Hungarian secondary school EFL teachers’ perceptions of their students’ individual differences: A validation study
Résumé
Besides classroom-based EFL lessons, EFL learners have a plethora of opportunities to learn the language by engaging in out-of-school or in other words extramural English activities. As learners pursue these activities for entertainment purposes, extramural English activities may be closely associated with L2 learning motivation. In addition to motivation, several other individual learner differences, namely L2 anxiety and L2 willingness to communicate are also important in both the school-based and the extramural learning contexts, as motivating and stress-free environments may lead to a decrease in learners’ level of L2 anxiety and an increase in the level of their L2 willingness to communicate. Using the quantitative research paradigm, the present pilot study aimed to investigate Hungarian secondary school EFL teachers’ perceptions of their students’ individual learner differences as well as extramural EFL learning. The preliminary results show that participants demonstrate an overall positive attitude towards extramural EFL learning and considered their students to be relatively motivated to learn English, to be willing to speak English in EFL classes. Finally, participants’ responses also show that they do not perceive their students anxious in EFL classes.
Références
Benson, P. (2011): Teaching researching autonomy in language learning (2nd ed.). Pearson: London.
https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315833767
Cseppentő, K. (2021): Nyelvszakválasztási hallgatói preferenciák változása a bolognai rendszer tükrében [Changes in students’ language choice preferences in light of the Bologna system]. Porta Lingua. 2021/1. 99-107.
https://doi.org/10.48040/PL.2021.8
Csizér, K. – Dörnyei, Z. (2005): The internal structure of language learning motivation and its relationship with language choice and learning effort. Modern Language Journal. 89/1. 19-36.
Csizér, K. – Kormos, J. (2009): Learning experiences, selves and motivated learning behavior: A comparative analysis of structural models for Hungarian secondary and university learners of English. In: Dörnyei, Z. – Ushioda, E. (eds.) (2009): Motivation, language identity and the L2 self. Multilingual Matters: Bristol. 98-119.
https://doi.org/10.21832/9781847691293-006
Csizér, K. – Lukács, G. (2010): The comparative analysis of motivation, attitudes and selves: The case of English and German in Hungary. System. 38/1. 1-13.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2009.12.001
Dörnyei, Z. – Taguchi, T. (2010): Questionnaires in second language research: Construction, administration, and processing (2nd ed.). Routledge: London.
https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203864739
Dörnyei, Z. (2005): The psychology of the language learner: Individual differences in second language acquisition. Lawrence Erlbaum: London.
Fajt, B. (2021a): Az iskolán kívüli idegen nyelvű nyelvtanulói érdeklődési körök feltérképezése egy pilot kutatás bemutatása [Exploring language learners’ extramural English interests: A pilot study]. In: Juhász, E. – Kozma, T. – Tóth, P. (eds.) (2021): Társadalmi innováció és tanulás a digitális korban. Magyar Nevelés- és Oktatáskutatók Egyesülete (HERA): Budapest-Debrecen. 356-364.
Fajt, B. (2021b): Hungarian secondary school students’ extramural English interests: the development and the validation of a questionnaire. Working Papers in Language Pedagogy. 16. 36-53
Gopalakrishnan, S. – Ganeshkumar, P. (2013): Systematic reviews and meta-analysis: understanding the best evidence in primary healthcare. Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care. 2. 9-14.
https://doi.org/10.4103/2249-4863.109934
Horwitz, E. K. – Horwitz, M. B. – Cope, J. (1986): Foreign language classroom anxiety. The Modern Language Journal. 70/2. 125-132.
Józsa, K. – Imre, I. A. (2013): Az iskolán kívüli angol nyelvű tevékenységek összefüggése a nyelvtudással és a nyelvtanulási motivációval [The relationship between out-of-school English language activities and language proficiency and language learning motivation]. Iskolakultúra. 23/1. 38-51.
Kormos, J. – Csizér, K. (2008): Age-related differences in the motivation of learning English as a foreign language: Attitudes, selves, and motivated learning behaviour. Language Learning. 58/2. 327-355.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9922.2008.00443.x
Lajtai, Á. (2020): Hungarian EFL learners’ extramural contact with English. In Geld, R. – Krevelj, S. L. (eds.) (2020): UZRT 2018: Empirical studies in applied linguistics. FF Press: Zagreb. 128-149.
MacIntyre, P. D. – Babin, P. A. – Clément, R. (1999): Willingness to communicate: Antecedents & consequences. Communication Quarterly. 47/2. 215-229.
https://doi.org/10.1080/01463379909370135
MacIntyre, P. D. – Dörnyei, Z. – Clément, R. – Noels, K. A. (1998): Conceptualizing willingness to communicate in a L2: A situational model of L2 confidence and affiliation. The Modern Language Journal. 82/4. 545-562.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.1998.tb05543.x
Markus, H. – Nurius, P. (1986): Possible selves. American Psychologist. 41/9. 954-969.
Murray, G. (2017): Autonomy in the time of complexity: Lessons from beyond the classroom. Studies in Self- Access Learning Journal. 8/2. 116-134.
Nagy, B. C. (2005): Az egyéni kommunikációs jellemzők szerepe haladó szintű nyelvtanulók esetében [The role of individual communicational variables in advanced EFL learning]. Magyar Pedagógia. 105/1. 5-27.
Nunan, D. – Richards, J. C. (2015): Language learning beyond the classroom. Routledge: New York.
Öveges, E. – Csizér, K. (2018): Vizsgálat a köznevelésben folyó idegennyelv-oktatás kereteiről és hatékonyságáról [An investigation into the framework and efficiency of foreign language teaching in Hungarian public education]. Retrieved from
http://www.oktatas.hu/pub_bin/dload/sajtoszoba/nyelvoktatas_kutatasi_jelentes_2018.pdf
Reinders, H. – Benson, P. (2017): Research agenda: Language learning beyond the classroom. Language Teaching. 50/4. 561-578.
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0261444817000192
Richards, J. C. (2015): The changing face of language learning: Learning beyond the classroom. RELC Journal. 46/1. 5-22.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688214561621
Sundqvist, P. (2009): Extramural English matters: out-of-school English and its impact on Swedish ninth graders’ oral proficiency and vocabulary [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Karlstad University: Sweden.
Teimouri, Y. – Goetze, J. – Plonsky, L. (2019): Second language anxiety and achievement: A meta-analysis. Studies in Second Language Acquisition. 41. 363-387.
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263118000311
Tóth, Zs. (2008): A foreign language anxiety scale for Hungarian learners of English. Working Papers in Language Pedagogy. 2. 55-78.
Zhang, X. (2019): Foreign language anxiety and foreign language performance: A meta-analysis. The Modern Language Journal. 103/4. 763-781.
