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J. Mihaljevi Djigunovi & V. Bagari,A Comparative Study of Aitudes...- SRAZ LII, 259-281 (2007)
Jelena Mihaljevi Djigunovi
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, ZagrebVesna BagariFaculty of Philosophy, Osek
A Comparative Study of Aitudes and Motivation of CroatianLearners of English and German
UDC 37.042:81243=111(=163.42)37.042:81243=112.2(=163.42)
Original scientic paperReceived on 13 October 2007
Accepted for publication on 3 April 2008
InthiscomparativelongitudinaltrendstudytheauthorscompareaitudesandmotivationofCroatianlearnersofEnglishandGerman.ComparisonsaremadenotonlywithrespecttotheFLbutalsototwoagepointsofthelearnerslanguageandaectivedevelopment:endofprimaryeducation(age14)andendofsecondaryeducation(age18).Inthestudyboththequantitativeandqualitativeresearchparadigmswereemployed.Datawasgatheredbymeansofaquestion-naireconsistingofthreeparts,includingbothstructuredandopen-endeditems.Conclusionsaremadeonthebasisofcombinedquantitativeandqualitativeresults.
Implicationsforfurtherresearchareoeredaswell.
Approaches to Motivational Research
L2aitudesandmotivationareperhapsthemostresearchedindividualdierencevariale.Wecantracetheeginningsofsystematicinvestigationofthislearnerfactortothe1960s,whenresultsofseminalstudiesyGardnerandcolleaguesstartedtoepulished.InhisoverviewoftheeldDrnyei(2005)distinguishesthreephasesinmotivationalresearchhistory.Thesocialpsychologicalphase(upto1990),thecognitive-situatedphase(duringthe1990s)andtheprocess-orientedphase(lastsevenyearsorso).Throughoutthedecadesconceptualisationsofmotivationecame
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morecomplexaswellasmorerevealingofthevarialesthatshouldeadoptedinthemotivationalparadigms.
ThemostrecentconceptualisationofL2motivation( the L2 MotivationalSelf System)wasdesignedyDrnyei(2005;Csizr&Drnyei2005),whouildsuphistheoreticalasisfromndingsofresearchintopossileandidealselvescarriedoutinpersonalitypsychology.TheL2 Motivational SelfSystemisdenedythreedimensions:Ideal L2 Self(wishtolearntheL2ecausethepersonwewouldliketoecomespeaksthelanguage),Ought-to L2 Self(wishtopossesscertainariutestoavoidnegativeoutcomes)
andL2 Learning Experience(motivesconnectedwiththeimmediatelearningenvironment).TheidealselfthattheL2learnerwantstoachieveisdenedasagreeale,competent,andsuccessfulL2user(Csizr&Drnyei2005:30).DrnyeiinterpretsGardners(1985;Gardner&Lamert1972)conceptofintegrativenessassomekindofidenticationwithinthelearnersself-concept.L2motivationis,then,denedastheL2learnerswishtoreducethediscrepanciesetweenhisactualandideallanguageselves.
OneofthevarialesthathaseenshowntoplayanimportantroleinaitudesandmotivationinFLlearningislinguisticself-condence(ClmentandGardner2001;Clment,GardnerandSmythe1997;Clment
andKruidenier1985).ItreferstotheL2learnerseliefthatheisaletoperformcompetentlyandtoachievelearningresults.Originally,linguisticself-condencewasenvisionedasasociallydeterminedconceptasedondirectcontactetweenL1andL2speakersinmulti-ethnicseings.However,itwasshowninlaterstudies(e.g.,Clment,DrnyeiandNoels1994)toealsorelevanttoFLcontexts,wheredirectcontactisusuallysustitutedyindirectcontactwiththeL2languageandculture,mostlythroughthemedia.TheimpactofindirectcontactcaneparticularlyprominentincaseofEnglish,whichhasturnedintoagloallanguage.
ResearchonariutionsofsuccessandfailureinFLlearning(e.g.,Ushioda1998;Williamsandburden1999;Williams,burdenandAl-baharna2001)hashighlightedtheimportanceofariutionalprocessesasamotivationalfactor.bothquantitativeandqualitativestudiessuggestthatlanguagelearnersperceptionsoflanguagelearningareinuencedytheirariutions,andresearchersstressthesalientvalueofariutionsthatenhancelanguagelearningmotivation.AccordingtoUshioda(1998),
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ariutingachievementtointernalfactors,suchasailityoreort,andariutingfailuretounstalefactors,suchaslackofeort,reectthedesiralepositive motivational thinking.Williamsetal.(2001)arguethatariutionsare,atleastpartly,relatedtolearnersculturalackground.
