the motivation and attitudes towards learning slang in english a study of the fourth-year undergr
TRANSCRIPT
VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION
VI DIỆU THUẦN
THE MOTIVATION AND ATTITUDES TOWARDS
LEARNING SLANG IN ENGLISH: A STUDY OF
THE FOURTH-YEAR UNDERGRADUATES AT
FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER
EDUCATION, UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES
AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, VIETNAM
NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for
the degree of bachelor of arts (TEFL)
Hanoi, May 2011
VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION
VI DIỆU THUẦN
THE MOTIVATION AND ATTITUDES TOWARDS
LEARNING SLANG IN ENGLISH: A STUDY OF
THE FOURTH-YEAR UNDERGRADUATES AT
FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER
EDUCATION, UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES
AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, VIETNAM
NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for
the degree of bachelor of arts (TEFL)
SUPERVISOR: Mr. KHOA ANH VIỆT, M.A.
Hanoi, May 2011
I hereby state that I: Vi Dieu Thuan, group 071E1, being a candidate for
the degree of Bachelor of Arts (TEFL) accept the requirements of the
College relating to the retention and use of Bachelor’s Graduation Paper
deposited to the library.
In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited
in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research,
in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for
the care, loan or reproduction of the paper.
Signature:
Date:
i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First of all, I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor
Mr. Khoa Anh Viet, M.A., who has given me valuable comments and
instructions as well as encouragement and support during the whole
period of time this graduation paper got fulfilled.
I also wish to thank all my teachers, my friends at the university
and my family who have given me precious support and helpful advice so
that I could make remarkable progress and necessary improvements with
my work.
Finally, I want to show my sincere appreciation to the fourth-year
students who participated in the questionnaire and interviews and
provided essential and significant data for my study.
ii
ABSTRACT
This paper outlines the results of a survey which was conducted to
investigate the motivation and attitudes of students at Faculty of English
Language Teacher Education (FELTE), University of Languages and
International Studies (ULIS), Vietnam National University, Hanoi
(VNUH). The motivation was identified in terms of instrumental
motivation, integrative motivation and personal motivation based on the
constructs proposed by Cooper and Fishman in 1977 and Gardner in1985.
The attitudes were identified regarding the use of slang in English in the
social context, the use of slang in English in the educational context, the
slang in English language and the culture of English speaking countries
reflected through slang. 100 fourth-year undergraduates at FELTE were
chosen to be the study sample. A questionnaire and interviews were used
for data collection. As for the results, integrative motivation appears to
have the most impact on the students when they learned slang in English.
Personal motivation is also considered important to the students.
Compared to the other two types of motivational constructs, instrumental
motivation; however, has little influence on the students’ slang learning.
On the other hand, the findings in terms of the attitudes reveal that the
majority of the students have generally positive attitudes towards the use
of slang in both social context and educational environment. Also, the
students show certain interest in slang as a language itself. Particularly,
the movies in which plenty of slang is used are, in general, enjoyable and
interesting to the students. Thus, it can be inferred that the students
positively respond to the culture of English speaking countries reflected
through slang. At the end of the paper, the discussions and conclusion
regarding the motivation and attitudes towards learning slang of students
at FELTE, ULIS, VNUH are presented.
iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Table of content Page number
Acknowledgement i
Abstract ii
Table of content iii
List of tables and figures v
List of abbreviation vi
Chapter 1: Introduction
1.1. Statement of the problem and rationale of the study 1
1.2. Aims of the study and research questions 5
1.3. Methodology of the study 5
1.4. Scope of the study 5
1.5. Significance of the study 6
1.6. Organization of the study 7
Chapter 2: Literature Review
2.1. Definition of key terms 8
2.1.1. Motivation 8
2.1.2. Attitudes 11
2.1.3. Slang in English 13
iv
2.2. The importance and frequency of slang use 16
2.3. Related studies 18
Chapter 3: Methodology
3. 1. Introduction 24
3. 2. Setting 25
3.3. Participants 26
3. 4. Sampling 27
3.5. Data collection instrument 28
3.6. Procedures of data collection 30
3.7. Procedures of data analysis 31
Chapter 4: Results and discussions
4.1. Results 32
4.2. Discussions 42
Chapter 5: Conclusions
5.1. Summary 47
5.2. Conclusions 47
5.3. Limitations and suggestions 49
References
Appendices
v
LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES
Figures and tables Page number
Figure 1: Students’ experience in learning slang in
English
3
Figure 2: Students’ awareness of the importance of slang
in English
3
Figure 3: Students’ awareness of the frequency of slang
use among native speakers of English
4
Table 1: Students’ motivation towards learning slang in
English
33
Figure 4: Students’ demand to learn more slang in
English
35
Figure 5: Students’ attitudes towards learning slang in
English
38
vi
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
FELTE: Faculty of English Language Teacher Education
ULIS: University of Languages and International Studies
VNUH: Vietnam National University, Hanoi
EFL: English as a Foreign Language
ESL: English as a Second Language
etc.: et cetera/ and so on
i.e.: id est/ that is
1
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION
1.1. Statement of the problem and rationale of the study
English language has nowadays become the international language in
the world. Learning English has consequently turned important to any
individual because of the inevitable role of the language in almost every
field. In order to fully understand the language, learners of English are
required to study the full portion of English language which consists of
both the so-called standard English and the non-standard one.
Although belonging to the category non-standard, slang has significant
role in English language. As a special type of language, slang is a tool
that helps speakers communicate and a carrier that brings culture along
with it. Eble (1996) says slang helps strengthen social identity of the
speakers. H. Wentworth and S. Flexner (1975) even believe that slang
beautifies English language, unlike the dull and plain standard English.
Plus, they add that speakers use slang because it conveys more emotions,
feelings and meanings. Other various functions of slang are also shown
by a number of related studies.
Slang also plays a vital part in English language because of its
popularity and frequency among native speakers of English. According to
the results of a survey on the frequency of using slang in daily
conversations conducted by Nguyen (2004), there are approximately 75%
of the native speakers of English in the randomly chosen group either
often or usually use slang in their daily conversations. According to
Spears (2000), “expressions that can be called slang or colloquial make
up a major part of American communication in movies, television, radio,
2
newspapers, magazines and informal conversations”. The frequency of
slang use in English can also be simply detected by daily observation.
Despite the recognition of the noticeable existence of slang in English,
it has been intentionally neglected in educational or academic
environment due to its non-standard nature. The situation at the Faculty
of English Language Teacher Education, University of Languages and
International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi (FELTE, ULIS,
VNUH) is of no exception. Specifically, the Faculty of English Language
Teacher Education, like most other EFL environment, only requires the
students to learn standard and academic English. In other words, learning
the non-standard English or slang is not among the essential requirements
at school. Students; therefore, might choose to optionally learn it by
themselves.
A question is naturally raised from this situation: “Do students still
care about learning something that they don’t have to?”. Before
commencing the actual study, the researcher had already conducted a
short survey among the fourth-year undergraduates at FELTE, ULIS,
VNU to gain general idea of the students’ experience in learning slang
and their awareness of the importance and frequency of slang use in
English language. The data reveal that the majority of the students have
certain experience in learning slang and most of them are aware that slang
is important and the use of slang is frequent in the English speaking
world.
The results of the survey are briefly shown in the graphs below:
3
a. The students’ experience in learning slang in English
b. The students’ awareness of the importance and frequency of
slang use in English language
Figure 2: The students’ awareness of the importance of
slang in English language
4
As can be seen from the charts, the students have ever attempted to
learn slang before even though it is not required at school. Besides, they
highly value the importance of slang in English language and believe
there is frequent use of slang among native speakers of English. The
researcher of this study finds it necessary to find out how the students feel
motivated to learn slang and their attitudes towards learning it when it is
not compulsory at school. The researcher also hopes that the discussions
and conclusions drawn from the findings will help the students benefit
from their motivation and attitudes to achieve more success in their
language learning process in the long run.
