases (15b):
15) English
a) She likes Mary.
b) I/You/We/They like Mary.
Although no explicit morphological markers are used in (15b), present tense in English is still
implied. This means that, in English, tense is indicated even when no morphological tense
markers are present. We see this in (16a), where no tense markers on the verb "like" still bans
41
past interpretation. In contrast, intending to place an event in the past and not marking past
tense on the verb results in ungrammaticality (16b). In other words, marking a verb for past
tense in English is obligatory:
16) English
a) I liked Maria 2 years ago.
b) *I like Maria 2 years ago.
Other languages may have different rules for tense marking. While there is no tense
morphology in this case, Chinese and ASL can use adverbials to place an action or event in a
point in time. So, for these two languages (and many others), both utterances are
grammatical, with (17a) expressing present and (17b) past tense:
17) Chinese/ASL
a) I like Mary.
b) I like Mary 2 years ago.
This may cause transfers during L2 learning, therefore, the following can be expected:
EXPECTATION:
Speakers of languages that lack English-like tense
morphology are less likely to supply past –(e)d and present –
(e)s forms in English
More concretely, an experiment reported in Hawkins & Liszka (2003) showed discrepancies
in L1 speakers of Chinese, Japanese, and German when tested on the oral production of
English past tense morphology. The aim of the experiment was to check the distribution of
English past tense morphology on nonce words that were divided into three categories:
participles, monomorphemes, and simple past (regular). With the exception of participles
(where everyone performed at 100% accuracy), all three groups showed some omission of the
English past tense morphological marker. Interestingly, in the last two categories, Chinese
speakers underperformed both German and Japanese speakers. The results are shown in
Table 6:
42
Table 6 (adopted from Hawkins & Liszka, 2003): Absence of word-final -t/-d in regular
participles, monomorphemes and regular simple past tense forms compared
It is important to note that just because L2 learners make errors in supplying English tense
morphology, it does not mean that they are not aware of the tense interpretation the sentence
might require. Due to crosslinguistic variation, different languages may express tense in
different ways, which, when L1 is seen as a potential influence on L2 learning, can shed light
on why certain errors are made. In this respect, the table below lists different ways in which a
selected set of languages expresses tense:
Table 7: Expressing tense in selected languages

ASL has no tense morphology and expresses tense through adverbials, or it is inferred from
the context. English, German and Japanese on the other hand, have obligatory morphological
markings, while adverbials may be used for clarification and disambiguation of the context.
Chinese, however, is a different story. While it lacks overt temporal morphology (Lin, 2002;
Bošković, 2012; Todorović, 2015; a.o.), tense can be expressed through alternative elements
that will be discussed in the following section. In addition, the next subsection will illustrate
why English tense marking omissions occur in Chinese ESL learners as a product of L1
influence.
43
3.1. Tense in Chinese10

As mentioned above, in contrast to English, Chinese lacks tense morphology. However,
there are alternative ways of expressing temporal relations through aspectual markers and/or
adverbials (Lin, 2002, 2006; Smith & Erbaugh, 2005; a.o.). Moreover, in Chinese, utterances
may receive different temporal interpretations based on whether the action is stative or
eventive (Lin, 2002). The examples below illustrate the contrast between English and
Chinese with respect to this division.
In English, a stative verb like "know" can either have present (18a) or past interpretation
(18b), based on tense morphology. Similarly, in Chinese, an utterance like (18a) that includes
the same stative verb with no morphology on it (and no adverbials) can only have present
interpretation.
18)
a) I know Mary.
b) I knew Mary.
Eventive verbs, such as 'walk', are treated the same in English: tense morphology (or the lack
thereof) yields either present (19a) or past (19b) interpretation:
19) English
a) I walk home.
b) I walked home.
Interestingly, the same verb in Chinese with no morphological markings will have not
present, but past interpretation (19c):
Chinese
c) I walk home.
'I walked home (at some point in the past).'
This difference is not random. Similarly to how English has a fixed tense interpretation
depending on whether it is morphologically marked or not, some Chinese rules are based on a
different set of generalizations: tense interpretation may vary based on whether the verb
denotes a stative or an eventive action. More specifically, stative verbs will yield present,
10
Due to space limitations, this section will be restricted to Chinese temporal characteristics relevant for current
purposes. I refer the reader to Lin (2002), Bošković (2012), Todorović (2015), a.o. for a more comprehensive
explanation of the Chinese temporal system.
44
PREDICTION:
Chinese learners will show differences in supplying
present/past morphology when a verb is stative or eventive
while eventive verbs will yield past interpretation11. Based on this, the following prediction
can be made:
In addition to theoretical assumptions, this prediction has applicable potential. Looking more
closely at the results from Hawkins & Liszka, (2003) discussed in Section 3 and illustrated in
Table 6, what stood out was that when compared to German and Japanese (languages that
have English-like means of expressing tense), Chinese learners had a lower percentage of
accurately supplying English tense morphology. Recognizing this discrepancy, Hawkins &
Liszka, (2003) further divided tense omissions based on aspectual properties of English
verbs. The distribution is illustrated in Table 8 below:
Table 8 (adopted from Hawkins & Liszka, 2003): Inflected past tense regular verbs by
aspectual type: Chinese speakers
Although the low and uneven number of tokens across categories may lead to
overgeneralizations, an interesting (yet predictable) pattern seems to emerge: while Hawkins
& Liszka (2003) illustrated the obvious difference in performance depending on the type of
verbs included, they failed to state the reason behind this pattern. Namely, when this division
is based on the rules of Chinese grammar, a striking difference arises (Table 9), with stative
verbs (yielding present interpretation) at 0% and eventive verbs (yielding past interpretation)
at 69% with respect to marking English past tense:
Table 9: Modified results from Hawkins & Liszka (2003) divided into States and Events
11
This interpretation can be modified with aspectual morphology, adverbials and context manipulation, for a
more detailed explanation, I refer the reader refer to Lin (2002).
45
With a more controlled experiment that would elicit a bigger and an equal number of verbs
denoting these two types of actions, the prediction from above indeed may be borne out, as
hinted by this study.
4. Conclusion
I have shown the crucial role and influence that native languages may have on English
learning for ESL students. While instructors and educators should still be focused on areas of
English from a native speaker’s perspective, it is very important to be aware of all the
diversity brought into the classroom by students with different language backgrounds due to
the different structures available in their native language. The native language is always
present in the student’s mind and, as I have demonstrated, will influence what areas of
English will be more problematic to master. By being aware of this influence and by
examining how English relates to the relevant native language, language instructors can
bridge the gaps between two language areas, as well as shorten the time and effort needed to
learn a certain structure. These issues can be addressed by offering more effective, efficient,
and on-point customized instruction that takes into consideration the relation between English
grammar and the grammar of various native languages present in the classroom.
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47
Title
Gender Mainstreaming in EFL Learning: The Case of Vongchavalitkul University
Author
Eunice Barbara C. Novio, MAWD
Josemari V. Cordova
Vongchavalitkul University, Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand
Bio-Profiles:
Eunice Barbara C. Novio is a lecturer at Vongchavalitkul University. She graduated MA in
Women and Development at the University of the Philippines through Women Leadership
Scholarship. She has written and published numerous articles on women and gender. She is a
U.S. correspondent of Inquirer. Net and a member of Women in Tesol. Her email is
[email protected].
Josemari V. Cordova is a lecturer at Vongchavalitkul University. He has a degree in

Political Science. Presently, he is taking MA in TEFL at Rajhabat University, Nakhon
Ratchasima. He was a former Volunteer Service Overseas (VSO) at the Ministry of
Education in Thailand. His email is [email protected].
Abstract
This study was done to assess the English instruction in EFL class in accordance with the
United Nations call for equity in education. The study is intended to reduce the gender
discrimination in classroom situations where girls usually suffer in terms of academic
achievement. The result of the study will help the teachers as well as curriculum developers
in devising methodologies and approaches that will ensure the inclusivity of learning in
English classes which is one of the thrust of Jomtien Declaration on Education for All, the
2000 Dakar Framework for Action and the 2000 Millennium Development Goals. The study
concluded that English lecturers at Vongchavalitkul University can mainstream gender in
their EFL classes even without proper training or knowledge in gender equality. Although
48
Thailand has a highly gendered language, in English classes it is not applicable. In fairness,
although most of the respondents are female lecturers, the male lecturers were also
unconsciously aware of the equality between male and female students when it comes to
performance. This is not, however, a sweeping statement that it is the same in the Thai
society.
Affiliation address:
Vongchavalitkul University, 84 Moo 4 Mithraparb Highway, Muang Nakhon Ratchasima,
30000 Thailand
Introduction
Thailand has a very unique characteristic when it comes to sexual orientations and gender
preferences. LGBTQ (lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders and queers) are accepted in the
society. In schools and universities across the country, it is ordinary to see young boys slowly
turning into gays or girls into lesbians. Many transsexual students; like a male wearing a
female uniform or female wearing male's uniform and some males have sex-reassignment, to
achieve the desired femininity. However, even though they are accepted, it is still a question
whether they are given close attention or discriminated when it comes to education.
Gender plays significant roles in the lives of women and men. Gender refers to the
socially constructed roles, behavior, activities and attributes that a particular society considers
appropriate for men and women. Because it is culturally determined, gender sets limitations
to both sexes which resulted to full development. This is called stereo-typing, wherein men
and women are contained in a set of roles or functions mainly designed or expected by the
society. The 1990 Jomtien Declaration on Education for All, the 2000 Dakar Framework for
Action and the 2000 Millennium Development Goals have all put emphasis gender equality
in education by including specific gender goals.
Equity, on the other hand, is the process of treating girls and boys fairly. To ensure
fairness, measures must be available to compensate for historical and social disadvantages
that prevent girls and boys from operating on a level playing field. Equity does not imply
treating all learners the same because many factors could disadvantage students in having a
chance to achieve equitable outcomes. Responses may include “equal treatment or treatment
that is different but which is considered equivalent in terms of rights, benefits, obligations
and opportunities” (ILO 2000).
49
However, lack of gender awareness and training on the part of the teachers hinder most
educational institutions in integrating gender into teaching methods, thereby consciously and
unconsciously reinforce gender stereotyping in their teaching methods. For example, in a
classroom setting female students are less likely to exhibit aggressiveness during discussions
especially if it is with male professor or teacher.
Teaching methods are also confined into conventional teaching specifically in the
elementary level where the image of a girl or woman is always confined into domestic
spheres, i.e. My mother cooks lunch or projecting the image of women as always caregivers
like nurses, helpers or teachers.
In the tertiary level, gender biases may not be that evident compared to elementary level,
yet it is observed that in teaching history subjects or management subjects, the concrete
referral to “he” as the representative of human race is very common. Thus, it is become
generally accepted that women are always in the shadows of men.
In EFL class, using English books are oftentimes problematic because these books reflect
the lifestyles of the Western countries which may not be acceptable in some Asian countries.
However, it is the teacher's responsibility to ensure that all students regardless of their
genders must be given enough attention to assure quality learning.
Thus, this study was done to assess the English instruction in EFL class in accordance
with the United Nations call for equity in education. The study is intended to reduce the
gender discrimination in classroom situations where girls usually suffer in terms of academic
achievement. The result of the study will help the teachers as well as curriculum developers
in devising methodologies and approaches that will ensure the inclusivity of learning in
English classes which is one of the thrust of Jomtien Declaration on Education for All, the
2000 Dakar Framework for Action and the 2000 Millennium Development Goals.
Further, it is a pioneering study in Thailand regarding the gender mainstreaming in
teaching EFL.
Gender Mainstreaming in Education

Gender Mainstreaming is defined as taking account gender equity concerns in all policies,
programs, administrative and financial activities, and in organizational procedures, and
thereby contributing to a profound organizational transformation services of organizations
and agencies. It is also defined as a strategy for making women’s policies, projects and
men’s concerns an integral dimension of the design, implementation, monitoring and
50
evaluation of programs and policies- in all political, economic and societal spheres. This is to
ensure that women and men benefit equally, and that inequality is not perpetuated. (Gender
Mainstreaming. www.undp.org/gendermainstreaming)
Based on a gender analysis, mainstreaming is a strategy for making women’s, as well as
men’s concerns and experiences an integral dimension of the design, implementation,
monitoring and evaluation of policies and programs in all political, economic and societal
spheres, so that women and men benefit equally and inequality is not perpetuated. The
ultimate goal is to achieve gender equality ( www.undp.org/mainstreaming).
Gender biased materials and pedagogy

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) (2009) in its Gender Checklist in Education
recognizes that education is a human right and an essential tool for achieving equality,
development, and peace. Nondiscriminatory education benefits both men and women and
ultimately equalizes relations between them. Thus, in education projects, ADB stresses the
need to assess the project whether it significantly benefits the women particularly the poor
women. Moreover, the projects that focus on textbooks and curriculum improvements should
aim to remove gender stereotypes in the contents and images of the textbooks since school
textbooks play a crucial role in determining pupils’ worldview of female and male roles in
society (Byrne, 2001; Harrison, Azzarito, & Burden, 2004; Kobia, 2009). Sunderland (1992a)
points out that coursebooks representations affect students as language learners and users.
However, she also stresses out that most English western books reflects the life in the English
English-speaking country. Teaching books of today are biased and stereotypical regarding the
issue of equality. Major efforts are needed in the areas concerning gender equality.
Furthermore, gender awareness amongst teachers and society is strongly needed (Oden,
2005).
FAWE (Forum for African Women Educationalists) (2005) also cites that the attainment
of quality in education has to include the elimination of the gender constraints in the teaching
and learning processes. This calls for the development of a pedagogy that incorporates the
gender dimension in the curriculum teaching and learning materials, teaching methodologies
and the overall learning environment.
In 2001, the Women and Gender Institute of Miriam College conducted a study on 6
selected Philippine Schools under the United Nations Children’s Education Fund. The study
aimed to see whether and how gender advocacy and concerns were integrated into schools
51
supported by the UNICEF Country Program for Children V (CPC V). It was found out that
gender biases existed—(i) spontaneous remarks made by some teachers in the classroom; (ii)
visual teaching and informational materials, particularly posters, which were strongly gender
stereotypical; (iii) English-language subjects, which were fraught with gender bias; and (iv)
some science teachers, who favored boys and overlooked girls for activities that involved
risks and physical challenge. According to the study most teachers equated gender sensitivity
to rights, emphasizing that women and men must be treated equally and given equal
opportunities. Revaluing and respecting the tasks and responsibilities performed by women in
the same manner as those performed by men, as well as being equally sensitive to the needs
of the sexes, were principal notions the teachers related to gender sensitivity. The undertaking
of social activities and roles by either sex, which the school heads focused on when they
spoke of gender sensitivity was just one notion teachers attached to the same concept.
Teachers had a more developed notion of gender sensitivity and gender fairness than school
heads.
Kane (1996 as cited in Allana, et al, 2010) posits that teachers reinforce gender roles by
creating an environment “in which boys are encouraged to succeed while girls are allowed to
fail”. Unfortunately, many teachers are unaware that their treatments of the students based on
gender are different.
Mamud (2010) in his study on the impact of gender differences in English Language
Teaching reveals that that female than male students were reluctant to speak to different sex;
females preferred the direct way to express opinions (writing), work with the same sex, and
tended to be passive in class. In addition, females saw the high possibility to increase their
English skills by working with the same sex but the reverse is true for males. These different
styles of female and male students in learning English were affected by the notions of
women’s language. Sunderland on the other hand, (1992b) problematizes also the “gendered”
grammar the English language. For example the use of “he” pronoun for an unknown person.
She also points out that the gender of the teacher as well as the socio-cultural upbringing are
factors in the gender sensitivity of the teachers, thus critical reading and listening are
suggested part of the pedagogy.
Kuo (2005) reasons out that fairy tales which are usually replete with gender bias and
stereotypes are the materials usually used in EFL/ESL classrooms. Consciously or not,
teachers help in stereotyping gender.
52
Foreign teachers bring their own cultures inside the classrooms. Thus, it is suggestive that
the types of reading materials given to the students could be the cultural context of a
particular teacher. Further, Kuo suggests that “teachers should empower students with critical
thinking by utilizing resistant or oppositional reading practices” and they should both
challenge the gender aspects of a given reading material.
Moreover, giving gender-biased readings could stimulate the creative thinking of the
students therefore a way to start a discussion and comparison on the treatment of men,
women and the LGBTQ in different societies.
According to Appleby (2005) when the classroom was seen as a relatively autonomous
educational domain, detached from the outside world, the teacher exercised a certain control
over gender equity inside the classroom, using her authority to improve what she
saw as inequitable access to educational resources. However, the imposition of teachers’
authority was seen as more problematic when attempts were made to impose ‘outsider’
values or ideals in matters to do with gender relations of the host culture outside the
institutional domain of the classroom.
Mlama, et al (2005) claim that gender responsive teachers understand and respond to the
specific needs of girls and boys in the teaching and learning processes. They do this by being
aware of the special needs of girls and boys such as sexual maturation issues and by
encouraging equal participation and involvement of boys and girls in class activities and
ensuring equal access to learning materials.
This study is guided by the theory of gendered organization by Joan Acker (1990) which
posits that the system of two-gender in society is something “grown”, that we are confronted
with institutionalized conditions of activity and role fixations, so called “gendered
institutions” such as school, institutions of further education, university, family, language
and so on and Instructional-design theory which is a theory that offers explicit guidance on
how to better help people learn and develop. The kinds of learning and development may
include cognitive, emotional, social, physical, and spiritual. (Reighluth,1999). The theory
offers the following guidance to for what the instruction should be: clear information,
thoughtful practice, informative feedback and strong intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Thus,
it is relevant on the teaching strategies, contents of subject matter and over-all classroom
environment is very crucial in promoting or downgrading ones gender.
53
Statement of the Problem
In teaching English as a second language, all teachers are using books published abroad
where the culture is different from the locale. However, it implies that the Western
presentations in the lessons are more or less gender equal in terms of examples used.
However, due to dependency on the books, the teachers may overlook gender disparity or
equality in giving examples which in turn could confuse the students on their perceived roles
as male and female. Thus, this study answered the following questions: How does the teacher
present gender awareness in the contents of the subject matter, strategies in teaching and
classroom environment? What are the teaching strategies employed by the teacher in raising
gender awareness among the students?
Setting
In terms of gender equity Thailand is much better compared to its neighbors like Burma
and Cambodia. Both men and women are receiving education (http://www.socialwatch.org,
2012). However, there is no data on the courses commonly taken by male and female
students. But generally, women are more inclined to take soft-courses and service oriented
courses like education, nursing and tourism while men are into hard courses like engineering,
medicine and science courses. This study will focus on the Faculty of Education at
Vongchavalitkul University in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand where there are mixed-
nationalities teaching English subject.
Participants
Native-speakers and non-native speakers teaching EFL in the Faculty of Education at
Vongchavalitkul University in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand participated in this study. There
were 8 females and four male respondents.
Methods and Methodologies

The study utilizes descriptive method of research.
To determine the extent of gender mainstreaming in the following: Contents of the
Subject Matter, Teaching Strategies, classroom environment and participation. Likerts Scale
was used in the study to determine how the lecturers mainstream gender in their teaching
approaches.
54
The descriptive part of the study is the analysis of the answers on the feedback form
which has two more additional questions requiring their views regarding gender equality.
Data Gathering Instrument

The respondents will select their answer from the five (5) options given where five (5) is
the highest, namely:
Value Interpretation Description
5 Very Often This means that gender mainstreaming is
implemented at all times.
4 Often This means that gender mainstreaming is

implemented most of the time.
3 Seldom This means that gender mainstreaming is

implemented occasionally.
2 Very Seldom This means that gender mainstreaming is
implemented rarely
1 Not at all This means that gender mainstreaming is

not implemented at all
Analysis of the Study

The majority of the respondents are women and all has Master’s Degree and PhD. The
average age of the respondents is 42.25. Most of the respondents are married. Except two
respondents, the majority has been teaching English for 11-15 years. Some taught in different
countries like the Philippines, United States and Spain.
The study found out on the Contents of Subject Matter that the respondents often
emphasized that men and women are born equal, and so they must be given equal
opportunities to develop their potentials. They seldom ensured awareness of students on their
gender roles and rights. The respondents however do not included gender issues such as
gender violence and discrimination, stereotyping etc. in the coursework. The respondents also
seldom used textbooks and supplemental materials that depict women and girls in a wide
55
range of activities; and seldom encouraged girls to seek out a wide range of careers in the
subject area. Perhaps due to highly patriarchal society, respondents seldom included success
stories of female leaders and heroines in lessons whenever it is applicable and appropriate to
inspire them to do heroic acts in English readings. However, they often acknowledged gender
influences, and seek ways to incorporate them appropriately in the lesson. Because of using
westernized books in English, the respondents seldom pointed to the students the cultural and
sociological background of the books they are using which may not be applicable to their
culture.
On strategies of teaching, this study found out that the respondents often expected the
same academic success for female, and for male students. They often used parallel
terminology in describing both genders, such as "men and women," or "boys and girls," not
"girls and men." They often avoided asking males the critical thinking questions and females
the factual and easier questions. All are equal when it comes to recitation. They called the
male and female students by name very often.
Since teachers-students relationship here is hierarchical, lecturers are stern and avoided
stories, jokes and comments that denigrate women and girls and other genders very often.
They also directed equal amount of casual conversation at male and female students very
often. They responded with the same attentiveness to female as male requests for clarification
very often. They often used English textbooks and supplemental materials that conform to
non-biased language guidelines. However, some English textbooks show pictures of male
students as lousy and lazy when it comes to cleaning the room. They often used small groups
to foster cooperative, rather than competitive learning. They often provided practical
situations where females can prove that they can do as much as males can do such as in role-
playing. They gave credit to students’ contributions, ensuring equal recognition to males and
females very often. They often exerted efforts to shift from the belief that males belong to
stronger sex and women to weaker sex among students to the belief that men and women are
equal in all aspects of being a person. They judged females’ and males’ contributions to the
class by the content of their ideas rather than by the style of their speed very often. They
often grouped students not by gender since groupings often imply that females are not as
qualified as males.
On classroom environment, this study found out that females and minority groups were
seldom represented in non-stereotypical ways in the visuals, bulletin boards, and audio
visuals used in class background shown being sensitive and tender. Textbooks and
56
supplemental materials often conform to non-biased language guidelines. Females, and males
were very oftentimes equally represented when displaying students work in the classroom.
Classroom seating plan often allowed equal access to teacher from males and females.
Leadership roles were often equally distributed between female and male students when
working in groups or doing laboratory exercises/activities. Female students have equal access
to tools when working in groups or doing activities and assignments very often. Male and
female students very often worked together to complete a task when looking across the
classroom at random times during a class period. Rules apply the same for all students
regardless of gender in my classroom management very often.
Conclusion
The study concluded that English lecturers at Vongchavalitkul University mainstream
gender in their EFL classes even without proper training or knowledge in gender equality.
Although Thailand has a highly gendered language it is not applicable in English classrooms.
In fairness, although most of the respondents are female lecturers, the male lecturers were
also unconsciously implementing equality and equity between male, female and members of
LGBTQ students when it comes to performance.
Members of LGBTQ do not feel different because the treatment of the teachers to them
are not based on gender but on their performance in the English class.
Despite of the result, the researchers still feel the need to conduct gender orientation and
assessment of reading materials used by English lecturers to ensure that gender stereotyping
will not be reinforced and gender mainstreaming is strongly implemented in the classrooms.
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59
Title
Where are All the Women?
Author
Frances Shiobara
Kobe Shoin Women’s University, Japan
Bio-Profile:
Frances Shiobara has been living and teaching in Japan since 1989. She has a master’s
degree in Applied Linguistics and is currently studying for a Doctor of Education in Higher
Education. Her main areas of interest are: Mobile Learning, Autonomous Language Learning,
and Teaching English to Young Learners.
[email protected]
Abstract
Female rates of participation in academia are shockingly low in most countries around the
world, but Japan was recently found to be the lowest amongst 400 of the top universities in
the world (Grove, 2016). There are a number of reasons for this, but the difficulties of having
children and maintaining a career seems to be one of the major reasons that women drop out
of the workforce. This paper will argue that offering greater flexibility in the work place,
especially regarding professional level part-time work, will lead to higher rates of
participation in the work force by working mothers, and in the long term enable these women
to return to full-time work. The author will also make some suggestions as to how
governments, employers, and co-workers can help to improve this situation through
providing flexible work options, encouraging women to return to work after maternity leave,
either full-time or part-time, and increasing opportunities for part-time workers to return to
full-time positions when they are ready. Increasing the number of women in the work force
may aid the economy, as well as improving gender equality.
60
Affiliation Address: Kobe Shoin Women’s University

1-2-1 Shinohara Oba Noyamacho, Nada, Kobe, Japan, 665-0015
Introduction
Despite the fact that in many countries there are more women entering and graduating
from university than men (Vincent-Lancrin, 2008) there are still very low rates of women
working in academia. When you move up to senior faculty positions, women are a rarity at
most institutions. Mason (2013) stated that at faculty meetings in the United States she saw
only about one in four women. The dearth of female role models for students, male and
female, is a huge problem. How can there be any acceptance of gender equality, when young
people see so few women in senior positions in education? Higher female participation in the
work force can also have a very positive effect on the Gross Domestic Product of a country
“Results of a new simulation model suggest that closing the gender gap could generate a 30%
increase in the per capita income of a hypothetical average Asian economy in one
generation.“ (O'Brien, 2016).
Gender Comparisons in Higher Education Around the World.

Among the top 400 universities from Times Higher Education World University
Rankings, Japan was found to have the lowest female participation in Academia at 12.7%
(Grove, 2016). Even in countries generally regarded as having a good gender balance such as
Sweden, women are only just over 35% of the total number of academics. Turkey has the
highest participation at close to 50%, but this seems to be mainly due to historical factors and
is not an indication of gender equality across Turkish society (De Cruz, 2013).
50
45 Percentage of Women in
40 Academia by Country.
Japan
35
30 Taiwan
25 UK
20 US
15 Sweden
10 Turkey
5
0
Japan Taiwan UK US Sweden Turkey
61
Source: Grove, J. (2013, May 2). Global Gender Index, 2013

In other countries there are similar statistics. In Australia although over 50% of the
lecturer and below lecturer positions are held by women, less than 30% of the above senior
lecturer positions are held by women (Catalyst, 2015). This shows that although women are
getting positions at universities, they are either not being promoted or they drop out of the
work force before they reach senior lecturer positions. In Canada female academics earn on
average 87.8% of what male academics earn, and in the UK female academics earned 11.3%
less than their male counterparts (Catalyst, 2015). There is no suggestion of double pay
scales; it is far more likely that this disparity is caused by women not being promoted to
senior positions. This is supported by data from the United States of America, which found
that women held 48.4% of all tenure track positions in 2013, but only 37.5% of tenured
positions (Catalyst, 2015).
So why is there this disparity? It is easy to say that there are more men in the work force
than women. This is partly true, but there are other factors at play. A telling statistic is that
44% of female tenured faculty in the United States of America had children compared to 70%
of male tenured faculty (Mason, 2013). Furthermore in Japan only 65% of college educated
women are employed and approximately 70% of women quit work after giving birth to their
first child (Catalyst, 2015). As can be seen from the statistics below, most developed
countries have far higher percentages of working mothers than Japan, but they are still only
slightly above 50% on average.
Mothers with children under 6 years

of age, who work
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Japan Germany UK, US, Sweden
Source: Catalyst. (2015, July 9). Quick Take: Women in Academia. Catalyst .
62
These statistics seem to indicate that it is not just being a woman that prevents women
from getting positions and rising to the top in academia, but having children. However in a
recent Japanese government survey 86% of Japanese women stated that they want to continue
working after having children (The Japan Times, 2012).
Mapping fertility rates and participation in academia on the same map indicates counter
intuitively that as the fertility rate rises the participation in academia also rises. Meaning that
countries where women have more children are also countries where women are more likely
to work in academia.
50 2.5
45
% participation in academia
40 2 Fertility rate per woman

35
30 1.5
25 Participation in
Academia
20 1
Fertility rate (births
15
per woman)
10 0.5
5
0 0
Source: Grove, J. (2013, May 2). Global Gender Index, 2013 Glass ceiling remains in place
for female academics. Times Higher Education . and The World Bank Group. (2016).
Fertility rate, total (births per woman).
Slaughter (2012) stated that “Juggling high-level government work with the needs of two
teenage boys was not possible.” as a reason for her leaving the prestigious job she had in the
American government. She returned to a full-time job as an academic at Princeton
University. In her case the pressure of working for the government was too much, but being
an academic allowed her to attain a good work-life balance. Based on this, universities should
have some of the best gender balance statistics among different professions. With modern
Internet access, research in many fields can be done anywhere and anytime. Academia should
be one of the most flexible professions. Teaching is also done during term times when
children are at school, allowing mothers more flexibility to look after children during the
school holidays.
63
What is the best way for parents to achieve a work-life balance?

Everyone has a different way in which they would like to achieve a work life balance.
Some parents want to keep working full-time with very little maternity leave. Marissa Mayer,
CEO of Yahoo has been widely criticized for choosing to take only two weeks maternity
leave (O'Brien, 2016). Other parents want to take long maternity and paternity breaks.
Parents need to be able to choose what best suits their circumstances.
The reality is that women will have to work more and more outside the home. This is
especially true in Japan due to the country’s dramatically falling birthrate (The World Bank
Group, 2016). In a survey of Japanese women aged between twenty and forty-nine with
children under the age of nineteen, 45.3 % said that they wished to work part-time, but
another 14.9% said that they wanted to work part-time at first and later as a regular employee,
and 25.8% said that they would like to be regular full-time employees (The Japan Times,
2012). This indicates that there is a large proportion of women with children, who want to
work part-time for at least part of their career.
In the book ‘Lean In’ by Sheryl Sandberg (2013) she encourages women to engage more
with their job. She implies that the reason that more women do not reach the top is because
women do not push themselves forward at work. It seems to ignore the fact that working full-
time whilst bringing up small children is nearly impossible for some women. If there were
more options for women rather than full-time work or quitting work after having a baby,
more women might stay in the work force and in time move up to higher positions.
Difficulties with Part-time Work

In Austria, Germany, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, the percentage of women
who work part time because of family responsibilities is above 40%. However, while part-
time work might allow women to combine employment with childcare, it could also trap
them in lower-quality jobs because career-track and management jobs are rarely designed
with reduced workweeks in mind. Part-time work also gives less time for networking in
professional jobs, and thus fewer possibilities for promotion. Added to which, the hourly rate
is significantly lower for both men and women in part-time work, as the following statistics
from the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare shows.
Part-time hourly wage Full-time hourly wage
Men 1098 2667
Women 936 1724
64
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (2004) White Paper on the Labour Economy 2004
Gyosei, Tokyo cited in Abe (2006)
Working part-time often means earning the minimum wage in a menial job. Women
should be able to work part-time at the job they did before they started a family. There is no
reason why higher-level university jobs could not also be offered part-time. The Centre for
Work-Life Policy study in Japan found that only 43% of women trying to return to the work
place were able to find a job similar to the one they left. Taking time off to raise children is
usually the end of a career, rather than a temporary break in a lifetime career. Most
companies do not want to rehire women once they have left (The Japan Times, 2012).
There are other serious barriers to working flexibly in Japan. Most daycare is full-time or
nothing; parents must have evidence that both parents work full-time in order to register for
daycare. Most women working part time cannot put their children in public daycare. Offering
women three months or even one year maternity leave is also inappropriate. Most women
cannot go back to working full-time schedules when their child is less than one year old.
Now that the Japanese Ministry of Education has decided that university semesters should be
15-weeks-long, more and more universities are demanding that classes be held on national
holidays. Schools and daycare centers are not open on national holidays, meaning that parents
have to find alternative childcare on those days. Schools and kindergartens are also adding to
the problem, demanding that parents (invariably women) spend large amounts of time
‘volunteering’ at school (The Japan Times, 2012). In other countries with high rates of female
participation in the work force employers either have onsite crèche facilities or employees are
not expected to work outside the hours of the daycare centers.
A Flexible Solution
Women should be helped to create a work-life balance through flexible work options. By
offering women part-time job opportunities after maternity leave, and then opportunities to
return to full-time positions at sometime in the future parents can make their own choice on
how to maintain a work-life balance. If parents step out of the workplace completely, they are
in danger of losing confidence making it much more difficult to get back onto the career
ladder at a later date. If they work full-time it can be very difficult to maintain a work life
balance.
The solution must involve encouraging women to return to the workforce after having a
baby, full-time or part-time, and if they do return to work part-time, creating opportunities for
65
them to continue with rewarding work, similar to the work they did as a full-timer. Then,
when they are ready, creating opportunities to return to work full-time. In Sweden, which has
the highest female participation in the workforce in Europe at 73.1%, of those 38.3% are
working in part-time positions. (European Union, n.d.). Vanderkam (2015) found that 45% of
women earning six figure salaries work split shifts. This means that they leave work early and
then start work again in the evening after their children have gone to bed. This supports the
theory that in order for women to have successful careers they need flexible working hours.
Necessary Changes
The government obviously needs to provide enough daycare centers, but more than that,
they need to change the tax system, that penalizes families with two working parents. The
government also needs to encourage employers to offer professional level part-time work.
Employers need to create a flexible working environment with options for people to work
less than full-time without losing their career prospects. They also need to encourage part-
time workers to apply for full-time positions. Employers need to be understanding of the
commitments that working parents have. This involves not expecting parents to work on
national holidays or Sundays, when day care centers are closed. It also involves allowing staff
to leave work in time to collect their children from daycare centers. As children get older the
problem can get more complicated with children coming home from school and having to
spend long periods alone in the house. The evidence from Turkey is that many working
mothers rely on employed domestic help, which enables them to work irregular hours (De
Cruz, 2013). In Japan employed domestic help is too expensive for most working parents to
pay.
Finally friends and colleagues need to encourage women to stay in the work force. It is
actually easier to take on a little extra work while your colleague is on maternity leave or has
very young children than it is to hire a new member of staff and train them to do the job. It is
also important that colleagues encourage women to move back into full-time positions once
their children get older. Only by working full-time can women move up the career ladder and
obtain positions of responsibility.
Conclusion
Increasing the number of women in the work force has numerous benefits for children’s
health, education and the economy. “The rise of women is not the result of any ideology or
66
political movement; it is a result of the widespread realization, sometime after the Second
World War, that families in which women work are families that prosper. And countries in
which women work are countries that prosper.” (Marche, 2013).
However, something needs to be done to encourage women to join the workforce and to
remain in the workforce throughout their career. The idea that one size fits all in terms of
female participation in the work force is wrong. Governments need to keep increasing places
at daycare centers, and improving maternity leave conditions, but there are also many more
policies, which need to be implemented. Flexibility in the workforce allows parents to make
their own choices as to how much they want to work and increases the probability of women
returning to full-time work and achieving high-level positions in the work place. Through
supporting women to take part-time positions after having children and then encouraging
part-time workers to become full-time there is a far higher possibility of increased female
participation in the work force in the long-term. The total working life for most adults is
forty-five years. If five of those years were spent in part-time work there is still sufficient
time for women to reach senior positions in the work place. The government, employers, and
co-workers all need to work together to make work-life balance better for parents. This will
improve gender balance and help the economy. There is no doubt that women in Japan will
have to work more in the coming decades. There are just not enough people to support the
ageing population.
References
Abe, Y. (2006, August). Work Experience of Japanese Women and the Part-time/full-time
Wage Gap. Discussion Paper Series A, No. 2006-65. Hokkaido University.
Asian Development Bank. (2015). Women In The Workforce An Unmet Potential In Asia And
The Pacific . Asian Development Bank. Mandaluyong City : Asian Development
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Catalyst. (2015, July 9). Quick Take: Women in Academia. Catalyst .
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from New APPS: Art, Politics, Philosophy, Science:
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turkey.html
European Union. (n.d.). European Platform for investing in Children. Retrieved May 5, 2016,
from European Union: http://europa.eu/epic/countries/sweden/index_en.htm
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eavy_baby_penalty.single.html
Nagatomo, D. (2015). In the Ivory Tower and Out of the Loop: Racialized and Gendered
Identities of University EFL Teachers in Japan. In Y. L. Cheung, S. B. Said, & K.
Park, Advances and Current Trends in Language Teacher Identity Research (pp. 102-
115). New York, USA: Routledge.
O'Brien, S. A. (2016, May 6). Marissa Mayer on maternity leave: 'I understand I'm the
exception'. Retrieved May 9, 2016, from CNN Money:
http://money.cnn.com/2016/05/06/technology/yahoo-marissa-mayer-maternity-leave/
Sandberg, S. (2013). Lean In: Women, work, and the will to lead. Knopf.
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theatlantic.com: http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/07/why-women-
still-cant-have-it-all/309020/
The Japan Times. (2012, June 4). Married Women Want to Work. The Japan Times
The World Bank Group. (2016). Fertility rate, total (births per woman). Retrieved May 16,
2016, from The World Bank: http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.TFRT.IN
Turner, J. (2013, April 20). Have you got the XX Factor?
Vanderkam, L. (2015). I Know How She Does It: How Successful Women Make the Most of
Their Time. New York, USA: Portfolio, Penguin Publishing Group.
Vincent-Lancrin, S. (2008). The Reversal Of Gender Inequalities In Higher Education: An
On-Going Trend . In OECD, Higher Education to 2030 Volume 1: Demography (pp.
265-298).
68
Title
The Effect of Creative Reading Instruction: A Comparison of Technique between Number
Head Together (NHT) and Make a Match in Narrative Text
at the Seventh Grade of Junior Level
Author
Surti Nur Utami
Dwi Sulisworo
Ahmad Dahlan University
Bio-Profiles:
Surti Nur Utami is a student of Ahmad Dahlan University Yogyakarta Indonesia currently
taking up master of English education study program. She gained her bachelor degree from
Muhammadiyah University of Metro Lampung, Indonesia. She concerns on teaching English
for senior level. Furthermore, her main research is improving the quality of English
instruction for junior.
Dwi Sulisworo is a senior lecturer at post graduate program of Ahmad Dahlan University
Yogyakarta Indonesia. Currently he is a Vice director of graduate program at Ahmad Dahlan
University. He gained his master program at Bandung Institute Technology majoring
Department of Industrial Engineering, and earned his doctoral program at Malang State
University majoring Department of Learning Technology.
Abstract
This quantitative research investigates the student’s creative reading instruction.
Comparing between using Numbered Head Together (NHT) and Make a Match to teach
narrative text. The main purpose of this study is to examine whether NHT or Make a Match is
effective or not to teach narrative text. Regarding, that each techniques has different
characteristics the researcher used cluster random sampling to take the sample. The sample is
in the same level of seventh grade which consists of heterogeneous students. This research
69
was held in a school that located in rural area, where English is become unfamiliar and even
strange for students.
Consequently, reading especially in English is become bizarre habit for students. Further,
this paper show significant result of students’ reading narrative score by using NHT
technique. The data were collected from pre-test which was conducted at first meeting and
the post-test was conducted at the last meeting. A three-week treatment by implementing of
two learning techniques; NHT in experiment class while Make a Match in control class to
teach reading comprehension in narrative text.
Key Words: Numbered Head Together, Make a Match, Reading Comprehension, Narrative
Text
Introduction
Reading plays as vital part which interprets learn English means learn reading. The aim of
reading to get the main message of the text; it does not involve studying every word (Pollard,
2008). Reading is a difficult task, especially in foreign language; in this case it is English
reading (Krashen, 2003). Lems et al. (2010) maintained that reading comprehension is the
ability to construct meaning from a given written text. Regarding, reading comprehension is
the key point for basics English, in particular teaching reading become the main concern for
the teachers. The students need prosperous reading skill for acquiring fresh information.
Using various learning techniques of reading comprehension strategies enhances readers’
reasoning (Duke, Pressley, & Hilden, 2004; Paris & Paris, 2007; Pressley, 2006). In fact, the
students have to learn many genres endorsed by the curriculum of Indonesia. Many students
got low score in reading test due to some reasons, i.e. unattractive teaching strategy provided
by the teachers. Consequently the teachers have to be creative to build the students’
enthusiasm in learning English.
Based on preliminary study, the students reading score from the English teacher is drawn
as the following. There are 70% or 20 students got bad score, 12% or 9 students got enough
score, 12% or 9 students got good score and not more than 6% or 7 students can pass the
examination with excellent score. Considering the information of students reading score, it
also aim at finding out how far the result of comparison by using NHT and make a match
technique toward students’ reading comprehension in narrative text.
70
Methodology
This method of investigation was held through quantitative research. This experimental
design deal with two classes: one as experiment class and one as control class which both
class were received pre-test, treatment and post test. The aim of this quantitative paper is to
determine whether NHT or Make a Match is effective to increase students’ score of reading
comprehension in narrative text.
Participants
The study was conducted at junior high school in Lampung, Indonesia. The sample of this
research was taken by using cluster random sampling. There are two classes as the object,
first class as experiment and the second class as control. Participants were the seventh grade
students which consist of heterogeneous capacity. Furthermore, the experiment class got
treatment through NHT and the control class got treatments through Make a Match. All
participants had a major problem namely reading.
The participants live in the rural area, where reading especially in English becomes
crucial problem. The students did not have reading habit due to lack of English book. The
students do not speak Indonesian as their daily conversation but in local language (mother
tongue). Actually the students have good ability to compete and learn English, because the
teaching-learning used by the English teacher, they get low score at reading test. The teacher
only used textbook and monotonous teaching technique that does not encourage the students
to be active in learning activity.
Materials
Reading is a good way of receiving input because it is accessible and full of input
(Chiang, 2014). Some of the obstacles which discourage the language learner are lack of
English book, doing no reading for English subject. As earlier explanation, it also supported
by Mikulecky (2008) reading is the basic of instruction in all aspects of language learning;
using textbook for language course, developing vocabulary, acquiring grammar and using
computer–assisted in language learning program (p.1). Krashen (1985) argue that the best
way to improve reading comprehension is by reading. The more students read, the better their
vocabulary becomes and the better vocabulary they know, the better they can read. While,
reading comprehension means making sense of what you read and connecting the ideas in the
text to what you already know (Harmer, 2001). By having good reading comprehension, the
71
students will be easier to understand the content of the text. As previous study, most of
students do not have interested in reading text due to monotonous teaching strategy held by
the English teachers. Narrative text become one of difficult type of reading, some students
have difference background knowledge. For instance, when the teachers talk about folktale
from another tribe, they do not really understand what the teacher talk about. Turmudi (2010)
points out that reading comprehension in narrative text is a kind of reading text which
describes about specific things, places or people. Narrative is text which contains about story
(fiction/nonfiction/tales/folktales/fables/myths/epic) and its plot consists of orientation,
climax of the story (complication) then followed by the resolution.
From this point of view, the researcher give bridge of this gap by providing variety of
teaching strategy to encourage students enthusiasm to learn reading. Cooperative learning
strategy promotes discussion and both individual and group accountability. NHT is one of
cooperative learning strategy that held each student accountable for learning material. Kagan
(1989) maintained that NHT offered the cooperative approach of whole-class question-
answer, in which the teacher asks a question and then call one of the students with a raised
hand, in this technique approach the students number off (e.g. 1-4) ask a question, and tell the
students to “put their head together” to develop a complete answer to the question. When the
teacher out a number, the students with that number raise their hands to give respond. This
structure facilitates positive interdependence, while promoting individual accountability. This
strategy ensures that each member knows the answer to problem or question asked by the
teacher, because no one knows which number will be called, all team members must be
prepared, that is why this strategy gives confidence to lower achievers.
The cooperative learning of make a match is finding partner (Curran, 1994). This
teaching technique spurs the students to read the text and comprehend the content. In other
words, Make a Match is one of cooperative learning technique lead the students find their
partner by matching the “Question” and “Answer”. The participant is divided into two big
groups, “A” bring the question card and “B bring the answers card where everyone get one
card that should be matched. During the activity the teacher played the music, while students
were fully active to match their card by finding the correct answer of the question. The
researcher who acted as teacher gave high score for who were fastest and correct card. This
automatically built the students’ enthusiasm to learn narrative text, it also improves the
students’ understanding of the material being studied.
72
Group learning methods encourage students to take greater responsibility for their own
learning and learn from one another, as well as from the instructor.
Procedure
This paper consist of some instruments which used to collect the data, to elicit the
required data, three set of instrument were administrated;
(1) Pre test

