A study of enhanced structured web-based discussion in a foreign language learning class

This experimental study aimed to investigate the effect of enhanced structured web discussion on EFL students' language production. This effect was measured by the number of T units and by students' use of the cognitive skills identified by Hunt (1965). A total of 27 college students participated in this study. The participants were randomly assigned to one of the three groups: the control group, the affective enhancement group and the cognitive enhancement group. Although the students in these groups received different treatment during the study, all of the students received the same instructional materials from the same instructor. The study was divided into three stages, and students' discussion messages from the first and the last stage were collected and analysed. An ANOVA test was used to compare the mean differences among the three groups. The results showed that cognitive enhancements were beneficial both to students' language production and their application of cognitive skills. Although the results from the affective enhancement group were not as significant as those from the cognitive enhancement group, the students from the affective enhancement group also experienced improvement in both language production and the use of cognitive skills. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.