İngiliz Dili Eğitimi

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The role of input in second language acquisition : |more comprehensible input supported by grammar instruction or more grammar instruction?
(Thesis (M.A.) - Bogazici University. Institute of Social Sciences, 1995., 1995.) Işık, Ali.; Akyel, Ayşe.
The present study investigateg the combined effects of different amountg of comprehension-based and fonn-focused instruction on skill-based proficiency and knowledge of grammatical structures of beginner-level EFL students. Specifically, the study addresses the following research questions: 1) Does a basically comprehensionbased program of instruction supported by fonn-focused instruction help beginnerlevel EFL learners improve/develop their listening, reading and writing abilities more than a basically form- focused program of imtruction? 2) Does a basically fonn-focused program of instruction help beginner-level EFL learners improve their knowledge of grammatical structures more than a basically comprehension-based program of instruction? One experimental and one control group, each containing 20 lycee prep level Turkish EFL students, participated in the study. The subjects in the experimental and control groups were randomly selected from among lycee prep classes in two different schools. The experimental group enrolled in a program of comprehension-based instruction supported by fonn- focused instruction; whereas, the control group enrolled in a basically form-focused program of instruction. Both the experimental and control woups had 29 hours of EFL instruction per week for 21 weeks. At the end of the treatment, the groups were given the Key English Test (KET), and the grammar component of the Oxford Placement Test to see the effects of these two different types of instruction on their reading, listening, writing skills and knowledge of grammatical structures. The results indicated that the program of comprehension-based EFL instruction supported by foan-focused instruction was more effective than a basically fonn-focused program of instruction in helping beginner-level students develop their listening, reading, and writing skills as well as their knowledge of grammatical structures.
Variations in the motivation of successful and unsuccessful Turkish learners of English
(Thesis (M.A.) - Bogazici University. Institute of Social Sciences, 1996., 1996.) Kennedy, John Richard.; Alptekin, Cem.
This study investigated the relationship between attitudes and motivation and success for Turkish high school students learning English as a foreign language. The purpose was to determine which components of attitudes and motivation were the most relevant in this context. Furthermore, the study sought to establish what changes occured in this relationship over an academic year. The subjects were thirty students, all from one class, following the intensive high school preparatory program in English at Gursoy Ozel Lisesi. A questionnaire, adapted from the Attitude/Motivation Test Battery (AMTB), was administered in the middle of the first and second semesters. Shortly afterwards, one-to-one interviews were conducted with twelve of the subjects, selected to represent three different levels of the class. Scores on weekly achievement tests provided data on success. As expected, attitudes and motivation did correlate highly with achievement, but this was only consistent over time for the component of attitudes toward the learning situation. There was insufficient evidence for the existence of the other two components of the integrative motive, integrativeness and motivation, established in previous studies among learners of English as a second language. Attitudes toward the learning situation significantly declined over time regardless of the level of success. Complaints included the repetitive nature of lessons and too great an emphasis on writing in the class. Less successful students were particularly concerned with their exam grades, and with the fact that their increased efforts throughout the year did not produce the desired results.
Evaluation of the Boğaziçi University English Proficiency Test
(Thesis (M.A.) - Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 1999., 1999.) Hatipoğlu, Çiler.; Bayyurt, Yasemin.
The present study concerns itself with the predictive and face validities of the Bogaziçi University English Proficiency Test (BUEPT), designed to screen students entering Bogaziçi University (BU) for deficiencies in English language skills, which might impede their progress in undergraduate studies. More specifically, the study investigates the following research questions: 1. Is there a relationship between the time students spend in YADYOK and their success on BUEPT? 2. Is BUEPT a valid predictor of the first semester, second semester and overall freshman year academic success of BU students in Foreign Language Education (FLED), Western Languages and Literatures (LL) and Translation and Interpretation (TRANS) Departments? Why or why not? . 3. How do the students in FLED, LL and TRANS Departments, evaluate BUEPT as a valid reflector of their level of academic English proficiency and as a predictor of their future academic success? A total number of 422 (332 female and 89 male) BU students from FLED (207), LL (114) and TRANS (l 01) Departments, who were admitted to the university between 1992 and 1997, participated in this study. A quantitative set of data comprised of the BUEPT scores and the first semester, second semester and overall freshman year GP As of all the subjects in the study was obtained from the BU Registrar's Office. A questionnaire administered to all of the 422 subjects supplied the qualitative data of the study. Descriptive statistics, correlational and key-word analyses were used to analyze the available data. The results indicated that there was a positive relationship between the time students spent in YADYOK and their exam grades. That is, the longer the students attended prep classes, the more successful they were on BUEPT. However, the BUEPT score was not found to be an effective predictor of the first semester, second semester and overall freshman year academic success, as measured by GP As, for this group of students. Moreover, the questionnaire data revealed that the majority of the students (78%) perceived the exam neither as a valid reflector of their level of academic English proficiency nor as a good predictor of their future academic performance.