Students were asked to do reading narrative test that held at first meeting in order to know the
students mastery of narrative text. The researcher distributed 20 multiple choice question
whose four options (a,b,c,d) that have been measure by expert judgment and try out
instrument. They finished them in 60 minutes long to answer the question related to narrative
text.
(2) Treatment
There was three weeks of implementation teaching technique to both experiment and
control class. The participants learned narrative text using these previous techniques. The
classroom activity in control and experiment class is different but the final goal is same.
During the treatment, the researcher act as the teacher to explain the material and observe the
students activity. NHT applied as teaching technique in experiment class, while make a
match applied in control class.
(3) Post test

Post test is given at the end of the research in order to know the effectiveness of
techniques that has been applied. It is aimed to know the result of students learning narrative
text both experiment or control class. The researcher distributed 20 multiple choice question
whose four options (a,b,c,d) as same as pre-test but in different type of question. The students
finished them in 60 minutes long.
The pre-test and post test data were derived from teaching and learning process in the
classroom.
73
The Gained Score of Pre Test Post test in

Control Class
Pre Test Post Test
85
63 65
40 41
20
MINIMUM AVERAGE MAXIMUM
The Gained Score of Pre Test and Post

Test in Experiment Class
Pre Test Post Test
90
75 70
60
44
25
MINIMUM AVERAGE MAXIMUM
As can be seen in the charts of pre-test and post test both classes, there are escalation
difference result between two techniques applied in teaching activity.
Result and Discussion

It can be seen from the above studies, the result of this study also indicate that students’
reading comprehension in narrative text using NHT at junior level show significant
increasing. The participants were fully active to join the activity during learning process. It is
easier for the students to learn and comprehend the text provided by the teacher, most of
students express their idea in group activity by sharing the information they have got. It
supported by Novitasari & Abdullah in 2013 that NHT enhanced the interaction among the
students and let them did the task easier also encouraged the students participate actively in
74
the whole activity. It helps the students to overcome their difficulties in reading, creating a
positive atmosphere in the class, and building a good interaction for the teacher and students.
Limitation of the Study

The effect of these techniques is directly related to the amount of the time students spend
on reading and comprehending the text. Those who active in learning activity and following
the teacher instruction were gain significant progress. Both of techniques were spurred the
students to be active in activities even group discussion, but in the same time, there were less
students who did make a lot of progress due to their slack.
Conclusion
In line with the research objective, the findings of this study were to find out whether
NHT or Make a Match is effective or not to teach narrative text. The conclusion of this
research confirmed that NHT is more effective to teach reading comprehension in narrative
text than make a match technique. The statement is supported by the result of finding that the
highest score in pre-test is 60, while the highest score of post test is 90. It proves that the
students’ score of reading comprehension in narrative text have significant increasing.
Moreover, the students who lived in rural area are like to learn English by having a group,
they can comprehend and discus the text easier. It also helped the students enlarge their
understanding of narrative text and answer the followed question.
References
Chiang, Nonie I (2014). Extra-curricular Reading in Taiwan. The Asian EFL Journal Nov.
2014 Issue 80
Curran, Lorna (1994). Cooperative Learning. Grasindo: Jakarta
Duke, N., Pressley, M., & Hilden, K. (2004). Difficulties with reading comprehension. In
C.A. Store, E.R. Siliman, B.J. Ehren, & K. Apel (Eds.), Handbook of language and
literacy: Development and disorders. (pp.501-502). New York: Guilford
Harmer, J. (2001). The practice of English Language Teaching. England
Kagan, S (1989). “The structural approach to cooperative learning.” Educational Leadership
47(4):p.12-15
75
Krashen, S (2003). Dealing with English Fever. Selected paper from the Twelfth
International Symposium on English Teaaching (pp.108-8). Taipe; Crane Publishing
Company.
Krashen, S (1985). Insight and Inquires. Hayward, CA: Alemary Press
Lems et al. (2010). Teaching Reading to English Language Learners Insight from Linguistic
New York; The Guilford Press.
Mikulecky, Beatrice S (2008). Teaching Reading in a Second Language; Pearson Education
Novitasari, S & Abdullah, S ( 2013). The Implementation of “Numbered Head Together” in
teaching Reading Narrative Text to the Tenth Graders. E-Journal UNESA Vol1,No 3
Paris, A., & Paris, S. (2007). Teaching Narrative Comprehension Strategies to First Grades.
Cognition and Instruction, 25(1), 1-44
Pressley, M. (2000). What should comprehension instruction of? In M.L. Kamil, P.B.
Mosenthal,P.D. Pearson, & R.Barr (Eds.), Handbook of Reading Research (Vol.3, pp.545-
561)
Pressley, M. (2006). What the future of reading research could be. Paper presented at the
International Reading Association Reading Research Conference, Chicago.
Pollard, Lucy (2008). Teaching English. A book to help you through your first two year in
teaching.
76
Title
The Strategy of Implementation of Bilingual Program of First Grade Students at SD Islam
Raudah
Author
Ikhfi Imaniah
E-mail: [email protected]
Aidil Syah Putra
E-mail: [email protected]
English Education Study Program
Muhammadiyah University of Tangerang, Indonesia
Jl. Perintis Kemerdekaan I/ 33 Cikokol Kota Tangerang, Banten-Indonesia
Bio-Profiles:
Ikhfi Imaniah is a secretary of English Education Study Program and lecturer at
Muhammadiyah University of Tangerang, Indonesia. She is a candicate doctor of State
University of Jakarta. She is interested in language skills, language acquisition, young
learners, teaching methodology and technique, psycholinguistics and gender.
Aidil Syah Putra is a lecturer at Muhammadiyah University of Tangerang. He takes

doctorate program at State University of Jakarta. He is interested in teaching and curriculum.
Abstract
The aim of the research was to observe the activities that teachers do in implementing
bilingual program in teaching math and science deals with students’ characteristics of first
grade students at SD Islam Raudah, analyze the problems that may occur in implementing
bilingual program in teaching math and science, analyze the teachers’ strategy in
implementing bilingual program of first grade students at SD Islam Raudah, identify the
students’ special needs in the bilingual program class; particularly math and science, identify
the appropriate assessment of the bilingual program in teaching math and science. The
77
research was conducted to the first grade students of SD Islam Raudah. The subject of the
research was the first grade students which consist of 32 students at SD Islam Raudah.
The design of the research was qualitative research, in which the researchers started from the
phenomena of bilingual program in the reality and collecting the data by using observation
and interview. The researchers applied two meetings on class observation and interviews for
the teachers, parents and principles.
The findings show the strategies of implementation of bilingual program of first grade
students at SD Islam Raudah still need improvement in order to achieve the goals of bilingual
program. Moreover the parents have the important roles in developing students’ language
competency.
Keywords: Bilingual Program, Young Learners, Teaching English to Young Learners.
1. Introduction
As far as the foreign student is concerned, the history of language teaching shows
emphasis on a very limited range of competence which has been called “classroom English.”
Dealing with it, the age of students is a major factor in taking decisions on how and what to
do in teaching English in the classroom activities. In contrast, the age at which foreign
language instruction should begin has been debated (Agulló, 2006).
The activities in the classroom are to be adjusted to the students’ characteristics in order
to achieve the success of the learning. Consequently, Harmer (2007) states that during the
lesson a good scenario that involves consideration of the characteristics of certain age group,
young children, is believed to promote students’ motivation in learning.
According to McKay (2008) young language learners are those who are learning a foreign
or second language and who are doing so during the first six or seven years of formal
schooling. In English as Foreign Language (EFL) setting, McKay (2008) said that young
language learners are foreign language learners who learn a language in a situation where the
language is seldom heard outside the classroom. In this type of setting understanding the
concepts used in the field of EFL is a necessity for teachers. By understanding the concepts,
teachers can tap into the resources that English language learners bring with them. Thus,
teachers cannot only make the transition to the mainstream classroom easier for the English
language learners but also enrich the experiences of all the children in the classroom.
78
As a researchers mentioned previously, English teachers need to consider their students’

age which supports the basis of their teaching practices and materials, including media.
Teachers need to recognize their students’ characteristics and deal with their students with
certain age. Here, teachers would take the factors of the students’ age into account in
formulating a topic to deliver, starting from the learning objectives, activities, media and
assessment. Harmer (2007) claims that people of different ages had different needs,
competence, and cognitive skills. Thus, by being aware of children development of learning,
teachers will be better in providing appropriate learning experiences for their students.
McKey and Pinter (2012) believe that English is taught best at the early stage. They
believe that the earlier children learn English, and the more exposure to the language, the
better it will be (citied in Saerhim). Nevertheless, there are still many other factors that have
to be considered to make sure that teaching English to Young learners will be effective, such
as the nature of language instruction given, psychological and social factors, teaching
materials, individual differences in cognitive and learning styles, and many other factors.
In contrast, Harmer (2007) states that younger learners are not necessarily better learners
compared to older learners. Younger children are indeed more likely to develop native-like
English proficiency than adult learners, as suggested by Cameron (2007: 81) says that
children “reproduce the accent of their teacher with deadly accuracy” (cited in Harmer). Yet,
research in language acquisition has shown that older learners exhibit more learning gains
than younger learners.
Nowadays, there are lots of bilingual and international schools where English is used as
the language of instruction as well as the increasing number of English courses aimed
especially for children in Indonesia. Related to the various language programs for young
learners, foreign language program in SD Islam Raudah is designed to ensure greater
language learning gains. Here, the students learn through the target language for every day of
the week and every week of the year which is called bilingual program. The implementation
of bilingual program in SD Islam Raudah has been implemented at the first grade of the
school since 2011. Furthermore, in implementing bilingual program SD Islam Raudah starts
with two subjects: math and science.
Related to the children who are learning a language in bilingual program, McKay (2008)
states:
79
Children learning in bilingual program have opportunities to advance quickly and in more
depth in their language abilities because they have additional time to use the language, and
expectations of what they are expected to do in the language are high.
The importance of bilingualism has been highlighted by the Indonesian Government in
“Panduan Penyelenggaraan Rintisan SD Bertaraf Internasional Direktorat Pembinaan TK
dan SD”. International Standard Elementary School (SDBI) is one form of efforts to improve
the quality of education at primary school, whose existence as mandated by the Law No. 20
of 2003 on National Education System (Mudjito: 2007).
Furthermore, the implementation of SDBI based on the demands of nation-building needs
in the foreseeable future in order to have the ability and competitive with other nations in the
world. So, the child need to be prepared as early as possible through a process of education in
primary schools who pay attention to potential differences in intelligence, skills, talents and
interests of learners, so that primary school graduates are relevant to the needs of both the
needs of individuals, families and the needs of the community and nation building in various
sectors, local, national, and international levels.
Regarding to the implementation of bilingual education program, Mudjito (2001)
mentions that there are two models of organizing SDBI developed in Indonesia, namely: (1)
New School Model (Newly Developed), (2) The Existing School Development Model
(Existing Developed).
New School Model (Newly Developed) established with a completely new condition with
all its contents. This model was chosen to make the assumption that international schools
should have the characteristics of international standards, ranging from students, curriculum,
teachers, principals, facilities and infrastructure, and so forth. This model is ideal because it
can meet all the requirements of international standards. The new admissions system can be
done by: (a) accept new students in grade 1, (b) transfer students from other schools. In
achieving international standards of the new school model will need a program of the
coalition or partnership with a school similar/ equivalent in foreign countries.
Another SDBI development can be done by developing the existing schools, particularly
primary schools that have met all the national standards. In addition the school has
professional and powerful teachers, principals, educational staff as well as the infrastructure
that allows could be developed further. In developing SDBI of the existing school, the school
should be implemented step by step plan as follows: the current school conditions (existing
condition), the condition of schools that are expected (expected condition), strategies/ stages
80
of achievement, and how to achieve them. By comparing current conditions with ideal
conditions will be known as a SDBI gaps, good facilities, teachers, management, and school
culture and so on.
Based on those two models of SDBI in Indonesia, the implementation of bilingual
education program at SD Islam Raudah was implemented the new school model (Newly
Developed) established with a completely new condition with all its contents. The researchers
observed and investigated the strategy of implementation of this program, whether the school
has met the characteristics of international standards, ranging from students, curriculum,
teachers, principals, facilities and infrastructure, and so forth.
2. Research Methodology
This research was investigating the strategy of the implementation of bilingual program
of the first grade students at SD Islam Raudah. This is also called “Grounded Study” which
was conducted at one of the elementary schools “SD Islam Raudah,” Tangerang Selatan.
Corbin and Strauss (1990: 4) state:
Grounded theorists share a conviction with many other qualitative researchers that
the usual canons of ‘good science’ should be retained, but require redefinition in
order to fit the realities of qualitative research and the complexities of social
phenomena.
In short, the grounded study was used to seek a collection of instances from the data in
the hope of the issue of the problems occurred. Thus, it hopes that the strategy of the
implementation of bilingual program of first grade students at SD Islam Raudah emerged.
The participants in this study were the principle of the school, teachers, and one class of the
first grade students of 6-7 years of age at SD Islam Raudah which consist of 32 students.
The students in this school were from the average to high level of family where the
background of family was different one to another. There is a family who use to use English
as their daily communication, and other families who never use English as their language use.
3. Research Findings and Discussions

In this section, the researchers try to discuss the findings of the research. These findings
include the teachers’ strategy deals with the problems concerning the implementation of
bilingual program of the first grade students at SD Islam Raudah Tangerang. Based on the
81
findings, the teachers’ strategy in overcoming the problem in bilingual class was optimal, but
it still need improvement and support from the principle of schools and parents.
Based on the research finding of Krashen (1999), the School of Education at the
University of Southern California, developed an overall theory of second language
acquisition known as the monitor model. The core of this theory is the distinction between
acquisition and learning–acquisition being a subconscious process occurring in authentic
communicative situations and learning being the conscious process of knowing about a
language. Krashen puts his theory into practice with the creation of the natural approach and
the gradual exit model, which are based on a second tenet of bilingual education–the concept
of comprehensible input.
Moreover, the teachers at SD Islam Raudah particularly of the first grade level, they
mostly used role play, games, experiment, fun leaning, work group, discussion, playing by
learning and lecturing method as their teaching method in the classroom. These kinds of
method quite successfully in math and science class, because most of students were
understand about the materials that teachers gave in the classroom. In other words, language
teaching must be designed so that language can be acquired easily, and this is done by using
delivery methods and levels of language that can be understood by the student.
In contrast, at the end of classroom activity of the first grade students at SD Islam
Raudah, the teachers used to ask the students to read a book. Unfortunately, the availability of
bilingual book was limited so that the essential of bilingual program cannot be reached
optimally. It was also the biggest problem in Krashen’s finding in his research, is the absence
of books—in both the first and second language—in the lives of students in this program.
3.2.1 The activities that teachers do in implementing bilingual program
The finding showed that the teachers always do the preparation before teaching in the
classroom. They prepare the learning media, such as projector, power points, pictures, or
flash card. They also prepare to control the classroom by using any variation of teaching
methods.
Moreover, the teachers tried to give the students some questions in order to do the
warming up. The teachers not only provide some questions to the students but also provide
games or songs to make them enjoy in the classroom. It also hopes that the students could be
easily to understand the materials.
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Furthermore, the teachers tried to implement the bilingual class atmosphere when they
were teaching in math and science class. It can be seen from the classroom activity; the
teachers used English when they give the instructions to the students.
According to Krashen (1999), the best bilingual education programs include all of these
characteristics: ESL instruction, sheltered subject matter teaching, and instruction in the first
language. Non-English-speaking children initially receive core instruction in the primary
language along with ESL instruction. As children grow more proficient in English, they learn
subjects using more contextualized language (e.g., math and science) in sheltered classes
taught in English, and eventually in mainstream classes. In this way, the sheltered classes
function as a bridge between instruction in the first language and in the mainstream.
3.2.2 The problems in implementing bilingual program in teaching math and science
Based on the observation and interview to the teachers, the graph of problems in
implementing bilingual program in teaching math and science could be seen as follows.
Lack of Students' Students' Teachers'

Vocabularies Attention Ability in Language
Reading and Competency
Writing
Figure 1. The Problems in Implementing Bilingual Program in Teaching Math

and Science
The figure showed that the problems in implementing bilingual program in teaching math
and science were control the students’ attention to get them involved and interested in the
materials presented by the teachers, guiding the students who lack of vocabularies
particularly English vocabularies, guiding the students who were not able to read and write,
and improve the teachers’ language competency because most of them were not from English
department.
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3.2.3 The teachers’ strategy in implementing bilingual program of first grade students at SD
Islam Raudah
Dealing with the problems faced by the teachers in implementing bilingual program of
first grade students at SD Islam Raudah, the teachers should have a strategy to solve those
problems. The findings showed in graph 2.
English Pictures Asking Memorizing Additional

Chart Questions the time
Vocabularies
Figure 2. The teachers’ strategy in implementing bilingual program of first

grade students at SD Islam Raudah
The English chart, pictures, asking some questions, and memorizing the vocabularies
given as warn to the students to the previous materials, and additional time provided for the
students who cannot read and write both in Indonesia and English yet.
Moreover, dealing with the strategy that teachers used in math and science class; here were
the teaching methods that they mostly used in the classroom.
Figure 3. Teachers' Teaching Method

Based on the figure above, the teachers at SD Islam Raudah particularly of the first grade
level, they mostly used lecturing, experiment, role play, games, fun learning, discussion, and
group work as their teaching method in the classroom. These kinds of method quite
84
successfully in math and science class, because most of students understood about the
materials that teachers gave in the classroom.
In other words, language teaching must be designed so that language can be acquired
easily, and this is done by using delivery methods and levels of language that can be
understood by the students.
3.2.4 The students’ special needs in the bilingual program class
Dealing with the model of bilingual program at SD Islam Raudah, New School Model
(Newly Developed) established with a completely new condition with all its contents. This
model was chosen to make the assumption that international schools should have the
characteristics of international standards, ranging from students, curriculum, teachers,
principals, facilities and infrastructure, and so forth. In achieving international standards of
the new school model will need a program of the coalition or partnership with a school
similar/ equivalent in foreign countries.
Based on the research findings, the students in the bilingual program class need
preparation, exposure and motivation from the teachers and parents; the teachers should get
the students to speak English in the classroom and the parents should facilitate the children
deal with the English activity in their home.
Moreover, students learn about their world in different ways, using their preferred
learning styles. They may be characterized as visual, auditory or kinesthetic learners.. Those
variation of characteristics of the students demanded that the teachers must be creative to
attract the students’ interest. Furthermore, SD Islam Raudah still lack availability of bilingual
books; it makes the bilingual classroom activity will seems like regular class.
3.2.5 The appropriate assessment of the bilingual program in teaching math and science
In science and math of bilingual class, the findings showed that the teachers only
followed the test which available in the books. It caused the difficulties to the students which
have problems in understanding the test. Bilingual children are often over-represented in
special needs education, and this is much due to biased assessment.
Based on the research findings, the teachers used worksheets as their daily assessment for
the students. All the worksheets in math and science class were appropriate to the students’
characteristics because before the worksheets were given to the students, the teachers as team
teaching of math and science check the appropriateness of the questions.
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4. Conclusion
Based on the findings presented in the previous chapter, it can be inferred that the strategy
of the implementation of bilingual program of first grade students at SD Islam Raudah has
not run well yet. The school has just implemented this program since 2011, so it is still a new
program that needs improvement. The researchers divided the factors that could affect the
success of the implementation of bilingual program into three: teachers, schools, and parents.
Moreover, the problems in implementing bilingual program in teaching math and science are
(1) students’ attention, (2) students who lack vocabulary, (3) students who cannot read and
write well, and (4) the teachers’ education background. Due to the problems, the students’
special needs in the bilingual program class were (1) preparation, exposure and motivation
from the teachers and parents, (2) appropriate teaching techniques and method, and (3)
availability of books.
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Title
Fostering Student-Writers’ Writing Self-efficacy With Wordle
Author
Huynh Ngoc Tai
School of Foreign Languages - English Department, Tra Vinh University, Vietnam
Bio-Profile:
Mr. Huynh Ngoc Tai is a young lecturer – researcher working at Tra Vinh Univeristy,
Vietnam. His teaching experiences include working with students at tertiary level in various
courses for academic and general English. He has worked on several projects in field of
English language teaching and teacher development.
Abstract
Much has been written on the vital roles of writing self-efficacy and its influences on
learners’ writing performance. Additionally, numerous of strategies have also been proposed
to improve writing self-efficacy for learners of English as a foreign language. However, there
seems to be a lack of research on the application of Wordle, a text visualization tool, to foster
learners’ writing self-efficacy. This paper examines if introducing Wordle into writing
instructions can bring about significant changes in learners’ perceptions of writing self-
efficacy or not. Two groups of 30 undergraduate English-major students at Tra Vinh
University were invited to participate in our investigation. Statistical results from quantitative
data analysis revealed positive influences of Wordle on student writers’ level of confidence in
their writing abilities including beliefs about capabilities in idea generation, using relevant
vocabulary and developing paragraphs. Pedagogical implications for incorporating digital
tools into foreign language classrooms to enhance independent learning are also discussed.
Key words: Writing self-efficacy, Wordle, idea generation, digital tools, independent
learning
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I. Introduction
I.1. The Vietnamese students and their problems in writing English
“I’m sorry teacher! I don’t have any idea to write about this topic.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what to write.”
These are the frequent complaints from Vietnamese students when we assign them a
writing task. From our observations, it seems that most of Vietnamese learners of English do
not feel confident when they are asked to write an essay on a certain topic in English.
Additionally, there exists a general assumption that students' problem in writing may
originate from their educational history and cultural background (Nguyen, 2012; Thanh,
2011; Quoc Lap, 2005). It is undeniable that the Vietnamese education system is significantly
influenced by the Confucian approach. Following such a traditional approach, Vietnamese
students tend to be expected to maintain a high respect to the teachers not only in social
communication but also in learning. Quoc Lap (ibid., p.8) pointed out that “In such a teaching
context, students are expected to be the good listeners and good imitators of their teacher.”
This may result in the fact that the Vietnamese students appear to be not confident in
expressing their stance in a writing classroom (Nguyen, ibid.) In other words, Vietnamese
student-writers appear to hold a low writing self-efficacy in English writing and there is a
need to seek for solutions to this issue.
I.2. Writing self-efficacy and English as a Foreign Language Learners’ (EFL) writing
performance
I.2.1. What is writing self-efficacy?
In the literature, the term self-efficacy is used to refer to the “beliefs in one's capabilities
to organize and execute the courses of action required to manage prospective situations”
(Bandura, 1997, p. 2). It is also considered as a significant factor exerting a powerful effect
upon one’s performances and achievements because “if self-efficacy is lacking, people tend
to behave ineffectually, even though they know what to do” (Bandura, 1986, p. 425).
In the field of language teaching and learning, previous studies have shown that EFL
students’ writing competence is not an exception from the influence of self-efficacy. More
precisely, the concept of writing self-efficacy has received increasing attention from
researchers. According to Shell, Colvin, and Bruning (1995), students' writing self-efficacy
can be understood by their level of confidence in the possibilities of a successful performance
in writing tasks. This definition is close to the view of Chea & Shumow (2014) who defined
writing self-efficacy as “students’ ability to perform in writing tasks” (p. 254). In other
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words, writing-efficacy can be generally understood as how students confidently evaluate

their writing ability. For the context of this study, writing self-efficacy is considered as
students’ perceptions of their capabilities to express their own ideas in written words, to use
relevant vocabulary in a certain writing topic and to successfully develop text structure, i.e.
essay development.
I.2.2. The relationship between writing self-efficacy and EFL students’ writing
performance
In consulting relevant literature, it is reported that there is a positive correlation between
writing self-efficacy and writing performance. In particular, student writers’ motivation and
attitudes are likely affected by their writing self-efficacy. As Parjares (2003, p. 141) reported,
“students’ confidence in their writing capabilities influence their writing motivation as well
as various writing outcomes in school.” In recent years, a large number of similar arguments
about the importance of self-efficacy has been published. In addition, it has been affirmed
that the higher self-efficacy we have, the greater achievements we get (Shell, Colvin &
Bruning, 1995, p. 396). In other words, efficacy belief is an essential element leading to
successful task performance, together with the required skills (as cited in Broaddus, 2012,
p.22).
Moreover, aiming to investigate how writing self-efficacy influences writing achievement
and learning strategies of 244 Cambodian EFL undergraduate students, Chea and Shumow
(2014) pointed out that the higher writing self-efficacy learners’ hold, the more they are
focused on improving and mastering their writing skills and performance. Additionally, the
positive relationship between writing self-efficacy and writing performance has also been
affirmed by Öztürk and Saydam (2014) in a study which investigated two factors: anxiety and
self-efficacy in foreign language writing in an EFL context. This study revealed that learners
may perform better in given writing tasks if they feel themselves proficient and confident
enough.
A strong relationship between writing self-efficacy and EFL students’ writing
performance has also been reported in several studies, and based on this proportional
connection, writing self-efficacy was considered as “a better predictor than the ACT (English
entrance exam) in predicting success in writing” (Broaddus, 2012, p.32). This research has
shown a considerable appreciation to the reliability of writing self-efficacy in the field of
education where always requires high accuracy. Therefore, it is safe to understand that
“writing self-efficacy, as expected, was significantly and positively correlated with writing
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achievement” (Chea & Shumow, 2014, p. 259). It has been also been suggested that
necessary strategies and counseling should be provided to increase the EFL students’ writing
self-efficacy (as cited in Öztürk & Saydam, 2014). However, the major challenge is to find
out effecitve tools or methods which can help to achieve this goal.
I.3. Strategies applied to improve learners’ writing self-efficacy
Consulting relevant literature, there have been several studies aiming to investigate the
usefulness of some pedagogical practices to enhance learners' writing self-efficacy. For
example, Schunk and Swartz (1993) conducted an investigation on the effect of setting goals
and giving feedback on learners’ writing self-efficacy. The results revealed that periodical
feedback may have a strong impact on writing achievement and writing self-efficacy. In
2005, a group of researchers including Graham, Harris and Mason conducted a study on the
Self-Regulated Strategy Development (SRSD) application in a writing classroom to examine
how such a practice influences learners' writing performance, knowledge and self-efficacy.
Findings from this study reported that self-efficacy variable was not influenced by SRSD
although to a certain extent, improvements in learners' writing performance and knowledge
were found. In contrast, an investigation of Wong et al. (2008) into SRSD usefulness in
enhancing learners’ writing self-efficacy showed that students in the SRSD group perceived
better than the group on measures of clarity and organization.
Overall, several attempts have been made by experts aiming to enhance learners’ writing
self-efficacy. However, reported methods to promote self-efficacy tend to primarily concern
the effectiveness of writing strategies. There have been little studies on the potential of digital
tools in increasing learners’ writing self-efficacy. Therefore, this paper aims to examine if the
application of Wordle in writing instructions could bring about changes in learners’ writing
self-efficacy.
II. Wordle and its applications in education

II.1. Wordle – What is it?
In consulting relevant literature, the notion of Wordle or Word cloud is defined as “a tool
for presenting data that is formed by a colorful words collage that makes the concept easier to
understand” (Monalisa &Al-Hafizh, 2014, p.166). Jonathan Feinberg, the creator of the
Wordle system, named it as a “toy for generating word cloud from text” – words from the
original text will be re-organized visually in form of ‘clouds’. In general, Wordle can be used
to refer to “a special visualization of text in which the more frequently used words are
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effectively highlighted by occupying more prominence in the representation” (McNaught &

Lam, 2010, p. 1). What users need to do is simply access the www.wordle.net, copy a text
and paste it into the Wordle system. In a matter of seconds, a visual representation of the text
will be generated, in which high frequency words appear in bigger sizes in comparison to the
low frequency ones (see figure 1). This data visualization tool also allows users to alter the
font, shape and color of the resulting images. Moreover, users can also eliminate unwanted
words from the ‘clouds’ or type texts directly by using the Advance function on the Wordle
system. Additionally, a word frequency count report can help users identify how many times
a particular word appears in the text.
Figure 1: A brief introduction of Worlde
II.2. The applications of Wordle (Word clouds) in Education

Several scholars have suggested using Wordle as a tool for text analyzing in education
research. For instance, McNaught and Lam (2010) proposed to employ Wordle to interpret
qualitative data in collaboration with traditional content analysis methods. Results of this
investigation revealed that the word clouds provide researchers with appropriate directions in
carrying out follow-up data analysis. Similarly, Ramsden and Bate (2008) found that teachers
can use word clouds as an analytical tool for survey interpretations. An investigation into the
potentials of Wordle in assessing students’ feedback on library instructions of Huisman and
Hanna (2012) showed that “Wordle’s user-friendly technology proved a quick and easy way
to incorporate a visual measurement of the students’ recall of content.” (p. 137).
94
For language teaching, Baralt, Pennestri, and Selvantdin (2011) conducted a project on
using Wordle to facilitate the teaching of writing and to improve students’ writing in Spanish
classrooms. In this study, the researcher firstly generated 18 participants’ Spanish writing
texts by Wordle and then used them to discuss with participants the quality of their
compositions as well as strategies improve vocabulary and grammatical structures. The
qualitative results of this investigation showed that learners of Spanish gained significant
improvements in terms of lexical range, grammatical complexity as well as learning
motivation. Commenting on the usefulness of Wordle in their writing classrooms, scholars of
this action research stated that:
Not only did the class discussions and workshop days become more student-
centered, students also improved in their writing by incorporating new vocabulary
into their essays, using grammar more accurately, and incorporating more content in
their writing. (Baralt, Pennestri, & Selvantdin, 2011, p. 20)
As a follow-up of the above positive findings in language classrooms, Tafazoli, Chirmbu
and Dejica-Carțiș, (2014) suggested several ideas for implementing Wordle in teaching the
four skills to English students.
In sum, although there has been little literature on the potentials of Wordle in foreign
language teaching, the above findings obtained in field of educational research and language
teachings suggest that an investigation into the applications of Wordle in teaching English as
a foreign language is worth pursuing.
III. Research design and methods

III.1. Research question, participants and research design
This study aimed to find answer to the following research question:
“Does the application of Wordle in writing instructions improve Vietnamese EFL learners’
writing self-efficacy?”
This research question has one null hypothesis below.

