Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros

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Active learning in online classes
(Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2022-03-01) Toro Ramos, James Steven; Chicaiza Redín, Verónica Elizabeth
Online classes have become in the main teaching modality due to covid 19 pandemic. The facilities to teach English online are evident since there are many technological tools which helps to practice and have access to language. However, online classes present some challenges which involves students ‘interaction and engagement. The purpose of this research is to analyze how the use of active learning impacts online classes. That is why this research explores different active learning strategies which can be incorporated into the design of online classes. Additionally, it discusses many online learning tools that ca be used to promote active interaction between students and teacher. The design of the study was quasi-experimental with 22 participants from two groups. An experimental and a control group from 3rd BGU at Unidad Educativa Ambato. The experiment was applied in 7 online sessions which involved the application of active learning strategies to enhance online classes development and performance of each English skill. To obtain the results it was applied a pre and post test PET designed by Cambridge in the experimental and control group. In this way, it was possible to determine the level of students in online classes before and after the application of active learning. In addition, the analysis of data was done by using a T-student for paired means in SPSS software. In fact, the results demonstrated that there is a significant influence of the use of active learning in online classes since students from the experimental group enhance their performance in a high percentage. Therefore, it was concluded that the use of active learning had a positive impact in online classes.
AI-based voice chatbots and speaking skill
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y extranjeros, 2024-07-01) Chisag Poaquiza, Diana Estefanía; Chimbo Cáceres, Elsa Mayorie
Artificial intelligence has become an invaluable tool in education, innovating the way students learn and teachers teach. Its benefits include access to personalized educational resources, and developing cognitive skills. The subsequent research aimed to investigate the influence of AIbased voice chatbots in the development of speaking skill of students at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. This study was part of the research project called “Aplicación de herramientas digitales para el aprendizaje y el conocimiento (TAC) en la evaluación de aprendizajes”. For this reason, a mixed approach was applied to fourth-level students, consisting of 24 participants enrolled in “Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros” program. The qualitative information was collected through 2 surveys, the first one focused on collecting data about the use of ‘‘Tecnologías del aprendizaje y el Conocimiento’’ (TAC) tools in learning, and the second one was applied to collect data about the level of acceptance of the technological tool, considering that was applied a TAM Model questionnaire based on 4 constructs. Quantitative information was collected from a pre and post-test taken from PET (Preliminary English Test) of Cambridge. The test was evaluated using a rubric based on 4 criteria (grammar and vocabulary, discourse management, pronunciation, and interactive communication). Eight interventions were applied, resulting in a statistically significant improvement in speaking skill as exposed by statistical analysis using IBM SPSS. The findings showed a considerable improvement in the students' fluency, since they avoided pauses and hesitations. Moreover, the students demonstrated notable progress in their interactive discourse by employing curated grammar and exhibiting good pronunciation. This improvement was further complemented by the cultivation of problem solving skills and active participation.
American sitcom and listening comprehension
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación- Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2022-09-01) Papa Paredes, Angela Lizeth; Parra Gavilánez, Lorena Fernanda
This present study aims to analyze the influence of the American Sitcom (Friends) in the development of listening comprehension in young learners. It is quantitative research with a pre-experimental design through the application of a pre-test and posttest FCE listening part exam for the verification of the research hypothesis. The research was applied to 24 students of the 8th semester of the PINE English Language Training Program at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. For this study, an adapted evaluation rubric was used and designed according to the subskills measured by each part of the FCE listening part. A special attention was paid to the independent variable (American Sitcom) in relation to the dependent variable (Listening comprehension). For the analysis and interpretation of data, a table showed the improvements obtained by the students in each sub-skill. For the development of this research, a standardized pre-test and post-test FCE listening part exam was used. In addition, the students underwent 10 treatments of 30 min each, using American comedy as a tool to develop their listening comprehension. Subsequently, to test the hypothesis, a normality test was performed, followed by a T-test. Finally, it was concluded that the implementation of the American sitcom Friends does influence listening comprehension due to the enhancements in each listening subskill.
