The Impact of Mediation on EFL Learners’ Interpretation

Abstract

The present study was an attempt to examine the EFL intermediate learners’ interpretation performance in translating texts from English to Persian on mediated mode vs. non-mediated one focusing on two different kinds of mediation (clip-mediated vs. peer-mediated mode). It has also investigated the participants’ attitudes toward the mediation sessions. It was conducted in an English Language Institute in Bojnourd, Iran. To this aim, a standardized 50-item Nelson English Language Test was administered to 31 participants. Following the homogenizing procedure, the number of the participants decreased to 24. Then, they were randomly divided into two equal groups (control and experimental), each consisting of 12 students. Both groups took part in interpretation classes twice a week, during which the experimental group received mediation as the treatment. The collected data were analyzed by conducting ANCOVA and paired-sample t-test. The results indicated that the EFL learners’ interpretation performance was better in mediated mode vs. non-mediated one, and peer-mediation was more effective than clip-mediation in improving their listening performance. In addition, all the participants stated mediation had an effective role in improving their interpretation performance by reducing their anxiety and increasing their self-confidence.