Corrective Feedback 1: Exploring the Discourse by Connecting Scholars & Teachers

March 8th, 2021

This is the introductory episode to our Corrective Feedback series. Here, we invite Dr. Eva Kartchava - Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics and Discourse Studies in the School of Linguistics and Language Studies at Carleton University, Canada - and Dr. Hossein Nassaji - Professor of Applied Linguistics in the Department of Linguistics at the University of Victoria, Canada - to help kick off the series.

In this episode, they help elucidate many questions the series aims to answer, some of which are:

• what is corrective feedback?

• how do you give CF?

• what is the purpose of CF?

• how many different types of CF are there?

• when should we provide CF?

Corrective Feedback 2: Exploring the Discourse with Dr. Hossein Nassaji

March 22nd, 2021

This is episode 2 in our series. In this episode, Dr. Hossein Nassaji joins the program to discuss corrective feedback. Dr. Hossein is an award-winning scholar and Professor of Applied Linguistics in the Department of Linguistics at the University of Victoria, Victoria, BC.  He has authored over 100 articles and many books.  His forthcoming handbook on corrective feedback, The Cambridge Handbook of Corrective Feedback in Second Language Learning and Teaching with Eva Kartchava, is a comprehensive volume that discusses current issues and perspectives on corrective feedback and their applications to second language teaching and learning.  

Specifically in this episode, Dr. Nassaji tells us about:

• the roles corrective feedback plays in language learning

• how culture impacts feedback effectiveness

• the debate between immediate and delayed feedback

• written vs oral feedback and the efficacy of written feedback

• the what, when, why, and if of explicit & implicit feedback

• how teachers can learn about and implement corrective feedback in their classes

Corrective Feedback 3: Exploring the Discourse with Dr. Rebecca Adams

April 5th, 2021

Dr. Rebecca Adams joins us for episode 3. Dr. Adams is an Associate Professor in the Department of English at the University of Memphis, USA. She is an applied linguist with interests in instructed second language learning. Her research work focuses on peer communication in second language classrooms, peer corrective feedback in peer interaction and learning, second language task complexity in peer interactions, and focus on form.

In this episode, Dr. Adams highlights:

• the benefits of peer feedback when compared to teacher-provided feedback

• how to establish a conducive classroom environment for peer feedback to be most effective

• types of corrective feedback and their effectiveness

• whether students are actually hesitant to provide feedback to their peers

• if teachers should wait for peer feedback to occur naturally or if providing students with training is beneficial

• the connection between task-based language teaching and peer corrective feedback

Corrective Feedback 4: Exploring the Discourse with Dr. Yucel Yilmaz

April 19th, 2021

This is episode 4 in our series, featuring Dr. Yucel Yilmaz. Dr. Yilmaz is a professor of Second Language Studies at Indiana University Bloomington. He teaches and researches several areas in second language acquisition, with a focus on how to offer effective (negative) feedback to language learners in both technology-mediated and in-person environments. He is also interested in the role of cognitive individual differences in the effectiveness of corrective feedback.  

In this episode, Dr. Yilmaz discusses:

• the interactionist approach

• explicit correction versus recast

• why direct feedback being more effective needs to be taken with a grain of salt

• computer versus face-to-face mediated feedback

• how to implement oral and written feedback

• how teachers can learn about corrective feedback research and apply it to their own contexts

Corrective Feedback 5: Exploring the Discourse with Dr. María del Pilar García Mayo

May 9th, 2021

This is episode 5 in our series, featuring Dr. María del Pilar García Mayo. Dr. Maria del Pilar Garcia Mayo is the director of the research group Language in speech  - a multidisciplinary group at the University of the Basque country in Spain. The group focuses on the acquisition of English as a foreign language. Dr. Mayo has a PhD in linguistics from the University of Iowa and is the director of the MA program Language Acquisition in MultiLingual Settings as well as the head of the department of English and German studies at the university of the Basque Country. Her publications span the area of second and third language acquisition of English, morphosyntax, and the study of conversational interaction in EFL. She is  also the editor of journal Language Teaching Research. 

In this episode, Dr. García Mayo discusses:

• the Spanish EFL context

• recent studies revolving around language learning and the high school context in Spain

• the arguments for and against self-repair, recast, and implicit & explicit feedback

• why there is such a research gap with children

• teacher training and corrective feedback

• the role of research - and researchers - in classroom application

Corrective Feedback 6: Exploring the Discourse with Dr. Neomy Storch

May 28th, 2021

This is episode 6 of our corrective feedback series, featuring Dr. Neomy Storch. Dr. Storch is an Associate Professor of applied linguistics at the University of Melbourne. She teaches a range of ESL and Applied Linguistics subjects and convenes the ESL program. She is world renowned for her work on second language acquisition, collaborative writing, and academic writing. She has over 100 scholarly works published on these topics, including her 2013 book "Collaborative Writing in L2 Classrooms" and a 2016 co-authored book called "Written Corrective Feedback for L2 Development." 

In this episode, Dr. Storch shares:

• the drawbacks of looking at corrective feedback research in a vacuum

• examples of explicit and implicit feedback

• the differences between collaborative and cooperative writing

• the differences between feedback and uptake

• her optimism about the future of collaborative writing

June 28th, 2021

In episode 7 of our series on corrective feedback, Dr. Shaofeng Li joins us. Dr. Li is a prominent scholar and award-winning researcher of second language acquisition, with a focus on corrective feedback. He is currently an associate professor in the School of Teacher Education at Florida State University. Prior to this, he was a senior lecturer in the department of Applied Language Studies at Auckland University. He has an extensive list of published works on areas such as corrective feedback, task-based language teaching/learning, cognitive variables of second language learning, second language learner beliefs & motivations, and much more. More recently, Dr. Li has a number of upcoming published works focusing more specifically on associations between anxiety, working memory and corrective feedback timing.

In this episode, Dr. Li discusses:

• learner and teacher beliefs on corrective feedback (CF)

• how his own beliefs of CF have evolved over time

• how teachers often view CF differently than learners and they impact that can have on learning gains

• why teachers should take learner beliefs on CF into account

• cognitive variables affecting CF

• how CF fits into a Task-based Learning and Teaching (TBLT) model

August 8th, 2021

Dr. Miroslaw Pawlak shares his thoughts in our final episode of our series on corrective feedback. Dr. Pawlak is the Head of the Department of English Studies and part of the Faculty of Pedagogy and Fine Arts in Kalisz, Poland at Adam Mickiewicz University. Additionally, he is the editor-in chief of the journals Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, and Konin Language Studies, and the editor-in chief of the book series Second Language Learning and Teaching (Springer). His areas of research include form-focused instruction, corrective feedback, pronunciation teaching, classroom interaction, study abroad, and a range of individual difference factors such as motivation, willingness to communicate, language learning strategies and boredom. His most recent research article “Corrective Feedback, Developmental Readiness, and Language Proficiency” can be seen in The Cambridge Handbook of Corrective Feedback in Second Language Learning and Teaching.

In this episode Dr. Pawlak tells us:

• how to increase teacher interest in the topic of corrective feedback (CF)

• how CF affects the willingness of learners to communicate

• if it's preferable to over correct or under correct

• what we can learn from studying developmental readiness

• the role CF plays in form-focused instruction in comparison to more prescribed learner performance approaches