Teaching EFL through English or content : implications for foreign language learning
(Thesis (Ph.D.) - Bogazici University. Institute of Social Sciences, 1999., 1999.) Işık, Ali.; Alptekin, Cem.
This study investigates which type of instruction affects false-beginner Turkish EFL learners' language skills more positively, teaching EFL through English or content. More specifically the study aims at answering the following research questions: 1) Will content-based instruction (CBI) students who are exposed to listening and speaking skills in the L2 through content improve better in these skills more than general EFL students? 2) Will CBI students improve four skills in the L2 as much as general EFL students? One experimental and one control group, each containing 50 false-beginner Turkish EFL students, formed the target population of the study. The students in the experimental group received content-based instruction; whereas the students in the control group received general EFL instruction. After 90 hours ofinstructiQn both groups were given the Key English Test (KET) to see the effects of the two different types of instruction on their English language skills and their cumulative scores. The results indicated that the students in the experimental group were more successful in listening and speaking skills in comparison to the students in the control group. In terms of reading and writing skills, there was not significant difference between the two groups. However, when the cumulative scores of both groups were compared, it was observed that the experimental group obtained significantly higher scores in comparison to the control group. Hence, the results indicated that content-based instruction is an efficient program of instruction in helping students improve their EFL skills.
Trait anxiety or foreign language anxiety and their effects on learners' foreign language proficiency and achievement
(Thesis (M.A.)- Bogazici University. Institute of Social Sciences, 2000., 2000.) Sarıgül, Hatice.; Alptekin, Cem.
The present investigation concerns itself with how trait anxiety on one hand and foreign language anxiety on the other affects learners' level of foreign language proficiency and achievement. One hundred and seventy seven Turkish learners of EFL enrolled in the English language program for freshmen at Beykent University (Turkey) took part in the study. Data collection was conducted by means of selfreport scales consisting of items translated from Horwitz and colleagues' Foreign Language Class Anxiety Scale (FLCAS), the Turkish version of the Spielberger's Test Anxiety Inventory (TAl) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAl). Subjects' level of foreign language competence was determined employing a standardised proficiency exam, the Michigan Test of English Proficiency, as well as subjects' final course grades. Subjects' responses, which were sought in subsequent administrations in two successive semesters, were subjected to quantitative analyses (Pearson correlation, a series of one-way ANOVAs, and the relevant post hocs). The subjects' levels oftest anxiety were controlled so that the data of highly test anxious subjects could not confound the results of the foreign language anxiety measure. The findings support the view that foreign language anxiety is a distinct, situation specific 'form of anxiety, not necessarily related to trait anxiety, which is a general personality characteristic.
Comparison of communication strategies used by Turkish monolingual and bilingual EFL learners
(Thesis (M.A.) - Bogazici University. Institute of Social Sciences, 2001., 2001.) Doğruöz, Ayşe Seza.; Bayyurt, Yasemin.
This study investigated the differences/similarities between Turkish bilingual and monolingual EFL learners in terms of the communication strategies they used in an interaction in the target language (English). Specificc;tlly, the following issues were examined: 1) Whether there were any differences/similarities between bilingual and monolingual EFL learners in terms of total number of CSs used in an interaction in the target language. 2) Whether there were any differences/similarities between monolingual and bilingual EFL learners in terms of their language choice of CSs in an interaction in the target language. 3) Whether, there were any differences/similarities between monolingual and bilingual EFL learners in terms of the categories of CSs they used during interaction in the target language.
