Teaching metadiscourse features and IELTS writing performance of Iranian EFL learners

Abstract

Purpose In spite of the growing interest in using corpora in language teaching and learning, applying computers and software (especially corpora software) is still new in second language teaching and learning. In addition, employing a learner corpus-based perspective in teaching metadiscourse features in International English Language Testing System (IELTS) writing tasks is not reported to the best knowledge of the researchers. Understanding and spotting this gap, the purpose of this paper is to utilize a learner corpus-based approach in teaching metadiscourse features and investigate its possible impacts on IELTS writing performance of the Iranian second language learners. Therefore, this study addressed the following research questions and hypotheses. Design/methodology/approach The current research utilized a quasi-experimental research design. In addition, this research used a learner corpus-based methodology. The corpus-based methodology was exploited to enable the researchers to have access to a large body of authentic language materials. In other words, a corpus-based methodology was used due to the fact that it made it possible for the researchers to elicit the metadiscourse features from a large number of authentic writing materials and to employ them during the treatment process with authentic examples. Findings The findings showed that there was a positive correlation between teaching metadiscourse features and writing performance of IELTS learners; in that, teaching metadiscourse features could soar the writing performance of the subjects. In addition, interactional metadiscourse features had more impact than interactive metadiscourse features on writing performance. Practical implications The results of this research can have useful implications for second language teachers and learners as well as researchers in learner corpus as they can learn the creation and application of learner corpora in second language teaching and learning. Originality/value This paper is value in that it uses corpus software and methodology in teaching metadiscourse features in writing section of IELTS test.

Investigating the impact of explicit and implicit instruction on the use of interactional metadiscourse markers

“…The results of the present study differ to a large extent from the findings of previous empirical investigations (e.g., Asadi 2018;Farahani, 2019), which have provided clear evidence for the positive influence of explicit instruction in metadiscourse markers on EFL learners' writing. The effect of explicit instruction in the current study was extremely limited, since the EG outperformed the CG only in the use of appeals El-Dakhs et al Asian-Pacific Journal of Second and Foreign Language Education (2022) 7:44 to shared knowledge in the immediate post-test.…”

“…The results showed that the experimental group's effective use of metadiscourse markers made the texts more accommodating towards readers, also strengthening ideational as well as interpersonal and textual meanings of the text. In the same vein, Dastjerdi and Shirzad (2010), Asadi (2018), andFarahani (2019) examined the effect of teaching a set El-Dakhs et al Asian-Pacific Journal of Second and Foreign Language Education (2022) 7:44 of metadiscourse markers on the writing of 94, 38 and 40 Iranian EFL university students, respectively, using a quasi-experimental research design. The results of the three studies lend support to the positive effect of the explicit instruction of metadiscourse markers.…”

Reader Perceptions of Authorial Voice in Top-Tier Management Journals: The Case of Doctoral Students of Management From Eastern Europe

“…Ädel’s (2006) large-scale study of academic writing by native English (L1) and non-native English (L2) university students reveals that the L2 speakers overuse metadiscourse and consequently, they produce texts difficult to process which are thus perceived by the reader as lacking in communicative competence. The findings of Vasheghani Farahani and Pahlevansadegh’s (2019) study show that there is a positive correlation between the teaching of metadiscourse features and writing performance of IELTS learners. The quantitative study of Lehman et al (2022) provides an exploration of how writer identity (linguistically conveyed in voice) is construed by the use of metadiscourse markers in management-related research articles authored by established academics and students.…”

“…Why is it important that graduate students recognize the use and the rhetorical function of authorial voice? Although there are no studies showing the direct link between the lack of graduate writing pedagogy in management and novices’ success in journal publications, it is possible to make this assumption given the empirical evidence of the importance of metadiscourse features in the construction of authorial voice (see Ädel’s, 2006; Lehman et al, 2022; Vasheghani Farahani & Pahlevansadegh, 2019). “Metadiscourse” is described as “discourse about discourse” which seeks to capture the interactive character of communication.…”

Implementing Stylistics in IELTS Writing Preparation Focusing on Noun Phrases

“…In response to the statements above, language proficiency tests become an effective tool in assessing people's language ability. The result of the language proficiency test in the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) or Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) is determined as one's process in having competency in English (Farahani & Pahlevansadegh, 2019). The IELTS exam is a test for the need of applying for higher education or professional registration, general training for those migrating to Australia, Canada, and the UK, or applying for secondary education, training programs and work experience in an Englishspeaking environment (IELTS, n.d.).…”