The reasons and factors mentioned above inspired the researcher to
carry out a study entitled The Motivation and Attitudes towards
Learning Slang in English: A Study of the Fourth-year
Undergraduates at Faculty of English Language Teacher Education,
University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National
University, Hanoi
5
1.2. Objectives of the study and research questions
The study aims at investigating FELTE students’ motivation and attitudes
towards learning slang in English language. The objectives are presented
in the two questions below:
- Which of the three motivational constructs (instrumental
motivation, integrative motivation and personal motivation) is the
major source of FELTE students’ motivation towards learning
slang in English language?
- Which type of attitudes that FELTE students have towards learning
slang in English?
1.3. Methodology of the study
In this study, the conventional methods used are questionnaire and
interviews. A questionnaire was used as the main tool to collect the data
first. Interviews were then conducted on a smaller group of participants to
confirm the validity of the collected data as well as to gain more
additional information for the next step. After that, analysis was worked
out based on the data from both the questionnaire and the interviews.
Finally, discussions of the findings and further implications were drawn
out as the last procedure.
1.4. Scope of the study
The slang in English mentioned in this research is the slang in
general. In other words, no specific type of slang is focused because as
stated in the aims and objectives of the study, the investigation on the
motivation and attitudes of the students is the actual target.
6
The sample of the study is limited to 102 out of all fourth-year
students at FELTE, ULIS, VNUH, who are carefully chosen by the
stratified random sampling method to represent the total number.
The research is conducted at the FELTE, ULIS, VNUH only.
Therefore, not any other faculty or university can be inferred from the
findings of this study however closely related it may be.
1.5. Significance of the study
Before this study, there have been other researches related to slang
in English. However, most of them mainly focus on slang as a language
itself and discuss over the definitions, categories, development,
importance and frequency of slang in use. To the best of the researcher’s
knowledge, there is hardly any official local study on learning slang, not
to mention on any practical case of FELTE students. This research is the
pioneer in specifically investigating the students’ motivation and attitudes
towards learning slang in English language at the FELTE, ULIS, VNUH,
providing an essential storage of information for any individual that may
be concerned.
Students, teachers and lecturers who are interested in this topic to
any extent may hopefully find useful information provided in this
research. Similarly, researchers who happen to have the same or similar
concern about this very same or related area might also make full use of
this research as a significant source of reference. Finally, authorities or
policy makers who seek for necessary changes can consider the
conclusions or base on the findings to make possible adjustments at
FELTE, ULIS, VNUH.
1.6. Organization of the study
7
There are five chapters in this paper:
Chapter I: Introduction describes Statement of the Problem and
Rationale of the Study, Aims of the Study and Research Questions,
Methods of the Study, Scope of the Study, Importance of the Study and
Structure of the Study.
Chapter II: Literature Review lays the theoretical foundation for
the study by discussing Definition of Terms, Importance and Frequency
of Slang Use and Previous Related Studies.
Chapter III: Methodology explains in detail the methods which
were applied and the procedures that the researcher followed when
conducting the study.
Chapter IV: Results and Discussions present and discuss the
findings of the study.
Chapter V: Conclusion summarizes the main points, states the
conclusions, admits the limitations, and suggests for further studies.
8
II. LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1. Definition of key terms
2.1.1. Motivation
A number of experts have been attempting to define the term
motivation in various ways. Behaviorists believe that motivation is “quite
simply the anticipation of reward” (Brown, 2000, p. 160) while
constructivists think motivation occurs when an individual focuses on
both the surrounding environment and his own demands (Brown, 2000, p.
160). A closer view to the situation of learners by Keller (1983, p. 389) is
expressed as “motivation is the choices people make as to what
experiences or goals they will approach or avoid, and the degree of effort
they exert in that respect”. Naturally, most definitions mention the
demands or needs in some way. Afterwards, Brown (2000, p. 161)
provides the most satisfactory perspective on motivation as a combination
of the definitions given, “the fulfillment of needs is rewarding, requires
choice and in many cases, must be interpreted in a social context”.
Gardner (1985, p. 133) says that learning a language requires both
cognitive factors- intelligence and aptitude and affective factors-
motivation and attitudes. The importance of these factors is also
emphasized as they are “undoubtedly implicated in second language
acquisition” (Lambert, 1963). Similarly, Ellis (1994, p. 473) shares the
same idea when he approves that motivation and attitudes are among “a
veritable plethora of individual learner variables” i.e. factors that affect
language learning. The significance of motivation is more specifically
stressed when Gardner (2006, p. 241) presents that, “students with higher
levels of motivation will do better than students with lower levels”.
9
Brown (2000, p. 160) shares a similar idea that “it is easy in language
learning to claim that a learner will be successful with the proper
motivation”. In a study by Lifrieri (2005, p. 4), the findings also show
that “most people would certain mention motivation” among the factors
that influence individual levels of success in such activity as language
learning. To clarify this idea, Gardner (2006, p. 243) specifies that “if one
is motivated, he/she has reasons (motives) for engaging in the activities,
expends effort, persists in the activities, attends to the tasks, shows desire
to achieve the goal, enjoy the activities, etc.”. Askes (1988, p. 11) claims
that “effective learning can only take place when the pupil is keen to
acquire knowledge, he must there be strongly-motivated”. Well-
motivated learners can easily improve proficiency in the target language
while weakly-motivated ones have difficulties in recognizing long-term
benefits of language learning (Wilkins, 1978, p. 52).
Ellis (1986, p. 300) posits that “motivation in language learning
can be defined in terms of the learners overall goal or
orientation”. In the view of Gardner and Lambert (1972), there are two
main types of orientations namely, integrative and instrumental which are
explained as below:
An integrative orientation toward language study reflects a sincere and
personal interest in the people and culture represented by the other group. An
instrumental orientation emphasizes the practical value and advantages of
learning a new language. The integrative orientation thus stresses an emotional
involvement with the other community, while the instrumental orientation
does not necessarily.
Instrumental motivation occurs when the learner’s goal is function
(Brown, 1987, p. 115) or when “learning a language because of someone
or less clearly perceived utility it might have for the learner” (Gardner,
1983, p. 203). Wilkins (1972, p. 184) specifies this as the learner is
10
motivated to learn a language to “pass an examination, to use it in one’s
job, to use it on a holiday in the country, as a change from watching
television, because the educational requires it”.
Integrative motivation occurs when the learner’s goal is to
“identify with the culture” of the target language (Ellis, 1986, p. 300).
Gardner (1983, p. 203) shares the same idea, “learning a language
because the learner wishes to identify himself with or become integrated
into the society” of the language. Common activities caused by this type
of motivation include “to make contact with the speakers of the
languages”, “to live in the country concerned” so that the learners “know
more of the culture and values of the foreign language group” (Wilkins,
1972, p. 184).
According to Gardner, there are two only distinctive types of
motivational constructs as mentioned above. However, Cooper and
Fishman (1977, p. 243) found another type of motivation which is called
personal motivation or developmental motivation. It literally means the
motivation is related to “personal development or personal satisfaction”.
The learner is interested in watching movies and reading books in English
(Brown, 2000).
Crookes and Schmidt (1991) simply see motivation as “the
learner’s orientation with regard to the goal of learning a second
language”. Thus, identifying a learner’s motivation equals finding the
reason why a language is learnt (Giles, 1985). A similar albeit more
detailed explanation by Gardner (1985, p. 51) goes as follows:
The type of motivation answers the question of why the individual is studying
the language. It refers to the goal. Many reasons could be listed: to be able to
speak with members of that language community, to get a job, to improve
one’s education, to be able to travel, to please ones parents, to satisfy a
11
language requirement, to gain social power, etc. It may even be that there are
as many reasons for studying a second language as there are individuals.
