چکیده:
The current study attempted to investigate the effect of Systemic-Theoretical Instruction (STI) on English-language learners’ acquisition of the concepts of modal verbs through exploiting metaphors. To this end, the effect of the main treatment of the study, i.e. Concept-Based Instruction (CBI) was investigated through conceptual metaphors, in two gender (male vs. female) and language proficiency (Elementary vs. Intermediate) groups. To inspect the acquisition of modality concepts, the participants were given a pretest and a posttest. The results were statistically analyzed through independent sample t-test and Pearson Correlation Coefficient. The results of the inspection in learning modality revealed that participants in the Experimental, Intermediate and Female groups outperformed their counterparts in the Control group in the modal test. Further, the investigation of cognitive awareness on the concepts of modality and its development revealed that the learners’ definitions on the concepts of English modal verbs were theoretically functional before STI, while they were semantically based after STI.
خلاصه ماشینی:
An effective way to overcome the difficulties of learning and teaching English modal verbs is to employ conceptual metaphors to form and develop the concept of modality in learners´ mind.
Proposed by Piotr Gal’perin (as cited in Haenen, 1996), the main principle of Concept-Based Instruction (CBI) within the pedagogical setting is that well-organized education can foster conceptual development if it provides learners with cognitive tools of high quality and step-by-step guidance.
2. Review of the Related Literature Vygotsky’s (1978) cultural-historical theory has inspired and contributed to the creation of literacy programs based on sociocultural tenets at different levels and with a different focus not only in Russia (Gal’perin, 1969, 1992a; Markova, 1979; Talyzina, 1981, among others), 165 but also in other parts of the world (Hedegaard, 1995; Kozulin, Ageyev, Miller &Gindis, 2003).
In his analysis of discourse(written and oral) data entitled “systemic-theoretical instruction and L2 development: a socio-cultural approach to teaching-learning and researching L2 learning” Negueruela (2003) observed improvement among all of his students after CBI, especially in written performance.
Thus, the current study considered the learning and teaching of English modality as a conceptual category to be internalized by students through organized tool-oriented concept- 168 based teaching.
Concerning the second sub- research question, the results obtained from the independent sample t-test indicates that the intermediate Iranian EFL learners had a better performance compared to the elementary learners on English modality tests, indicating that language proficiency has a significant effect on Iranian learners’ conceptualization and utilization of modality when taught via Systemic-Theoretical Instruction (STI) and through the mediation of conceptual metaphors.