Computer assisted language learning and teaching has come to a new step, especially with the deve... more Computer assisted language learning and teaching has come to a new step, especially with the development of microcomputer and the Internet. Computers can facilitate a variety of learning tasks and have enormous potency as teaching tools. They can help both students and teachers because of their special properties. This paper aims to investigate the merits and demerits of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) for current foreign language learning and teaching. The findings indicate that it is necessary to apply computers in current second language classroom, although it still has demerits and weaknesses. Therefore, when we try to apply CALL programs to enhance teaching or learning EFL, we should realize what the merits and demerits are in current CALL programs in order to avoid misemploying CALL programs and get its maximum benefits for our EFL teaching and learning.
Since repetition is a natural phenomenon used to perform various functions in interactional disco... more Since repetition is a natural phenomenon used to perform various functions in interactional discourse, adopting a pragmatic analysis to the discourse of Dr. Phil and his guests on Dr. Phil's TV show, this study attempted to explore the pragmatic functions of such repetitions as used by English native speakers. The data were gathered from conversations between native speakers of English, and based on 7 full episodes of Dr. Phil's TV Show. The researchers watched, and studied these episodes on YouTube. The study revealed that one of the salient features of TV discourse is repetition, which is employed to perform a variety of language functions. Repetition was used to express emphasis, clarity, emotions, highlight the obvious, be questionable, express annoyance, persuasion, express surprise, give instructions, and as a filler in order to take time, when the speaker was searching for a proper word to say what would come next. The study concluded that these findings had significa...
This paper attempts to compare between the advancements in the productivity of Arabic into Englis... more This paper attempts to compare between the advancements in the productivity of Arabic into English Machine Translation Systems between two years, 2008 and 2013. It also aims to evaluate the progress achieved by various systems of Arabic into English electronic translation between the two years. For tracing such advancement, a comparative analysis of translated texts taken from previous studies were re-evaluated according to certain criteria by focusing on the functional characteristics and sub-characteristics of the output: reliability, fidelity, terminology, and syntax. This re-evaluation proposes to develop metrics related to these four functional criteria. The data used in this study are the same five text-genres that have been evaluated by one of the researchers in 2008 that covered technical, legal, literary, journalistic, and economic topics translated from Arabic into English using seven Machine Translation systems: Google, Ajeeb, Professional Translator, 1-800-translate, Wor...
This paper presents results from two experiments which used computer-based grammar and teacher-dr... more This paper presents results from two experiments which used computer-based grammar and teacher-driven grammar (chalk and talk) instructional methods. Each method involves teaching verb tenses using two deductive approaches (a) the initial rule-oriented approach (involves initial presentation of explicit rules followed by illustrative examples) and (b) the structure-guessing approach (involves explicit presentation of rules in response to structure-guessing exercises). The effectiveness of these methods and approaches are compared based on the results obtained from the post-test administered at the end of the experiment. The results reveal significant differences between the four groups in favor of the computer-based grammar instructional method, and more specifically the structure-guessing approach except for the present perfect tense. However, the study shows that both methods (computer-based and teacher-driven) and both approaches (the initial rule-oriented and the structure-guess...
This study explored the discourse generated by English as a foreign language (EFL) learners using... more This study explored the discourse generated by English as a foreign language (EFL) learners using synchronous computer-mediated communication (CMC) as an approach to help English language learners to create social interaction in the classroom. It investigated the impact of synchronous CMC mode on the quantity of total words, lexical range and discourse functions of EFL learners' writing from different genders (males vs. females). Thirty-two intermediate EFL students discussed four topics in four CMC sessions. The findings revealed that gender played a major role in shaping the quantity of discourse (total words), lexical range (variety), and linguistic output (i.e., the quantity and type of discourse functions) that was generated using synchronous CMC mode. By and large, the female participants produced more words, complex lexical range and output discourse functions than males in the CMC setting. Moreover, the study showed that the participants produced discourse functions shap...
This study aimed at exploring the effect of using word processor on the development of EFL learne... more This study aimed at exploring the effect of using word processor on the development of EFL learners' performance in writing and investigating their attitude towards computer-aided writing. It was conducted at the Department of English Language and Literature, College of Arts, King Saud University during the second semester of the academic year 2004/2005. The sample of the study was divided
This study aims at exploring the effectiveness of using an online-based course on the learning of... more This study aims at exploring the effectiveness of using an online-based course on the learning of sentence types inductively and deductively. To achieve this purpose, a computer-mediated course was designed. The sample of the study consists of four groups taught under four treatments of grammar: (1) with computer-based learning inductively, (2) with computer-based learning deductively, (3) with non-computer-based learning inductively, and (4) with non-computer-based learning deductively. A pre-test/post-test design (between-subject) is used to investigate the effect of two factors: method (computer-based learning vs. non-computer-based learning) and technique (induction vs. deduction) on the students’ learning of sentence types. The results reveal a new manner of enhancing grammar learning based on the level of language structure complexity. The computer-based learning method is found to be functional for more complex and elaborate structures, like the complex sentence and compound ...
