THE EFFECT OF FLIPPED VERSUS UNFLIPPED INSTRUCTION ON IRANIAN EFL LEARNERS’ PRAGMATIC KNOWLEDGE

The present study attempted to examine the impact of flipped versus unflipped instruction on Iranian intermediate EFL learners’ pragmatic knowledge. To this end, 30 Iranian female EFL learners, aged 15 to 17 years old, studying at Olum Iran English language institute in Tehran city were selected based on convenience sampling. Prior to the study, the Oxford Placement Test and a Discourse Completion Test were administered, and the participants were assigned to experimental and control groups with 15 members in each group. During sixteen sessions, the experimental group experienced flipped instruction as a treatment, whereas the control group experienced unflipped instruction. After completing the treatment stage, the participants answered a Discourse Completion Test as a post-test. The net results revealed a statistically significant difference between the pragmatic knowledge of the experimental and control groups. In order to restate, the experimental group outperformed the control group in pragmatic knowledge. The study has some implications for the EFL/ESL students in the pedagogy of pragmatic competence. As for the theoretical aspect, this study can provide some hints for researchers interested in developing a comprehensive model for teaching L2 pragmatic competence. Considering the practical implications, all the instructors and teachers could employ a set of flipped instruction via collaborative activities in their different classroom activities and enhance interactions.