Identifying EFL Teachers’ Attention Getting Strategies

Capturing students' attention in the classroom is a crucial challenge for teachers. Therefore, teachers use various techniques, also known as attention-getting strategies, to achieve this goal. The present study focuses on examining the attention-getting strategies employed by EFL teachers. It aims at identifying and providing a list of AGSs used by EFL teachers at the University level. An interview was used as a data collection instrument, namely an unstructured interview. The researchers interviewed 50 EFL teachers at Mosul University. The findings suggest that some EFL teachers do not use attention getting strategies while others do. The attention getting strategies used by EFL teachers can be categorized into verbal and nonverbal strategies. Verbal attention getting strategies involve manipulating verbal communication to interact with students, while nonverbal strategies involve using body movements to capture students' attention. Verbal and nonverbal attention getting strategies also can be subdivided into different subtypes. The study may be useful for EFL teachers who lack pre-determinate attention getting strategies as it provides them with different strategies, they can use to improve their interactions with their students. Additionally, the study may be valuable for teachers in general as it highlights the importance of attention getting strategies in the classroom.