A Comparative Study on the Effectiveness of Garden Path vs. Dictogloss Technique on Writing Accuracy of Intermediate Iranian EFL Learners

This comparative study aimed at investigating the effectiveness of garden path vs. dictogloss techniques on writing accuracy of intermediate Iranian EFL learners. In order to conduct the study, 100 intermediate male English language learners whose age ranged from 12 to 16 were asked to take part in the OPT test, and 60 students whose scores fell between one standard deviation below and above the mean were selected to be included in the study. They were divided randomly into three groups, one control and two experimental groups, each consisting of 20 students. The participants then took part in the pretest. The first experimental group was treated via dictogloss, and the second one was treated via the garden path. It is worth mentioning that the control group was treated via deductive teaching in grammar. After 10 sessions, they took part in the post-test. The analysis of the obtained data showed that using dictogloss in teaching grammar outweighed the garden path technique. The results of the study would be significant for EFL/ESL teachers, English language institutes, and teacher trainer