Language Learning Plateau: EFL Teachers’ Perceptions and Practical Recommendations

Authors

  • Dinara Utegulova K.Zhubanov Aktobe Regional University
  • Kulpash Koptleuova Baishev University
  • Nurkhanym Bauyrzhan K.Zhubanov Aktobe Regional University
  • Sandugash Mukhtarova K.Zhubanov Aktobe Regional University
  • Akhmaral Khairzhanova Kh. Dosmukhamedov Atyrau University
  • Danagul Assylzhanova Kazakh Ablai Khan University of International Relations and World Languages

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1407.35

Keywords:

language acquisition, language learning plateau, perceptions, teaching EFL

Abstract

This study explores EFL teachers’ perceptions of the language learning plateau and identifies the recommendations teachers have for overcoming it. Thematic analysis is used to analyse the data from ten English teachers who teach students from intermediate to advanced levels. The findings show that there is a lack of awareness of the term among EFL teachers, yet the idea of the plateau is familiar. Surprisingly, some teachers are found to be in the plateau themselves. This study also discusses the issues teachers are struggling with, and some useful strategies they use to help students move beyond the plateau.

References

Aliponga, J. (2013). Reading journal: its benefits for extensive reading. International journal of humanities and social science, 3(12), 73-80.

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative research in psychology, 3(2), 77-101.

Bell, T. (2001). Extensive reading: Speed and comprehension. The reading matrix, 1(1), 1-13.

Braun, V., & Wilkinson, S. (2003). Liability or asset? Women talk about the vagina. Psychology of Women Section Review, 5(2), 28-42.

Brown, H. D. (1980). Principles of language learning and teaching. Prentice-Hall.

Bird, C. M. (2005). How I stopped dreading and learned to love transcription. Qualitative inquiry, 11(2), 226-248.

Bryman, A. (2012). Social Research Methods. Oxford University Press.

Chaka, C. (2024). Multilingualism, translanguaging, diversity, equity, social justice, and activism: A tenuous nexus and misrepresentations? International Journal of Language Studies, 18(1), 7-28.

Creswell, J. W. (2013). Qualitative inquiry & research design : choosing among five approaches. In Sage eBooks.

Collins, K.T. et al. (1973). Key words in education. Longman.

Hafiz, F. M., & Tudor, I. (1990). Graded readers as an input medium in L2 learning. System, 18(1), 31-42.

Horst, M. (2005). Learning L2 vocabulary through extensive reading: A measurement study. The Canadian Modern Language Reviewtion. Longman.

Horwitz, E. K., Horwitz, M. B., & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign language classroom anxiety. The Modern language journal, 70(2), 125-132.

Krashen, S. (1981). Second language acquisition and second language learning. Oxford, England: Pergamon Press.

Krashen, S. (2004). The power of reading: Insights from the research. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Koptleuova, K., Karagulova, B., Muratbek, B., Kushtayeva, M. & Kondybay K. (2022). Sociolinguistic and extralinguistic aspects of the functioning of the Kazakh-Russian-English trilingualism in the oil industry of Kazakhstan. Psycholinguistics (2022), 31(2), 57–77.

Koptleuova, K., Karagulova, B., Zhumakhanova, A., Kondybay, K. & Salikhova, A. (2023). Multilingualism and the Current Language Situation in the Republic of Kazakhstan. International Journal of Society, Culture and Language, Volume 11, Issue 3, pp. 242-257.

Lao, C. Y., & Krashen, S. (2000). The impact of popular literature study on literacy development in EFL: More evidence for the power of reading. System, 28(2), 261-270.

Lapadat, J. C., & Lindsay, A. C. (1999). Transcription in research and practice: From standardization of technique to interpretive positionings. Qualitative inquiry, 5(1), 64-86.

Lightbown, P. and Spada, N. (2006). How Languages Are Learned, 3rd edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Littlewood, W. T. (1981). Communicative language teaching: an introduction. Cambridge University Press.

Mcdonough, S. J. (1981). Psychology in foreign language teaching. London: Allen and Unwen.

Merriam, S. B. (2009). Qualitative research: A guide to design and implementation. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Miles, M. B., Huberman, A. M., & Saldaña, J. (2014). Qualitative Data Analysis: A methods sourcebook. Sage.

Mirzaei, M., Zoghi, M., & Davatgari Asl, H. (2017). Understanding the language learning plateau: A grounded-theory study. Teaching English Language, 11(2), 195-222.

Murphy, L. K. (2017). Why Some ESL Students Experience a Language Learning Plateau While Others Do Not. ProQuest LLC.

Nation, I. S. P. (2001). Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Nishino, T. (2007). Beginning to read extensively: A case study with Mako and Fumi. Reading in a Foreign Language, 19(2), 76-105.

Nurshatayeva, A., & Page, L. C. (2020). Effects of the shift to English-only instruction on college outcomes: Evidence from Central Asia. Journal of Research on Educational Effectiveness, 13(1), 92-120.

Nurshatayeva, A., Page, L. C., White, C. C., & Gehlbach, H. (2020). Proactive student support using artificially intelligent conversational chatbots: The importance of targeting the technology. (EdWorkingPaper: 20-208). Retrieved from Annenberg Institute at Brown University: https://doi.org/10.26300/mp4q-4x12

Nurshatayeva, A., Page, L. C., White, C. C., & Gehlbach, H. (2021). Are artificially intelligent conversational chatbots uniformly effective in reducing summer melt? Evidence from a randomized controlled trial. Research in higher education, 62, 392-402.

Oxford University Press. (n.d.). Perception. In Oxford Learner’s Dictionary. Retrieved March 20, 2022, from https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition

Renandya, W. A. (2007). The power of extensive reading. RELC journal, 38(2), 133-149.

Richards, J. (2008). Moving beyond the plateau: From intermediate to advanced levels in language learning. USA: Cambridge University Press.

Shormani, M. Q. (2013). Fossilization and Plateau Effect in Second Language Acquisition. Language in India, 13(2), 763-784.

Suk, N. (2017). The effects of extensive reading on reading comprehension, reading rate, and vocabulary acquisition. Reading research quarterly, 52(1), 73-89.

Waring, R. (1997). Graded and extensive reading-questions and answers. Language Teacher-Kyoto-Jalt-, 21, 9-12.

Waring, R., & Takaki, M. (2003). At what rate do learners learn an retain new vocabulary from reading a graded reader? Reading in a Foreign Language, 15(2), 130.

Webb, S., & Chang, A. C. S. (2015). How does prior word knowledge affect vocabulary learning progress in an extensive reading program?. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 37(4), 651-675.

Wellington, J. J. (2015). Educational research: Contemporary issues and practical approaches. Bloomsbury Academic.

Xu, Q. (2009). Moving beyond the intermediate EFL learning plateau. Asian Social Science, 5(2), 66-68.

Yi, F. (2011). Plateau of EFL learning: A psycholinguistic and pedagogical study. Available online at wlkc. nbu. edu. cn/jpkc_ nbu/daxueyingyu. Retrieved 12/02/2021.

Zapata Becerra, A. A. (2001). Overcoming plateaus in second language acquisition. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Kansas.

Downloads

Published

2024-07-17

Issue

Section

Articles