Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Volume 13. Number 4 December 2022 Pp. 281-291
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol13no4.18
Effectiveness of Mobile Learning in Enhancing Saudi English Majors’ Skills in Learning
Vowels
Safaa Moustafa Khalil
Department of English, Zulfi College of Education
Majmaah University, Zulfi, Saudi Arabia
&
Department of Languages, Sadat Academy for Management Sciences
Cairo, Egypt
Email: safaa.k@mu.edu.sa
Received: 07/02/2022 Accepted:11/22/2022 Published:12/15/2022
Abstract:
Learning Phonetics, particularly the transcription of the vowel sounds, is one of the challenges that non-native English majors face. It can be best learned using images and videos as supplementary materials in the phonetics class in addition to the teacher’s live demonstration. Mobile pronunciation applications encompass all these features and provide an affordable and accessible resource for learning. The present study investigates the effect of using a pronunciation application on non-native Saudi students majoring in English at Majmaah University. The study provides insights on how mobile learning can be an effective tool for both English instructors and learners in teaching and learning vowels. A Pretest–posttest design was adopted in the present case study and descriptive and inferential statistical analyses were applied. The results indicated that short vowels are more challenging to the learners than long vowels and diphthongs. Findings also revealed that there is a significant difference between the learners’ performance before and after using the application which indicated the positive effect of using it in developing non-native learners’ skills in learning Phonetics.
Keywords: cognitive theory of multimedia learning, Mobile Assisted Language Learning, Non-native
English majors, phonetics, vowels
Cite as: Khalil, S. M. (2022). Effectiveness of Mobile Learning in Enhancing Saudi English Majors’ Skills in Learning Vowels
Arab World English Journal, 13 (4) 281-291.
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol13no4.18
References
Albogami, A., & Algethami, G. (2022). Exploring the Use of WhatsApp for Teaching Speaking to English Language Learners: A Case Study. Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) 2nd Special Issue on Covid 19 Challenges (2) 183-201. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/covid2.12
Alhebshi, A. A., & Gamlo, N. (2022). The Effects of Mobile Game-Based Learning on Saudi EFL Foundation Year Students’ Vocabulary Acquisition. Arab World English Journal, 13(1) 408-425. DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol13no1.27
Alrasheedi, M., Capretz, L. F., & Raza, A. (2015). A systematic review of the critical factors for success of mobile learning in higher education (university students’ perspective). Journal of Educational Computing Research, 52(2), 257–276.
Al-Sabbagh, K.W., Bradley, L., & Bartram, L. (2019). Mobile language learning applications for Arabic speaking migrants – a usability perspective. Language Learning in Higher Education, 9(1), 71-95. https://doi.org/10.1515/cercles-2019-0004
Aslan, E. (2016). A study on the use of mobile dictionaries in vocabulary teaching. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 12(1), 1-8.
Basogl, E.B. & Akdemir, O. (2010). A comparison of undergraduate students’ English vocabulary learning: Using mobile phones and flashcards. The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology, 9, 1–7.
Bax, S. (2003). CALL – Past, present, and future. System, 31(1), 13-28. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0346-251X(02)00071-4
Bingham, S., & Larson, E. (2006). Using CALL as the major element of study for a university English class in Japan. The JALT CALL Journal, 2(3), 39-52.
Burston, J. (2014). MALL: The pedagogical challenges. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 27(4), 344–357. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2014.914539
Criollo-C, S.; Guerrero-Arias, A.; Jaramillo-Alcázar, Á.; Luján-Mora, S. (2021). Mobile learning technologies for education: Benefits and pending issues. Appl. Sci. 11 (4111), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.3390/app11094111
Egbert, J. (2005). CALL Essentials: Principles and Practice in CALL Classrooms. Alexandria, VA: TESOL
Fatimah, A. (2021). The use of mobile-assisted language learning application in pronunciation training. UG JURNAL, 15(4), 23-33. Retrieved from https://ejournal.gunadarma.ac.id/index.php/ugjournal/article/view/3941
Fatimah, A.S., Santiana, S., & Sulastri, F. (2021). Learner’s experience on the use of mobile device for autonomous listening: A narrative inquiry. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 17(Special Issue 1), 193-204. Retrieved from https://www.jlls.org/index.php/jlls/article/view/2024/688
Garcia, E. (2009). CALL evaluation for early foreign language learning: A review of the literature and a framework for Evaluation. CALICO Journal, 26(2), 363-389.
Ghounane, N. (2019). The Attitudes of Second Year EFL Students at Dr Moulay Tahar University towards Learning English Pronunciation through Mobile Assisted Language. Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Special Issue on CALL 5, 110 -123. https://doi.org/10.24093/awej/call5.9
Hamzah, M., Ali, Z., Abdullah, S., & Abdullah, N. (2010). The effects of using mobile device in learning English language: A comparison through experimental study. Malaysian Journal of Mobile Learning, 1(1) 40-60.
