從小學英語：三位國中學生的英語學習經驗與態度改變過程之個案研究 - 政大學術集成

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(1)國立政治大學英國語文學系碩士在職專班論文. 指導教授：招靜琪博士 Advisor: Dr. Chin-Chi Chao. 治政大Three Junior High School Growing Up Learning English: A Case Study on 立 Students’ Experiences and Attitude Changes ‧ 國. 學. 從小學英語：三位國中學生的英語學習經驗與態度改變過程之個案研究. ‧. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. i n U. 研究生：江采璘撰 Name: Chiang Tsai-Lin 中華民國一百年七月 July, 2011. v.

(2) Growing Up Learning English: A Case Study on Three Junior High School Students’ Experiences and Attitude Changes. A Master Thesis Presented to. 政治大 National 立 Chengchi University Department of English,. ‧. ‧ 國. 學 er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. n. v i n Ch of the Requirements i UDegree of e n g cforhthe In Partial Fulfillment. Master of Arts. by Chiang Tsai-Lin July, 2011.

(3) To Chin-Chi Chao 獻給我的恩師招靜琪教授. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. ii. i n U. v.

(4) Acknowledgments. I would like to express my gratitude to the following individuals. My deepest gratitude goes first to my supervisor, Dr. Chin-Chi Chao, for her patient guidance throughout my research. Her encouragement and patient reviews gave me strength to complete my work. My appreciation also goes to the committee members, Dr. Chen-Kuan Chen and Dr. Yi-Ping Huang for their valuable advice on my study. My gratitude is extended to my three students, their parents, and their friends. With their participation, I. 政治大 thank my parents, my sister and my uncle. Their love and support motivated me to move 立 had a chance to glimpse into the process of English learning. Finally, I would like to. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. on during the completion of my study.. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. iii. i n U. v.

(5) Table of Contents. Acknowledgement………………………………………………………………………iii Table of Contents………………………………………………………………………..iv Chinese Abstract………………………………………………………………………...vi English Abstract……………………………………………………………………..….vii Chapter 1 Introduction………………...………………….……………………………..1 Background………………………..……………………………………………....1. 治政大 Chapter 2 Literature Review…...………………………………………………………..6 立. Purpose and Research Questions of this Study…………………………………....4. Learner’s age and language learning……………………………………………...6. ‧ 國. 學. Attitudes and language learning…………………………………………………..9. ‧. Factors affecting learning attitudes……………………………………………….11. sit. y. Nat. Early foreign language learning and the learners’ attitude change…………….....15. io. er. Studies that focus on factors affecting learners’ changes of attitudes………...…..16 The need for further studies in junior high students’ attitude changes………..….18. al. n. v i n Chapter 3 Methodology…………………………………………………………..…….20 Ch engchi U. Participants and context…………………………………………………….…….20 Data collection / Instruments and methods…………………………...……….….21 Procedure…………………………………………………………………………24 Data analysis………………………………………………………………...……28. Chapter 4 Individual cases…………………………………………………..…………..31 The case profile Yvonne…………………………………………..……………………….…..31 Fynn………………………………………………………………………….43 iv.

(6) Cherie……………………………………………...………………………...55 Chapter 5 Result and cross-case discussion…………………………...……………….63 R.1.1 Critical events that the three participants had in English learning……..….63 R.1.2 The effects of the significant others on the three participants…………..…66 R.1.3 The attitude changes of the three participants over time……………..……71 R.2 The potentials and challenges that lie within the current sociocultural environment in Taiwan for young learners………………………………………73 Chapter 6 Conclusion and implications………………………………………………..76. 治政大 Pedagogical implications………………………………………….……………..78 立. Summary of the findings…………………………………………………………76. Limitations of the study………………………………………………………….79. ‧ 國. 學. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………….80. ‧. References………………………………………………………………………………81. n. al. er. io. sit. y. Nat. Appendixes……………………………………………………………………………..87. Ch. engchi. v. i n U. v.

(7) 國立政治大學英國語文學系碩士在職專班碩士論文提要. 論文名稱：從小學英語：三位國中學生的英語學習經驗與態度改變過程之個案研究指導教授：招靜琪博士研究生：江采璘論文提要內容：英語學習一直是台灣很重視的一環，而許多家長更贊成提早學英語。台灣九年. 治政大從小學英語的經驗，與其學習態度改變過程。立. 一貫課程改革也將英語教學由國小五年級改到國小三年級。本研究旨在了解國中學生. 本研究採取質的研究方法，以基隆市 3 名公立國中九年級學生為研究對象。研. ‧ 國. 學. 究過程採取訪談、觀察等方式為主要資料收集來源。資料涵蓋的面向為：(1) 家庭背. ‧. 景；(2) 從小到大學習英語的經驗；(3) 同儕間的影響；(4) 未來對英語學習的規劃。經過這些資料，本研究討論四個問題：(1) 有哪些關鍵點影響學生學習發展？ (2) 重. y. Nat. er. io. sit. 要他人在學生學習經驗中的角色？ (3) 學生的英語學習態度從小到現在有何改變？以及 (4) 身為在台灣學習英語的孩子，面臨的可能性與挑戰。. al. n. v i n 本研究根據以上三個個案的討論結果，進一步提供相關建議，作為教育單位、 Ch engchi U 學校英語老師、家長及未來研究的參考。. vi.

(8) Abstract English learning is valued in Taiwan. Many parents are in favor of getting an early start in English learning for their children. In Taiwan, the Grade1-9 Curriculum has implemented English instruction from the fifth grade to the third grade in the elementary school. The purpose of this study is to understand junior high students’ English learning experience from the start and how their learning attitudes change over time.. 治政 high students in Keelung. The data collection methods大 include interviews with the three 立 This study adopts a qualitative research method. The participants are three junior. participants, their parents, and their friends as well as observation of the researcher. The. ‧ 國. 學. collecting information is presented in four dimensions: (1) students’ family background,. ‧. (2) students’ learning experiences since the beginning, (3) students’ friends and. sit. y. Nat. classmates, and (4) students’ expectations concerning English learning in the future.. io. er. Based on the information above, this study discusses the following questions: (1) what critical events have marked the students’ development as language learners? (2) what. al. n. v i n significant others (e.g., parents,C teachers, or peers) have shaped their experience? (3) hengchi U. How have their attitudes toward English learning changed since the beginning? (4) what potentials and challenges may there be in learning English as a youngster under the current sociocultural environment in Taiwan. Finally, pedagogical implications and suggestions are proposed at the end of this thesis to serve as a reference for educational institutes, English teachers, and parents.. vii.