H0: There is no significant difference in the perceived writing self-efficacy levels of students
in the control and experimental groups after the introduction of Wordle into the writing
instructions. It is worth noting that the concept of writing self-efficacy in our study mainly
concerns participants’ perceptions of their capabilities in performing three sub-groups of
95
writing skills including (i): idea generation and transferring ideas from L1 to L2; (ii): using
relevant vocabulary and synonyms; (iii): paragraph and essay development.
The participants were 30 third-year undergraduate English major students (7 males, 23
females) at the School of Foreign Languages, Tra Vinh University. They are taking a 45
hour-IELTS preparation course (Academic Writing module, target band 4 – 5). Our study
was conducted in total of 24 hours of classroom instructions, 6 formal meetings respectively.
The investigation was carried out in the model of Quasi experimental design. Among the 30
participants, 15 participants (3 males, 12 females) were in a control group and the other 15
participants were assigned in the experimental group (4 males, 11 females).
For data collection, participants were invited to complete a set of writing self-efficacy
questionnaire twice (pre/posttest phases) during the period of six meetings.
III.2. Research instruments, procedures, data collection and data analysis

III.2.1. Instruments
The primary research instrument of this study was the questionnaire consisting of 7 items
measuring three general aspects of writing self-efficacy, i.e. self-efficacy for idea generation
and transferring ideas from L1 to L2 (2 items), self-efficacy for using relevant vocabulary
and synonyms (2 items), and self-efficacy for text structure development, i.e. paragraph and
essay development (3 items). This set of questionnaire was adapted from the original versions
used by Honeck (2013) and adjusted to fit the scope and the purposes of this study. The
questionnaire aims to measure learners’ writing self-efficacy rated on the 100-Likert-type
scale with three basic ends: cannot do at all (0), moderately can do (50), and completely
certain can do (100). In total, on the scale of 0 to 100, there are 11 ratings for participants to
choose. Each choice was valued at 10 points. No numerical value is represented for choices
falling between these main categories, e.g. 45. (Honeck, 2013). The Cronbach’s Alpha of the
writing self-efficacy questionnaire used in this study was 7.69.
Several academic IELTS writing tasks (task 2) extracted from writing sections of the
course book Complete IELTS, Band 4-5 (Brook-Hart, Jakeman, 2012) were also used for the
purpose of data collection. Additionally, for the purpose of our study, the classroom setting
was the School of Foreign Languages’ LAB with computers and Internet connection.
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III.2.2. Research procedures, data collection and data analysis

As stated above, the study was conducted in the period of six formal meetings. Each
meeting lasts for 4 hours respectively. There were two phases of this study.
For the first phase (3 meetings), 30 participants were placed in the same classroom and
received the same writing instructions. In particular, all of the participants were introduced to
general information about the IELTS Academic writing task 2, the general grading criteria
and strategies to generate ideas for writing argumentative essays such as free-writing
technique, using mind mapping tools, and how to develop a 5-paragraph essay with practice
exercises for each section.
To measure the students’ existing perceptions of their writing skills, a writing self-
efficacy questionnaire was then administered for the first time of data collection at the end of
the third meeting. All the participants’ responses were coded as pre-test data collection.
In the second phase (the last 3 meetings) 30 participants were divided into 2 groups attending
two separate classrooms from the fourth to the sixth meetings.
For the control group, 15 participants were given time to review strategies and techniques
introduced in the previous meetings. Additionally, the instructor followed writing task 2
sections designed in three units (Unit 2, 4, and 6) extracted from the course book Complete
IELTS, Band 4-5 (Brook-Hart, Jakeman, 2012). For each unit, participants were given
traditional writing instructions such as introducing relevant vocabulary, working with tasks
provided in the textbook, brainstorming for ideas, practicing paragraph developing
techniques, working with model texts on IELTS writing topics, writing the first drafts, peer-
reviewing and teacher feedbacks. At the end of the sixth meeting, the participants were asked
to rate their level of writing confidence for post-test data collection.
For the other 15 students in the experimental group, during the last three meetings, they
were firstly given a brief introduction to Worlde and its potential applications in learning how
to write. Then, instead of working with the tasks designed in the textbook, they were
instructed how to make use of Worlde in their writing tasks, especially generating visual
representation of words from model essays. Next, the participants were given time for real
practices with three writing topics appearing in three units (Unit 2, 4, and 6) extracted from
the course book Complete IELTS, Band 4-5 (Brook-Hart, Jakeman, 2012). Similar to the
control group, the participants were asked to generate ideas and write drafts for each of the
three writing topics. They were then instructed to use Wordle to assist these processes. For
instance, the participants were asked use at the Wordle of the writing topics (see Appendix)
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and practice generating sentences based on one of the words they could see from the Wordle.
Moreover, the participants also used the Word frequency count function available on the
Wordle to resolve the issue of using repeated words in their essay, and to revise their first
drafts in addition to the instructor’s feedback. Before the 6th meeting ended, the students had
been asked to complete writing self-efficacy questionnaire for the second time of data
collection.
In order to compare the differences of learners’ writing self-efficacy between the control
and experimental groups before and after introducing Wordle into the writing instructions,
the pre-test and post-test writing self-efficacy scores of the students in the experimental and
control groups were compared using the Mann-Whitney U test in SPSS.
IV. Results
As stated above, three aspects of writing self-efficacy were considered: (i) Idea
Generation and transferring ideas from L1 (Vietnamese) to L2 (English), (ii) Using relevant
vocabulary and synonyms, (iii) Text structure development. After the pre-test and post-test
data were collected, the mean scores of writing self-efficacy concerning the above three
aspects in the control and experimental groups were computed in SPSS 20 and compared by
Mann-Whitney U Test. The results of pre-test writing self-efficacy scores in the two groups
are illustrated in the tables below:
Table 1 and table 2: Results of the Mann Whitney U Test to Compare the Groups’ Pre-
test/Post-test mean scores of writing Self-efficacy
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An examination of the findings in Table 2 reveals the results of the Mann Whitney U test
for the pre-test writing self-efficacy scores of the students in control and experimental groups
in three aspects did not show any statistical difference ( Z = -0.935; p=.350>.05). The results
in table 1 shows that in pre-test phase, on a scale of 100, the average scores of self-efficacy in
the control group concerning students’ beliefs in their abilities to generate ideas, to use
vocabulary in writing argumentative essays, and to develop paragraph following an
argumentative essay structure was 17.00 while this figure was 14.00 for the experimental
groups. The statistical results, and the small gap in the averages of the writing self-efficacy
scores in the control and experimental groups suggest that writing self-efficacy levels of
students' of the two groups are not significantly different in the pre-test phase.
In contrast to findings of pre-test writing self-efficacy scores, the results of the Mann
Whitney U test applied to the post-test writing self-efficacy scores of the students in the
experimental and control groups showed a statistically significant difference at the level of
p<.05 (Z= -3.285; p=.001< .05). In the post-test phase, the rank average scores of writing
self-efficacy of students in control group was 10.23, while this figure of the students
experimental group was 20.77. This demonstrates that in the post-test phase, the students in
the experimental group gained a higher level of writing self-efficacy beliefs than those in the
control group. Additionally, in comparison to the pre-test rank average scores (17.00), there
was a decline in post-test scores of perceptions of writing self-efficacy in the control group
(10.23). More specifically, findings of three aspects of writing self-efficacy of students in the
control and experimental groups in the post-test phase are illustrated in table 3 and table 4
below.
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Table 3 and table 4: Results of the Mann Whitney U Test to Compare the Groups’ Pre-
test/Post-test mean scores of writing self-efficacy in three aspects of writing skill
Results in Table 3 and table 4 show that the post-test scores of students’ level of
confidence in generating ideas to write were significantly different between the control and
experimental groups (Z = -2.134, p = .033<.05). For the control group, average scores of
students’ beliefs of their abilities to generate and transfer ideas from L1 to L2 after six
meetings was 12.10, while this figure was 18.90 for those in experimental group. Similarly, it
is revealed that between the control and experimental groups, there were statistically
significant differences in the learners’ level of self-efficacy in using vocabulary (Z = -3.563,
p = .000< .05) and developing paragraphs (Z = - 2.366, p = .018< .05) for writing
argumentative essays after experimental period.
Based on the above results, it could be argued that the use of the application of Wordle
significantly increased writing self-efficacy levels of the experimental group students. This
allows us to reject the null hypothesis and accept an alternative hypothesis, i.e. There are
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significant differences in students’ perceived writing self-efficacy levels between the control
and experimental groups after the introduction of Wordle into the writing instructions.
V. Discussion, limitations and suggestion for future studies

This study was set out to examine the effectiveness of applying the text visualization tool
– Wordle on learners’ perceptions of writing self-efficacy in a foreign language writing
classroom. Quantitative results demonstrate that overall, the participants’ perception of their
writing capabilities significantly increased when they were able to use Wordle as a tool to
facilitate their writing process. As far as students’ level of confidence about their abilities to
write an argumentative essay are concerned, findings from quantitative data analysis showed
7 observed sub-skills of essay writing concerned by this study improved after the Worlde
intervention. In a general sense, this finding indicates that the application of Wordle may be
beneficial to learners’ confidence in their writing skills. Based on such a positive effects,
learners’ writing performance could be improved as well (Broaddus, 2012; Chea & Shumow,
2014; Öztürk & Saydam, 2014). Quantitative results of this study are in line with qualitative
findings reported by Baralt et al. (2011). Altogether, while there have been several issues
relating to second/foreign language student writers, digital tools such as Wordle can be worth
considering for language teachers to bridge the gaps in their writing classroom.
Several explanations could be suggested for the positive effects of Wordle in students’
beliefs about their writing capabilities. Firstly, Wordle helps to visualize words from sample
texts from which relevant vocabulary relating a specific topic can be quickly obtained. In the
21st century, sample essays especially IELTS writing sample texts could be found in a matter
of seconds by Google search. Therefore, the benefits of Wordle is that it allows students of a
foreign language to make use of sample texts in their own way without having to learn every
sentence in the sample essays. Secondly, by using Wordle, students can personalize sample
texts they find on the Internet by choosing various forms, shapes, sizes of the texts on Wordle
website. This may indirectly enhance learners’ positive attitudes toward foreign language
words. More importantly, by using Wordle to get relevant vocabulary for a topic from sample
texts instead of memorizing them, EFL students may become less dependent on their teachers
for proper lexical items to write about. In sum, once students have mastered the technology
and know how to make it beneficial to their learning, they could become more independent in
the learning process.
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It is also worth noting that students in the control group experienced a decline in their
sense of confidence after six meetings working with traditional writing instructions. This can
be explained by the possibility that learners may over-estimate their capabilities when they
lack of previous experiences to rate their abilities accurately (McAuley, et al., 2011). Such
sense of efficacy may decline throughout the experimental period when they encountered
challenges or experienced failure their writing performance.
One limitation of this study is the small population of participants (30 students). This is
due to the nature of class size for English major students of the School of Foreign languages,
Tra Vinh University. Another limitation is the availability of Wordle tool in language writing
classroom. At present, the Wordle website cannot be used offline. This means students need
to have computers with Internet connection available so that they can use Wordle. Future
investigations can be conducted to examine the usefulness of this digital tool in combination
with other digital tools as well as traditional writing techniques on larger scale. Also,
potential factors contributing to students’ decline of writing self-efficacy is worth pursuing in
future studies.
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Appendixes
A. Self-efficacy Writing rating scales (adapted from Honeck , 2013)
Directions: On a scale from 0 (no chance) to 100 (completely certain), please rate how sure
you are that you can perform each of the writing skills described below by writing the
appropriate number.
104
Idea
1 I can easily generate ideas to write about
generation
Transferring
ideas from L1 2 I can transfer my ideas in Vietnamese to English
to L2
I can use a wide range of vocabulary in my

Using 3
essays
relevant
vocabulary I can use synonyms instead of repeating the same
4
word over and over again
5 I can write a proper introduction
Text I can write good paragraphs with strong

6
structure supporting ideas
development
I can write a proper conclusion

7
B. Two samples of Wordle for students to practice in the experimental group
Figure 2: Wordle for writing topic on environmental issues
105
Figure 3: Wordle for writing topic on the advantages and disadvantages of

watching TV in children
106
Title
Maintaining English Speaking Skill in Their Homeland through Technology:
Personal Experience
Author
Ratna Rintaningrum
Email: [email protected]
Institute of Technology Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), Surabaya, Indonesia
Bio-Profile:
Ratna Rintaningrum is “the holder of the 2013 South Australia Governor’s Awards for
Highly Commended Academic Excellence”. Ratna completed her Master degree and PhD
from Flinders University, South Australia. Ratna is currently teaching English at the Institute
of Technology Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) Surabaya. Ratna has been with the ITS since 1998.
She is involved not only in teaching English and TOEFL Preparation but also in research and
community services. She is also an active writer. Her publication record is exemplary. Since
2009, she has written for an international journal, contributed chapters to at least two books,
and produced a number of conference papers. She has also presented at both international and
local conferences. Ratna has interest in foreign language learning, achievement, proficiency,
testing, measurement, and advanced statistical modelling using AMOS and PLSPath as well
as qualitative approach.
Abstract
How are children still able to speak in English in their homeland where the English
language is not readily available there? The ability to speak English in a setting where the
language is not readily available there, is not as easy as people think. Moreover, it becomes a
major concern when the status of the language is only a foreign language, meaning that the
language is not widely used as a tool of communication. However, in global era where
technology develops very rapidly, proficiency in English, in particular, speaking skill is
highly demanded. Increasingly, every year international students from Asian countries such
107
as Japan, Korea, Vietnam, China, and Indonesia continue their study in English speaking
countries such as the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand,
and Australia. Their family such as their wife or their husband as well as their children goes
with them for some years to live in an English speaking country. This study investigates a set
of efforts concerning the ability of those children to sustain their spoken language in a
country where the English language is not there after returning back from an English
speaking background. This study employs observation and interview to obtain the data. This
study argues that technology is a tool that can be used to maintain children’s ability to speak
in English under a foreign language setting. This study documents how children keep talking
in English where an opportunity to use English is very limited in their country.
Keywords: maintain, speaking in English, foreign language setting, technology
Background of the Study

Fulan just came back from Australia a year ago. He is living in his home country, namely
Indonesia after living for five years in Australia. He is now 15 years old and is able to speak
in English very well. He first arrived in Australia when he was six years old and lived in
Australia for two years. During two years in Australia, he is able to speak English perfectly in
his second year. He returned to Indonesia for one year and learned how to speak and write in
Bahasa Indonesia. When he started settling in Indonesia, he had to go to Australia to follow
his mother who continued her study there. For his second visit to Australia, Fulan had spent
five years for living in Australia. He had got difficulty to cope with the English language for
his first year in Australia. He forgot how to speak in English after returning back to Indonesia
for one year. However, after he started interacting with Australian children and some other
children from different cultures and countries, he started feeling confident to speak in
English. His willingness to interact with other people helped him to speak in English. In this
situation, environment (Lightbown and Spada, 2011) and his motivation to speak in English
(Dornyei, 2001b) as well as opportunity to learn English (Carroll, 1963; 1975; 1989) help
him to speed up his ability in speaking skill.
The 15 years old boy is now going to high school in Indonesia. He has to listen, read,
write and speak in Bahasa Indonesia as a tool of communication at school and in his
surrounding environment. He is able to speak in Bahasa Indonesia although he still needs
some assistance to understand some vocabularies in Bahasa Indonesia. The question is: is he
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still able to speak in English? The answer is yes, Fulan is still able to speak in English
although the English language is not widely used as a tool of communication at school, for
business affairs, as formal communication tool at the Government level, formal language at
court as well as formal language for broadcasting. In this circumstance, the status of the
language is merely as a foreign language. This study is conducted under the setting where
English is not used as a tool communication.
The Function and Status of the English Language in Indonesian Education in Schools.
English has been recognized as the first foreign language in Indonesia since 1955
(Alisjahbana, 1976; Dardjowidjojo, 2000; Nur, 2003). The English language in Indonesia is
not: (a) widely used as a means of general communication in society; (b) is not a language
used as the medium of instruction in education; (c) is not the language used in law courts; and
(d) is not the official language used in government. However, English is seen as a major
foreign language to be taught both in schools and universities (Simatupang, 1999, p. 64) with
high priority, and is identified as a compulsory subject to be taught at the secondary school
level. Moreover, English is also allowed to be taught at the primary school stage, starting at
the Grade 4 level (Komaria, 1998, p. 29). However, there is also the possibility of learning
foreign languages other than English (Komaria, 1998, pp. 25-31).
Introduction
Speaking in English conducted in a foreign language setting is not easy. Office of
Standards in Education (2008) reported that children who studied English as a foreign
language found it difficult to speak English although the quality of teaching and learning had
been improved. Moreover, at all levels, it was found that among the skills of English,
speaking was the least developed skill that led to the negative impact on children’s
confidence and enthusiasm. Even, children who got A grade in English classes do not mean
that they are proficient English users. It is common to happen that children who learn English
under foreign language setting often complain for their inability to speak in English although
they have learned English for many years.
This study investigates a fifteen years old boy who is able to speak in English because he
had lived for five years in an English speaking country, namely, Australia, and he returns to
his homeland, namely, Indonesia. This study investigates how the child maintains his spoken
English, in particular, speaking when English is not readily available in Indonesia. There
have been many studies about language learning, however there has no study about
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maintaining spoken language for a case who migrates from an English speaking country to a
non-English speaking country. Such study has not been investigated effectively. In this study,
ICT is named technology.
Methodology
This is ethnographic case study “which involves single in-depth study usually by means
of participant observation and interview” (Legewie, 1991; Stenhouse, 1985). Case study
investigates individual, group, or phenomenon (Sturman, 1997). This study investigates an
individual that includes qualitative technique. This study is identified as ethnography case
study because the researcher participates in some parts of the normal life of the participant
and uses what the participant learns from that participation to produce the research findings.
Taft (1997, p. 71) argued that “participation in a group provides investigators with an
understanding of the culture and the interactions between the members that is different from
that which can be obtained from merely observing or conducting a questionnaire survey or an
analysis of documents”.
The Research Plan

There is not much different between the research design employed in ethnographic case
study and in field research. However, in order to serve the special interests of the research,
the nature and the content individual steps may have a small difference. Berg (1995) listed
some steps to conduct an ethnographic case study:
Accessing a field setting (getting in). In this step, researchers enter the setting of the study
with the assistance of “gatekeepers” or informants who help with this task. Researchers can
enter the setting openly and officially, or anonymously, and unnecessarily the participants
knowing their real identity.
Becoming invisible. Researchers are not necessarily to expose their identity, research plan
or aim, but researchers interact and observe or record without giving an influence.
Researchers need to ensure the safety of self, notes and subjects.
Watching, listening, and learning. This step requires researchers to observe or listen to the
subgroups; takes notes, films event, records communication; works with notes, and coding.
Disengaging (getting out). This step involves exiting, dissolving relationships, emotional
disengagement.
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These above steps are very clear, however, with regards to Step b, the researcher is not
invisible, but the researcher sinks into the web of the culture, live together with the
participant during the study, presents herself as outsider and researcher, disclosing not only
her identity but also the nature and purpose of her study.
The Research Site

The study is carried out in Surabaya, Indonesia in particular, under the scene where the
participant lives.
Collecting the data
Qualitative inquiry does not offer a set of rules and procedures to follow. Consequently,
the researchers themselves play critical roles in the investigation. Patton (1990) argued that
the validity and reliability of qualitative data depended on to what extent the methodological
skills, sensitivity, and integrity of the researcher. This study enabled the researcher to use
skills acquired through research methods training, practicing interview and observation
techniques and learning how to conduct data analysis. The intense nature of the skills
preparation enabled the collection of rich data that was consistent with the research
objectives.
Denzin and Lincoln (2003) explained that qualitative research involves a variety of data
sources. This study involves in-depth interviews and observation for data collection. Each
data source had its strengths and weaknesses. Hence, combining observation and interviews
enabled the researcher to crosscheck the findings and therefore increase the meaningfulness
and strength of the research findings. Patton (1990) argued that combining observation with
in-depth interviews significantly increased the validity of the data.
Respondents’ Observation
In order to compensate for any shortcomings of the interviews, descriptive observation of
the dimensions of space, activities, objects, or time were recorded. Observation has been seen
as a major component in all research methods design (Robson, 1993; 2002), Even interviews
employ direct observations of interviewees’ gestures and impressions which might provide
specific meaning about what the respondents are trying to say (Angrosino & de Perez, 2003).
Observation, Patton (1990) argued, enabled the researcher to understand the context within
which the case operates in order to build a holistic view. Participant observation was
conducted extensively throughout the data collection.
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What to Observe
The following section is items that are observed during the data collection. They are:
Technology home resources that the respondent has at home.
Opportunities to maintain his spoken English.
Time to take opportunities
Result of Observation
Table 1.1 records the results of observation during the data collection.
Table 1.1 Notes about What to Observe

No. What to Observe Items
1. Technological home Smart-phone, laptop, head phone, ear-
resources phone, television, Play Station 03, i-pad, i-
pod, external hard drive, and unlimited
internet connection.
2. Opportunities to maintain Utilizing technological home resources in
spoken English a variety of usage
3. Time investment After school hours, weekend, and holiday
time
Table 1.1 shows that the respondent has some technological tool facilities at home that help
him to maintain his ability to speak in English. Moreover, the results of observation inform
that the respondent takes some opportunities to activities by utilizing facilities provided at
home after school hours, on the weekend, an on holiday time.
Research Questions to be Investigated
How can the ability to speak in English be maintained in the setting where English is
identified as a foreign language?
Why can technology be used to maintain spoken language?
What opportunities or activities can be done through technology?
What can technology and websites be offered to maintain spoken language?
What is the website visited by the respondent mostly?
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Question 1: How can the ability to speak in English be maintained in the setting where
English is identified as a foreign language?
Technological Home Resources
The ability to speak in English can be maintained in a circumstance where English is not
readily available there by providing some literacy technological tools. The results of
observation recorded in Table 1.1 show that the respondent has many technological home
resources, such as that can be used to maintain his ability to speak in English. The results of
observation indicates that the availability of technology at home help the respondent who is
non-native speaker of English, who migrates from an English speaking country to a non-
English speaking country, to maintain his spoken language, namely, speaking in English.
Moreover, with those technological tools and the connection to the internet, the respondent
has many opportunities to surf all around the world by using English that consequently assist
him to maintain his spoken English.
The respondent commented that
I am still able to speak English because I have some technological tools such as laptop, smart
phone, i-pod, and i-pad that are connected to the internet at home. I am a young man, I like
playing around with technology. With these tools, I am able to communicate to my old
friends who are native speaker of English in Australia. Moreover, when I am playing game
on-line, I have a chance to communicate in English to other people around the world.
The statement indicates that the respondent is still able to speak English in his home country
with the assistance of some technological tools provided at his house. It is consistent with
Nallaya (2012) who argued that technology had a marked influence on English language
proficiency. In addition, Nallaya’s study (2013) found that the use of technology was able to
bridge both formal and informal learning.
Moreover, these tools provide the respondent opportunity to use English with other people
around the world without meeting at the same place. The emergence of multimodal
sophisticated technology in this global age and the rapidly changing nature of the tools, such
as the facebook, the Internet, computer, Skype, webcam, video-conference, ipad, and iphone
enable people around the world to have so-called ‘virtual interaction’.
Additionally, the results of observation show that the respondent allocates time to use these
technologies to maintain his spoken language, such as after school hours, on the weekend,
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and on holiday time. It is in line with Carroll (1963; 1989; 1994) who argued that time
investment has a positive influence on English language achievement.
Therefore, there are four things, namely, (a) availability technology as a media or tool to
learn English, (b) access to technology, and (c) opportunity to use English as well as (d) time
investment that have positive contribution to maintain spoken English in a non-English
speaking background.
The Language of Technology is English
Pimienta (2005) argued that English was the most common language used on the internet and
on web pages. It is undoubtedly true that the language of ICT is now English. English is the
language most commonly used on the internet, although it has been argued by some that this
situation might change (Nihalani, 2008). However, it is far too early to predict that the use of
English on the internet in Indonesia may be replaced by another language, such as Chinese,
Japanese or Bahasa Indonesia.
I can still understand English because the language of technology is English. Before I use
technology to communicate with my friends all around the world, I have to be able to
understand instruction that is written in English. After I understand the instruction, I am able
to operate technology and use it to communicate with my friends.
The statement indicates that the ability to maintain spoken language can occur because the
language of technology itself is English. Therefore, this assists the respondent to keep
maintaining his ability to speak in English.
Question 2: Why can technology be used to maintain spoken language?

Replacing English Speaker
The respondent is a young boy who is 15 years old. He was born at the age surrounded by
technology. He is identified as Net Generation. He is living in a country where English is not
used as a tool of communication. One thing that he can do to maintain his spoken language is
using technology.
I can do everything through technology. Through some technological tools I can have
opportunities to chat with my friends from a different country. This is what I can do to use
English where there is no native speaker of English around me. I use technology.
114
The statement indicates that the unavailability of native speaker of English in non-English
speaking background can be replaced by technology. It is because technology provides
opportunities to interact to other people from different countries and different culture. The
interaction provides people opportunities to talk in English. This also implies that interaction
does not always occur in face to face situation, but it can also occur in virtual circumstance.
Virtual Interaction
Technology is able to provide virtual interaction where there are no people around us to talk
in English, or when people want to talk in English with other people from a different country.
Although I am in my homeland, I still have opportunities to interact to my friends in
Australia virtually. Although it is virtual communication, it is like we are close each other. It
is because we can chat and do some jokes each other. This is my opportunity to talk in
English.
The statement indicates that technology helps the respondent to maintain his spoken language
by interacting to his friends from a different virtually.
Therefore, technology can be used to maintain speaking in English in a country where there is
no generation who is able to speak English because (a) technology can replace the
unavailability of native speaker of English in this setting, and (b) technology provides
opportunity to interact to other people virtually with the assistance of internet connection.
Question 3: What opportunities or activities can be done through technology?

Different Websites, Different Tools, Different Activities
Technology offers a variety of opportunities or activities to do. This depends on the website
people visit and technological tools people have.
Actually, I can do a lot of activities to maintain my English speaking skill by using
technological tools I have at home. However, different technology provides different
activities. This also depends on the websites I visit since different websites offer different
activities.
This statement indicates that different tools and different websites cannot always be used to
do the same activities. There is relationship between tools and the websites and activities to
offer. There is interdependency between activities the users can do and technology available.
115
Question 4: What can technology and websites be offered to maintain spoken language?
Results of observation and the interview above shows that technological tools such as smart
phone, i-pad, laptop with the internet connection offer different activities to do. With these
types of technology and the internet connection, the respondent can surf to different websites
to do different activities.
The results of interview recorded in Table 1.2 show that the respondent visits some websites
such as you tube and face book using his technological tools to do some activities to maintain
his English skills.
Table 1.2 Relationship between tools, websites, and activities to offer

No Tools Websites Activities Offered
1. smart phone, i-pad, You tube Sing and listen to the music, watch
laptop, i-pod, internet music videos, game play videos,
funny videos, commentary soccer
videos, and watch interview videos
between idols, for example singer and
well-known footballers and
interviewer, watch videos that relate
to the respondent’s previous country,
namely, Australia, watch movies
without subtitle, and watch
documentary science movies.
2. idem Facebook Video calling to talk virtually in

English, chatting to face book
messenger, read the latest news, read
news update, read sport news, read
new trend technology.
3. Laptop, PS 3, Gaming website On-line gaming, chatting orally to
internet gaming community network
116
For example, the respondent commented that

Sometimes I use my laptop, or i-pad, or my phone to visit certain websites. I need internet
connection to reach the websites. For example, in you tube, I can sing and listen to the music,
watch music videos, game play videos, funny videos, commentary soccer videos, watch
interview videos between idol for example singer and well-known footballers and
interviewer, watch videos that relate to my previous country, Australia, watch movies without
subtitle, and watch documentary science movies.
The statement indicates that internet plays an important role to maintain the ability to speak
in English and other English skills. Without the internet connection, although the respondent
has very sophisticated technology, such activities are impossible to do.
Moreover, information recorded in Table 1.2 shows that technology offers a different variety
of activities. This indicates that the respondent has many opportunities to maintain not only
his ability to speak in English but also opportunities to maintain his ability in other English
skills.
Question 5: What is the website visited by the respondent mostly?

Table 1.3 records the order of websites that the respondent mostly visits.
Table 1.3 The order of websites visited by the respondent and reason for using it
No. Website Order Reason for Using it
1. you tube Mobile
More entertaining
More opportunities to do activities
More activities to offer
2. face book More mobile than on-line gaming.
3. on-line gaming It is not as mobile as you tube and face
book. We have to sit properly in front of
our tools with assistance of the internet if
we want to communicate with other
people around the world.
Table 1.3 records the results of interview with the respondent concerning the website the
respondent mostly visits. Information recorded in Table 1.3 shows that you tube is the
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website that the respondent mostly visits. It can be seen from Table 1.3 that you tube provides
more opportunities to do activities compare to other websites, namely, face book and on-line
gaming.
Conclusion
The results of study show that ability to speak in English for non-native speaker of
English in the context where English is not widely used as a tool of communication can be
maintained by using technology. It is because technology provides a variety of activities that
can be used to assist people to maintain their spoken English. However, technological tools
alone are not able to employ effectively without having the internet connection. Therefore,
indirectly internet plays an important role to maintain spoken language.
Moreover, different technological tools provide different activities. Similarly, different
websites provides different activities since this depend on types of technology used and
activities the websites offered.
You tube is a website that offers more opportunities to do some activities than other websites
such as on-line gaming and face book.
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119
Title
Regaining Leadership through Ontological Coaching for Female EFL Instructors
Author
Martha Castillo Noriega
Mirna Romero Coloma
Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral in Guayaquil, Ecuador
Bio-Profiles:
Martha Castillo is an EFL Instructor, Ontological Coach and the Science and Social Studies
Area Coordinator at Monte Tabor Nazareth in Guayaquil, Ecuador. She is also finishing her
Master’s Degree in TEFL at Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL). Her research
interests include Educational Leadership, Professional Development, and Emotional
Intelligence. [email protected]
Mirna Romero has been an EFL instructor with adults for over a decade. She is currently a
researcher of Educational Leadership and TESOL at Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral
(ESPOL) in Guayaquil, where she is finishing her Master’s Degree in TEFL. Her research
interests include teaching Grammar and Educational Leadership. [email protected]
Abstract
There has been a persistent debate about the contradiction of how male and female
leaders manage organizations. In education, even though female EFL instructors have been
supported in a natural way, certain traits of leadership have been omitted from their position
as leaders of their classes or in administrative positions. This qualitative case study describes
the leadership skills needed to regain leadership in an educational institution with the
approach of Ontological coaching as a tool to enhance body, emotions, and language in order
to improve female EFL instruction. The subject leader of this study is a female EFL instructor
and coordinator of two academic areas in an elementary school. In-depth interviews were
used to identify the perceptions of the administrators, colleagues, and subordinates about her
120
performance as the leader of her teams; while three self-assessments helped the subject leader
identify her most remarkable leadership skills.
Overall analysis indicates that trust, effective communication, support, concern about
well-being, tactfulness, and assertiveness are the most common traits that, linked to
Ontological coaching, allow female EFL instructors to regain leadership in their classes. One
remarkable result that emerged from the findings was that even though Ontological Coaching
has not been related to education, its origins are solely based on theories of leadership in
education that enables female EFL instructors to accept the fact of being humans with
different perceptions in a changing world that affect their personal and professional life.
Keywords: Female leadership, ontological coaching, EFL instruction
Introduction
This paper advances relationship between female EFL instructors and leadership by
analyzing the conditions under which women regain their leadership positions by dealing
with the challenges they face in the EFL instruction. Specifically, it seeks to answer three
related research questions:
1. How has Ontological Coaching influenced female EFL instructors in this
institution?
2. To what extent has a female EFL leader influenced an EFL female dominated
working environment?
3. What are the essential traits required for a female EFL instructors to face
challenges in this institution?
The purpose of this research is to identify the leadership skills that female EFL instructors
need to perform effectively. Booth & Nolen (2009) state that any observed gender differences
in behavior are more likely to be due to the nurturing received from parents, teachers or peers
than to nature.
The subject leader of the study was the first Science Area and Social Studies Area
coordinator in this elementary school. She had been trained in Ontological Coaching,
Personal development and Educational leadership to influence her team members on their
attitudes towards others, their performance in class and foster collaborative work among
female EFL instructors.
121
Theoretical background
Female Leadership
Over the last 30 years the presence of women has given great contributions to different
areas of knowledge; therefore, manager, entrepreneur, coach, businesswoman, instructor, and
leader mark innovated roles that provide a new conception of leadership. Grogan &
Shakeshaft (2010) remark that, as leaders, women engage others and their proficiency
overlaps with projects related to adjustments. Glass & Cook (2015) emphasize that recent
scholarship indicates that female leaders aim for greater innovation and profitability with
evident reports on corporate social responsibility. In fact, women as leaders are now
beginning to make an impact on organizations using their own leadership style. Grogan &
Shakeshaft (2010), along with Helgensen (1990) as cited by Moran (1992), agree to remark
that the organizations shaped by these women are treated more like “webs of inclusion”; so
there are more points of connection for information sharing in a web where the
communication flow is usually vertical to involve others in decision making to make relevant
changes.
In contrast, Eagly (2007) demonstrates that even though women leaders manifest
effective leadership styles associated with successful business organizations, they may face
impediments to leadership within organizations, such as being removed or limited by changes
in the organization that looks for women’s improvement and access to leadership styles.
Lipman-Blumen (1992) argues that the traditional American concept of leadership is based
on a masculine ego-ideal that praises the competitive, aggressive, and self-reliant,
individualist approach. This type of leadership is predominantly shown through behaviors
focused on task mastery, competition, and power that look for success. For this reason,
Lipman-Blumen (1992) emphasizes that females can be either labeled as too masculine or too
soft, which is a stereotype related to women. Glass & Cook’s study (2015) revealed that
women are more expected to be promoted to high-risk leadership positions than men, but
there is also a lack of support or authority to accomplish their goals. This is also supported by
Bruckmüller, Ryan, Rink & Haslam (2014) who argue that women will be better crisis
managers, better people managers and better marshals of social resources in particular, even
though they would rather evade such risky leadership positions. As a result, women leaders
often undergo limited tenures compared to male peers.
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Leadership Theories that Sustain the Female Leadership Style

Metanoia
Ruether (1995) remarks that “The journey of “soul making” is incomplete without a
transformation of the whole” (p.43). This change happens through transformative metanoia
(meta--above or beyond as in "metaphysics" of mind ("noia," from the root nous, of mind)
(Senge, 1990 p. 12), which is sudden insight and also slow maturation of a grounded self in
relationship or community, able to be both self-affirming and other affirming in life-
enhancing mutuality. This concept of metanoia was applied to “learning organizations,” that
are constantly expanding their capacity to create their future through the use of “adaptive
learning” along with “generative learning”, a combination that enhances the creativity ability.
Presence and Leadership
The essence of human beings is the relationship and connections with others. Starrant
(2004) describes presence as the total awareness of self and the other. The affirming presence
portrays a leader in the context of the community to work together and reach a transformative
impact on authentic learning by building structures and processes that will encourage
members of the school family to have a sense of belonging whose main tool is dialogue.
The Trustworthy Leadership Matrix in education
The Trustworthy Leadership Matrix is a concept developed by Tschannen-Moran (2004),
where five facets of trust (Benevolence, Honesty, Openness, Reliability, Competence), five
functions of leadership (Mediating, Managing, Coaching, Modeling, Visioning) and five
constituencies of the school (administrators, teachers, students, parents, and public) merge
together and complement one another in different levels. All of the elements previously
mentioned are associated, the facets of trust can relate to the traits a leader should have,
among the functions of leadership, coaching is highlighted and connected to the present work
and the constituencies of the school which are important actors in the setting where a leader
performs their daily work.
Coaching in education is mainly performed by school principals who foster a culture of
trust through institutional management. Abbott, Baker, & Stroh (2004) as cited by Knight,
Stinnett & Zenger (2008) remark that 10 out of 10 school districts in the Effective Districts
Study use coaching. They also emphasize that leaders in education are defined as teacher
leaders, principals, and instructional coaches who work with staff in order to transform
student learning. Moreover, discussions and results are the basis for a trustworthy foundation
of success where leaders in education contribute to the educational community.
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Ontological coaching
Cox, Bachkirova & Clutterbuck (2014) define Ontological coaching as the study of the
being, which is formed by the combination of four interrelated components that establish the
theoretical basis of ontological coaching: the phenomenological analysis of being, the biology
of cognition, the philosophy of being, and the philosophical investigations of the body.
Maturana (1988) stated this first concept of knowledge and called “Ontology of the Human
Observer”.
Vaclav Havel (1994) as cited by Sieler (2003) stated that “a man as an observer is
completely alienated from himself as a being”. The being is the emphasis on learning as a
method to find a stronger connection with individual selves, each other, and the environment.
Besides, the way of being has an effect on three linked areas or domains of existence —
language, emotions, and body. Sieler (2003) states that language is the essence that enables
every human being to create reality and to construct meaning with it. Humans are born and
exist in language that is related to the quality of human’s presence. The second domain,
emotions, and moods as mentioned by Ontologicalcoach.com.au (2014), has played a more
visible role in the way we act because of the influence of where we live. Sieler (2007)
emphasizes that Ontological coaching utilizes a framework entitled ‘Some Basic Moods of
Life’ that includes interpretative structures organized in four components: the creation of the
mood; the linguistic or narrative structure; the behavioral predispositions; and finally, the
postural configuration that expresses the mood. In this domain, the coach listens for the
language of moods while observing their representation in the coachee’s postural
configuration.
The final domain corresponds to the human body, which is affected by the way the world
is perceived and consequently, the way of acting can be modified in terms of body disposition
and senses that include movement and breathing. Sieler (2007) remarks the importance of this
body domain because it is where the embodiment of change takes place.
Methodology
This is a case study, which relies on three self-assessments questionnaire given to the
subject leader (Behavior Matrix, a Leadership Behavior Survey, and a Leadership Self-
Assessment Questionnaire), as well as in-depth semi-structured interviews with 15 questions
for all the participants to identify traits and skills required for an academic coordinator, the
124
subject leader´s performance, and leader’s influence on staff members. To add validity to this
study, these instruments were taken from previous frameworks.
Setting
This study research was conducted in a private elementary school in Guayaquil, Ecuador.
Female teachers work with girls and male teachers work with boys; however, the English
staff is female-dominated, so they may be able to work with girls and boys as well.
Participants
Fourteen participants who work with the subject leader were organized into three
categories: first, the subordinates, who were eight EFL instructors (one male and seven
female); second, a colleague, who is the Language Area Academic Coordinator (male), and
performs similar duties as the subject leader plus two section coordinators (inspectors) who
supervise the girls section and the boys section separately; third, the Academic Heads of the
Science Area and the Social Studies Area, as well as the principal of the elementary school
who is the highest authority in school.
Data collection and Analysis

The interviews conducted in English and Spanish language were transcribed, coded, and
classified into three different tables: profile of an academic area coordinator, perception of
the subject leader´s performance and personal and professional learning and outcomes. For
the three assessments, in the Behavior Matrix, the subject leader placed herself in one of the
four quadrants to interpret the descriptor of her characteristics. The Leadership Behavior
Survey was decoded by recording the column totals in the Initiating Structure (left side of the
survey) and Consideration Values (right side of the survey) boxes. The total number of marks
was then charted on the Charting Leadership Style Matrix to determine the quadrant of the
subject´s leadership style. Likewise, in the Leadership Self-assessment Questionnaire, the
numbers were transferred and placed in the Matrix section to draw a horizontal line from the
approximate people score (vertical axis) to the right of the matrix, and to draw a vertical line
from the approximate task score on the horizontal axis to the top of the matrix. After that, two
lines were drawn from each dot until they intersected and that was the leadership dimension
that the subject of the study operated out of.
Three triangulations were used to contrast data obtained from the other participants
interviewed as a way to show validity in this study:
125
1. Administrators, coordinators and EFL instructors´ perceptions of subject leader´s

performance.
2. Traits and skills of an academic coordinator, performance of subject leader, and
influence or possible learning in staff members.
3. Behavior Matrix, the Leadership Behavior Survey, and the Leadership Self-
Assessment Questionnaire
Triangulations
The three research questions for this study were directly developed through the analysis of
the participants’ insights:
Triangulation 1
1. Administrators, coordinators, and EFL instructors. The perceptions of the performance
of the subject leader analyzed from staff who is above her, at her level, and the team she
manages.
In the Profile for the Position, staff members in the three different groups mentioned traits
such as responsibility, commitment, and organization. Several instructors mentioned that the
subject leader, in this case, sets the example for them because she meets the requirements and
expectations for the team.
In the Professional and Academic Duties category, administrators pointed out the great
quality of the subject leader’s work, her high level of commitment, and the fact that she
serves as a connection between them and the teachers she supervises.
Instructors mentioned specific examples such as the help provided by the subject leader in
reminding them to meet deadlines, the encouragement to use and implement technology, the
strictness she possesses contrasted with and complemented by the motivation and care she
provides to each of them through some signs of appreciation.
In the Traits and Management of subordinates’ proactivity, ability, and willingness to
solve problems were mentioned by the three groups. Administrators remark the subject
leader’s assertiveness, the right voice tone, and tactfulness; therefore, her teachers feel
support from her and give their support in return that has enabled the creation of a bond with
them.
Triangulation 2
2. The traits and skills of the academic area coordinator are compared with the subject
leader’s performance and the influence she has had on staff members
126
Administrators mentioned traits such as responsible, proactive, problem solver and ability
to approach subordinates with assertiveness, and tactfulness as the expectation for someone
who holds a leadership position as an academic coordinator. Those same characteristics were
stated as traits that the subject leader in this case study portrays, and she has gained respect
and admiration for her organization, as well as her initiative to train teachers.
Coordinators mentioned knowledge in the subject area, ability to lead and guide a team,
focus on the human being, tolerance, and willingness to help as the traits and skills required
for an academic coordinator. They also remark the subject leader´s professional development,
her calmness to solve problems, and her interest in doing more than is expected that have
made her a pleasant person to be around because of her contagious attitude.
Instructors mentioned knowledge, organization, empathy, understanding, ability to deal
with issues, leadership, openness, and role modeling as traits an academic coordinator must
have. One of the greatest influences of the subject leader is her role model of what is
expected to do and to be. They feel understood, happy to be part of her team and backed up
by her; therefore, some of them have learned to approach people in a more respectful way.
Triangulation 3
3. Self-Assessments given to Subject Leader
Each self-assessment questionnaire helped the subject leader analyze her performance,
the relationship with her subordinates, and the duties and expectations of her position.
The statements that comprised the Self-Assessment Questionnaire related to insights and
ideas mentioned by the 14 participants throughout the interviews.
Discussion and Conclusions