The immediate learning environment has een recognized asapowerfulmotivationalfactor,especiallyinFLlearningcontexts,wherethereisnodirectcontactwithL2speakers.MihaljeviDjigunovi(1991;1998)foundthatCroatianEFLlearnersperceptionofteachercompetence,aswellastheirperceptionofvalue,utilityandinterestoftheirEnglish
coursecorrelatedpositivelywiththeeorttheyinvestedinlearningEnglish.Theteachingseing(includingtheteacher,methodologyandmaterials)wasfoundtoeoneoftwodemotivatorsamongtheselearners.Nikolovsstudy (2001)onHungarianunsuccessfullanguage learnersrevealedthat,inspiteofpositiveaitudestotheL2andtolanguagelearning,theywerenotsuccessful:theirfailurewasshowntoerelatedtotheirperceptionofteachingmethodology,especiallytotheprevailingrote-learning,form-focusedactivitiesandinappropriateassessmenttechniques.Inar,Donitsa-SchmidtandShohamy(2001)showedthatqualityofteachingwastheestpredictorofIsraelilearnersintention
tocontinuelearningAraicinspiteofnegativeaitudestothetargetlanguagegroup.TheseauthorsalsofoundthatthestrengthofaitudesandmotivationwasrelatedtoeingactivelyengagedinFLlearning.
Aitudes and Motivation for Learning Dierent Foreign Lan-gaues
NotmuchresearchhaseendoneonmotivationforlearningdierentFLsinthesamesocio-educationalcontexts.InCroatia,aitudesandmotivationofyounglearnersofEnglish,French,GermanandItalianwereinvestigatedinanearlyFLlearninglongitudinalproject.Theresultspointedtohighlypositiveinitialaitudesandtothefactthattheycanremainverypositiveunderfavouraleconditions(MihaljeviDjigunovi1993,1995).Nikolov(1999,2007)studiedaitudesofHungarianprimarylearnersofEnglishandGermanandfoundthatlearnersofothlanguages
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hadpositiveaitudestotheFLtheywerelearning.However,comparedtolearnersofGerman,learnersofEnglishhadmorepositiveaitudes,aimedathigherlearninggoalsandweremoresuccessfulinlearning.AnotherlargescalestudyinHungary(Drnyei,CsizrandNmeth2006)lookedintoaitudesandmotivationoflearnersofEnglish,French, German,ItalianandRussianattheageof13-14.ThendingsofthisstudyshowedthatpositiveaitudeswererelatedtolivingclosetotheorderwheretheFLisspoken(thecaseofGermanandRussian),tothetraditiontheFLhadintheregion(thecaseofFrench)andtothecosmopolitancharacterofthe
area(thecaseofItalianinbudapest).Morestudieslookingintoaitudesandmotivationforlearningdierentlanguagesarewarrantedifwewanttogetaroaderinsightintomotivationalissues.
Aitudes and Motivation for Learning English and German inthe Croatian Context
Aim of the study
ThestudywascarriedoutinordertoseehowlearnersoftwodierentFLsfeelaouttherespectiveFL,languagelearningandthemselvesaslanguagelearners.Morespecically,theaimswere:1)togetaninsightintoaitudesandmotivationforlearningEnglishandGermanofCroatianlearnersattheendofprimaryandattheendofsecondaryeducation,and2)tocompareaitudesandmotivationforlearningthesetwoFLsinthesamesocio-educationalcontext.
Sample
Atotalof220Year8(age14)andYear12(age18)learnersparticipatedinthestudy.The107Year8participantsweredrawnfrom15primaryschools,whilethe113Year12participantscamefromtensecondaryschools(othgrammarandvocational).Participantsweredividedintotheprimaryschoolsamplegroup(I.)andthesecondaryschoolsample
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group(II.),whichwerefurthersudividedintotheprimaryEnglishsu-samplegroup(I.E)(N=54),primaryGermansu-samplegroup(I.G)(N=53), secondaryEnglish (II.E)(N=56)andsecondary German (II.G)(N=57)su-sample groups.The reakdownandcharacteristicsofthesamplearepresentedinTale1.
Table 1. Breakdown of the sample
ENGLISH (E) GERMAN (G)TOTALGender
TotalGender
Totalm f m f
Numberof
participants
PS(I.)
32(59.3)
22(40.7) 54 (50.47) 21(39.6)
32(60.4)
53 (49.53) 107
SS(II.)
17(30.4) 39(69.6) 56 (49.56)
19(33.3)
38(66.7) 57 (50.44) 113
English/German
grade means
PS(I.) 3.72 4.64 4.09 3.9 4.75 4.42 4.25
SS(II.) 3.82 4.33 4.18 3.47 4.1 3.89 4.04
PS=primary school; SS=secondary school
AscaneseeninTale1,participantswereevenlyspreadacrossthesu-su-samples.Thenumerofmaleandfemaleparticipantswasfairlyeventoo.DierencesintheFLgradeetweenthesu-samplesweretestedyt-tests.NosignicantdierenceswerefoundetweenthetwoFLsu-samplesingroupI.(t=1.788,p>.05)noringroupII.(t=-1.447,p>.05).
