Journal of Education, Language, and Cultural Studies

English Grammatical Errors in Thai EFL Students’ Paragraph Writing: An Analysis of Error Types, Causes, and Pedagogical Recommendations

2025-11-18T15:46:24+07:00

Grammatical errors pose a significant challenge for Thai English as a foreign language (EFL) students, particularly in the area of writing, where accuracy and clarity are of utmost importance. Examining the different types and frequency of these errors is crucial for devising effective instructional strategies. The aims of this study were to (1) examine the grammatical errors in paragraph essays written by 62 Grade 12 Thai EFL students from a public secondary school in Chonburi, Thailand, and (2) investigate the root causes leading to such errors. The findings revealed a total of 1,016 grammatical errors in EFL students’ paragraph writing which were classified into 14 error types. The most common errors included problems with articles (22.44%), verb tenses (12.99%), subject-verb agreement (12.60%), singular/plural noun usage (8.66%), and prepositions (7.87%). Additionally, a qualitative examination through Focus Group Discussions (FGD) revealed four major causes of these errors: linguistic differences between Thai and English, overgeneralization of English grammatical rules, reliance on direct translation, and lack of exposure to grammar in authentic contexts. While these grammatical errors did not always obscure meaning, their frequency detracted from the overall quality of students' written output, thus limiting their ability to communicate effectively. To alleviate this issue, it is necessary for teachers to provide targeted grammar instruction, corrective feedback, and exposure to authentic English materials. This study provides pedagogical recommendations that can help Thai EFL teachers enhance students' grammatical competence and writing proficiency.

Pre-service Teachers’ Perceptions of Dual-Role Peer Feedback in English Presentation: The APPLE Model Approach

2025-12-31T15:38:31+07:00

The aim of the study was to investigate the perceptions of the participants regarding being ‘Feedback Providers’ and ‘Feedback Receivers’ on English presentation skills. It also sought to investigate the opinions of the participants in identifying the most favorable type of feedback, categorized by Carl Rogers’s Feedback Theory (Rogers, 1961, 1970). The study focused on twenty-six pre-service teacher students, majoring in English, at the Faculty of Liberal Arts, Ubon Ratchathani University, Thailand. The data was drawn from the questionnaire which was divided into four sections that were: the role of feedback provider, the role of feedback receiver, the most favorite type of received feedback, and opinions toward participating in peer feedback approach. The result suggested that the majority of the participants valued the received feedback and considered it beneficial for improving their performance. However, some of the participants admitted that they felt reluctant to provide feedback for their peers since they considered themselves as novice feedback providers. Some of them showed concerns about the reliability of the received feedback. Moreover, the finding revealed that the participants identified ‘supportive feedback’ as their most favorable type of feedback. The open-ended question in the questionnaire showed that the participants were satisfied with the peer feedback learning approach.

Enhancing Enhancing TOEFL ITP Performance through the Development of an Innovative Web-Based Online Testing System

2025-12-31T15:29:52+07:00

Web technology offers abundant resources for the educators and learners in the process of teaching and learning English. This research focuses on developing a web-based online test for the TOEFL ITP, tailored to the needs of learners and educators at Universitas Darussalam Gontor. To tackle the challenges of online test development, the study employed the instructional system design model by Alessi and Trollip. Formative evaluation was conducted, along with an analysis of the improvement in average scores from the pretest to the posttest, which also measured learning motivation. This comprised beta testing to gauge students' attitudes toward the online test and alpha testing verified by two media and material experts, while the summative assessment concentrated on learning outcomes. The findings revealed that: (1) the website https://toeflsimulation.com/ successfully provided an online evaluation tool for assessing learners’ TOEFL ITP performance; (2) the average score improvement from pretest to posttest of learning outcome across all learners was 0.3, and the learner motivation scale was recorded at 0.53. Therefore, the web-based online test effectively enhances learners’ enthusiasm for assessing their TOEFL ITP proficiency.

Enhancing Fraction Problem-Solving Skills through the PISA-Based Design Thinking Process for Grade 5 Students

2026-06-04T15:32:40+07:00

The action research focused on developing PISA-based mathematics problem-solving skills in fraction operations through design thinking instruction with the Kemmis and McTaggart model in two cycles. Fourteen fifth-grade students from a medium-sized school in Somdet District, Kalasin Province, Thailand, were chosen with purposive sampling. The data collection tools included lesson plans to teach design thinking (8 hours in total), activity sheets that corresponded with PISA, learning reflection forms, as well as essay tests that measured the three PISA dimensions (formulate, employ, and interpret-evaluate). Standardized data from the expert-validated instruments verified the instrument quality with mean scores exceeding 3.51 (5-point scale) and IOC scores >0.50. Overall results indicated that PISA was significantly improved across multiple dimensions from Cycle 1 to Cycle 2. Formulate scores went up from 75.00% to 86.58%, employ scores from 75.22% to 87.78%, and interpret-evaluate scores from 75.67% to 87.44%. The general achievement level was improved from 70.12% (good level) to 80.00% (very good level), whereas the proportion of students who fulfilled proficiency criteria increased from 57.14% to 71.43%. It appears that the design thinking cycle, such as empathize, define, brainstorm, prototype, and test was an efficient way to match up the PISA dimensions and improve the number of students solving the mathematical problems. The results favour design thinking as an evidence-based methodology in the construction of mathematical competencies for elementary school students.