American Sitcoms and the Speaking Skill
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Maestría en Pedagogía de los idiomas Nacionales y extranjeros, 2022-03-01) Campusano Miranda, Glenda Nicole; Parra Gavilánez, Lorena Fernanda
Nowadays, students have no interest in learning a foreign language. Most of the students of an EFL classroom show low levels of communicative skills, and that is why teachers must find innovative ways to encourage students during this learning process. Therefore, the following research project aimed to analyze the influence of American sitcoms on the students’ speaking skills. The research was carried out with 26 Ecuadorian students, 13 males, and 13 females from the third year of high school. A pre-experimental design was applied where a pre-test and a post-test were used to measure the improvement of students on speaking skills. For the interventions, students were exposed to two sitcoms Futurama and Friends. These sitcoms were implemented through lesson plans with some speaking activities. The results showed that students improved their interactive communication skills in speaking. In addition, the results demonstrated the positive influence of using sitcoms as a learning tool to motivate learners and enhance their abilities.
Analytic linguistic approach and speaking skill
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y extranjeros, 2024-01-01) Nuñez Melo, Nayeli Nicole; Infante Paredes, Ruth Elizabeth
The Analytic linguistic approach is based on improving the pronunciation of words by teaching linguistic features explicitly as well as making use of input materials and activities provided by the teacher. The main objective of the present research is to determine the relationship between the Analytic linguistic approach and the speaking skill at the Technical University of Ambato from the faculty of the Pedagogy of the National and Foreign Language program. The level of research is descriptive. Moreover, a survey was designed to apply and collect reliable data from 67 students in the program. The technique was a survey, and the instrument was a questionnaire. It had 21 questions related to the use of the Analytic linguistic approach in the English class, facilitating the improvement of speaking skill. Further, the Alpha-Cronbach was applied to the questionnaire with the main aim of verifying the authenticity of the instrument. On the other hand, there were four experts on the topic who validated each question based on their professional knowledge. The survey was then administered in three levels, and each participant responded in accordance with their prior knowledge and experience. Through chi-square analysis, it was demonstrated that the alternative hypothesis was accepted. Ultimately, an analysis of the data led to the conclusion that there is a relationship between the Analytic linguistic approach and speaking skill.
Anchor charts and speaking skills
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y extranjeros, 2023-07-01) López López, Amanda Lizbeth; Chicaiza Redin, Verónica Elizabeth
The present investigation aims to examine the influence of anchor charts in speaking skills. The participants were a group of 36 students about 6 years old (21 boys and 15 girls) who participated in a quantitative, pre-experimental investigation. Data was collected through a Cambridge Pre-A1 (YLE Starters) speaking test. The exam had 10 information questions classified into four parts (understanding and following spoken instructions related to scene pictures and object cards, and personal questions). The results have shown that the use of anchor chart activities and color coded-designs followed by drills help students to learn vocabulary and be familiar with the English language. These results were analyzed by the use of SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Sciences) program version 26.0. The findings revealed that anchor charts and color coded design were more interesting and maintain students motivated. There were designs that were catchy to students at their early years. However, the use of colors and different materials during sessions contributed meaningfully to the spoken language.
Andragogical Strategies and Oral Skill
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2022-09-01) Culqui Baño, Adriana Lizbeth; Chimbo Cáceres, Mayorie Elsa
The andragogical strategies promoted confidence among teachers and students, prioritizing selflearning, a responsible attitude, acting freely and engaging in their learning process. For this reason, the main objective of this research work was to analyze the influence of andragogical strategies like collaborative work, debate and brainstorming in development of oral skill in adult students. In addition, a quasi-experimental design was used with a single group that consisted of 20 students of fifth semester of Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros major at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. The intervention was applied in 5 face-to-face modality sessions using PPP (presentation, practice, and production) lesson plans for collecting data and a Cambridge Preliminary English Exam (PET) as pretest and posttest. For the results of this research work, the SPSS Software was used to reject the null hypothesis because the andragogical strategies showed a meaningful improvement with an average before the treatment of 5.6 and an average of 8.2 after the treatment. Consequently, the andragogical strategies were effective in the improvement of oral skill because students enhance their, fluency and pronunciation.
