This paper reports a pretest-posttest experimental study of the acquisition of English tones by Mandarin EFL learners in a Chinese university. The target tones are high fall, high rise, fall-rise and complex level tones embedded in non-English words, one/two-syllable English words and short English sentences. The subjects are 31 Mandarin EFL learners majoring in English, who have learnt English...

BACKGROUND Expiratory flow limitation (EFL) during tidal breathing is common in patients with severe COPD, and a major determinant of dynamic hyperinflation and exercise limitation. EFL can be measured by the forced oscillation technique (FOT); however, the relevance to clinical parameters is not fully understood. We hypothesized that emphysema extent and pulmonary function would contribute ind...

Achieving communicative competency in English classes has been a key goal in contexts where English is taught as a foreign language (EFL). During this process, however, integrating the difficulty and complexity of real life tasks into classroom teaching has often been disregarded. Lack of opportunities for authentic language use often results in learners’ gaining extensive knowledge about the t...

This paper aims to apply metacognitive theory in EFL writing instruction to provide an alternative solution to the difficulties and problems in EFL writing classes in China. Metacognition is knowledge about cognition and regulation of cognition. This paper advocates both teaching with metacognition and teaching for metacognition. To teach with metacognition, an EFL writing instructor should ref...

This paper deals with determining the linguistic competence of university students in EFL classes that are part of an English Studies degree. It suggests a language deficiency analysis (i.e., a combination of their target situation and their actual situation) to aid in the selection of language content to be taught. The proposed needs analysis makes use of the Oxford Placement Test (OPT), which...

To quantify gene expressions by quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (Q-RT-PCR) in natural diatom assemblages, it is necessary to seek a biomass reference specific to the target species. Two housekeeping genes, TBP (encoding the TATA box-binding protein) and EFL (encoding the translation elongation factor-like protein), were evaluated as candidates for reference genes in Q-RT-PCR assays. Tran...

The analysis of current EFL (English as a Foreign Language) education and literature indicates that most EFL practices can be characterised as traditional language learning settings in which teachers direct the learning process, and students are then assumed as passive receptors of knowledge. Furthermore, EFL learning has also been criticised as an in-class-only learning practice due to the rar...

This study examined the effect of working memory training on vocabulary recall and retention ofIranian EFL learners using dual N-back task technique. To this end, 50 EFL learners at IslamicAzad University of Shoushtar were randomly assigned to the experimental (n = 25) and control (n= 25) groups. Before the treatment, a vocabulary test was administered to the participants to assessthe participa...