The Effects of Explicit Instruction of “Image English Grammar for Communication” on Tertiary English Classes

Abstract

This study had the following three aims: a) to verify that university students have not necessarily acquired native speaker intuition, which is often called Eigo no Kankaku (Feeling for English); b) to demonstrate the utility of explicit instruction on Eigo no Kankaku by employing “Image English Grammar”; and c) to demonstrate that Image English Grammar makes learning English valuable and interesting for learners. The researcher provided explicit instruction on Image English Grammar to 59 sophomores four times over a period of four weeks for approximately 25 minutes per time, and in the sixth week, reviewed all the items in 25 minutes. The participants completed a test of Image English Grammar before, immediately after, and eight weeks after instruction was completed. Students also completed a questionnaire regarding their impressions about the instruction in the 15th week class meeting. The results demonstrated the following: a) the percentage of students who answered Image English Grammar questions correctly was generally less than 30%; b) the effect of explicit instruction on Image English Grammar was statistically significant; and c) the percentages of students who found Image English Grammar valuable and enjoyable were 92% and 76%, respectively.