Development of topical structure in college level students' essays :|the case of monolingual Turks, monolingual Americans, and bilingual Turks
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2004., 2004.) Erduyan, Işıl.; Alptekin, Cem.
The present study investigates the topical structure development in the essays written by college level students. Three groups of students participated in the study, these were monolingual Turkish students, bilingual Turkish students and monolingual American students. Data collection took place in two different settings; the Turkish students were enrolled in Boğaziçi University, Istanbul, Turkey and the American students were enrolled in Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia. Each participant was required to write an essay on a given topic. The essays were then subjected to the topical structure analysis, an instrument which concerns itself with the relationship among the sentence topics composing an essay. It was found that Turkish essays differed significantly from the English essays in terms of their topical structure. On the other hand, no significant difference was found between English essays written by bilingual Turkish students and monolingual American students from the topical structure perspective. While in the Turkish essays the topical structure was marked heavily by one type of progression, namely the sequential progression, in the English essays there was a more balanced distribution.
Expectations for the roles of cooperating teachers and university supervisors during the practice teaching period as perceived by university supervisors, cooperating teachers and student teachers
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2004., 2004.) Demirkol, İlkay.; Akyel, Ayşe.
This study aimed at investigating the expectations of the triad members, namely university supervisors, cooperating teachers and student teachers regarding the roles and responsibilities of the university ELT supervisors and cooperating EFL teachers in Turkey. The study also aimed to investigate whether there were institutional differences in expectations for the university supervisors' and cooperating teachers' roles. Data were collected by means of questionnaires adapted for the purposes of the study. Participants of the study were 17 university supervisors, 116 cooperating teachers and 238 student teachers who were enrolled in the ELT departments of four universities in Turkey and their cooperating schools. Findings indicated a lack of clarity and consensus among the triad members regarding the roles of the university supervisors and cooperating teachers. Triad members achieved high consensus on few of the role definitions of the university supervisors but could not reach high consensus on any role definitions of the cooperating teachers. As for the expectations among the members of different institutions were concerned, no differences were observed among the university supervisors of different universities, whereas student teachers revealed differences in expectations for the roles of the university supervisors and cooperating teachers in certain areas. Findings imply that, despite the efforts of the Council of Higher Education to clarify the roles and responsibilities of the members of the triad, they do not seem to be well informed about their own roles and responsibilities and those of the other members of the triad.
Portfolio assessment versus traditional assessment techniques: a case study on the proficiency development and classroom practices of EFL students in a Turkish Military high school
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Graduate Institute of Social Sciences, 2005., 2005.) Sağlam, Mustafa.; Bayyurt, Yasemin.
This thesis aims at investigating the possible effects of portfolio assessment on proficiency development and classroom practices of EFL students as opposed to traditional assessment techniques. There were two types of assessment procedures used in the study: portfolio assessment and traditional assessment. 42 eleventh grader EFL students (two sections) in a Turkish military high school were elected by means of Oxford Placement Test 1 B1 & B2 and randomly assigned as experimental and control groups. In the middle and at the end of the treatment they were given an abbreviated version of Cambridge First Certificate Examination (CFCE). The teacher of these sections also kept a teacher log during the twelve-week period when the study was conducted. Data were analyzed using Pearson product moment correlation coefficient (Pearson r), and t-test procedures. Qualitative data were analyzed via content analysis suggested by Bordens and Bruce (2002). The results of the analyses indicated that students receiving portfolio assessment performed significantly higher than those of the ones who received traditional assessments in two different administrations of CFCE. Portfolio assessment scores were also consistent with the scores received in CFCE. On the other hand, first and second administration of CFCE indicated that students' scores did not differ within the experimental group. In other words, there was little or no proficiency development on repeated measures. Finally, the qualitative data revealed that portfolio assessment had a positive impact on students' classroom practices, improvement in the course, and feelings of monitoring their own progress.The results are interpreted in the light of profits of portfolio assessment in the literature (Barootchi & Kehsavarz, 2002; Fourie & Niekerk, 2001; Lockledge & Weinmann, 2001 and Simon & Forgette-Giroux, 2000 and Underwood, 1998). The students in the study benefited from the use of portfolio assessment through several aspects. They had higher grades, better tracked their development, and had higher amount of interaction than those of the students who received traditional assessment.
