The Effects of the Integrated Inductive Approach on GCR Task and DDL in Enhancing Thai EFL Learners' Logical Connector Knowledge

Abstract

This study was aimed to investigate the effects of the integrated inductive approach between grammar-consciousness raising task (GCR task) and data-driven learning (DDL) in enhancing EFL learners’ logical connector knowledge by comparing with a deductive approach. The study adopted a quasi-experimental design. Sixty twelfth-grade students from two classes at a public high school were divided into two groups: 30 in an experimental group and 30 in a control group. According to their results in CEFR test, which the school offered as an English placement test to all new students , English proficiency of both groups was mixed and quite low especially in writing skill. The integrated inductive approach on the GCR task and DDL was implemented in five lesson plans with ten different logical connectors. The instruments consisted of a logical connector test implemented as pre-test and post-test and a questionnaire. The data were analyzed using an independent t-test, a paired t-test, and descriptive statistics. The results revealed that post-test scores of the group implemented with the integrated inductive approach were higher than the group implemented with the deductive approach. The results indicated that the students taught with the integrated inductive approach enhanced their logical connector knowledge significantly at the 0.05 level of statistics. They also had positive attitudes toward the integrated inductive approach. The significant characteristics of the integrated inductive approach did not only motivate second language communication but also enhance the feature of discovery learning. The study contributed pedagogical implications for logical connectors and grammar teaching in EFL setting.

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