(9) CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Background Getting an early start in foreign language (FL) learning has become a popular need over the past few decades. Parents and educational institutions have expressed their interest in introducing FL teaching in elementary schools. Some countries have already. 政治大. had compulsory education in the elementary grades (Pufahl, Rhodes & Christian, 2001).. 立. In Taiwan, the Grade1-9 Curriculum has implemented English instruction into. ‧ 國. 學. elementary school, starting from the fifth grade, since 2001. Then in 2004, the English. ‧. instruction was moved forward two grades, so the students start to learn English at the. sit. y. Nat. third grade. Moreover, even before the inclusion of formal instruction in the elementary. n. al. er. io. school curriculum, many parents in Taiwan have been sending their children to language. i n U. v. schools or bilingual kindergartens to learn English at a young age because they do not. Ch. engchi. want their children to lose their competitiveness at the starting point (Kung, 2009).Therefore, what students experience and benefit from early FL learning has become an important issue. Some studies indicated that younger learners of a foreign language are more likely than older learners to have native-like pronunciation (Patkowski, 1990; Strozer, 1994). Researchers have also found that children may have the ability to pick up the rules of any language more easily (Curtiss, 1995; Johnson & Newport, 1989). Certainly, one. 1.

(10) more benefit in FL learning is that the more years one spends in foreign language learning and the more opportunities one has to use it, the better one may be at it (Curtain, 1997). More importantly, elementary students tend to have positive attitudes toward foreign language learning, because children have more enthusiasm for new challenges (Alabau, 2002, cited in Tragant, 2006; Donato, Tucker, Wudthayagorn & Igarashi, 2000, Munoz & Tragant, 2001). Also, early start of foreign language learning may have a. 政治大. positive effect on children, since they could have better language skills, more positive. 立. attitudes toward other languages and cultures, and more self-confidence (Blondin, 1998).. ‧ 國. 學. Hood (2006) stated that, with some challenges that are suitable for the learners, the early. ‧. stages of language learning have potential to raise pride of achievement and self-esteem.. y. sit. n. al. er. io. learning.. Nat. All of these experiences and feelings shape children’s attitudes toward foreign language. i n U. v. Oftentimes, nevertheless, students’ attitudes toward FL learning or the language. Ch. engchi. change over the years. In some cases, students maintain their willingness to learn the language or their attitudes become more positive. As Donato, Tucker, Wudthayagorn, and Igarashi’s (2000) study showed that a small group of Japanese learners had more positive attitudes over the years they spent in the FLES program. Yet, in most cases, students lost their interest or even develop a negative attitude toward the language. A study conducted by Heining-Boynton and Haitema (2007) showed that the attitudes toward the language teacher, the language learning, the willingness to continue learning,. 2.

(11) and the external use of the foreign language had a steady decline. Some possible reasons for the attitude changes are suggestion in several studies, such as students’ awareness of the usefulness of the language, students’ achievement, or the length of time. There are many other factors mentioned in several studies. Freeman and Long (1991) stated that there were five factors influencing learning attitudes: (1) parents (2) peers (3) instructors (4) learning context (5) racial self-esteem. Besides these five factors, there are outer factors that affect the language learners’ attitudes, such as the. 政治大. learning environment, family backgrounds and the learner’s parents, teachers, peers. On. 立. the other hand, there are also some inner factors that are likely to affect the learners’. ‧ 國. 學. attitudes, like learner s’ orientation and age. Among those possible reasons, age is the. sit. y. Nat. Tragant, 2006).. ‧. most noticeable factor that are mentioned or discussed in some studies (Cenoz, 2004;. n. al. er. io. However, there has not been enough research investigating the process of students’. i n U. v. attitude changes. In the previous empirical studies (Cenoz, 2004; Tragant, 2006), the. Ch. engchi. researchers focused more on the turning point of age and attitudes. Yet, it is important to investigate what students have experienced from early FL learning that affects their attitudes toward leaning English and to what extent their attitudes remain the same or change as they continue learning English in school or outside of school. Also, it may be worth discussing that among many of the factors which could affect language learners’ attitudes as mentioned above, which factors had deeper or more profound effect. This case study explored three junior high school students’ different backgrounds, their. 3.

(12) English learning experiences, the affects of their significant others had on them, and also their attitude change toward English acquisition. Through case study approaches, more in-depth views of how early foreign language learning experience is like and may impact on attitudes can be gained.. Purpose and Research Questions of this Study The purpose of this study is to understand early English learning experience and. 政治大. attitude change as well as how these changes happened. This is done by studying 3. 立. Taiwanese junior high students’ English learning experiences, that is, from elementary. ‧ 國. 學. school up to junior high school in Taiwan. Through this study, some possible reasons. ‧. may be revealed to English teachers and parents about why students like or dislike. n. al. The research questions are stated as follows:. Ch. engchi. er. io. others are willing to learn English for a long time.. sit. y. Nat. learning English, why some of them start out liking English but then dreading it, or why. i n U. v. 1. How have three Taiwanese junior high school students experienced English learning since they first started learning the language? (1) What critical events have marked the students’ development as language learners? (2) What significant others (e.g., parents, teachers, or peers) have shaped their experience? (3) How have their attitudes toward English learning changed since the beginning?. 4.

(13) 2. Based on the three students’ experiences, what potentials and challenges may there be in learning English as a youngster under the current sociocultural environment in Taiwan?. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. 5. i n U. v.

(14) CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW This chapter reviews the literature on the pros and cons of early FL learning. Then, the effects of early foreign language learning on children’s attitudes will be reviewed in the second part. Third, the review then focuses on the previous studies providing possible reasons of language learners’ attitude changes. In the next section, the focus. 政治大. will move onto studies on the relationship between students’ attitudes and their ages.. 立. Finally, the unique context of Taiwan and the Grade 1-9 Curriculum and the need for. ‧ 國. 學. further study in Taiwanese students will be discussed.. ‧ y. sit. Nat. Learner’s age and language learning. n. al. er. io. Many factors influence language learning and age was discussed in many studies.. i n U. v. This section discusses the studies that support early language learning as well as the. Ch. engchi. studies that are against early language learning.. Studies that support early foreign language learning In 1964, Eric Lennebert polpularized the idea of “Critical Period Hypothesis,” which suggested that the most effective language learning occurs before children’s brain lateralization, based on the development of human brain. Lenneberg claimed that brain lateralization and left-hemispherical specialization for language learning ability matured around age thirteen. In other words, learners cannot achieve second language fluency as. 6.

(15) well as achieving the first one once past puberty, the critical period. His theory affects some studies afterwards. Clark (2000) found strong evidence that the younger children between 2 to 6 learn a language faster than older children over 6. He also stated that “children may never acquire a language if they have not been exposed to a language before they reach the age of 6 or 7.” According to Harley, Howard and Hart (1995), the children’s listening comprehension and pronunciation would benefits from having an early start in English learning. Marcos (1997) also. 政治大. supported that the human brain is more open to linguistic development during the time. 立. between birth and pre-adolescence and that students who learn a language before the. ‧ 國. 學. adolescence are more likely to develop native-like pronunciation.. ‧. Other studies also have shown that learning a foreign language has some benefits in. sit. y. Nat. the affective aspect. Children’s motivation and attitudes tended to be more favorable. n. al. er. io. tune or more neutral than the adults’, and, therefore, they could learn another language better (Schumann, 1978).. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. The Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL) notes that learning a second language at an early age has many benefits. First, foreign language learning helps children with their intellectual growth and improves their mental development. What’s more, the children are more flexible in thinking and more sensitive to language. Improvement will also be made in terms of children’s understanding of their native language and their ability to learn yet another foreign language. FL learning introduces children to another world and another culture. Thus, it helps them understand and appreciate people from different. 7.

