O n f e r e n c e

Results and Discussion 
In order to answer the first research question, the homogeneity between the two groups 
of participants was ensured by the Mann-Whitney U test. The statistical analysis (
p
= 
.788) revealed that the two groups were homogeneous before the treatment. After 
receiving the intervention, Wilcoxon 
t
-test 
Repeated Measures 
were used to analyze the 
score differences between the pretest and the posttest in the two groups. The results 
showed that the teacher-directed web-based instruction group did not make significant 
improvement (
p 
= .086). However, the results indicated the blending and segmenting 
activities provided in the 
ABRA
website were significantly effective in improving the 
decoding performance of the participants receiving the student-controlled web-based 
instruction (
p
= .001). However, according to the Mann-Whitney U test analysis, there 
was no significant difference in the posttest scores (
p
= .211) or the gain scores (
p
= .333) between the two groups. The inter-group comparsion indicates that the two 
types of web-based instruction using the the blending and segmenting activities provided 
in the 
ABRA
website 
are equally effective in enhancing the EFL young learners’ decoding 
skills. 
To answer the second research question, descriptive statistics was used to analyze the 
participants’ an
swering of the questionnaire. The results showed that the fourth 
graders’ 
perception toward the 
ABRA 
website was rather positive. For the teacher-directed web-
based instruction group, the mean score was 3.35 (maximal score = 4), while for the 
student-constrolled web-based instruction group, the mean score was 3.27. This 
indicates that the participants had a highly positive attitude toward the 
ABRA 
website. 
Moreover, analysis of the recorded sound files revealed that the 12 interviewees 
consideded that the activities provided in the 
ABRA 
website enhanced their English 
decoding skills and increased their learning motivation. 

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-101- 
2014 CALL Conference 
LINGUAPOLIS
www.antwerpcall.be