Abstract:
Language learners have frequently been classified according to individual difference variables such as aptitude, personality, cognitive style, and motivation. However, a language teacher’s view seems to have been missing from such classifications. This exploratory research investigated whether and by which criteria Iranian EFL teachers classify their students. Based on preliminary interviews with 29 high-expertise Iranian EFL teachers, 21 criteria were identified and included in a questionnaire that was completed by 175 Iranian EFL teachers. The respondents almost unanimously agreed that they did classify their students according to their understanding of the character type, behavior patterns, and achievement patterns of their students. Then they rated the 21 criteria on a scale from 0 to 4 according to how important each classification criterion was for them. Factor analysis of questionnaire responses revealed six major classification criteria. Subsequently, in a case study, 26 EFL students in a typical Iranian high school class were asked to rate their classmates according to the six major criteria. Only five of the criteria were found to predict English achievement and Grade Point Average (GPA). A cluster analysis of the students’ peer ratings using the five criteria generated three clusters. An ANOVA revealed that the three clusters were accurately differentiated not only on the clustering criteria but also on the two non-clustering variables: EFL Achievement and GPA.
Machine summary:
Applied linguists have often classified language learners according to individual difference (ID) factors such as aptitude, personality, cognitive style, and motivation (Dörnyei{View the image of this page} Skehan, 2003; Dörnyei, 2005).
For consideration of availability, a quota sampling strategy was adopted (Ary, Jacobs,{View the image of this page} Sorensen, 2010; Brown, 2013) with a relatively equal number of teachers from both major school types (i.
Correlation coefficients for peer rating variables, EFLA, and GPA {مراجعه شود به فایل جدول الحاقی} C = Conscientiousness, IM = Interest{View the image of this page} Motivation, EP = English Proficiency, ASC = Appropriate Student Conduct, SSI = Sociability, Self-confidence{View the image of this page} Intelligence, AIB = Affectively-Induced Behavior, EFLA = EFL Achievement, and GPA = Grade Point Average.
This indicated that the clustering solution was robust enough to remain stable across three different hierarchical clustering algorithms and a k-means analysis, with or without Affectively-Induced Behavior, and with either of English Proficiency or Interest{View the image of this page} Motivation included as a clustering variable.
Although correlation coefficients for the criterion Conscientiousness in this study were obtained from student peer ratings, and not from established Big Five self-report measures such as Revised NEO Personality Inventory (Costa{View the image of this page} McCrae, 1992; Piedmont, 1998) or International Personality Item Pool (IPIP, 2017; Goldberg et al.
The second most important criterion for the EFL teachers was Interest{View the image of this page} Motivation and the students’ peer ratings on this variable was fairly highly correlated (r = .