(16) countries. According to the studies mentioned above, early language learning would benefit young learners’ mental development. Also, from brain development aspect, young learners acquire foreign language faster than older learners.. Studies that are against early foreign language learning Although some findings of the studies were in favor of the critical period, others. 政治大. remain conservative. These studies suggested that the strongest evidence for the critical. 立. period hypothesis is in the study of accent in second language learning, where most. ‧ 國. 學. older learners do not learn a native-like accent (Moyer, 1999).. ‧. Also, Singleton and Lengyel (1995) suggested that about five percent of adult. sit. y. Nat. bilinguals could still master a second language even though they started learning long. n. al. er. io. after the critical period. What’s more, some studies suggested that learning English early. i n U. v. does not necessarily mean learning English well, such as Chang (2001). Other studies. Ch. engchi. supported the idea that early education should focus more on forming a child’s personality, not on foreign language learning. Martin (1999) even stated that becoming bilingual was a problem and a disadvantage to language learning and language development. In sum, it remains controversial whether to support early foreign language learning or not. How early start affects young learners’ attitudes and then changes their views toward language learning worth further discussion.. 8.

(17) Attitudes and language learning Before discussing how early start affects young learners’ attitudes, it is necessary to first look at the concept of attitudes and the relation between attitudes and language learning in this section. Ever since Gardner (1968) suggested that successful foreign language learning was affected by language ability and learning attitude, there has been much research on the relation between language learners and their learning attitudes.. 政治大. According to Gardner, Lalonde and Moorcroft (1985), attitudes can be classified into. 立. two dimensions. The first is the dimension of specificity/ generality. The ‘attitudes. ‧ 國. 學. toward learning English’ is specific because the attitude object (i.e., learning English) is. ‧. rather clear and definite. On the contrary, ‘interest in foreign languages’ is more general,. sit. y. Nat. since which foreign language is not specified and the word ‘interest’ is vague.. n. al. er. io. What’s important is the second attitude variable pair: educational or social attitudes.. i n U. v. The educational variable focuses on attitudes revolving around the educational aspects. Ch. engchi. of learning a foreign language, including attitudes toward the teacher, the course, learning the language, the language itself. On the other hand, the social variable focuses on the cultural implications of the foreign language learning. For example, they may include attitudes toward the foreign language speakers and the community. Both educational and social attitudes seem to play a role in the foreign language learning process. Researchers need to pay more attention to these two attitude variables when investigating attitudes toward learning foreign languages.. 9.

(18) Also, Richard-Amato (1996) stated that language learning attitude was affected by learners’ learning experience and environment. He categorized learning attitudes into three types: (1) Attitudes toward the learner himself / herself (2) Attitudes toward the target language and its culture (3) Attitudes toward the teachers and the classroom environment To be more specific, attitudes toward the learner himself or herself referred to the. 政治大. learner’s beliefs in his or her capability to accomplish a task. Attitudes toward the target. 立. language and its culture suggested the positive or negative reactions toward the target. ‧ 國. 學. language, the people who speak the language, and the society and culture (Chen, 2009;. ‧. Gardner & Lambert, 1972). Last, attitudes toward the teachers and the classroom. sit. y. Nat. environment included the attitudes toward the instructor, the learners’ classmates, the. n. al. er. io. course materials, the curriculum and more in the school context (Gardner, 2001).. i n U. v. In sum, learning attitudes could be viewed as an inclination toward the learning. Ch. engchi. environment in certain learning situations, and it could be affected by many factors, such as instructors, peers, learning materials, culture, and family background (Weseley, 2009). In the next section, relevant studies on how these factors influenced a learner’s attitude and what other factors could have an impact on one’s learning attitudes will be discussed.. 10.

(19) Factors affecting learning attitudes Larsen-Freeman and Long (1990) stated that there were five factors influencing learning attitudes: (1) parents (2) peers (3) instructors (4) learning context, and (5) racial self-esteem. However, many studies suggested there were other factors that could affect learners’ attitudes. In this section, the discussion will focus first on the external factors that affect the language learners’ attitudes, such as family backgrounds and the learner’s parents, teachers, peers as well as cultural contact. Then, the discussion will move onto. 政治大. the internal factors, such as learner’s orientation and age.. 立. Family backgrounds. ‧ 國. 學. According to Wilson (2001), students in a family of lower socioeconomic status. ‧. were prone to have more negative attitudes toward language learning than those in a. sit. y. Nat. family of higher socioeconomic status. Also, studies have shown that parental. n. al. er. io. educational backgrounds had effects on the students’ learning attitudes (Tsai, 2005; Yu, 2005). Parents’ support. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. Although low family socioeconomic status and poor parental educational backgrounds might affect learners’ attitudes in a negative way, there are other studies emphasizing that support from home, especially from parents, was vital for successful language learning. Thus, socioeconomic status and parental educational backgrounds are not necessarily the most influential factors that affect the learners’ attitudes. The findings that learners’ attitudes toward language learning tended to be similar to their. 11.

(20) mothers can be dated back to as early as Gardner’s study in the 1960s. Baker (1992) also proposed that the children’s attitudes tend to match, or be similar, to their parents. Sung and Padilla (1998) had findings much alike－learners were affected by their parents. The only difference in their findings was that parents’ influence was greater in younger children (10-12 years old) than in older children (13-18 years old). Teachers In a learning context, the attitudes could be directed toward the teacher, the course,. 政治大. the materials, the activities (Gardner, 2001). Among these factors, teachers’ attitudes. 立. and teachers’ teaching technique could affect students’ attitudes. According to. ‧ 國. 學. Moskowitz (1981), the teacher’s technique in language classroom may enhance. y. sit. n. al. er. io. Peers. Nat. self-image.. ‧. attitudes toward a foreign language, relationship with other classmates, and also. i n U. v. Friendships are important to everyone. As Harris (1995) suggested, any behaviors. Ch. engchi. or attitudes that are common to the majority of the children in a group are likely to be found in the rest of the group. In the case of language acquisition, if the majority of the children in a group would like to learn English or participate in the activities, then most of the children would like to learn English as well. Also, in Pettigrew’s (1998) study, friendship potential is one of the key factors for positive attitudes.. 12.

