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PAKISTAN BUSINESS REVIEW JAN 2015

Research Impact of Contextualized Text on Studentsrsquo Learning Research

858

IMPACT OF CONTEXTUALIZEDTEXT ON STUDENTSrsquo LEARNING

OF THINKING SKILLS AT THETERTIARY LEVEL

Najeeb-us-Saqlain1 Rafiq-ul-Islam2 and Ismail Saad3

Abstract

Contextualized Text means the text resulting from the localcircumstances and in accordance with learnersrsquo needs andcognition levelTrue experimental design was adopted for theresearch to explain the relationship between dependent andindependent variables Two groups (control and experimental) wereselected randomly to conduct the experiment The independentvariable of the study was Contextualized text and dependentvariable was Thinking Skills of the learners while learnersrsquoSocioeconomic Status was taken as an attribute variable

One public sector business school was selected randomlyfor the experiment from which 80 students were distributed in twogroups as control and experimental groups with 40 students ineach group through a process of randomizationThe researcherhas selected simple factorial design for the study to study the effectsof attribute variable as well on the dependent variable

Keywords Contextualized Text Text used in the classroom made inaccordance with local social scenariosJEL Classification Z 130

1- Department of Examination Iqra University Karachi Pakistan2- Department of Education Govt of Sindh Sindh Pakistan3- Department of Education and Learning Sciences Iqra UniversityKarachi Pakistan


Impact of Contextualized Text on Studentsrsquo Learning Research

859

Introduction

English language has become a ldquolingua francardquo and is usedbetween non-native speakers these days Naoki Kameda suggestsldquoFocus on English versus Japanese English already has become alanguage spoken by so many people in so many places as we havealready observed itrsquos a language spoken by more people as a secondtongue than a firstrdquo (Naoki 2001) English is the official language ofgovernment bureaucracy and military in Pakistan (Rahman 1996) It isalso the language of education business law administration mediamarketing and communication in Pakistan (Coleman 2010 Khan 2011Malik 1996 Mansoor 2005 Rahman 2004) In view of this explanationthere are several languages which are performing this task but withsome geographical limitations like Spanish between South Americaand part of North America French among Canada some parts of Europeand some parts of Africa Chinese in some parts of Asia English is theonly language which is being used as a means of communicationirrespective of purpose and geographical limits all across the worldldquoThe majority of these countries still use English as official languageand consider it their second languagerdquo (Miriam 2001) In the contextof Pakistan English Language has become inevitable and is consideredas a yardstick to measure an individualrsquos competence for success inhis profession regardless of his field

English Language has four basic skills These skills areintegrated out of which two are considered receptive skills and theother two are considered as productive skills

Receptive Skills Listening Skills Productive Skills Speaking Skills Reading Skills Writing Skills


Research Impact of Contextualized Text on Studentsrsquo Learning

860

The above mentioned skills show that Listening and Speaking skillsare connected together while Reading and Writing Skills are mutuallylinked up It also mentions receptive and productive skills The studyfocuses on Thinking Skills only at tertiary level of Pakistan EnglishLanguage Teaching has been an area of major concern amongeducators in recent times The very concept of skill based teachingitself is relatively new in the country A handful of researchers areworking on teaching methodologies and their effectiveness and impacton studentsrsquo learning at different levels of education Researchers inPakistan have started working on skill based teaching of EnglishLanguage and also skill based testing Yousuf (2012) suggests in hisdoctoral research about the pivotal role of skill oriented languageteaching Strategy in improving language learnersrsquo competency

Teachers have been trying to come up with modern andeffective strategies of teaching writing skills to the students comingfrom a variety of educational social and economical backgroundsThese students lack the pre-requisite skills and knowledge regardingthe target skill in addition to this lacking books that are availableand used for the purpose are non-contextualized written by foreignwriters In order to develop competence and proficiency amongstudents over business writing understanding the scenario and casesthat are presented to them become important Students do not seemto understand the information provided for business writing activitiesand as a result memorize the content Many methods of teaching ofEnglish can be used for developing thinking skills one of thesemethods that are comparatively more modern in terms of time isContextualized Teaching Learning (CTL)

Purpose of the Study

The Purpose of the study was to document explore anddescribe the impact of contextualized text on studentsrsquo learning ofthinking skills at tertiary level



