The effects of oral corrective feedback on the learning of comparative forms in ESL

Raja Nor Safinas Raja Harun

Abstract

The effectiveness of oral corrective feedback (CF) on learners’ interlanguage development has been the topic of much discussion in the second language acquisition (SLA). This study intends to investigate the effects of implicit and explicit oral corrective feedback on the learning of comparativeforms in English as a second language (ESL) in the Malaysian context. The learning of comparative forms entails the implicit grammar knowledge (IGK) / fluency and explicit grammar knowledge (EGK) / accuracy. The study employs a quasi-experimental research method using 3-groups pre-test and post-test design: recast group (implicit oral corrective feedback), metalinguistic feedback group (explicit oral corrective feedback), and control group (task-related feedback). It involved 80 B.Ed. Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) student teachers. Pe-tests and post-tests data were analysed using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Recorded observations of classroom discourse and interviews were transcribed and analysed qualitatively. Adapted questionnaires were analysed using descriptive statistics. The findings revealed that in terms of the IGK (fluency), the groups exposed to the implicit and explicit oral corrective feedback (recast and metalinguistic groups) scored higher mean scores in the post-test compared to the control group. However, they were found not to be statistically significant. The findings of the EGK (accuracy) revealed that the explicit oral corrective feedback group scored significantly higher than the implicit oral corrective feedback and the control group. This study implicates that exposing learners to both implicit and explicit oral corrective feedback contribute positively on the development of fluency and accuracy of comparative forms.

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