The acquisition of morphosyntax in child L2 English evidence from Turkish learners
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2006., 2006.) Geçkin, Vasfiye.; Haznedar, Belma.
This thesis investigates the early development of English as a second language(L2) by three Turkish children over a period of seven months, focusing on the availability of the functional categories both within the nominal and the verbal domain. The sample consisted of three Turkish children, aged 4; 11, 4; 6 and 4; 7, acquiring English as an L2 at an international school in Istanbul, Turkey. Data obtained were analyzed on the basis of inflectional morphology and determiner phrase within the generative perspective. The utterances of the subjects were audiotaped on average at least three times a month and they were accompanied by the detailed notes of the investigator. The data were transcribed, and analyzed according to the morphosyntactic coding conventions utilized in the CHILDES coding system.The results of the analyses showed that both verbal and nominal functional categories are fully available and there is no optional infinitive stage. Moreover, whatdetermines the optionality of verbal inflection is not the lack of underlying syntacticstructure but rather missing surface inflections.Specifically within the determiner phrase the learners̕ errors in the use of English articles (a (n)/the) and possessives, child learners manifest errors of omission rather than errors of substitution. In addition, they mark "the" better than "a". Finally,the learners in this study do not fluctuate in their choice of articles; rather it appears tobe a prosodic problem. Overall, our data support the Prosodic Constraints and the Missing Surface Inflection Hypotheses in the L2 acquisition literature.
Effectiveness of corpus consultation through concordancing on the formulaic academic language use of freshman ELT students
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2006., 2006.) Anğ, Fatma.; Erçetin, Naciye Gülcan.
This study aims to examine the effectiveness of corpus consultation through concordancing on non-native English speaker freshman ELT students̕ use of the formulaic language features characterizing the summary of a research article and the rhetorical moves of the research paper introduction (RPI) within a genre-specific perspective; the reported confidence levels of the learners with respect to these writing tasks and their opinions about concordancing. The experimental group using concordancing included 30 and the control group 28 participants. Quantitative data were analyzed via mixed de sign analyses of variance and independent samples ttests. Results showed that the means of the three measurements of summary writingfor the experimental group did not differ significantly from those for the controlgroup. However, a main effect of time was found for both groups from the first to the last measurement. Furthermore, the groups did not significantly differ in their useof formulaic sequences in an RPI and in productive and receptive knowledge of these sequences. A self-evaluation questionnaire and semi-structured interviews served asthe qualitative data. The questionnaire data revealed no significant difference in the levels of reported confidence in summarizing a research article and writing an RPI. However, both groups reported higher level of confidence in writing an RPI. Inductive content analysis of the interview data revealed that while concordancing helped learners gain awareness of the formulaic academic language used by expertwriters, and act as researchers of language, such activity needed to be tailored to individual differences through challenging and motivating task design.
The relative contributions to foreign language reading comprehension of the selected individual-difference variables
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2006., 2006.) Aslan, Neslihan.; Akyel, Ayşe.
This thesis has two main goals. First, the relative contribution to foreign language reading comprehension of the following individual-difference variables is explored: the reader̕s prior knowledge on the text content, topic interest, linguistic proficiency in English, gender, motivation to read in English, and metacognitive awareness in English. Second, the relationship between the contribution to foreign language reading comprehension of these individual-difference variables and text difficulty is investigated. 66 students studying English for academic purposes at the Boğaziçi University School of Foreign Languages took part inthe study. Data for the study were collected through topic interest and prior knowledge tests prepared for each text (one intermediate, one advanced-level text), a reading motivation questionnaire, and a metacognitive awareness questionnaire. The participants̕ level of reading comprehension was assessed through recall protocol. Data were analyzed through hierarchical multiple regression procedures. Results indicated that the following individual-difference variables, in order of significance, accounted for 54% of thevariability in the English reading comprehension of the participants: linguistic proficiency in English, motivation to read in English, prior knowledge of the text content. Besides, it was found that the relative contribution to foreign language reading comprehension of individual-difference variables (i.e.: prior knowledge, topic interest, gender, motivation to read, and metacognitive awareness) was influenced by the difficulty level of the text.