861

Literature Review

Hutchinson and Waters 1987 maintain that there are varioussuccessful occasions where practitioners of English for SpecificPurposes (ESP) while designing a course conduct need analysis tofind out learnersrsquo real needs before incorporating the course contentsin the syllabus English for Business Purposes as obvious for itsname is that type of language that is particularly used in businesssetting Different business organizations may have differentorganization culture but one thing has become inevitable now andthat is the language Majority of international trade is carried on andrecorded in English Language English for business purposes has itsown vocabulary and words sometime become so technical that only astudent of business administration can understand them Even inbusiness different aspects of business may have different vocabularyFor example in Business Finance the language used will be difficulteven for a customary business graduate For that one has to be afinance graduate Language for Business and Corporate law would bemore technical Language for banking is different than marketing oradvertising Therefore it has become a must now for all businessgraduates to know English for Business Purposes

Thinking Skills

Thinking Skills are the mental procedures we use to do thingslike resolve problems make decisions ask queries device strategiespass opinions systematize information and create new ideas Oftenwe are not conscious of our thinking ndash it happens involuntarily -but ifwe take time to contemplate what is going on we can become moreproficient and more creative with our minds Thinking skills are generallynot given its due importance in solving everyday problems We onlyrealize its importance when we get in a fix or reach a wrong analysis orconclusion only because of lack of comprehension and creativethinking We can resolve these problems through using our cognitivecapacities and thinking more creatively rather than depending on usual



862

ways of seeing things Thinking skills in simple words are tools thatenable us to apply existing knowledge to a new situation It makes uscapable enough to analysis and adaptation It is also called Matacognition which allows us to get to know our thinking skills acquirenew knowledge and to apply it in novel problems for their resolutionGrowth and development in this area provides deeper understandingof the principles and result in acquisition and retention of expertknowledge Smyth et al suggest

ldquoThe ability to generate spatial representation is importantin our ability to construct analytical representations of oursurroundings When entering a problem space means-ends analysispermits the problem solver to eradicate the differences between thepreliminary state and the goal state by integrating both divergencereduction and the creation of sub goalsrdquo (Smyth et al 1994)

In the words of Graddy ldquoCognitive flexibility allows anindividual to convey knowledge to new situations Cognitive flexibilitycan be defined as the ability to spontaneously restructure onersquosknowledge in many ways inadaptive response to radically changingsituational demandsrdquo (Graddy 2001) This skill of responding to newsituations and problems can be attained by learning the art ofconnecting and relating thoughts and ideas together to reach logicalconclusion Getting cognitive awareness is also important as it makesus able to relate and apply several concepts of other domains andareas to other different contexts like applying mathematical knowledgeto problems related to physics (Anderson 2000) suggeststhatrdquoreproductive thinkingrdquo can be avoided easily through cognitiveflexibilityHe defines the term reproductive thinking as ldquospecific routinethat students develop in problem solving that do not transfer tonovel demonstrationrdquo



Importance of Critical Thinking for EducationLanguage Learning

Literature highlights language skill as a contributing causeto proficient critical thinking skills (Feuerstein 2007 Nisbett PengCoi amp Norenzayan 2001) This entails that at university level thedemands for students to critically reason and argue about topics in anacademic context and good language skill influenced by languagecapability are vital According to Pienaar (2001) critical reading andunderstanding at Higher Education level requires

Elaboration on an argument and developing itsimplications

Understanding analyzing and evaluating arguments andopinions

Supporting general assertions with details Recognizing the central idea in a work

Definitions of Contextualization

E Baker Hope and Karandjeff point out that contextualizationhas been defined in many ways Many terms have been used to referto contextualization including ldquocontextual teaching and learningrdquo (EBaker et al 2009 Johnson 2002) ldquocontextualized instructionrdquo (ParrEdwards amp Leising 2008 Wisely 2009) ldquocontent-area literacyrdquo(McKenna amp Robinson 2009) ldquoembedded instructionrdquo (Simpson etal 1997)rdquowriting-to-learnrdquo (Klein 1999) ldquointegrative curriculumrdquo(Dowden 2007) ldquosituated cognitionrdquo (Stone Alfeld Pearson Lewisamp Jensen 2006) ldquotheme-based instructionrdquo (Dirkx amp Prenger 1997)ldquoanchored instructionrdquo (Bottge Rueda Serlin Hung amp Jung 2007)ldquocurriculum integrationrdquo (Badway amp Grubb1997) ldquoacademicoccupation integrationrdquo (Grubb amp Kraskouskas 1992 Perin 2001)ldquoinfused instructionrdquo (Badwayamp Grubb 1997 Perin 2001)ldquodevelopmental education learning communitiesrdquo (Weiss Visher ampWathington 2010) ldquoworkplace literacyrdquo (Mikulecky amp Lloyd 1997)and ldquofunctional context educationrdquo (Sticht 2005) Here I follow the

