Turkish EFL Teachers’ and Learners’ Perceptions of Collocations

Abstract

This study explored perceptions of Turkish EFL teachers and learners on teaching and learning of collocations. Participants were 32 high school teachers and 326 students from five different state schools. The participants completed a questionnaire, and semi-structured interviews with 6 teachers were conducted to further explore the issues related to their perceptions and practices of teaching collocations. Results indicated that teachers consider it crucial to develop learners’ collocational knowledge starting from beginner levels. According to them, the main sources of collocational errors are learners’ unawareness of collocation as a concept and first language interference. Teachers reported that they specifically allocate teaching time for most frequently used collocations. Regarding learners, their responses indicated that most of them believe collocations play an important role in language learning. However, they think that teachers do not always dedicate enough time for collocations during teaching. Learners also believed that their collocational errors mostly stem from Turkish interference, and that the most effective strategy to study collocations is through collocational grids. The results of the study are discussed with reference to previous research conducted in different EFL settings, and in terms of practical applications for foreign language teaching in Turkey.

Keywords

• Collocations, Turkish context, teacher perceptions, learner perceptions

İngilizceyi Yabancı Dil Olarak Öğrenen Türk Öğrencilerin ve Türk İngilizce Öğretmenlerinin Eşdizimlilik Algısı

Öz

Bu çalışma, İngilizceyi yabanci dil olarak öğrenen Türk öğrencilerin ve Türk İngilizce öğretmenlerinin eşdizimlilik öğrenmeye ve öğretmeye ilişkin algılarını saptamak amacıyla yapılmıştır. Bu amaçla, çalışmanın katılımcılarını oluşturan beş farklı devlet lisesindeki 32 öğretmen ve 326 öğrenci, bir anket tamamlamıştır. Ayrıca öğretmenlerden altısıyla eşdizimlilik öğretim uygulamalarıyla ilgili yarı yapılandırılmış görüşmeler yapılmıştır. Sonuçlar öğretmenlerin, eşdizimlilik bilgisinin başlangıç seviyesinden itibaren geliştirilmesi gerektiğini, öğrencilerin eşdizimlilik hatalarının genellikle eşdizimlilik kavramını bilmemelerinden ve ana dilden yaptıkları aktarımdan kaynaklandığını düşündüğünü göstermiştir. Buna ek olarak, öğretmenler sık kullanılan eşdizimli sözcüklere özel olarak zaman ayırdıklarını belirtmişlerdir. Öğrenciler ise, eşdizimli sözcüklerin dil öğreniminde önemli rol oynamasına rağmen öğretmenlerinin yeterince zaman ayırmadıklarını, eşdizimlilikle ilgili yaptıkları hataların ana dilin etkisinden kaynaklandığını ve onlar için en etkili öğrenme stratejisinin eşdizimlilik tablosu olduğunu belirtmişlerdir. Makalde, çalışmanın sonuçları farklı yabanci dil olarak İngilizce ortamlarında yapılan çalışmalarınkiyle karşılaştırılmış ve Türkiye’deki yabancı dil öğretim uygulamalarına istinaden yapılan çıkarımlar sunulmuştur.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Eşdizimlilik,kelime öğretimi,yabancı dil olarak İngilizce öğretimi

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