Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 2012, vol. 2, no. 2

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://repozytorium.amu.edu.pl/handle/10593/3229

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    Contents, Notes
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012-06)
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    Editorial
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012-06) Gabryś-Barker, Danuta; Piechurska-Kuciel, Ewa
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    Book review
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012-06)
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    The dynamic nature of motivation in language learning: A classroom perspective
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012-06) Pawlak, Mirosław
    When we examine the empirical investigations of motivation in second and foreign language learning, even those drawing upon the latest theoretical paradigms, such as the L2 motivational self system (Dörnyei, 2009), it becomes clear that many of them still fail to take account of its dynamic character and temporal variation. This may be surprising in view of the fact that the need to adopt such a process- oriented approach has been emphasized by a number of theorists and researchers (e.g., Dörnyei, 2000, 2001, 2009; Ushioda, 1996; Williams & Burden, 1997), and it lies at the heart of the model of second language motivation proposed by Dörnyei and Ottó (1998). It is also unfortunate that few research projects have addressed the question of how motivation changes during a language lesson as well as a series of lessons, and what factors might be responsible for fluctuations of this kind. The present paper is aimed to rectify this problem by reporting the findings of a classroom-based study which investigated the changes in the motivation of 28 senior high school students, both in terms of their goals and intentions, and their interest and engagement in classroom activities and tasks over the period of four weeks. The analysis of the data collected by means of questionnaires, observations and interviews showed that although the reasons for learning remain relatively stable, the intensity of motivation is indeed subject to variation on a minute-to-minute basis and this fact has to be recognized even in large-scale, cross-sectional research in this area.
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    Material culture of multilingualism and affectivity
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012-06) Aronin, Larissa
    Affectivity is an important dimension in humans’ social and individual lives. It is either a stimulating or hindering aspect of language learning. This article aims to draw attention to material culture as a powerful, but mostly neglected source of data on the use and acquisition of languages, and demonstrates the close and intricate links between affectivity and material culture. It is hoped that revealing these interrelationships will assist in understanding and managing language diversity. It will allow practitioners and teachers to carry out social and private encounters, events and language teaching with more care, understanding and expertise. Researchers will be encouraged to join the investigation of yet one more important facet of multilingualism – material culture.
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    Gender-dependent language anxiety in Polish communication apprehensives
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012-06) Piechurska-Kuciel, Ewa
    This paper analyzes the relationship between communication apprehension and language anxiety from the perspective of gender. As virtually no empirical studies have addressed the explicit influence of gender on language anxiety in communication apprehensives, this paper proposes that females are generally more sensitive to anxiety, as reflected in various spheres of communication. For this reason, language anxiety levels in communication apprehensive females should be higher, unlike those of communication apprehensive males. Comparisons between them were made using a student t test, two-way ANOVA, and post-hoc Tukey test. The results revealed that Polish communication apprehensive secondary grammar school males and females do not differ in their levels of language anxiety, although nonapprehensive males experience significantly lower language anxiety than their female peers. It is argued that the finding can be attributed to developmental patterns, gender socialization processes, classroom practices, and the uniqueness of the FL learning process, which is a stereotypically female domain.
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    Integrative motivation and global language (English) acquisition in Poland
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012-06) Gardner, Robert C.
    This study investigated the consistency of a measure of integrative motivation in the prediction of achievement in English as a foreign language in 18 samples of Polish school students. The results are shown to have implications for concerns expressed that integrative motivation might not be appropriate to the acquisition of English because it is a global language and moreover that other factors such as the gender of the student or the environment of the class might also influence its predictability. Results of a hierarchical linear modeling analysis indicated that for the older samples, integrative motivation was a consistent predictor of grades in English, unaffected by either the gender of the student or class environment acting as covariates. Comparable results were obtained for the younger samples except that student gender also contributed to the prediction of grades in English. Examination of the correlations of the elements of the integrative motivation score with English grades demonstrated that the aggregate score is the more consistent correlate from sample to sample than the elements themselves. Such results lead to the hypothesis that integrative motivation is a multi-dimensional construct and different aspects of the motivational complex come into play for each individual. That is, two individuals can hold the same level of integrative motivation and thus attain the same level of achievement but one might be higher in some elements and lower in others than another individual, resulting in consistent correlations of the aggregate but less so for the elements.
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    Emotions that facilitate language learning: The positive-broadening power of the imagination
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012-06) MacIntyre, Peter; Gregersen, Tammy
    The imagination is powerful, in part, because of the emotions that can be activated by imagining future states. Imagined future states are a key feature of the L2 self-system proposed by D􀆅rnyei, and emotion may be the key to the motivational quality of the imagined future self. In particular, this paper focuses on positive anticipated and anticipatory emotions related to language learning. It is argued that, in general, positive emotion has a different function from negative emotion; they are not opposite ends of the same spectrum. Based on the work of Fredrickson, we argue that positive emotion facilitates the building of resources because positive emotion tends to broaden a person’s perspective, opening the individual to absorb the language. In contrast, negative emotion produces the opposite tendency, a narrowing of focus and a restriction of the range of potential language input. This article draws a framework for finding a balance between the positivebroadening and negative-narrowing emotions in the language classroom, and beyond. The emotion system is an engine for the positive-broadening power of the imagination.
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    Dynamics of learner affective development in early FLL
    (Zakład Filologii Angielskiej Wydział Pedagogiczno-Artystyczny Uniwersytetu im. Adama Mickiewicza w Kaliszu, 2012-06) Djigunović, Jelena Mihaljević
    Affective learner factors were first considered as a cause of success in language learning. This was followed by a change in approach and recently authors (e.g., Edelenbos, Johnstone, & Kubanek, 2006) have considered them an important outcome, especially in early foreign language learning (FLL). Current research into affective learner factors in early FLL tries to catch the developmental aspects too, and studies are emerging that take a contextual view as well. This paper describes a study on affective characteristics of young FL learners that combines the developmental and contextual perspectives. Using the case study methodology the author analyses the affective profiles of three young learners of English as a foreign language who were followed for 4 years. The analyses are done taking into account their immediate language learning environment, home support, out-of-school exposure to English and language achievement. The findings suggest that affective learner factors contribute to the dynamic complexity of early FLL.