The Impact of Explicit Instruction of Metadiscourse Markers on EFL Learners' Listening Comprehension

According to Hyland  (2000),  metadiscourse  is  recognized  as  an  important  means  of  facilitating  communication, supporting a writer's position, and building a relationship with an audience. This study aims to investigate the impact of explicit instruction of metadiscourse markers on EFL learners' listening comprehension. The participants of this study were 50 undergraduate students majoring in English Translation at the University of Khorasgan. To elicit the relevant data, participants were given a pretest of listening comprehension to check their initial knowledge and unprompted use of metadiscourse markers. The participants were divided into two groups randomly. Students in the experimental group were taught metadiscourse markers in addition to a process method, while those students in the control group were thought only a process method. Finally, a post test measuring their listening comprehension with metadiscourse markers in focus was administered. The results indicated generally that explicit instruction of metadiscourse markers significantly improves EFL learners' listening comprehension. The findings call practitioners to pay more serious attention to metadiscourse markers in making EFL curricula.