scholarly journals Virtual exchange supporting language and intercultural development: students’ perceptions

Author(s):  
Eric Hagley ◽  
Matthew Cotter

Foreign Language (FL) classrooms should be places where, at a minimum, communication is taking place in the foreign language being taught and intercultural understanding is also being developed. However, in countries where the majority of students are from a single cultural background, it is often difficult to keep students on-task if they do not have to use the language they are studying. Virtual Exchange (VE) ensures students interact with their online peers in the FL, as it becomes the lingua-franca. However, student attitudes toward such VE in the FL classroom are still not fully understood. This paper researches students’ attitudes toward one VE, the International Virtual Exchange Project (IVEProject). Each iteration of the IVEProject is for eight weeks. Students interact asynchronously on Moodle forums in text, audio, and video. More than 15,000 students from 15 countries have participated in at least one of the VE carried out since 2016. Online surveys are carried out at the end of each exchange. Results suggest students have an overall positive attitude toward incorporating VE into FL and intercultural classes.

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-56
Author(s):  
Eric Gómez Burgos ◽  
Soledad Sandoval Molina

Attitude towards English as a foreign language is a new field of study in tertiary education in Latin-American countries, especially in Chile. However, its importance in the process of learning a language has been reported upon around the world. The aim of the current study was to identify the attitudes towards English as a foreign language of 131 university students from different educational institutions in Chile; the students’ programs included English courses as part of their study plan. The three components of attitude were analyzed by means of the participants’ replies to the statements of a questionnaire. Results gave evidence that university students hold a positive attitude towards English as a foreign language; nonetheless, the behavioral aspect of attitude obtained the lowest average of agreement among the respondents.


2012 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 27-51
Author(s):  
Pierluigi Erbaggio ◽  
Sangeetha Gopalakrishnan ◽  
Sandra Hobbs ◽  
Haiyong Liu

Students exposed to authentic materials in the foreign languageclassroom are better able to process foreign language input in real-lifesituations and have a more positive attitude towards learning theforeign culture. However, exposure to authentic materials can alsoresult in reactions of anxiety and frustration on the part of the foreignlanguage learner. By providing access to authentic content online, thepedagogical benefits of the use of authentic material can be maximized,while some of the drawbacks inherent in such use can be mitigated. Inthis article, we discuss how the use of online technologies offersopportunities to provide access to authentic material that is engaging,appropriate, and affordable. By using the multi-media capabilities of aCourse Management System (CMS) to deliver authentic materialsonline, instructors of French, Italian, and Chinese were able to bothpositively impact student attitudes toward the subject matter and todesign learning and evaluation activities that increased studentengagement. We find that using technology to deliver authentic materials can help alleviate student anxiety associated with being exposed to authentic foreign language. Furthermore, students becomeactive participants in the learning process and are able to employ theirown learning style. We conclude by discussing the limitations andimplications of our findings and making suggestions for futureresearch.


2015 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurhayati Nurhayati

<p>The general objective of this research is to discover and analyze empirically the <br />effect of attitudes toward mathematics learning outcomes, learning habits influence on mathematics learning outcomes, influence attitudes and study habits together towards mathematics learning outcomes. The population covered in this study were junior high school grade students in District VIII Kramat Jati, East Jakarta. The research sample was obtained through random sampling method, the researchers mixed quota subjects in the population so that all subjects are considered equal. The research design used by the correlation technique with three variables consisting of two independent variables, <br />namely student attitudes and study habits as well as a dependent variable, is mathematics learning outcomes. Data collected by questionnaire technique (variable attitudes and habits students learn) and test techniques (variable learning outcomes). Collected data are then analyzed using correlation and simple regression techniques and correlation and multiple regression. Before the data were analyzed, first performed descriptive statistical analysis and test data requirements (test of normality, linearity test). The results showed that: (1) there is significant influence between students' attitudes and habits towards learning mathematics learning outcomes, with a correlation coefficient of <br />0.465 and coefficient of determination of 0.216 or 21.6% of student attitude and study habits jointly affect the results of learning mathematics. The resulting regression equation Y = 7932 + 0, 377 X1 + 0, 257 X2. This could mean that the better the attitude of the students then the better the better the result of learning and study habits, the higher the results of studying mathematics. <br /><br /></p>


Author(s):  
Monica Rose Arebalos ◽  
Faun Lee Botor ◽  
Edward Simanton ◽  
Jennifer Young

AbstractAlthough medical students enter medicine with altruistic motives and seek to serve indigent populations, studies show that medical students’ attitudes towards the undeserved tend to worsen significantly as they go through their medical education. This finding emphasizes the need for medical educators to implement activities such as service-learning that may help mitigate this negative trend.All students at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) School of Medicine are required to participate in longitudinal service-learning throughout medical school, and a majority of students interact with the underserved at their service-learning sites. Using the previously validated Medical Student Attitudes Towards the Underserved (MSATU), independent sample T-tests showed that students who interact with underserved populations at their sites scored with significantly better attitudes towards the underserved at the end of their preclinical phase. Subjects included 58 medical students with 100% taking the MSATU. This result indicates that longitudinal service-learning, particularly when it includes interaction with the underserved, can be one method to combat the worsening of medical students’ attitudes as they complete their medical education.


