An Investigation into the Effects of Blended Learning on Iranian Higher Education Students’ English for General Purposes Achievement

The originality of the present research stems from determining the influence of blended learning on the academic achievement of university students. The study tried to assess if blended learning could be effective in teaching English; furthermore, this research aimed at comparing the male and female learners concerning their achievement through blended learning. The participants included a sample of ۶۰ intermediate male and female English Language learners. They were selected from among ۹۰ university students based on their scores in the proficiency test. Their ages ranged between ۱۸ and ۲۵. These participants were assigned randomly to the experimental group and control group to investigate the implementation of the blended learning approach in English for General Purpose class over a six-week period. Results from pre-test and post-test comparisons suggested that blended learning could contribute to or influence student achievement in language learning. The second research question which sought to compare the male and female participants’ performance after receiving treatment through blended learning, found no significant difference between them. The results indicated that blended learning could offer positive learning experiences for EFL learners. The findings of this research shed light on the significance of using methods such as blended learning to improve the participants’ performance. Besides, the findings of this research helped to inform universities on best practices in blended learning contexts. This research tried to decrease the existing gap in the literature on this subject.

کلیدواژه ها:

blended learning ، Higher education students ، English for General Purposes ، EFL Context