A Comparative Study on the Co-Teaching of Grammar in Foreign Language Instruction and Learners' Attitudes: The Cases of Iranian English and Foreign Persian Learners

Co-teaching, as a novel language teaching method, warrants comprehensive research to investigate its efficacy in enhancing various language skills and components such as grammar, vocabulary and reading. This study examines the impact of co-teaching with two teachers on the effectiveness of grammar instruction. It focuses on implementing this approach in two educational contexts comprising Iranian English learners in one group and international learners of Persian in another group as experimental groups. A comparable class has been selected as the control group in each context as well. The English language class was taught by two Iranian English language instructors and the Persian language class was taught by two Iranian instructors, one specialized in Persian language teaching and the other proficient in English. In the practical phase of the study, the primary instructor presented new materials in a foreign language, and then the instructors, by dividing the language learners into smaller groups, engaged in tasks and problem-solving. The assistant instructors explained the materials again in an intermediary language (Persian for English learners and English for Persian learners). Statistical tests were used to analyze the data. The findings showed the effectiveness of grammar instruction increased significantly in both test groups compared to the control groups. The impact of this method on international Persian learners in comparison with Iranian English learners was not significantly different. Based on the interview results, the language learners consider the co-teaching method highly effective and engaging. The study suggests this method can be beneficial for language learners.
Extended Abstract:
Introduction
Co-teaching has emerged as an innovative approach to language learning that involves two teachers working together to improve the learning experiences of students. Since language learners often face challenges in understanding grammatical concepts due to their complexity, co-teaching can address these challenges by providing students with multiple instructional strategies from two teachers. Co-teaching encompasses various objectives and forms (Honingsfeld & Dove 2008). Boland et al. (2019) and Mohammad Hassani Soudman & Ahour (2020) are among the important studies on co-teaching in educational settings.
The success of co-teaching, where teachers from different areas work together, is a focal point of discussion in education (Aldabas, 2018). Many factors play a role in the success or failure of co-teaching. One of the challenges in co-teaching is the issue of unequal power dynamics (Kervinen et al., 2022). Through co-teaching, educators can provide an interactive and engaging learning environment, familiarizing students with a variety of teaching presentations, models, and practice opportunities. This can lead to a deeper understanding of grammar rules and structures, as well as an overall improvement in language skills. Teaching with one teacher and a teacher’s aide, or using a combination of both, can serve as one of the strategies in language education (Boland et al., 2019). Despite the different strategies for implementing this approach, teaching skills are enhanced through the sharing of knowledge and bidirectional discussions, leading to professional development (Baeten & Simons 2014). Furthermore, co-teaching can enhance the experience of language learners as they see the collaboration of two teachers and learn how such collaboration can take place in educational settings and be extended to students.
In the case of teaching Persian to Speakers of Other Languages, the presence of an English language expert and a qualified language teacher can create an enjoyable multicultural learning experience as well. It allows students to not only learn the language but gain an insight into the culture, history as well as social norms associated with the language and deepens their understanding of various cultures and languages within multilingual multicultural educational spaces. One of the latest studies looking at group teaching in Iran is by Normashiri et al. (2021). They looked at what happens when learners of English as a Foreign Language have two teachers and a counselor to help them. This study showed that this method works well and helps when students work together and are motivated. Even though there have been many studies about learning English, including Mohammad Hassani Soudman & Ahour (2020), few (if any) studies have focused on educational contexts of teaching Persian teaching to international learners. This study, thus, aims to investigate the effectiveness of co-teaching with a specific focus on grammar instruction. By investigating the impact of co-teaching grammar in English language and Persian language classes, this study sheds light on its potential benefits and limitations and compares the effectiveness of this approach for the first time in Iran in two different educational settings with Iranian and non-Iranian language learners. For this study, the following questions were adopted:

To what extent, does co-teaching in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classes contribute to the enhancement of grammar proficiency in language learners?
To what extent, does co-teaching in Persian language teaching classes contribute to the enhancement of grammar proficiency in bilingual language learners?
In these educational contexts, which group of language learners demonstrated greater improvement in the experimental groups when instructed through the co-teaching method?
What are the attitudes of learners toward using this method in both educational contexts?