In simple words, “a language may be learned for any one or any
collection of practical reasons” (Spolsky, 1989, p. 160). Therefore,
identifying the motivation for FELTE fourth-year undergraduates to learn
slang in English is to identify the reasons why they learn it. The three
motivational constructs are now reflected through instrumental,
integrative and personal reasons.
2.1.2. Attitudes
Another concept closely related to motivation is attitude. Gardner
(1985, p. 8) admits that the term attitude “is complex. Many definitions
have been proposed to describe its essence”. The concept “has probably
played the most central role in the development of social psychology
during the twentieth century” (Louw and Edwards 1997, p. 764).
Likert (1932, p. 9) defines attitude as “an inference which is made
on the basis of a complex of beliefs about the attitude object”. Gardner
adds further details, “the sum total of a man’s instinctions and feelings,
prejudice or bias, preconceived notions, fears, threats, and convictions
about any specified topics”. “A hypothetical construct used to explain the
direction and persistence of human behavior” is another technical
definition by Baker (1992, p. 10). Fishbein and Ajzen (1975) first say that
attitude is the general feeling (ranging from positive to negative) or
evaluation (good/ bad) a person has towards self, other people, objects or
events. Ajzen (1988, p. 4) later provides a more concise definition by
stating that attitude is “a disposition to respond favorably or unfavorably
to an object person, institution, or event”.
12
In terms of language learning, attitudes are considered sets of
beliefs possessed by learners about such factors as the target language
culture and the learners’ own culture (Ellis, 1986, p. 293). Attitudes, in
Gardner’s view, are so closely related to motivation that they can be
regarded as the components of motivation in language learning,
“motivation...refers to the combination of effort plus desire to achieve the
goal of learning the language” (Gardner, 1985, p. 10). For more technical
definition of the term, expert Wenden (1991) claims that an attitude
consists of three components which are cognitive, affective and
behavioral. Cognitive component include the perceptions, beliefs,
opinions, ideas of an individual about the object. Affective component is
related to the emotions, feelings, preferences, interests which are
normally shown in such words as likes or dislikes, for or against of a
person for the object. Behavioral component refers to the intentions and
actions of one towards the object. However, expert McGuire (1969, p.
157) argues that these three components of an attitude are extremely
closely interrelated that it is not necessary to clearly separate them. Plus,
investigating only one component, no matter which, is enough for
collecting the sufficient information as well as measuring and analyzing
the data. Wilkins (1978, p. 53) believes that lack of motivation goes
hand-in-hand with negative attitudes. The importance of attitude in
language learning is also confirmed by Lightbrown (1993, p.39) as
follows: “depending on the learners’ attitudes, learning a language can be
a source of enrichment or a source of resentment”. Additionally, attitudes
are believed to affect learners’ determination as well (Ellis, 1994). He
says when a person learns a language, that person develops certain
attitudes towards the target language, the group of people speaking the
target language, the culture of the target language world, the social values
13
and the educational values of the target language. As can be inferred from
this, “positive language attitudes let learner have positive orientation
towards learning English”. In other words, attitudes more or less decide
the success or failure when anyone attempts to learn a language.
In short, motivation and attitudes are confirmed to be related to
success in language learning (Gardner, 1985) or as stated by Brown (1987,
p. 127) that language learners benefit from positive attitudes while
negative attitudes decrease motivation or even lead to unsuccessful
attainment of proficiency due to low input and poor interaction.
2.1.3. Slang in English
According to Mr. Hoang (Basic English lexicology, 1993, p. 66),
English words are divided into two major categories namely standard
words and non-standard words. The standard English words consist of
bookish words, neutral words, standard colloquial words and the non-
standard English words include dialectal words, slang words, vulgar
words. As mentioned above, slang belongs to the non-standard group of
English words which are chiefly used in spoken English and in informal
contexts.
“Renown slang researchers say that it is very easy to use slang and
very difficult to define it” (Partridge, 1970, p.1). “Often we may
recognize slang as a phenomenon, but still cannot define it” (Andersson
& Trudgill, 1990, p. 69). “There is no standard test that will decide what
is slang and what is not” (Spears, R. A., 2000, V). Generally, looking for
the best definition of the term slang is almost impossible because slang is
a broad term which reflects a number of aspects in people’s lives. Also,
the term slang is changeable due to its close relation with culture. A
14
definition of slang; therefore, can satisfy this group, but fail to another
group. Still, slang may be defined by several ways at a time in order that
readers have the most thorough and objective view of it.
In the past, the attitude toward slang used to be rather negative due
to its nonstandard nature. As a result, the definitions dated back from that
time revealed more or less the discrimination for slang as the language of
the lower social class. An American poet, Carl Sandburg once believed
slang was the symbol of the working class, “Slang is the language that
takes off its coat, spits on its hands, and goes to work.”(p.306). The
discrimination got more severe as Oliver Wendell Holmes regarded slang
as “the advertisement of mental poverty” and Ambrose Bierce’s defined
“slang is the speech of him who robs the literary garbage cans on their
ways to the dumps”. The position of slang turned worse than ever when
in the book Stylistics, I.R. Galperin disliked the language by saying that
“the attitude of many Englishmen towards the thing called slang is also
revealed in the fact that it is assigned to the class of so-called social evils
together with drunkenness, prostitution and the use of narcotics” (p.97).
Additionally, the New Oxford English dictionary defined slang as
follows:
a) The special vocabulary used by any set of persons of a low or disreputable
character; language of a low and vulgar type.
b) The cant or jargon of a certain class or period;
c) Language of a highly colloquial type considered as below the level of
standard educated speech, and consisting either of new words or of current
words employed in some special sense.
Obviously, slang users were once considered the uncivilized and
uneducated people of the lower class.
15
Up to now, slang has been popularized a great deal, which has lead
to the major change in the conventional points of views towards slang
among speakers of English. More neutral or positive opinions are now
openly shared, “very informal words and expressions that are more
common in spoken language especially used by a particular group of
people, for example, children, criminals, soldiers, etc.” (Oxford Advanced
Learner’s Dictionary, 6th
ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press). Similarly,
linguist Pamela Munro believes that “slang is language whose use serves
to mark the user as belonging to some distinct groups within society
(therefore, people who belong to more than one such group may use very
different slang depending on who they’re with)” (Munro, 1993). The two
previous definitions show the usual groups of slang users. Another
expert’s viewpoint generally presents “expressions that are identified as
slang are often some type of entertaining wordplay, and they are almost
always an alternative way of saying something” (Spears, 2000).
Specifically, the main characteristics of slang are identified as the
following theory, “…an informal, nonstandard, non-technical vocabulary
composed chiefly of novel-sounding synonyms for standard words or
phrases” (Oxford English Dictionary, 1999, p.1878). The similar idea
about slang belonging to the nonstandard category among the English
words is also given by Hoang, T.T. in his Basic English Lexicology.
Nevertheless, NTC’s Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial
Expressions states, “if slang words last long enough, they may become so
well known that they become standard English unavoidably”, which
means that is the moment when slang is no longer slang and officially
accepted on formal occasions.
To sum up, slang can be understood as a nonstandard language
used among particular groups, consisting of words and expressions which
16
vividly convey the speakers’ feelings and attitudes in an informal way. As
a language, slang is dynamic and flexible, and so are the acceptability and
popularity of slang (Nguyen, 2004, p. 12).