863



definition proposed by Mazzeo Rab and Alssid (2003) ldquoA diversefamily of instructional strategies designed to more seamlessly linkthe learning of foundational skills and academic or occupationalcontent by focusing teaching and learning squarely on concreteapplications in a specific contextrdquo (Mazzeoet al 2003 pp 3ndash4)

In any one program contextualization of basic skillsinstruction includes one or more of the following componentsinterdisciplinary learning (Berns amp Erickson2001 National Councilfor Workforce Education amp Jobs for the Future 2010) use of studentsrsquoinformal out of-school knowledge (Goldman amp Hasselbring1997)active student centered learning (Dirkx amp Prenger 1997Dowden 2007) student collaboration (Johnson 2002) authenticassessment (Johnson 2002) and teacher collaboration to identifyreal world examples (Orpwood et al 2010)

The aim of contextualization is to generate conditions formore valuable learning expressed for example in higher grades andrates of retention in courses and through succession to moreadvanced course work Whether instruction is contextualized orintegrated the correlation of basic skills instruction to applicationsand life goals is reliable with constructivism which places studentsrsquointerests and needs at the center of education (Dewey 1966 Dowden2007)

The theoretical literature suggests that both cognitive andaffective methods bring about the expected improvement in learningoutcomes One of the most important tools in teaching a course is thetext book or relevant material Most of the teachers that were contactedby the researcher of this study came up with a common complaintwhich was unavailability of material which causes unpreparedness inteachers which ultimately lead to disinterestedness among the teacherstowards contextualization Do ESP textbooks really exist This is thefundamental question Johns addresses One of the basic problemshe presents is that ldquoESP teachers find themselves in a situation where

864



they are expected to produce a course that exactly matches the needsof a group of learners but are expected to do so with no or verylimited preparation timerdquo (Jones G1990)

Curriculum of Business Communication in Pakistan

Business Communication is a compulsory course at MBAlevel all around the world Different universities may use some otherterms for that but the core idea remains the same Higher EducationCommission (HEC monitoring body for universities in Pakistan) haslaid down some guide lines for teaching Business Communication atMBA level After a critical study of these guide lines one point can beobserved that HEC has set a curriculum for MBA students to improvetheir written communication It has been a proven fact that everyindustry wants to see polished communication skills Importance ofcommunication skills can never be denied in any field of life Differentexperts in Pakistani corporate world have expressed the need of theseskills on more than one occasion Some of them have been so bluntthat they said that they did not need such graduate who could notwrite even one letter properly HEC is concerned about such issuesand has been trying to develop communication skillsCurrent curriculumof Business Communication emphasizes on such writing skills thathave been the backbone to any industry It highlights on skills likenegotiation skills letter writing report writing and most importantlypersuasive skills Persuasion is a very difficult art and in every industryat all levels this art is most needed In fact this skill is required in ourpersonal life for interpersonal personal communication as well

Objective(s) of the Study To provide research in Pakistani context regarding learningof Thinking Skills through contextualized text To investigate the relationship between contextualizedtext and studentsrsquo thinking skills To measure the relationship between studentsrsquo socioeconomic status and their thinking skills by teaching throughcontextualized text

865



To provide empirical evidences of teaching thinkingskills of English through contextualized text

To provide curriculum developers testedsuggestions regarding contents of teachingthinking skills at tertiary level

Research Methodology

True experimental design was adopted for the research toexplain the relationship between dependent and independentvariables Descriptive statistics were used to convert the data frommere wordy data into statistical one in order to make it measurableand statistically provable ANOVA2 was used to make credibleinferences from the data obtained Simple Factorial Design ldquoone ofthe true experimental designsrdquo has been adopted for the study (AryD et al 1990)