Effects of different types of tasks on junior ELT students’ use of communication strategies in computer-mediated communication
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2006., 2006.) Altun, Nur Eser.; Yıldız, Senem.
This thesis investigates the effects of different task types on the use of communication strategies (CSs) in computer-mediated communication (CMC) and the attitudes of students to using computers for communication and writing. The use of communication strategies in three different communicative tasktypes: (a) jigsaw (b) decision-making and (c) opinion-exchange were examined, based on and adapted from Dornyei and Scott̕s (1997) and Smith̕s (2003b)taxonomies. 36 junior ELT students participated in on-line chat sessions for six weeksusing Yahoo! Messenger. Before the chat sessions the participants were given Warschauer̕s (1996b) attitude questionnaire which also collected demographic information about participants and their computer familiarity. The participants were given the same questionnaire at the end of the last chat session. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics, one-way repeated measures analysis of variance(ANOVA), one-sample and paired-sample t-tests procedures. Qualitative data about participants̕ experiences and feelings about the synchronous CMC to cross-validate the findings of the attitude questionnaire was collected through a post-session questionnaire which was adapted from Wang (1993). The results showed that students used a wide variety of communication strategies during synchronous CMC, and task type affected the frequency and type of communication strategy used. It was also found that participants had positive attitudes towards using computers for communication and writing. The study provided evidence that synchronous CMC medium gave learners the opportunity to interact and negotiate meaning in the target language by providing them with a textbasedcommunicative setting in which communication strategy use was promoted.
An analysis of freshman year university students' argumentative essays
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2006., 2006.) Can, Hüseyin.; Bayyurt, Yasemin.
The present study investigates organizational patterns and metadiscoursal markers in the essays written by freshman year university students. Two groups of students and two sets of data were used in the study. The participants were monolingual Turkish students, bilingual Turkish students who wrote in English and Turkish, respectively, and monolingual American students. Data collection took place in two different settings: Turkish students studying at an English medium private university in Turkey and American students studying at a university in the US. Each participant was asked to write an argumentative essay on a given topic. First, the essays were marked by two different raters. Second, they were analyzed on the basis of seven organizational patterns and eight metadiscoursal properties. Finally, ten bilingual Turkish students were chosen randomly and interviewed to get their reactions to their essays. It was found that monolingual American essays scored significantly higher than bilingual Turkish and English essays and monolingual Turkish essays. The TOEFL marking scheme was used to grade the essays. There was a significant difference between monolingual Turkish essays and bilingual Turkish and English essays in terms of title, paragraphing, introduction, thesis statement, and conclusion. Monolingual American students use logical connectives, frame markers, code glosses, first person singular markers more than the other students. On the other hand, more significant similarities than differences were found between English essays and Turkish essays written by bilingual Turks. The interview data also confirms that bilingual Turkish students take similar steps in both languages.
Students' opinions of the role of 'culture' in learning English as a foreign language
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2006., 2006.) Yılmaz, Devrim.; Bayyurt, Yasemin.
This thesis examines the students' opinions of the role of 'culture' in learning English as a foreign language. The first aim of the thesis is to develop an instrument to investigate students' opinions. The second aim is to explore whether there are similarities and differences among high school students regarding their opinions of the role of 'culture'. In order to do this, the instrument developed by the researcher was applied to 385 senior Anatolian high school students from five different high schools in Edirne, Istanbul, and Diyarbakır in the academic year of 2005-2006. Descriptive statistics for the responses to the questionnaire items suggested that learning English for instrumental purposes, practicing aspects and skills of language, and inclusion of international topics in English language learning process were important. The participants alsostated that native English speaking teachers teach English better than Turkish teachers. However, being familiar with Turkish culture and being able to speak Turkish were regarded as important characteristics of English language teachers by the students. Similarities and differences among different parts of Turkey were explored using analysisof variance (ANOVA) procedures. The results of the analysis suggested that the regions differed on three components extracted by Principal Component Analysis. The responses provided by the participants to the open ended question revealed that mostof the students agreed with the idea of teaching target language culture along with English. However, a considerable number of students disagreed or partially agreed with the idea.