(21) Cultural contact Dornyei’s (2005) study showed that “cultural contact, by and large, promoted positive language attitudes.” Cultural contact affects motivation, attitudes and other affective variables in language learning. Similar results can be found in Uribe, Gutierrez and Madrid’s study (2011), where Mexican American participants showed more positive attitudes to English learning than Spanish students. A possible reason for this finding is that “frequent contact with the community that speaks that target language has fostered. 政治大. those positive attitudes and affected motivation to learning the language.” Learners’ orientation. 立. ‧ 國. 學. According to Gardner (1985), there were two kinds of orientation toward language. ‧. learning, integrative and instrumental. The first kind of orientation was to have. sit. y. Nat. integrative reasons for language learning. Language learners would be encouraged to. n. al. er. io. continue learning because of their positive attitudes toward the language. Studies have. i n U. v. shown that learners with integrative reasons were more likely to reach a higher level in. Ch. engchi. language learning opposed to learners with instrumental reasons (Dornyei, 1990), or would sustain long-term success in language learning (Ellis, 1994). The second kind of orientation referred to instrumental reasons for language learning. The learners would learn a language because they want to pass the exam or to get a better job (Gardner, 1985). Research focusing more on this orientation argued that instrumental reasons may be more important or more emphasized in a foreign language learning context, where learners had less or little opportunity to use the target language. 13.

(22) (William & Burden, 1997). However, these two orientations were not a mutually exclusive condition, but a proportional distribution. Some learners were prompted more by the integrative reasons while others were more by instrumental reasons (Brown, 2000). Age Many studies have investigated countries that provided early foreign language instruction and have analyzed the outcomes. In most research, these early learning. 政治大. experiences seem to have positive influence on the attitudes and motivation of the. 立. children. The main reason may be that children have more enthusiasm for meeting new. ‧ 國. 學. challenges (Alabau, 2002, cited in Tragant, 2006; Donato, Tucker, Wudthayagorn &. ‧. Igarashi, 2000).. sit. y. Nat. Also, early start of foreign language learning may have positive effect on children,. n. al. er. io. since they could have better language skills, more positive attitudes toward other. i n U. v. languages and cultures, and more self-confidence (Blondin, 1998). Hood (2006) stated. Ch. engchi. that, with some challenges that are suitable for learners, early stages of language learning had potential to raise pride of achievement and self-esteem. However, there are also studies that suggested younger learners do not always have higher motivation than older learners. Tragant (2006) examined the attitudes of 2010 students who had started to learn English at the ages of 8, 11, and 18 and above in Spain. These three groups of students are given a questionnaire about learners’ motivation, after they received instruction for a few weeks. The findings of this study suggested that. 14.

(23) the students who started to learn English earlier did not significantly change the level of their motivation. In fact, the students in the secondary school were more motivated than the students in the elementary school. Tragant explained that it was probably because of secondary school students’ awareness of the role of English around the world. Similar results can be found in the students aged 18 and above. The study showed that the motivation was stronger among older learners. According to the previous discussion, there are many factors that affect learners’. 政治大. attitudes. Nevertheless, learning attitude is not a fixed set, but a stable inclination. 立. toward the learning context. Therefore, in the next section, the discussion will focus on. ‧ 國. 學. the research that studies early foreign language learning and learners’ attitude change.. ‧ sit. y. Nat. Early foreign language learning and the learners’ attitude change. n. al. er. io. Although it has been shown in many studies that children’s attitudes towards FL. i n U. v. learning is generally positive (Alabau, 2002, cited in Tragant, 2006; Donato, Tucker,. Ch. engchi. Wudthayagorn & Igarashi, 2000, Munoz & Tragant, 2001), the feelings would change or become more complicated when they mature. In Nikolov’s (1999) study, a group of Hungarian students started learning English when they were six years old. Then at the age of 11, they were asked to express their attitude toward English. After eight years of learning English, the students’ enthusiasm decreased at the age of 11 and continued decreasing afterwards. The results showed a decline in their attitudes. Similar findings can be found in an investigation of a language program outside of. 15.

(24) regular curriculum in school by Masgoret, Bernaus and Gardner (2001). The group of Spanish students between 11 and 15 years old in the study expressed more negative attitudes over the time in this language program. Another example is MacIntyre, Baker, Clement and Donovan’s (2002) study of an immersion program in Canada. The participants were junior high students who entered the French immersion program at the age of 12 with high motivation. However, they soon lost their interest in learning the language between the ages of 12 and 13, but. 政治大. strangely this decrease did not occur between the ages of 13 and 14.. 立. Although research generally indicated the positive effects of early foreign language. ‧ 國. 學. learning, the real challenge lies in the ability to sustain the initial positive attitudes. ‧. through the years. The next section will review some previous studies on students’. n. al. er. io. sit. y. Nat. attitude changes in language learning.. i n U. v. Studies that focus on factors affecting learners’ changes of attitudes. Ch. engchi. Many studies have shown that students’ attitudes change over time, either become more positive or negative. So far, some possible reasons have been purposed, including three major factors: perception of usefulness of the language, achievement, and longer period of engagement. Students’ awareness of the usefulness of a foreign language The first factor, which is related to instrumental function of attitudes, is the usefulness of foreign language. That is, students’ attitudes toward the FL learning may. 16.

(25) depend on which language that is being learned, especially if the learners view it as an important life skill. In Chambers’ (2000) study, this became noticeable. Two groups of students at the same age of 13 are compared. Up to 77.3 % in the group of British students learning German said that they would not learn German if it was not required in school, while only 33.3% in the group of German students learning English said the same thing. The differences in these two groups are because of the languages that are being learned. English has been view as an important skill for the German students, so. 政治大. most students show the willingness to continue learning. Students’ achievement. 立. ‧ 國. 學. Besides the utility of a foreign language, students’ achievement in FL learning may. ‧. also be responsible for attitude changes. Evidence in studies suggests that attitudes. sit. y. Nat. towards language learning are strongly correlated with achievement in the language. n. al. er. io. than in other subjects at school (Masgoret & Gardner, 2003). According to Masgoret,. i n U. v. Bernaus and Gardner (2001), students’ self-perception of their achievement would have. Ch. engchi. an impact on their attitudes. Other studies have also suggested that correlation between students’ motivation and achievement was strong regardless of the learners’ ages (Alabau, 2002, cited in Tragant, 2006; Bernaus, Masgoret, Gardner & Reyes, 2004; Lasababaster, 2003, cited in Tragant, 2006). The longer period of learning English Learners’ attitudes will also be affected by how long they are exposes to the language learning. In Donato, Tucker, Wudthayagorn, and Igarashi’s (2000) study,. 17.

(26) seventeen learners who learned in a Japanese FLES program were examined. The result was that theses students had more positive attitudes over the years they spent in the Japanese learning program. However, in Nikolov’s (1999) study, the students’ interest actually decline over the learning process. In sum, several variances that may affect students’ attitudes and their attitude changes are presented in the previous discussion. Nonetheless, these variances are not merely limited to the factors of usefulness of the foreign language, the length of period. 政治大. in FL learning, the achievement in the past, or the learner’s age. As mentioned above,. 立. Nikolov’s (1999) longitudinal study revealed that 6- to 8-year-old children who were. ‧ 國. 學. asked about their experience of FL learning often mentioned the effects of their teachers.. ‧. This brings back the reason for this study－how the students’ attitudes change and what. sit. y. Nat. affected the changes. To gain more insight, it is important to investigate students’. n. al. er. io. learning experience and attitude changes.. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. The need for further studies in junior high students’ attitude changes In the previous sections, the literature review has discussed studies exploring pros and cons of early English learning and factors affecting language learning. However, it is questionable whether the findings by research from other countries can be drawn on to apply in the context of Taiwan. In Taiwan, English has always been one of the school subjects in the junior high school, and since 2004, English instruction moved even forward to the third grade in. 18.

