Case study: Comparison of the effects of immediate feedback and delayed feedback on reading comprehension among Chinese English learners

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the effect of using two types of feedback (immediate and delayed) in motivating Chinese students to improve English reading proficiency in the university level. Data was collected from 18 Chinese EFL learners over a 12-week period. The results of this study show the effects of immediate feedback and delayed feedback on reading comprehension among Chinese EFL learners. It can be found that under the immediate feedback, all students can quickly absorb feedback from teachers and actively participate in the interaction with teachers. In subsequent interviews, they also confirmed that their comprehension of sentences and passage had improved significantly, and also their reading speed. In the delayed feedback classroom, it is reported that delayed feedback lead to forgetting and a lack of attention. In addition, the majority of the respondents believed immediate feedback on reading comprehension is more effective and they also preferred immediate feedback over delayed feedback.