Animated movie songs and listening comprehension
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera de Educación Básica, 2023-02-01) Matza Sogso, Katherine Edith; Chicaiza Redín, Verónica Elizabeth
The present study aims to analyze the influence of animated movie songs on the development of students' listening comprehension. It is quantitative research with a quasi-experimental design. The research was applied to 15 students of seventh grade from Unidad Educativa "Espiritu Santo". For this study, the Cambridge KET standardized exam was used, it was the data collection instrument. The experimental part of the research lasted 6 weeks and 11 pedagogical interventions were carried out, these involved the use of animated movie songs as the main listening tool for listening comprehension. To collect the results, a pre-test and a post-test taken from the Cambridge KET listening test, parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, were applied. Through this test, the listening ability was evaluated before and after using animated movie songs. The data obtained were statistically analyzed to determine the influence of animated movie songs on students and thus the validity of the hypothesis raised in the investigation. Therefore, the results of the pre-test showed that the participants had a low level of listening comprehension since the total average of the pre-test was 2.54 out of 5 points. After the treatment using animated movie songs, a post-test was applied and its total average was 3.63 out of 5 points. The results showed that students improved their grades because between the two exams there was an increase of 1.09 points. Finally, the study hypothesis was validated using SPSS statistical software, in which the null hypothesis was rejected and the alternative hypothesis was accepted. In conclusion, the implementation of animated movie songs allows to improve the level of listening comprehension and listening sub-skills. This is because animated movies have English songs with simple and repetitive words. In addition, these songs are entertaining and motivate to learn new words easily.
Animated Movies and Listening Skill
(Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2022-03-01) Guanoluisa Flores, Evelyn Johanna; Iza Pazmiño, Sarah Jacqueline
The objective of this research was to determine the relationship between animated films and listening skills among students of fourth semester of Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros at Universidad Técnica de Ambato, which took the subject "Communicative Languages Teaching Strategies". Furthermore, this research followed a quantitative approach and pre-experimental design was applied to a group of 42 students, in order to know the impact of the application of animated films. The treatment consisted in the application of some animated movies during some of their classes, with the purpose of helping the students to better develop this listening skill through the exposure to authentic material, where they could perceive the language more real. Eventually, the application of didactic and technological material was used in order to display the movies in synchronous and asynchronous hours. To conclude, the application of animated movies becomes a necessary factor for the improvement of listening skills, due to some factors in which the learner is involved, such as more real language, vocabulary, real expressions. Moreover, after the results obtained from the pre-test and post-test, analysis of results, tabulations and graph of results, in addition to the Wilcoxon test statistical method, the effectiveness of animated movies for listening skills was proven
Artificial intelligence writing tools and writing skills
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y extranjeros, 2024-07-01) Pinto Abril, Hilary Stephanie; Calero Sánchez, Ximena Alexandra
Within the skills that are developed in English language learning, writing is one of the most complex due to the grammatical, spelling, punctuation and writing rules that exist in this language. However, thanks to advances in technology, there are now writing tools that use artificial intelligence and are part of the education system to facilitate autonomous learning for thousands of students around the world who are learning a new language. For this reason, the purpose of this research was to identify the effectiveness of an artificial intelligence writing tool in improving writing skills. The participants in this project were 39 second semester students of the Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros program at the Universidad Técnica de Ambato. The methodology managed was preexperimental with a quantitative approach. The instrument employed was a test from the writing section of the Cambridge KET (Key English Test), which was taken before and after the treatment. In addition, the artificial intelligence writing tool Wordtune was utilized. The treatment was applied in eight interventions where students wrote different types of texts following the writing process (before, during and after writing); after this, they transcribed their texts and received feedback from the tool and the teacher. The rubric used had three evaluation criteria: content, organization and language. The data obtained were analyzed according to the Wilcoxon statistical test to verify the hypothesis. Main findings revealed a positive impact on students' writing skills, especially according to the criteria of content and organization.