(27) elementary school. In many studies that are presented above, FL learning is not a requirement in school. For example, in Harley, Howard and Hart’s (1995) study, they found that the children’s listening comprehension and pronunciation would benefit from having an early start in English learning, yet this result may not necessarily apply to school-based subject since the study was based on learning the language in a naturalistic context. What’s more, there are several studies explore EFL learning attitudes in Taiwan, but. 政治大. these studies tend to focus more on learners’ attitudes toward certain teaching context or. 立. one learners’ attitudes at certain period of time, like elementary school, junior high. ‧ 國. 學. school, or vocational high school (Chang, 2001; Chang, 2005; Chang, 2006; Chao, 2006;. ‧. Cheng, 2005). Studies exploring the long-term attitude change from the elementary. sit. y. Nat. school to junior high school are still scarce. This study intends to investigate the. n. al. er. io. students’ experience as a whole, instead of looking separately at the factors that cause the attitudes to increase or decline.. Ch. engchi. 19. i n U. v.

(28) CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY The present study is a case study which explores three junior high school students’ experiences of English language learning and the changes of their attitudes in the process of learning. In this chapter, the methodology for this study will be introduced, including description of the participants, instruments, data collection procedures, data analysis, and the pilot study.. 學. ‧ 國. 立. 政治大. Participants and context. ‧. Participants of this study were three 9th graders from a junior high school in. sit. y. Nat. Keelung: Yvonne, Fynn, Cherie. These names are pseudonymous in order to protect the. n. al. er. io. students. The three participants had received formal English instruction since the third. i n U. v. grade in different elementary schools and later attended the same junior high school.. Ch. engchi. However, two of them, Yvonne and Fynn, had already received English instruction before they received the formal instruction in the elementary schools. The third student, Cherie, did not learn any English before the regular courses in the elementary school. The three students were selected for the following reasons. First, the onsets of their English learning were different. The purpose was to look into the students with different starting points of language learning. Through various FL learning experiences, richer information may be gained.. 20.

(29) Second, the three students came from different learning environments. They all went to different elementary schools but later went to the same class in the junior high school. Yvonne and Fynn came from small elementary schools, while Cherie was from a large elementary school. As Larsen-Freeman and Long (1991) stated, there were five factors influencing learning attitudes: (1) parents (2) peers (3) instructors (4) learning context (5) racial self-esteem. In other words, family background and learning environment are all likely to affect a learner’s attitudes. The students were selected. 政治大. because they represented different backgrounds and school contexts.. 立. What’s more, Yvonne’ and Fynn’s grades were at the top of the class while Cherie’s. ‧ 國. 學. grades were often placed in the middle of the class. The purpose of choosing. ‧. participants from both higher and lower achievers was that students’ achievement in FL. n. al. er. io. 2001). This study will investigate stories from both sides.. sit. y. Nat. learning may also be responsible for attitude changes (Masgoret, Bernaus & Gardner,. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. Data collection / Instruments and methods. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the three students’ experiences in English learning and their changes of attitudes toward the learning or English itself, multiple instruments were used in this study. According to Ajzen (2005), information about a person’s attitudes or responses could be collected from the person’s self-reports, from his friends or acquaintances, and from direct observation of that person. The instruments of this case study included interviews on the three students, their parents, their friends,. 21.

(30) self-reflective journals of the three students, classroom observation, and discussion with the three students during ten-minute recesses between classes. The employment of multiple data collection instruments serves as a triangulation strategy to provide diverse research perspectives in the analysis of the data and to give a more comprehensive picture of the phenomenon being analyzed in this study. Also, the interviews with different people (i.e., three students, their parents, and their friends) and the prolonged engagement in the field both help increase the trustworthiness of this study.. 政治大. 1. Interviews with the students. 立. Interviews with the students were conducted at the beginning, in the middle, and at. ‧ 國. 學. the end of the school year. The first interview, which was carried out in the first week of. ‧. the first semester, focused on their past experiences in learning English and their. sit. y. Nat. attitudes toward the language. Interviews in the middle of the school year were. n. al. er. io. conducted once a month from October, 2009 to May, 2010, which was from the second. i n U. v. month since the school year began to the month before the school year ended. These. Ch. engchi. seven interviews stressed on the students’ current study experiences in the junior high school and their feelings. The last interview at the end of the school year was related to the students’ evaluation of their own learning experience and their perception of English learning and using. 2. Interviews with the parents The interviews with the three students’ parents were carried out twice, at the beginning and at the end of the school year. In the first interview, the researchers asked. 22.

(31) questions about the background information of the family, their child’s past English learning experience, the reasons they decided to or not to send their child to a language school, and how their child felt when he/she first started learning English. Then, the parents talked about their own feelings and attitudes toward learning the language. Some sample questions are attached as Appendix A. The second interview was centered on what they knew about their child’s current learning experience in the junior high school or outside of school. Also, the parents. 政治大. answered questions related to their child’s learning attitudes, and the techniques they. 立. used to help their children learn a language. What’s more, they were asked about what. ‧ 國. 學. other access their children could get to an English environment. Some sample questions. ‧. are attached as Appendix B.. sit. y. Nat. 3. Interviews with the three student’s friends. n. al. er. io. One of each of the three students’ friends was invited to the one-time interview. In. i n U. v. this interview, the friend talked about his/her knowledge of the participant’s past and. Ch. engchi. current language learning experience. Also, questions about the participants’ feelings for English were asked. Last, the friend talked about common beliefs and feelings among the classmates and friends toward using English in their daily life. Some sample questions in the interview with Yvonne’s friend are attached as Appendix C. 4. The three student’s reflection journals The three participants were asked to write down their reflections in either Chinese or English to express their thoughts about the English instructions in school and outside.. 23.

(32) They were also encouraged to write down anything related to their English learning. The content of their reflections included－current occurrences in the process of learning English that reminded them of their past experience and feelings, their thoughts or opinions about some activities in class, and their reflections after monthly exams. 5. The researcher’s observation of the three students Since the researcher was also the three participants’ teacher, the researcher recorded her own observation of the three students’ English learning, the interaction among. 政治大. friends and the time when English was used.. 立. 6. Discussion with the three students during a ten-minute recess between classes. ‧ 國. 學. To gain more immediate feedback and richer information, the researcher sometimes. ‧. asked the three students’ thoughts about the activity provided in English class during the. n. al. er. io. sit. y. Nat. break between classes.. Procedure 1. A pilot study. Ch. engchi. i n U. v. Before the main study, a pilot study with two other students had been conducted to estimate how long the interview would take and then to examine the clarity of the interview questions used in the main study. In Olson and Zanna’s review (1993), the way questions are worded can influence respondents’ answer. In order to make the interview questions more clear and to avoid bias, some of the questions were modified after the pilot study (Appendix D).. 24.