Instruments
Athree-partquestionnairewasusedtocollectdataonparticipantsaitudesandmotivationforlearningEnglish/German.TheinstrumentwasdevelopedinHungaryandvalidatedinCroatiainanearlierstudy(MihaljeviDjigunovi&bagari2007).Therstpartofthequestionnaireaskedfordemographicdata.Thesecondpartcomprised14statementselicitingparticipantsaitudesandmotivationforlearningEnglish/
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German.Ave-pointLikert-typescaleofagreementaccompaniedeachstatement.Thethirdpartincludedtwoopen-endedquestionsaskingforanelaorateansweronwhatparticipantslikedanddislikedaouttheirEnglish/Germanclasses.
Thequestionnairewasrstpilotedon120primaryandsecondarylearnersofEnglish/German.Reliailitywas.86.
Procedure
Thequestionnairewasadministeredtothreegenerationsofpartici-pantsineasternCroatia(theOsekregion).ParticipantswerellinginthequestionnaireduringtheirregularFLclass.
bothquantitativeandqualitativeanalyseswereperformedonthecollecteddata.Thequantitativeanalysiswascarriedoutusing SPSS forWindows 11.2.
Results
Quantitative analyses
Tale2elowshowsresultsofquantitativeanalysesofdatagatheredinthesecondpartofthequestionnaire.Itincludesdistriutionoffrequencies,aswellasmodesandpercentagesofparticipantswiththeparticularmode.ResultsareparallellyshownforEnglishandGerman.ThedarkershadedenotespotentiallysignicantdierencesetweenparticipantslearningEnglishandthoselearningGermaninagreeingwithastatement,andthelightershadeisusedforpotentiallysignicantdierencesetweenYear8andYear12participants.
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Table 2. Results of descriptive statistics for the second part of thequestionnaire
Variable Sample N Min Max M SD Mo Frequency(%)
ITEM1:IlikeE/Gverymuch.
I.E 52 1.00 5.00 4.077 1.026 5* 21(40.4)G 53 1.00 5.00 3.415 1.100 4 19(35.8)
II.E 56 1.00 5.00 4.036 1.044 4 26(46.4)G 57 1.00 5.00 2.842 1.279 2 19(33.3)
ITEM2:KnowingE/Gisuselesstome.
I.E 52 1.00 4.00 1.346 0.814 1 42(80.8)G 53 1.00 4.00 1.491 0.846 1 36(67.9)
II.E 56 1.00 5.00 1.123 0.574 1 52(92.9)G 57 1.00 5.00 1.877 1.070 1 29(50.9)
ITEM3:MyparentsthinkitimportantthatIspeakE/G.
I. E 52 1.00 5.00 4.365 1.010 5* 33(63.5)G 53 1.00 5.00 4.057 1.120 5* 28(52.8)
II.E 56 1.00 5.00 4.411 0.910 5* 35(62.5)G 57 1.00 5.00 3.772 1.282 5* 22(38.6)
ITEM4:IminterestedinpeoplewhospeakE/G.
I.E 51 1.00 5.00 4.137 1.077 5* 24(47.1)G 53 1.00 5.00 3.113 1.266 4* 20(37.7)
II.E 56 2.00 5.00 4.250 0.792 4;5 24(42.9)G 57 1.00 5.00 3.228 1.488 5* 16(28.1)
ITEM5:IminterestedinlmsandpopmusicinE/G.
I.E 52 1.00 5.00 4.289 1.091 5* 34(65.4)G 53 1.00 5.00 2.189 1.194 1 19(35.8)
II.E 56 1.00 5.00 4.590 0.804 5 40(71.4)G 57 1.00 5.00 2.333 1.286 1;2 18(31.6)
ITEM6:MyE/Gclassesareveryoring.
I.E 52 1.00 5.00 2.327 1.248 1 17(32.7)G 53 1.00 5.00 2.302 1.234 1 18(34.0)
II. E 56 1.00 5.00 2.500 1.096 2 26(46.4)G 56 1.00 5.00 2.536 1.190 3 20(35.7)ITEM7:Ihavenofeelingforthislanguage.ImahopelesscaseforFLs.
I.E 52 1.00 4.00 1.481 0.852 1 36(69.2)G 53 1.00 4.00 1.547 0.774 1 32(60.4)
II.E 56 1.00 4.00 1.464 0.808 1 39(69.6)G 57 1.00 5.00 1.947 1.156 1 27(47.4)
ITEM8:ItiseasyformetolearnE/G..
