Visually enhanced input, input processing or pushed output: A study on grammar teaching

How should the teachers draw the attention of the learners to fonn? This is the question that shaped the study at hand. The main goal of the researcher was to find out the most effective attention drawing technique used in focus on fonn and therefore infonn the practitioners in the field about the results. In order to test the efficiency of the attention drawing techniques, an experimental study with a pre, post-test design was conducted. The subjects of the study were the intennediate level students of the School of Foreign Languages of Dokuz Eylii1 University in the Fall Tenn of 2006-2007 academic year. They were students enrolled at an intensive English preparatory class of which the class hours ranged between 24 to 30 hours a week. They were between 21 to 23 years old. 90 subjects were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. There were three experimental groups: pushed output group, visually enhanced input group and processing instruction group. Control group received traditional grammar instruction which was shaped according to the infonnation gathered from the class teachers. Each group was given the pre-test and later they received treatment. After treatment, they were given the same test as post-test and 4 weeks later as the delayed post-test. The analyses of the results of the pre-test, post-test and the delayed posttests reveal that pushed output and processing instruction were effective in the teaching of the target fonn. However, as for the delayed post-test only processing instruction stays well in the interlanguage of the participants