Audiobooks and English pronunciation
(Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2022-03-01) Sandoval Armijos, Shirley Milena; Chicaiza Redín, Verónica Elizabeth
Pronunciation is an important sub-skill in English since it allows to articulate well the sounds and intonations of words in order to be understood by other speakers of the language. There are different learning strategies with which this aspect can be taught. The present research aims to determine the influence of audiobooks in English pronunciation in A1 level English students at Universidad Indoamérica. For this study, a preexperimental investigation was carried out with the participation of 17 students between 20 and 26 years of old. To collect the data, the Cambridge English Key (KET) was applied as pre-test and a post-test. To carry out this investigation, lesson plans were designed exclusively to improve pronunciation using audiobooks as a learning strategy. The results obtained showed a significant improvement in this indicator, because during the pre-test the students achieved an average of 3,59 points and once the experiment was applied then in the post-test, they obtained 4,50 out of 5, demonstrating an improvement of 0.91 points, which indicates that audiobooks have a positive influence on students' pronunciation. Finally, it is important to choose audiobooks according to the English level and age of the students
Audiobooks and listening comprehension
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación- Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2022-09-01) Torres Aleaga, Juan José; Escalante Gamazo, Marbella Cumandá
Learning the English language is an experience as a whole, depending on how you approach it and what methods you use. The main objective of this study is to determine the effects of using audiobooks for improving students’ listening comprehension. The population of this research was 33 students, 12 men and 21 women, from the fifth semester of “Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros (PINE)” major at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. The study had a total of 6 sessions. The first and last sessions were used for the pre- and post-test, which were the PET Listening section. The remaining four sessions were for the treatments. Moreover, the research used a pre-experimental design with a mixed approach. At the end of the treatment sessions, the data that was gathered was then analyzed and verified using the Wilcoxon ranks test from the SPSS program. Finally, the results showed that audiobooks made a significant improvement of students’ listening comprehension skills.
Audiobooks and listening skill
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y extranjeros, 2024-01-01) Guachi Caiza, Mónica Katherine; Calero Sánchez, Ximena Alexandra
The current study aimed to determine the impact of audiobooks on students’ listening skill. A total of 68 university students (24 male and 44 female) freely participated in a descriptive, nonexperimental investigation. The data was gathered with a survey of 27 questions based on the Likert scale and one open question. Additionally, the survey was validated with Cronbach's Alpha coefficient (0.867) and the judgment of experts. The research was founded on three research questions. Thus, the main findings indicate that the predominant format for audiobooks is online, and the popular genre is fantasy. Regarding listening materials, it was discovered that audiobooks are not listened to by many students despite their many advantages. Further, the listening materials most used by students are songs, videos, and academic lectures. When listening, students use and develop listening subskills and students demonstrated that they had developed most of them. Most learners exhibited proficiency in the subskill of listening for specific details, indicating a strong competence in their listening abilities. Additionally, all students use strategies when listening, and at this point, the most used strategy is imagining. However, it is impressive that pupils do not prefer to take notes when listening when many books and teachers suggest it. Additionally, the tendency of students not to ask a classmate or teacher for help was noted.
Audiobooks and speaking skills
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la educación -Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2025-01-22) Guaman Tello Jharol Esteban; López Jaramillo María Gabriela; Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la educación -Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros
The objective of this research was to evaluate the effects of using audiobooks as a teaching strategy on improving students' speaking skills. The study population consisted of ninth-grade students from the Sagrada Familia Educational Unit in Ambato, Ecuador, during the 2024-2025 school year. The population consisted of 53 students, divided into a control group of 26 students and an experimental group of 27 students. The methodology was quasi-experimental. For the evaluation, pre- and post-tests based on the speaking section of the Cambridge A1 Movers exam were conducted before and after 8 intervention sessions. The sessions, which lasted 45 minutes each, integrated audiobooks into activities such as role-playing, storytelling, and group discussions. The data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Results showed that the experimental group experienced significant improvements in fluency, pronunciation, and interactive communication. The pre-test average for the experimental group was 4.2 out of 10, which increased to 7.8 in the post-test, reflecting a 3.6-point improvement. This indicates that audiobooks contributed significantly to enhancing students' oral proficiency by providing exposure to authentic pronunciation and engaging language contexts. In conclusion, the use of audiobooks as a didactic resource is effective in improving speaking skills. This method not only promotes active participation but also addresses key linguistic challenges. Students became more confident and articulate speakers through structured, interactive audiobook activities, showcasing the potential of this approach in language education
