Relating Teachers’ Use of Elicited vs. Pushed Output to EFL Learners’ Oral Participation.

Abstract

In the field of education, the teacher's use of output strategies and learners oral participation are critical areas of investigation. Therefore, this research investigated teachers’ use of elicited versus pushed output strategies and how they relate to student involvement and oral participation in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classes. In the context of this study, four main research questions were raised: (1) Which output strategy (elicited vs. pushed) do teachers practise the most? ( 2 )Which output type (elicited vs. pushed) do learners prefer? (3) Is there a discernible association between the type of output used and EFL learners' willingness to participate orally? (4) What are the potential challenges associated with each output strategy in terms of promoting oral participation among EFL learners? Data collection involved administering questionnaires to 41 Master one students and 17 teachers at Mila University Centre. They were administered in person using hard copies. After the analysis and the interpretation of the data, the results revealed that teachers tend to practise elicited output the most, and that there is a clear association between elicited output and increased oral participation. The findings also indicated that students preferred elicited output due to the supportive environment it created. Despite the potential anxiety associated with pushed output, it was also deemed valuable for pushing students beyond their comfort zones. However, both strategies posed challenges, with elicited output constrained by student anxieties and vocabulary limitations, and pushed output possibly leading to anxiety and performance pressure. The study concludes by suggesting avenues for future research, including longitudinal studies on the impact of output strategies on language development, and assessing the effectiveness of such strategies across different learner groups.