2.2. The importance and frequency of slang use in English
Slang is language. Language is a tool of thinking, communication
and a carrier of culture. Slang reflects society and reality. Via slang,
people freely express their own ideas, personal opinions, sincere attitudes
towards any aspects of life that are rarely seen in formal speeches and
official documents. Via slang, people can see not only the plain meanings,
but also the feelings of the speakers. Slang is fresh, fashionable, creative,
humorous, ironic, sarcastic, ambiguous, lifelike, biased, expressive, vivid
and real. That reasonably explains why slang is getting more and more
popular every day.
“Slang is used to establish or reinforce social identity and
cohesiveness, especially within a group, or with a trend or fashion in
society at large” (Eble, C., 1996, p. 940). H. Wentworth and S. Flexner in
their “Dictionary of American Slang” write as follows:
Sometimes slang is used to escape the dull familiarity of standard words to
suggest an escape from the established routine of everyday life. When slang is
used our life seems a little fresher and a little more personal. Also, it is
sometimes used for the pure joy of making sounds or even for a need to attract
attention by making noise.
“It tends to satisfy a variety of emotional and intellectual needs of
people: as an exercise of wit and humour slang is “jesting language” that
gives fresh and pungent names to things often mentioned in discourse”(p.
64). Nguyen. H. N. presents the functions of slang through a collection of
the reasons for the slang use of English speakers: to create humor for fun,
“to self-display, to show off one’s intelligence”, “to be different, to be
novel”, “to be picturesque, to avoid plainness, to enrich the language”,
“to be brief and concise”, “to create a friendly atmosphere, a close
17
relationship”, “to employ litotes”, “to be in the swim” or to belong to a
particular group, and “to be secret” (Nguyen. H. N., 2004, 24). With its
various functions, slang has been naturally accepted and popularized
among generations of English speakers.
“Slang is rarely the first choice of careful writers or speakers or
anyone attempting to use language for formal, persuasive, or business
purposes. Nonetheless, expressions that can be called slang or colloquial
make up a major part of American communication in movies, television,
radio, newspapers, magazines, and informal conversation.” (Spears, R. A.,
2000). The lexicologist Stuart Berg Flexner shares a similar opinion that
slang is “frequently used by or intelligible to a rather large portion of the
general American public.” (Flexner, S.B., 1997, p.17). Statistics have also
showed that “Vocabulary of an ordinary American is about 20000, one
tenths of which are slang” (Wang Li, 2006). The results from a survey
done by native English speakers staying in Hanoi show that 86% of them
used slang. Among them, 20% chose often, 54% chose usually, and 12%
chose sometimes. In short, “more or less, intentionally or unintentionally,
all people use slang in their daily dialogues” (Nguyen. H. N., 2004, p.52).
The frequency of slang usage can also be easily detected by
observation. Communications mass media have made remarkable
contribution in popularizing English slang worldwide. It is difficult to
imagine anyone without certain English slang vocabulary can understand
thoroughly a T.V series, a popular novel, an entertainment channel or a
radio program.
Slang is informal, nonstandard, but has been dramatically
developing and changing people’s attitudes to become an indispensible
part in both spoken and written English now. In the past, speakers of
English tried not to use slang to avoid offensiveness and awkwardness,
18
but now tend to use it with high frequency in daily conversations to create
friendly atmosphere and improve social relationship as the primary
purpose.
2.3. Related Studies
In the world
Investigating the motivation and attitudes of the learners towards
learning a language has been a commonly chosen topic of many
international researchers. Most of these studies are conducted on EFL or
ESL learners and their motivation as well as attitudes towards the English
language. The results vary from place to place, introducing various
conclusions and discussions over the issues. Similar to the researcher of
this study, the majority of others in the world also base on Gardner and
Lambert’s motivation constructs to identify the most influential one. The
following are the most popular related studies arranged in time order.
In 1985, a study on the students’ motivation for learning English
was carried out at University Putra Malaysia (UPM). Basing on Gardner
and Lambert’s study from 1972, this research collected data from a
questionnaire delivered to a thousand students. The results showed that
students at UPM were equally motivated by the instrumental and
integrative constructs when they learned English.
In 1991, Benson attempted to find the motivation to study English
language of over three hundred first-year undergraduates at a college in
Japan. It eventually proved that these Japanese students were more
influenced by both the integrative and personal constructs rather than the
instrumental one (Benson, 1991, p. 34).
19
Sarjit (1993) worked on a similar study over a slightly different
target population at a workplace. Around thirty employees working as
consultants at a company took part in the research. Sarjit used not only
questionnaire, but also interviews and observation to collect the necessary
data. Instrumental motivation appeared to be the most common
orientation to learn English among the workers.
Later on, in 1998, Buschenhofen carried out a study on the
attitudes towards learning English of students in their last year at high
school and others in their last year at college in Papua New Guinea
(PNG). Questionnaire was the only instrument used to get the information.
The findings indicated that although there were positive attitudes towards
learning the language from both groups, differences in the attitudes
towards other contexts of learning English language were remarkable due
to changes in the educational environment, social context and linguistic
conditions when students moved from high school to college.
In Yemen Arab Republic, Al-Quyadi (2002) tried to analyze the
nature of the psychological variables through their motivation and
attitudes of over 500 Yemeni EFL English majors at the Department of
English, Faculties of Education, Sana’a University. Conclusions drawn
from a questionnaire were that 1) the most preferred motivations were
instrumental and integrative constructs and 2) the major attitudes towards
the usage of English language in social and educational contexts were
generally positive.
In Iran, about 50 freshmen and sophomores students at Kashan
University of Medical Sciences participated in a study conducted by
Arani (2004) to identify the attitudes of the students towards the school
subject English language for Medical Purpose (EMP). Three different
20
questionnaires were delivered at three different points of the courses to
detect any differences. The results revealed that most of the attitudes
towards English language were relatively positive.
Another study conducted in India by Qashoa (2006) was aimed at
students at a secondary school in Dubai. 100 students participated as the
sample in the questionnaire and about 20 students and teachers were
interviewed to collect more detailed data. Results showed that students
were more instrumentally than integratively motivated.
In Turkey, Karahan (2007) carried out a research on approximately
200 eighth graders’ attitudes towards learning English as a foreign
language in order to find the reason for their poor proficiency as reported
in previous studies. Interestingly, the findings displayed the fact that
although most students were fully aware of the importance of English
language, they only had mildly positive attitudes towards leaning it and
the culture of the English speaking world. However, negative attitudes
were shown towards the use of English language among Turkish people
in social context.
Al-Tamimi and Shuid (2009) co-worked on the most recent
research on the motivation and attitudes towards learning English of
Petrolium Engineering Undergraduates at Hadhramout University of
Sciences and Technology in Malaysia. The researchers combined and
adapted the most effective and feasible methods to approach this field by
using both Gardner & Lambert’s two motivational constructs and Cooper
& Fishman’s additional motivational construct i.e. personal construct.
After analyzing the data collected from the questionnaire done by 82
students, the authors concluded that the most important motivation among
the students was instrumental, personal motivation ranked second and
21
integrative construct was least concerned. The most common type of
attitude was generally positive towards the English language, the social
and educational role of it and the culture reflected via the language.
Also, there have been numerous researches on English slang
around the world. Most focus on the native speakers of English and a
specific category of slang.
One of the most well-known researches is the U.C.L.A. Project on
the college slang of the students at University of California, Los Angeles,
U.S.A. The findings of the project were used to compile two dictionary
books about U.C.L.A. slang. Other reliable sources are the NTC’s
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions dictionaries
composed by Richard A. Spears (2000) whose name is cited a number of
times in this paper. These provide a good number of definitions of the
notion slang. Besides, the study on The Use of Slang in Modern
American Press by Safronova Alexandra (2008) which mainly focuses on
the situation of temporary American printed media still helps in the
attempt to define the term. Still, the international studies aimed at
students learning slang in English as a foreign language can hardly be
found.
