Using flashcards for English second language creative writing in Grade 1

Abstract

Background: English Second Language (ESL) learners have difficulty constructing sentences due to internalising information in their home language and thereafter translating it into English. Learners who have difficulty speaking English generally encounter problems writing it, which hampers their creative writing ability.Objectives: The purpose of the research was to identify a teaching strategy to facilitate ESL learners with creative writing. This study explored the influence of flashcards on the creative writing skills of Grade 1 ESL learners and improved the researchers’ teaching practice.Method: This qualitative study depicted an action research design and utilised an inductive approach to data analysis. Convenience sampling was used when selecting the participants who were 31 Grade 1 learners in a school in Pietermaritzburg. The flashcards were used during the implementation stage of the action research process as an intervention to enhance learners’ creative writing skills.Findings: The findings indicate that learners who participated in the study had improved in their written assessments. There were three themes identified, which included misspelt words, incorrect use of tenses and ungrammatical sentence construction. Flashcards revealed the correct sentence writing techniques by depicting sentences. Learners’ written pieces were more logical and they participated actively during lessons. This enhanced the researcher’s teaching practice, which catered to both visual and auditory learners.Conclusion: The findings suggest that the use of flashcards had a positive effect on ESL learners’ creative writing skills. This encouraged participatory teaching and learning, which can be of benefit to many teachers seeking to engage learners using alternate learning styles.

The Roles of Non-Textual Elements in Sustaining ESL and EFL Learning: A Scoping Review

“…Twenty-two studies on the traditional methods of using non-textual elements were identified. Most of these articles used pictures, visual materials, infographics, posters, photographs, and graphics from language teachers and instructors, and their findings highly emphasized the important role of non-textual elements in supporting ESL and EFL learners in language classrooms, as suggested in many previous studies [7][8][9]15]. These articles described the treatment of non-textual elements in engaging learners in language learning through different types of media with illustrations.…”

“…In education studies, non-textual elements, such as pictures, photos, flashcards, videos, and infographics, have a vital function in supporting learning among English as a second language (ESL) and English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. Several studies conducted in education from primary to tertiary levels [6][7][8][9][10] have defined visuals as anything one person observes within a given frame. Our world is visually oriented, and most responses are stimulated non-verbally, with verbal information better processed through visual cues.…”

Using Contemporary Talk Shows to Develop Faculty of Education English Major's EFL Creative Speaking Skills and Speaking Self-Efficacy

“…Baki, 2020;Bataineh & Alqatnani, 2019;Priyatni, 2020) and creative writing skills (i.e. Cetin & Cetin, 2021;Ghoneim & Elghotmy, 2019;Mathura & Zulu, 2021;Paragas & Francisco, 2020). Other studies attempted to examine the relationship between creative thinking skills and reading as well as listening comprehension skills as the study of Piri (2019) and SUR (2021).…”

Non-Native Speakers’ Perception and Motivation for Learning English Language through Movies

“…Flashcards have also emerged as valuable tools for improving word context understanding and writing skills (Sartika, 2020;Skarr et al, 2012). By combining images and words, flashcards foster spelling and writing proficiency (Adas & Bakir, 2013;Mathura & B. Zulu, 2021). Repeated exposure to flashcards enhances memory retention, benefiting ESL learners (Miles & Ehri, 2017).…”

“…Repeated exposure to flashcards enhances memory retention, benefiting ESL learners (Miles & Ehri, 2017). The use of flashcards in English learning, particularly, has proven beneficial and engaging in classroom settings, especially among students new to studying English as a second language (Mathura & Zulu, 2021). Another effective method involves group collaboration, particularly advantageous for non-native English speakers seeking enhanced learning outcomes (Altherr, 2022).…”