Audiobooks and the reading comprehension
(Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2022-03-01) Macías Moreno, Magdalena Misshell; Suárez Mosquera, Wilma Elizabeth
Audiobooks are electronic books format or recording books which are listened instead of being only read as printed books. Audiobooks has been seen as a supporting tool for people with reading disabilities. However nowadays it is seen as a media for developing high listening and reading competencies. The objective of this research is to analyze how audiobooks improve reading comprehension. This was a quasiexperimental study with a group of 29 participants that belonged to seventh semester of Carrera de Pedagogía de Los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros at Universidad Técnica de Ambato. The investigation lasted 2 weeks with eight interventions in total. At the beginning of the experiment students were given a pre-test based on CAE reading and use of English. After that, students read and listened to five different audiobooks written by Oscar Wilde. By the end of each session students were given a questionnaire with ten multiple choice questions. After the period of treatment students were given the post-test. The hypothesis was proved by using Saphiro and Wilcoxon tests. The results showed that using audiobooks in class improved reading comprehension on students
Auditory authentic material and listening skills
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y extranjeros, 2024-07-01) Morales Quezada, Lizbeth Andrea; Hernández Freire, Alba Paulina
The following research project aimed to determine the effectiveness of authentic listening material on the listening skills of 30 university students (15 females and 15 males) at the A1 level at the Language Center of the 'Universidad Técnica de Ambato'. In terms of methodology, this study involved a pre-experimental design with a quantitative approach. The instrument used to assess listening skill was Cambridge's A2 KEY for schools listening test, which was applied before and after implementing the authentic listening material in classes. In addition, the treatment phase was carried out during 16 sessions. In these sessions, songs, podcasts, monologues, and conversations of native speakers were applied and each of these authentic audio materials was accompanied by worksheets designed with the criteria of the listening skill test, most of which focused on filling in blanks, ordering sentences, answering questions and multiple choice since the students obtained very low marks. The Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) was used to analyze the data collected. Finally, the results showed an improvement in the students from an initial mean of 3.33 to a final mean of 4.14, so the acceptance of the alternative hypothesis was determined by applying the nonparametric Wilcoxon method. In conclusion, the use of authentic auditory materials had a positive impact on listening skills. In addition, it was demonstrated that these materials are innovative and engaging, and encourage students to practice their listening skills.
Authentic activities and speaking skills
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y extranjeros, 2023-07-01) Torres Muñoz, Carlos Alejandro; Escalante Gamazo, Marbella Cumanda
The present investigation analyzed the influence of using authentic activities in speaking skills. The population of study was a group of 29 students from 10th. grade at Unidad Educativa “Sagrada Familia”. A quantitative and quasi-experimental methodology was applied in this project. The instrument used in this investigation was a pre-test and a post-test taken from Cambridge Key English for A2 level, and only the speaking part was used, both exams consisted of two parts the first contained different personal questions to answer about their city and friends. The second part contained a conversation using a picture added in the exam. Furthermore, treatments were based on the application of authentic activities in the classroom, these tasks were applied in the subject of English and contained authentic resources such as cultural objects, postal, movie clips, authentic videos, Tik Tok videos, interviews, songs, lyrics, and posters. These materials were employed to create authentic activities in class such as presentations about your last trip, conversations and oral presentations about an exciting trip , creating and presenting a story with a movie clip, conversation in groups about your favorite movie, simulations, role-plays ,interviewing a famous person, conversations about our feelings with music, making notes about our thoughts ,creating and presenting a ecologic poster in class, planning a party and preparing its itinerary ,and debates in class. Pre-test and Post-test results were analyzed through the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) program, showing an average of 5,27 in the pre-test and average of 7,62 in the post-test describing an improvement of 2,35. In summary, the application of authentic activities is effective for the development of speaking skills.