In Vietnam
Not as varied as the international related studies, the national and
regional studies in Vietnam are still some certain useful sources of
references to the author of this paper.
In 2007, there was a study on the learners’ motivation and identity
in a Vietnamese EFL writing classroom by Tran on 30 third-year students
from English Department at a university in the Central Vietnam.
22
However, the method was based on different categories namely intrinsic
and extrinsic motivations. The study also focused on the factors
influencing the motivation and orientation towards learning the language.
Pedagogical implications and recommendations were fully presented at
the end of the paper.
A graduation paper on Slang In English by Doan. C. M. in 1999 at
the English Department, College of Foreign Languages, VNU, Hanoi was
one of the pioneers in studying slang in the region. As the first to explore
the field, the study could only give a rather general and subjective view
and had a number of limitations due to the limited sources of reference.
The whole study chiefly presented the categories of slang through
different classifications, with little discussions and findings at the end.
However, very few references were based on, which made the study
somehow less convincing and biased.
At the same college, another graduation paper called The Use of
Slang in English by Nguyen. H. N. in 2004 was a noticeably farther
approach compared to the previous one. The research successfully
covered the development of slang in English in a thorough, decent and
insightful way. Complete discussions and conclusions were carefully
made, making the study a particularly reliable and helpful source of
reference.
In summary, the primary points that can be made from all of the
related studies mentioned above are presented as follows:
The studies on motivation and attitudes pointed out the
significance of identifying them in the process of learning
a language.
23
The studies carried out by Benson (1991), Sarjit (1993)
and Qashoa (2006) on EFL/ ESL student’s motivation
were referenced and adapted to apply a similar approach
and develop some questions in the questionnaire to
identify the motivation.
The studies carried out by Buschenhofen (1998), Al-
Quyadi (2000) and Karahan (2007) on EFL/ ESL
students’ attitudes were referenced and adapted to apply a
similar approach and develop some questions in the
questionnaire to identify the attitudes. Particularly, the
four main aspects that the attitudes were supposed to
show towards are the use of slang in the social context,
the use of slang in the educational context, slang in
English language and the culture of the English speaking
world reflected through slang.
The latest study by Al-Tamimi and Shuid (2009) was the
major source of reference that the author of this paper
based on to learn the synthesized theory and method.
The importance ad popularity of slang was clearly proved
in the studies, yet none related to learning slang has been
carried out. In other words, no study has ever been
conducted to investigate the motivation and attitudes
towards learning slang in English of students, especially
the fourth-year undergraduates at Faculty of English
Language Teacher Education, University of Languages
and International Studies, Vietnam National University
Hanoi.
24
III. METHODOLOGY
3.1. Introduction
The objective of this study is to investigate the motivation and
attitudes of the fourth-year undergraduates at Faculty of English
Language Teacher Education, University of Languages and International
Studies, Vietnam National University Hanoi towards learning slang in
English. The theory of triangulation mixed method design by Creswell
(2002) was applied to carry out this procedure, meaning two research
tools including questionnaire and interviews were mainly used to collect
the data.
The questionnaire method was chosen because of its numerous
advantages explained in detail `as follows: the questionnaire was
efficiently delivered to a large number of participants in a short period of
time; data collected from the questionnaires were quickly interpreted and
decoded (especially the questionnaires with many close-questions), which
also saved plenty of time; the questionnaire was easily standardized since
every participant was supposed to be asked the same question in the same
way, increasing the reliability of the method and the observer’s
subjectivity is greatly eliminated; the questionnaire provided a safer
environment for the participants to give more honest and sincere answers
to the sensitive, personal or embarrassing questions as they were allowed
to complete the questionnaire either anonymously or in privacy. Basically,
questionnaire is useful in describing the characteristics of a large
population and no other method of observation can provide this general
capability (Milne, 1999).
25
The face-to-face interviews were also carried out on a certain
number of participants to confirm the reliability, validity of the data
collected from the questionnaires as well as to get more additional
information from the participants. Reasons for using this interview
method are explained as follows: the social cues such as intonation, voice,
body language of the interviewees added more information to their verbal
answers; the answers were more spontaneous and direct because the
interviewees did not have much time to think of the questions and
consider the choices; the interviews were recorded then transcribed if the
interviewees agreed on the deal, giving more accurate answers than the
taking-note method (Opdenakker, 2006).
According to Tellis (1997), the reason for using the triangulation
mixed method design or the combination of both questionnaire and
interview is to confirm and strengthen the validity, reliability and
confidentiality of the data as well as to “give a fuller picture and address
many different aspects of phenomena” (Silverman, 2000, p. 50).
3.2. Setting of the study
The educational system at FELTE, ULIS, VNUH provides four
years of training majorly in English Language Teaching that will qualify
the students to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree. The students
study the four English skills namely Listening, Speaking, Reading and
Writing and other English-based courses such as Literature, General
Geography, Cross-cultural Communication, etc. Not only teachers use
English to conduct lessons, but students are also expected to learn,
interact and communicate in English. As students are believed to be
advanced learners of English or English majors, the language is
supposedly a second language which can be used naturally and
26
instinctively. Like in other educational systems, standard English is the
type of language that is primarily encouraged to use at school. Other
types of languages including slang in English are assumed to be
optionally learned out of school. However, whether or not the students
are motivated to learn some language unrequired at school is not yet in
question. In other words, school is unaware if students actually learn
slang or not and holds little responsibility for that.
3.3. Participants
The target population of the study was the fourth-year students
studying at Faculty of English Language Teacher Education, University
of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University
Hanoi in the academic year 2011.
The nature of slang as a part of the non-standard English language
basically indicates that native speakers of English are most likely to use it.
Experts believe that it is unnecessary for beginner learners of English to
learn slang because their proficiency in the language is low and they need
to master the standard English as a firm base first. However, advanced
learners of English are encouraged to learn slang because now that their
proficiency in English is higher and the standard English base is
relatively well-built. Compared to students of the other first three years at
the university, the fourth-year undergraduates who have completed
almost all eight semesters at FELTE, ULIS, VNUH, are considered to
guarantee the most sufficient proficiency in the English language.
Among all faculties at ULIS, VNUH, the educational system at the
Faculty of English Language Teacher Education particularly does not
require students to learn slang at school. Yet, it has also been pointed out
27
the importance and frequency of slang in the English language as
mentioned previously. Thus, the researcher of this study decided to find
out why the students at this faculty still learned slang and how they felt
about learning it even though it was not necessarily required at school.
These characteristics mentioned above explain why the fourth-year
students at Faculty of English Language Teacher Education, ULIS,
VNUH appeared as the most suitable participants of the study.
3.4. Sampling
As for choosing the questionnaire participants, a non-probability
judgment sampling was the technique employed by the researcher of this
study to choose the representative sampling of the subjects. According to
Milroy (1987), judgment sampling or purposive sampling or purposeful
sampling is to select a particular group of informative or useful
participants by the researcher’s own judgment. Therefore, 120 students
were picked out of the total number of the fourth-year students at FELTE
to fill in the questionnaire. Nevertheless, there were 18 invalid
questionnaires collected, decreasing the number of the valid participants
down to 102 among which are 10 males and 92 females.
Only 10 of those students were chosen for the interviews taken
place after the questionnaires were analyzed. Among them, 2 were male,
8 were female undergraduates who represented a range of attributes that
were potential for the interviews based on this set of certain criteria
displayed by item 4 about the reasons why the students learned slang and
item 7 about how they felt about slang and learning slang in the
questionnaire:
28
1. The cases in which the major questionnaire results of the
motivation for learning slang were most typically presented.
