The knowledge related with lexical items can be realized as including relations of meaning a cross words. Words that share a similarity of meaning are called to be synonymous, and words that share a contrary of meaning are called to be antonymous. Both of them are universal linguistic phenomenon that exist in terms of linguistic system of every language. The present study aims at finding out areas of difficulty that Iraqi EFL learners encounter in the use of synonymy and antonymy, both on the recognition and production levels. Also tries to detect the main reasons behind such difficulties. A diagnostic test of two parts, namely, recognition and production, is designed. The test is built to include two linguistic phenomenon which are: synonymy and antonymy. A random sample of one (100) third year College students of two Colleges of Education, in University of Baghdad and University of Diyala, (50) students each. Data analyzed were based on Cruse’s taxonomy (1986). The study has come up with the following conclusions: in spite of being students at an advanced level in learning English, they used a general lexical item, instead of their other synonyms and antonyms which imply a narrower sense of meaning. And although Iraqi EFL learners learn a number of synonym words and antonym words during their academic years of studying English, still they cannot utilize them correctly in context. Keywords: antonyms, production, recognition, synonyms
Social media has become an essential educational tool nowadays. Most existing research on digital learning in EFL contexts has primarily focused on traditional classroom-based instruction and less attention has been paid to social media platforms. The present study aims to fill the gap by using social semiotics to analyze four Instagram posts: two from BBC Learning English (@bbclearningenglish) and the other two from Learn English with Emma (@englishwithemma). Instagram posts are classified as multimodal texts with participatory and representational elements. The study adopts Kress and van Leeuwen’s (2005) Social Semiotic Multimodal Framework to analyze four purposely selected posters by answering the following research questions
... Show MoreVirtual platforms are online classes used in teaching and learning EFL that let both teachers and students connect, communicate and cooperate online in real time. Learners get access to educational possibilities at home easily. Virtual classes can be conducted using a variety of techniques, including video conferencing, Google Meet, Zoom, conversations, reactions, and screen sharing. Users can access these programs on a range of gadgets, including laptops, tablets, and smartphones. The COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic affected all educational institutions, including schools, colleges, and universities. Our Iraqi educational institutions have been switched to use virtual platforms in this pandemic, much as all other foreign institutions
... Show MoreUnderstanding breaking news necessitates a special attention, since they are written with a special style. The study aims at identifying the difficulties faced by the Iraqi university EFL learners in comprehending English breaking news. The study included 10 fourth year students enrolled at the Department of English, College of Education for Humanities, University of Anbar. Thus, a questionnaire as a research instrument, was sent online to the students. The questionnaire points were related to the identification of difficulties faced by the learners in comprehending English breaking news. The data of the study were (10) headlines selected purposively from Euronews website. The data were qualitatively analyzed based on quantifying the qua
... Show MoreThe current paper examines the Arab EFL teacher view on the application of AI-based chatbots as a method of aiding writing instruction. It explores pedagogy, didactic difficulties and ethics. The overall aim is to clarify the perception that teachers have of AI chatbots as a useful tool in the writing process and to find out to what degree these perceptions are reflected in instructional decision-making and classroom behaviors. A quantitative study was conducted using a structured questionnaire that was given to forty Arab EFL teachers, using a sequential explanatory mixed-method design. To elaborate and contextualize the survey results, qualitative enquiry was implemented through semi-structured interviews with twelve teachers. Fin
... Show MoreABSTRACT This paper has a three-pronged objective: offering a unitary set of semantic distinctive features to the analysis of nominal “hatred synonyms” in the lexicon of both English and Standard Arabic (SA), applying it procedurally to test its scope of functionality crosslinguistically, and singling out the closest noun synonymous equivalents among the membership of the two sets in this particular lexical semantic field in both languages. The componential analysis and the matching procedures carried have been functional in identifying ten totally matching equivalents (i.e. at 55.6%), and eight partially matching ones (i.e. at %44.4%). This result shows that while total matching equivalences do exist in the translation of certain Eng
... Show MoreThe paper investigates the frequency and the impact ofusing Functional formulas in EFL students` fluency and accuracyused in English teaching in College of Education for HumanSciences (Ibn Rushd), English Department. This study aims atfinding out the frequency of formulaic sequences’ in students`fluency- accuracy skills, whether or not the student differences inthe functional formulas in fluency- accuracy competences ,andinvestigating differences in types formulaic sequences in fluencyaccuracyskills. The instruments are (observation and essay writing)used in investigating the fluency through using observation whereasin accuracy using essay testing. With 100 functional formulas, oneighty students second year at English Department.
... Show MoreAssessment should give more attention on the learning achievement of the curriculum. Portfolio- based learning assessment (PBLA) is utilized in language learning materials recently .It is assessment tools to test the learners’ learning for instance open-ended problem solving, and creative and critical thinking, imaginative, reflective, have the capacity to apply their information in new issues, and to express oral and composing. This paper aims to discover the impact of utilizing (PBLA) on students’ performance at College of Education (Ibn –Rushd) in English Department the third stage. To fulfill the aim, a sample of the study is (64) EFL students of two groups. The study used a test and an instrument design .The test group ut
... Show MoreWithin connected speech, RP speakers tend to shorten stressed long vowels end diphthongs in pre. Forties consonants in the same syllable on the basis of complementary Distribution, i.e., the phonological environment decides the influence of the forties plosives and fricatives, as far as they are in find position preceded by stressed long vowels and diphthongs, or particular voiced consonants plus vowels. The Iraqi learners, then, face.
The study targets exploring the similarities and differences between Iraqi and Malaysian learners of English in refusing marriage proposals. Also, it examines the favored politeness strategies that learners use to protect their interlocutors’ face, heeding both their social distance and status. Data were gathered by a Discourse Completion Task (DCT) which contained six marriage situations. Responses were analyzed based on Beebe et al.’s (1990) refusal taxonomy and Scollon et al.’s (2012) politeness system. The findings indicated that both the Iraqi and Malaysian learners preferred the indirect refusal strategies in marriage proposals, as well as the hierarchical politeness in the form of independence strategies regardless of t
... Show MoreThe study targets exploring the similarities and differences between Iraqi and Malaysian learners of English in refusing marriage proposals. Also, it examines the favored politeness strategies that learners use to protect their interlocutors’ face, heeding both their social distance and status. Data were gathered by a Discourse Completion Task (DCT) which contained six marriage situations. Responses were analyzed based on Beebe et al.’s (1990) refusal taxonomy and Scollon et al.’s (2012) politeness system. The findings indicated that both the Iraqi and Malaysian learners preferred the indirect refusal strategies in marriage proposals, as well as the hierarchical politeness in the form of independence strategies regardless of t
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