Cognitive style

This study aimed to determine the relationship between L2 learners' autonomy and their cognitive style focusing on reflectivity. It was conducted with 140 Iranian M.A. EFL learners from Department of English at Islamic Azad University of Najafabad. In order to have a homogeneous sample, the second version of Quick Placement Test (QPT) was administered. Then, 85 lower and 50 higher proficiency students were selected based on the scoring level chart of the QPT. In order to estimate participants' autonomy, the Learner Autonomy Questionnaire was administered. Then, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire was used to determine the participants' degree of reflectivity. To answer the research questions descriptive statistics and correlation analysis were employed. The results revealed that, 1) There was a weak positive relationship between low proficiency L2 learners' level of autonomy and their degree of reflectivity, 2) There was a strong positive relationship between high proficiency L2 learners' level of autonomy and their degree of reflectivity. Finally, the implications of the study for EFL teachers, learners and syllabus designers were discussed.

The present study investigated the effects of motivational scaffolding on self-determination and learning achievement of field-dependent/independent Iranian EFL learners. To this purpose, quantitative data were elicited and analyzed from 60 intermediate learners who participated in the study as experimental and control groups. The Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT) was administered to categorize the learner participants into field-dependent and field-independent learners. Then, the scaffold design proposed by Belland et al. was presented to the experimental group, while the control group got all tests and questionnaires with no scaffolding. At the end of 8 training sessions, a self-determination questionnaire was administered to both groups, and then a post-test was applied to examine the impact of scaffolding on learners’ achievement. The statistical analysis of the elicited data showed that the learners’ interaction within motivational scaffolding improved their self-determination and their learning achievement. The findings of the study have implications for teachers and learners in educational settings and help them to detect possible factors affecting EFL learners’ language performance.

Purpose: This study endeavored to find out the possible relationship between reflectivity and impulsivity as cognitive learning styles and vocabulary/ grammar development as sub-skills among EFL learners.  Methodology: Two intact classes of the third-grade students were selected by the researchers and Oxford Placement Test was run for homogenizing them. After that, Barrat’s (2005) Impulsive/ Reflective questionnaire was given to the participants and they had to respond the translated items in a limited time. Regarding the score scale provided by the questionnaire, the participants were labeled as reflective and impulsive ones. Next, a standard grammar/vocabulary test, extracted from their book, administered to them and the scores were recorded by the researchers. Then, the scores of the questionnaires and tests sent to SPSS software for analyzing and interpreting the data. In inferential statistics, the researchers used correlation test to examine the possible relationship between the students' learning styles and their sub-skills development.  Findings: Results of the study indicated a positive relationship between the students' sub-skills achievements (vocabulary/ grammar) and their learning styles (reflectivity/ impulsivity). In other words, reflectivity and impulsivity had effect on the students' performance in sub-skills, as the reflective students presented better performance and made fewer errors than the impulsive ones in vocabulary and grammar tests.  Conclusion: According to the results, it can be concluded that the higher the reflectivity of the learners is, the more successful they tend to be in such tests. It is expected that the findings of the research indicate the importance of learning styles in educational environment.