L2 acquisition of the English article system by Turkish learners
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2006., 2006.) Yılmaz, Gülsen.; Gürel, Ayşe.
This thesis investigates the second language (L2) acquisition of the English article system by Turkish learners in order to examine first language (L1) transfer effects. More specifically, the aim is to see whether or not L1 Turkish learners would show any variability in the use of English articles due to their L1. Two groups of learners at different proficiency levels (20 beginner and 20 advanced learners) were tested through three different tasks. The tasks consist of a picture description, a writing, and a fill-in-the-article task. Data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney tests. Results of the analyses indicated that Turkish learners of English were able to make semantic distinctions among different article environments. They supplied the required articles in obligatory contexts at a higher rate than the other articles. In general, it appeared that the absence of definite articles in Turkish did not pose much problem for L2 learners. Omission errors (i.e., omission of both definite and indefinite articles) appeared mostly in on-line speech and written production tasks, and learners also demonstrated some problems in zero article contexts; they tend to overuse the and a/an in these contexts. Results did not reveal clear evidence for persistent L1 influence in the use of L2 articles. The rate of variable use of L2 articles was lower in the advanced group. This suggests that variable article use in the L2 is not a permanent problem.
Exploring burnout and participation in professional learning activities among university prep Turkish EFL instructors
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences, 2006., 2006.) Kulavuz, Derya.; Tatar, Sibel.
This thesis aims at investigating burnout and participation in professional learning activities among Turkish EFL instructors currently working at university English prep programs in Istanbul. The relationship between the two variables is also explored in the study. The quantitative data were collected from 224 Turkish EFL instructors through a questionnaire consisting of (a) multiple-choice questions for demographic information and information on working environment, (b) Turkish version of Maslach Burnout Inventory Educators Survey and (c) the adapted version of Kwakman̕s (2003) inventory for the participation in professional learning activities. The qualitative data were collected from 22 instructors through semi-structured interviews either face-to-face or through email. The quantitative data were analysed through independent samples t-test and the Mann Whitney U Test for the variables where the data were not normally distributed. Pearson Product Moment Correlation and coefficient of determination were calculated to analyse the relationship between the two dependent variables. The qualitative data were analysed following content analysis procedures. The results showed that State University English Prep Program Instructors (SUEPPI) had significantly lower sense of personal accomplishment and lower levels of participation in professional learning activities compared to Private University English Prep Program Instructors (PUEPPI); and there is positive correlation between personal accomplishment and participation in professional learning activities with a 13 % shared variance. Those results were supported by the findings of the qualitative data. The results are interpreted in terms of their relation and contribution to the existing literature. Finally, the limitations of the study are presented and suggestions for further research are provided at the end of the study.
Effects of the presentation mode of multimedia annotations on L2 reading comprehension and incidental vocabulary learning
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in the Social Sciences, 2007., 2007.) Türk, Emine.; Erçetin, Naciye Gülcan.
This study aims at exploring the effects of presentation mode of multimedia annotations on reading comprehension and incidental vocabulary learning of intermediate level learners of English. There were two types of presentation mode: simultaneous and successive. In the simultaneous mode, learners received verbal (definitions) and visual (pictures) annotations at the same time by just one click while in the successive mode, annotations were presented one after another. 82 intermediate level learners of English at a state high school were required to read an annotated expository text with a view to comprehending it. Learners were administered a prior knowledge test one day before the treatment to ensure that they did not differ in terms of topical knowledge. Participants were randomly assigned to groups and treatment conditions. They were given reading comprehension and vocabulary tests immediately after reading. Data were collected using a tracking tool and analyzed using a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). Results indicated that the group that received both types of annotations simultaneously performed better on multiple choice reading comprehension test while no significant difference was found between the groups in recall. Vocabulary tests revealed similar results. Simultaneous group scored higher on tests of form recognition, meaning production and active meaning recognition but passive vi meaning recognition. No significant differences were observed between the performances of the groups on bilingual passive meaning recognition test. Results were in line with the contiguity principle of Generative Theory of Multimedia Learning according to which presenting verbal and visual information at the same time results in better learning. The rationale behind that assertion is that simultaneous presentation makes it easier for learners to build connections between verbal and visual mental representations as they are held in the working memory at the same time, which reduces cognitive load. Therefore it is suggested that learners could benefit from simultaneous presentation of information in dual mode as it facilitates reading comprehension and incidental vocabulary learning.