Justification of the Selection of the Research Design

In the context of this study the dependent variableisStudentsrsquo thinking skills and independent variable is contextualizedtext Researchers have proved that only independent variable maynot have sole effect on the dependent variables Rather involvementof attribute variables must also be documented to circumvent artificialsimplicity in the experiment Artificial simplicity hampers the extent oftrue effects of the treatment onthe dependent variable Socioeconomiccondition of the subjects is the attribute variable in the study FactorialDesign studies the impact of attribute variable(s) on dependentvariable along with independent variables the same design wasselected for the study ldquoSocial researchers often use factorial designsto assess the effects of educational methods whilst taking intoaccount the influence of socio-economic factors and backgroundrdquo(httpexplorablecomfactorialdesignhtml) Second the researchdemanded study of effects of more than one variable manipulated____________2ANOVA Analysis of variance

866



simultaneously on dependent variable factorial design is most suitablefor the purpose Third along with the reasons stated the factorialdesign also increases generalizability of the research same was usedfor the study A factorial design is one in which two or more variablesare manipulated simultaneously in order to study the independenteffect of each variable on the dependent variable as well as the effectsdue to interface among various variables Factorial designs are of twotypes In the first type of design one of the independent variable maybe experimentally manipulated In this case the experimenter is mainlyinterested in the effect of the single independent variable but musttake into deliberation other variables that may manipulate thedependent variable Characteristically these other variables are attributevariables Building the attribute variables into a factorial design notonly increases the accuracy of the experiment but also itsgeneralizability because one is able to determine whether the treatmenthas equivalent effects over all levels the generalizability of theexperimental findings is improved

Research Question

Does teaching contextualized text develop Thinking Skills in the learnersat tertiary level

Hypotheses

I H1 Contextualized text facilitates learners in developingthinking skills than that of non-contextualized text

II Ho Contextualized text does not facilitate learners indeveloping thinking skills than that of non-contextualized text

Population

The accessible population for this study is all undergraduatestudents of public Sector Business Schools of Karachi while the target

867



population of the study is all undergraduate students of public sectorbusiness schools of Pakistan One public sector business school ofKarachi was randomly selected for the study using Simple RandomSampling technique from which 80 students were distributed in twogroups control and experimental groups with 40 students in eachgroup The adopted sampling technique is probability sampling

Research InstrumentsThe research instruments that have been used for the study are

Questionnaire for experimental and control group to findout their socio-economic status

Contextualized TextContextualized text was developed by the researcher andgot it approved by three subject specialists to make the textvalid

Achievement Test

At the end of the teaching of each group one achievementtest was administered to measure the effects of the contextualizedtext on their thinking skills ie once in the last class of control groupteaching process and second time same test was administered in thelast class of experimental group teaching process Researcher selectedpost test only design which does not require a pre-test Thisachievement test had 8 questions in total with 7 questions containingdifferent contextualized situations and one question of MCQs(Multiple choice questions) Maximum marks of the test were 100 andthe students had 3 hours to finish it Two ways ANOVA wasadministered to find out the improvement in learnersrsquo thinking skillswhich has been discussed under Analysis of the Data

Variables and JustificationThe researcher studied the relationship of the variables given below

Contextualized text Studentsrsquo thinking skills

868



Socioeconomic status of the studentsAnalysis of the Data

Figure 1Achievement test scores of control group

Figure 1represents respondents of Control Group on X axisand mean of obtained scores of the respondents of Control Group onY axis Total number of respondents shown is 36 Mean of lowestscore is 69 Maximum respondents obtained mean score between 77and 79 The graph shows consistency of the scores as well asvariability of the respondents It depicts reliability and consistency ofthe tool

Figure 2 shows respondents of Experimental Group on X axisand mean of obtained scores of the respondents of the ExperimentalGroup on Y axis Lowest mean score is 919 while highest is 10 Datafalls consistently between 923 and 95 This depicts consistency ofthe data The result represents reliability and consistency of the tool

869



Figure 2Achievement Test scores of experimental group

Comparison of Fig 1 and 2Comparison of both the graphs shown in fig 1 and 2

represents that the tool that was achievement test was reliable asthe data is consistent Variation in mean scores has also been foundwhich depicts understanding of the subjects regarding the coursecontent taught to them during the experiment Maximum data in caseof Control Group (fig1) falls between 77 and 79 while for ExperimentalGroup (fig 2) it falls between 923 and 95 Subjects of the ExperimentalGroup managed to score higher than Control Group which representstheir understanding of the concepts ability of reading comprehensionand thinking abilityTable 1Table of Significance