I.E 52 1.00 5.00 4.231 1.022 5* 26(50.0)G 53 1.00 5.00 3.830 1.014 4 24(45.3)
II.E 56 1.00 5.00 4.000 0.809 4 31(55.4)G 57 1.00 5.00 3.000 1.323 4* 16(28.1)
ITEM9:IdneedmuchmoreeorttoeeeratE/G.
I.E 52 1.00 5.00 3.058 1.474 1;4 12(23.1)G 53 1.00 5.00 3.604 1.261 5* 17(32.1)
II.E 55 1.00 5.00 2.709 1.301 2 17(30.9)G 57 1.00 5.00 3.860 1.109 5* 20(35.1)
ITEM10:NomaerhowmuchItry,Icantachieveeerresults.
I. E 51 1.00 5.00 1.529 1.102 1 40(78.4)G 53 1.00 5.00 1.680 0.956 1 30(56.6)
II.E 55 1.00 5.00 1.436 0.811 1 38(69.1)
G 57 1.00 5.00 1.737 0.992 1 31(54.4)
ITEM11:IuseEnglishinmyfreetime.
I.E 52 1.00 5.00 3.404 1.575 5* 20(38.5)G 53 1.00 5.00 2.340 1.255 1 17(32.1)
II.E 56 1.00 5.00 3.107 1.216 4* 17(30.4)G 57 1.00 5.00 2.035 1.165 1 26(45.6)
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ITEM12:IoenfailwhilelearningE/G.
I.E 52 1.00 4.00 1.731 0.931 1 28(53.8)G 53 1.00 5.00 2.245 1.054 2 18(34.0)
II.E 56 1.00 4.00 1.643 0.819 1 29(51.8)G 57 1.00 5.00 2.228 1.165 1 19(33.3)
ITEM13:ImagraidofspeakingE/Ginclass.
I.E 51 1.00 5.00 1.745 1.091 1 30(58.8)G 53 1.00 5.00 2.094 1.390 1 28(52.8)
II.E 56 1.00 5.00 2.018 1.228 1 27(48.2)G 57 1.00 5.00 2.386 1.320 1 20(35.1)
ITEM14:OurE/Gtextooksaread.
I.E 51 1.00 5.00 2.176 1.228 1 21(41.2)G 53 1.00 5.00 2.208 1.183 1 18(34.0)
II.E 56 1.00 5.00 2.786 1.039 3 24(42.9)G 57 1.00 5.00 3.404 1.208 3 20(35.1)
*Mode is higher than mean
ResultsofdescriptivestatisticalanalysespresentedaovesuggesttheremightedierencesinaitudesandmotivationforlearningEnglishandGermanamongCroatianlearners.Inordertondoutwhichofthedierencesaresignicantweperformedindependentsamplest-tests.ResultsarepresentedinTale3.
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Table 3. Signicance of dierences: results of independent samples t-tests
VariableComparedgroups N M SD t Sig.
ITEM1:IlikeE/Gverymuch.
I.E 52 4.077 1.026 3.187 .002**G 53 3.415 1.100
II.E 56 4.036 1.044 5.440 .000**G 57 2.842 1.279
ITEM2:KnowingE/Gisuselesstome.
I.E 52 1.346 0.814 -.891 .375G 53 1.491 0.846
II.E 56 1.123 0.574 -4.667 .000**G 57 1.877 1.070
ITEM3:
MyparentsthinkitimportantthatIspeakE/G.
I.E 52 4.365 1.010 1.425 .157G 53 4.057 1.120
II.E 56 4.411 0.910 3.058 .003**G 57 3.772 1.282
ITEM4:IminterestedinpeoplewhospeakE/G.
I.E 51 4.137 1.077 4.448 .000**G 53 3.113 1.266
II.E 56 4.250 0.792 4.567 .000**G 57 3.228 1.488
ITEM5:IminterestedinlmsandpopmusicinE/G.
I.E 52 4.289 1.091 9.404 .000**G 53 2.189 1.194
II.E 56 4.590 0.804 11.200 .000**G 57 2.333 1.286
ITEM6:MyE/Gclassesareveryoring.
I.E 52 2.327 1.248 .103 .918G 53 2.302 1.234
II.E 56 2.500 1.096 -.165 .869G 56 2.536 1.190
ITEM7:Ihavenofeelingforthislanguage.ImahopelesscaseforFLs.
I.E 52 1.481 0.852 -.418 .677G 53 1.547 0.774
II.E 56 1.464 0.808
-2.578 .011*G 57 1.947 1.156
ITEM8:ItiseasyformetolearnE/G..