2. The cases in which the major questionnaire results of the attitudes
towards slang and learning slang were most typically presented.
The researcher expected to have more thorough and insightful
understanding of the students’ opinions and the situation with their
detailed clarification and confirmation of the information.
3.5. Data collection instruments
The main method used to collect the significant data in this study
was the questionnaire which is divided into three parts.
In the first part, an introduction of the researcher and a request for
participants’ personal information were presented. Plus, a short definition
and an example to illustrate the key term slang were also included.
The purpose of the second part was to investigate the students’
motivation for learning slang, including item 1, item 2 and item 3 which
were adapted from Benson (1991), Sarjit Kaur (1993), Qashoa (2006) and
Al-Tamimi & Shuib (2009) based on the two types of motivational
constructs i.e. instrumental and integrative motivation in Gardner’s
(1985) theory and the personal motivational construct in Cooper &
Fishman’s (1977). Specifically, item 1 was mainly to sort out the students
that had learned slang from the ones who had not to continue with item 2
about the motivation they had when they learned slang. In item 2, a list of
9 sub-items was included to display the three types of motivational
constructs: item 2.1, 2.2 and 2.3 presented the instrumental construct;
item 2.4, 2.5 and 2.6 presented the integrative construct; item 2.7, 2.8 and
2.9 presented the personal construct. Gardner’s theory of the two
29
constructs was said to help stimulate the studies on motivation and
attitudes that had been somewhat neglected (Benson, 1991, p. 35) and
Cooper & Fishman’s of the one construct was preferably used by a
number of researchers who had interest in investigating EFL/ ESL
learners’ motivation and attitudes towards language learning such as
Benson (1991), Sarjit Kaur (1993) and Al-Tamimi & Shuib (2009). In
item 5, participants were asked if they wanted to learn more slang to
improve their vocabulary and proficiency in English. This item was
created to identify the students’ demand or desire for learning slang in
English. According to Gardner (2006), the demand or desire played a
very important role as a key component to motivate language learners.
The third part with only item 4 was for finding the students’
attitudes towards learning slang in English. There were 8 sub-items in this
part: item 4.1 and 4.2 showed the use of slang in social context; item 4.3,
4.4, 4.5 and 4.6 presented the use of slang in educational context; item 4.7
illustrated slang as a language itself and item 4.8 displayed the culture of
the English speaking world through slang. The participants were
supposed to choose among Agree, Disagree and Undecided to express
their attitudes towards the statements which had been adapted from
Bushenhofen (1998), Al-Quyadi (2000), Karahan (2007) and Al-Tamimi
& Shuib (2009) in the items given.
After the data were collected and analyzed from the questionnaire,
the face-to-face oral interviews were carried out in order that the validity
and reliability of the information were confirmed. Three main questions
regarding their motivation and attitudes towards learning slang in English
were proposed to the chosen students as follows:
1. Their reasons for learning slang in English
30
2. Their interest to learn to know more slang in English
3. Their attitudes towards slang in English in general and towards the
culture of the English speaking world reflected through slang
3.6. Procedures of data collection
On 21st March 2011, the researcher began to conduct the survey at
some classrooms in the French Department building, Block B2, FELTE,
ULIS, VNUH. Permission was given from the three lecturers who were in
charge of the classes that the students were attending at the time so that
the questionnaire could be carried out smoothly during the breaks. Before
filling in the questionnaire, the students were informed of the introduction
of the researcher and the objectives of the study. Besides, they were
reminded to pay attention to all the items to avoid incompleteness and
that their sincere and honest responses would be highly appreciated and
valued. The researcher also declared that any unclear instructions could
be explained and clarified at the point. After guaranteeing that no more
question was raised and the students were all clear about the instructions,
the questionnaires were delivered. After the procedure was finished, all
the questionnaires were quickly collected.
On 28th March 2011, the interviews were eventually carried out at
the front yard of the French Department building in the campus of ULIS,
VNU. Firstly, the interviewees were briefly informed of the aims and
procedures of the interviews. Furthermore, the subjects were ensured that
their personal information as well as their true and honest answers or
opinions would be kept in absolute confidentiality. Before starting the
actual procedure, the interviewer asked the interviewees for their
31
permission for recording the interviews. An MP3 player was prepared to
record the interviews and a notebook was used to take notes if necessary.
3.7. Procedures of data analysis
In this study, the collected data were classified into two main kinds
namely quantitative and qualitative. The quantitative data of the
questionnaire were analyzed in terms of means with the help of the
Statistical Package for Social Sciences and percentages. Not using the
mathematic methods given, the qualitative data were processed by a
content analysis method. As for the answers and opinions from the
interviews, they were replayed from the MP3 player and transcribed. The
data were then analyzed and categorized into appropriate groups that
served particular objectives of the study.
32
CHAPTER IV: RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
4.1. Results
Students’ motivation to learn slang in English
Questionnaire results
To investigate the students’ motivation to learn slang in English,
92 students out of 102 in total who claimed that they had ever tried to
learn some slang words or expressions were asked to rank a list of 9
reasons in terms of the importance in enhancing their learning of slang.
Table 1 shows the mean values which represent the subjects’ responses to
the former question. The means are the arithmetic average of the
responses with 1 point assigned for “not important”, 2 for “of little
important”, 3 for “of some important”, 4 for “important”, and 5 for “very
important”.
33
Table 1: The students’ results on their motivation for learning slang
in English.
Among the three motivational constructs namely instrumental
motivation, integrative motivation and personal motivation, integrative
motivation represented by items 4, 5 and 6 received the highest mean
scores with 4.0910 as overall mean. Specifically, the students highly
Motivational
constructs
Reasons for learning slang in
English
N Mean SD Overall
mean
Instrumental
motivation
1. Because it helps me pass my
examinations more effectively.
92 2.0543 1.11664
2.6847
2. Because it is necessary for my
future job.
92 2.4782 1.16257
3. Because I will travel to English
speaking countries someday and
need to use it.
92 3.5217
1.24959
Integrative
motivation
4. Because via slang, I know more
about the culture and values of
English speaking countries.
92 4.4478 .73776 4.0910
5. Because I want to make contact
and communicate with native
speakers of English.
92 4.5972 .95217
6. Because I want to live in an
English speaking country someday.
92 3.2282 1.45877
Personal
motivation
7. Because I want to fully
understand the movies, T.V.
programs and magazines in
English.
92 4.2282 .58921 3.8586
8. Because I want to be smart and
thoroughly competent of English
language.
92 3.6956 .86391
9. Because of my personal
development.
92 3.6521 .92252
10. Others (please specify): - - -
34
favored learning slang to make contact and communicate with native
speakers of English since this reason gained the highest mean score i.e.
4.5972. Learning slang to know more about the culture and values of
English speaking countries was the second most common reason with
4.4478 as mean score. Finally, the reason of learning slang to live in an
English speaking country someday was also regarded as important to
some extent to the students with mean score 3.2282.
Personal reasons represented by items 7, 8 and 9 come as the
second major source of motivation with overall mean score 3.8586.
Among them, the reason to fully understand the movies, T.V. programs
and magazines in English was outstandingly favored with mean score
4.2282. Meanwhile, the purposes to be smart and thoroughly competent
of English language (mean=3.6956) and for personal development
(mean=3.6521) appeared to be the almost equally important motives for
the students to learn slang in English.
The results shown in Table 1 also indicate that the instrumental
motivation represented by items 1, 2 and 3 had the least impact on the
students when they learned slang (overall mean=2.6847). Merely the least
number of the subjects viewed learning slang to pass the examinations
more effectively as an important motive with only 2.0543 as mean score.