Overall, the perceptions of participants matched the results obtained from the
questionnaires given to the subject leader. The participants strongly highlighted the way the
subject leader focused on them as human beings, which is the essence of the influence of
Ontological Coaching in EFL instruction. In fact, the three domains of Ontological Coaching,
body, emotions and language, were more naturally evident during the interviews with
subordinates. It was also noticeable that they have acquired this Ontology of the Human
Observer due to the fact that they also observe the subject of this study, not only as a leader
but a human being as them.
Additionally, the results of Ontological Coaching were seen in subordinates’ attitude
towards teamwork, since they learned to interact collaboratively and effectively by
127
recognizing strengths and weaknesses of their coworkers based on their own perspectives; as
a consequence, the outcomes of the implementation of Ontological Coaching benefited the
professional aspects of the stakeholders interviewed. They concluded that the subject leader
backed them up and supported them; therefore, she has gained their respect and admiration.
As a concluding point, female EFL instructors in this study have been able to regain their
leadership by acquiring and dealing with the mindsets that are key points in Ontological
coaching and demonstrate a framework that relates connections between theories of
Educational Leadership and Ontological Coaching.
Appendix 1
Table 1: Perceptions of Subject´s Performance as Reported by Participants in the
Interviews
Administrators Coordinators Instructors
Traits and Responsible Knowledgeable about An innate leader with the role
skills for the Committed the subject area. model of what is required
Position Proactive
Organized Committed to her work A very well-prepared and organized
and to the education of person
the students
Academic Communication Keeps an eye on her Asks for things in advance and
and between teachers teachers helps team to meet deadlines with
Administrative and administrators signs of appreciation
Duties Makes sure teachers
Supervisors rest fulfill the expectations & Loves technology and encourages
assured in her comply with everything people to use it.
work Trust
Traits as Proactive Proactive, problem Focusing on the human beings
Person and Patient solver Willingness to help solve problems
Management Strong and firm Patient and respectful Rapport with teachers
of (assertiveness, Goes beyond follow up Backs teachers up
Subordinates right voice tone process
and tactfulness) Teachers feel safe and
Firm with students supported.
Authors: Martha Castillo & Mirna Romero
128
Source: Recordings of interviews, transcripts, and translations conducted by an external

researcher
Appendix 2
Table 2: Traits of Leadership regarding the Subject Leader
Administrators Coordinators Instructors

T Knows and works for Knowledge of subject area Knowledge about the subject
R institutional objectives and how to teach it Organized, responsible, present for
A Responsible, Proactive, Ability to lead and guide team
I Problem solver, leader, Focus on the human being Leadership, Empathy, connection
T Well-founded and strong Attentive to people in the Open to dialogue, open-minded,
S character team listens
Assertiveness, appropriate Problem solver Willing to welcome and work with
voice tone, and tactfulness, Willingness to help when all the people
rapport needed Deals with all situations, helps the
Gets along well with people, team work together
Collaborative and team work Develops a bond
P Aids communication among Knowledgeable about the Professional, demanding, helps to
E staff subject area clarify doubts
R Supervisors rest assured in Constant training, proactive, Helps team meet deadlines,
F her work problem solver, Patient, Willingness to help solve
O Great coordination respectful problems, encourages people to use
R Ability to approach Committed to work and technology
M instructors education Concerned about people’s well-
A Assertiveness, right voice, Ensures team fulfills being,
N tone and tactfulness expectations Team members trust her
C Firm with students Teachers feel safe and
E supported
I Educates and forms human Furthering her education Effort and desire to continue
N beings inspires others moving forward in a continuous
F Inspired others with her work Positive approach and learning process, constantly
L and endeavors attitude in life updated
U Gives training and Strong tempered personality Helps new teachers to adapt and
129
E workshops, and strength feel comfortable

N Connection among staff, Calm for any kind of Controls temper, Calms people
C proactive situation down
E Actions prove that she is a leader
Source: Recordings of interviews, transcripts, and translations conducted by an external
researcher
Appendix 3
Table 3: Results of Subject Leader Self-Assessments

The Behavior Matrix The Leadership Behavior Leadership Self-Assessment
Survey Questionnaire
Accommodate (social friendly) Team Leader
“Controller” combination of behavior. People Section: 8 / 9
the words dominant and Task Section: 8.8 / 9
Initiating Structure ( score 47)
formal.
Make attitude clear to the group
Main characteristics:
Main goal: Find time to listen to High task, high relationship
Results subordinates
In a job, they…
Look out for the personal
Common characteristic: Lead by positive examples and
welfare of individuals in the
Manage their time to the endeavors
group
minute
Schedule the work to be done Goals:
In a job, they… Foster a team environment
Maintain definite standards of
Make sure the job gets done,
performance.
-might feel impatient if Enable:
action is not taken Consideration values Team members reach their highest
immediately potential
(score 54)
Can’t stand… Emphasize the meeting of As:

Discussions about “the best deadlines Team members and people
130
way to do things” or “the Back up subordinates in their

way to please everybody” actions Encourage team:
Reach goals as effectively as
Treat all subordinates as equals
Outstanding characteristics possible
Confidence in their ability Willing to make changes
Take risks Evidence of their work
Friendly and approachable
Push forward Forms and Leads the most
*let subordinates know what is productive teams
expected of them
*make subordinates feel at ease

when talking to them

Sources:
Blake, Robert R.; Mouton, Jane S.; Bidwell, Alvin C. Advanced Management - Office
Executive, Vol 1(9), 1962, 12-15.
Halprin, Theory and research in administration. 1966 Managerial grid.
Sayers, S. (1978). Leadership Styles: A Behavioral Matrix.
131
Appendix 4
Table 4. Characteristics of Ontological Coaching and Educational leadership for female

EFL instructors (Original)
Ontological Coaching for female EFL Educational Leadership for female EFL
instructors instructors
1. Leader role: Observer. Ontology of the 1. Leader role: Presence: Sensitivity to the
Human Observer: Able to support people in signals the other and creates an internal
achieving their goals and creating a new way dialogue that later rests in external
of being expression.
2. Connection of body, emotions, and

language to interact with others. 2. Connection between body and language to
interact with others.
3. Understanding of the human person and

life plans. It is coaching to the human soul. 3. Supplying knowledge to be an effective
leader, as teacher or administrator, in the
context of educational institutions.
4. Human development is a priority of
strategic importance that is focused on 4. Professional development is a priority of
developing better human beings. strategic importance that is focused on
developing leaders at all levels
5. Questions regarding the existence of
beings in a constantly changing world to 5. Questions regarding the implementation of
know how to live and behave skills and techniques
6. Results affect personal and professional

aspects of life. 6. Results affect professional aspects of life
7. Changes in perceptions and attitudes by

removing significant obstacles and focusing 7. Changes in attitudes to improve the
on the development of efficient patterns of development of efficient patterns of
132
communication and behavior. communication and behavior.
8. One framework: ‘Some Basic Moods of

Life’ that includes four components: mood, 8. Two frameworks: “Think manager-think
linguistic, behavioral predispositions; and the male” which is a traditional style, male
postural configuration. The coach observes stereotyped, as a way to gain respect from
the language of moods and the postural subordinates; and “Webs of inclusion” which
configuration in the coachee. is more related to a female style to lead in a
collaboratively environment.

Sources: Original Framework
References
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Title
Direct vs Indirect indicators in Negotiation of Meaning among High Proficiency ESL
Learners: Gender Interaction
Author
Hee Sio Ching
University of Malaya
Bio-Profile:
Hee Sio Ching is a postgraduate student at the Faculty of Languages and Linguistics of
University of Malaya. Her research interests include second language learning, English for
specific purposes, occupational purposes and assessments. [email protected]
Abstract
In negotiation of meaning, an ‘indicator’ or signal of non-understanding plays an
important role in second language acquisition as it prompts for modified interaction. As
indicators have an impact on the type of linguistic responses produced (Pica et al., 1989), it is
important to investigate the forms of indicators produced by second language learners during
an interaction. This study utilizes Gass and Varonis (1986) categorization of direct and
indirect indicators to examine the types of indicators produced by female and male
interlocutors in face to face interaction. The different types of indicators produced affect the
responses in an interaction. For example, an indirect indicator may trigger in a form of
clarification responses while direct indicators may prompt for immediate and explicit
responses. 24 high-proficiency learners participated in this study; 12 females and 12 males
and paired in mixed gender dyads. Two tasks were utilized to elicit the data. The study found
both genders produced higher number of indirect indicators compared to direct indicators.
However, the females are shown to produce greater number of direct and indirect indicators
where this suggests that females required more input and the males prefer to produce
modified output that can be beneficial to SLA.
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Keyword: indicator, interaction, gender, negotiation of meaning, SLA
Introduction
In the literature of SLA, negotiation routine or negotiation of meaning in an interaction
provides learners opportunity to receive comprehensible input (Krashen,1985),
comprehensible output (Swain, 1985) and noticing of form (Long, 1983). According to the
model of non-understanding (Varonis & Gass, 1985b, p. 74), negotiation routine gives
interactants the opening for modified interaction (Long, 1981) which is beneficial to SLA.
The proposed model comprises moves which are actually attempts made by learners to
comprehend message meaning. These attempts or adjustments made by learners can work in
an alternate order, back and forth until the problematic part of the conversation is resolved
(Zainal & Hee, 2016). Learners’ attempts or utterances come in the form of repetition,
modification, expansion and elaboration which are labelled as comprehension checks,
clarification requests and confirmation checks (Pica, 1988). The model consists of three or
four basic moves; trigger (T), indicator (I), response (R) and reaction to response (RR)
(Varonis & Gass, 1985b p.74). The first move, trigger, initiates the process of negotiation of
meaning. In this move, the utterance produced by the speaker may be incomprehensible to the
listener. This move is followed by indicator where the listener attempts to signal to the
speaker that the message is incomprehensible. In the third move, response, the initial speaker
attempts to repeat, modify or elaborate the earlier utterances and this is followed by an
optional move reaction of response, utterances to indicate the message is finally resolved as
shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1
(T) Trigger (I) Indicator (R) Response (RR) Reaction to Response
Model of non-understanding by Varonis & Gass (1985b, p.74)
As indicator is known for prompting modified interaction, its role seems to give impact
on the linguistic responses produced. In other words, the modified responses rely on the types
of indicators signaled during the negotiation of meaning. This paper aims to analyze the
forms of indicators produced by second language learners, in particular, the types of
indicators produced by female and male interlocutors in a face to face interaction. Other than
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the study by Gass and Varonis (1986), there appears to be no additional references on gender
literature specifically in the direct and indirect indicators. Thus, this study attempts to address
this gap by looking at gender interaction.
Literature review
Studies in gender interaction show that males and females interact differently in a
language and they have their own style of interaction (Aries, 1976; Tannen, 1990; Ross-
Feldman, 2007). According to Tannen (1990), this is visible when they are paired in a
discourse either in a matched-gender or mixed-gender discourse. Her findings (Tannen,
1990) reveal that in a matched-gender discourse, the language produced by males and
females differ in number of turns of talk, types of talk and topics. Aries (1976) found that in
a mixed-gender discourse, men tend to talk more than women and that, men tend to increase
the amount of talk to demonstrate their performance ability. Findings from these studies
suggest genders tend to alter their style of talk based on the gender of their partners in the
discourse (Ross-Feldman, 2007).
Although research on gender interaction seems intensifying, studies in gender differences
in negotiation of meaning is still lacking especially among the second language learners
(Gass & Varonis, 1986). Gass and Varonis (1986) investigated and found men demonstrated
a lack of understanding more than women in picture describing task, but in the conversation
task, it was the women who signals lack of understanding more than men. This shows both
male and female tend to request for more input but this depend on the types of tasks. Zainal
and Hee (2016) examined interaction between learners in a mixed-gender setting and found
that the females gave more indication of lack of understanding in a decision making task as in
requiring for more input. The males however, produced greater number of turns, words and
modified output. In Shehadeh’s (1999) study, he claimed that women are eager for more
input as in seeking for clarity and understanding of the conversation.
Thus, this study is more interested in the forms of indicators produced, indication of non-
understanding and how it affects the modified output which is beneficial to SLA.
Research Questions
The present study aims to provide the answers for the following questions:
What are the frequencies of direct and indirect indicators of negotiation routine between the
genders?
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What are the features of direct and indirect indicators of negotiation routine between the
genders?
Methodology
Participants
The participants for this study are undergoing a preparatory course in an educational
center. They are aged between 18 to 21 at the time of the study. The participants are familiar
with task based learning activity as this course equips learners with interactional activity that
involves behavioral interview questions, situational questions, pair and group discussion.
Prior to data collection, an English placement test was administered to determine
participants level of proficiency. This test comprises of 120 multiple choice questions. The
scores for the level is as follows: low-proficiency (0-39), mid-proficiency (40-79) and high-
proficiency (80-120). Therefore, 24 Malaysian participants from the high-proficiency were
selected for this study, 12 females and 12 males. They belong to the ethnicity of Chinese,
Indian, Malay, Sikh and Eurasians. They were paired in a mixed gender dyad; male and
female. The pairing was made to identify which gender initiate the conversation, signal for
incomprehensibility and as in requesting for more input.
Procedures
The data collection took 6 weeks. Each week two pairs completed the tasks. This
arrangement was organized by the center and the interaction was conducted out of classroom
environment, in the office of the center. An audio digital recording device was utilized as the
tool to elicit interaction. This device was light and sensitive and the researcher was able to
record interactions easily. For ethical purpose, two types of consent letters were obtained.
One was from the center to conduct research and collect data, the other was from the
participants.
Decision making tasks
For this study, two decision-making tasks were utilized. According to Long (1981),
decision making tasks have the potential to generate interactions. And since it is a convergent
task (Duff, 1986), this task type provides learners the opportunity to interact e.g. turn-taking,
asking questions and two-way information exchange. The tasks utilized for this study were
replicated and modified from MUET (Malaysian University English Test) model papers
speaking test (Kaur, Subramaniam & Subramaniam, 2013). The tasks were simple; it requires
participants to plan a farewell dinner for a friend and to introduce Malaysian delicacies to a
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visitor from Europe. No time frame was given to participants to complete the task, however,
ten minutes of preparation were allocated prior to task discussion.
Analysis
All interactions were transcribed and labelled accordingly. The gender of the participants
was identified and labelled as M – male and F – female. For example, the first pair labelled as
(M1) – (F1) and the following as (M2) – (F2). This study refers to Varonis and Gass (1985b,
p.74) proposed model for non-understanding to identify and extract negotiation routines
occurred in the transcribed data. Then, it utilizes Varonis and Gass (1986, p.328) category of
indicators to examine the indicators produced by male and female interlocutors in a face to
face interaction. Finally, the numbers of indicators were counted and compared between the
two genders. The study will then identify which gender signals for more input as in requiring
more comprehensible input and which gender tend to produce more comprehensible output in
the modified interaction. An example of negotiation routines is shown in excerpt 1.
Excerpt 1
F : so one person will bring one food…. Trigger
M: one food? what do you mean by one food? Indicator
like ahhh..what food?...
F : so for the party… Response
M: oh ok Reaction to Response
Excerpt was taken from the study of Zainal & Hee (2016)
The above excerpt explains the episodes of occurrences of negotiation routine. The
utterance “so one person will bring one food” acts as a trigger, initiating the negotiation
routine. The reaction to the trigger was an indicator which signals non-understanding in the
forms of clarification request and confirmation checks through the utterances “one food?”,
“what do you mean by one food?” “what food?”. In response to the indicator the initial
speaker “so for the party”. The utterance ‘party’ provides clarification. Finally, the reaction to
response “oh ok” indicates the interlocutor understood the meaning of the message.
For this study, the same method of analysis is applied on the transcribed data. Then the
abstracted excerpts are examined further on the types of indicators produced by referring to
Gass and Varonis’ (1986) model. The findings of the study will show which gender preferred
139
to signal for input, whether the signal influenced the linguistic responses produced and the
gender preferred to produce modified output.
Direct Indicator
According to Gass and Varonis (1986), a direct indicator is a signal from the hearer to the
speaker that the message was totally incomprehensible, and that more input is required. In
other words, a direct indicator hints immediate incomprehensibility of message prompting
the other interlocutor for an immediate response. Examples of direct indicators found in the
study of Gass and Varonis (1986) are the question forms ‘what?’ or ‘hunh?’. In the present
study, direct indicators in the form of questions are also identified as shown in the following
excerpts:
Excerpt 2: Direct Indicator female (F) – male (M) matched dyads
Negotiation Framework
T (trigger) M5: mmm that’s it…I personally suggest Lavish Jane…
I (indicator) F5: sorry?
R (response) M5: ah Lavish Jane I mean the café name…..
RR F5: ah ha….
The above excerpt shows a direct indicator with the question ‘sorry?’. This lexical unit
indicates that, the hearer is unable to comprehend the message meaning and an immediate
response is expected. The response of ‘…ah Lavish Jane I mean the café name…’ was
modified and elaborated for the hearer to comprehend. This is followed by a reaction to the
response ‘ah..ha’ to indicate that the meaning of the message is resolved.
Excerpt 3: Direct Indicator female (F) – male (M) matched dyads

T (trigger) M6: before that ah we have to think about the details right?
I (indicator) F6: what details?
R (response) M6: for the restaurant, which restaurant all that….
RR F6: ah…ok
In excerpt 3 the question ‘what details’ indicates that the female did not comprehend the
input and required further clarification on the ‘details’. In response, a modified and
elaborated answer was given by the male. This input appears to be comprehensible to the
female given her reaction ‘ah …ok’.
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In this study, the same application was made on the transcribed data. The direct indicators
found are examined, quantified and compared within the genders. A paired t-test is conducted
to examine the significance.
Indirect indicator
It is claimed that the indirect indicators occur in the negotiation routines comes in a form
of expression of politeness (Gass & Varonis, 1986). These expressions of linguistic
utterances point out that there is a lack of comprehension or the message is incomplete. This
type of indicator actually signals and induces the hearer to complete the initial message (Gass
& Varonis, 1986). The types of indirect indicators could come in a form of partial repetition
of the previous speaker utterance. Examples of excerpts of indirect indicator are presented
below.
Excerpt 4: Indirect Indicator female (F) – male (M) matched dyads

T (trigger) M3: I think thirty because [maybe]?
I (indicator) F3: [thirty?]
R (response) M3: his friends from the flying school will be coming
RR F3: ah ha! Alright..uhm..so thirty of us.
* […] overlapping occurs
Excerpt 4 shows the female’s utterance of ‘thirty?’ acts as an indirect indicator. It is a
repetition of a part of the male utterance, signaling that the previous message is incomplete.
An elaborated and expanded response of ‘his friends from the flying school will be coming’
aids her comprehension better as noted in her of reaction ‘ah ha!’ which resolves the message
meaning.

T (trigger) M2: ahh I think I can get fifty ringgit?
I (indicator) F2: fifteen?
R (response) M2: no…fifty ringgit….
Another example of indirect indicator can be found in excerpt 5. The above excerpt
shows how the lexical ‘fifteen’ is uttered as an indicator for partial lack of non-understanding
141
with a phonological error. This has immediately prompted the interlocutor to respond with
the right sound and utterance, thus the incited response serves as an indirect indicator.
Other than the above examples of indirect indicator, there is another form of indicator that
acts as an indirect indicator and does not belong to the lexical units. This particular utterance
is known as hesitation markers of ‘hmmm’ and ‘mmm’ and is shown in the following
excerpt.

T (trigger) F5: roughly how many people should we invite?
I (indicator) M5: hmmm…
R (response) F5: Do you think there’ll be more than twenty?
RR M5: yeah, should be more than twenty…hopefully…
In excerpt 6, the hesitation marker of ‘hmmm’ was found as an indicator, signals a lack of
understanding and requesting for more input. The response of ‘Do you think there’ll be more
than twenty?’ shows a modified version from the initial trigger of ‘roughly how many people
should we invite?’. The response also indicates a continuous form from the initial trigger. The
utterance of ‘more than twenty?’ provides an explicit meaning of the message. This supports
Gass and Varonis (1986) definition of indirect indicator, prompting the speaker that the
message is incomplete.
Based on the excerpts presented above, the evidence indeed shows that learners utilized
opportunities for linguistic modification for producing comprehensible input and output that
can facilitate SLA.
Results and discussion

In the present study, 12 mixed-gender dyads participated in the decision-making tasks.
Each pair completed 2 tasks that totaled up to 24 tasks discussions. Prior to task discussion,
there were no hints or instruction given to which gender should initiate the interaction. The
study found both males and females initiated the interaction equally, females – 12 discussions
and males – 12 discussions. Thus, this gives an equal opportunity for both genders to signal
for incomprehensibility and produce output.
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Table 1 shows the number of direct and indirect indicators produced by the genders. There
were a total of 226 indicators found in this study, 43 direct indicators and 183 indirect
indicators. The findings reveal that the indirect indicators are the preferred indicator for
signaling incomprehensibility of the message meaning. Both genders contributed small
numbers of direct indicators compared to the indirect indicators.
Table 1
Distribution of direct and indirect indicators between female and male participants
Gender Direct Indicator (%) Indirect Indicator (%)
Female 27 63% 104 57%
Male 16 37% 79 43%
Total 43 100% 183 100%
The results found in this study contradict with the findings from Gass and Varonis (1986)
in terms of direct indicators. In their study, both genders of Japanese speakers produced
equal numbers of direct indicators. However, in terms of indirect indicators, the findings of
this study supports their finding that females contributed the highest frequencies of indirect
indicators. This shows that high-proficiency learners preferred a polite expression of
indicating lack of comprehensibility during the task discussion. This can be predicted as the
proficiency level exposes them to a variety of expressions signaling incomprehensibility. A
paired t-test is conducted for statistical testing which is presented below:
Table 2
Comparison of types of indicators between male and female participants
Negotiation routines M t df Sig. (2-tailed)
Direct Indicator 1.250 2.611 11 .024
Indirect Indicator 2.083 1.236 11 .242
The above table demonstrates there is a significant difference found in the category of
direct indicators between the males and females, where females contributed significantly
higher frequencies of direct indicators. On the other hand, there is no significant difference
found in the category of indirect indicators which contradicts the findings in Table 1.
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The study also found some of the common features of direct and indirect indicators that
prompt for modified output. As defined by Gass and Varonis (1986), a direct indicator is a
signal to indicate that there is no input received and the message is totally incomprehensible.
Some of the features that can be categorized as direct indicators are ‘wh’ question forms e.g
‘what…?’, ‘what do you mean by that?’. Other features include ‘sorry?’, ‘for example?’,
‘pardon?’ and ‘for?’ As for indirect indicator, the features found in the study are the
repetition of part of utterances spoken by the initial interlocutor but with a rising intonation.
A number of indirect indicators occurred is also due to phonological error e.g ‘fifty’ supposed
to be ‘fifteen’, ‘Chilios’ to ‘Chilis’.
There is also another different form of indicator found in the negotiation routines that
induced a modified response. This indicator which is not similar to a lexical unit is
categorized as a hesitation marker (Fox, 2010). This refers to the utterances of the sounds of
‘hmm’ and ‘mmm’. According to Clark and Fox Tree (2002), hesitation marker is known to
fill a gap before the noun or to act as fillers in a conversation (Fox, 2010). The articulation
sounds of uh, err, umm and hmm function to fill the pauses which arise in the interaction
(Fox, 2010). Another researcher, Firscher (2000) explains that the function of a hesitation
marker is to signal the other interactant whose thinking is in progress, indicating there are
some thoughts going on of what to say. Clark and Fox Tree (2002), however, claim that
hesitation marker is also used to indicate the willingness to give up on the turn taking,
expecting the other interlocutor to continue with the flow of the speech. On certain
occasions, it can also be a signal to the interlocutor to complete the utterance, as in
acquiring for more input (Clark & Fox Tree, 2002). This particular role or act is similar to
the definition of an indicator from the schema of indicators and responses by Pica et al.
(1989) that an indicator induces for a response. In addition, Gass and Varonis (1986) find the
occurrences of hesitation marker in the findings function to be a direct indicator requiring a
response.
In this study, the findings reveal the occurrences of hesitation markers in the negotiation
routine act mainly as an indirect indicator based on the definition of indirect indicator by
Gass and Varonis (1986). Based on the function, these signals could only be clear if
the utterance of hesitation markers occur solely on its turn and not at the beginning of the
turn taking followed with the utterance of lexical units.
A closer observation is made and some of the examples of hesitation markers found in the
excerpts, particularly ‘hmm’ and ‘mmm’, are presented next.
144
Excerpt 7
T (trigger) F8: Jogoya is buffet….ah buffet restaurant
I (indicator) M8: hmmm…
R (response) F8: which is in Starhill next to Pavilion
RR M8: ok
* (Starhill and Pavilion are large shopping malls in Kuala Lumpur city)
Excerpt 8
T (trigger) M2: I think we go to the park or the lake..
I (indicator) F2: mmm..mmm
R (response) M2: because ah..ah we actually can have a barbeque there
RR F2: [yeah…yeah]
Excerpts 7 and 8 are the examples of ‘hmm’ and ‘mmm’ found in the negotiation routines
categorized as an indirect indicator. The findings reveal that the instances have prompted for
an output and the output seems to be modified, paraphrased and expanded. Thus, for the
current learners the instances of ‘hmm’ and ‘mmm’ apparently is understood as a sign of lack
of understanding and played a significant role of an indirect indicator in negotiation routines.
Conclusions
Generally, there are direct and indirect indicators found in the negotiation routines among
the genders. The preference of signaling lack of non-understanding is similar between the
genders, which is the indirect indicator. The difference is rather huge, almost five times the
amount of instances of indirect indicators. Both genders seem to be natural in signaling,
expressing in a polite way to indicate the lack of comprehension. This also shows that a
majority of non-understanding occurred due to partial lack of comprehensibility or
incomplete input that lead to modified responses, and thus beneficial to SLA (Pica et al.,
1989; 1994)
The gender that contributes significantly higher instances of direct and indirect indicators
are the females. Nevertheless, the statistical results specify that there is no significant
145
difference in terms of indirect indicators between the genders. The result also indicates that
females produced higher number of direct indicators than males. With the tabulated results
presented, this concludes that females prefer to request for greater input as in comprehensible
input compared to males.
Limitations
The present study used a purposive sampling method which involved a small number of
participants. Therefore, it could not be generalized to a larger population. The study also does
not cover all ethnic groups, social class and the area participants were raised and educated.
Therefore, the findings could not be generalized or represent the community of learners.
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Title
An Investigation of Teachers’ Interpretations and Practice of Teaching Thinking Skills in
Chinese EFL Classrooms
Author
Xuying Fan
University of Exeter
Graduate School of Education, Heavitree Road, Exeter, Devon, EX1 2LU, UK
Bio-Profile:
Xuying Fan is currently a PhD student and her research interests involve overseas students’
learning and living experiences, classroom interaction, and thinking skills development in
TESOL classrooms. Her current thesis focuses on teacher cognitions of thinking skills in
Chinese primary EFL classrooms. Email: [email protected]
Abstract
The teaching of thinking skills has received extensive attention in mainstream education,
yet remains under-researched in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages).
More particularly, very little attention has been given to TESOL teachers’ understanding of
thinking skills. The primary purpose of this case study is to investigate Chinese primary
school teachers’ conceptions of thinking skills and how they promoted students’ thinking in
class. Four EFL teachers were interviewed and teaching classes were video recorded (1,120
minutes) and transcribed for discourse analysis purposes. The research findings show that
participants adopted different methods, such as questioning techniques, the use of silence,
and collaborative learning, to promote students’ higher-order thinking. The findings indicate
how the Chinese learning style has been misinterpreted; they overturn claims that the Chinese
learning style is rooted in a surface approach to learning which does not generate in-depth
thinking. Based on the results of this research study, a number of suggestions are made for
future research studies and for the development and improvement of the EFL curriculum.
148
Introduction
The Chinese English Curriculum Standard (MOE, 2011) states that the aim of teaching
English is to integrate English literacy (language skills and linguistic knowledge) and
thinking into students’ application of the language. This entails EFL teaching aims no longer
being limited to improving students’ linguistic competence, but also to providing students
with a tool to enable communication with the world. At a policy level, students should be
encouraged to develop creative and critical thinking skills, and the process of language
learning should involve skills such as exploration, participation, collaboration, negotiation
and communication in order that students’ ability to apply English in real-life situations is
developed (Li, 2011).
In mainstream education, there have been a large number of research studies exploring
the development of students’ thinking in classroom teaching worldwide (Alnofaie, 2013;
Carpenter, 1988; Mercer, 2004,2008; Robson & Rowe, 2012; Yang, 2016). However, very
little research has attempted to investigate teachers’ conceptions of thinking skills and how
primary teachers promote students’ thinking in classroom interactions in Chinese EFL
classrooms. Approaches to the development of thinking skills in teaching and learning a
foreign language remain unsolved (Li, 2011). As teachers’ beliefs regarding the teaching of
thinking skills are likely to have a significant impact on their teaching practice, it is important
to explore what teachers understand by thinking skills and what their opinions are with regard
to developing them. This investigation provides the world with an opportunity to understand
Chinese teachers’ views on this issue and further explains the challenge of promoting
thinking skills.
Definitions of thinking skills

With regard to a definition of thinking skills, there is no consensus as to what thinking
skills are in general terms. Different philosophical assumptions, cultural perspectives and
disciplines define thinking differently. Generally speaking, the western ways of thinking have
their origins in ancient Greece (McGregor, 2007), while Chinese ways of thinking can be
mainly attributed to the Confucian tradition (Li & Wegerif, 2014). However, thinking can be
understood as mental processes which we apply to make sense of the world. Defining
thinking or the types of thinking may be difficult, but one can recognise higher-order
thinking, such as critical thinking and creative thinking, easily (Resnick, 1987).
149
In the discipline of education, creativity is an aspect of everyday actions and ideas, with
possibility thinking being at the core of creativity (Craft, 2001). Creative thinking is also a
generative process through which individuals expand what they know, actively using their
creative imagination to combine aspects of past experience and initiate new possibilities
(Craft et al, 2001; Craft, 2005; McGregor, 2007). It can also involve problem-solving abilities
and open-mindedness. Similarly, critical thinking has been variously defined as a skilful
ability which involves the above features as well as reasoning, rationality, logic, evaluation,
analysis and decision making.
According to Dewey (1933), critical thinking is also an active process that requires one to
think things through, raise questions, and find relevant information. This is reasonable and
reflective thinking. Nevertheless, it is argued that there are large areas of overlap among
different types of thinking; for example, the problem-solving skill could be situated in both
creative thinking and critical thinking since productive new ideas could be generated through
the process of evaluation. Therefore, it is hard to provide precise definitions for each thinking
skill and it is impossible to separate each of them. Additionally, it would be of great interest
to see how differently the Chinese think and to explore whether Eastern and Western ways of
thinking have been stereotyped as being polarised.
The Chinese Culture of Thinking and Learning

A large number of international research studies describe Chinese education as exam-
oriented, with a focus on the reproduction of knowledge and an over-emphasising on rote
learning and memorisation which hinder the development of students’ higher-order thinking
(Li & Johnston, 2015). Chinese students are characterised as passive and silent; it seems that
they lack the skills of criticality and creativity, and this is attributed to the Confucius heritage
of learning (Boyle, 2000; Flowerdew, 1998). A body of cross-cultural research reports that
Westerners have a tendency to meet their daily challenges through analytical thinking (Li &
Weigrif, 2014), and emphasise logic, science and individualism (that is, individual
achievement). The Chinese, on the other hand, are seen to favour a more holistic framework
and process than Westerners (Nisbett, 2003). Based on these claims, it seems that Eastern and
Western thinking are contrast with one another. Central to the Confucius tradition is the
awareness that one’s existence is defined by the countless interpersonal connections in one’s
social matrix (Li, 2015). In this tradition, students are encouraged to be reflective as a way of
being responsible for the collective.
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As in Western thinking, where criticality is encouraged, Confucius recommends that