Hancock, M. (2017). English Pronunciation in Use: Intermediate (Second Edition). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Hine, N., Rentoul, R., & Specht, M. (2004). Collaboration and roles in remote field trips. In J. Attewell & C. Savill-Smith (Eds.), Learning with mobile devices: Research and development (pp.69-72). London, UK: Learning Skills and Development Agency.
Hsu, L. (2013) English as a foreign language learners’ perception of mobile assisted language learning: a cross-national study. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 26(3), 197-213. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2011.649485
Kacetl, J., Klimova, B. (2019) Use of Smartphone Applications in English Language Learning-A Challenge for Foreign Language Education. Educ. Sci., 9(179), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci9030179
Kamoun, F. & Sifi, S. (2019). Fostering intelligible English pronunciation as a means to revamp technical oral presentations in engineering education: a case study. In Proceedings of the PAEE/ALE’2019, 11th International Symposium on Project Approaches in Engineering Education (PAEE) and 16th Active Learning in Engineering Education Workshop (ALE), (pp. 56-63). Tunisia: Department of Production and Systems – PAEE association.
Mayer, R. E. (2008). Applying the science of learning: Evidence-based principles for the design of multimedia instruction. American Psychologist, 63(8), 760–769. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.63.8.760
Mayer, R. E. (2009). Multimedia learning (2nd ed.). New York: Cambridge University Press
Mayer, R. E. (2011). Applying the science of learning to multimedia instruction. In J. P. Mestre & B. H. Ross (Eds.), The psychology of learning and motivation: Cognition in education (pp. 77–108). Elsevier Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-387691-1.00003-X
Mayer, R. E., & Johnson, C. I. (2008). Revising the redundancy principle in multimedia learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 100(2), 380. Retrieved from http://www.matmatics. org/etec668/week4/RevisingRedundancyPrinciple.pdf
Mayer, R. E., & Moreno, R. (2003). Nine ways to reduce cognitive load in multimedia learning. Educational Psychologist, 38(1), 43-52. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0959-4752(02)00016-6
Okumus Dagdeler, K.; Konca, M. Y., & Demiroz, H. (2020). The effect of mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) on EFL learners’ collocation learning. Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 16(1), 489-509.
Osipova, N., Gnedkova, O., & Ushakov, D. (2016). Mobile learning technologies for learning English. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Information and Communication Technologies in Education, Research, and Industrial Applications (ICTERI) (672-679) Kyiv, Ukraine.
Palalas, A. & Wark, N. (2020). The relationship between mobile learning and self-regulated learning: A systematic review. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 36(4), 151-172
Rogerson-Revell, P. M. (2021). Computer-Assisted Pronunciation Training (CAPT): Current Issues and Future Directions. RELC Journal 52(1) 189-205. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688220977406
Rudolph, M. (2017). Cognitive theory of multimedia learning. Journal of Online Higher Education, 1(2) 1-15.
Schwamborn, A., Thillmann, H., Opfermann M. & Leutner, D. (2011). Cognitive load and instructionally supported learning with provided and learner-generated visualizations. Computers in Human Behavior, 27, 89–93. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2010.05.028
Sha, L., Looi, C.-K., Chen, W., & Zhang, B. H. (2011). Understanding mobile learning from the perspective of self-regulated learning. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 28(4), 366–378. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2729.2011.00461.x
Shortt, M., Tilak, S., Kuznetcova, I., Martens, B., & Akinkuolie, B. (2021): Gamification in mobile-assisted language learning: a systematic review of Duolingo literature from public release of 2012 to early 2020, Computer Assisted Language Learning, 1-38. https://doi.org/ 10.1080/09588221.2021.1933540
Sweller, J. (2005). Implications of cognitive load theory for multimedia learning. In R. E. Mayer (Ed.), The Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning (pp. 19–30). New York: Cambridge University Press.
Sweller, J. (2011). Cognitive load theory. In J. P. Mestre & B. H. Ross (Eds.), The psychology of learning and motivation: Cognition in education (pp. 37–76). Elsevier Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-387691-1.00002-8
Teske, K. (2017). Duolingo. CALICO Journal, 34(3), 393–401. https://doi.org/10.1558/cj.32509
Touati, A., & Baek, Y. (2018). What leads to player’s enjoyment and achievement in a mobile learning game? Journal of Educational Computing Research, 56(3), 344–368. https://doi.org/10.1177/0735633117713022
Tsai, P. (2019). Beyond self-directed computer-assisted pronunciation learning: a qualitative investigation of a collaborative approach. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 32(7) 713-744. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2019.1614069
Ugur-Erdogmus, F., & Çakır, R. (2022). Effect of gamified mobile applications and the role of player types on the achievement of students. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 60(4). https://doi.org/10.1177/07356331211065679
Xiao, J. & Luo, Y. (2015). Application of mobile learning system in phonetics teaching. Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research, 19-23. https://doi.org/10.1145/3026480.3026486
Zhang, H., Song, W., & Burston, J. (2011). Re-examining the effectiveness of vocabulary learning via mobile phones. The Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology, 10(3), 203–214.a