Authentic Materials and Listening Skills
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la educación -Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2025-01-23) Colcha Nuñez Darwin Anibal; Sulca Guale Manuel Xavier; Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la educación -Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros
This current study aimed to determine students' perspectives on the influence of authentic materials on listening skills. This descriptive study was applied to a population of 60 undergraduate participants (16 males and 44 females, ages between 18 and 24) with an intermediate level of English. Data was collected through a survey with 20 items, each containing 5 options on a Likert scale. This survey was validated by Cronbach' Alpha coefficient (0,727) and approved by five experts in the field who showed acceptance of each survey item and values ranged between 0,80 and 1 in the Aiken's V coefficient. To develop this research, three research questions related to the objectives were formulated focusing on the following categories: Types of authentic materials, types of authentic listening activities, and listening subskills. Firstly, the results showed that the kind of authentic materials most used by the students are auditory materials (authentic interviews, authentic conversations, songs and music, podcasts, and radio) as well as audio-visual materials (TV shows, commercials, and YouTube) due to the daily use they have with those types of materials in their native language. In addition, several activities were found to improve students’ listening skills such as, fill-gaps activities or role-plays in the classroom. Finally, it was found that students have developed several subskills such as extensive listening, intensive listening, listening for specific information, and attitude inference to improve their listening skills. Interestingly, extensive listening proved to be the most developed by students, which means that students like to listen to audios about interests outside the classrooms as part of their academic progress and language development.
Authentic materials for reading comprehension
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación- Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros, 2023-02-01) Tuapanta Criollo, Luis Vladimir; Calero Sánchez, Ximena Alexandra
The purpose of this research was to analyze the importance of authentic materials to improve reading comprehension of students at Cambridge School of Languages. This study had a quantitative approach since a reading pre-test and post-test based on a standardized Cambridge 2020 test was applied to measure the student's level of reading comprehension. In addition, this research used a pre-experimental design because the treatment was applied to a single group of students in the A2 level course (in total 8 students) formed the experimental group, the level of this research is exploratory, correlational, and descriptive. Six kinds of authentic materials were chosen: newspaper articles, magazines, song lyrics, movie reviews, travel brochures, and biographies; focused on improving reading comprehension. Reading comprehension strategies such as predicting, scanning, skimming, inferring, making connections, questioning, and summarizing were also applied. On the other hand, each lesson plan was planned in three stages: pre-reading, during reading, and post-reading. The verification of the hypothesis proposed in the present study was carried out by statistical analysis of the results obtained in the pre-test and post-test. For the verification of the hypothesis, the SPSS program was used to find the normality test with Friedman's test, T-test, paired samples statistic, and paired samples test. The post-test results showed that students who worked with authentic materials significantly improved their reading comprehension skills. Therefore, it is important to suggest the implementation of these authentic materials that strengthen reading comprehension skills at the literal and inferential levels. Literal comprehension level consists of understanding what the text states explicitly, recognizing information within the text. Inferential comprehension level analyzes the premises in the text to deduce a conclusion. In addition, students reflect more interest in reading, improve reading comprehension skills, and expose the student to the maximum amount of real language in order to obtain more information from real life. To conclude, the use of authentic materials positively influenced the improvement of reading comprehension and encourages students to read for pleasure.
Automated Evaluation to Explore Writing Skills
(Universidad Técnica de Ambato-Facultad de Ciencias Humanas y de la Educación-Carrera de Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y extranjeros, 2023-07-01) Espinosa Herrera, Verónica Alejandra; Parra Gavilánez, Lorena Fernanda
Writing is a complex skill to develop; therefore, the integration of technological software should be considered to obtain its maximum benefits. The purpose of this research is to analyze the impact of automated evaluation in terms of developing students’ writing performance. For instance, this investigative work was based on a quantitative approach and pre- experimental design. Hence, 36 undergraduate students from the third semester belonging to the major Pedagogía de los Idiomas Nacionales y Extranjeros were encouraged to use Virtual Writing Tutor during six interventions that were destined to teach three genres of email, article, and story and generate one composition per day to obtain feedback from the AWE system. Additionally, a pre-test and post-test based on the B1 Preliminary Writing Section were implemented to corroborate students’ improvement, they comprised 3 parts email, article, and story writing and were graded according to the criteria provided by Cambridge content, communicative, achievement, organization and language which were scored over five individually. To examine the results of the pre and post-test statistics were implemented; thus, the Wilcoxon rank test was implemented to accept or reject the alternative hypothesis. The results revealed that automated evaluation positively impacts students’ writing skills since students have a significant improvement in each aspect evaluated. Specially, students exhibited a notable improvement in email writing where most of them got a perfect grade. Overall, students showed a great improvement since there was a difference according to the pre and post-test of each genre. For instance, regarding email writing there was a difference of 5, 12 points, article writing presented a difference of 3,66, and story writing exhibited a difference of 3.66 points.