I.E 52 4.231 1.022 2.016 .046*G 53 3.830 1.014
II.E 56 4.000 0.809 4.857 .000**G 57 3.000 1.323
ITEM9:IdneedmuchmoreeorttoeeeratE/G.
I.E 52 3.058 1.474 -2.041 .044*G 53 3.604 1.261
II.E 55 2.709 1.301 -5.044 .000**G 57 3.860 1.109
ITEM10:
NomaerhowmuchItry,Icantachieveeerresults.
I.E 51 1.529 1.102 -.741 .460G 53 1.680 0.956
II.E 55 1.436 0.811
-1.752 .083G 57 1.737 0.992
ITEM11:IuseEnglishinmyfreetime.
I.E 52 3.404 1.575 3.825 .000**G 53 2.340 1.255
II.E 56 3.107 1.216 4.756 .000**G 57 2.035 1.165
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ITEM12:IoenfailwhilelearningE/G.
I.E 52 1.731 0.931 -2.648 .009**G 53 2.245 1.054
II.E 56 1.643 0.819 -3.094 .003**G 57 2.228 1.165
ITEM13:ImagraidofspeakingE/Ginclass.
I.E 51 1.745 1.091 -1.427 .157G 53 2.094 1.390
II.E 56 2.018 1.228 -1.534 .128G 57 2.386 1.320
ITEM14:OurE/Gtextooksaread.
I.E 51 2.176 1.228 -.131 .896G 53 2.208 1.183
II.E 56 2.786 1.039 -2.912 .004**G 57 3.404 1.208
TOTAL I.E 54 54.685 13.718 2.227 .028*G 53 49.774 8.425
II. E 56 56.571 7.027 7.093 .000**G 57 45.175 9.844
*p
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Table 4. Signicance of dierences by age: results of t-tests
Variable
Compared groups
I.E : II. E I.G : II.G
t Sig. t Sig.
ITEM1:IlikeE/Gverymuch. .207 .837 2.511 .014*
ITEM2:KnowingE/Gisuselesstome. 1.621 .109 -2.109 .037*
ITEM3:MyparentsthinkitimportantthatIspeak
E/G.
-.245 .807 1.200 .233
ITEM4:IminterestedinpeoplewhospeakE/G. -.620 .536 -.434 .665
ITEM5:IminterestedinlmsandpopmusicinE/G.
-1.621 .108 -.610 .543
ITEM6:MyE/Gclassesareveryoring. -.767 .445 -1.007 .316
ITEM7:Ihavenofeelingforthislanguage.ImahopelesscaseforFLs.
.103 .918 -2.147 .034*
ITEM8:
ItiseasyformetolearnE/G.
1.295 .198 3.709 .000**
ITEM9:IdneedmuchmoreeorttoeeeratE/G.
1.299 .197 -1.132 .260
ITEM10:NomaerhowmuchItry,Icantachieveeerresults.
.498 .620 -.310 .757
ITEM11:IuseEnglishinmyfreetime. 1.090 .279 1.312 .192
ITEM12:IoenfailwhilelearningE/G. .522 .603 .081 .936
ITEM13:ImagraidofspeakingE/Ginclass. -1.209 .229 -1.129 .262
ITEM14:OurE/Gtextooksaread. -2.778 .006** -5.241 .000**
TOTAL -.903 .369 2.623 .010**
*p
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Qualitative analyses
InthethirdpartofthequestionnaireparticipantselaoratedonthepositiveandnegativeaspectsoftheteachingofEnglish/Germantheywereexposedto.Theywerefocusedonthefollowingfactorsoftheteachingprocess:teacher,language,teachingcontent,teachingmethodologyandteachingmaterials.They,spontaneously,alsocontemplatedontheFLingeneralandpossiilitiesofusingitinreallife.Thoseanswersthatdidnottintoanyofthelistedcategorieswereputintotwoextraones.
InthefollowingparagraphswefocusonsimilaritiesanddierencesinparticipantsperceptionsofthedierentaspectsoftheirimmediateFLteachingenvironmentasedontheirreportsinthethirdpartofthequestionnaire.
Teacher
bothEnglishandGermanprimaryschoolparticipantsweregenerallysatisedwiththeirFLteacher.Theyparticularlyvaluedteacherswithgoodpersonalcharacteristics(approachale,good-hearted,hardworking,
havingasenseofhumour,showingagenuineinterestinlearners,etc.)andwithgoodeducationalskills(estalishingarapportwithlearners,motivatinglearners,payingaentiontoalllearners,etc.).Intermsoftheteachersdidacticcompetencesprimaryparticipantsstressedparticularlytheimportanceofclearexplanations.Secondaryschoolparticipantsemphasizedtheteacherslanguageanddidacticcompetences,suchaseingaletopresentthelanguagematerialwellandusinginnovativeapproaches in language teaching. Some, assumingly less successfulparticipants,wishedtheirteacherswoulddevotemoreaentiontothem,aswellastotalktothemmoreandhelpthemmore.
