The Effectiveness of Different Types of Corrective Feedback for Grammar Acquisition: a Swedish Perspective

Abstract: Both grammar and corrective feedback (CF) are important for second language acquisition, though they are not mentioned explicitly in the Swedish upper secondary school curriculum. Moreover, it is not clear which type of CF is most effective in grammar acquisition. This paper aims to consolidate, compare and contrast the findings of several articles examining the effect of CF on grammar acquisition. Two databases were used to find articles applicable to answering the research question. After excluding those that did not meet the criteria, nine articles were used in the end. Although the findings show that CF is effective for grammar acquisition in general, they do not show any type of CF to be superior to another. The factors identified as affecting the results of the studies are target structure, method, language proficiency and L1. Through the studies analyzed, it is not possible to establish the long-term effects of the various types of CF. Nevertheless, the findings suggest that oral meta-linguistic explanation (ME) is beneficial for teachers due to its time-efficiency. In conclusion, CF, being shown to facilitate grammar acquisition for L2 learners in general, has positive effects on English learning in the Swedish classroom. However, more research is needed in order to establish its effectiveness long-term and on a more detailed level.