learners are critical and open-minded; in the collectivist tradition, the manner of being critical
can be implicit in a learner’s inner dialogue rather than being explicit within the community.
Li (2015) has identified this as Chinese reflective thinking. The Chinese tradition advocates
engagement in inner-reflection, a complex process which requires time. Inner reflection is a
productive, active and silent process (Li & Wegerif, 2014). Within this traditional approach
to thinking, Chinese learners are encouraged to take different aspects into consideration
before presenting their own ideas: to consider the dialectical views of the problem, to be self-
critical, to connect old knowledge with the new problem (Li & Wegerif, 2014), and to think
of the interests of others who are in the same situation as them. Besides this, the holistic and
unity tradition does not mean avoiding challenging others. Being self-critical means
cultivating deep moral values, which are, in turn, a response to and support for the collectivist
interests (Li & Wegerif, 2014). The Confucius tradition of self-realisation indicates that
individuals should discover wisdom by themselves, and that teachers should speak less and
stimulate people to reflection.
Furthermore, the term “silence” should be understood differently from the Western
understanding. Students are not sitting and listening passively; rather, they are actively
thinking, internalising, integrating and reflecting on what they have learned, but appear to be
“silent” during this process. This is hard to identify as it happens implicitly. Because of the
character of such active silent thinking, Scholars might have a tendency to misunderstand
Chinese learner behaviour as being passive and learners as being unwilling to make
challenging comments in front of the class.
Research Design
In light of the above and in order to fulfil the aims of my research (to investigate Chinese
primary school teachers’ conceptions of thinking skills and how they promoted thinking in
their classes), I sought answers to the following research questions:
What are Chinese EFL teachers’ perception of higher-order thinking?
What are the opportunities for promoting thinking skills in class?
The selected research field was a state primary school in China, at which 170 students and
four EFL teachers participated (see Table 1). Teachers were interviewed and their teaching
was video recorded (1,120 minutes) for discourse analysis purposes. All participants
including the children, were informed about the purpose of this research and the head teacher,
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parents and teacher participants signed consent forms. Information about the school and all
participants is kept confidential.
Thematic analysis was used to analyse the interview data, and a sociocultural approach to
discourse analysis was used to examine how teachers promote students’ thinking during
classroom interaction, as this approach to discourse analysis focuses on the “process of joint
cognitive engagement with their developmental and learning outcome” (Mercer, 2004:143).
The analysis was based on themes generated from interviews and some characteristics of
Exploratory Talk (Mercer, 2008):
Knowledge co-construction;
Joint consideration in decision making;
Information sharing; and
The skill of reasoning and challenging ideas
Findings
Teacher’s conceptions of higher-order thinking
It was revealed in this study all the teachers were having difficulties in identifying
thinking skills. They reported that they were not confident in defining thinking skills due to
their limited professional knowledge. Teacher C explained,
“Thinking happens implicitly which is hard for me to define, I don’t know which thinking
skills I teach but I know I do it.”
Although the teachers struggled with the definition, they still provided different features
of thinking skills which revealed their understandings of higher-order thinking skills, such as
creative thinking and critical thinking. According to the participants, there were a number of
ways of defining creativity. It was viewed as an ability that could be developed and which
involved a variety of skills: being flexible, searching for alternatives, reinterpretation of
knowledge, and divergent views on a topic.
Teacher B regards creative thinking as proposing various ideas about a topic. Her
understanding of creative thinking is related to possibility thinking proposed by Craft (2005),
which is the core of creativity.
Besides, creative thinking was also seen as sharing some features of critical thinking, as can
be seen in the example extract below:
“I think creativity is about presenting different personal views rather than sticking to the only
answer; as long as they can be justified and be reasonable.”
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(Teacher D)
The statement indicates the overlap between creative thinking and critical thinking: that a
creative response should be reasonable and justified. Being reasonable and justified are also
two features of critical thinking.
In terms of critical thinking, all of the teachers proposed that this was a skilful ability that
involved drawing on inferences, evaluating, reasoning, analysing, and problem-solving.
Critical thinking has been described as synonymous with problem-solving, as a range of
cognitive skills are embedded in critical thinking to solve problems (McGregor, 2007;
Wright, 2002). Despite this, teachers considered healthy scepticism (Lipman, 1991) to be one
of the features of critical thinking, and they encouraged students to develop this in their EFL
learning.
“Critical thinking is important in discussion. Students should not accept things blindly but
have their own thoughts, and be brave enough to express them.”
(Teacher D)
“Students present opposite ideas and argue for their points. It is a healthy way of questioning
other people’s views, as in this way, they learn from each other.”
(Teacher B)
The teachers in this study believed that students who engaged in critical thinking would be
sceptical in their approach to things (Moore, 2013) and would be willing to present different
ideas.
The role of memorisation and reflection
Participants assigned importance to teaching memorisation because of a belief that
students internalised knowledge through memorisation and that their reflection on the prior
knowledge would lead to the creation of new knowledge. Teacher C explained how she
understood memorisation with an example of reported practice:
“In order to memorise a grammar rule, learners need to understand the content through
applying different thinking skills, such as critically analysing the given material in order to
find out the pattern.”
This statement implies that memorising new grammar rules means understanding the
rules through extracting meanings in order to reach a thorough understanding (Au &
Entwistle, 2001). The role of memorisation in teachers’ understanding is associated with
understanding and analysing, rather than being limited to lower-order thinking.
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The role of memorisation is embedded in Chinese reflective thinking. The teachers did not
explicitly define the meaning of reflective thinking yet evidence can be identified from their
statements. For example,
“Students internalise knowledge through memorising, and reflect on the newly received
information. Then they find out the correlations and draw inferences.”
(Teacher A)
In practice, this thinking process happens in silence, and as a result, learners are often
misperceived as passive learners. What could actually be happening is Chinese reflective
thinking: as Teacher A described, students need to find correlations and analyse the materials,
which happens in students’ inner reflection. This is a complex process which requires
students to recall their prior knowledge and analyse the new information together with this
stored knowledge, before critically drawing inferences and correlations, and finally
understanding the knowledge which the teacher is focusing on in class. Therefore, Chinese
reflective thinking could be perceived as silent active reflection (Li &Wegerif, 2014).
Based on the above evidence, teachers’ conceptions of memorisation contradict the surface
understanding of rote memorisation. It is seen as having the capacity to generate in-depth
understandings in the foreign language learning class. Memorisation is regarded as a way of
accumulating knowledge and understanding. New information would be accumulated along
with the increase in knowledge (Watkins & Dahlin, 2000). A teacher’s beliefs about and
knowledge of thinking will have an impact on their teaching practice; the following extract
shows how teachers developed student’s thinking in practice.
Opportunities for promoting thinking skills.
The findings of this study reveal that students developed their higher-order thinking
through classroom interaction. Their thinking was promoted through teachers’ questioning
techniques, collaborative learning, and the allowance of wait time. Below is one of the
examples from the findings which illustrates how the teacher used opportunities to promote
students’ higher-order thinking. It is an episode from Teacher D’s (Year 6) class discussing
the importance of planting trees, with students’ ideas typed on the screen after discussion.
This is an extract which involves moments of promoting students’ creative thinking,
specifically possibility thinking, and it has the potential to promote critical thinking through
promoting their reasoning skills. In relation to the Confucian tradition, this task has the
potential to foster reflective thinking.
154
Teacher D (Year 6)
T: So, do you think it is important to plant trees?
Ss: Yes
T: Why (1.2), why, why it is important to plant trees? (1.5) I'll let you to think
about this (2.4), why? (9.4) Why (3.6) it is important (4.1) to plant trees ((typing
the question on power point slides)) (2.1) Why (2.1) any ideas?
(2.4) Maybe first you talk about it with your partners.
Ss: ((Student discussion)) (48.3)
T: How about NAME?
S5: Trees can be became [sic] a good habitat for animal
T: Trees can↑((typing))
S5: Become a good habitat for animal
T: For animals, right? ((typing))
S5: Yes.
T: Trees can be the home for some animals. For example, what animals?
Ss: Giraffe/ birds/蚂蚁 ((ants))
T: [Birds live in the trees
Ss: [Giraffe/Giraffe/Monkeys
T: Monkeys?
Ss: Giraffe/giraffe/giraffe/giraffe
T: Giraffe[sic] don’t live in the tress, but they eat the [leaves] from the::[trees]
Ss: [leaves] [trees]
T: Good idea. Any more, anymore?
Ss: Panda/squirrels/lions/cats/snakes
T: So very good ideas. Anymore? NAME?
S6: The:: tree [sic]can make the::sky clare
T: Clear
S: Clear
From this extract, we can see that the teacher used open questions, group work and wait-
time as opportunities to promote variety of higher-order thinking skills. Firstly, in lines 3-5,
the teacher asked open question - Why it is important to plant trees? which potentially could
lead to extended responses from students. In the meantime, the teacher also focused on
improving students’ accuracy which might have indicated that students needed to think more
155
deeply and that their ideas should be reasonable and appropriate rather than randomised
thoughts. In lines 3-6, the teacher paused several times with sufficient wait time. It was a
silent engagement which allowed students to think on their own actively and engage in inner
dialogue (Li, 2015). This is evidenced in lines 3-4 where the teacher asked students to think.
This process confirms the Confucian tradition that one engages in deep thinking through
silence: thus, this could be considered as part of the Chinese reflective thinking development.
The teacher then asked the students to use group-work. Such collaborative work might further
encourage the development of Chinese reflective thinking. Students were situated in a
learning community where their thoughts would be further developed in relation to other
members within the same group. Students might learn from other group members and
examine their own ideas, possibly even sacrificing their own opinion to reach unity
(agreement within the group) (Li, 2015). This collaborative learning challenges the
stereotypes of the Chinese learning culture; it suggests that students were encouraged to learn
collaboratively rather than passively receiving knowledge from the teacher. Additionally,
students’ critical thinking may have developed during the group-work as they might have
needed to evaluate each other’s’ responses and justify their answers with reasoning skills.
Overall, this could be perceived as students co-constructing the knowledge together in a
dialogic space (Wegerif, 2006). In this case, students’ creative thinking might have improved
as they produceds new meaning and original ideas during the discussion. Regarding the
promotion of reasoning skills, Teacher D allowed students to share their reasoning, to explain
the importance of planting trees (line 9). In line 9, S5 provided a response which included a
new vocabulary item for the students - habitat. The teacher typed this response and explained
this word (line 12) to the rest of the class as home. This response was explored by the teacher
when she asked what animals? in line 14. The students were actively involved in this topic by
providing various answers. Thus it could be that students developed their possibility thinking
as they provided possible answers for this question. For one thing, habitat was a new concept
for them but they took risks and played with different ideas and made connections with what
they knew to generate possible answers. The teacher could have used this opportunity to
further develop students’ reasoning skills by asking them why it was a good habitat for birds
or giraffes, rather than interpreting it herself (line 16 and 20). Students could have further
elaborated their thoughts to develop their language.
156
Discussion
The findings highlight creative thinking as an identifiable feature of critical thinking. To
think critically about an issue is to consider it from various perspectives, and therefore being
open to different possible options is required. With different options, one needs to examine,
challenge and evaluate the possible assumptions that underlie the issue, and seek possible
alternatives. These features of critical thinking echo the teachers’ definitions of creative
thinking and the complexity of thinking skills. Teachers’ conceptions of creative and critical
thinking reveal that these thinking skills are interrelated. In her teaching practice, Teacher D
provided an example of the inseparable relationship between different thinking skills, and the
overlap in these thinking skills confused the teacher’s identification of them. In this study, it
seemed that there were two ways of seeing critical thinking - as a way of questioning things
and as a reflective process (Li & Wegerif, 2014). In terms of language teaching, it can be
seen that students generated their language through thinking, and thinking helped them to
develop their language as they needed to deliver their thoughts in English verbally.
Therefore, the fact that learners developed their language through social interaction confirms
the inseparable relationship between language and thought (Vygotsky, 1978).
Additionally, the findings suggested new understandings of the role of memorisation in
learning that challenged the traditional view of memorisation as a lower-order thinking skill.
Participants believed that memorisation was an essential thinking skill in the language class
which involved understanding and other features of higher order thinking such as creative
and critical thinking. As Chinese learning involves reflective thinking, increased waiting time
is one possible technique which can be used to improve students’ language and their thinking
development. Chinese students might have appeared to be silent and therefore passive in
class, but were actively thinking and relating the new information to previous knowledge in
order to generate new ideas. This is a complex thinking process. Students were able to
elaborate constructive responses when provided with enough time to reflect.
Western and Eastern cultures are far less polarised. The findings from the lessons
demonstrate this as they show that the teacher promoted students’ creative thinking from an
individualist approach as their individual response was valued. The findings demonstrate that
Chinese education shares the Western approach of valuing problem-solving skills. The
teacher encouraged students to reason and provide solutions for an environmental problem. It
is argued here that people from different cultures might have some strategies in common,
such as problem-solving skills. Hence, the ways of thinking of people across different
157
cultures do not necessarily contradict each other. To emphasise this point, this paper
challenges the widespread assumption that the stereotypical Chinese learner lacks higher-
order thinking skills and is a passive and silent learner), and argues that, in contrast, they
have developed adequate higher-order thinking skills.
During the investigation, obstacles to the teaching of thinking skills, including teachers’
insufficient understanding of these. This has implications for the policy-maker, schools and
teachers.
The Ministry needs to publish guidelines for teaching thinking skills.. Reviews of the
integration and implementation of the policy and teaching practice need to be carried out. As
stated above, there are not enough research studies undertaken in China that consider the
issue of teacher cognition in the promotion of thinking skills in general education;
encouragement from universities or other education-related institutions could support further
research studies related to this field in order to inform the policy-makers and school
administrators of updated approaches to teaching. A unit for professional development needs
to be established. The theoretical background to the teaching of thinking, and the strategies
and techniques for thinking skills development need to be promoted in teacher training
institutions. The school should support EFL teachers by providing an ongoing supportive
orientation programme. For the teachers, cooperatively working with colleagues to design
thinking tasks might save time and allow teachers to exchange ideas and solve problems more
effectively than working alone
Conclusion
Overall, the teacher participants reported that they were not confident in defining the
terminologies of thinking skills. However, the analysis uncovered the teachers’
understandings of thinking skills as well as their descriptions of thinking. A number of
features of thinking skills were identified in the interviews and have been categorised as
creative thinking, critical thinking, memorisation and reflective thinking. It was interesting to
find that although teachers experienced challenges in defining the terms, they identified
similarities among these thinking skills. They believed that these thinking skills were
different but connected to each other.
In terms of creativity, teachers perceived it as a generative and constructive process which
involved critical thinking to validate the creative thoughts. Regarding their conceptions of
critical thinking, they pointed out that it is useful for problem-solving, especially when
158
applied to exams. The interviews also led to the discovery that critical thinking is embedded
in Chinese reflective thinking; it was interpreted as a silent active thinking process which
implies that critical thinking could be a culturally specific mode of thinking (Atkinson, 1997;
Luk & Lin, 2015). Additionally, participants emphasised the essential place of memorisation
as a foundation for Chinese reflective thinking and for the development of other higher-order
thinking skills.
The findings challenged the stereotypes of passive approaches to learning among Chinese
learners, as their silence might not indicate their passivity but their way of engaging in
thought. Thinking happened implicitly and was hard to observe, which leads them to learn
differently from Western learners.
In these ways, this research study illuminates flaws in perceptions of the stereotypical
Chinese learner, and provides a new lens through which scholars can examine and interpret
Chinese students’ learning processes. Pedagogic suggestions and considerations are put
forward for practitioners, teachers and teacher trainers to understand the role of thinking
skills in successful language teaching and learning.
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Appendix
Table 1
Information on participants
Participants Year group Number Students’ English Teaching
of ages level experience
students
Teacher A Year 4 40 7-8 Beginner 10 years
Teacher B Year 2 48 8-9 Beginner 4 years
Teacher C Year 3 40 9-10 Beginner 6 years
Teacher D Year 6 42 11-12 Lower- 16 years
intermediate
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Table 2
Glossary of transcript symbols
Example of symbols Explanations
(( )) Contextual information
T Teacher
S Unidentified speaker
S1,S2, S3… Identified speaker
Ss Several speakers speak at the same
time.
NAME Name of a student
↑ Rising tone
[ Overlapping
] Overlapping utterance end.
(2.8) Waiting time. The number indicates the
length of the elapsed time in seconds.
:: Prolongation
Music/music/yes/no Simultaneous speech by more than
one person
162
Title
The Bet, (A Pop Fiction): A Symbol of Achievement and Inspiration
Author
Kimberly Joy R. Villanueva
JOCSON COLLEGE, Angeles City
Abstract
Literature or Latin Literature can be referred to work as the result of creative imagination,
such as poetry, drama, fiction, nonfiction, journalism, and song. This definition, without
much ado thus confirms that, The Bet, ( a Pop Fiction), written by the author of this paper is a
guaranteed work of literature. As a representative literary writing, it has expressed forms of
human experiences as created by the author who loves to do imagining sprees, all serving as
lessons that any person can relate to himself or can learn from by himself. Truly, the book as
a symbol of achievement by the author, as a result of her many challenges during the writing
stage, she will gladly recall for future young writers who may attempt to pursue this similar
pop fiction-writing-endeavor. Moreover, the remarkable effect from among the readers'
milieu, spending some time reading the book has encountered learning experiences too.
Lastly, the unbelievable approval and acceptance by one famous movie production company,
converting it to a movie adaptation, have all proven that the book has credibility, a source of
inspiration and a type of reading material not implying sheer youth awe and wonder, but
integrating morals deserving emulation by these promising generation. This qualitative study
will include discussions on the Items stated, and correlations as necessary to qualify the book
as a literary writing. This important presentation will confidently culminate in leveling-up
today's youth on qualities worth taking to heart or not.
Introduction
Literature or Latin Literatura can be referred to works as the result of creative
imagination, such as poetry, drama, fiction, nonfiction, journalism, and song. This definition,
163
without much ado thus confirms that, The Bet, (a Pop Fiction), written by the author of this
paper is a guaranteed work of literature.
Esther Lombardi wrote; "For many, the word literature suggests a higher art form, merely
putting words on a page doesn't necessarily mean creating literature." Therefore the author of
this paper, believes as well that literature is not just something historical or cultural because
literature mirrors life. Life, with all the experiences of human beings, young and old, can
comprise literary writings in any form or category. The Bet, as a representative literary
writing, has expressed forms of human experiences as created by the author who loves to do
imagining sprees, all serving as lessons that any person can relate to himself or can learn
from by himself.
Truly, the book as a symbol of achievement by the author, as a result of her many
challenges during the writing stage, and all these she will gladly recall for future young
writers who may attempt to pursue this similar pop fiction-writing-endeavor. Robert Louis
Stevenson also shared: "The difficulty of literature is not to write, but to write what you
mean, not to affect him precisely as you wish. For this, the author believes in having written
ideas that would make readers become interested; responding to the needs of many readers
was the priority in writing the book.
A person who wants to explore, to dream and discover life, a skill or any undertaking, yes
he can as Mark Twain said: "Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the
things that you did not or do then, by the ones you did do, so throw off the bowlines, sail
away from the south harbor, catch the winds in your sails. So explore, dream and discover.
When the book was first published, people have asked the author whether the story was based
on a real true story. Also, they asked whether the story actually happened in her life. The
scenes and dialogues that appeared so realistic must have their reason as these had easily
related to the characters.
The Bet, a Pop Fiction was written on September 2010 and was later published by the Pop
Fiction, under Summit Media on September 2013. It has 347 pages. So far, more than 25,000
copies were sold.
This study focuses on this pop fiction, The Bet, highlighting it as a form of literature, in
general that symbolizes the author's achievement and a source of inspiration. By using the
qualitative study of analyzing a literary writing, human experiences will be elicited based on
the story. These can serve as learning experiences too.
164
Significance of the Study

This study is significant for several reasons. Firstly, this pop fiction, The Bet represents
literature. As a form of prose it has discussed human experiences that are reflected in life.
Secondly, such a literary writing therefore, it comprises central ideas or known as themes
denoting morals or lessons that are worth emulating. The youthful characters can exemplify
real young men and women who are vibrant, ambitious and are loving children of their
parents.
After sharing of experiences by the writer of the book, inspiration can be drawn from any
interested member in the breakout session during the conference or even past or future
readers of The Bet. Surely, during the presentation of this paper in the conference, those who
have watched the movie version, 'Just the Way You are' will be very eager to know more and
learn more from the views/experiences of the author.
Last but not least, aspiring writers will be inspired to follow their own dreams. Anyone who
is passionate in his craft and wants to encourage people, as long as he set his heart and mind
into it, can actually achieve it. Because at the end of the day, for someone who perseveres,
nothing is impossible.
Bases of Discussions
This paper presentation will include the following topics for discussion.
1. The Bet, a Pop Fiction is a work of literature.
2. The book is a symbol of achievement.
3. The book is a symbol of inspiration.
4. Human experiences serve as lessons in life.
5. The Bet Part II or Part III, takers anyone?
The Methodology
A qualitative analysis type of study, this paper will elicit the following points as stated
above, especially from the book. Quotations will therefore be reflected based on the items, as
necessary. Correlations to real life experiences may be presented especially in the human
experiences. Proper documentation indicating sources from books, magazines, newspapers,
journal and other references will be included.
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Presentation of Discussions
1. The Bet, a Pop Fiction is a work of literature.
The Bet is a Pop Fiction - a book that was published by the Summit Books, an imprint and
publisher of bestselling stories written by the favorite Filipino Wattpad authors. This
publishing company also opens its doors to aspiring writers here in the Philippines.
Several types of novels, varying from teen fiction, fantasy, sci-fi, mystery, and non-teen
fiction, among others are written by different writers. For Pop Fiction, this can also mean
popular fiction, the chosen stories from sites, such as candymag.com and wattpad.com that
are transported from online to print. From the pool of literary works, The Bet was chosen by
Star Cinema, the country’s largest motion picture company, to adapt it into a movie, 'Just the
Way You Are.'.
The Bet tells the story of Drake Swift who lost a bet for the first time. Because of this, his
best friend, Andre, made a punishment— make a girl fall in love with him within thirty days.
Once she said, “Yes,” on the thirty first, he would tell her that it was all just a game, a bet.
That’s where Sophia Taylor came in, the girl his best friend chose. She’s the total opposite of
Drake; she’s smart, she loves reading, and she never cares about the school’s social status.
Drake, on the other hand, is arrogant, confident, the ex-basketball team captain, and someone
irresponsible. Drake’s failing grades was his problem; their teacher in Literature asked
Sophia’s help in tutoring Drake. Sophia has no choice but to agree. And that’s the start of
their interaction.
Sophia has no patience with Drake’s antics, especially when he gives her the nickname
“Pie”. Their life even becomes complicated when Sophia’s parents leave her at Andre’s
residence. Her parents did not explain anything, only that she has to trust them, and that
Veronica, Andre’s mother, is Sophia’s mom’s best friend. When Drake finds out this news,
he decides to stay at Andre’s house, as well. Sophia takes a trip on memory lane and
remembers her young brother who died due to a car accident. Aside from that, she overheard
Drake and Andre talking about the bet. She gets angry and hurt. She thought Drake was a
good person. Instead of confronting him, she decides to reverse the bet. Instead of falling in
love with Drake, she’ll make Drake fall for her instead.
Sophia remembers her ex-boyfriend, the reason why she became cynical when it comes to
love. She was betrayed once, and now, Drake is playing with her heart. The reason for
Drake’s behavior was actually because of his dad. When he found out that his dad was having
an affair, he realized that love’s not worth it. He was carrying that burden alone, not wanting
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his mom and his twin sister Driana to know about it. Sophia found out that her parents have
gone missing, leaving her at Andre’s house and not contacting her. She grows closer to
Drake, from watching movies together, babysitting, and hanging out with Andre and Driana.
Drake also likes surprising Sophia, and going to different places with her. At Sophia’s
birthday party, her parents came back, explaining that they left to go to a hospital out of town
for her father’s treatment. Time passed, their feelings deepened, they got to know each other,
and they started to care for another. Without planning to, they start to fall in love with each
other. Eventually, Drake cancelled off the bet. Meanwhile, Sophia kept on guarding her heart
because she thought it was all just a game for Drake.
Complications happened when Sophia’s ex came back, trying to reconcile with her. Drake
also talked to his mom and twin sister about his father’s secret. Drake’s father asked for
forgiveness. They reconcile. On the thirty-first day of the bet, Drake confessed his feelings to
Sophia, but she told him that she knew about the bet, and that it was all just a game for her.
Drake was heartbroken, but he didn’t give up and prove to Sophia that it was all true, that he
truly love her. In the end, they got back together, both of them preparing for their future.
2. The Book is a symbol of achievement.

The Bet became the author’s stepping stone. It enhanced her self-confidence and self-
esteem. Years ago, she wouldn’t have dreamt of standing in front of a crowd and giving a
speech. She also became a Wattpad Filipino Ambassador. She hosts and organizes events
annually, where readers and writers can have fun together, and learn from each other. It also
took her to different places- as far as Davao, Cebu and Palawan, for book signings and
seminars (creative writing and achieving one’s dream). It opened a lot of doors for her –
certificates from the city proper of Porac, Pampanga, and Angeles City, the book became a
National Bookstore’s Bestseller List, and she was awarded at PupulNingBanua 2015 Award
for Literature.
3. The book is a symbol of inspiration.

It is indeed considered a success when people who are inspired by one's craft start to
create something on their own. The book became an inspiration to young writers, that anyone
who has dreams can actually achieve them, as long as they are determined and patient.
During the meet-ups and book signings, people come up to the author and tell her that they
are inspired by her words. They get hope, that no matter how it looked impossible in the
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beginning, as long as someone did it, they can do it as well. Giving encouragement to other
people is an achievement, especially when the non-readers became readers when they read
the book. When they also chose The Bet for their projects such as play, film making, and
book study, it only means that they learned something from it. That no matter what, it left an
impact in their life.
4. Human experiences serve as lessons in life.

This pop fiction, The BET, a representative form of literature has its respective themes
or central ideas. Such themes are reflected in the story and thus indicate a lesson or moral.
Theme 1: Serendipity: A fortunate accident
One of the times that Drake and Sophia bonded is when they watch Serendipity (2001). The
movie is about these two individuals who reunite after the first night they met, fell in love,
got separated, and are convinced they will get back together again.
Sometimes, a person has to believe in destiny, that the universe is on his side. Just like
Sophia and Drake, the bet is the reason why their lives got connected. It was just this game, a
joke from a friend that eventually became real.
“If two people are meant to be together, it doesn’t mean they have to be together right now.”
Page 38
Be patient. Know that in the end, love is worth it. When one rushes into something and he
is not ready yet, he will only get hurt.
This situation is therefore true, as in the movie, Serendipity, like Jonathan and Sarah,
Sophia and Drake waited for the right time to be together. In the story, Drake understood
Sophia. They knew their limits and priorities. They also believed that if something is bound
to happen, it will happen.
Theme 2: The Heart: What matters most
What matters is the person’s personality, not the color of his skin, or the color of his hair.
The important thing is what’s in his heart. Like what the Little Prince said, “It is only with the
heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” (Antoine de Saint-
Exupery, The Little Prince, 1943)
Loving someone because of her physical attribute isn’t love. It’s lust. Truth is, a lot of
people look at the physical appearance when it comes to beauty. Isn’t it, when you already
love someone, you don’t notice how they look anymore after you get to know them? It’s
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because you don’t just see them anymore. You see who they are inside. And that is love.”
Page 50
Drake is one of the popular guys in school, and that’s the reason why girls like him. But
Sophia looked behind the surface. What made her fall in love with Drake is his personality,
that despite starting their friendship wrong (because of a deal), she realized that Drake was a
good person, underneath it all.
Theme 3: Friendship: It can unite individuals and classmates
Such a very common theme on friendship can be experienced by many friends where
ever! A person can count on real friends in good times and in bad. One knows that no matter
what, he will always have his friend’s back. Having a friend means one can rely on him - this
is one of the focal points in the story.
“I’m your best friend! I will never leave you.” Page 57
Andre is the reason why Drake met Sophia. He also helped Drake to get closer to Sophia.
He was also there when Drake went to the office to search for Sophia’s file in order to
surprise her for her birthday. When Drake was devastated when Sophia didn’t want to talk to
him, Andre gave him encouragement. They are like brothers with different fathers.
Driana is the sister Sophia never had. When Sophia got heartbroken when her first
boyfriend betrayed her, Driana was the one who consoled her. They spend quality times
together, even sleeping in each other’s house. When Sophia revealed the bet to Driana, she
didn’t leave her side and help her.
Theme 4: Show appreciation when it is most needed.
Don’t take anything for granted. One always says: 'next time,' but the truth is, we don’t
really know how much time we’ll have. Say what you want to say, do what you want to do,
before it’s too late.
“Learn to appreciate what you have before time forces you to appreciate what you lost.”
Page 45
People only live once. Making the most out of everything matters. Spending quality time
with ones' family and friends is needed. The saying goes: 'the most precious gift one can give
is time’.
Just like in the story, Drake’s presence brought comfort to Sophia, especially when she
went back to their house and found that her parents had left her. Sophia also gave the advice
to give priority to what’s really important to Driana. Sophia’s brother died at a young age,
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and that left a hole in her heart. And she doesn’t want Driana to know what it felt like to lose
a brother.
Theme 5: Education plays a big role in one's life.
In college, a person does not have a choice but to take his life seriously. He knows that
it’s a step in building his future.
“College is where real life really takes action. It’s a once in a lifetime experience. It is for
your future after all.” Page 258
Sophia tutored Drake in his classes, and she helped him achieve his goal— to enter into a
university. At the end of the novel, Sophia and Drake were ready for their new adventure—
college.
Theme 6: Snowball Effect: Twist of the story
People’s lives have strings, and when they meet, they will connect and cannot be broken
like cords. One small decision can have a big impact on another person’s life. Just like Andre
and Drake’s game. When they started it, they didn’t know about the outcome, but still, they
continued on with their plan.
“Life is unpredictable. It flows in ways we don’t plan it to. Unexpected things can happen.
One moment can lead to another. In just the blink of an eye, your life can change forever.”
Page 134
No matter how one plans his life, there are some things that he can never control.
Whether he likes it or not, other people’s decisions can affect him in ways that he can’t
imagine. Sometimes, he just needs to let go and let the current take him. Just how Drake
didn’t plan to fall in love with Sophia. It just happened. They were always almost together.
They picked up their broken pieces and unconsciously healed each other. In other words,
Drake found out that Sophia has known about the bet for a long time already (the twist of the
story). In the end, they accepted each other and forgave one another.
5. The Bet Part II or Part III, takers anyone?

Anyone can achieve his dream as long as he has the will to do it. If the author did it at a
young age, what’s stopping anyone from the audience from reaching his dream? An adage
says: ' no one is too old to dream new dreams.'
Open one's imagination! Grab a pen and a notepad! Write now a story or your own story! -
All the Best!
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Summary
The study has concentrated on presenting the Pop Fiction, The Bet, a representative of
literature. Through a qualitative study, whereby some aspects of social life, its methods, and
the characters were analyzed. The author of the book has considered her piece of writing, as a
symbol of her achievement. As a young woman full of ideas, interests and imagination, she
attempted to write this full story and had successfully made it! Truly as a literary writing, the
book with its major and minor themes that are life-like and universal have been analyzed.
The author also shared her inputs about literature, and from where she started as an online
writer who eventually became a published writer. In just a short amount of time, her book
was adapted into a major motion picture.
The central ideas are reflective of what reality is all about, especially the youth's high
school life, and relationships with their families and school friends. On the bet, which is the
focal point of the story, though, an issue that appears to trouble the people concerned, Drake
and Andre, was resolved in the end. 'All's well that ends well,' Shakespeare once said...peace
for all!
Conclusion
The Bet, ( Pop Fiction), written by the author of this paper is a representative literary
writing, expressing useful and life-like human experiences as the result of the author's love to
do imagining and do perceptive thinking. Truly, the book as a symbol of her achievement, as
the young writer has gladly used her book, a source of inspiration to encourage budding
writers who may attempt to pursue this similar pop fiction-writing-endeavor. In her
experiences of advertising her book, the readers' milieu, encountered some earning
experiences themselves.
Lastly, the approval and acceptance by the Star Cinema Company on the book's movie
adaptation, 'Just the Way You Are' have all proven that the book has credibility. Still
reflecting youth awe and wonder, but integrating morals deserving emulation by these
promising generation. This qualitative study thus culled the central and universal themes that
confidently levelled-up today's youth on values worth taking to heart or not.
References
Baby Blue Eyes (2009). A Rocket to the Moon, Fueled by Ramen
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Crazy Little Called Love (First Love), (2010), Puttipong Pormsaka Na-Sakonnakorn,
Director, ), Wasin Pokpong, Distributed by Sahamongkol, Film International Co. Ltd.
Workpoint Entertainment
Facebook.com/PopFictionBooks
George R.R. Martin, A Dance with Dragons, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_CinemaJust
the Way You Are, a Movie (2014) by the Star Cinema Production Company, Manila,
Philippines
Iris (1998), Goo Goo Dolls, Label: Warner Bros
Passenger Seat (1999), Stephen Speaks, Rippley Records, Inc.
Shakespeare, William, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1595-1596)
The Alchemist (1988), Paulo Coelho (Author), Publisher: Harper Torch
The Bet, a Pop Fiction (2013), Kimberly Joy R, Villanueva (Author)
The Little Prince (Le Petit Prince) (1943), Antoine de Saint-Exupery (Author), Publisher:
Reynal and Hitchcock (US),Gallimord (France)
500 Days of Summer (2009), Marc Webb, (Director), Production Company: Dune
Entertainment, Distributed by Fox Searchlight Pictures
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Title
College Students' Essays: A Subject Analysis
Author
Corazon Dauz Sampang, Ph.D.
JOCSON COLLEGE, Angeles City, Philippines
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less travelled by,
And that has made all the difference. Robert Frost
Abstract
Teaching essay writing to college students can be dull and monotonous; however, the
fruit derived from hard work is encompassing. Proper motivation and heartfelt support to
students are the keywords to help them do their best in their college work. Teaching can then
be deemed self-fulfilling, if the teacher has her 'head and hands' full with related ideas, some
examples to share and the 'readiness' to teach essay writing well. This study highlighted the
following: 1. What is a Subject Analysis type of study? 2. What subjects were revealed in the
college students' essays? 3. How did the subjects become reflective in the students' essays,
such as preparing for an examination, their personal life as a whole, their goals, ambitions,
friendship, inspiration, family, an important event or celebration, and even their gratefulness
to God.. 4. What implications could these observations give to the teaching of paragraph and
essay writing? Such students' essays were written from November-December, 2015 during
their English 2 or Writing in the Discipline Classes. The students' essays reflected how they
survived their personal challenges, appreciated family togetherness, and found hope on the
Christmas Season. The paper interestingly revealed among others some understanding on
their emotions, aspirations, and choice of activities or models. A simple qualitative study, yet
this effort can earnestly touch and encourage teachers that inevitable motivation and
wholehearted guidance in the classroom will definitely lead to an eventual difference in the
students' work outputs.
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Keywords: essay writing, subject analysis, motivation and guidance
Introduction
Teaching English to college students can be dull and monotonous; however, with its
envisioned usefulness, it is most interesting. Considering so many factors such as time,
subject or subject matter or the type of students to teach do contribute to effect good
classroom teaching and learning. A subject can be deemed appealing and fascinating,
especially if a teacher has her 'head and hands' full with various and related ideas, some
examples to share, the 'readiness' to teach at a given time, and most important, to fulfil her
teaching mission.
The focus on the details on accurate English language production makes the students
appear less competent than they really are (Tua, 2015), Truly, the students must fully
understand the lesson at hand and be able to grasp all details before they can attempt to
undergo any exercise or practice the teacher may give them. As in today's world of many
challenges therefore, teaching English especially helping students write their own essays is
no exception. Enabling them to think on possible topics to write about and to relate previous
events into their writing will test the teachers' preparedness in the classroom setting.
Definitely, there are a number of concerns that teachers are beset with and only those
effective strategies will be able to render good written outputs by the students.
The key word that is 'motivation' may be what it takes to encourage students to allow
their lethargic mind to express ideas worthy of being written, and to pave the way for the
sensitive heart to speak out some pent-up emotions. (Sasson, 2016) spelt out: "Motivation and
enthusiasm manifest a desire and interest and as a driving force that pushes you to take action
and pressure goals. However, it often happens that you may have the desire and interest but
you lack into motivation. This is a frustrating situation, since you want to do a certain thing,
but cannot get enough inner strength and motivation to act."
Motivation is something that energizes, directs and sustains behavior. It gets students
moving and points to a particular goal and keeps them going. We see students motivated and
replenished in personal investment and in cognitive, emotional behavior engagement in
school activities.(www. Education.com., Educational Psychology). Intrinsically, motivated
learners tackle assigned tasks willingly and are eager to learn classroom material that are
likely to process information in effective ways, such as engaging in meaningful learning.
Oftentimes, learners are simultaneously motivated by both intrinsic and extrinsic factors.
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When they enjoy writing courses, this motivates them to achieve good grades or even a
scholarship. (Omrod, 2008).
Teachers also do matter. Students in inquiry-based classrooms are less likely to believe
that the teacher's way leads to success; instead they come to believe that success comes from
working hard to understand a subject. Teaching concepts within a context has the advantages
of rousing students' interest, stimulating their imagination and giving functional learning
knowledge useful in application. (Angeles, 2015)
Literature is highly commutative; it conveys the tone and attitude of the speaker or writer;
it does not merely state and express what it says; it also wants to influence the attitude of the
reader, persuade him, and ultimately change him. (Senatin and Centenera, 2009)
Nothing can replace a student who manages his own learning and being able to apply it in the
world of work and life itself. However, he or she can only do if given the proper upbringing
and training starting from the home and continued in the school, church and community.
Each of these institutions affect and influence one another and committed leaders and
personnel should push their drive in producing quality graduates who will become future
leaders of the country. (Manalang, 2016)
Parents worry about the quality of education their children are receiving, claiming that
something is wrong in the field of education. This animated discussion is an unending debate.
To date, it is fortunate that the government is beginning to understand that the most
influential people as catalyst of change are the teachers and administrators. There are a lot of
committed and dedicated educators who teach for the joy of teaching who receive life's
greatest pleasure by giving what they have that provides directions to children. Quality
teachers and administrators would not be hard to find if college students would realise and
see the real challenge of teachers, if only they would know that teaching is the noblest
profession, perhaps schools will be flooded with worthy and excellent teachers and
administrators.(Santos, 2016)
"Nothing in this world is permanent except changes. We are constantly changing as years
pass by for not because we want to but because we need to. Changes occur because of what
surround us and if it is necessary." (Dizon, 2016). She further added: "Changes are
incorporated in students' feeling, attitude and actions. Teachers must be sensitive to feelings
of students. Teachers must treat students fairly with these changes. Teachers should meet
halfway with the students in order to have good rapport. Treating one another fairly and justly
will make a better relationship, camaraderie and friendship."
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Communications Arts 2, an English subject entitled Writing in the Discipline is

commonly offered as one of the First Year subjects of college students. It is attended after a
student has successfully passed the pre-requisite subject, Communication Arts 1, or the Basic
Communication and Thinking Skills. JOCSON COLLEGE, Angeles City, like all colleges
supervised by the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) offers Comm Arts 2 usually
every Second Semester of the First School Year. That time then, JOCSON COLLEGE
offered this subject. starting November 2015 to March 2016.
The author of this paper had the chance to teach this subject to First Year Students
pursuing the courses in Tourism and Information and Communications Technology. In just a
brief timeframe from November 9 to December 18, 2015/ 22 school days to be exact, the
chance to teach the students comprised introductory educational activities to hone their oral
communication skill, as a review exercise. As necessary before the actual writing exercises
that had always been done in the classroom were discussions and examples were provided on
the important principles/guidelines, such as on unity, emphasis and coherence that enabled
them to write their paragraphs and essays, efficiently and effectively,

This study entitled "College Students' Essays: A Subject Analysis" attempted to study the
following:
1. What is a 'Subject Analysis' type of study?
2 What subjects were revealed in the college students' essays?
3. How did the subject matters become reflective in the college students' essays, such as
preparing for an examination, their personal life as a whole, considering their goals,
ambition, friendship, inspiration, relating to an important event or celebration, and even
their gratefulness to God?
4. What implications could this study give to the teaching and learning of paragraph and
essay writing?
Significance of the Study

Students go through education and enable themselves to be prepared with life. They
acquire experiences and eventually turn out to become better persons. Learning from the
foregoing statement, students indeed tend to write various topics based on what they
experience in life. This study is important because of the fact that as it pertains to students
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and their writing outputs through a paragraph and essays, they have thus elicited interesting
subject matters. They had reflected their own preferences and had expressed a great deal
about their choice of subject matters. The challenge for teachers to bring out from among
students the interest and momentum to write what exactly would they wish to write about is
now the other importance of this study.
As a personal experience, motivating the students before the actual writing activity took
place had always been done. It is therefore hoped that other teachers could realize the
relevance of motivation. "When they enjoy writing the topics, this motivates them to achieve
good grades or even a scholarship." (Omrod, 2008).
And last but not least, is that the essays written by the students would become sources of
reward from parents. In due time, parents will learn the good school work of their children
that eventually make them delighted as much as proud.
Definition of Terms
Paragraph - is a set of related sentences that express or develop a topic. it is usually part of
an extended piece of writing, although in some situations you may need only one paragraph
to fulfil the purpose.
Essay - is a short literary composition on a single subject usually presenting the personal
views of the author.
Literary Analysis - is a detailed study of a literary piece of work intended to show the
characterization of its compositions style/ideas and its aesthetic moral or philosophical views.
Literary Writing - is a subject personal view which an author expresses through his themes,
ideas, thoughts, reminiscences, using his amounts of words to evoke or provoke a response
for his readers.
Subject - is the focus or the specific center of interest of an essay; it can be to title itself
where by the whole essence of the essay is already expressed.
Subject or Subject Matter Analysis - is a focused investigation on the particular topic of an
essay.
Scope and Limitations

The study was limited to a subject analysis of essays written by First Year College
students at the JOCSON COLLEGE in the second semester, particularly from November 9 to
December 18, 2015. The essays were written during their subject in Communication Arts 2 or
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described as Writing in the Discipline. As a subject in which writing is the skill to be looked
into or improved, paragraph and essay writing is the first lesson. Samples through excerpts
and words quoted from their essays have been included here representing students' writing -
which is the focus of this study for analysis and appreciation.
Method of the Study

Naturalistic inquiries state that one must understand the framework within which the
framework the subjects under study interpret their environment to be able to understand
human behavior. The individual's thoughts, values, perceptions and actions are integrated.
(Dones, 2011). In this study, the author singled out essays with general, or with topics that
comprise a student's life or experiences and thus were qualitatively analyzed for appreciation
Also the essays chosen were those with subject matters, that the author had perceived so
important and relevant, especially for a First Year College student. In the Implications
portion of this study, meaningful lessons derived from the method of the study were
discussed.
Findings of the Study

1. A Subject Analysis Type of Study
The 'subject' is considered as the center, the focus or the main interest of the study. The
title of the essay can even be the subject by itself, as the whole writing will revolve around it.
It is indeed a heart-warming experience that the students accomplished what they wanted to
write in their essays. Specially having been advised to write the essay in a designated number
of words and that writing only done in the classroom, the students considered these pointers
that helped them to write a straightforward essay following the topic of their choice.
As a 'subject analysis' study, this is a simply qualitative piece of research work. To
explain briefly, the sample excerpts included here identified what they wanted to do in their
life, what activities they envisioned to make their student life more noteworthy, like studying
hard to earn good grades, as these can be their stepping stones to finish their course, earn a
degree and have a good future. Aspects of helping ones' families has been observed,
denoting the students' family-mindedness and concern; moreover, their gratefulness to God
has also been integrated in their writing or even written as a separate essay - a value of the
students that is most elating!
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2. How reflective these Subject Matters were on the Students' Essays

The guidelines on writing, such as on unity, emphasis and coherence served as guide
points for the students in their writing. Specific examples to illustrate the guidelines also
enhanced their understanding and readiness to write their topics. More important was the
advice on writing efficiently and effectively. Constant motivation was afforded to them most
especially on the positive effects that would result into their application of the skill of writing.
Encouragement on good written essays would reflect their status as active college students,
improved grades, good attitude and relationship among their classmates and friends, dutiful
children of their parents, and especially a forward-looking outlook on their future career and
life, and even a manifestation of their thanks to God. The students' outputs are as follows:
a. Paragraph Writing
In the students' paragraph writing, the topic below was used and their ideas are summed up
below:
Preparing for an Examination
The need for a self-review of topics studied and discussed, as well as a group study are
important steps toward preparing for an examination. Studying hard means no regret in the
end, just like studying well to be able to get high grades, or doing house chores first before
giving time to review, preparing well for exams results in earning good grades and in order
to go to the next subject. With good grades. loved ones will be proud of them. On the other
hand, the interruption of technology should be realized and that studying seriously would
mean reaching goals and leading one to his success and good future. Interestingly, one
wrote: "Reading lessons needs comprehension for without comprehension, it is like eating
without digestion."
b. Essay Writing
This is the next type of writing that the students were guided to develop, particularly essays.
The students were asked to write their choice of titles or subjects/subject matters. The author
singled out these various outputs that expressed the following excerpts; since these are the
students' words, the author properly quoted them as herein presented.
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b.1. Excerpts on Personal Goals and Ambitions

-Why Do I Need to Study
"Studying is the act of learning through oral or written ways. This is required to all whether
disabled or not. Attending everyday classes is tiring but we do learn many things. One
problem of students is fear. Fear of expressing their opinion; but we all should study to have
additional knowledge, to have faith in oneself and to experience new things."
-To be a Good Leader
"One who aspires to be a leader needs: 1)To read a lot of books as they are full of wisdom
and precious experiences. 2) Listen to the advice of present leaders as current leaders are
living books and their experiences are our future experiences. Their failure can be our future
failure. Be ready before you take the responsibility. I love this proverb and all these I now do
...as a Music Team Leader."
- What Makes Me Happy
"Playing basketball, coming to study at school, playing computer games and sometimes
hanging out with friends - all these make me happy. Friends are most interesting treasures to
share my problems while my family motivates me all the time."
-Simple Living
"I start the day with a smile. Sharing to others what I can, and showing to others some
kindness is important because sometimes I need their help too. To have simple living is to
marry in the church. Studies are necessary before wishing to have simple living. Respect,
good attitude and spending money properly will help in our simple living."
-Student's Life
"I want to be a Flight Attendant someday and I should prepare to be ready with many
circumstances to achieve my goal. By studying hard, I also pray to God to bless me and my
parents who inspire me. I want to achieve my goals to be able to help my family in the
future."
-The Value of Friendship
"Having a complete family is a blessing and having friends around you is a blessing too. I am
so thankful to God to have friends to help me in my ups and downs. They do support my
goals. We are all happy helping one another."
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b.2 Inspiration in Life (Two Excerpts)

