Translation Role in Noticing and Learning Grammatical Structures

Translation as an effective teaching methodology is neglected by many language learners and teachers. The present study investigated the effect of using literal translation as a strategy for noticing and learning participial phrases and absolute constructions. Forty EFL students were non-randomly selected based on the enrollment procedures of their university. A pre-test was administered for the purpose of examining the students' prior knowledge of targeted structures. Then, the treatment of the study (translating 10 English sentences into Persian while thinking aloud before deductive instruction of targeted grammatical structures) was applied to the experimental group and a placebo (deductive instruction of targeted structures following course book exercises) was applied to the control group for about two sessions. Running related parametric statistics, the results revealed that the use of translation significantly affected learners' noticing and learning targeted complex grammatical structures. The use of translation as an effective strategy of noticing in learning is suggested for learners, teachers, and material developers.