Oral Corrective Feedback in a Chinese University EFL Classroom Context

Abstract

This study examines the oral corrective feedback (CF) used in a Chinese university EFL classroom context, focusing on the lessons that teach the use of English articles through narrative stimulus activities. It adopts a mixed-methods research design which includes pre- and post-tests, lesson activities for providing oral corrective feedback, a questionnaire, and interviews with students. Results show that elicitation was the most frequently used CF type, while metalinguistic feedback was used least frequently by the teacher. In general, the Chinese university EFL students surveyed in this study had positive attitudes towards receiving CF. Nonetheless, they perceived elicitation as the most effective CF type and metalinguistic feedback the least effective, which interestingly mirrors the two CF types used most and least frequently by their teacher. The findings shed some light on the CF practices and students’ attitudes towards such practices in a Chinese university EFL classroom context, and offer implications for teachers on using certain types of CF.