(33) 2. The main study At the beginning of the students’ senior year in 2009, the first interviews with the three participants were conducted individually. This interview mainly focused on their past FL learning experience and their attitudes toward English. During the interview, all of the students’ responses were recorded. Following the meeting with the students, the researcher interviewed the parents on the phone or in person. The interview elicited. 政治大. more about the students’ family backgrounds, and the reasons why he/she decided to or. 立. not to send their children to language school. The parents’ interviews were also. ‧ 國. 學. recorded.. ‧. During the school year, the researcher interviewed the three students once a month. sit. y. Nat. from October, 2009 to May, 2010. There was no interview during the winter vacation in. n. al. er. io. February, 2010, so there were seven interviews with each student in total. The focus of. i n U. v. the interview in the middle of the school year was on discussing what these three. Ch. engchi. students wrote in their reflection journals every other week. The researcher asked the students for further explanation of their journals or asked them other questions based on their reflections. For example, the researcher asked them why they thought a certain activity was good or what other things they could think of. At the end of the school year in June, the interviews with the students were carried out for the last time. Their learning experiences both in elementary school and junior high school were discussed. After the interviews with the three students were all. 25.

(34) finished, the researcher then invited these students’ friends to join in an interview. Their friends helped provided different aspects of the three participants’ learning attitude. Also, these friends represented the beliefs of English learning among peers. During the whole year of the study, the three participants were asked to keep a journal and hand in to the researcher every other week. The students only needed to record one or more incidents that reminded them of their past learning experiences in it, so they would not feel overloaded with the extra work. Also, the researcher would keep. 政治大. observing the three students’ learning, their interaction with their friends, and their performance in school.. 立. ‧ 國. 學. To make the procedure clear, Table 1 presents a timetable for the study.. ‧. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. 26. i n U. v.

(35) Table 1 Timeline of the Instruments and method. Month. Content. study. At the. Interview with the.  Their past experience. students.  Their attitudes toward English. Sep.. beginning of.  Family background. 2009. the school year. Interview with the.  Their decision to send their. parents children to language school. 政治大  Their current learning experience. Oct.. In the middle 2009 ↓. of the school. 立Interviews with the. ‧ 國. May.. students.  Discussion of their reflection. 學. year. journals. (once a month). ‧.  Their learning experience both in. y. Nat. io. Interview with the. sit. elementary school and junior high school. er. 2010. n. a lstudents v attitudes toward English  Their i n Ch e n g c h i U Their future plan concerning English learning. Jun.. At the end of. 2010. the school year Interview with the parents.  Their thoughts about their children’s English learning  Their own attitudes toward English learning. Interview with friends.  Their attitudes toward the three participants’ English learning. 27.

(36)  Recent occurrences in the process. During the. The three students’. of English learning that remind the. reflection journals. students of their past experience. whole school. and feelings. year Sep..  The students’ FL learning in class. (Twice a 2009 ↓. month). The researcher’s. and outside the classroom  The students’ interaction with their. observation Jun.. friend in terms of English use. 2010. During the whole school. 立. 政治大. ‧ 國. students.  The students’ thoughts about the. 學. Discussion with the. year. activity in English class. (Between. ‧. classes). er. io. sit. y. Nat Data analysis. al. n. v i n The data, which includedCinterview three participants’ reflection h e n gtranscripts, chi U. journals and observational notes in the researcher’s own journal, were put into analysis. Following the taxonomy developed by Tragant and Munoz (2000, cited in Tragant, 2006), there are eight categories of attitudes and orientations: 1. instrumental/ career orientation; 2. knowledge orientation; 3. communication/ travel orientation; 4. receptive orientation; 5. attitudes toward L2 instruction; 6. interest in L2; 7. determination to learn English; 8. self-confidence in L2. The definitions of these categories were adapted to the study context. These categories helped the researcher label the data and then further 28.

(37) interpret the data. Through the interpretation, the researcher could understand what the participants’ attitudes and orientation were (see Appendix E). What’s more, factors that could affect the learners’ attitudes were included for the data analysis (Ellis, 1997; Gardner, 2001; Harris, 1995; Sung and Padilla, 1998; Wilson, 2001). These factors can be divided into two parts: the external factors that affect the language learners’ attitudes, such as the learning environment, family backgrounds and the learner’s parents, teachers, peers; the internal factors, like learner’s orientation and. 政治大. age. These factors were considered so that this study could probe into a deep. 立. understanding of the three students’ language learning attitudes.. ‧ 國. 學. To address research question one: “How have three Taiwanese junior high school. ‧. students experienced English learning since they first started learning the language?”. sit. y. Nat. the researcher first provided a description of the critical events that happened. n. al. er. io. throughout their English learning process. Then, the data of each participant’s. i n U. v. experiences from the interviews and reflections was presented in writing separately. Ch. engchi. guided by Tragant and Munoz’s framework.. Whereas the research question two: “Based on the three students’ experiences, what potentials and challenges may there be in learning English as a youngster under the current sociocultural environment in Taiwan?” the researcher identified emerging themes and provided possible interpretations after constantly comparing and contrasting different data. Through these interpretations, the researcher presented possible challenges and potentials for the students in English learning. Suggestions for further. 29.

(38) studies were offered in Chapter 6.. 立. 政治大. ‧. ‧ 國. 學. n. er. io. sit. y. Nat. al. Ch. engchi. 30. i n U. v.

(39) CHAPTER 4 INDIVIDUAL CASES The case study, which took a year to complete, consists of descriptions of the experiences of three junior high school students in 9th grade: Yvonne, Cherie, and Fynn. These three students have different English learning backgrounds and are of varied English proficiency levels.. 政治大. In order to better understand the three students’ English learning attitudes and their. 立. beliefs about their roles in learning, it is important to discuss their previous learning. ‧ 國. 學. experiences. Their family backgrounds, their learning styles, their learning in the. ‧. elementary schools and junior high school, and the extent of using English among their. sit. y. Nat. friends have all shaped their perceptions and attitudes.. n. al. er. io. Therefore, this chapter focuses on the discussion of the students’ family. i n U. v. backgrounds, school performance, and attitudes toward learning, respectively, based on. Ch. engchi. an analysis of the interviews, the learning journals of the three cases and observation by the researcher.. The Case Profile Yvonne Yvonne was a student who always showed talents in languages, either Chinese or English. She was confident in these two subjects at school. However, her grades in her. 31.

