Document Type : Research

Authors

• Amir Zand-Moghadam ¹
• Zahra Tahavvori ²

¹ Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics, Allameh Tabataba'i University

² Department of Linguistics, Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages, Allameh Tabataba'i University

Abstract

Due to the lack of comprehensive research on non-Iranian Persian learners' pragmatic competence, this stud was an attempt to investigate the effect of teaching three speech acts of request, refusal and apology through task-based approach and using two types of corrective feedback, i.e., recast and metalinguistc feedback. To this end, 80 non-Iranian intermediate learners of Persian were selected through convenience sampling and were randomly assigned to four groups. The participants were given an already-validated WDCT (borrowed from Tajeddin et al., 2012) as a pre- and post-test. The WDCTs were then rated based on Taguchi's (2006) scale. Two groups received task-based instruction and the other two received non-task-based instruction. recast and metalinguistic feedback were also given to each of the two pairs. The results showed that instruction could improve the participants' speech act production and that the group which received task-based instruction and metalinguistic feedback outperformed the other groups. It can be concluded that (1) speech act production can be improved among learners of Persian through instruction, (2) task-based instruction, compared with non-task-based instruction, can develop Persian learners' pragmatic competence, and (3) metalinguistic feedback can improve Persian learners' pragmatic competence. This stud has implications for Persian language teachers and materials developers.

Keywords

• Interlanguage pragmatics
• Speech act
• Task-based instruction
• Recast
• Metalinguistic feedback

Main Subjects

• Teaching Persian as a second/foreign language