Zuhair Almulali

Sohar University · English Language Studies

This study aims at investigating the ability of Omani learners of English at Sohar University to appropriately interpret and implement the four directives, i.e. advice, suggestion, command, and request when they communicate with native speakers of English especially native speaker teachers. The study set out to explore whether Omani learners of English as an experimental group have the same knowledge of native speakers as a controlling group in recognizing and implementing the various types of directives. To find out how far the two groups are similar or different, a discourse completion test that contains several scenarios was given to them to measure their knowledge of directives. In order to know whether the differences between the two groups are/are not significant, the Fisher exact test was applied. The thorough analysis of the results reveals that Omani learners of English are incapable of matching the native speakers in implementing the appropriate directives. This phenomenon is due to three factors: interlingual, culture, and lack of foreign language mastery. Based on the retrieved results, the researchers suggest some pedagogical implications to facilitate the appropriate utilization of directives by Omani learners of English.