870



Table 1 is the result of test of significance Pearson correlationwas used to find out the relationship between variables ie use ofcontextualized text and mean of obtained scores of both control andexperimental groups The table demonstrates positive relationshipbetween the two variables shown in the table by the value 0958 Thelevel of significance is 001 P-value in the table is 000 The estimatedco-efficient of correlation is 0958 which signifies existence of strongrelationship between contextualized text and achievement of thestudents Level of significance ie 001 in the table illustrates strongsignificance of the test P-value in the table ie 000 shows that nullhypothesis is rejected leading to the conclusion that strong positivecorrelation between the variables exists

Table 2Table of Significance

Table 2 shows relationship between Socio-economic Status(SES) of the students and their achievement in the test in terms ofscores Pearson correlation was used for the test of significance Co-efficient of correlation in the table is 0030 This value represents weakrelationship between the two variables P-value is 0805 which is greaterthan 005 (thresh hold value) and depicts that there is no relationshipbetween the variables It leads to the logical analysis that the twovariables that are SES and Studentsrsquo achievement in the test do nothave any significant relationship The achievement of the students inthe test does not vary because of their socio-economic status

871



Table 3Hypothesis Testing for Thinking Skills Analysis of Variance

H1 Contextualized text facilitates learners in developing thinking skillsthan that of non-contextualized textHo Contextualized text does not facilitate learners in developingthinking skills than that of non-contextualized text

Thinking Skills of the students were tested in the whole achievementtest Table 3 is Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) Column 01 of the tableshows groups Column 02 contains sum of squares Column 03represents degree of freedom Column 04 shows mean of squareColumn 05 contains F ratio and column 06 depicts significance of thetest Significance Value is 000 which depicts that null hypothesis isrejected F ratio obtained ie 1858261 (highlighted in the table) is alsosignificant which suggests that the results of the findings aresignificantly valid The table shows difference between groups ishigher than the difference within group and hence the obtained Fratio explains the mean of experimental group is greater than the meanof control group Therefore the test shows that the students taughtthrough contextualized text improved their thinking skills significantlythan those taught through non-contextualized text

872



Table 4

Effect of SES on Thinking Skills with the Treatment Two-wayAnalysis of Variance

Table 4 is the result of Test of between Subjects Effects for 2Way ANOVA Column 01 of the table is source Column 02 shows sumof squares Column 03 represents degree of freedom Column 04 depictsmean square Column 05 of the table gives values of F Ratio andcolumn 06 shows value of significance The table illustrates thattreatment given to the group contributes significantly in studentsrsquolearning of thinking skills independently as F ratio shows 2034170with significance value 0000 which is less than the threshold value of005 This indicates rejection of Ho and acceptance of H1 F ratioobtained for SES is 087 and its value of significance is 041 Whencombined effect of independent and attribute variables ie treatmentand studentsrsquo socioeconomic status was tested the obtained values(F ratio 1968 Value of Significance 0148) show that SES does nothave any effect with the treatment in the learning of the subjects Itsuggests that contextualized teaching is the only factor that impactsstudentsrsquo learning of thinking skills

873



Discussion

Contextualized text is the independent variable of the studyThe impact of the independent variable was observed on thedependent variable- thinking skills In the study socioeconomic statusof the students is not the variable of interest for the researcher but itis an attribute variable that might affect the findings of the studyTherefore the researcher took it into account to make the findings ofthe study more valid and credible The results of the data analysisshow existence of strong causal relationship between contextualizedtext and achievement of the students The tests also suggest the twovariables that are SES (Socio-Economic Status) and Studentsrsquoachievement in the test do not have any significant relationship Theachievement of the students in the test does not vary because oftheir socio-economic status They also represent that SES does nothave any effect with the treatment in the learning of the subjectsThey imply that contextualized teaching is the only factor that impactsstudentsrsquo learning of Thinking Skills All other possible factors werecontrolled by selecting random technique of sample on public sectorbusiness school where students are more selected on merit only ratherthan fee affordability They generally come from more or less thesame academic background The researcher also randomized theselected sample for the controlled and experimental groups Nocriterion was made by the researcher in assigning subjects to thecontrol or experimental groups The students were not informed aboutthe groups whether they are part of controlled group or experimentalgroup This was done to avoid Hawthorne Effect The study wasconducted at a neutral venue to avoid any effect of place or physicalenvironment

To study the causal relationship among these variables theresearcher selected the most appropriate population which wasstudents studying the course of Business Communication at tertiarylevel in Pakistan From the whole population the researcher selectedthe accessible population in order to maintain practicality and access