"People have goals or purposes in life; but what is their inspiration? My inspiration includes
my family, siblings and a special someone and they give me motivation to achieve my goals.
My inspiration comprises the experiences in my life that teach me to be dedicated. These are
to get good marks for my scholarship, to finish a degree and become a Flight Attendant. My
sacrifices will become my precious joy, especially to be able to help my family soon. I hope I
will achieve these dreams in my life."
"Every person cannot just change his own unforgettable experiences in life. My father who
left us without any permission has become the most sad part of my life. Though my family and
I are now living a simple life and contented with it.. My Dad, who always made me feel
inspired; yet when he left our family even if it hurts...we need to accept it. He used to give me
if I would ask....for a beautiful dress. As a family, we would go to church on Christmas Day
and have dinner together. We learned he had passed away and we know he is happy
wherever he is now. I miss him so much!"
b.3. An Interesting Essay:
Purpose of Life
"God created everyone for a purpose. God has a plan why certain things are happening. All
individuals are worthy and definitely deserve to be recognized to love and to be loved. So for
me the purpose of my life is to live it; to taste much experiences to the utmost in order to
reach out eagerly without fear for newer and richer experiences. Others have different
perceptions on life that it is negative, ...knowing that a negative mind will never give a
positive life. My solutions: I want to be role model to those persons who think that they do not
have worth. I want to stand firm and encourage them that hardships, trials and difficulties
are just part of our life as we go through the path of success."
b.4. Eliciting words used:
Christmas Celebrations
The essays comprised discussions highlighting details about Christmas. Expressed in an
essay are these words of one student: "Christmas is the happiest day in the Philippines, a
perfect occasion for a family gathering." Christmas, for one who comes from California
said: " This celebration is my favorite holiday in our country." Other students also expressed
the following: Friends, neighbors and relatives thus come together to celebrate the birth of
Jesus Christ; Blinking lights, decorations, unique 'parol' designs, a Welcoming Santa Claus
in the malls; the cold nights have portrayed this nostalgic season." And what brings joy to
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young and old are the gifts: - "cheap or priceless?" More important is what one contributed,
that is: "Going to church, sing Christmas carols and rejoice for Christ's coming." A student
also shared that her father is working abroad but for her Christmas will be celebrated like he's
around. One male student recalled his loving grandmother who passed away; though he
missed her, the spirit of Christmas gave him strength; an avenue for his ' moving on' as he
values "attending the Christmas Mass and a warm dinner!"
b.5.Thanking God
The students who had the liberty on their choice on what to write had thus written all about
the topics as stated above. This last subject matter presented is most noteworthy. and had
indicate their gratefulness...Thanking God.
Their essays then included phrases, such as: The Creator of all., or God has changed me,
and How God teaches me. One student," thanked God for a great day of challenges, and in a
way the day to have led for solutions. a supportive family, especially with a mother even she
only finished Grade 2." Another one shared with this essence: "God made all living things
and this is the reason that we protect our environment, but man has ruined it and still is
destroying it."
Other essays on 'God has Changed Me,' ' How God Teaches Me,' and 'Why We Need to Study
the Bible,' are captivating essays as well, with full of lessons these students may want to share
any interested reader.
b.6 Creative Writing
Home Alone
"Going home to an empty house....walking along the road with no one by your side...sitting at
the kitchen and sagging the cake because you are too bored and there is no one to talk
to..lying on your back and imagining that there is someone out there looking at you...so
finally...you realize that you are alone.
Turning on the music and putting it into maximum volume...singing along out loud and
dancing like there is no tomorrow. You imagine that you are not home alone. you also
imagine that someone is singing with you and that someone is dancing with you.
It is like you are filling up the emptiness of the house. You are doing something just to make
you happy and to keep you away from boredom. After this unwholesome day then you feel
like your eyes want to close and your body wants to rest. You will lie down on your bed then
think you are the one who is responsible for your happiness and on your own feelings. No
one is obliged to do it...but you, yourself."
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4. Implications of students' writing to the teaching of paragraph and essay writing and
teaching, in general
The author's five week-long teaching experience became most fulfilling and inspiring.
Facilitating the students' learning and application of the learning gained was indeed
rewarding. For her, the writing outputs of the students were very good, subject matter-wise as
they really expressed their thoughts, ideas, reflections, perceptions, emotions, and 'touching
or sentimental words' used on their many observations and experiences as seen in the No 2.
Examples. The opportunities that contributed to their writing were thus based on their own
experiences in their own lives. For implications therefore of this study are:
1. Constant Motivation and Guidance to Students
Motivation is something that energizes, directs and sustains behavior. It gets students
moving and points to a particular goal and keeps them going. We see students motivated and
replenished in personal investment and in cognitive, emotional behavior engagement in
school activities.(www. Education.com., Educational Psychology). Particularly, as mentioned
early on, this paper's author that through motivation, she pointed out to them that writing well
would mean good grades as the end result. Thus in Omrod, 2008, he disclosed that
intrinsically, motivated learners tackle assigned tasks willingly and are eager to learn
classroom materials that are likely to process information in effective ways, such as engaging
in meaningful learning. Oftentimes, learners are simultaneously motivated by both intrinsic
and extrinsic factors. When they enjoy writing courses, this motivates them to achieve good
grades or even a scholarship.
Last but not least is from Angeles, (2016) who said that based on some studies, students
do enjoy learning with motivation because they are motivated to model behavior that leads to
outcomes they value.
With this pleasing and heart-warming experience, the five-minute motivation was the
author's best springboard for the students' subject-focused writing outputs.
2. Time on giving the writing exercise to enable them for a good writing output.
These freshman students attended their Communication Arts 2 Class on a Monday-
Wednesday and Tuesday-Thursday Schedules of their classes. Each class ran for a timeframe
of one hour and thirty minutes. It was the author's practice to give the students the writing
exercise within this allotted time, less a ten-minute motivation-preparation.
183
With proper motivation given them, and everyone advised to be ready with their writing
materials all the time, the students acclimatized themselves with the writing exercise to be
done only in the classroom. For the author, the time pressure and the need toward having a
positive result of their writing would always ring in their minds.
3. The teacher's leading students to their success.
Through this process on leading students their success may go beyond class motivation. It
distinctly means giving students proper advice as regards their school work. This initiative is
carried out in JOCSON COLLEGE's program on Consultation Hours held in the college and
allows a meeting at a designated time set by the students' dean/head.
While the students may go through several requirements related to their course, they have
also to pursue with their subject projects, and therefore will be working hard to understand,
be interested or still to keep up with all their challenges. This Consultation Hour with the
teacher can help ease students' various school burdens.
Summary
Various challenges have thus afforded teachers on the teaching of English to college
students nowadays. Though dull and monotonous, as others may think. teaching and learning
can still be rewarding and self-fulfilling for both teachers and students. Truly, the students
must fully understand the lesson at hand and be able to grasp all related details before they
can attempt to undergo any writing exercise that the teacher may give them.
The study has delved to present a subject analysis of essays written by First Year College
students at the JOCSON COLLEGE in the second semester, 2016. The essays were written
during their subject in Communication Arts 2/Writing in the Discipline. A list of subjects of
essays were then presented and analyzed as focusing on their personal goals and ambition,
inspiration in life, purpose of life, Christmas season, thanking God and a creative writing on
'home alone.' Such subject matters were carefully expounded in their essays denoting their
personal ideas, reflections, goals, ambitions and attitude.
Implications of the study hereby stated as constant motivation and guidance were
instrumental in the students' outputs. Moreover, the time given for them and especially the
place that is their classroom also enabled them to write their essay. Lastly, as a subject in
which writing is the skill to be looked into or improved, paragraph and essay writing is the
first lesson. Samples of students' writing particularly a paragraph and essays were included as
the focus of this study. Lastly, as a practice in the College, students are given a consultation
184
hour with their teacher. The session follows up students on the subject related queries, tasks
or perhaps assignments needing clarification and other school-related matters.
Conclusion
Students go through education to be prepared with life, acquiring experiences and
gradually transforming into promising professionals. In this study, the college students have
indeed written their essays based on their choice of subject matters. After some guidelines
and pointers to improve their writing ability or skill, the teacher made time for them to
understand their activity and to ensure good outputs. Thus their writing elicited interesting
subjects revealing their ideas and reflections of their experiences. The challenge for teachers
is now to continuously motivate students to bring out their interest and momentum to write
what exactly would they wish to write about. This simple qualitative study hopefully may
earnestly encourage teachers that students' ideas, aspirations, choices of activities and other
interesting subjects stored in their youthful and progressive minds are just waiting to be
tapped and find their rightful places on their papers.
References
Abelos, Alex C., Basbas, Rosemary T., Paulino, Mutya R., (2012), Writing in the Discipline,
A Workbook in Communication Arts II, Grandbooks Publishing, Inc., Manila.
Angeles, Zaira O.(2016), Perspective: Motivation and Learning, Sun Star, Volume 19 Issue
224, November 3, 2015.
Good, Cartier V. (1959), Dictionary of Education, New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co. Inc.,
p.27.
Dapito, Chenita, Auxllie Aurora S. Salvosa, Auxilie Aurora and et.al, (2012), Writing in the
Discipline, Grandbooks Publishing, Inc. Manila.
Dones, Maruchelle G. (2011), Research, Technical and Business Communication,
Mindshapers Co. Inc., Manila.
Morris, William, Editor, (1981) The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language,
Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, Palo Alto.
Oldcastle, John. Literary Writing, http: // www.literature-study,online conference.
Omrod, J. E. (2008) Edition, Excerpts from Educational Psychology Development Learners.
Manalang, Jennifer C. (2016), Molding the Future of Today's Learners, SunStar,
February,2016..
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Santos, Raul C., 2016, Perspective: The Need for Quality Teachers and Administrators in
Schools, Sun Star, February 9, 2016.
Sasson, Remez, (2016), "Lack of Motivation an Enthusiasm," www.Success Consciousness,
netools for a Great Life.,"
Senatin, Ruby C. and Centenera, Fe G., (2009), Introduction to Literature, English 104,
Cacho Hermanos, Inc., Manila.
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Volume 19 Issue 224, November 3, 2015.
www. Education.com., Educational Psychology.
186
Title
Gender-Based Communication Strategy
Author
Tanzil Huda
Muhammadiyah Jember University
Bio-Profile:
Tanzil Huda is an English lecturer at Muhammadiyah Jember University, East Java,
Indonesia. He got his Doctor in English teaching from State University of Malang, Indonesia
in 2013. His major interest is the curriculum development of English education. He also
conducts research on TESOL. His current academic position is the Chair of Center for the
Studies and Development of Education, Muhammadiyah Jember University.
Abstract
The issue on gender differences has become one of the research topics for a few decades
and considered as one of the important factors in second or foreign language acquisition.
This study is aimed at investigating the communication strategies of male and female EFL
learners which specifically analyzes the following issues i.e., how male and female EFL
learners performed their communication strategies; what kinds of communication strategies
which were established by male and female EFL learners. The study is expected to give
significance information about communication strategies performed by male and female EFL
learners in non-English mainstream. This study may also give a valuable contribution to the
area of language teaching for it will give the other perspective about the gender issue in
language acquisition and learning. This study was conducted by employing a qualitative
approach. While the design of this study was descriptive as it tried to describe data
represented in the form of spoken utterances which transcribed in written form. The subjects
of the study who also became the source of data were the fourth and fifth semester
undergraduate students of English Education Program. Based on the findings of this study,
the conclusion of the research is drawn as the followings. English language learners
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overcome their communication problems by using communication strategies. Generally, the

subjects resorted to using some kinds of strategy while communicating to overcome their
communicative problems. Strategies adopted by the learners were determined by knowledge
of the language they possessed. The results of the study also indicated that the majority of the
English language learners used achievement strategies to cope with problems.
Keywords : Gender-based, Communication strategy.
Affiliation Address: Muhammadiyah Jember University is on Jl. Karimata 49 Jember 68121,

East Java, Indonesia
Introduction
Interlanguage is a learning stage which must exist in every foreign or second language
learning before the learners acheive the native speaker alike performance. In such stage, the
learners of EFL, taken as an example, often experience a discrepancy between what they
would like to say (i.e., their communication intention) and what they know about what to say
it in English (i.e., their interlanguage knowledge). In order to bridge the gap between
communicative needs and limited communicative resources or competence, the learners may
make use of communication strategies.
Communication strategy is one of the areas in the study of second language acquisition
(SLA) and its language phenomena become the interest of Sociolingistics. There exists a
number of the studies of communication strategies which also exhibit categorization of them.
Bialystok (1983) categorizes communication strategies into 1) first language (L1) based
strategies, which include language switch, foreignizing, and transliteration; 2) second
language (L2) based strategies, which include semantic contiguity, description, and word
coinage. Meanwhile, Corder (1978) in Faerch and Casper (1983) proposes two main types of
strategies that are totally based on interlanguage use applied by second language learners
when they find problems in performing communication, which are commonly called as
message adjustment strategies and resource expansion strategies.
In message adjustment strategies, the learners can tailor a message to the available
resources, that is, they adjust the end to their means. Corder in Faerch and Casper (1983)
divides the message adjustment strategies in four sub-types: topic avoidance, message
abandonment, semantic avoidance, and message reduction. The learners apply the topic
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avoidance strategy when they avoid topics which pose language difficulties. The learners
may also decide not to continue a discourse within the same topic. The message abandonment
strategy is conducted when the learners leave a message unfinished because of language
difficulties. The semantic avoidance strategy is implemented by the learners by saying
something slightly difrent from what the interlocutor intends. The message reduction strategy
is condcuted by sating less than what the speaker intends to say.
The second type is resource expansion strategies. The learners can attempt to increase
their esources by one way or another in order to their communication intention. Corder
(1978) in Faerch and Casper (1983) classifies the resource expansion strategies into three
types: borrowing, switching, and paraphrasing or circumlocation. The borrowing strategies
are implemented when the learners attempt to use invented or borrowed items. When the
learners switch to another language, they implement the switching strategy. The paraphrase
or circumlocation strategies are conducted by describing and exemplifying the target object
or action.
Meanwhile, communication between men and women or communication accross sex can
be considered cross cultural communication. This kind of communication is supposed to be
one of the aspects of language convergence and similarized as culture. Some studies in
sociolinguistics show that people from different cultures speak various dialects. This
phenomenon should also exist in men and women communication which appears to vary
(Nasution, 2010).
There are numerous general differences that characterize gender communication.
Compared to women, men are more likely to interrupt the speaking of other people (Fasold,
1990:9). A study of faculty meetings reveals that women are more likely to be interrupted
than men. Some of the interruptions that women experience come from other women (
women, when they do interrupt, are more likely to interrupt other women than they are to
interrupt men) Women are more likely than men to allow an interruption of their talk to be
successful (they do not exist the interruption as much as men do). In meetings, men gain the
“floor” more often, and keep the floor for longer period of time, regardless of their status in
the organization (Fasold, 1990:91). In professional conferences, women take a less active part
in responding to papers. When women do ask a question, they take less time in asking it than
men. In addition, they employ much less pre-question prediction; they are less likely to ask
multiple questions; and they are more likely than men to rephrase their questions in personal
terms.
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The differences of men and women in communication are claimed by Tannen (1990),
Baalen (2001), and Catalaan (2003) who state that men and women express themselves in
different ways and for different reasons. Men use communication to maintain independence,
while women talk to maintain intimacy. Whether conscious or unconscious, men often talk to
establish status from others. Women use words to connect themselves emotionally, to express
feelings, or to build rapport. Men often share acts and figures as in report. These
communicative differences then are labelled as “rapport-talk” and report-talk.”
Tannen (1990) also notes that body language is also used differently by men and women.
Women typically use nonverbal communication directly but men use it indirectly. Women
stand in close proximity of each other and maintain eye contact and gesture more frequently.
Men hold their distance, rarely establish eye contact and gesture less dramatically. Men and
women also handle conflict directly. Women avoid conflict in order to insure closeness,
while men use conflict to gain status.
Further, Tannen (1990) claims that men and women express communication differences
in content, style, and structure. In particular, men often talk about sports, money, and
business. They often express themselves to fix a problem, converse for competition, and talk
to resolve problems. They typically use precise word, without descriptive details. On the
other hand, women most often discuss about people, feeling, and relationship. They most
often express themselves to understand, converse to support, and talk to connect. When
talking, women are more detailed, apologetic, and vague.
Various studies on communication strategies have been done and successfully in
analyzing and predicting communication needs. Those studies vary in terms of theoretical
framework, methods, analysis, and the subjects used in. Bialystock (1983) studied the use of
L1-based strategies and L2-based strategies to solve vocabulary problems in communication.
He found that the most efficient strategies were those which were L2-based strategies and
took account of specific features of the intended concepts. The study showed that adults used
a greater variation of strategies, which meant they were mre flexible in their ability to adopt
their strategic attempts to meet the need of specific concepts.
A compare and contrast study of L1 and L2 referential communication was done by
Bongarts and Poulisse (1989). The study tried to confronted Dutch learners of English with a
set of unfamiliar abstract shapes which they had to describe both in Dutch and English. The
study found that when a methodology which was adopted confronted native and non-native
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speaker with essentially the same problem, L1 speakers and L2 learners handled their
referential problems in much the same way.
Some other studies with different focus had been done by some researchers. A study by
Chen (1990) found that the frequency, type and effectiveness of communication strategies
employed by the learners varied according to their proficiency level. A study about the
communication strategies used by “good” versus “poor” speaking partners of individuals with
aphasia was done by Mackie and Kagan (1999). Different study about male and female
languages which was done by Baalen investigated the hedging devices in male and female
conversations. A study which focused on how English language learners could make use of
communication strategies to overcome limitations in receptive and productive languages
(Williams, 2006). The study also presented steps for carrying out active in-class training and
practice for strategies. The studies by Liberman (2008) and Nasution (2010) emphasized the
practical differences in male and female styles of communication.
On the basis of the rationale and previous studies on communication strategies, the
researcher was interested in conducting a study of communication strategies. The recent
study focused on the communication strategies which were established by the students of
English as foreign language related to their sex.
Therefore, the study was carried out which aimed to:
 investigate the strategy the students in performing their communication;
 classify the types of strategies the students used in relation to their sexes;
 find out the similarities and the differences of strategies among the different sexes;
 point out the strategy/ies the students most frequently used.
Method
This study was conducted by using a qualitative approach. While the design of this study
was descriptive as it tried to describe data represented in the form of spoken utterance which
transcribed in written form. Specifically, this study used content analysis (Holsti, 1968:42-43)
that aimed at analyzing the corpus of spoken-transcribed discourse. Content analysis was
appropriate in this study for it described the characteristics of content and made inferences
about the cause of content and the effect of content. This technique was used to determine
rhetoric and linguistic features of the essays (Krippendorf, K, 1980; Miles and Huberman,
1994). The objective analysis of the essays was accomplished by means of explicit rules
191
called criteria of selection which must be formally established before the actual analysis of
data (Berg, 1989). This concept conforms with the principle and the nature of this study.
The descriptive design was applied because it was relevant to the aim of the study. It was
to describe spoken-transcribed discourse taken from students utterances, in which the
researcher set out the study by posing himself as the key instrument, working out by
analyzing the data himself until drawing the inferences to substantiate theory.
While the procedure of the research performed in this study were 1) selecting spoken-
transcribed discourse taken from students utterances; 2) investigating the style used by the
male and female students as their strategy in communication; 3) drawing inferences about
types of strategy performed by male and female students in their communication However,
the researcher did those steps repeatedly or by several re-checks before cross-checking with
other colleagues who were experts in that matter.
The subjects of the study were the fourth semester undergraduate students of English
Education Program at Muhammadiyah Jember University. So, the students became the source
of data of this study who uttered spoken discourses during the conversation among them
taken place. The discourses chosen were mainly in the form of utterances appeared during the
conversation among the students.
In this study, the data were the constituents used in the discourse such as words, phrases,
and sentences of the discourse. The data also comprised the threads of discourse in the form
of expression or utterance patterns used by the students in delivering the idea or
information to their counterparts during the conversation.
Considering that this study was qualitative, the key instrument of the research, as Bogdan
and Biklen (1992:29) proposed was the researcher himself with his knowledge of Discourse
Analysis, text Analysis, Sociolinguistics, and Pragmatics. The instrument was employed
because the source of the data was merely in the form of discourse properties. Therefore, this
study might be categorized into textual one. While the main focus of this investigation was
the utterances mode and types or other language expression behavior.
There were two techniques applied in collecting the data of this study, namely,
documentation in the form of recording instrument and text analysis (Silverman, 1993). The
use of these methods was described in the following steps. First, all the expression or
utterances made by the students were collected by using recorder. Second, the collection of
the utterances were transcribed into written form. Third, the utterances were selected by
classifying those produced by male and female students.
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Data analysis in this study was conducted in two phases. First, the data analysis was done
during the activities of data collection. Second, data analysis was conducted after collecting
data. Data analysis during the activities of data collection was aimed at anticipating the
possibilities of data exaggeration. This analysis also helped the researcher to analyze the data
step by step. Furthermore, data analysis during and after collecting data was conducted in
three stages: reducing data, displaying the data, and drawing conclusion or verifying the data
(Miles and Huberman, 1992).
Findings
Language Switch
According to Bialystok (1983), language switch refers to the insertion of a word or a
phrase in a language other than the target language, usually in the learners’ native language
without bothering to translate. The strategy found in the following examples.
(1) Can give them to ... go ... apa luar negeri ... to foreign ya ..... (F1)
(2) President’s policy in kenaikan bahan bakar minyak. (M1)
(3) To pay the biaya telepon, listrik. (M1)
(4) The ... kekayaan ... wealthy ... wealthy is under the level di bawah rata-rata. (M1)
This strategy occurred 5 times in the data. There were some reasons why the subjectss
used Indonesian words in their speech production. First, the subjects were unaware of the
English equivalents for such Indoensian words or expressions. Second, they had limited
vpcabulary which prevented them from using the ibtended words. Third, when the subjects
faced difficulties in communicating their ideas, they used their mother tongue to achieve their
communication goals.
Foreignizing.
Foreignizing is the strategy to use a word from the native language with phonological and
morphological adaptation to the target language. The strategy can been in the following
examples.
(5) President’s policy in kenaikan BBM. (M1)
(6) The decision of the increase of BBM. (M2)
This strategy was employees 7 times. The subjects used foreignizing since they did not
know the equivalent words in English. Therefore, they foreignized their phonological system
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as it was in English. For instance, the subjects pronounced “BBM” as /bi-bi-em/ and not /be-
be-em/.
Transliteration.
Transliteration involves the the use of L2 lexicon to create literally L1 phrase. The
subjects tended to translate word-for-word from their native language as exhibited in the
following examples.
(7) “I think it’s not bad until they can get a high good enough education to develop
their resources and we can see ... ee ... develop our country may be from that” (By
having enough experts, we can exploit our natural resources). (F2)
(8) “From their fund can ... ee ... can give ... ee ... the good ... ee ... can give them ... to
go ... ee ... apa luar negeri ... to foreign ya ...” (Therefore, President can take some of
the people’s representatives’ salary from the funding of education for the potential
people). (F2)
(9) “So many people can get a new job and get a good high ... high ... economic to do
that is not directly may be ... long time” (Although it takes much time, the results
will increase job employment). (F1)
(10) “I think it’s better than only for static without develop” (It’s better than only
speaking without action). (F1)
(11) “Politician of Indonesia ... always ... always against with him” (however, some
Indonesian politicians always against him to do that). (M2)
(12) “Nothing politic” (non political aspects). (M1)
This strategy was the most commonly employed by the students (52 times). The main
reason was that the students tended to think in Indonesian style of expression when they
attempted to speak and, as the consequence, interference of Indonesian rule and style
occurred. The expressions or utterances used by the subjects always sounded strange and
even, sometimes they did not make sense. The expression or utterances did not convey the
intended meaning in the target language. The data also revealed that the subjects first did
their thinking and formulation in Indonesian before coming up with a literal equivalence in
English. These data indicated that “transliteration” had taken place.
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The L2-based communication strategies found included semantic contiguity, word

coinage, repetition, and self-improvisation. In addition, there was also a non linguistic
strategy i.e., non verbal language.
Semantic Contiguity.
Semantic contiguity involves the use of lexical items to cover the meaning of a certain
word which the learners do not know. The strategy can be seen in the following examples.
(13) During Jokowi as a President (Jokowi’s presidential). (F2)
(14) Because its old tradition (previous tradition). (F1)
(15) Make our country better the exception (except). (F1)
(16) I think like that (I think so). (F2)
(17) That so she (he). (F1)
(18) Indonesian needed (needs). (F2)
(19) Her (his). (M1)
(20) She had nothing (he had nothing). (M1)
(21) Advantage with (profit from). (M2)
Semantic contiguity appeared only 13 times. The subjects adopted this strategy when they
faced difficulties in finding the appropriate word for a particular context. As shown in the
examples above, the subject used pronoun she instead of he because in Indonesia there is only
one third personal pronoun (dia).
Word Coinage.
Word coinage is a strategy which creates L2 lexical item by selecting a conceptual feature
of the target language item. It usually produces items which do not exist in the target
language, or if they do, they are contextually incorporated. The strategy can be found in the
following examples.
(22) We can actually no many develop (development). (F1)
(23) Pain (people being suffered). (F2)
(24) I mean there are still ... reinforce (worse). (M2)
(25) Dark side (drawbacks). (M2)
(26) The trade side (trade aspects). (M1)
The strategy was employed 5 times by the subjects. The data revealed that the subjects
had problems in selecting and using the selected words in appropriate contexts. They used the
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words which existed in English irrelevantly to the intended meaning, for instance, the word
“reinforce” existed and was used by the subject, but it was unacceptable or irrelevant in this
particular context. The subject adopted this strategy because they had limited vocabulary. As
a result, they used lexical items which were contextually inappropriate.
Repetition.
Repetition is a communication strategy in which the subjects repeat the same word or
phrase of a clause twice or more. The purpose is to search other utterances to say further;
therefore, it is better for the subject to repeat the same utterances as he or she seeks another
utterance in their minds. The examples of the strategy are as follows.
(27) President especially to think ... to think. (F1)
(28) President should ... should ... (F1)
(29) He ... he ... (F2)
(30) Wealthy ... wealthy ... (F2)
(31) Our ... ee ... our ... (F2)
(32) More measurable ... more measurable. (F1)
(33) He had nothing ... he had nothing ... ee. (F2)
(34) I agree with him to change the situation ... so ... I agree with him to change. (M1)
(35) If President ... ee ... if President ... (M1)
(36) Many Indonesian people ... ee ... many Indonesian people ... (M2)
(37) If we ... ee ... if we ... (M2)
The repetition strategy was employed 34 times in this study. This indicated that before
they continued their further utterances, they had to think, unfortunately, because of limited
vocabulary and ideas, they repeated their previous utterances to avoid being silent.
Self-Improvisation.
Self-improvisation is a communication strategy employed by the subjects to improve their
previous utterances. It is a mean of self-correction or clarification on what the subjects intend
to say. The example of the strategy can be seen in the following data.
(38) There is no ... there are no much. (F1)
(39) His government I mean ... Jokowi government. (F1)
(40) Become ... ee ... they had tried to ... (F1)
(41) They try to ... ee ... they had tried to ... (F1)
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(42) But we can ... ee ... we have (F2)

(43) The only ... he only (F2)
(44) He needs to ... to take ... ee ... he needs to concern. (F2)
(45) Not any parties ... party. (M1)
(46) We must ... ee ... we have to. (M1)
(47) Sometimes we can said ... we can say ... (M2)
(48) The Jokowi’ people ... the Jokowi’s policy (M2)
(49) Some people of Indonesian ... ee ... politician of Indonesia. (M2)
In this study, the self-improvisation strategy occurred 30 times. As displayed in the
examples, the subjects tried to improve their previous utterances because they realized that
their previous utterances were wrong.
Nonverbal Language.
The other interesting finding of the study is the exploration of nonverbal language which
was exhibited by the students in attempt to clarify their utterances. It appears that the
intensity of the use nonverbal language were different between male and female students. The
study reveals that female students exhibited more nonverbal language than male students.
The female students made use of their hand and arms to explain their utterances they thought
were hard to be understood by the hearers.
The distribution of communication strategies used by male and female students is
described in Table I.
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Table I. Distribution of Communication Strategies.

Total for
Strategies Basis Sex Total % each
Strategy
Language L1 Male 4 80 5
Switch Female 1 20
L1 Male 7 100 7
Foregnizing
Female 0 0
L1 Male 21 40.4 52
Transliteration
Female 31 59.6
Semantic L2 Male 3 23.1 13
Contiguity Female 10 76.9
L2 Male 3 60 5
Word Coinage
Female 2 40
L2 Male 18 53 34
Repetition
Female 16 47
Self- L2 Male 12 40 30
improvisastion Female 18 60
Nonverbal L2 Male 1 10 4
language Female 3 40
Toal 150
Table I indicates that the subjects used language switch strategies 5 times or 3.42 % from
the whole strategies. Whereas 4 out 5 or 80 % strategies were employed by male learners and
1 out of 5 or 20 % were employed by female learners. It proved that most learners preferred
to switch their production from L2 into L1 when they did not understand the expression in
L2. There were 7 times or 4.80 % foreignizing strategy appeared and all were employed by
male learners. There were 52 times or 35.6 % strategy of transliteration appeared and used by
the learners. Out of 52 times, 21 times or 40.4 % were employed by male learners, whereas
31 times or 59.6 % were employed by female learners. The strategy was most dominantly
employed by the learners.
Semantic contiguity strategy took place 13 times or 8.90 % from the whole strategies.
Out of 13 times or 23.1 % were employed by male learners and 10 times or 76.9 % were
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employed by female learners. There were 5 times or 3.42 % strategy of word coinage
appeared in the data. Out of 5 times or 60 % were employed by male learners and 2 times or
40 % were employed by females learners. There were 34 times 0r 23.3 % strategies employed
by female learners. There were 34 times or 23.3 % strategies employed by the learners which
were concerned with the repetition strategy. Here 18 times or 53 % were employed by male
learners and 16 times or 47 % were employed by female learners. The strategy was the
second dominant strategy employed by the learners. There were 30 times or 20. 5 % strategy
of self-improvisation occurred in the recent study. Out of 30 times, 12 times or 40 % were
employed by male learners while 18 times or 60 % were employed by female learners. The
last strategy, nonverbal language was dominantly performed by the female learners. Form 5
or 50 % occurrences of the strategy, 4 (40 %) was exhibited by female learners. There
existed only 1 or 10 % of the strategy was applied by male learner.
Discussion
The findings presented in the table and elaborated earlier show that all types of L1-based
and L2-based communication strategies were used by the subjects. This phenomenon could
be explained that most of subjects’ problems dealt with the limited vocabulary to express
their ideas. Therefore, when they wanted to express it, they tended to express it
inappropriately.
Male learners dominantly used L1-based strategies rather than female learners. In
contrast, female learners dominantly used L2-based strategies. That was due to the fact that
the topic discussed in the present study was about the political system in Indonesia and male
learners were assumed to know more than the female learners. Therefore, female learners did
not face many troubles to express it in L2. Their troubles were mostly caused by their limited
knowledge about the subject matters being discussed in the process of collecting the data.
The findings also showed that male learners tended to switch their language into
Indonesian. This indicated that male learners faced troubles in expressing their ideas in
English. Meanwhile, they knew more than female about the subject matters. Male learners
also tended to foreignize L1 utterances as it was like in L2. They pretended to be clever so
that when to be seen as having troubles in vocabulary mastery.
The findings also indicated that female learners mostly faced troubles to express their
own ideas in English appropriately, so they expressed their ideas in English using the system
of Indonesian language, while male learners did not face many troubles to express their ideas
199
compared to the females. The data showed that transliteration was the most dominant strategy
employed by the learners in overcoming their communication problems. Moreover, female
learners dominantly used semantic contiguity than male learners did; therefore, it was
summed up that female learners dominantly expressed the inappropriate utterances to
overcome their communication problems. Table 1 showed that male learners mostly repeated
their previous utterances as a bridge before they uttered their further utterances. It means that
male learners tended to repeat their previous utterances rather than to keep silent.
The findings above are relevant with the belief that communication strategies deal with
the use of linguistic knowledge. Tarone (1981, cited in Faerch & Casper, 1983) says that
communication strategies are used to compensate for some lacks in the lingistic system, and
focus on exploring alternate ways of using what one does know for the transmission of a
message without necessarily situational appropriateness. The subjects used transliteration as
an L1-based strategy because they did not know the appropriate lexicons to produce.
However, their lexical limitation did not result in their halting. They used a wide range of
strategies to achieve their communicative goal.
Conclusion
Based on the findings of this study, the conclusion of the research is drawn as the
followings. English language learners overcome their communication problems by using
communication strategies. Generally, the subjects resorted to using some kinds of strategy
while communicating to overcome their communicative problems. They were aware of the
existence of their deficiency in the target language as was demonstrated by their adoption of
different strategies in this communicative production. Strategies adopted by the learners were
determined by knowledge of the language they possessed. The less knowledge of the
language they have, the more strategies they adopted.
The results of the study showed that the majority of the English language learners used
achievement strategies to cope with problems. The subjects resorted to strategies when they
faced with the problems, concepts or things and which there was no word in their native
language. To solve these problems, the learners expanded their communicative resources by
using a wide range of achievement strategies of which the most common ones were
“transliteration”, “repetition”, and “self improvisation”. The learners had a strong drive to
communicate so they used “language switch” and “semantic contiguity”. To communicate
effectively, the learners required strategies which were relevant to their knowledge.
200
Recommendations
Based on the result of the research, the following recommendations are offered due to
EFL lecturers and other researchers. The EFL lecturers or teachers should be aware of the
communication strategy difference between male and female learners. Then they should be
aware of the difference as the important factors in teaching English as a foreign language.
This effort helps them in finding the appropriate method and strategy for teaching English to
Indonesian students. To other researchers who interested in the topic are suggested to employ
larger and wider data to explore the issue.
References
Baalen, I. V. (2001). Male and Female Language: Growing Together? Retrieved from
http://F://maleandfemale.html
Bialystok, E. 1983. Some Factors in the Selection and Implementation of Communication
Strategies. In C. Faerch & G. Kasper (Eds.), Strategies in International
Communication. London: longman.
Bongarts, T., & Poulisse, N. (1989). Communication Strategies in L1 and L2: Same or
Different? Applied Linguistics. 10: 253-268.
Catalan, R. M. J. (2003). Sex Differences in L2 Vocabulary Learning Strategies.
International Journal of Applied Linguistics. 13 (l): 54-77
Chen, S. (1990). A Study of Communication Strategies in Interlanguage Production by
Chinese EFL. Language Learning Journal. 40: 155-187.
Faerch, C. & Kasper, G. (Eds.) (1983). Strategies in International Communication. London:
Longman.
Fasold, R. W. (1990). The Sociolinguistics of Language. Oxford: Blackwell.
Liberman, S. (2008). Differences in Male and Female Communication Styles. Retrieved from
http://F://maleandfemale.html
Mackie, N. S., & Kagan, A. (1999). Communication Strategies Used by ‘Good’ Versus
‘Poor’ Speaking Partners of Individuals with Aphasia. Aphasiology Journal. 13 (11):
807-820.
Nasution, A. K., (2010). Communication Strategies Used by EFL Learners of Different
Sexes. In Cahyono, B. Y. (ed). Second Language Acquisition and English Language
Teaching. Malang. State University of Malang Press.
201
Tannen, D. (1990). You Just Don’t Understand: Women and Men in Conversation. New
York: Ballatine Books.
Williams, J. (2006). Combining Communication Strategies and Vocabulary Development.
The Internet TESL Journal. 12 (2). Retrieved from
http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Williams-communication-strategies.htm
202
Title
Considering Professional Identity: A Case Study of a Female English Teacher in Secondary
Education
Author
Yoko Kobayashi
International Christian University
Jitsuko Kitsuno
Tokyo Polytechnic University
Bio-Profiles:
Yoko Kobayashi is an instructor of English for Liberal Arts program at International
Christian University. Her research interests include life story research, discussions for critical
thinking, and teacher development. <[email protected]>
Jitsuko Kitsuno is an assistant professor at Tokyo Polytechnic University. Her current areas
of interests are in life story research, public speaking, extensive reading, and remedial
education. <[email protected]>
Abstract
This research is about the life story of a Japanese woman teaching English as a part-time
teacher at a junior high school in Japan. It is a case study that considers what can constitute a
teacher’s professional identity. A significant number of Japanese women do not work while
their children are little. They go back to work as low-wage part-timers only after finishing
child-rearing. The same tendency is seen in the context of education. Women in their 30s or
older have difficulty finding full-time teaching positions even if they are qualified enough.
The interviewee of this study is one of those women. This study sought her motivation as a
teacher, the gap between reality and ideals, and the relationship with her family through
analyzing the narrative data and aim to draw a part-time teacher’s professional identity.
Applying Gee’s perspectives of identity, several elements were found; 1) “woman” and
203
“daughter;” 2) “mother,” “homemaker,” and “teacher”; 3) “a middle-aged woman in the

neighborhood”; 4) “part-timer.” Motherhood could be a part of professional identity in the
case of female teachers with children.
Affiliation Address:
International Christian University
10-2, Osawa 3-chome, Mitaka-shi, Tokyo, 181-8585 Japan
Tokyo Polytechnic University

1583 Iiyama, Atsugi, Kanagawa, 243-0297, Japan
Introduction
“Teacher” is one of the most important factors that influence the acquisition of English as
a second or foreign language, i.e., curriculum; methods; learners’ individual factors such as
age, personality, motivation, and cognition (Lightbown & Spada, 2007; Shirai, 2012).
Especially in Japan, teachers are respected because of the influence of Confucianism on
Japanese culture. At the same time, teachers are responsible for fostering the development of
“sound bodies and well-rounded minds” as well as teaching subjects in primary and
secondary education (MEXT, 2004). They are considered to play a crucial role in Japanese
society.
On the other hand, teachers in Japan face multiple problems. They are in charge of a
myriad tasks: teaching classes, doing the paper work, leading club activities (including
holidays), counseling students and parents, and providing career guidance. In elementary
schools, they usually eat lunch with pupils and teach table manners. After school, they clean
their classrooms with their students. MEXT (Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science
and Technology of Japan) shows that Japanese elementary and junior high school teachers on
average work 48 overtime hours per month (MEXT, 2013). Junior high school teachers in
Japan work on average 53.9 hours per week according to an OECD survey (National Institute
for Educational Policy Research, 2014) whereas the international average is 38.3 hours. As a
result, the number of teachers taking sick leave is growing. Over 5,000 teachers in Japan took
sick leave for psychological problems during the 2014 academic year (MEXT, 2014). These
teachers accounted for 0.55 percent of all teachers, which was doubled over the past decade.
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In this context, detailed study of teachers and their teaching environment is becoming more
required these days.
In the areas of education, research on teachers is divided into three disciplines according
to Takaira (2007): 1) teachers’ life and career development including life story research and
identity research, 2) teachers’ conflicts at school, and 3) the culture of teaching profession.
This study treats the first type of the study area. To deeply understand Japanese teachers of
English, we need to view a teacher as a human with a special skill, not as just a professional.
Therefore, a life story approach was taken to investigate a teacher’s behavior, attitudes, and
identity. Life stories could make it possible to grasp a person as a whole. For example,
Tsukada (2008) conducted life story interviews with female high school teachers, which
showed that their narratives were about “juggling career and family” and “housework sharing
with husbands.” They could not talk about teachers’ lives without mentioning their private
affairs.
Previous life story research on Japanese teachers has been done on mainly full-time
teachers of primary or secondary education. Schools in Japan, however, have quite a few
temporary teachers, who are full-time but non-tenured, and part-time teachers. Although
temporary teachers sometimes are the subject of research (Inoue & Muramatsu, 2007), part-
time teachers are often ignored. Our study explores the problems a part-time English teacher
at a junior high school and the relationship between her professional identity and job
problems.
Part-time teachers are especially needed in English education. In Japan, the formal
English study begins in secondary education after a few years of “playing with English”
classes in elementary school. Japanese classrooms have traditionally adopted the grammar-
translation method for a long time, but the communicative competence is becoming more
important these days. MEXT suggests nurturing communication skills from the beginning.
For this reason, the junior high school in this study employs team-teaching and small classes
with the help of part-time teachers.
This study was carried out to describe the participant’s professional identity in the context
of part-time teaching at a problematic school. The research question of the study is: “What
constitutes the professional identity of a female part-time teacher of English in Japanese
junior high school?”
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Method
Our participant, whom we shall call by the pseudonym Masami, is a 42-year-old female
part-time English teacher at a public junior high school. The school is located in a lower-
middle-class area in the suburb Tokyo. She was educated in one of the prestigious
universities in Japan, where she received a B.A. in English in 1996 and M.A. in English
Teaching in 1998. When she was writing her M.A. thesis, she became pregnant, and
immediately after she completed her Masters, she got married and started a family. After 12
years of being a homemaker and a mother, at the age of 36, she began working as a part-time
teacher.
We conducted two sessions of the semi-structured interview with Masami. We talked
about work and family in a casual manner for 5 hours in total. All the sessions were digitally
recorded with Masami’s agreement and the narrative data was later transcribed.
Analysis
We analyzed the transcribed data qualitatively using a method called SCAT (Otani,
2008), which acronym stands for steps for coding and theorization. In this method, data is
analyzed in four steps of coding. Researchers first pay attention to noteworthy words or
phrases, paraphrase them, account for these words or phrases using concepts in the world,
and then find themes in the context. Next, researchers write storylines using the themes.
Otani (2008) says this method is suitable for a small-scale qualitative data like a single case
study or short written answers to open-ended questions.
Through the coding procedure, we identified four themes regarding Masami’s job. In this
section, we will consider these four themes by scrutinizing the interview data.
1. Mother-daughter feud
2. Housework/child-rearing management
3. Relationship with colleagues
4. Relationship with students
The first theme is “mother-daughter feud”. In (1) and (2), we can find Masami's
profoundly negative feeling toward her mother. It was mainly seen in the reason why she
became a part-time teacher. Having been a teacher in an elementary school herself, her
mother influenced Masami very strongly to be qualified as a teacher. To become a part-time
teacher in her prefecture, they first need to register themselves at a municipal office as
206
teachers. Six years ago, Masami was not thinking about working at all, but because her
mother told to do so, she reluctantly registered.
(1) Jitsuko: When did you register? April?

