Abstract:

The use of a computer as a means and/or a source of feedback provision has facilitated the process of teaching and learning writing. The integration of computers into writing classes enabled teachers to provide timely and reliable feedback. Taking into account these opportunities that computers bring to the classroom, the present study attempted to investigate the effect of computer-mediated text-based and audio-based corrective feedback on the development of writing accuracy of Iranian EFL learners. For reaching the aims of this study, Iranian female intermediate students were chosen based on cluster random sampling. First, all the participants took Nelson proficiency test as a homogeneity test. Then, a writing accuracy pre-test was administered to measure the participants’ initial level of writing accuracy. After that, when the experimental groups learnt the writing ability using computer-mediated corrective feedback, the control group just experienced their routine method of teaching. Experimental group I received text-based correction as treatment and experimental group 2 received audio-based correction as treatment. At the end of the research, a post-test with the same content as the pre-test was conducted for all the participants in order to measure their achievement in English writing accuracy. After the required data were collected, in order to analyze data including homogeneity test scores and writing accuracy pre-test and post-test scores, SPSS software was used. Descriptive statistics of data provided information such as group’s means, standard deviations, and frequency. Inferential statistics helped us to test the research hypotheses. For doing this, ANOVA test was run to compare the differences among performance of the three groups, and find out about the effect of treatments. The results of the data analysis showed that group receiving audio and text based corrective feedback instruction outperformed the control group in post-test of writing accuracy. In the other words, computer-mediated audio-based and text-based corrective feedback has been beneficial in the development of writing accuracy of Iranian EFL learners. Furthermore, the group receiving computer mediated audio based corrective feedback instruction outperformed the computer mediated text based corrective feedback group in post-test of writing accuracy.

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