Korean EFL learners' use of past tense in a pasttime contextual frame

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Korean EFL learners' use of past tense in a
past-time contextual frame

• Hyojin Cho

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Introduction

• Partial Replication of
• Hinkel, E. (1997). The past tense and temporal
  verb meanings in a contextual frame. TESOL
  Quarterly, 31(2), 289-314.

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Review of the Literature

• 1. Framing Discourse in the Past Tense
• 2. Contextual Temporality
• 3. Past Tense and the Use of Adverbials
• 4. Past Tense in Korean

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Research Questions

• 1. How do the Korean EFL high school students
  mark tense/aspect in a past-time framed passage?
• 2. Is there a significant difference in the
  learners correct use of past tense according to
  their level of English global proficiency?

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Method

• Participants
• 77 2nd year high school EFL students in Korea
• Materials and Data Collection Procedure
• Three cloze test passages framed in past-time
• (adopted from Hinkels original study)
• Participants were given 1 hour to complete the
  cloze test

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Data Analysis Procedure (1)

• KEFL learners use of verb tense was categorized
  (frequency count)
• KEFL learners use of verb tense compared to NSs
  use (2-tailed z-test)
• KEFL learners use of verb tense compared to
  KESLs use (2-tailed z-test)
• (NS KESL data from Hinkels original study)

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Data Analysis Procedure (2)

• KEFL learners were divided into 3 groups
  according to level of proficiency
• Level of proficiency determined by the teacher
  based on general grade (English)
• Data analysis through chi-square test
• H0 p1p2p3

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Result (1)

• Analysis 1
• The KEFL learners showed varying use of
  tense/aspect for verbs in a context framed with
  past-time
• The KEFL learners showed significant difference
  with the NSs data
• The KEFL learners showed significant difference
  with the KESLs data
• No significant difference according to verb type
• (stative/active, regular/irregular)

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Result (2)

• Analysis 2
• The KEFL learners showed significant difference
  in the correct use of past tense for some verbs,
  according to their level of proficiency
• No significant difference according to verb type
• (stative/active, regular/irregular)

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Conclusion

• Majority of KEFL learners showed correct use of
  past tense in verb slot 1 for 2 passages
• KEFL learners use of tense/aspect varied
  according to the context
• Significant difference across proficiency level
  in the correct use of past tense for some verbs

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Suggestion for Future Research

• More research on the effect of teaching past
  tense in the context
• More research concerning the learners
  proficiency level needed

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Cloze Test Sample

• Boston settlement (1. begin) __________ in
  the 1630s when J. Winthrop (2. lead) __________ a
  group of about 800 people to a peninsula in the
  Charles River. The Europeans (3. like) __________
  the area and (4. decide) __________ to settle
  there. They (5. build) __________ houses and (6.
  plough) __________ fields, where farmers (7.
  raise) __________ wheat and beans. Fishermen (8.
  earn) __________ their living from the sea and
  (9. sell) __________ the excess of their catch to
  people in inland villages. Housewives (10. take)
  __________ care of the children, (11. cook)
  __________ food, and (12. make) __________
  clothes for the entire family. Children also (13.
  play) __________ a role in the life of the
  village and (14. harvest) __________ crops and
  (15. run) __________ businesses together with
  adults.

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