Teaching content
Irrespectiveofthelanguagetheywerelearningoroflengthofstudy,participantsconsideredasgoodthosetopicsthatcouldstimulatetheirinterest.Someespeciallypointedouttheimportanceofdealingwith
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contentrelatedtocultureandcivilizationofthecountrieswhoselanguagetheywerelearning.
Grammaticalcontentwasdescriedymanyasunappealing.LearnersofGermanthoughtthattoomuchgrammarwasincludedintheircurriculumandfoundarticlesanddeclinationsespeciallytroulesome.Learnersof Englishcomplainedaout tenses.Generally, participantsperceivedgrammaticalcontentasastract,complicated,dicultandoringutthoughtthatgrammarteachingcouldemademoreinterestingandunderstandale.IncomparisonwithlearnersofEnglish,learnersof
Germanfoundthechoiceoftextooktextsandvocaularylesssatisfactory.ThisalsoappliestotheselectionofvocaularytoelearnedinGerman.Texts were perceivedasremoved fromlearners interests. SecondaryschoollearnersofGermanthoughtalsothattheirtextsweretoolong,fullofunimportantinformationanduselessvocaulary.SomeprimarylearnersofGerman,however,stressedtheneedforalargervocaulary.SomelearnersofGermancommentedthatacquisitionofothgrammarandvocaularywouldemucheasieriftheywereexposedtoandhadtheopportunitytouseGermanout-of-school.Asregardstheamountofcontent,learnersofGermanfeltthattoomuchcontentwascoveredtoo
quickly,whilesome(mostlysuccessful)learnersofEnglishwishedformorenewcontentanddislikedfocusingonfamiliarthingsanddwellingtoolongonunimportantdetails.
Teaching
Participantsofothlanguagesandfromothagegroupscommentedthatteachingshouldnotrelyonlyonthetextookandtheproceduressuggestedinteachersguideooks.Theyvaluedcreativeapproachestoteachingthatimplymotivatingteachingstrategiesdierentfromtraditionalones.Apartfromalternativewaysofteaching,learnersofGermanalsoinsistedonsuchteachingmethodsthatwouldmakedicultlanguagematerialsimplerandmoremanagealetolearn.LikelearnersofEnglish,theydislikedapurelycognitiveapproach,i.e.learningonlyfactsandrules,andfavouredamorecommunicativeapproachasedonnaturallanguageuse.Suchapproach,theyclaimed,startsfromexamples
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ofauthenticlanguageuseandoersopportunitiesforpurposefulandnaturalcommunicationintheFL.Expressionofpersonalmeanings,eitherwhenansweringquestionsorthroughdiscussion,featuredhighontheirlistofdesiraleclassroomactivities.
Participantsfromallsu-samplesequallylikedgroupworkutstressedthattheydidnotlikeworkingintoolargegroups.Songs,games,role-playsandprojectworkwerefavouritesamongallparticipants.Learner-centredactivitieswereparticularlyemphasizedasdesiraleylearnersofGerman.
Allparticipantsstressedtheimportanceoflisteningandreadingactivities,utprimaryschoollearnersinsistedthatpronunciationandvocaularyexerciseswerehighlyimportanttoo.
Oraltestsweregenerallyunpopular,justlikewritinggrammar-focus-edtestsanddictations,orfrequentquick,shortassessments.Interestingly,someparticipants,proalythosewithhighwritingaptitude,likedschoolworks major wrien tests usuallyrequiringeitherwritingcompositionsoransweringquestions.Some,ontheotherhand,preferredoralinterviewsaslongastheywerenotfocusedongrammar.
Vocationalschoollearnersdislikedfrequentreading,translationof
textsanddealingwithgrammar.Theirreportssuggestthatthegrammar-translationmethodisstillcommoninFLclassesinthistypeofschools.
Participantsfromallgroups reported likinglisteningto textsandwatchinglmswithoutsutitlesprovided.
Teaching materials
MostlearnersofEnglish,especiallythoseinYear8,hadnocomplaintsaouttheirtextooks;someevenstressedthattheylikedthemverymuch.Onlysomedislikedparticulartextsutevensuchparticipantsconsideredthetextookasawholegoodandinteresting.LearnersofGerman,however,thoughtthattextooktopicswereoutdated,thattaskswereunimaginativeandnotusefulenough.Oneoftheinterestingoservationstheyalsomaderelatedtolearnerautonomy:theycomplainedthatsometextooksdidnotcontainenoughexplanatoryinputongrammarandvocaularyforindependentlearning.Theyclaimedthat,duetothis,the
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teacherhad touseuptoo muchclasstimeon elaorate explanations.SomesecondarylearnersofGermanwentsofarastoclaimthattextookswere,infact,totallyuseless.Vocationalschoollearnerswereparticularlycriticaloftheirtextooks:theyfoundtextstoolongtomanageandtooinadequatetohelpdevelopcommunicativecompetence.Allparticipantsappreciatedadditionalteachingmaterials,utthiswasespeciallysalientinreportsylearnersofGerman.