Computer assisted language learning and teaching has come to a new step, especially with the deve... more Computer assisted language learning and teaching has come to a new step, especially with the development of microcomputer and the Internet. Computers can facilitate a variety of learning tasks and have enormous potency as teaching tools. They can help both students and teachers because of their special properties. This paper aims to investigate the merits and demerits of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) for current foreign language learning and teaching. The findings indicate that it is necessary to apply computers in current second language classroom, although it still has demerits and weaknesses. Therefore, when we try to apply CALL programs to enhance teaching or learning EFL, we should realize what the merits and demerits are in current CALL programs in order to avoid misemploying CALL programs and get its maximum benefits for our EFL teaching and learning.
Since repetition is a natural phenomenon used to perform various functions in interactional disco... more Since repetition is a natural phenomenon used to perform various functions in interactional discourse, adopting a pragmatic analysis to the discourse of Dr. Phil and his guests on Dr. Phil's TV show, this study attempted to explore the pragmatic functions of such repetitions as used by English native speakers. The data were gathered from conversations between native speakers of English, and based on 7 full episodes of Dr. Phil's TV Show. The researchers watched, and studied these episodes on YouTube. The study revealed that one of the salient features of TV discourse is repetition, which is employed to perform a variety of language functions. Repetition was used to express emphasis, clarity, emotions, highlight the obvious, be questionable, express annoyance, persuasion, express surprise, give instructions, and as a filler in order to take time, when the speaker was searching for a proper word to say what would come next. The study concluded that these findings had significa...
This paper attempts to compare between the advancements in the productivity of Arabic into Englis... more This paper attempts to compare between the advancements in the productivity of Arabic into English Machine Translation Systems between two years, 2008 and 2013. It also aims to evaluate the progress achieved by various systems of Arabic into English electronic translation between the two years. For tracing such advancement, a comparative analysis of translated texts taken from previous studies were re-evaluated according to certain criteria by focusing on the functional characteristics and sub-characteristics of the output: reliability, fidelity, terminology, and syntax. This re-evaluation proposes to develop metrics related to these four functional criteria. The data used in this study are the same five text-genres that have been evaluated by one of the researchers in 2008 that covered technical, legal, literary, journalistic, and economic topics translated from Arabic into English using seven Machine Translation systems: Google, Ajeeb, Professional Translator, 1-800-translate, Wor...
This paper presents results from two experiments which used computer-based grammar and teacher-dr... more This paper presents results from two experiments which used computer-based grammar and teacher-driven grammar (chalk and talk) instructional methods. Each method involves teaching verb tenses using two deductive approaches (a) the initial rule-oriented approach (involves initial presentation of explicit rules followed by illustrative examples) and (b) the structure-guessing approach (involves explicit presentation of rules in response to structure-guessing exercises). The effectiveness of these methods and approaches are compared based on the results obtained from the post-test administered at the end of the experiment. The results reveal significant differences between the four groups in favor of the computer-based grammar instructional method, and more specifically the structure-guessing approach except for the present perfect tense. However, the study shows that both methods (computer-based and teacher-driven) and both approaches (the initial rule-oriented and the structure-guess...
This study explored the discourse generated by English as a foreign language (EFL) learners using... more This study explored the discourse generated by English as a foreign language (EFL) learners using synchronous computer-mediated communication (CMC) as an approach to help English language learners to create social interaction in the classroom. It investigated the impact of synchronous CMC mode on the quantity of total words, lexical range and discourse functions of EFL learners' writing from different genders (males vs. females). Thirty-two intermediate EFL students discussed four topics in four CMC sessions. The findings revealed that gender played a major role in shaping the quantity of discourse (total words), lexical range (variety), and linguistic output (i.e., the quantity and type of discourse functions) that was generated using synchronous CMC mode. By and large, the female participants produced more words, complex lexical range and output discourse functions than males in the CMC setting. Moreover, the study showed that the participants produced discourse functions shap...
This study aimed at exploring the effect of using word processor on the development of EFL learne... more This study aimed at exploring the effect of using word processor on the development of EFL learners' performance in writing and investigating their attitude towards computer-aided writing. It was conducted at the Department of English Language and Literature, College of Arts, King Saud University during the second semester of the academic year 2004/2005. The sample of the study was divided
This study aims at exploring the effectiveness of using an online-based course on the learning of... more This study aims at exploring the effectiveness of using an online-based course on the learning of sentence types inductively and deductively. To achieve this purpose, a computer-mediated course was designed. The sample of the study consists of four groups taught under four treatments of grammar: (1) with computer-based learning inductively, (2) with computer-based learning deductively, (3) with non-computer-based learning inductively, and (4) with non-computer-based learning deductively. A pre-test/post-test design (between-subject) is used to investigate the effect of two factors: method (computer-based learning vs. non-computer-based learning) and technique (induction vs. deduction) on the students’ learning of sentence types. The results reveal a new manner of enhancing grammar learning based on the level of language structure complexity. The computer-based learning method is found to be functional for more complex and elaborate structures, like the complex sentence and compound ...
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