WILLINGNESS TO COMMUNICATE, SOCIAL SUPPORT, AND LANGUAGE-LEARNING ORIENTATIONS OF IMMERSION STUDENTS

2001 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 369-388 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter D. MacIntyre ◽  
Susan C. Baker ◽  
Richard Clément ◽  
Sarah Conrod
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
School Achievement ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
French Immersion ◽  
Personal Knowledge ◽  
Learning Orientations

Willingness to communicate (WTC) has been defined as the intention to initiate communication, given a choice. It was hypothesized that orientations toward language learning as well as social support would influence students' WTC in a second language. Grade 9 students of L2 French immersion, living in a relatively unilingual Anglophone community, participated in the study. WTC was measured in each of four skill areas: speaking, writing, reading, and comprehension. Five orientations or reasons for studying an L2 were examined: travel, job related, friendship with Francophones, personal knowledge, and school achievement. Results showed that endorsement of all five orientations for language learning was positively correlated with WTC both inside and outside the classroom. Results also showed that social support, particularly from friends, was associated with higher levels of WTC outside the classroom but played less of a role inside the classroom. The support of friends was also associated with higher orientations for travel and for friendship with Francophones. Results are discussed in terms of an emerging situated model.

Learning opportunities in peer-peer interaction: A case study of two L2 Mandarin Chinese learners

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 199-226
Author(s):  
Dan Jiang
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Mandarin Chinese ◽  
Learning Opportunities ◽  
French Immersion ◽  
Chinese Learners ◽  
Instructed Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Negotiation For Meaning

AbstractThe roles of interaction have been studied for several decades. Recent studies have turned to investigate “the details of which components of interaction might be more or less effective in which contexts with which learners” (Loewen, Shawn & Masatoshi Sato. 2018. Interaction and instructed second language acquisition. Language Teaching 51(3). 285–329: 286). This case study, based on three unstructured interactions outside the classroom between two L2 Mandarin Chinese learners, investigates the learning opportunities these interactions brought about in terms of helping them to increase in control over forms that had already been encountered inside the classroom. Using the concept of the language-related episode (Swain, Merrill & Sharon Lapkin. 1998. Interaction and second language learning: Two adolescent French immersion students working together. The Modern Language Journal 82(3). 320–337), this study sets focus on learning opportunities for lexis- and grammar-related items. It finds learning opportunities arise as the two peers negotiate for meaning motivated by the need to comprehend, strive to use the L2 to express/co-express themselves, and improve their form through the other’s feedback. In addition, lexis-related learning is found to be very positive in this study. The dictionary played an indispensable role in facilitating the learners when they encountered lexis-related issues. Further, it enabled the learners to learn new vocabulary when driven by communicative needs. In comparison, the grammar-related learning is found to be relatively complicated. And the fact the learners had nowhere to resort to concerning grammatical issues attributed to it. In terms of the different types of interactions, compared to learning through negotiation for meaning and feedback, output and co-construction/collaboration were found to be most productive in promoting the learning.

scholarly journals Affect and willingness to communicate in digital game-based learning

ReCALL ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hayo Reinders ◽  
Sorada Wattana
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
Digital Games ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
Digital Game ◽  
Game Based Learning ◽  
Learning Program ◽  
Barriers To Learning ◽  
Learning And Teaching

AbstractThe possible benefits of digital games for language learning and teaching have received increasing interest in recent years. Games are said, amongst others, to be motivating, to lower affective barriers in learning, and to encourage foreign or second language (L2) interaction. But how do learners actually experience the use of games? What impact does gameplay have on students’ perceptions of themselves as learners, and how does this affect their learning practice? These questions are important as they are likely to influence the success of digital game-based language learning, and as a result the way teachers might integrate games into the curriculum. In this study we investigated the experiences of five students who had participated in a fifteen-week game-based learning program at a university in Thailand. We conducted six interviews with each of them (for a total of 30 interviews) to identify what impact gameplay had in particular on their willingness to communicate in English (MacIntyre, Dörnyei, Clément & Noels, 1998). The results showed that gameplay had a number of benefits for the participants in this study, in particular in terms of lowering their affective barriers to learning and increasing their willingness to communicate. We discuss the implications of these results in terms of further research and classroom practice.

scholarly journals Study Abroad and Willingness to Communicate: A Case Study at Junior High School

2015 ◽  
Vol 39 (3) ◽  
pp. 3
Author(s):  
Adrian Leis
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Second Language ◽  
High School Students ◽  
Study Abroad ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Junior High School ◽  
Junior High ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
School Students ◽  
Study Abroad Program