 
Methodology
In this study, one group of English language learners and another group of international students studying Persian in Tehran were selected as the experimental groups. One control group was selected for each experimental class to examine the effectiveness of the co-teaching method. Each experimental class had two teachers who collaborated to provide grammar instruction to the experimental group. In the case of the Persian class, the primary teacher was proficient in the Persian language instruction, while the secondary teacher was fluent in English. As for the experimental group in English as a Foreign Language context, both teachers were English instructors from Iran. In the control groups of both educational settings, instruction was delivered by a single teacher.
In education, co-teaching is a practice that is intricately connected to the principles of cooperative learning. Johnson et al. (1991) put forth a perspective on cooperative learning which advocates for a new paradigm, thereby fostering the collaboration between both teachers and students. The underlying objective involves the joint efforts of both teachers and students in striving towards a shared goal in every instructional session. Unlike traditional teaching methods where learners are viewed as passive recipients of knowledge, cooperative learning highlights the active engagement of learners in creating a dynamic and interactive classroom environment. In the practical phase of this study and during the co-teaching process, the experimental groups were led by two teachers who collaborated in the classroom. In the practical phase of the study, the primary instructor presented new materials in a foreign language, and then the instructors, by dividing the language learners into smaller groups, engaged in tasks and problem-solving. The assistant instructors explained the materials again in an intermediary language (Persian for English learners and English for Persian learners. To test the research questions, statistical tests of ANCOVA, ANOVA and independent t-tests were conducted. The analyses were performed using SPSS-24 software.
Results and discussion
The study revealed significant improvement in grammar learning in the experimental groups i.e. Iranian learners taught by two Iranian English teachers and international learners taught by two Persian teachers, compared to the control groups in each setting.
Post-test in the TEFL setting




 


N


Mean


Standard Deviation


Degrees of freedom


T-Value


Significance level (Sig.)




Control group


30


43/14


62/.


58


12/11


000/0




Experimental group


30


66/16


90/.


-


-


000/0




Post-test in Persian language teaching setting




 


N


Mean


Standard Deviation


Degrees of freedom


T-Value


Significance level (Sig.)




Control group


30


21/14


61/0


58


41/11


0000/0




Experimental group


30


53/16


92/0


 


 


0000/0




 
The tables show that co-teaching had a positive effect on grammar learning outcomes in both EFL and Persian teaching. Additionally, the learners were interviewed to gain their perspectives on the co-teaching approach. Qualitative results also revealed overall participant satisfaction and positive responses to co-teaching. The interviewees highlighted the advantages of using this approach and considered the co-teaching method highly effective and engaging.
The findings of this study demonstrate the effectiveness of co-teaching in improving grammar learning for language learners. The improved learning outcomes in both educational settings suggest that the collaborative approach used in co-teaching facilitates the language learning process. The positive attitude of the student participants towards this approach further reinforces the rationale for its use. By including two teachers with expertise in their respective languages, students benefited from different perspectives and instructional approaches.
 
Conclusion
This study adds to the existing literature on co-teaching by highlighting the positive impact of co-teaching on grammar learning in particular. This research provided evidence that co-teaching not only improves grammatical competence in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and Persian teaching but also contributes to student satisfaction and engagement as well. This suggests that co-teaching has the potential to provide significant benefits in language learning. The findings of the study highlight the value of involving more teachers in language teaching in an educational setting. When the knowledge, perspectives, and teaching styles of two or more teachers are combined, co-teaching creates a rich and dynamic learning environment. Students benefit from the individual strengths of each teacher, as well as the collaborative efforts between them.  Further research is needed to examine the effectiveness of co-teaching in pronunciation, vocabulary acquisition and writing, reading and speaking skills as well as cultural awareness. Such research will help expand our understanding of collaborative learning in language teaching. This study served as an exemplary endeavor in interdisciplinary research, highlighting the importance of collaboration between researchers and educators from diverse backgrounds. Such interdisciplinary research endeavors can significantly contribute to the improvement of language education pedagogy in Iran and ultimately benefit language learners. It is hoped that cooperative learning will be improved and expanded through the employment of co-teaching in different educational settings. To this end, more studies on co-teaching should be carried out to convince policymakers in education to set new policies for encouraging cooperative learning to achieve common goals in educational settings that benefit all learners.
 
 Acknowledgment
The author would like to thank the Persian language teaching centers of Tarbiat Modares and Allameh Tabatabai universities and Dehkhoda Institute for providing the basis for collecting research data.