Masami: Yes. I made an appointment, and then. You know, my mother was
annoying me, saying lots of things.
Jitsuko: What, did she tell you to do that?
Masami: You know, my kids had grown up, and she paid lots of money to make me
qualified as a teacher, so she kept saying “why don’t you teach? At least, why don’t
you register yourself?” So, I said, well, maybe I can just register. She was pissing me
off. Then, there was a job on the spot.
(2) Masami: Having all this in mind, I don’t have a good impression on “teacher”. I
started it because Mother said so from the first place, and it was also her job. I don’t
have joy in this job. Of course, sometimes I feel happy, but I never found it
meaningful or fun.
We could also see in the data her views about “housework and child-rearing
management.” In short, she prioritizes housework and child-rearing over her job. When we
talked about opening a private school after quitting the job, she said she should take care of
her kids rather than work as a teacher.
(3) Masami: I’ve thought about it, but you know, I have my kids. I’m not even
looking after my kids properly…
Yoko: You mean, taking care of them, not teaching them to study?
Masami: Teaching. My father-in-law said to me that I should prioritize my kids
over other people’s’ kids. He said this to me when I started teaching. He said I could
do it, but I should think a great deal of my kids.
Yoko: How did you feel then?
Masami: I completely agreed. The most important are our kids.
207
(4) Masami: Well, I can’t manage housework recently. I feel unhappy at school, come
home, and feel like doing nothing. Sometimes I don’t find it meaningful even to be
alive. It’s like putting the cart before the horse. It’s preposterous.
(3) and (4) show that she believes that she should be a good mother and wife before being a
good teacher.
The third theme is “relationship with colleagues”. As (5) shows, we find that she is
not having a good relationship with her colleagues because she is a part-time teacher.
Being a part-time teacher is especially tough in this school because many of other
teachers are so busy dealing with student issues that they cannot support the part-time
teachers. Since part-time teachers do not attend meetings, full-time teachers should
share relevant information with them, but sometimes they fail to do so. For example,
once Masami did not have the information about which parts of the textbook would be
included in a test. Also, part-time teachers are paid only for their class time. That is,
when they have to work after classes, it will not be paid, but full-time teachers do not
care about it.
(5) Masami: That’s when I find it worthless or unprofitable.

Jitsuko: You mean, you can’t score the tests based on your judgment.
Masami: Yeah. Sometimes I think okay, but I have to check it with other people.
Also, I have to work overtime. It’s volunteer. You know. Considering all that,
someone said part-time teachers were nuisances. There was a teacher who was against
the system itself, from the first place. It’s so hard to do. Some people expect us to
work overtime by necessity.
The last theme is “relationship with students”. Generally, teenagers are difficult to
deal with. Moreover, as mentioned in the background, this school is in a lower-
middle-class area, and there are some problematic students, mostly, boys. We did not
find any serious gender problems in relationships with her colleagues, but in the
relationship with students, she said some of the male students behaved badly because
Masami was female. They were behaving better in front of male teachers. As (6)
shows, Masami said the students did not consider her a teacher.
208
(6) Masami: They treat me as only a middle-aged woman in the neighborhood.

They make this hierarchy where I am placed at the bottom, below the headteacher,
other teachers, and the students.
Jitsuko: Who treat you like that?
Masami: The students. They don’t treat me as a teacher. They even asked me
questions about math.
Yoko: So, it’s like someone who is just helping them.
Masami: Yeah, just like that. Especially when I started.
Yoko: Why? Is it because other teachers treat you like that?
Masami: I thought so, but also, they believe that they are better than me just
because they have been at the school longer than me.
We asked her if she wanted to become a full-time teacher. She said no because she does not
want to have a commitment.
(7) Masami: I am not good with having a commitment to students. I can’t take such
responsibility. They are not my kids. They are somebody else’s kids. I don’t think I
should get involved with them so intimately.
It was surprising for us when she called her students “somebody else’s kids.” It shows
that she does not distinguish her position as a teacher and as a mother. As for
researchers ourselves, we believe that our identity as a teacher is separate from our
identity as a mother. Thus, we do not see our students as “somebody else’s kids.” It
may be due to the age of our students. Masami’s students are almost the same age as
her daughters, but our students are older than our children.
Discussion
Considering the four themes in Masami’s narrative data, based on the SCAT method, we
built up a storyline about her professional identity.
Masami does not find her teaching job worthwhile. It is because her mother’s pressure
only made her qualified as a teacher, and it was not her wish to become a teacher.
Thus, she prioritizes housework and child-rearing over her job. Complicated
209
relationships with her colleagues and with her students are both cause and effect of
her not feeling worthiness in her job.
Based on this storyline, we considered Masami’s identity to answer our research question,
“What constitutes the professional identity of a female part-time teacher of English in
Japanese junior high school?” Hawley Nagatomo (2012) cited Gee (2001) to describe
identity. According to her, Gee’s definition of identity is “being a certain type of person in a
given context” (as cited in Hawley Nagatomo, 2012, p. 118). Gee suggests four perspectives
on identity. They show what it means to be a certain kind of person: (1) N-identity means we
are what we are primarily because of our natures; (2) I-identity means we are what we are
primarily because of the positions we occupy in society; (3) D-identity means we are what we
are primarily because of our individual accomplishments as they are interactionally
recognized by others; and (4) A-identity means we are what we are primarily because of the
experiences we have had within certain sorts of affinity groups
In considering Masami’s professional identity, we used Gee’s four ways to view identity.
Her N-identity is “woman” and “daughter”. That is what she is by nature. Her I-identity is
“mother,” “homemaker,” and “teacher.” Gee says I-identity is given by authorities like
institutions. In her case, the societal rule or tradition is playing the authoritative role and
gives her identity as “mother” or “homemaker.” Her D-identity is “a middle-aged woman in
the neighborhood.” Her students treat her like that. Even colleagues do not always respect her
as a teacher. Her A-identity is a “part-timer.” Since she does not have an important position
in the school, she feels a sense of alienation and does not share any experience with her
students and colleagues to have the affinity.
210
Figure 1. Masami’s professional identity
Figure 1 is a diagram showing Masami’s professional identity based on the four

perspectives of identity. Since she is a part-time teacher, full-time teachers do not support
her, and her students do not respect her; she only has an identity as a part-timer.
At the same time, she has a strong identity as a mother and homemaker, and she thinks
homemaking is the most important for her. These are two sides of the same coin. Since she is
merely a part-timer, she can be a good mother and homemaker. Also, since she wants to be a
good mother and homemaker, she could continue working in such a harsh condition.
Conclusion
In conclusion, motherhood could be a part of professional identity in the case of female
teachers with children. We do not deny the individual differences. It can depend on her
positions, cultural background, social background, or upbringing. For future studies, having
the same kinds of research on different types of female teachers varying in employment status
or marital status will be necessary.
References
Gee, J. P. (2001). Identity as an analytic lens for research in education. Review of Research in
Education, 25, 99-125.
Hawley Nagatomo, D. (2012) Exploring Japanese University English Teachers’ Professional
Identity. Multilingual Matters.
211
Inoue, I., & Muramatsu, Y. (2007). The working atmosphere, environment, attitudes, and
conditions of non-permanent public school teachers. Bulletin of Tokyo Gakugei
University: Series I, Science of education, 58, 505-531.
Lightbown, P., & Spada, N. (2006). How languages are learned (3rd ed). Oxford: Oxford
University Press.
MEXT, (2004). FY2004: White Paper on Education, Culture, Sports, Science and
Technology.
MEXT, (2013). Kyo shokuin no mental health taisaku ni tsuite. [Prevention of mental health
problems of teachers.]
MEXT, (2014). FY2014: White Paper on Education, Culture, Sports, Science and
Technology.
National Institute for Educational Policy Research, (2014). 2013 Teaching and Learning
International Survey. Tokyo: Akashi Shoten.
Otani, T. (2008) "SCAT" A Qualitative Data Analysis Method by Four-Step Coding: Easy
Startable and Small Scale Data-Applicable Process of Theorization (4 suteppu
kodingu niyoru shitsuteki deta bunseki shuhou SCAT no teian). Bulletin of the
Graduate School of Education and Human Development (Educational Sciences),
Nagoya University, v.54, n.2, p.27-44. Retrieved from
http://hdl.handle.net/2237/9652.
Shirai, Y. (2012). Eigo kyoshino tameno daini gengo shuutoku nuumon [Second language
acquisition: An introduction for English language teachers]. Tokyo: Taishukan
Shoten.
Takaira, K. (2007). Kyoshi kenkyuu no genzai. [Current study about teachers.] Educational
Studies in Japan, 74 (2), 113-122.
Tsukada, M. (2008). Possibilities of Life Story Interviews. Journal of Sugiyama Jogakuen
University: Humanities Social sciences Natural sciences, 39, 1-12.
Wenger, E. (1998) Communities of Practice: Learning, Meaning and Identity. Cambridge:
212
Title
Graphic Organizers as Effective Tools in Improving Reading Comprehension in English
Author
Rosalyn S. Herrera
Pampanga High School
Bio-Profile:
Rosalyn S. Herrera is a Master Teacher II of Pampanga High School, City of San Fernando,
Pampanga. She is a Doctor of Education Student, Major in Educational Management at Don
Honorio Ventura Technological State University, Bacolor, Pampanga.
Abstract
English language changes lives. As an international language, it becomes the gateway for
many people to progress and to global competitiveness. In K12 English in the Philippines,
this lays stress on the prominent skills: listening, speaking and viewing; reading, viewing and
responding; writing and representing as it enhances the thinking skills: critical, creative; and
the metacognition. Of all, it is in reading where the students get informed with practically
almost anything. So, an English teacher must see to it that her students easily understand the
language by utilizing varied strategies. Only, some students have difficulties because of
indifference to reading. Acknowledging the need to improve the reading comprehension
skills of the students, this study will find out the effectiveness of using graphic organizers in
improving the reading comprehension in English of the fifteen Grade 8 – Timothy students;
determine the level of comprehension of the groups based on the speed and comprehension
tests and pre- test scores; discover if there is a significant difference in the students’ reading
comprehension between those who are exposed to the graphic organizers and to those in the
traditional teaching - learning methodology; and, determine if there is a significant
improvement in the reading comprehension of the fifteen identified students in the lowest
level of reading using the graphic organizers.
213
Keywords: English, reading comprehension, graphic organizers
Affiliation Address
Pampanga High School, Division of City Schools of San Fernando, Pampanga, Philippines
Graphic Organizers as Effective Tools in Improving

Reading Comprehension in English
English language changes lives. As an international language, it becomes the gateway for
many people to progress and to global competitiveness. In K12 English in the Philippines,
this lays stress on the prominent skills: listening, speaking and viewing; reading, viewing and
responding; writing and representing as it enhances the thinking skills: critical, creative; and
the metacognition. Of all, it is in reading where the students get informed with practically
almost anything. So, an English teacher must see to it that the students easily understand the
language by utilizing varied strategies. Only, some students have difficulties in reading
because of indifference.
The researcher, being an English teacher, has realized that the students belonging to the
lower sections have massive needs to be addressed. To improve the teaching - learning, the
researcher decided to check on some common practices.
By using Susman’s model in diagnosing which involves the process of identifying a problem.
An efficient tool for this is the gap analysis where different problems encountered inside the
classroom would be identified ( Bondoc et al., 2014 : p 13).
Right after using the Susman’s different thinking tools, the researcher identified the
fifteen students who belong to the lowest level of reading, as according to the record of speed
and comprehension test results conducted, to be the focus.
Helping students to read and write enthusiastically and purposefully is one of the greatest
challenges. Teachers need to know how to use a wide variety of teaching methods, materials,
and strategies to help children learn to read (Gillet, 1986). Graphic organizers help readers in
identifying the required information from the materials (Koda, 2007). “Graphic organizers
were developed on the basis of Ausbel’s theory of ‘meaningful verbal meaning’, which states
that when students are introduced to the material for which they have little background
knowledge, their learning will be improved if they have a structured and clear method of
organizing the information” (Baxendell,2003, p.47). Graphic organizers allow students to “
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visualize the relationship among key concepts and terms in informational text” (Joyce, 2006,
p. 36).
Learners, particularly the struggling ones, can be actively involved in reading and derive
meaning from written texts using reading comprehension strategies. Among the reading
strategies, graphic organizers are considered to approach reading differently from the
traditional, linear text presentation (Chang, Sung and Chen,2002).
For the researcher to identify which solution would work, she used the Susman’s decision
matrix. Finally, the data revealed that the use of graphic organizers in teaching would be the
best solution to lessen the number of students in the lowest level in reading.

This study aims to find out the effectiveness of using graphic organizers in improving the
reading comprehension in English of the fifteen Grade 8 – Timothy students. Specifically the
study seeks to answer the questions: 1. What is the level of comprehension of the two groups
based on the pre-test scores? 2. Is there a significant difference in the students’ reading
comprehension between those who are exposed to the use of graphic organizers and to those
in traditional teaching - learning methodology? 3. Is there a significant improvement in the
reading comprehension of the fifteen identified students in the frustration level using the
graphic organizers?
Hypothesis
There is no difference in the students’ reading comprehension between those who are
exposed in the use of graphic organizer and to the traditional teaching reading methodology.
The use of graphic organizer will not improve significantly the level of reading in English of
the fifteen Grade 8 – Timothy students.
Purpose and Significance of the Study

This action research aims to present the effectiveness of graphic organizers as tools in
improving the reading comprehension in English of the fifteen Grade 8 Timothy. Likewise,
the following will benefit from the study:
English Teachers. They will be given additional strategies to improve teaching reading
comprehension skills.
215
Grade 8 – Timothy Students. They will improve their reading comprehension and become
independent readers.
School Heads. They will realize that there are other programs that they may propose for
students to sustain their interest to read and comprehend.
Researcher. She will be able to prove the effectiveness of graphic organizers in improving the
reading comprehension in English of the fifteen Grade 8 - Timothy students and incorporate
the use of graphic organizers in teaching reading comprehension especially in informational
text.
Definition of Terms
The following are defined as used in this type of study: English language is the official
language of Britain and the United States and the second language of the multilingual
countries; gap analysis is a method of assessing the differences in performance in order to
move from its current state to its desired one(Susman,1983) ; graphic organizers are
communication tools that use visual symbols to express knowledge,concepts, thoughts, ideas,
and relationships between them; reading comprehension is the ability to read text, process it,
and understand its meaning.
Scope and Delimitation

This study included the fifteen Grade 8 – Timothy students who belonged to the lowest
level in reading based on the speed and comprehension test conducted during the school year
2014 – 2015 and the fifteen more Grade 8 students with the same age, grade level and reading
ability as those in the aforementioned. The fish bowl technique in choosing participants was
utilized to be unbiased in the choice of participants. Grade 8 – Timothy was picked for
experimental while Grade 8 – Titus was for the control group.
Method and Design

The experimental design with pre-test, posttest and with control and experimental groups
was used in this action research.
216
Participants
The participants were from Grade 8 – Timothy and Grade 8 – Titus. In this design, two
groups were matched in age, grade level, and reading level on the results of speed and
comprehension tests.
One group, called the experimental group, was exposed to the intervention (the use of
graphic organizers) while the other group, called the control group, was not exposed to the
experimental variable. The two groups were given the same test covering the subject matter
studied during the period (Calderon and Gonzales, 2012). Any excess of the achievement of
the experimental group over the achievement of the control group is attributed to the
experimental factor (Garrett, 1958, p. 213 ).
Sampling Design
To match the experimental group with the control group, the average grades in Grade 7
English were used to further establish comparison. The records of the participants as to age
were provided by the advisers. The fifteen grade 8-Timothy who belonged to the lowest level
or the frustration level comprised the experimental group. And, the other fifteen grade 8
students who matched with the experimental group in terms of age, grade level and reading
ability were from 8 – Titus. And, they formed the control group.
Instruments
Pre-test and posttest from the 3 stories in the third grading period were used in this action
research. In answer to the validity of pre- and post tests,four experts ( two master teachers
and two coordinators) were asked for their opinions. Before and after the experimental
period, the two groups were given the prepared and carefully validated pre- test and posttest
respectively about the three selections.
Data Gathering Procedure

This research was conducted in the month of November up to the last week of January,
the third quarter of S.Y. 2014 - 2015. Two months and a half time was used to gather and
complete all the data. It took the teacher-researcher that much time because of the absences
made by some participants during the discussions and tests of the two groups. One instance
happened during the pre-test. Two students did not appear on the day of the test, the
217
researcher waited days for the two to arrive and to give them the test before she could
continue. As proof of the experiment and observation, pictures and videos were taken.
Statistical Treatment of Data

Quantitative data were obtained from the results of the pre-test and post test. To test if
there is a significant difference between the performance of the control and the experimental
groups, the t-test for independent sample was used. To test the effectiveness of the
intervention, the researcher used the t-test for correlated samples, that is the pre-test and post-
test of the experimental group.
Intervention
There was also an action plan prepared which made implementation easy(David, 2014).
The implementation included the use of three selections, three kinds of graphic organizers,
and three questionnaires intended for 3rd quarter in grade 8- English. The story grammar map
called students’ attention to the main elements of the stories, such as title, setting, character,
theme, plot and visually represented key information in narrative texts using a narrative
structure (Boulineau et al.,2004). The Venn Diagram which was named after John Venn is
composed of two or more overlapping circles used as a framework to make comparisons
between two or more concepts ( Dexter et al.,2011). Semantic Web is a diagram that can
represent words, ideas or other items linked to or arranged around a central key word of the
text and depicts relationships of the different components of an idea to the main idea, that is
part of the whole (Graney, 1992).
In the process, the researcher used the graphic organizers as interventions to the reading
comprehension of the experimental group while the traditional talk- chalk- blackboard
method was used to teach the control group.
Prior to the discussion, there was already the knowledge of the parts of the graphic
organizers. In both control and experimental groups, the collaborative learning was utilized.
Students were formed into groups of five and they worked together in a limited time.
Copies of the story were distributed, read, and retrieved after seven minutes.The next was
a twenty minute discussion (in chronological order) of the story. As an intervention, the story
map with ten parts was used by the experimental group divided in smaller groups of five
while the control group had the same experience except for the intervention. To the control
218
group, worksheets with ten questions were floated to groups of five. Both control and
experimental groups were given 25 minutes to finish answering the worksheets.
The second selection was, “The Story of Ruth” A Bible Story. The same steps were done
to both. Only, during the intervention, there were two graphic organizers- Story Map and
Venn Diagram used by the experimental group. This time, thirty minutes was provided for
the completion of the two graphic organizers. As for the control group, they had the same
experience again. With regards to the questionnaire, it increased by four questions because it
was made equal to those entry in the graphic organizers accomplished by the experimental
group.
The last selection was the, “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”. Again, all the steps were
followed. Both groups experienced the same except for the intervention. The graphic
organizer - Semantic Web was included among those worksheets answered by the
experimental group. And, those in the control group, they had 15 questions to answer. The
addition of one more question was to make the number similar to those in the graphic
organizers. In checking the graphic organizers and essay tests, a simple rubric was made to
let the students know the reasons for their scores.

This part presents the results and findings on the effectiveness of the graphic organizers
as tools in improving the reading comprehension in English of the Grade 8 - Timothy
students.
Table 1
Data on the Average Mean of the Control Group and Experimental Group on the three stories
using graphic Organizer
Mean Average Mean Average Mean Average
Participant “Tale of “Story of Ruth” “Story of Ali Baba and Forty
Ch’unhyang” (Story Map, Venn Thieves”
(Story Map) Diagram) – (Story Map, Venn Diagram
20 items 30 items Semantic Web)-30 items
Control 6.13 12.67 16.67
Experimental 13.00 17.40 19.00
Mean Difference 6.87 4.73 3.33
219
Table 1 shows that the use of one graphic organizer in the “Tale of Ch’unyang” gained a
higher mean difference of 6.87 as compared to the “Story of Ruth” and “Ali Baba and Forty
Thieves” with a mean difference of 4.73 and 3.33 respectively. This shows that using one
graphic organizer per story is more effective to students with low level of comprehension
than in using two or more graphic organizer per story.
Table 2
Comparative Data on Pre-Tests of the Control and Experimental Groups
(T- Value from the Control and the Experimental Group)
Participant Mean Critical Computed T - Decision
Value Value
Control 9.07
Experimental 9.33 1.701 -0.367 Not Significant
Mean Difference 0.26 (No difference)
Table 2: shows the absolute value of -0.367 is less than the tabular value of 1.701 at .05 level
of significance with 28 degrees of freedom, the null hypothesis is accepted. This means there
is no significant difference between the control and experimental groups on their level of
reading comprehension. This implies that the two groups are matched and can be subjected
for the experimental research.
Table 3
Degree of Difference between the Test of the Control Group and the Experimental Group on
the Use of Graphic Organizer- Story Map on,” Tale of Ch’unhyang”
Participant Test Score Mean Score T - Value Verbal
Interpretation
Control 92 6.13
Experimental 195 13
Arithmetic Difference 103 6.87 9.964 Significant
Table 3 shows after the intervention, the experimental group’s mean score was 13.00 while
that of the control group was 6.13. The computed t – value was higher than the ttv of 2.145
with level of significance of .05. Therefore, Ho is not accepted and this strongly implies that
there is a significant improvement in the reading comprehension skills of the students
220
considering the use of the story map. This suggests that the students appreciated learning with
the presence of the structured and clear template in organizing the information.
Table 4
Degree of Difference between the Test of the Control Group and the Experimental Group on
the Use of Graphic Organizer- Story Map andVenn Diagram on,” The Story of Ruth”
Interpretation
Control 190 12.67
Experimental 261 17.40 -3.621 Significant
ArithmeticDifference 71 4.73
Table 4 shows that after the intervention, the computed t – value of -3.621 is more than the
critical t – value of 2.145 with level of significance of .05 and with a degree of freedom of
14. This means Ho is disconfirmed. There is significant difference between the means of the
two groups. This result concludes that the use of the graphic organizers aided the students on
understanding the short story as evident on the significantly greater mean of the experimental
group.
Table 5
Data on the Result of Scores on the Use of Graphic Organizer- Story Map, Venn Diagram
and Semantic Web on, “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”
Interpretation
Control 235 15.67
Experimental 285 19.00
Arithmetic 50 3.33 3.109 Significant
Difference
Table 5 shows that after the intervention, the computed t – value of 3.109 was higher than
the ttv of 2.145 with level of significance of .05. Therefore, Ho is not accepted and this
strongly implies that there is a significant improvement in the reading comprehension skills
of the students considering the use of the graphic organizers.This suggests that even the low
221
performing students can perform better if the proper motivating materials are introduced to
them.
Table 6
Comparative Data on Pre-Test and Post-Test of the Control and Experimental Groups
(T – Value from the Pre-test and Post-test of the Grade 8 – Titus)
Test Total Score Mean Score T – Value Verbal
(450) Interpretation
Pre-test 136 9.07
Post test 204 13.60 6.004 Significant
Arithmetic Difference 68 4.53
Table 6 - A shows that the computed t – value of 6.004 was higher than the critical value of
2.145 with level of significance of .05. Therefore, the Ho is not accepted. And, it implies that
there is significant improvement in the reading comprehension of the students.
(T – Value from the Pre-test and Post-test of the Grade 8 – Timothy)
Test Total Score Mean Score T – Value Verbal
(450) Interpretation
Pre-test 140 9.33
Post test 262 17.46 7.285 Significant
Arithmetic Difference 122 8.13
Table 6 - B shows that the computed t – value of 7.285 is higher than the critical value of
2.145 with level of significance of .05 and a degree of freedom of 14. The Ho is not accepted
and this implies that there is a significant improvement in the reading comprehension skills of
the Grade 8 – Timothy. After using the graphic organizers, the students greatly improved.
Table 7
Comparative Data on Posttests of the Control and Experimental Groups
Participant Mean Critical Value Computed T - Decision
Value
Control Group 13.6
Experimental Group 17.47
Mean Difference 3.87 2.048 - 3.189 Significant
222
Table 7 shows the tcv of -3.189 is greater than or beyond the ttv of 2.048 at .05 level of
significance with 28 degrees of freedom, the null hypothesis is disconfirmed. This means
there is a significant difference between the control group and the experimental group as to
the compared mean and posttests of both groups.
Summary/Findings
The average mean of the control group on their pre-test is 9.07 while the mean average of
experimental group is 9.33 with a mean difference of .26. The t-test results show that there is
no significant difference on the reading comprehension of the experimental and control
group. The post tests of both groups after the discussion on the selection using graphic
organizer for the experimental group and traditional method for the control reveal an average
mean of 13.6 for the control group and 17.47 for the experimental group. The story “Tale of
Ch’unhyang” using story map and the” Story of Ruth” using story map,and Venn diagram
achieved a mean of 6.13 for the control group and 13 for experimental group and a mean of
12.67 and 17.40 respectively while the story “Ali baba and the Forty Thieves” using story
map, Venn diagram and semantic web achieved a mean of 15.67 for the control group and 19
for the experimental group. The t-value of -3.189 for the post test of the control and
experimental group is beyond the tabular value of 2.048 at .05 level of significance; thus, the
null hypothesis that there is no difference in the student’s reading comprehension between
those who are exposed in the use of graphic organizer and those exposed in traditional
method is disconfirmed. The t-value of 7.285 for the pre-test and posttest of experimental
group is greater than the tabular value of 2.145 at .05 level of significance with degrees of
freedom; thus, the null hypothesis that the use of graphic organizer will not improve
significantly the level of reading in English of the experimental group was rejected.
Conclusion
The t-test result on the pre-tests of the control and experimental groups reveals that the
two groups are matched on their reading comprehension ability. The mean results of the
control and experimental groups on the 3 stories using graphic organizers: story map, Venn
diagram, semantic web indicate that the reading comprehension levels of the two groups
increased as they move from one story to another. The mean difference reveals that the
experimental group’s reading comprehension improves better than the control group. There is
223
a significant difference on the reading comprehension of the control and experimental group
and the use of the 3 kinds of graphic organizers contributed to this difference. The significant
improvement of the experimental group on their post-test as compared to pre-test can be
attributed to the intervention; thus, the use of graphic organizers is effective.
Recommendation
It is recommended that the speed reading comprehension test and pre-test be conducted to
determine the students’ reading comprehension level to provide appropriate intervention.
Aside from using the traditional method in developing the comprehension level of students
the use of story map, Venn diagram, semantic web, and other graphic organizers can be used
as intervention in improving the level of comprehension of students. Trainings on the benefits
and use of graphic organizer can be incorporated in the INSET of English teachers so other
teachers can benchmark from the result of the research. A similar study can be conducted to
students of higher sections to find out the effectiveness of graphic organizers to other groups
of students.
Bibliography
Baxendell, B., (2003, January/February).Consistent,Coherent, Creative, The 3C’s of Graphic
Organizers. Teaching Exceptional Children, 35(3) 46-53.
Bondoc, V. et al. 2014. Action Research Made Easy, Lorimar Publishing Inc. Manila
Boulineau, T. , Force, C., Hagan- Burke & Grammar Text Comprehension of Elementary
Students with Learning Disabilities
Chang, K .E. Sung,Y.T., and Chen,S. F. (2002)The Effect of Concept Mapping to Enhance
Text Comprehension and Summarization.
Calderon, Jose F and Gonzales, Expectacion C. 2012 Methods of Research and Thesis
Writing, National Bookstore, Inc. Manila
Canale, M. and M. Swain . 1980. Theoretical biases of communicative approacher to second
language teaching. Applied Linguistics
David, R.C. (2014). Action Research: The Effects of Incentives and Reward System on the
Utilization of Marungko Approach for Non- readers in Grade 2 Filipino
Dexter,D.D., Park, Y.J., and Hughes, C.A. (2011) A Meta Analytic Review of Graphic
Organizers and Science Instruction for Adolescent with Learning Disabilities :
Implication for the intermediate and Secodary Science Classroom.
224
Garrett, Henry E. Statistics in Psychology and Education. Fifth Edition. New York : David
McKay Company, Inc., 1958
Gillet, Jean Wallace. 1986. Understanding Reading Problem. Canada: Brown & Company
Canada Limited.
Graney, M.J. (1992) . A framework for Using Text Graphing System Read Informational
Texts. Library Media Connection, 36 – 38.
Graphic organizer – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia https://en.m.wikipedia.org > wiki >
Grap...
K 12 Curriculum Guide December 2013
Koda, K. (2007). Reading and Language Learning : Cross linguistic constraints on second
language reading development. Language Learning, 57(1), 1 – 44.
Merriam- Webster’s collegiate dictionary (11th ed.). (Springfield, MA: Merriam – Webster.
Susman, G. (1983). Action Research : A Sociological System Perspective. Gage Publication.
The Dr. Mack Gipson, Jr., Tutorial and Enrichment Center, Paine College, Augusta, GA –
Prepared by Carole D. Overton, Director Using the APA Style Manual – 6th Edition
Appendices
Appendix A
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Appendix G
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Appendix H
Appendix I
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Appendix
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Appendix J
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Appendix H
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Appendix K
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Appendix L
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Appendix M
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Appendix N
Table A
Comparative Data on Pre-Tests of the Control and Experimental Groups
Control Group Pre-Test Experimental Group Pre-test

( 8 – Titus ) ( 8 – Timothy )
1. Alberto, James Louie B. 8 1. Alburo, Paulo A. 11
2. David, Cezar Jr. F. 6 2. Canlas, Al Paulo A. 10
3. Dizon, Johndoe C. 10 3. Lansangan, Lee Raymart D. 8
4. Liang, Joseph T. 9 4. Lopez III , Gonzalo B. 11
5. Magtoto, Jonel 8 5. Manao, Jeffrey R. 6
6. Mercado, Mark Dennis L. 12 6. Mendoza, Ralph Lauren A. 8
7. Nunag, Erl Jolo S. 8 7. David, Christine A. 10
8. Pamposa, Justine D. 7 8. Garcia, Princess Diana B. 12
9. Regala, Andrei Neil P. 13 9. Guintu, Jonalyn Mae B. 10
10. Sirug, Emmanuel T. 10 10. Lalu, Camille B. 9
11. Vitug, Gerome Philip 10 11. Mendoza, Sarah Denise B. 7
12. Frondozo, Lhecy C. 9 12. Pangilinan, Rica Mae Anne B. 8
13. Matus,Sunshine M. 8 13. Pineda, Jennelyn B. 13
14. Pagal, Maria Celina A 9 14. Purificacion, Lianne Joh D. 11
15. Tripulca, Jessa M. 9 15. Teng, Kate Cristine B. 6
Total 136 Total 140
Mean 9.07 Mean 9.33
Table A shows that there were fifteen Grade 8 – Timothy and fifteen Grade 8 - Titus in
the study. The summation of all the scores of the fifteen Grade 8 – Titus as the control group
was 136 which resulted to the mean score of 9.07 while that of 8 – Timothy (experimental
group) was140 which had the mean score of 9.33.
Statistical Treatment
t = t test
248
X1 = mean of control group 9.07