Similarly, the case of learning slang because it was necessary for the
future job was not considerably favored with mean score 2.4782. Among
these; however, the intention of learning slang in order to travel to
English speaking countries someday still remained fairly important to the
students (mean score=3.5217).
The subjects were additionally asked to specify their opinion on the
desire to learn to know more slang to enhance their vocabulary and
35
proficiency in English language. In the chart below, the results point out
that 95.1% approved of the idea.
Interview results
Similar to the questionnaire results, most of the interviewees
agreed that their motivation arose from their initial interest or passion for
English language as well as the culture of English speaking world. That is
to say the majority of the students learned slang because they wanted to
“identify themselves with or become integrated into the society” of the
target language (Gardner, 1983, p.203). In other words, integrative
reasons were the main source of the students’ motivation for learning
slang in English. These are the direct quotes from the interviews:
I simply just love English language. Slang is a part of the
language. Thus, I care [about slang] and try to learn as many [slang]
terms and expressions as possible.
36
I met many native speakers [of English] in Hanoi. I saw how
often they used slang in everyday conversations. Then I tried to learn the
most common and up-to-date slang words to keep up with the current
trend and communicate with the native speakers more easily.
The culture and lifestyle of the English speaking countries have
always inspired my way of life. To me, these are most sophisticated ones
compared to other cultures and lifestyles in the world. Slang is not simply
a language, but also [the carrier of the] culture, so I learn a lot about it
[via slang]. I wish I could live in the U.S. or the U.K. someday. Well, at
least spend some time of my life living there.
Coming next in the subjects’ views is the motivational construct
namely personal or developmental motivation which basically means
“personal development or personal satisfaction” (Cooper and Fishman,
1977, p.243) and normally consists of such activities as watching movies
and reading books in which slang in English is used as an interest
(Cooper and Fishman, 1977).
I like to watch movies in English. They are either British or
American most of the time. My favorite [T.V.] shows are FRIENDS, High
School Musical, Hannah Montana and Glee. They are all about teenagers
and youngsters, so lots of slang is frequently used. If I don’t know those
[slang] words, I wouldn’t understand and enjoy [the shows] at all.
I got people commenting on how natural and native I sound
whenever I use slang. It’s like one of my favorite praises, so I will just
keep on learning to know more slang and use it more often.
The remaining motivational construct having the least impact on
the students when they learned slang is instrumental motivation. This
37
type of motive is defined by Skehan (1989) as to be affected by the
functional and external needs like to pass an examination, to get a job, to
go on a trip, etc. The quotes below show how the students disagree with
the influence of instrumental motives on their learning of slang.
I personally never thought of learning slang to pass an exam.
Slang is rarely seen in the exam paper because mostly academic and
standard English is required [at school]. I think students are not really
allowed to use it in exam paper anyway.
I haven’t decided which profession I should get into after
graduation yet. But I don’t think my job will require me to use slang. Well,
I’m not sure if I want a job like that though. It’s work. It should be polite,
serious and formal.
Students’ attitudes towards learning slang in English
The questionnaire and interview findings in terms of the students’
attitudes towards learning slang in English are presented in this sub-
section.
Questionnaire results
102 students were all required to respond to 8 statements by ticking
either Agree or Disagree or Undecided. The answers were then calculated
into percentages for data analysis. The data in detailed are illustrated in
Figure 1 below.
38
Figure 5: Students' attitudes towards slang in
English
1= Slang creates friendly atmosphere and improves social relationship.
2= Using slang helps me stay more up-to-date and feel young around my friends.
3= It is necessary for advanced learners of English like FELTE students to learn slang.
4= FELTE students may not have to use slang, but should at least know it.
5= I feel like an uneducated person if I use slang at school.
6= Slang should not be encouraged to use in the educational environment.
7= When I hear someone using slang fluently, I wish I could speak like him.
8= Movies in which lots of slang is used are more enjoyable than the other movies in plain standard
English language.
The findings in Figure 5 show the subjects’ most remarkable
agreement on the social role of slang- to create friendly atmosphere and
improve social relationship (81.4%). The other social role of slang in
helping students stay more up-to-date and feel young around friends was
also highly approved of with 75.5 percent. Similarly, 76.5 percent
responded positively to the idea that FELTE students may not have to use
39
slang, but should at least know it. Other ideas that also received major
agreement from the students with 64.7%, 60.8% and 57.8% are expressed
in items 3, 7 and 8 respectively.
Two statements gaining the lowest degree of agreement are also the
ones receiving the highest degree of disagreement. To be more specific,
items 5 and 6 showing negative opinions of using slang in educational
context actually got disapproval from the majority of the students with
78.4% and 53.9% respectively.
The percentage of the neutral responses moderately fluctuated from
9.8% to 29.4%. Items getting the highest level of uncertainty from the
subjects are 8- Movies in which lots of slang is used are more enjoyable
than the other movies in plain standard English language, 6- Slang
should not be encouraged to use in the educational environment and 7
about the need to speak slang as well as someone else does with 29.4%,
27.5% and 25.5% respectively.
Interview results
Consistent with the questionnaire results, the findings in the
interviews also showed the majority of the students had generally positive
attitudes towards the social functions of slang, learning slang in
educational context, slang as a language itself and the culture of the
English speaking world reflected through slang as some interviewees
shared:
Slang is the symbol of the youth. Using slang makes us appear
young and even fashionable. I find it most fun if we use slang when my
friends are around.
I find nothing wrong with using slang at school. It actually helps
[us students] more relaxed and intimate.
40
It’s true that slang is very informal, even to the point of offensive to
some people sometimes, but that doesn’t mean we should not know about
slang. Whether we want it or not, slang is here to stay. It is existing in the
English language. We ignore it; we lack a considerable amount of
vocabulary [of the language]. As advanced learners of English, FELTE
students should at least know and understand [slang] even if we don’t use
it.
I simply love slang [because] it’s cool. There are a lot of feelings
and attitudes [you can convey] through some simple [slang] words.
While standard English just gives you the exact meanings [of the words],
slang gives you a lot more than that.
Watching a movie in which lots of slang is used is more real life-
like and believable than the ones in sheer standard English. Everybody
knows native speakers of English always use slang in their daily life, so
the real society and culture are more vividly portrayed through such
movies with informal words and expressions.
However, there were some different views from the majority’s on
learning slang in educational context and the culture of the English
speaking world reflected through slang.
I don’t think it’s appropriate to use slang at our school. It’s an
educational environment here. We’re supposed to be on our best
behavior and acquire standard English in order to teach our students in
the future. Knowing slang doesn’t help them in exams.
EFL students like us should not learn to know slang. Instead, we
should focus on the standard English only. If we spend so much time on
41
learning slang, we would end up with poor standard grammar and
vocabulary, which is certainly not the point of the education.
I’m not sure if it’s necessary for us FELTE students to learn slang.
I think it mostly depends on the learners themselves. School clearly
doesn’t require us to know slang. So it actually depends on the learners’
interest and willingness for learning slang.
I can’t say that movies in which lots of slang is used are more
enjoyable than the others because there are ones in which lots of
standard and formal English is used like the old movies or the ones with
the settings of the old time, but they still manage to be great by reflecting
the culture and society of the old time.
4.2. Discussions
In this section, the findings are discussed in the order of the
objectives of the study: 1) the students’ motivation towards learning slang
in English and 2) the students’ attitudes towards learning slang in English.
