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Volume 45
Professional Teachers' Articles
July 2010
Article 1

Article Title
Differentiated error correction: A grounded theory

Author
Seyyed Ali Ostovar Namaghi

Biodata
Seyyed Ali Ostovar Namaghi received his MA in TEFL from the University of Tehran and then entered Shiraz University for the PhD programme. He earned his PhD in TEFL in 2005. His chief research interest is language teacher knowledge. He has published in a number of leading peer-reviewed journals including: The Reading Matrix, Teacher Education Quarterly, and the Asian EFL Journal. Presently he runs courses in EAP at Shahrood University of Technology.

Abstract
The findings of theory-first studies about error correction are inconclusive since they compare different techniques of error correction without specifying the conditions under which they can be applied. Through open-ended interviews and in line with the sampling procedures of Grounded Theory, this study theoretically sampled eight experienced EFL teachers' perspectives to uncover the conditions that help teachers differentiate error correction techniques to cater for individual and group differences. The rigorous coding schemes of the grounded theory method yielded a set of categories – "Differentiated Error Correction" as the core category, coupled with some sub-categories such as "Learners' Purpose", “Learners' Age", and "Learners' Level of Proficiency" together with "Task Objective" and "Source of Error" – which explain with the fewest possible categories the conditions that determine the 'what' and 'how' of error correction. Further studies need to be undertaken to uncover more determining conditions in other contexts. Only then can the field replace situated knowledge of error correction with universal knowledge which is assumed to be applicable across a myriad of conditions.

Keywords: grounded theory, theoretical sampling, differentiated error correction, classroom conditions

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