|
Abstract
|
Dynamic assessment, an individualized approach to testing, takes into account not only learners’ current language skills but also their potential for learning and progress. While many studies have counted the benefits of Mobile-Assisted Language Learning (MALL) for students' language development, there is a scarcity of research on Oral Dynamic Assessment (ODA) of language in the context of MALL. Given inevitable individual differences among learners, and the tailored nature of dynamic assessment, the current study explored the effect of ODA on the oral accuracy of EFL learners with different learning styles including visual, aural, kinaesthetic, and read/write (VAKR). The study was conducted with 20 female learners aged 10-14 in the MALL environment of Adobe Connect. Before treatment sessions, the participants were asked to complete a VAKR questionnaire to determine their learning styles. An oral pre-test with no feedback was then administered to measure their oral accuracy. Two experiment (n=10) and control (n=10) groups were randomly selected. Treatment sessions lasted for eight 90-minute sessions. While learners responded to the oral questions in the class, the teacher provided the experimental group with ODA. The control group only received immediate feedback. A week later, a post-test similar to the pre-test was administered to assess the impact of the treatment. To analyze the obtained data, a one-way repeated measure ANOVA using R was employed. The results indicated a noticeable enhancement in the oral accuracy of the experimental group (F(1,18)=8, p=0.02). Furthermore, it was found that auditory learners showed greater improvement in their oral accuracy compared to other learning styles. The findings imply that educators should implement dynamic assessment techniques to identify the specific needs of learners and tailor instruction to their individual differences.
|