874



till the end of the study which was all the public sector universities ofKarachi To make the sample more representative of the targetpopulation probability sampling procedure was adopted throughoutthe sample selection and group making Simple random samplingtechnique was used at every step For experimental study at least twogroups were required therefore a single public sector institution wasselected randomly without any bias or pre-set criterion ie any criterionof selecting the subjects like their grades or CGPA etc Subjects wereselected who were registered in the course of Business Communicationat undergraduate level The most important aspect of everyexperimental study is randomization in selection of the subjects forthe groups and the same was done by the researcher as well Twogroups were made for the experiment namely control group andexperimental group A neutral venue was selected to control extraneousvariables that might affect the experiment The purpose of selecting aneutral venue was to avoid any effect that their own class room orfamiliar physical environment might have on their teaching learningprocess Duration of the class and total teaching hours were inaccordance with the HEC recommendations Control group was taughtfirst to avoid the Hawthorne effect Contextualized text was developedby the researcher and expert opinion was taken from three subjectspecialists The text was piloted on sample like subjects and necessarychanges were made as a result of pilot testing Achievement test usedas post-test was also piloted on the same population at the end ofteaching process Achievement test was also sent to subject specialistsand necessary changes were made to make it more reliable after theirreview

After instrument development and pilot testing theresearcher selected the most suitable research design after thoroughstudy of the research methodologies which was Simple FactorialDesign one of True Experimental Designs Eighty students wererandomly selected as sample for the study from the population andthen randomized forty in each group control and experimental groupControl group was taught by foreign authored non-contextualizedtext used in regular teaching practice in the universities and

875



experimental group was taught by contextualized text Studentsrsquolearning was analyzed through an achievement test

In the light of the analyses it is evident that the use ofcontextualized text impacts studentsrsquo learning positively and createsopportunities of not only swift learning but also applying the conceptson real-time problems

Findings

The findings of the study are based on the analysis that wasdone on the data found as a result of the experimentStatistical dataanalysis was done through SPSS The first thing to find out was thereliability of the tool This was tested and the tool ie contextualizedtext was found to be reliable and consistent The test has beendiscussed in figures 1 and 2 under the heading of Analysis of theData show consistency of the tool This is a comment on the validityof the text used in the classroom for teaching

The relationship between contextualized text and studentsrsquolearning was tested and the findings suggest that a strong positiverelationship between these variables exists This finding suggeststhat studentsrsquo learning depends significantly on the selection of textused for teaching If a non-contextualized text is used for teachingthinking skills they tend to achieve less learning as compared tothose who are taught through contextualized text Thinking skill isone of the most difficult skills and for teaching this skill the mostimportant and powerful tool that a teacher might have is the textTherefore a teacher needs to select the text intelligently in order tofacilitate studentsrsquo learning and interest

Tables 3 and 4 show that the students taught throughcontextualized text improved their thinking skills significantly thanthose taught through non-contextualized text The tables also suggestthat SES does not have any effect with the treatment in the learning

876



of the subjects It suggests that contextualized teaching is the onlyfactor that impacts studentsrsquo learning of thinking skills This leads tothe conclusion that socioeconomic status along with independentvariable does not impact dependent variables significantly

Conclusion

This study was an attempt of working on contextualized textfor English Language in general and English for business purposes inparticular This experimental study was conducted as an effort toproduce some empirical evidences whether the idea of contextualizationwas workable in Pakistani setting and to what extent It was also anendeavor to encourage scholars and English Language Teachers togo for contextualization in the field of ELT to make learning moreeffective and quick for the learners Curriculum developers and textbook writers should now turn to contextualized text books whichimprove students learning This has been the need of the hour inPakistan especially for curriculum developers and academicadministrators to now change gear and start adopting newer and bettermethods and techniques for teaching It was also an attempt to providetested and authentic literature in the field of contextualized teachinglearning especially in local context so that the researchers of educationand applied linguistics can make us of it for further research Thestudy also tried to find out the hindrances that teachers face indeveloping and executing contextualized text in their classes Thisdocument can be used as a reference for those who are a part of theacademic administration to create willingness among them for adoptinga new approach for teaching in Pakistan Globally the idea ofcontextualized teaching learning is not absolutely new but in adeveloping country like Pakistan where curricula are hardly revised itis a comparatively new study that has been conducted and presentedwith empirical evidences

877



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ARY D Jacobs L C Razavieh A Sorensen CK (1990)Introduction to Research in Education Cengage Learning

