The Effect Of Task Complexity And Task Condition On Iranian Efl Learners' Accuracy, Complexity And Fluency Of Written Task Performance
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Date
2016-03
Authors
Zahabi, Ali
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Universiti Sains Malaysia
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to investigate how increasing the level of task complexity
(Here-and-Now vs. There-and-Then tasks) influences the written task performance of Iranian
EFL Learners while performing open vs. closed tasks led by Robinson's Cognition
Hypothesis (2001). Sixty four first year undergraduate students studying at Islamic Azad
University of Gorgan, Iran served as the participants of this study. They were randomly
selected and divided into two equal groups of those with Here-and-Now tasks and those with
There-and-Then tasks. Each group was asked to narrate two different types of stories under
the two different conditions, open vs. closed. In the four experimental groups, the participants
were presented with the cartoon picture which was a nine-frame picture story. Then, their
writing performance was measured for complexity, accuracy, and fluency (CAF). To test the
way the two independent variables of Here-and-Now task and There-and-Then task affect the
dependent variables, the raw scores of the participants were fed into the computer software
SPSS (version 20). Results indicated that increasing task complexity significantly promoted
fluency and complexity in learner writing performance across the groups when participants
performed the open task, but the accuracy measure did not yield significant results.
Meanwhile, the statistical analysis revealed that task condition had a significant effect on the
accuracy and fluency of learner writing performance while performing Here-and-Now task,
but complexity of learner writing performance was not enhanced by the task condition of the
Here-and-now condition. The findings of this study strengthen the knowledge regarding the
cognitive process of EFL production proposed by information processing theory.
Furthermore it suggests pedagogical and theoretical implications in EFL writing performance for both learners and teachers. The operationalization of task complexity and task condition
make them easily adaptable to instructional contexts. Using these tasks in pedagogic contexts
can be easily manipulated to promote accuracy, complexity, and fluency.
Description
Keywords
Complexity