The end-state L2 acquisition of binding properties of English reflexives by adult Turkish learners of English
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in the Social Sciences, 2007., 2007.) Tanış, Fatma.; Gürel, Ayşe.
This thesis investigates the end-state second language acquisition (L2) of binding properties of English reflexives by adult Turkish learners to address the issue of UG availability in the end-state L2 grammar. According to the Full Access Model, L2 learners have direct access to innate principles and parameters of Universal Grammar (UG) from the initial state to the end-state in the process of L2 acquisition. Following this model, in this thesis, I predict that L2 learners, having direct access, to UG will acquire binding properties of L2 English reflexives. That is, the end-state L2 grammar of adult Turkish learners of English will converge on native English norms with respect to reflexive binding. 35 adult Turkish speakers of L2 English participated in this study. They were all English language teachers who are considered to be end-state L2 speakers. In addition, in the control group, there were 20 native speakers of English. A grammaticality judgment task and a story-based truth-value judgment task were used to examine whether the end-state L2 grammars of the adult Turkish learners of L2 English are governed by the principles and parameters of UG in the context of reflexive binding. The results of the two tests suggest that the L2 learner’s grammar is UG-constrained and that despite some differences between the L1 and L2, L2 learners can accomplish the acquisition of L2 features in the end-state L2 grammar.
Exploring the effects of content-based instruction on skill development, domain-specific knowledge and metacognition in the L2
(Thesis (M.A.)-Bogazici University. Institute for Graduate Studies in the Social Sciences, 2007., 2007.) Yalçın, Şebnem.; Erçetin, Naciye Gülcan.
The study investigates the effects of Content-based instruction on language, content learning, metacognitive awareness in L1 and L2 on first year students who study in a Department of Foreign Language Education at an English-medium university in Turkey. Although CBI has been investigated extensively across various contexts such as immersion and English as a second language, there is a limited documented literature in English as a foreign language context such as Turkey. Since most of the studies come from immersion and ESL, studies conducted in the EFL context are needed to explore the efficacy of CBI in EFL. The present study has an experimental research design in which 60 participants were randomly assigned to two groups. The experimental and the control group consisted of thirty participants. The participants attended follow-up sessions conducted for two hours a week in relation to a departmental course designed for improving research and study skills. Experimental group was given a treatment which is based on a syllabus design which integrated language and content for 12 weeks and the control group followed the regular follow-up syllabus. The syllabus designed for the experimental group aimed to provide a deeper treatment of the content. Thus, reading comprehension questions involved analysis and synthesis of information not only within iv a given text, but also across multiple texts. On the other hand, the control group followed a syllabus which focused on language. A set of instruments were used to measure the variables in the research questions. A multiple choice test and two essays of the participants were used to measure content learning, reading component of IELTS and two essays were used to measure language proficiency. In addition to content learning and L2 language proficiency, metacognitive awareness in L1 and L2 were also measured through questionnaires. The results of the statistical analysis revealed that CBI group outperformed the control group in content learning on both measurements but achieved as well as the control group on language proficiency again on both measurements. However, there was no statistical difference between the two groups on metacognitive awareness in L1 and L2. The results of the present study confirm the previous research which documented that language and content integration can result in better content learning. The participants in the experimental group were significantly better in content learning and were able to compete with the control group on language proficiency. These results indicate that the content learning do not end in failure in language proficiency. These results are consistent with Krashen’s hypothesis that when the focus of instruction is on meaning rather than language, success in L2 learning is achieved and with the argument that the meaningful communication in purposeful social and academic contexts provided by content and language integration is better for language learning.

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