Iranian Bilingual Schools and Language Institutes: Examining English Language Learnersʹʹ Proficiency

The present study attempted to compare the students of bilingual schools and English language institutes in Iran in terms of their proficiency in receptive skills and language components, that is, listening comprehension, reading comprehension, grammar, and vocabulary. The data were collected from a convenient sample of 190 male students studying English in either language institutes or bilingual schools. The data were gathered through 3 instruments, namely, Preliminary English Test (PET), classroom observations coded through the Communicative Orientation of Language Teaching (COLT) scheme, and semi-structured interviews. A number of independent samples t tests were run to analyse the data. The results indicated that the students of bilingual schools were more proficient in receptive skills and language components. Moreover, the results obtained from classroom observations indicated that the teaching procedures in bilingual schools and English language institutes differed greatly which could explain why the students from bilingual schools achieved a higher level of proficiency. Students of bilingual schools were found to be highly motivated and engaged in more group activities. The results from the interviews also indicated that students of bilingual schools had a positive attitude toward the teaching program used in such schools because of type of interactions, problem solving and autonomous learning, close rapport between the students and teachers, and absence of stress and pressure.