Language
LearnersofGermanweredividedintheiropinionsaoutlikingthisFL.Somelikedit,othersdidnotknowwhethertheydid,orconsidereditahardlanguagethatisnoteasilypickedup.ParticipantslearningEnglishlikedthelanguage.IncontrasttotheirGerman-learningcounterparts,theirpositivefeelingstowardstheirFLdidnotdecreasewithlengthofstudy.
Language knowledge and language use
Itisinterestingtonotethatallparticipants,regardlessofthelanguagetheywerelearning,consideredknowingtheFLveryuseful.LearnersofGermanstressedtheimportanceofknowledgeofGermanintheeldofeconomics,whilelearnersofEnglishelievedthatEnglishcouldeusefulinallareasoflifeandwork.SomeprimaryschoollearnersofGermanpointedoutthattheknowledgetheyacquiredinschoolwasnotgoodenoughtouseitforcommunication;somereportedeingdiscouragedylowschoolgradesinGerman.
General comments
LearnersofEnglish,generallyspeaking,likedeverythingconnectedwiththeEnglishlanguageandwithEnglishclasses.PrimaryschoollearnersofGermanwerealso,generally,satised.SecondaryschoollearnersofGerman,however,veryrarelyreportedlikingeverything.Still,anequallysmallnumerofsuchlearnerssaidthattheylikednothing.
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Other
SomeparticipantsconsideredthenumerofhoursoftheFLtoolow,otherstoohigh.Sincethelaercamefromspecicschools,apossileconclusionisthattheiropinionwasconnectedtothequalityofteachingtheywereexposedto.
Discussion
OurquantitativeandqualitativedataanalysesshowthatlearnersofEnglishandlearnersofGermaninoursamplesdieredintheiraitudesandmotivation.Theyalsoindicatethattheiraitudesandmotivationchangedover time. However, signicantchangesoccurred mostly incaseoflearnersofGerman:unfortunately,thesechangesshowedanegativetrend,i.e.motivation forlearning Germandecreased fromYear8toYear12,reectingaloweringof linguisticself-condence.Ofparticularrelevancetoaitudesandmotivationare,inouropinion,thelesspositivelinguisticself-condenceandthelessdesiraleariutionalpaern(evidencedinItems7and8)foundinYear12learnersofGerman
incomparisonnotonlytolearnersofEnglishutalsotoYear8learnersofGerman,
ThesendingsraisetheissueofwhylearnershaddierentmotivationforlearningthetwoFLs.Wewouldliketosuggestthattheexplanationslieinrelativelydierentimmediatelearningenvironmentsaswellasout-of-schoollanguagelearningcontexts.Wewillrstdiscussthepotentialimpactofout-of-schoollanguagelearningcontextsonlearneraitudesandmotivation.
IntheCroatianeducationalcontextothEnglishandGermanareformallytreatedasFLs.However,ifwetakeintoconsiderationeverydayexposuretotheselanguages,wecanseethattheydieressentiallyintheirstatus(Cindri&NaraniKova2005;NaraniKova&Cindri2007)andconditionsoflearning.AsCohen(1994)warns,theso-calledFLcontextincludessomanydierentapproachestothetargetlanguagethatitcansometimesoperateasasecondlanguagecontexttoo.InCroatiathisseemstoetrueaoutEnglish.Ithaslatelyeenconsideredalanguage
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atothlevelsfoundlearningEnglishpurposefulecause,theyreported,theycoulduseitineverydaylife.WhilelearnersofGermanwerealsoawareofusefulnessofGerman,athigherlevelsthegeneralpragmatic-communicativeorientationschangedtowork-relatedorientations.SincemotivationforlearningGermandecreasedwithyearsofstudy(seeTale4),itcouldeconcludedthatiteitherwanedorotainedacompletelyinstrumentalandextrinsiccharacter.ExtrinsicmotivationincaseoflearnersofGermancanalsoeseenfromthereportsonthehighvaluetheirparentsariutedtolearningthislanguage.
