The Effect of Metalinguistic Corrective Feedback and Revision on the Accuracy of English Regular and Irregular Simple Past Tense

This study examined the effect of metalinguistic feedback and revision on the accuracy of the regular and irregular simple past tense. To this end, 56 Azari-Turkish learners of English participated in a quasi-experimental study. The study lasted for 7 sessions. In session one, a proficiency test (KET) was administered to all learners. The learners in 4 classes were randomly assigned as a metalinguistic explanation (ME) group (N = 13), a metalinguistic explanation plus revision (R) group (N = 17), a revision group (N = 14), and a control group (N = 12). To get assurance as to the initial homogeneity of groups involved in terms of the dependent variable (i.e., past tense command), a pretest was administered. The feedback treatment was performed for 4 sessions. In each session all individuals were required to write a 150-word text in 20 min. All texts drafted in each session were returned to the same individuals with varying comments in line with the condition defined for each group. The texts produced by the control group were not manipulated. Finally, all learners took a post-test and completed an attitude questionnaire to assess their attitude towards the treatment. The results indicated that the metalinguistic explanation plus revision group outperformed the other groups significantly in the accurate use of the past tense. English teachers are advised to spare enough time to provide appropriate feedback along the writing tasks of Iranian learners of English.