Browsing by Author "Hemali, Dilini"

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A Comparative Study on the Effectiveness of Using Animations versus Miming In Teaching Action Verbs in English as a Second Language: Sri Lanka
(Faculty of Humanities, University of Kelaniya, 2023) Ganepola, Gavithri H.; Hemali, Dilini
Due to globalization, fluency in English as a Second Language (ESL) is regarded as an important factor in today's society. As a result, ESL-learning countries tend to focus more on developing learners' English knowledge through various methods that deviate from traditional teaching approaches to increase learners' interest and motivation in the learning process. Although a substantial amount of research has been conducted on the effectiveness of using various teaching tools other than the traditional teaching method, a few studies have focused on explicitly determining the most suitable method for teaching different parts of a language. ESL students find verbs difficult, confusing, and difficult to remember when it comes to English language learning. Thus, the research focused on using two effective methods used in previous studies and determining which method was more effective; miming and animation for teaching action verbs to ESL learners. This paper is about experimenting with a group conisitng of 50 grade 06 students at Ambaraluwa Maha Vidyalaya in Sri Lanka to find answers to research questions. A group of 25 students were taught action verbs using animation whereas the other 25 were taught using miming. Data was collected using pre-and post-tests, and statistical analysis will be performed using SPSS 27. An ANOVA was performed to determine whether there is a statistically significant difference in the accurate performance of the two methods. The findings of the study revealed that students were more interested in using animation than miming.
The Effectiveness of the Flipped Classroom Approach in Improving Speaking Skills of Adult ESL Learners in a Sri Lankan University Context
(Faculty of Humanities, University of Kelaniya, 2023) Hemali, Dilini; Ganepola, Gavithri
Competency in speaking English is crucial in contemporary Sri Lanka as it is employed in every official domain as well as in other existing fields such as trade, science, technology, and education. Nonetheless, literature claims that Sri Lankan youth lacks English speaking skills in required contexts. Hence, the present study is an attempt to address this issue by investigating (1) the effectiveness of the flipped classroom (FC) approach in improving the speaking skills of ESL learners (2) learners’ perceptions towards integrating the FC approach, and (3) challenges faced by teachers using the FC approach. An ESL tertiary education institution was chosen as the research context and the study comprised a sample of stratifiedrandomly selected 120 first-year undergraduates of the University of Kelaniya, whose proficiency was at the elementary level. The sample comprised three groups; one control and two experimental groups, where traditional teaching and flipped-based teaching were applied respectively. The data were collected utilizing a mixed-method research paradigm including a pre-test / post-test design, an attitudinal questionnaire, and semi-structured interviews. Accordingly, a Paired Samples T-test was used to determine the statistical significance of the undergraduates’ test scores. Thus, a thematic analysis was conducted to analyze the open-ended questionnaire items and the semi-structured interviews. The findings reported that the mean scores of the post-test marks of the experimental groups have surpassed the ones of the control group. As such, it points towards the effectiveness of the FC approach in improving the speaking skills of learners. The questionnaire analysis on undergraduates’ perceptions towards this approach revealed their satisfaction whereas a few challenges were identified based on the lecturers’ responses at the semi-structured interviews. Conclusively, the researcher recommends ESL practitioners integrate the FC approach as it improves learners’ speaking skills.