TheteachingprocesscanalsoeconsideredasacontriutortothedierencesinaitudesandmotivationforlearningEnglishandGerman.Sincewedidnotanalyzetheteachingcontextutconcludeaoutitontheasisofparticipantsreports inthequestionnaire,weneedtoforewarnaouttheexplicativestrengthofourconclusions.Still,letusmentionsomeindicativetrendsrelatedtotheteachingoftheselanguages.Itcaneeasilyconcludedfromreportsylearnersofothlanguagesthattheteachingprocessdidnotmotivatethemenoughtousethelanguage.Theyappreciatedoralcommunication,othwiththeteacherandclassmates,utwishedforfarmoreopportunitiesforexpressingtheiropinions,for
discussionsetc.intheFL.Thisshowsthatnotonlytheoreticiansutalsolearners themselves areaware of the importanceof language output.Languageoutputenalescontextualizedandpurposefullanguageuse.Apartfromthat,andmoreimportantly,itenaleslearnerstotesttheirhypothesesaoutthetargetlanguage(Swain1995).Languageoutputstimulatesnoticingwhichleadstounderstanding(Schmidt,1994).Itcan
eseenthatlanguageoutputisimportanttolearnersofothlanguages,utitisevenmoreimportanttolearnersofGermanastheyhavefeweropportunitiestouseitout-of-class.Fortheselearnerslanguageinputis
crucialtoo,utitneedstoecomprehensile,aspointedoutyKrashen(1981)andKrashenandTerrell(1983).ComplaintsylearnersofGermanaouthavingtolearnwordstheysawnousefor,ofdealingwithtoolongandtoodiculttextsindicatethatthelanguageinputtheywereexposedtogotincreasinglylesscomprehensile.Incomprehensileinputcanhaveadetrimentaleectonlanguagelearninganduse.SincethestatusofGermanaswellasitslearningcontextdonotoostlearnermotivation,
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itisnotsurprisingthatcreativeandstimulatingapproachestoteachingwerehighpriorityonthewishlistoflearnersofthislanguage.
AnotherlineofinterpretingdierencesinmotivationforlearningEnglishandGermancanefoundinwhatDrnyeiandCsizr(2002)callatwo-tierapproachtoL2motivation.Thisapproachdistinguishesetweenmotivationforworld-language-learningandmotivationfornon-world-language-learning.Newdevelopmentsinmotivationalreseach,suchasthosereferringtoL2 Motivational Self System(Drnyei2005),mayemoreexplanatoryofmotivationforlearningagloal,worldlanguagelikeEnglishthanofmotivationforlearningalanguagelikeGerman.Thislineofthoughtisstillinitsinfancyasmoreresearchisneededtondoutifittakesusintherightdirection.
Conclusion
ResultsofthisstudysuggestthatlearnersofEnglish,comparedtolearnersofGerman,havemorepositiveaitudes,especiallyathigherlevelsoflearning.Consequently,theirmotivationishighertoo.Motivationfor learningGerman asa FL decreases withyears ofstudy.The main
reasonsforthis,inouropinion,arerelatedtotheimmediatelearningenvironment,thedierentstatusofthetwolanguagesandtoout-of-classexposuretothelanguages.
WeelievethatfutureresearchshouldconcentrateontheimpactofthelearningcontextonaitudesandmotivationoflearnersofEnglishandGerman.Itwouldproalyeveryrevealingifspecialaentionwerepaidtouctuationsinmotivationandtopossilecausesofmotivationalchanges.Thiscallsforlongitudinalresearchwithlargesamples.bothquantitativeandqualitativeresearchparadigmswouldewarrantedasaitudesandmotivationareahighlycomplexindividuallearner
variale.
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KOMPARATIVNOISTRAIVANJESTAVOVAIMOTIVACEHRVAT-SKIHUENIKAENGLESKOGAINJEMAKOGJEZIKA
Usvojojlongitudinalnojkomparativnojstudiautoriceusporeujustavoveimotivacuhrvatskihuenikaengleskogainjemakogjezika.Usporedeprovodesoziromnajezikaliistupanjjezinogaiafektivnograzvojauenikaukljuujuiuenikeosmogarazredaosnovnekoleizavrnogarazredasrednjekole.Uistraivanjuse slue i kvantitativnimikvalitativnimpristupom.Podatke suprikupileupitnikomkojegjedioiostrukturiranadionestrukturiran.Zakljukeformirajunatemeljukvantitativnihikvalitativnihrezultata,adonoseiimplikace
svojihnalazazauduaistraivanja.
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Key words:aitudes,motivation,Englishasaforeignlanguage,Ger-manasaforeignlanguage,linguisticself-condence
Kljune rei:stavovi,motivaca,engleskikaostranijezik,njemakikaostranijezik,jezinosamopouzdanje
JelenaMihaljeviDjigunoviDepartmentofEnglishFacultyofHumanitiesandSocialSciences,UniversityofZagreIvanaLuia310000Zagre,[email protected]
Vesnabagari,DepartmentofGermanFacultyofPhilosophy,UniversityofOsekJgerova931000Osek,[email protected]
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