Investigating the performance of Iraqi : EFL University students in manipulating English gender classes

الملخص EN

This study aims at testing the performance of the Iraqi EFL learners’ in manipulating English gender classes.

This study has aimed to shed light upon : i) the performance of the Iraqi EFL learners’ in manipulating English gender classes ii) the acquisition rate of English gender, and iii) drawing its acquisition hierarchy.

Two hypotheses have been put forward for verification.

These are : 1–Iraqi EFL learners do not often distinguish gender classes.

2–The students are following the following hierarchy in their acquisition of gender classes : male > dual > female > common > collective > higher male animal > higher female animal > high organisms > lower animal > inanimate.

Data collection consisted in a twenty item proficiency test administered to the Fourth Year Iraqi EFL learners at the Department of Psychology, College of Education, University of Babylon.

The sample that were selected to test administration consisted of (100) fourth-year subjects and has a representative rate of (100 %) of all the admissible population.

Looking at the results from statistical angle, the resultant performance rate of (45.7) shows that the subjects at their final semester before graduation still unable to distinguish various classes of English gender.

This proves the validity of the first hypothesis.

As for the second hypothesis, on the basis of the relative weight of the correct-response frequencies, the following hierarchy can be drawn for the acquisition route by Iraqi EFL learners at the fourth year level : male > dual > female > common > higher male animal > higher female animal > high organisms > collective > lower animal > inanimate.

The result above provides empirical evidence that proves the validity of the second hypothesis above.