X2 = mean of experimental group 9.33
SS1= sum of squares of control group 44.93
SS2= sum of squares of experimental group 63.33
N1 = Sample size in control group = 15
N2 = Sample size in experimental group = 15
Level of Significance
= .05
df = N1 + N2 - 2 = 28
ttv = 2. 048
tcv = - 0367
The Decision:
Since the absolute value of - 0367 is less than the ttv of 2. 048 at .05 level of significance
with 28 degrees of freedom, the null hypothesis is confirmed, this means there is no
significant difference between the control and the experimental groups as to the compared
mean of pre-tests of both control and experimental groups. This implies that the two groups
can be used for comparison because they match.
The Formula and Computation:
Control Group ( 8 – Titus) Experimental Group ( 8 – Timothy)
( Σ X1 )² = 18, 496 ( Σ X1 )² = 19,600
136 X 136 = 18,496 140 X 140 = 19,600
SS1 = Σ X1 ² - (Σ X1 )² SS2 = Σ X2 ² - (Σ X2 )²
N1 N2
SS1 = 1278 - (18,496 ) SS2 = 1370 - (19,600 )
15 15
SS1 = 1278 - 1,233.07 SS2 = 1,370 - 1306.67
SS1 = 44.93 SS2 = 63.33
Formula:
X1 - X2
t =
( SS1 + SS2_) ( 1_ 1_ )
N1 + N2 - 2 N1 + N2
249
9.07 - 9.33
t =
( 44.93 + 63.33_) ( 1_ + 1_ )
15 + 15 - 2 15 15
- 0.26
t =
( 108.26_) ( 2_ )
28 15
- 0.26
t =
( 3.87 ) ( 0.13 )
- 0.26
t =
0.5031
t = - 0. 26
0.709
t = - 0 367
Table B
Data on the Result of Scores on the Use of Graphic Organizer- Story Map and the Traditional
Teaching - Learning Methodology
Selection: Tale of Ch’unhyang
(No. of item: 20)
Control Group Score Experimental Group Score
( 8 – Titus )
X1 (300) ( 8 – Timothy ) X2
(300)
7 15
5 15
7 15
250
5 15
6 15
7 15
5 9
5 15
6 15
4 9
7 13
4 9
8 13
8 13
8 9
Total 92 Total 195
Mean 6.13 Mean 13
Table B shows the score of the control group which is 92 out of 300 points and the mean
score of 6.13. On the other hand, the experimental group obtained the total score of 195 out
of the 300 points and the mean score of 13.
Table C
Degree of Difference between the Test of the Control Group and the Experimental Group
Data on the Result of Scores on the Use of Graphic Organizer- Story Map
Selection: Tale of Ch’unhyang from Korea
(No. of item: 20)
Student Control Group Experimental Differences
(8 – Titus) Group
(X1 – X2) (X1 – X2) ²
X1 ( 8 – Timothy )
X2
251
7 15 -8 64
5 15 -10 100
7 15 -8 64
5 15 -10 100
6 15 -9 81
7 15 -8 64
5 9 -4 16
5 15 -10 100
6 15 -9 81
4 9 -5 25
7 13 -6 36
4 9 -5 25
8 13 -5 25
8 13 -5 25
8 9 -1 1
Total 92 195 ΣD-103 ΣD ²=807
The Formula:
ΣD
t =
N ΣD ² - (ΣD )²
N -1
The Computation:
-103
t =
15 (807) - (-103)
15-1
-103
t =
252
12,105 - 10,609
14
-103
t =
1,496
14
-103
t =
106.857
-103
t =
10.337
t = -9.964
The Decision:
Since the absolute value of – 9.964 is greater than the ttv of 2.145 at .05 level of
significance with 14 degrees of freedom, the null hypothesis is disconfirmed. This means that
there is significant difference between the scores of the control group and the experimental
group on the use of graphic organizer.
Table D
Data on the Result of Scores on the Use of Graphic Organizers- Story Map, Venn Diagram
Selection: The Story of Ruth
(No. of item: 30)
X1 (450) X2 (450)
18 17
10 17
10 17
10 17
16 17
10 14
253
16 18
16 14
18 18
18 14
10 18
10 20
10 20
9 20
9 20
Total 190 Total 261
Mean 12.67 Mean 17.40
Table D shows the total score of the control group which is 190 out of the 450 points with
a mean score of 12.67. In another group which is the experimental group, there is a total
score of 261 with a mean score of 17.40.
Table E
Data on the Result of Scores on the Use of Graphic Organizer- Story Map and Venn Diagram
Selection: The Story of Ruth from the Bible
(No. of item: 30)
Group X2
X1 (X1 – X2) (X1 – X2) ²
18 17 1 1
10 17 -7 49
10 17 -7 49
10 17 -7 49
254
16 17 -1 1
10 14 -4 16
16 18 -2 4
16 14 2 4
18 18 0 0
18 14 4 16
10 18 -8 64
10 20 -10 100
10 20 -10 100
9 20 -11 121
9 20 -11 121
Total 190 261 ΣD =-71 ΣD ²= 695
Mean 12.67 17.40
The Formula:
ΣD
t =
N ΣD ² - (ΣD )²
N-1
The Computation:
-71
t =
15 (695) - (-71) ²
15-1
-71
t =
10, 425 - 5,041
14
-71
t =
255
5,384
14
-71
t =
384.571
-71
t =
19.610
t = -3.621
The Decision:
Reject the null hypothesis because the absolute value of t which is - 3.621 exceeds the
critical t which is 2.145 at .05 level of significance. There is significant difference between
the means on the use of the graphic organizers: Story map and Venn Diagram.
This result concludes that the use of the graphic organizers aided the students on
understanding the short story as evident on the significantly greater mean of the experimental
group than of the control group.
Table F
Data on the Result of Scores on the Use of Graphic Organizer- Story Map,Venn Diagram and
Semantic Web
Selection: Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
(No. of item: 30)
(8 – Titus) X1 (8 – Timothy) X2
14 18
14 18
18 16
18 16
18 18
18 16
256
17 23
20 23
20 23
20 23
17 23
8 16
17 16
8 18
8 18
Total 235 Total 285
Mean 15.67 Mean 19
Table F shows the data on the result of scores on the use of graphic organizer- Story Map,
Venn Diagram and Semantic Web on the story, “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”. The total
score of 235 had the mean score of 15.67 while the experimental group (Grade 8 – Timothy)
had the total score of 185 with a mean score of 19.
Table G
Data on the Result of Scores on the Use of Graphic Organizer- Story Map, Venn Diagram
and Semantic Web
Selection: Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves from The Arabian Nights
(No. of item: 30)
Group
(8 – Titus) (X1 – X2) (X1 – X2) ²
(8 – Timothy)
X1
X2
14 18 -4 16
257
14 18 -4 16
18 16 2 4
18 16 2 4
18 18 0 0
18 16 2 4
17 23 -6 36
20 23 -3 9
20 23 -3 9
20 23 -3 9
17 23 -6 36
8 16 -8 64
17 16 1 1
8 18 -10 100
8 18 -10 100
Total 235 285 ΣD=-50 ΣD ²= 408
Formula:
ΣD
t =
N ΣD ² - (ΣD )²
N-1
The Computation:
-50
t =
15 (408) - (-50)
15-1
258
-50
t = 6,120 - 2,500
14
-50
t =
3,620
14
-50
t =
258.571
-50
t =
16,080
t = -3.109
The Decision:
Since the absolute value of – 3.109 is greater than the ttv of 2.145 at .05 level of
significance with 14 degrees of freedom, the null hypothesis is disconfirmed. This means
that there is significant difference between the scores of the control group and the
experimental group on the use of graphic organizer.
It can be concluded that the graphic organizers had a positive effect on the reading
comprehension of the students as evident to the significantly greater mean of the
experimental group than of the control group.
Table H
Comparative Data on Pre-Test and Posttest of the Control Group
Control Group Pre-Test Posttest
( 8 – Titus )
X1 X2
8 13
6 9
10 10
259
9 15
8 13
12 12
8 13
7 15
13 13
10 15
10 16
9 14
8 15
9 12
9 19
Total ΣX1 = 136 ΣX2 =204
Table I
Degree of Difference
Comparative Data on Pre-Test and Posttest of the Control Group
Control Group Pre-Test Posttest Difference
( 8 – Titus )
X1 X2 D D²
8 13 -5 25
6 9 -3 9
10 10 0 0
9 15 -6 36
8 13 -5 25
12 12 0 0
260
8 13 -5 25
7 15 -8 64
13 13 0 0
10 15 -5 25
10 16 -6 36
9 14 -5 25
8 15 -7 49
9 12 -3 9
9 19 -10 100
Total ΣX1 =136 ΣX2 = 204 ΣD= - 68 ΣD²=428
_
D = - 4.533
The Formula:
_
D
t =
ΣD ² - (ΣD )²
N
N ( N -1 )
The Computation:
4. 533
t =
428 - (4, 624)
15
15 ( 14 )
4.533
t =
428 - 308.2666
210
261
4.533
t =
119.7334
210
4.533
t =
0.570
4.533
t =
0.7550
t = 6.004
= .05
df = N - 1= 14
ttv = 2. 145
tcv = 6. 004
The Decision:
Since the tcv of 6.004 is greater than or beyond the ttv of 2.145 at .05 level of
significance with 14 degrees of freedom , the null hypothesis is disconfirmed. This means
there is a significant difference between the scores in the pre-test and the posttest of the
control group.
This means that there was an improvement in the reading comprehension of the control
group after the discussion of the lesson.
Table J
Comparative Data on Pre-Test and Posttest of the Experimental Group
Experimental Group Pre-test Posttest
( 8 – Timothy )
X1 X2
11 17
10 15
8 15
262
11 25
6 22
8 20
10 21
12 17
10 20
9 18
7 19
8 12
13 19
11 11
6 11
Total ΣX1 = 140 ΣX2 =262
Table K
Degree of Difference
Comparative Data on Pre-Test and Posttest of the Experimental Group
Experimental Group Pre-Test Posttest Difference
( 8 – Timothy )
X1 X2 D D²
11 17 -6 36
10 15 -5 25
8 15 -7 49
11 25 -14 196
6 22 -16 256
8 20 -12 144
263
10 21 -11 121
12 17 -5 25
10 20 -10 100
9 18 -9 81
7 19 -12 144
8 12 -4 16
13 19 -6 36
11 11 0 0
6 11 -5 25
Total ΣX1 = 140 ΣX2 =262 ΣD= - 122 ΣD²=1,254
_
D = - 8.13
The Formula:
_
D
t =
ΣD ² - (ΣD )²
N
N ( N-1 )
The Computation:
- 8.13
t =
1,254 - (-122) ²
15
15 ( 14 )
-8.13
t =
1,254 - 992.27
210
264
-8.13
t =
261.73
210
- 813
t =
1.246
-813
t =
1.116
t = 7.285
= .05
df = N - 1 = 14
ttv = 2. 145
tcv = 7.285
The Decision:
Reject the hypothesis because the tcv of 7.285 is greater than or beyond the ttv of 2.145
at .05 level of significance with 14 degrees of freedom , the null hypothesis is
disconfirmed.This means there is a significant difference between the scores in the pre-test
and the posttest of the experimental group.
It can be concluded that the use of graphic organizers greatly improved the reading
comprehension of the experimental group than those in the control group.
Table L
Comparative Data on Posttests of the Control and Experimental Groups
Control Group Posttest Experimental Group Posttest
(8 - Titus) (8 – Timothy)
13 17
9 15
265
10 15
15 25
13 22
12 20
13 21
15 17
13 20
15 18
16 19
14 12
15 19
12 11
19 11
Total 204 Total 262
Mean 13.6 Mean 17.47
Table L reveals the comparative data on post tests of the control and experimental groups.
The control group consisting of the Grade 8 - Titus got the total score of 204 and the mean
score of 13.6 while the experimental group consisting of the Grade 8 - Timothy got the total
score of 262 and the mean score of 17.47.
Statistical Treatment
t = t test
X1 = mean of control group 13.60
X2 = mean of experimental group 17.47
SS1= sum of squares of control group 83.60
SS2= sum of squares of experimental group 233.73
N1 = Sample size in control group = 15
N2 = Sample size in experimental group = 15
266
= .05
df = N1 + N2 - 2 = 28
ttv = 2. 048
tcv = -3.189
The Decision:
Since the tcv of -3.189 is greater than or beyond the ttv of 2.048 at .05 level of
significance with 28 degrees of freedom , the null hypothesis is disconfirmed. This means
there is a significant difference between the control group and the experimental group as to
the compared mean of posttests of both groups.
It can be concluded that the use of graphic organizers can greatly improve the reading
comprehension of the students as evident to the significantly greater mean of the
experimental group than of the control group.
The Formula and Computation:
Control Group ( 8 – Titus) Experimental Group ( 8 – Timothy)
( Σ X1 )² = 41,616 ( Σ X1 )² = 68,644
204 X 204 = 41,616 262 X 262 = 68,644
SS1 = Σ X1 ² - (Σ X1 )² SS2 = Σ X2 ² - (Σ X2 )²
N1 N2
SS1 = 2,858 - (41,616 ) SS2 = 4,810 - (68,644 )
15 15
SS1 = 2,858 - 2,774.4 SS2 = 4,810 - 4,576.27
SS1 = 83.60 SS2 = 233.73
Formula:
X 1 - X2
t =
( SS1 + SS2_) ( 1_ 1_ )
N1 + N2 - 2 N1 + N2
13.60 - 17.47
t =
( 83.60 + 233.73_) ( 1_ + 1_ )
15 + 15 - 2 15 15
- 3.87
t = ( 317.33_) ( 2_ )
267
28 15
- 3.87
t =
( 11.33 ) ( 0.13 )
- 3.87
t =
1.4729
t = - 3.87
1.2136
t = - 3.189
268
Title
Promoting Foreign Language Learners’ Writing: Comparing the Impact of Oral Conferencing
and Collaborative Writing
Author
Mania Nosratinia
Assistant Professor of Applied Linguistics
Islamic Azad University at Central Tehran, Iran
Niousha Nikpanjeh
MA in TEFL
Islamic Azad University at Central Tehran, Iran
Bio-Profiles:
Mania Nosratinia is Assistant Professor in TEFL, Islamic Azad University, Central Tehran
Branch. She has been teaching at undergraduate and graduate levels in the areas of English
language teaching methodology, language testing, and research methodology in language
studies. She has published in national and international academic journals and presented in
several national and international ELT conferences. She has been elected as the "Honor
Researcher" in The 9th Festival in Honor of Islamic Azad University, at Central Tehran,
Elites.
Niousha Nikpanjeh holds an MA in TEFL from Islamic Azad University at Central Tehran
and is an English teacher at a number of language schools. Her main areas of research interest
include using innovative techniques in ELT and psycholinguistics.
269
Abstract
This study was an attempt to compare the effect of oral conferencing alongside
collaborative writing on writing ability of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners. For
this purpose, a piloted sample of the Preliminary English Test (PET) was administered to 90
intermediate female EFL learners, between 20 and 32 years old (Mage = 26). The results of this
test enabled the researchers to select 60 homogenous individuals who were then randomly
assigned into two experimental groups of 30 named "oral conferencing group" and
"collaborative writing group". To ensure the homogeneity among the participants in terms of
their writing ability before the treatment, their scores on the writing section of the PET test
were analyzed in isolation and it was considered as the pretest of the study. Oral conferencing
included the discussions and negotiations among the participants and the teacher before and
after writing activities followed by live teacher-student as well as student-student feedbacks.
In the collaborative writing group, the participants wrote compositions in groups based on the
same topics introduced in the oral conferencing group. At the end, both experimental groups
were given another piloted writing section of the PET test as the posttest. The analysis of the
test scores using an independent samples t-test and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA)
revealed that there is a significant difference between the effect of oral conferencing and
collaborative writing on EFL learners’ writing ability. It was concluded that the ability of
EFL learners’ writing was more affected by applying oral conferencing rather than
collaborative writing.
Index Terms—collaborative writing, oral conferencing, writing ability
Introduction
Writing is regarded as an instrument through which people communicate with one
another in time and space, transmitting their culture from one generation to another. Writing
as one of the main and productive language skills, which was once considered as the domain
of well-educated people, is becoming an essential tool for everyone in today's community
(Cushing Weigle, 2002).
In this perspective writing as a significant requirement for EFL learners is regarded as one
of the most important communicative skills in English language learning (Biria & Jafari,
2013; Goodlet, & Pymberton, 1989; Hayes & Flower, 1986). Researchers have found that
foreign language learners find it painstaking to write in the target language, producing less
270
fluent sentences and encountering difficulties in the revisions of their written work (Fatemi,
2008; Hyland, 2003; McCoy, 2003; Tan, 2007). However, these difficulties are not only
attributed to their linguistic abilities but they mostly lay in the nature of writing process itself
(Chih, 2008).
Rooted in the ideas introduced in the process approach to writing, the provision of second
party feedback, usually by the teacher, on learners’ drafts is now given a higher level of
attention (Williams, 2002). Accordingly, the provision of written corrective feedback on
second/foreign language writing has been regarded as an integral component of writing
programs (Mirzaii, 2012).
Oral conferencing is considered one type of corrective feedback (Mirzaii, 2012).
According to Bayraktar (2009), oral conferencing is identified and “referred to as response
sessions, assisted performance, face-to-face interaction, one-to-one teaching, conversation
about the student’s paper, and meaningful contact” (p. 11). Oral conferencing is
advantageous in a way that teachers can foster learners' reflection on their own learning
process; elicit language performances on particular tasks, skills, or other language points as
well as helping them to develop a better self-image (Brown & Hudson, 1998).
Besides, oral conferencing is believed to assist teachers in creating a collaborative
atmosphere, encouraging learners to actively engage in practicing writing (Ewert, 2009).
Collaboration in writing has been drawing an increasing attention in language teaching and
assessment (DiCamilla & Anton, 1997; Storch, 2005; Swain & Lapkin, 1998). According to
Reither (1989) “thinking of writing as a collaborative process presents more precise ways to
consider what writers do when they write, not just with their texts, but also with their
language, their personae, and their readers” (p. 624). Collaborative writing requires learners
to utilize a range of social skills that can help foster a sense of accountability, cooperation,
and community (Murray, 1992; Savova & Donato, 1991; Villamil & De Guerrero, 1996).
Moreover, collaborative writing, like any other collaborative activity, provides learners with
the opportunity to give and receive immediate feedback on language, an opportunity which,
as claimed by Vanderburg (2006) is “missing when learners write individually” (p. 378).
Learners’ working in groups, particularly in collaborative groups, constructs new ways of
understanding and develops greater skills (Web, 1989).
However, writing is generally considered as an individual activity through which ideas are
transferred from the writer's mind to the reader's. Therefore, quite few researches have been
conducted to examine the impact of corrective feedback on productive English skills,
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particularly writing. As a result, this study aimed to investigate the comparative effect of oral
conferencing, as a type of corrective feedback, and collaborative writing on EFL learner's
writing ability.
To fulfill this objective, the research question, stated below, was formulated:
Q: Is there any significant difference between the impact of oral conferencing and
collaborative writing on EFL learners’ writing ability?
Accordingly, the following null hypothesis was formulated:
H0: There is no significant difference between the impact of oral conferencing and
collaborative writing on EFL learners’ writing ability.
Method
Participants
The 60 participants of this study were chosen from Hermes Institute in Tehran. They were
female EFL learners at the intermediate level whose mother tongues was Persian and their
age was between 20 to 32 years old (Mage = 26). They had been exposed to English courses for
about 5 years in average. These participants were selected conveniently and homogenized
through a piloted PET test among 90 learners. They were randomly assigned into two
experimental groups of 30 named "oral conferencing group" and "collaborative writing
group". To ensure the homogeneity among the participants of the two groups in terms of their
writing ability before the treatment, their scores on the writing section of the PET test were
analyzed in isolation. Before administrating the PET test, a group of 30 students with almost
similar characteristics -age, gender and proficiency level- to the target sample were used for
the piloting of this test and the writing posttest. In addition to one of the researchers, as a
teacher and rater, another trained rater participated in the assessment of writing section of
PET test.
Instrumentation
In order to accomplish the purpose of the study, the following instruments were utilized:
The Preliminary English Test
The Preliminary English Test (PET) is now internationally recognized as a reliable test
calibrated for the elementary level of English language proficiency. Being created by the
University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations in England, the exam intends to be unbiased
regarding test takers’ linguistic backgrounds and nationalities. In addition to the knowledge
272
of grammar and vocabulary, the PET test deals with all of the four skills of language, namely
Reading, Writing, Listening, and Speaking. The PET test contains 125 items, and it takes 125
minutes to take the whole test. In the present study, however, the speaking section of the PET
test was not used due to the limitations imposed by the institute officials.
The Writing Scale of PET
The employed rating scale for rating the PET test’s writing section in the present study
was created by Cambridge, called The General Mark Schemes for Writing. Using the
criterion stated in this rating scale, the writing scores ranged from 0 to 5.
Writing Pretest
In order to make sure that the participants in the two groups belonged to the same
population in terms of writing ability, the participants' scores of the writing section of the
PET test were analyzed in isolation and used as the writing pretest. This section consisted of
three parts followed by 7 questions. The participants were required to fulfill the tasks of the
test by using their lexical and syntactic abilities, such as writing letters, stories, and short
messages.
Touchstone 3
Touchstone, by Michael McCarthy, Jeanne McCarten, and Helen Sandiford (2005) has
been published by the press syndicate of the University of Cambridge. This textbook is
argued to offer an innovative and novel approach to EFL learning and teaching. Focusing on
the North American English, this textbook has employed the Cambridge International
Corpus which is composed of a huge amount of conversations and written texts. This book
contains all language skills and sub-skills, and offers exciting ideas for personalized, learner-
centered interaction. In this study, the students dealt with three units of the textbook, units 6,
7, and 8.
Compositions
The participants were asked to write six compositions during the treatment sessions. They
had 40 minutes to write about each predetermined argumentative topics. The topics of the
compositions were the same across two experimental groups. The compositions consisted of
150 to 250 words and had to be written in descriptive voice. The compositions should have
three parts -introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion.
In oral conferencing group each student should write her composition at home. In each
session four or five students read their compositions in classroom. Contrary to oral
273
conferencing group, the students in collaborative writing group were asked to write their
compositions collaboratively in classroom.
Oral Conferencing Checklist
This checklist is designed by Moradan and Hedayati (2011). It contains a set of questions
to be asked from all participants in oral conferencing group regarding pre and post writing
activities during the treatment period. It is the result of discussions between the
aforementioned researchers and their five coworkers in their study. It starts with some general
questions regarding the participants’ opinions about their writing abilities prior to the writing
activity, and it ends with some questions about participants’ ideas regarding their weaknesses
and strengths in writing activity.
Jacobs, Zinkgraf, Wormuth, Hartfiel, and Hughey’s (1981) ESL Composition Profile
This instrument is an analytic scoring scale and consists of five subcategories of content,
organization, vocabulary, language use, and mechanics. Each subcategory is in detail and the
scoring system is clearly defined. The total score is calculated from 100 and the proportions
of scoring are predetermined in the scale according to participants' performance in each part.
Writing Posttest
The posttest which was administered at the end of the study was the writing section of
another version of PET. It was piloted in advance. This test was given to the participants for
comparing the participants' writing ability in terms of the effect of both oral conferencing and
collaborative writing.
Procedure
Prior to the experiment, the PET test and writing post-test were standardized by piloting
among a group of 30 female students from Hermes Institute in Tehran. These EFL learners
had almost similar characteristics of the main participants. The writing section of the PET test
was scored, using the rating scale stated earlier, by the one of the researchers and another
qualified rater. The researchers observed a consistency between the scores provided by the
raters on the writings. This inter-rater reliability index acknowledged the existence of an
acceptable consistency between the raters.
The piloted PET test was given to 90 intermediate level female students who were
selected conveniently. Among them, 60 students were chosen whose score fall between one
standard deviation above and below the mean. The 60 subjects were divided randomly into
274
two experimental groups of 30 named "oral conferencing group" and "collaborative writing
group".
To ensure that the two groups were homogeneous in terms of their writing ability, the
scores of the writing section of the PET test were analyzed in isolation and were used as the
pretest scores of the participants. Both groups received the same amount of instruction. The
course consisted of 10 sessions of 90 minutes spanning over a period of five weeks.
One of the researchers (functioning as the teacher) tried to teach the relevant grammatical
points as well as the essential vocabularies alongside of language skills with special focus on
the writing skill. Participants were also given the same topics for their compositions and they
were taught how to write a composition including introduction, body paragraphs, and
conclusion. Compositions were rated according to the Jacobs et al.’s (1981) ESL
Composition Profile by the one of the researchers (the teacher) and the other rater.
Oral Conferencing Group
Oral conferencing in this study included the discussions and negotiations among the
participants and the teacher before and after writing activities followed by live teacher-
student as well as student-student feedbacks. To do this, the Anderson Model (2000) and Oral
Conferencing Checklist designed by Moradan and Hedayati (2011) were used.
Anderson (2000, as cited in Bayraktar, 2009) states that teacher-student writing
conferences generally fall into the following four types:
1) Rehearsal conferences which help students find idea to write about;
2) Drafting conferencing which assists students develop their ideas and determine which
genre and style they want to write in;
3) Revision conferences which help student improve their initial drafts; and
4) Editing conferences whose main focus lies in helping students become better editors.
In this group students should write their compositions at home. Based on the feedback
they had already received regarding the conferences in the class they would revise their
writings. After completing the writing tasks, the students were asked to conference regarding
their ideas, weaknesses, and strengths during the writing task.
The students in oral conferencing group were concentrated on the overall meaning and
organization of their writing, and also on the vocabularies, language use, and the mechanics
of writing. All the conferences conducted orally. Oral Conferencing Checklist designed by
Moradan and Hedayati (2011) were used for this purpose. The teacher asked questions and
275
gave students enough time to speak about their problems and to provide students with
appropriate feedback.
Collaborative Writing Group
Whether to have students choose their own partners or they should be assigned at random
into groups is the first major consideration in applying collaborative writing method
(Mulligan & Garofalo, 2011). Although instructors may present a better idea for matching
students in groups, if the students choose their own partners themselves it would be more
effective for cooperative learning as a basic goal of collaborative writing (Cote, 2006). Based
on this, the students were divided into 5 groups of 6 in order to write the assigned
compositions and provide each other with feedback regarding their weaknesses and strengths.
Contrary to oral conferencing group, the students in collaborative writing group were
asked to write their compositions collaboratively in classroom. In other words, all members
of a group were responsible for making a final piece of writing. The same procedure which
was used for familiarizing students in oral conferencing group with how to write a
composition was also used for students in collaborative writing group. The teacher had to
provide them with topic then they should go through the process of writing collaboratively
which was based on the proposed steps of Mulligan and Garofalo (2011). Based on the
requirements of this study and limitations which were imposed on the researchers by the
institute officials, some modifications on the Mulligan and Garofalo's model (2011) was done
as follows:
(1) Students chose their partners themselves;
(2) All the members of a group brainstormed ideas about the target topic and organized the
information into coherent groupings;
(3) All the members of a group did outlining, planning, and crafting.
(4) The whole writing (composition) was read in the classroom by one of the members of the
group.
(5) The teacher checked the compositions based on Jacobs et al.’s (1981) ESL Composition
Profile, and pointing out structural and organization errors, and providing the related
group with comments and suggestions.
At the end of the treatment phase, the participants of both groups sat for the posttest that
was the piloted writing section of the PET test which took about 55 minutes. The result of the
test was evaluated by the two raters based on the PET rating scale.
276
I. Results
This study set out to compare the effect of oral conferencing and collaborative writing on
EFL learners’ writing ability. The design of this study is quasi experimental. The independent
variable has two modalities, oral conferencing and collaborative writing. The dependent
variable is writing ability. The two control variables are the language proficiency and gender
of the participants. In order to answer the research question of this study both descriptive and
inferential statistics were taken in the piloting phase and administration, respectively.
Following the piloting of the PET test, the mean scores, the standard deviation of scores,
and the reliability indices were calculated. This calculation demonstrated that the mean score
was 53.24 and the standard deviation was 8.74. The item analysis revealed that there were
two malfunctioning items in the test. After the deletion of the 2 malfunctioning items, the
reliability of the test using Cronbach alpha was .94. The inter-rater reliability was calculated
using the Pearson correlation coefficient, showing the existence of a significant correlation.
Accordingly, the same raters could be used for rating the following administrations of the
test.
After the procedure of piloting the PET test, it became an instrument to homogenize the
students for this study. 90 EFL learners took part in the test administration. Following the
administration, the descriptive statistics were calculated. This showed that the mean was 55.
24 and the standard deviation was 9.20. The reliability of the PET test in this actual
administration was .89. In the next phase, the scores of the participants on the PET writing
section were analyzed in isolation in order to inspect the homogeneity of the participants in
the two groups before the treatment. The two groups' mean scores were almost the same
(Oral conferencing = 10.6000, Collaborative writing = 10.0033). Thus, one can conclude that
there was no noticeable difference between the means of the two groups at the outset of the
study. Also, according to the results of a t-test, there was not a significant difference between
the two experimental groups regarding their writing ability (t (58) = .77, p > 0.05) which
confirms their homogeneity (Table 1).
277
Table 1: t-test Results of Experimental Groups on Writing Pre-Test

Levene's Test t-test for Equality of Means
for Equality of
Variances
F Sig. t df Sig. (2- Mean Std. Error 95% Confidence
tailed) Difference Difference Interval of the
Difference
Lower Upper
Pretest Equal variances 2.85 .096 .779 58 .439 .56667 .72727 -.88913 2.022
assumed 46
Equal variances .779 55.296 .439 .56667 .72727 -.89065 2.023
notassumed 98
The results of the Pearson correlations indicated that there were significant agreements
between the two raters who rated the subjects’ writings on the posttest (r (58) = .94, p < .05
representing a large effect size) for the writing part 2 and posttest of writing (r (58) = .96, p <
.05 representing a large effect size) for the writing part 3.
Testing Assumptions
In this study the data were analyzed through an independent t-test and analysis of
covariance (ANCOVA) which have two common assumptions; normality and homogeneity
of variances. The latter will be discussed below when reporting the main results. As reported
in Table 2, the skewness and kurtosis ratios were within the ranges of +/- 1.96, confirming
the normality of the data.
Table 2: Descriptive Statistics of PET of the Two Experimental Groups
N Skewness Kurtosis
Group Statistic Statistic Std. Error Ratio Statistic Std. Error Ratio
Reading 30 .177 .427 0.41 -.560 .833 -0.67
PreWR 30 -.234 .427 -0.55 -.140 .833 -0.17
Conferencing LC 30 .005 .427 0.01 -1.153 .833 -1.38
PostWR 30 -.559 .427 -1.31 .380 .833 0.46
Proficiency 30 .148 .427 0.35 -.733 .833 -0.88
Reading 30 .479 .427 1.12 -.558 .833 -0.67
PreWR 30 .098 .427 0.23 -1.149 .833 -1.38
Collaborative LC 30 -.188 .427 -0.44 -.317 .833 -0.38
PostWR 30 -.080 .427 -0.19 -1.405 .833 -1.69
Proficiency 30 .069 .427 0.16 -.470 .833 -0.56
278
The results of the independent t-test (t (58) = .16 p > .05, r = .021 representing a weak
effect size) showed that there was not any significant difference between two groups’ mean
score on the PET test (Table 3). As a result, it was concluded that the two groups were
homogeneous regarding their general language proficiency prior to the treatment.
Table 3: Independent Samples Test, PET by Groups
Levene's Test for

Equality of t-test for Equality of Means
Variances
95% Confidence
Sig. (2- Mean Std. Error Interval of the
F Sig. T Df
tailed) Difference Difference Difference
Lower Upper
Equal variances assumed 2.151 .148 .158 58 .875 .267 1.689 -3.11 3.64
Equal variances not
.158 55.826 .875 .267 1.689 -3.11 3.65
assumed
As reported in Table 3, it should be pointed out that:

a) The assumption of homogeneity of variances was met (Levene’s F = 2.15, P > .05).
Therefore, the first row was reported; and
b) The negative lower bound value of 95 % confidence interval, i.e. -3.11 indicated that the
difference between the two groups’ means on the PET can be zero.
The Research Question
In order to compare the effect of oral conferencing and collaborative writing on EFL learners’
writing ability, the following research question was formulated:
Q. Is there any significant difference between the effect of collaborative writing and oral
conferencing on EFL learners' writing ability?
To address this research question, an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was run to
compare the oral conferencing and collaborative writing groups’ mean scores on the writing
posttest while controlling for the potential effects of participants’ initial writing ability (the
pretest). The ANCOVA has two main assumptions; homogeneity of regression slopes and
linear relationship between the dependent variable and the covariate.
The assumption of homogeneity of regression slopes assumes that the relationship
between the dependent variable (posttest of writing) and covariate (pretest of writing) shows
the same regression slopes across the two groups. The regression line for collaborative
writing group and oral conferencing group did not show any interaction, i.e. they did not
279
cross each other Figure 1. Based on these results it can be concluded that the assumption of
homogeneity of regression slopes was met.
Figure 1: Homogeneity of Regression Slopes; Posttest of

Writing by Groups Controlling for Pretest
The linear relationship between the dependent variable and covariate can be tested by
examining the spread of dots around the diagonals. If the dots spread around the diagonal, it
can be concluded that the second assumption is also met. The spread of dots for both groups
were close to the diagonals (Figure 2).
Groups
Collaborative Conferencing
280
Figure 2: Assumption of Linear Relationship between

Dependent Variable and Covariate
Before discussing the results of the ANCOVA, it should be stated that the assumption of
homogeneity of variances was not met (Levene’s F = 8.93, P < .05). As noted by Bachman
(2005), Filed (2013) and Pallant (2011) in case the sample size is equal, there is no need to
worry about the violation of this assumption.
As displayed in Table 4 the oral conferencing group (M = 11.61, SE = .19) had a higher
mean than the collaborative writing group (M = 10.58, SE = .19) on the posttest of writing
after removing the effect of pretest.
Table 4: Descriptive Statistics, Posttest of writing by Groups Controlling for Pretest
95% Confidence Interval

Mean Std. Error
Group Lower Bound Upper Bound
Conferencing 11.612a .193 11.225 11.998
Collaborative 10.588a .193 10.202 10.975
a. Covariates appearing in the model are evaluated at the following values: PreWR = 9.35.
The results of ANCOVA (F (1, 57) = 13.93, P < .05, Partial η2 = .19 representing a large
effect size) confirmed the existence of a significant difference between the mean scores of the
two groups on the posttest (Table 5 and Figure 3). Thus, the null-hypothesis which stated that
-There is no significant difference between the effect of oral conferencing and collaborative
writing on EFL learners' writing ability, was rejected.
Table 5: Tests of Between-Subjects Effects; Posttest of Writing by Groups Controlling for

Pretest
Type III Sum of Partial Eta

Df Mean Square F Sig.
Source Squares Squared
Pretest 315.761 1 315.761 284.608 .000 .833
Group 15.455 1 15.455 13.930 .000 .196
Error 63.239 57 1.109
Total 7810.000 60
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
281
Figure 3: Posttest of writing by Groups Controlling for Pretest
Discussion and Conclusion
Regarding the question posed in the present study and based on the statistical analysis of
the data, there is a significant difference between the effect of oral conferencing and
collaborative writing on EFL learners’ writing ability. The results of an independent samples
t-test and analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) revealed that the ability of EFL learners’
writing was more affected by applying oral conferencing rather than collaborative writing
tasks.
This finding supports previous researches. Goldstein and Conrad (1990), for example,
examined learner input and negotiation of meaning through oral conferences between one
teacher and three learners of an advanced level writing class. They came to the conclusion
that learners who negotiated the meaning in the conferences could make better revisions in
their drafts, which in turn improved their writing. On the contrary, those learners who were
not encouraged to negotiate meaning were inclined towards not making revisions or making
very perfunctory revisions that did not result in improved drafts.
This finding, also, is in line with the results of Bitchener (2005) and Wallis (2010) which
revealed that a better achievement in writing can be gained through oral conferencing
effective feedbacks between the teacher and the student.
282
Furthermore, Pathey-Chavez and Ferries (1997) found that the quality of the writing can
be enhanced by oral conferencing sessions which supports the outcome of this study. This
outcome, too, is in line with the findings of Mirzaii (2012) who conducted a study to inspect
the impact of providing written corrective feedback through oral conferencing on the writing
performance of Iranian intermediate-level EFL learners.
In spite of the significant improvement of participants in the oral conferencing group, the
learners who received collaborative writing, also had a better performance in their writing in
the posttest (As shown in Table 4), albeit insignificantly. Therefore, this result suggests that
collaborative writing can also be useful in teaching writing in some contexts. This result is in
line with the finding of a study by Storch (1999), indicating that collaborative tasks are more
accurate compared to the tasks carried out individually. In addition, Kuiken and Vedder
(2002) investigated the role of group interaction in L2 writing in a cross-sectional study. The
result showed that, collaborative writing had an overall significant effect on students’ L2
writing.
Pedagogical Implications
It should be noted that the aforementioned advantages identified for the use of oral
conferencing can only be realized when the teacher can effectively carry out the task, i.e.
offering encouragement, making specific suggestions, establishing a positive rapport, and
having abilities and strategies such as appropriate interaction, effective monitoring, and
supportive evaluation.
Considering the provision of feedback through oral conferencing, the students can be
capable of recognizing their own errors and erroneous areas, planning their learning, and
finally evaluating what they have acquired. Also, being engaged in the conferences, students
needed to maintain the conversations in order to reflect on the points made by the teacher and
the peers; consequently, the speaking ability of the students can be enhanced as well.
Further studies can be carried out to investigate the longer effects of instruction types on
writing enhancement. In other words, future studies can adopt a longitudinal design rather
than a cross-sectional one. In future research, there is a need to have a larger subject sample
size. The more subjects, the greater reliability and validity will result. Also, the effect of oral
conferencing can be investigated on other language skill and sub-skill performance. Apart
from corrective feedback some other feedbacks i.e. electronic feedback’s effect can be
investigated on writing ability. Learners’ individual differences such as learning styles,
283
creativity, critical thinking, learning strategies, learning aptitude, age, gender, cultural
background, background knowledge, and the affective domain are believed to play an
important role in learning and using foreign or second language (Nosratinia & Zaker, 2013,
2014, 2015; Zaker, 2015). Due to some restrictions, these variables have not been taken into
account in the present study. Further studies are suggested to investigate these different
variables.
Appendixes
General Mark Schemes for Writing

Mark Criteria
5 All content elements covered appropriately.
Message clearly communicated to the reader.
4 All content elements adequately dealt with.
Message communicated successfully, on the whole.
3 All content elements attempted.
Message requires some effort by the reader.
Or
One content element omitted but others clearly communicated.
2 Two content elements omitted, or successfully dealt with.
Message only partly communicated to reader.
Or
Script may be slightly short (20-25words).
1 Little relevant content and/or message requires excessive effort by the reader, or
short (10-19 words).
0 Totally irrelevant or totally incomprehensible or too short (under 10 words).
284
285
Oral Conferencing Checklist

Directions:
Ask the following questions in a comfortable, face to face setting. The teacher should assure
students that he/she is only interested in their thoughts strengths and weaknesses in order to
help them on writing. The teacher can ask students to elaborate their answers by asking
questions such as:
- Can you tell me more about it?
- What else do you suggest?
Ask following questions at the very first conference:
- What do you think about your writing ability?
- Do you think you are a successful writer?
- Who is a successful writer?
- What do you do if you have problem in writing?
- What strategies do you use to improve your writing?
Ask the following question when each paragraph is written:
- What is your strength?
- What is your weakness?
- Do you think you have been a successful writer?
- What will you do to improve your paragraph?
Topic sentence
- What is the main idea you want to talk about?
- Is your main idea mentioned in the topic sentence?
Support
- Do you think you have been successful in convincing the reader?
- Are your supports convincing enough?
Coherence
- Are your supports related to the topic sentence (main idea)?
For the Purpose of This Study the Checklist Is Categorized as Follows:

A) Ask the following questions at the very first conference:
- What do you think about your writing ability?
- Do you think you are a successful writer?
- Who is a successful writer?
286
- What do you do if you have problem in writing?

- What strategies do you use to improve your writing?
B) Ask the following questions when each paragraph is written:
- What is your strength?
- What is your weakness?
- Do you think you have been a successful writer?
- What will you do to improve your paragraph?
- Can you tell me more about it?
- What else do you suggest?
C) Topic sentence
- What is the main idea you want to talk about?
- Is your main idea mentioned in the topic sentence?
D) Support
- Do you think you have been successful in convincing the reader?
- Are your supports convincing enough?
E) Coherence
- Are your supports related to the topic sentence (main idea)?
Oral Conference Sample

a) Some examples of the questions and answers between the teacher and learners in first
conference:
Instructor: What do you think about your writing ability?
Learner 1: It is awful, I don’t like writing.
Learner 2: I have even have problem with writing a paragraph in my mother tongue.
Instructor: Do you think you are a successful writer?

Learner: I think I can be a successful writer if I try.
Instructor: Who is a successful writer?

Learner1: A good writer is a person who reads a lot.
Learner 2: A successful writer has self-confidence.
b) Example of the questions and answers between the instructor and learners in conferences
after writing each paragraph:
287
Instructor: What is the main idea you want to talk about?

Learner1: Um, m... I want to talk about both sides of the topic. I both agree and disagree.
Instructor: do you believe it is a good idea to write about both of them in one paragraph?
Learner2: we can write about each one of them in a separate paragraph.
Learner3: for each of them one paragraph.
Instructor: Do you think you have been successful in convincing the reader?
Learner1 reads his paragraph and hesitates.
Learner2: as a reader I am not convinced.
Learner to Learner1: What will you do to improve your paragraph?
Learner1: I can give an example. Something has happened to me.
Instructor: What is your weakness?
Learner1: I always had problem with different tenses?
Instructor: it is great that you check your writing, try to do some grammar exercises. You can
ask someone else to read it and check.
Instructor: It is great that you check your writing, try to do some grammar exercises. You can
ask someone else to read it and check your grammar. It is a good idea to buy
newspaper, read articles and underline verbs and determine their specific tenses.
Acknowledgments
Thank God for the wisdom and perseverance has bestowed upon me. I would like to
express my special thanks to all those who contributed to the possibility of completing
this study.
First among these, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my dear advisor Dr.
Mania Nosratinia whom I had the distinct pleasure and honor to have as a mentor and
advisor. Throughout this work, she did a great deal for this thesis to develop, allocating her
precious time, attention, and comments which certainly added to the quality of my research.
Although it is not all possible to adequately thank my inspiring parents in few words, my
special appreciation goes to them for their unconditional support since the very first moment I
was in this difficult process. I should thank my little brother whose extreme care for my
success I have long found really uplifting.
288
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The Asian EFL Journal

Published by the English Language Education Publishing

Asian EFL Journal

©English Language Education Journals 2016

This E-book is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception, no

Publisher: ELE Publishing

1. Diah Kristina, Ph.D . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 05-16

11. Hee Sio Ching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135-147

12. Xuying Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148-162

Keywords: emotional branding, genre, discoursal strategy, thought-provoking ideas

Branding and Image Building

Related Works and Their Relevance to the Current Work

Results and Discussion

Table 1. Move structure of advertorials

Introducing the Preferred Product (1)

A different branding route is taken by TBS to gain public mental acceptance by

Conclusion and Implications

Keywords: Continued Professional Development (CPD), Female Teachers, Male Teachers,

II. Literature Review

2005). Professional isolation is another physical constraint in teaching in rural schools.

Interviewer: If you’re given a chance to say something to the government through

There is no particular consideration about gender equality in teachers’ Continued

Interviewer: Do you think there’s a gender equality in professional development among

Years of Teaching Experience

Eagerness to Participate in Continued Professional Development

School Size and Profile of the Students

Nolan, B. (1993). Retaining teachers in rural schools: Satisfaction, commitment, and

Keywords: ESL, TESOL, interlingual errors, language influence

1.1. Native language

2. The Noun Phrase

Table 1: Article system in selected languages

Table 2: Plural system in selected languages7

Table 3: Forms of expressing plural in selected languages

'I have two brothers.'

2.3. Definiteness across languages

2.3.1. Definiteness in Chinese

2.3.2. Definiteness in Serbo-Croatian

Table 4: Forms of adjectives in Serbo-Croatian

3. The Verb Phrase

Table 5: Tense markers in English

Table 7: Expressing tense in selected languages

3.1. Tense in Chinese10

Despić, M. (2011). Syntax in the absence of determiner phrase. University of Connecticut,

Josemari V. Cordova is a lecturer at Vongchavalitkul University. He has a degree in

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Gender biased materials and pedagogy

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Methods and Methodologies

Data Gathering Instrument

4 Often This means that gender mainstreaming is

3 Seldom This means that gender mainstreaming is

2 Very Seldom This means that gender mainstreaming is

1 Not at all This means that gender mainstreaming is

Analysis of the Study

Byrne, M. M. (2001). Uncovering Racial Bias in Nursing Fundamentals Textbooks. Nursing

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Gender Comparisons in Higher Education Around the World.

Source: Grove, J. (2013, May 2). Global Gender Index, 2013

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