The goal of this paper is to gain a deeper understanding of whether a short study abroad program is effective in increasing its participants’ willingness to communicate in a second language. Using a questionnaire designed by Yashima (2002), a pre-post design study was used to examine a sample of 80 Japanese junior high school students who participated in a ten-day study abroad program to Sydney, Australia. The results indicate that although there were no statistically significant differences seen in the second language learning motivation of the students participating in the study abroad program, there were salient decreases observed in the anxiety students felt towards speaking English. Furthermore, as clear differences were seen in international posture, joining the study abroad program also meant that students felt more a part of the global community. Based on these results, the author concludes that traveling abroad for the purposes of study is indeed effective for adolescent learners of English, helping them feel more comfortable using the language as a tool for communication. 本論の目的は、短期海外研修参加者の第2言語におけるWillingness to Communicate (WTC) の向上に及ぼす効果について、より深い知見を獲得することである。八島（2002）によって作成されたアンケートを用い、シドニー•オーストラリアでの10日間の海外研修に参加した80人の日本人中学生のサンプルを事前事後調査方式で研究を行った。結果からわかったことは、統計的にみると海外研修に参加した生徒の第2言語における学習意欲には有意差が見られなかったが、生徒が英語を話すことに対して抱いていた不安の軽減が顕著に見られたということである。さらに、国際的な姿勢に明らかな差異が見られ、海外研修への参加は、生徒が国際社会の一員としての認識を強めるものとなっていた。これらの結果により、筆者は、学習を目的とする海外研修は英語を学ぶ生徒には非常に効果があり、海外研修によって生徒たちはより安心感を持って言語をコミュニケーションツールとして用いることができるようになったとの結論に達した。

French Immersion “So Why Would You do Something Like That to a Child?”

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renée Christine Bourgoin
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Language Education ◽  
English Teachers ◽  
French Immersion ◽  
Students At Risk ◽  
Academic Difficulties ◽  
Beliefs And Practices ◽  
Second Language Education

French Immersion (FI) continues to grow in popularity and diversity across Canada. However, the suitability of immersion for academically challenged students has often been questioned. This study explored English teachers' beliefs and practices, particularly as they relate to the suitability of French immersion for various learners. It also explored ways by which English teachers frame issues of accessibility to FI for students at risk for academic difficulties. Data revealed that myths about second language education still permeate the system in ways that potentially impact who as access to the FI program. Findings also highlight that the sociocultural and sociopolitical context of this study influences and is being influenced by beliefs about and attitudes toward second language learning. The widespread existence of beliefs and practices grounded in myths or traditional views about second language acquisition points to a need for greater education about issues that potentially limit access to FI.

scholarly journals EFL Learners’ Willingness to Communicate, Language Learning Orientation, and Social Support in Kampung Inggris Pare

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 64
Author(s):  
Saidah Saidah
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Data Analysis ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Significant Relationship ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
Learning Orientation ◽  
Pearson Product Moment Correlation ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Writing Skill ◽  
Quantitative Design

Abstract: this current study conducted to investigate any significant relationship among students’ willingness to communicate and language learning orientation as well as any significant relationship between students’ WTC and social support. It used quantitative design. There were 78 students participated in this study. They were studying English in Kampung Inggris Pare. For collecting the data, the students were asked to fill out three questionnaires; WTC questionnaire consist of 25 items, Language learning orientation questionnaire of20 items, and social support of 6 items. Pearson Product moment correlation was applied for calculating the data to know any possible correlation between the variables. From the data analysis showed that any significant correlation between students’ willingness to communicate and their language learning orientation. However, there was no any significant correlation between students’ WTC and social support. The result of the study showed that students’ language learning orientation is the best motivation for students to improve their English proficiency trough their willingness to communicate in regard to four English skills, speaking, reading, writing and comprehension. Although social support over all did not give significant correlation, some support from other friend and teacher positively correlated to students’ WTC in regard to speaking and writing skill. Keywords: Willingness to Communicate, Language Learning Orientation, Social Support

The Adaptation of a Linguistic Risk-Taking Passport Initiative: A Summary of a Research Project in Progress

Relay Journal ◽  
2019 ◽  
pp. 415-436
Author(s):  
Ewen MacDonald ◽  
Nicholas Thompson
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Risk Taking ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
International Studies ◽  
Learning Center ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Confidence Levels ◽  
Language Classroom

This article outlines the rationale, background and preliminary findings of an ongoing linguistic risk-taking passport initiative at Kanda University of International Studies (KUIS) in Japan. The aim of the initiative is to encourage students to take various risks to build their confidence during their language learning journeys and help them to effectively utilise extra opportunities available for second language learning both inside and outside of the language classroom. The level, nature and frequency of linguistic risks taken, as well as students’ anxiety and confidence levels, willingness to communicate and their strategies for managing emotions are currently under investigation. Initial findings of the initiative indicated that many students felt comfortable and confident using English and taking risks, enjoyed the risk-taking process, and were able to discover new opportunities for practicing English, particularly those available in KUIS’s Self-Access Learning Center.

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