The Effects of Learners’ Contribution to Tasks on Achievement of Pedagogic Objectives of Fluency, Complexity, and Accuracy

Masoud Saeedi, Saeed Ketabi, Hossein Vahid Dastjerdi

Abstract


This study investigates the impact of manipulating the cognitive complexity of tasks on language learners’ perception of task difficulty in terms of overall task difficulty, perceived ability to perform the task, stress, motivation, and interest. The present study also examines the effect of such affective variables on complexity, accuracy, and fluency of learners’ task performance. Some 65 Iranian students studying English as a foreign language at the intermediate level participated in this research. The obtained results revealed that task complexity does affect task performance. Furthermore, task designer’s interpretation of task complexity and learners’ perception of task difficulty converge. Additionally, task takers’ ratings of tasks are related to the complexity and fluency but not accuracy of the performance.
Key words: Task complexity; Task difficulty; Structural complexity; Lexical complexity; Accuracy; Fluency


Résumé: Cette étude examine l'impact de la manipulation de la complexité des tâches cognitives sur la perception des apprenants de langues de difficulté de la tâche en termes de difficulté de la tâche globale, perçue capacité 1 à accomplir la tâche, le stress, la motivation et l'intérêt. La présente étude examine également l'effet de ces variables affectives sur la complexité, la précision et la fluidité de l'exécution de la tâche des apprenants. Quelque 65 étudiants iraniens étudient l'anglais comme langue étrangère au niveau intermédiaire ont participé à cette recherche. Les résultats obtenus ont révélé que la complexité des tâches ne touchent l'exécution des tâches. Par ailleurs, l'interprétation créatrice des tâches de complexité de la tâche et la perception des apprenants de la difficulté de la tâche convergent. En outre, les notes des preneurs de tâche »des tâches liées à la précision de la complexité et la fluidité, mais pas de la performance.
Mots clés: Complexité de la tâche; Difficulté d'une tâche; Complexité structurelle, Complexité lexicale; Précision; Maîtrise


Keywords


Task complexity; Task difficulty; Structural complexity; Lexical complexity; Accuracy; Fluency;Complexité de la tâche; Difficulté d'une tâche; Complexité structurelle, Complexité lexicale; Précision; Maîtrise;Canadian;Social Science

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3968/j.css.1923669720110704.108

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