(40) two strongest subjects and other weaker ones dropped unexpectedly in her second year of junior high school. In her senior year, her grades were back to her level and she seemed to pay more attention in every class. Yvonne even expressed her desire to master English and hopefully become an English teacher one day. It is interesting to explore Yvonne’s learning experiences and find out what affected her school performance and why she showed such interest in English. (A) Yvonne’s Family Background. 政治大. Yvonne came from a middle-class family. Her father was a taxi driver while her. 立. mother worked for an international trade association. She had two siblings－one older. ‧ 國. 學. brother and one younger brother. Both of her parents took the three children’s English. ‧. learning very seriously, especially Yvonne’s, since she performed better in learning. sit. y. Nat. languages than any other subjects at school.. n. al. er. io. Yvonne’s father did not have a college degree like her mother. He only graduated. i n U. v. from senior high school, but he took pride in his English performance at school.. Ch. engchi. Therefore, he thought it was important that his three children learn English well. He paid attention to Yvonne’s learning particularly, because he thought his daughter showed more potential in the respect of learning languages. When Yvonne was in the elementary school, her father helped her with her school English assignments almost every day. He stopped helping her when Yvonne went to junior high school and grew confidence in handling her homework and tests by herself. Even though her father influenced her to a certain extent, it was her mother that. 32.

(41) made a great impact on her attitudes toward learning English. Yvonne’s mother studied International Trade at the National Taipei Junior College of Business (now called National Taipei College of Business), a famous five-year college in Taipei, Taiwan. A large part of her work involved contacting and consulting with foreign clients. It was her belief that English was an essential tool in life and work. She encouraged her children, especially Yvonne, to major in Applied English or International Trade like her when they went to vocational high school or college. When talking about what she. 政治大. wished for her daughter’s future, Yvonne’s mother said, “I believe English is a good. 立. choice for a girl.” Her belief affects Yvonne a lot, which is the main reason why Yvonne. ‧ 國. 學. always intended to major in English at a vocational high school or the same five-year. ‧. college as her mother, rather than going to a senior high school.. sit. y. Nat. When Yvonne was in the elementary school, her mother bought a set of. n. al. er. io. self-learning materials for her. Yvonne said the most interesting part was the karaoke. i n U. v. program on the computer－she could listen to an English song first, then sing into a. Ch. engchi. microphone, and the computer screen would show a score based on her singing and pronunciations. The first song she learned on her own instead of from the school teachers was ‘The Ten Little Indians.’ She said she liked the challenge of the tongue twister-like rhythms because she had to sing it really fast. She could sing the song over and over again with enthusiasm until she managed to sound the lyrics out smoothly. Nevertheless, besides using the computer software as a self-learning tool, she spent little time learning English on her own unless her mother offered her opportunities.. 33.

(42) Due to her mother’s work, Yvonne had access to people from other countries. Her most memorable experience happened when she was 8 years old. She wrote to an American boy, Justin, and helped fulfilling his dream to travel around the world through his teddy bear. The boy was too young to take a trip on his own so he sent out his teddy bear to travel for him. Yvonne’s mother knew Justin’s parents through business, and Yvonne’s hometown, Wanli, Taiwan, naturally became the first stop of the teddy bear’s adventure. Yvonne still remembered vividly that one day her mother brought home a. 政治大. teddy bear and a picture of a boy around two years older than Yvonne and told her about. 立. the boy’s dream. She then asked if Yvonne would like to help him. Nodding excitedly,. ‧ 國. 學. Yvonne set out to write a letter to the boy. She wrote it with the limited English words. ‧. she knew and, mostly in Chinese, telling the boy her intentions of making friends with. sit. y. Nat. him and describing her hometown Wanli. Then her mother helped her translate the letter. n. al. er. io. into English, and Yvonne copied the writing on a new piece of pink paper. With her. i n U. v. mother’s help, she put the letter along with some pictures of Wanli’s natural scenery and. Ch. engchi. a picture of herself into the stuffed animal’s backpack before they sent the teddy bear to the next stop of its adventure. Yvonne said that she did not know where the bear was sent to because her mother took care of the rest. However, she did receive a few words of gratitude from the boy through her mother after the boy’s teddy bear finished its journey and returned safely to its owner. When asked about how she felt about this experience, Yvonne said, “to me, it had nothing to do with using Chinese or English. I just thought it was fun to meet a new. 34.

(43) foreign friend and help the friend fulfill his dream at the time.” In the fourth interview with Yvonne, she said, I looked at the picture and I was like ‘wow, the boy is so cute!’ And I wanted to make friends with him. So I wrote a letter to him happily, imagining that someday I could marry him. It is until much later that I realize how lucky I was to have this special and fun experience to learn English. (4th interview, 2009) Years later, the boy’s parents took him to Taiwan. He and Yvonne got a chance to. 政治大. meet in person. Again, Yvonne did not see it as an opportunity to practice her English,. 立. and neither did she felt intimidated by the idea of speaking English. Which language she. ‧ 國. 學. used was not her concern, she said, as long as she was talking with her friends. Of. ‧. course, she knew she could always turn to her mother if she had trouble making the boy. sit. y. Nat. understand her. At that moment, however, language was still not important,. n. al. er. io. communication was.. i n U. v. Chances of speaking with foreigners were not rare for Yvonne. Nonetheless,. Ch. engchi. completely spontaneous conversations did not really occur according to Yvonne’s wish. Mostly her mother would take part in the talking and teach her how to say certain things beforehand, so sometimes Yvonne was simply repeating after her mother. This way of holding a conversation with foreigners did not bother Yvonne, because once more, for her, her mother was just instructing her about proper etiquette when talking to English speakers. Therefore, for Yvonne, this was the matter of behaving properly in front of guests rather than the matter of speaking English.. 35.

(44) Unfortunately, the support from her parents was interrupted when the marriage of Yvonne’s parents hit the bottom rock in her second year of junior high school. Her parents often got into arguments so fiercely that Yvonne could not concentrate on her schoolwork. What’s worse, Yvonne found herself stuck in the middle constantly. She often had to choose side or acted as a peace-maker between her parents. Oftentimes, she inclined to her mother’s side. The mother and daughter comforted each other. At that moment I felt all alone. No one understood me what I was. 政治大 enough on her plates. I did not want to burden her with my worry. I 立 going through. But I could not tell my mother, because she had. tried to be strong for my mother, but sometimes it’s hard. My mom. ‧ 國. 學. told me to concentrate on my study and not to worry too much,. ‧. but… (Yvonne shrugged.) (2nd interview, 2009). Consequently, her academic performance at that period of time dropped. sit. y. Nat. io. al. er. dramatically. Even English, the subject she was most confident in, suffered greatly.. v. n. Yvonne said she knew she should worry about her poor performance at school, but she. Ch. engchi. just could not think past the drama at home.. i n U. In her senior year, turmoil at home finally settled. While her grades in English and Chinese bounced back fairly quickly, she had to work extra hard on other subjects. However, in a way, this family incident made her look up to her mother even more. Her mother’s sense of value became her own. It consequently strengthened her determination to the study of English. She paid more attention in the English class. This could be seen through a statement made by her teacher: Even though she’s always a good student in class, she seems to take 36.