Badway N amp Grubb W N (1997) A sourcebook for reshaping thecommunity college Curriculum integration and the multipledomains of career preparation (Vols 1ndash2) Berkeley CANational Center for Research in Vocational Education

Berns R G amp Erickson P M (2001) Contextual teaching and learningPreparing students for the new economy (The HighlightZone Research Work No 5) Louisville KY University ofLouisville National ResearchCenter for Career and TechnicalEducation

Baker E D Hope L amp Karandjeff K (2009) Contextualized teachingand learning A faculty primer Sacramento CA TheResearch and Planning Group for California CommunityColleges Center for Student Success Retrieved from httpwwwcareerladdersprojectorgdocsCTLpdf

Bottge B A Rueda E Serlin R C Hung Y-H amp Jung M K(2007) Shrinking achievement differences with anchoredmath problems Challenges and possibilities Journal ofSpecial Education 41(1) 31ndash49

Coleman H(2010) Teaching and learning in Pakistan the role oflanguage in education Islamabad British Council

Dewey J (1966) Democracy and education New York NY The FreePress

Dirkx J M amp Prenger S M (1997) A guide for planning andimplementing instruction for adults A theme-based approachSan Francisco CA Jossey-Bass

Dowden T (2007) Relevant challenging integrative and exploratorycurriculum design Perspectives from theory and practicefor middle level schooling in Australia AustralianEducational Researcher 34(2) 51ndash71

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Feuerstein R 2007 The Feuerstein instrumental enrichment programme(FIE) Instrumental materials Level 1 Training Israel ICELPWorkshop presented by Lilian Lomofsky 23-27 June

Goldman S R amp Hasselbring T S (1997) Achieving meaningfulmathematics literacy for students with learning disabilitiesJournal of Learning Disabilities 30(MarchApril) 198ndash208

Graddy DB (2001) Cognitive Flexibility Theory as a Pedagogy forWeb-Based Course Design

Grubb W N amp Kraskouskas E (1992) A time to every purposeIntegrating academic and occupational education incommunity colleges and technical institutes (MDS-251)Berkeley CA University of California at Berkeley NationalCenter for Research in Vocational Education

Johnson E B (2002) Contextual teaching and learning What it isand why itrsquos here to stay Thousand Oaks CA Corwin Press

Jones G (1990) ESP textbooks Do they really exist English for SpecificPurposes 9 89-93

Khan H I (2011) University studentsrsquo attitudes towards the statusof English in Pakistan SPELT Quarterly 26(3) 16-26

Klein P D (1999) Reopening inquiry into cognitive processes inwriting-to learn Educational Psychology Review 11(3) 203ndash270

McKenna M C amp Robinson R D (2009) Teaching through textReading and writing in the content areas (5th ed) BostonMA Pearson Education

MalikFJ (1996) The Teaching of English in Pakistan a study inTeacher Education Lahore Vanguard Books

Mansoor S (2005) Language planning in higher education a casestudy of Pakistan Karachi Oxford University Press

Mazzeo C Rab S Y amp Alssid J L (2003) Building bridges to collegeand careers Contextualized basic skills programs atcommunity colleges Brooklyn NY Workforce StrategyCenter

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Mikulecky L amp Lloyd P (1997) Evaluation of workplace literacyprograms A profile of effective instructional practicesJournal of Literacy Research 29(4) 555ndash585

Miriam Conteh-Morgan (2001)rdquo(M)other tongue a selectedannotated bibliography of world ldquoEnglishesrdquordquo CollectionBuilding Vol 20 Iss 2 pp 73ndash 80

Naoki Kameda (2001)The implication of language style in businesscommunication focus on English versus JapaneseCorporate Communications An International Journal Vol 6Iss 3 pp 144 ndash 149

National Council for Workforce Education amp Jobs for the Future(2010) Breaking through Contextualization toolkit Big

Rapids MI and Washington DC Author Retrieved from httpwwwjfforgsitesdefaultfilesBT_toolkit_June7pdfNisbett RE Peng KP Choi I amp Norenzayan A 2001 Cultureand systems of thought holistic versus analytic cognitionPsychological Review 108291-310

Orpwood G Schollen L Marinelli-Henriques P amp Assiri H (2010)College Mathematics Project 2009 (Final report) Seneca

Ontario Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology York-SenecaInstitute for Mathematics Science and TechnologyEducation