2021 ◽  
pp. 136216882110317
Author(s):  
Amparo Lázaro-Ibarrola ◽  
Raúl Azpilicueta-Martínez

Motivation to learn languages strongly correlates with language achievement, and the school context has a great influence on the motivation of young learners (YLs). A key rationale for the implementation of content and language integrated learning (CLIL) programs, therefore, was pupil motivation. Very few studies have measured motivation in this context, especially in primary schools. Even fewer have done so in bilingual areas, where the continuation of widespread use of the regional language often depends on its presence in the school system and where CLIL reduces this presence. To address these gaps, motivation towards the foreign language (FL), English, and the regional language, Basque, was measured in 399 YLs of English (aged 10–12 years) in Basque immersion schools. The learners were divided into a CLIL group ( n = 230), with English as a foreign language (EFL) and CLIL lessons, and a non-CLIL group ( n = 169), which received only EFL lessons. Results showed that the CLIL learners had a more positive attitude towards English and a slightly lower motivation towards Basque. This suggests that increasing the amount of exposure to the foreign language (FL) via CLIL lessons improves the motivation towards English but could decrease the instrumental motivation towards the regional language.


2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 46
Author(s):  
Alla Belousova ◽  
Yuliya Mochalova ◽  
Yulya Tushnova

Currently, during the pandemic, the forced transition to distance learning carries a number of problems. These problems affect various aspects of education, including the study of students’ attitudes to distance learning. The purpose of this research is to study the features of the subjective attitude of schoolchildren and students to distance learning. This research involved 140 secondary school students (average age M = 10.7, SD = 7.2 (66.3% men)) and 30 university students (average age M = 22.5, SD = 2.4 (20% men)). The methods used were a questionnaire, Chi-square test and Criterion φ*. Fisher angular transformation. The study showed that schoolchildren do not intend to continue studying in the distance form if they choose, with a generally positive attitude towards distance learning. The self-assessment of motivation to study in a distance format has not changed, both among schoolchildren and students. Students are more likely to have a positive attitude to distance learning than schoolchildren. The variety of choices of advantages and disadvantages of distance learning is greater among students than among schoolchildren. The perspective of this study is thus to study the factors that determine the positive and negative attitudes to distance learning.


Author(s):  
Maison Maison ◽  
Haryanto Haryanto ◽  
Margaret Dwi Wiwik Ernawati ◽  
Yulia Ningsih ◽  
Nurdatul Jannah ◽  
...  

The attitude of students during the learning process is essential to be known by an educator to understand how to deal with students in the class. This study aims to determine how students 'attitudes towards science subjects and this study also aim to determine whether there is a comparison of students' attitudes towards natural science subjects in junior high schools in Indonesia. This research was conducted at some state junior high schools in Jambi. Specifically, the research sites were Junior High School 5, Junior High School 6, and Junior High School 26 in Jambi. The research design used in this study was a quantitative approach with survey methods. The research instrument was a science attitude questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics. The results showed that students' attitudes toward science subjects based on indicators of adoption of scientific attitudes, fun in learning science, and interest in increasing the time to study science were in good categories and also there are significant differences of students’ attitude towards science subjects in the three schools with a comparison value of 0.042 &lt; 0.05.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 96-104
Author(s):  
Samar Alharbi

English language considers a global language spoken by a majority of people around the world. It is a language used mainly for communication, trades and study purposes. This widespread of English language being wildly spoken lead to different varieties of English as a lingua franca (ELF) means that non native speakers of English still be able to communicate with each other. Using ELF as a legitimate variety of English in language classrooms is questioned by some researchers. This paper will provide an overview of the concept of ELF. It will also present implications and limitations of using ELF in Saudi English as foreign language classrooms.


Paideusis ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-34
Author(s):  
Peter Kovacs

Since the end of World War II, English has become the virtual lingua franca of the planet. However, this development carries significant ethical and educational questions: What are the consequences of the worldwide dominance of the English language? How has it affected and how will it affect the fortunes of other languages? What can and should we as educators to do to minimize or eliminate the harmful effects on some of the endangered languages of the world? This paper will invite educators into a philosophical discussion of the ethical complexities of teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language.


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