(45) her English learning more seriously now. You can see it in her eyes that she’s devoted herself to the class. (The teacher’s journal, September, 2009). (B) Yvonne’s learning experience at schools Yvonne never went to any language school or cram school, but she started to learn English at a very young age. She began learning 26 letters, alphabets and phonics, when she was in the affiliated kindergarten of an elementary school. There in the kindergarten,. 治政大to pronounce a new sound every she remembered learning to recognize an alphabet and 立 ‧ 國. 學. week. Thus, before going to elementary school, she had been pretty familiar with the basic rules of pronunciations and the 26 letters.. ‧. After kindergarten, Yvonne went to the same elementary school, which provided. y. Nat. er. io. sit. English courses two years earlier than other elementary schools. There, she met a hard-working English teacher at the first grade. The teacher had lots of creative and fun. al. n. v i n C hwere always doingUlots of English activities on the ways to teach English. Students engchi. school’s playground or in the English classroom, rather than in their regular homeroom classroom. Even a children’s game, such as hopscotch, could be turned into a learning activity. The elementary school was not a big school, only twenty-four or twenty-five students in each class, which was a lot fewer than those in most of the classes in other schools in Taiwan. Yvonne said that the students had much more time to practice their English in groups and individually. Yvonne remembered that she and her classmates got to sing one new song every week. Also, no textbooks were used in this teacher’s class. 37.

(46) All of the materials were designed by the teacher. However, the English teacher could not take all the credits for all the things Yvonne learned at that time. Her homeroom teacher, Ms. Wang, at the fifth and sixth grade was the one that changed Yvonne’s perspective about learning a language, according to Yvonne. She said that Ms. Wang was not an English teacher but she valued English learning so much that she spent a lot of time cooperating with Yvonne’s English teacher just to make the students’ English better.. 政治大 English, but she 立 spent a lot of times thinking about how to improve My homeroom teacher was an interesting person. She did not teach. ‧ 國. 學. our English. She often stayed at her office after school and discussed with our English teacher about the activities we could do the next. ‧. day. Sometimes the activities we had were from her ideas. (1st. sit. y. Nat. interview, 2009). io. al. er. The most memorable activity for Yvonne was that her homeroom teacher and her. v. n. English teacher took the whole class onto a ship at the Keelung Harbor and asked the. Ch. engchi. i n U. students to go talk to foreigners. She and her classmates had to work in groups and took a picture with the foreigners after their little chat. Of course, the English teacher was there to help whenever any group encountered difficulties. Yvonne said she and her teammates had a great time even though their English was still poor at the time. Yvonne loved to stay after class to discuss homework with her friends at her elementary school. She said this way they could finished all the assignment more efficiently. Besides, whenever they had a question, they could go to their teachers who would still be at their offices long after school hours. However, her focus was not solely 38.

(47) on English, but all of the school subjects. Yvonne said at that time she did not put extra effort on her English comparing with the effort she put on other school subjects. Also, she did not spend too much time worrying about her self-learning in English. Upon entering junior high school, Yvonne showed great confidence in the subject English even though sometimes she may not seem to give her best effort. As her English teacher, I noticed that she had a very laid-back attitude whether toward the lessons or toward the exams in the first year of junior high school. She would answer the questions. 政治大. when asked and participate in the activities when group work was involved; otherwise,. 立. she was not what I would call an avid English learner. Even so, she revealed her interest. ‧ 國. 學. in English clearly by telling me on the first or second day of school that she always. ‧. loved to learn English. Also, she always maintained her average scores above 96 on the. sit. y. Nat. monthly tests. She was quite satisfied with the scores even though she admitted later in. n. al. er. io. the interview that she could have done better if she had taken those tests more seriously.. i n U. v. I knew I could do better, but at that time, I thought… I don’t know.. Ch. engchi. The scores were good enough for me. I was paying much attention to my grades like I do now. (3rd interview, 2009) However, in her second year, because of the constant fighting between Yvonne’s parents as mentioned earlier, she could not concentrate on anything except for the domestic turbulence, her interest in English declined gradually. Yvonne’s distraction was easy to detect when she often zoned out in class and on a test. Even though she always had a carefree attitude with regard to her academic performance, she was never nonchalant for that matter. She would not have come to a test totally unprepared. 39.

(48) However, on several occasions, I found that she skimmed through her textbook frantically and studied at the last minute before a test. When I asked if she had reviewed the lessons at the previous night, she often gave me a sheepish smile and shook her head. Other than that, she would not give specific reason why she did not study or why she suddenly lost interest in English. At that period of time, it seemed to me that her grades suffered greatly, but upon closer look, she still managed to score an average of 92 in her monthly test in spite of her lack of attention in class. It was in the first half of her senior. 政治大. year that she paid the price for her inattentiveness.. 立. At this point, her scores dropped to 90 in average, which were still better than most. ‧ 國. 學. of her classmates, but she came to me one day looking disturbed and asked me what she. ‧. could do to make her grades better. It was the first time she showed that she cared about. sit. y. Nat. her scores more than what she let on. Also, her attitude changed from relaxed to. n. al. er. io. attentive since she began her third year of junior high school. When I was teaching in. i n U. v. class, I could see clearly that she was paying full attention. She raised her hand. Ch. engchi. constantly to answer my questions, unlike in the first year she seldom took initiatives in class. She also jotted down every note I said while we were reviewing the test, even if she got the answers right. Later in the second interview, I asked her why she felt the need to write down every note even for the questions she knew the answers to. She told me, “My mind is clear now and I know where my path will lead me, and that is to be an English teacher, so I need to prepare myself in every way possible.” (During a ten-minute recess between classes, 2009). 40.

(49) In the second half of her senior year and also her last semester in junior high school, she showed more ambition in making her English better. And her average score rose to 94. Yvonne said she thought there was still a lot of improvement to make, but all in all she was quite pleased with herself for the effort she made in it. She often consulted me for how to make more progress. Yet even when she was most eager to catch up what she missed in the previous year within a short period of time, she did not once think about resorting to the cram schools just like she did for math. She strongly believed that her. 政治大. own effort and the regular courses at school were enough to help her achieve her goal.. 立. I think I can study English by myself. I don’t need cram schools. As. ‧ 國. 學. long as I pay attention in class, I know I’ll be fine. (6th interview, 2010). ‧ y. Nat. er. io. sit. (C) Yvonne and her friends. During the last two years in the elementary school, Yvonne had a group of friends. al. n. v i n Cmuch who loved learning English as as she did. Yvonne remembered they were always U hen i h gc in the same group when their teacher asked them to team up. As it was mentioned before, she recalled there was one time when her teacher took the class to Keelung Harbor and asked them to find a foreigner to talk to and take a picture with. She and her friends were the most active team. Even though their English abilities were still limited, Yvonne and her friends liked to talk in English. She said, My friends and I liked to chat in English, or at least, we tried to. As long as we get our meanings across, we kept talking in English until we started to stutter…ha ha. Some of the foreigners were not native 41.