Parr B A Edwards M C amp Leising J G (2008) Does a curriculumintegration intervention to improve the mathematicsachievement of students diminish their acquisition oftechnical competence An experimental study in agriculturalmechanics Journal of Agricultural Education 49(1) 61ndash71

Perin D (2001) Academic-occupational integration as a reformstrategy for the community college Classroom perspectivesTeachers College Record 103(2) 303ndash335

Pienaar GE 2001 Teaching critical thinking skills in the languageclassroom Journal for Language Teaching 35125-137 BauerL Holmes J amp Warren P 2006 Language matters New YorkPalgrave Macmillan

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Rahman T (1996)Language and politics in Pakistan Karachi OxfordUniversity Press

Rahman T (2004)Language and Education selected documents (1780-2003) Islamabad Quaid-i-Azam University

Simpson M L Hynd C R Nist S L amp Burrell K I (1997) Collegeacademic assistance programs and practices EducationalPsychology Review 9(1) 39ndash87

Smyth MM Collins AF Morris PE and Levy P (1994) Cognitionin Action Erlbaum Associates

Sticht T G (2005) Functional context education Making learningrelevant in the 21st century Workshop participantrsquosnotebook Retrieved fromhttpwwwnaldcalibraryresearchfceFCEpdf

Stone J R III Alfeld C Pearson D Lewis M V amp Jensen S(2006) Building academic skills in context Testing the valueof enhanced math learning in CTE (Final study)St Paul MNNational Research Center for Career and Technical EducationRetrieved from http136165122102UserFilesFileMath-inCTEMathLearningFinalStudypdf

Weiss M J Visher M G amp Wathington H (with Teres J amp SchneiderE) (2010) Learning communities for students indevelopmental reading An impact study at HillsboroughCommunity College New York NY Columbia UniversityTeachers College National Center for PostsecondaryResearch

Wisely W C (2009) Effectiveness of contextual approaches todevelopmental math in California community colleges(Unpublished doctoral dissertation)University of the PacificStockton CA

Yousuf M (2012) Effect of Skill-Oriented Language Teaching Strategyon the Performance of Non-Native Higher Education EnglishStudents Doctoral dissertation Iqra University

881



859

Introduction

English language has become a ldquolingua francardquo and is usedbetween non-native speakers these days Naoki Kameda suggestsldquoFocus on English versus Japanese English already has become alanguage spoken by so many people in so many places as we havealready observed itrsquos a language spoken by more people as a secondtongue than a firstrdquo (Naoki 2001) English is the official language ofgovernment bureaucracy and military in Pakistan (Rahman 1996) It isalso the language of education business law administration mediamarketing and communication in Pakistan (Coleman 2010 Khan 2011Malik 1996 Mansoor 2005 Rahman 2004) In view of this explanationthere are several languages which are performing this task but withsome geographical limitations like Spanish between South Americaand part of North America French among Canada some parts of Europeand some parts of Africa Chinese in some parts of Asia English is theonly language which is being used as a means of communicationirrespective of purpose and geographical limits all across the worldldquoThe majority of these countries still use English as official languageand consider it their second languagerdquo (Miriam 2001) In the contextof Pakistan English Language has become inevitable and is consideredas a yardstick to measure an individualrsquos competence for success inhis profession regardless of his field

English Language has four basic skills These skills areintegrated out of which two are considered receptive skills and theother two are considered as productive skills

Receptive Skills Listening Skills Productive Skills Speaking Skills Reading Skills Writing Skills



860







861

Literature Review


Thinking Skills




862













863







864







865









866




Research Question


Hypotheses



Population


867







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881



860







861

Literature Review


Thinking Skills




862













863







864







865









866




Research Question


Hypotheses



Population


867







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881



861

Literature Review


Thinking Skills




862













863







864







865









866




Research Question


Hypotheses



Population


867







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881



862













863







864







865









866




Research Question


Hypotheses



Population


867







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881










863







864







865









866




Research Question


Hypotheses



Population


867







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881







864







865









866




Research Question


Hypotheses



Population


867







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881







865









866




Research Question


Hypotheses



Population


867







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881









866




Research Question


Hypotheses



Population


867







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881




Research Question


Hypotheses



Population


867







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881







Achievement Test




868







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881







869






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881






870






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881






871






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881






872



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881



Table 4



873



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881



Discussion



874





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881





875





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881





Findings




876




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881




Conclusion


877



References










878















879













880












881



References










878















879













880












881















879













880












881













880












881












881

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