The Impact of Spaced Instruction versus Massed Instruction on Iranian EFL Learners' Reading Comprehension, and Vocabulary Gain
Subject Areas :
Zeinab Rezaei Gashti
1
(
Department of English Language Education, Sarab Branch, Islamic Azad University, Iran
)
Ali Asghar Yousefi Azarfam
2
(
عضو هیات علمی دانشگاه آزاد
)
Fatemeh Mirzapour
3
(
Department of English Language Education, Soufian Branch, Islamic Azad University, Iran
)
Keywords: Massed instruction, Spaced instruction, EFL reading Comprehension, Vocabulary Gain,
Abstract :
This investigation aimed to examine the impact of spaced and massed education on the reading comprehension and vocabulary gain of Iranian EFL students. The researcher selected 150 Iranian participants out of 300 based on their enactment in the Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT). The selected medium participants were unsystematically assigned into two empirical groupings (spacing and massed) and one control group. The participants' reading comprehension and vocabulary knowledge in English were estimated using a pre-test. Three groups were provided with instruction on reading skills by English texts and new words from American English File 3. The massed group received a 90-minute session for each text, whereas the spaced group received three 30-minute sessions; the first session lasted 30 minutes, followed by two more sessions, each lasting 30 minutes, scheduled two days apart. Behind the teaching, a reading and vocabulary post-test post-test were distributed to the three classes. The results of data analysis utilizing independent samples t-tests and one-way ANOVA showed a considerable distinction between the post-tests of the spaced and massed groups compared to the control group. The findings demonstrate that the spaced grouping, which followed the specific recommended steps in their community, outperformed the massed and control groups (p < .05). This has consequential implications for English instructors, learners, and curriculum developers.