Students’ motivation towards learning slang in English
As stated in the part about the objectives, this study aims to find
out which of the three motivational constructs (instrumental motivation,
integrative motivation and personal motivation) is the major source of
FELTE students’ motivation towards learning slang in English. The final
results show that integrative motivation is preferred by the majority of the
subjects. Typical examples of integratively motivated activities are
communicating or interacting with native speakers of English, getting to
know more about the cultural values through slang and living in English
speaking countries where slang is commonly used. According to Gardner
and Lambert (1972), these learners have a personal affinity for the group
42
of people who speak a particular language. They want to learn the
language because they are interested in getting to know the people who
speak that language and they are also into the culture associated with that
language. In many cases, integratively motivated learners may have
significant others such as a boyfriend or girlfriend or family members
who speak the language, and heritage language learners typically have a
particularly strong integrative motivation for language learning. Recently,
several studies carried out in North America have found that language
learners who are integratively motivated are more successful than those
who are instrumentally motivated. It is also proved that integratively
motivated language learners are more successful because their motivation
is stronger than that of instrumentally motivated students. Despite the fact
that there is no need to learn slang to meet the requirements at school,
FELTE students find integrative reasons to learn it instead. The most
reasonable explanation for this situation is that as English majors, FELTE
students themselves have already had passion and interest in the English
language as well as the cultures of the English speaking countries. They
are interested in learning slang words simply as much as they are
interested in English words in general.
Ranking second in the order of importance is personal or
developmental motivation. Students who are developmentally motivated
learn slang because they often set certain goals for themselves to, firstly,
improve their knowledge, and develop their ability or intellectual level
and, secondly, to enhance their status among friends or counterparts
(Cooper & Fishman, 1977). This type of students may not have any
special interest in slang, but they are somehow aware of the importance
and frequency of slang in English language so they decide to learn it to
complete their thorough proficiency in the language. Plus, these learners
43
can usually be detected by their high concern in intellectuality. Knowing
more slang words probably equals being at a higher level of intelligence
to them. Under the condition that their personal goals are fixed and their
determination is strong, the developmental motivation might lead to
certain success in language learning.
Lastly, instrumental motivation had the least impact on FELTE
students when they learned slang. It is fairly easy to understand the
situation because of the nature and characteristics of slang. Slang is non-
standard language, so it is not used in formal and official environment
such as schools and offices. In other words, learning slang cannot help
students to either get good marks or get employed. As a result, students
do not feel instrumentally motivated to learn slang in English. However,
success in a foreign/second language is likely to be lower if the
underlying motivational orientation is instrumental rather than integrative
(Gardner, 1972). Therefore, it can be inferred that in the situation of
FELTE students, the learners are having the most desirable type of
motivation to learn slang as a language.
Additionally, the findings revealed that almost all students wanted
to learn more slang words and expressions to improve their vocabulary
and proficiency in English language. That also means the majority of the
students were not satisfied with their current proficiency in slang. Having
great desires for learning the language is considered to be one of the main
components of language learning motivation (Gardner, 2006).
With reference to other related studies, the findings of this research
share both similarities and differences with those of the others. For
instance, this study is in harmony with Benson’s (1991) and Vijchulata &
Lee’s (1985) since in the end, all three studies showed that the integrative
44
motivation played the most important part in students’ language learning
in the three countries. On the other hand, other researchers proved that
instrumental motivation was the most favored construct instead of the
integrative one (Al-Tamimi & Shuib, 2009; Sarjit Kaur, 1993; Al-Quyadi,
2002; Qashoa, 2006).
Students’ attitudes towards learning slang in English
The findings in terms of the students’ attitudes towards slang
showed different types of responses from the students towards many
aspects related to slang.
The social value of slang in English received remarkably positive
attitudes from the majority of the students. Specifically speaking, most
students agreed that slang creates friendly atmosphere and improves
social relationship and using slang helps stay more up to date and young
around friends. The students could easily understand that slang was
informal and suitable for daily and intimate social situations.
The use of slang in educational context also gained relatively
positive opinions from the students. First off, students generally agreed
on the ideas that it is necessary for advanced learners of English like
FELTE students to learn slang and highly approved that FELTE students
may not have to use slang, but should at least know it. Apparently, the
students were well aware of the importance and frequency of slang usage
then consequently realized the necessity of learning slang. Similarly,
when the statements containing the opposite views on slang were
presented, they got negative responses from the students. A large number
of disapprovals were shown towards the idea that using slang at school
made the students feel like uneducated people. Obviously, the students
45
did not consider slang a bad language or discriminate or reject it.
However, that does not mean they totally agree of the usage of slang at
school because they only gave moderately positive responses to the idea
that slang should not be encouraged to use in the educational
environment. The slightly larger half of the population disagreed with the
idea above while the other slightly smaller half either agreed with the idea
or were not sure whether to disagree or agree with the statement, leaving
this opinion rather controversial.
In regards to the students’ attitudes towards slang as a language
itself, the majority indicated that their willingness to express themselves
as fluent speakers of English. It is also their demand or desire to master
slang in English and achieve the ability to speak like native speakers of
English. Possible explanation for this desire is that FELTE students are
integratively motivated with the initial passion for English language,
being able to identify themselves as closely like native speakers of
English as possible is believed to be a common goal among them all.
Meanwhile, a considerable percentage of disagree and undecided still
existed, implying both the disagreement and the uncertainty in their own
use of slang. This might be supported by the previous idea that FELTE
students may not have to use slang, but should at least know it.
As for their attitudes towards the culture of the English speaking
world reflected through slang, the results of the study also revealed that
more than half of the participants showed interest in the culture of the
English speaking countries reflected through movies in which plenty of
slang was used. Reasons for this might be because of the influence of
globalization on almost every aspects of life all over Vietnam. Western
culture is presented in movies, music, fashion, television, radio, Internet,
46
etc. Another potential reason is related to the students’ integrative
motivation for the language. FELTE students not only desire to know and
understand more about the Western culture, but also wish to integrate in
that culture through watching movies. As an opinion shared by a
participant, the informal nature of slang as a language helps reflect the
real society and culture most truthfully. That explains why most of the
students agreed movies with frequent slang use reflected the English
speaking world culture more vividly than the ones with plain standard
English.
47
CHAPTER V: CONCLUSIONS
5.1. Summary
This study aimed at investigating the FELTE students’ motivation
and attitudes towards learning slang in English. Concerning the students’
motivation, the findings showed that the integrative motivational
construct was the primary source of the students’ motivation and
orientation for learning slang in English. Personal or developmental
motivational construct was also regarded as an important motive to the
students. Integrative motivational construct; nevertheless, appeared to
have the least impact on the students when they learn slang in English
language.
In regards to the students’ attitudes towards learning slang in
English, the results revealed that the students generally had positive
attitudes towards 1) the use of slang in social context, 2) the use of slang
in educational context, 3) slang as a language itself and 4) the culture of
the English speaking world reflected through movies in which slang is
used.
5.2. Conclusions
Slang, due to its nature, belongs to the category of the non-standard
language in English language. Basically, the educational system at
FELTE, ULIS, VNUH does not require students to learn slang. Thus,
learning slang apparently has little relation with the conventional
pedagogy in the classroom. Presented as follows are the several minor
opinions and suggestions that learners can possibly benefit from to attain
higher achievements in their language learning process.
48
FELTE students have certain reasons to learn slang and especially
are integratively motivated, which might imply that the students are able
to learn slang by themselves. In addition, they hold significantly positive
attitudes towards learning slang as well as other aspects concerning slang.
Apparently, FELTE students own the most desirable conditions for
learning slang.
According to Burke (2008), educators such as lecturers or teachers
need not promote the use of slang but have a responsibility to familiarize
the nonnative speaker with this type of language. After all, whether we
like it or not, this nonstandard English is here to stay because it has
existed for years and will continue to exist. Knowledge of slang is
fundamental to nonnative speakers' understanding of the language that
native speakers actually use. Plus, he also emphasizes that it is essential
for those who want to integrate into the English speaking world’s culture
like in the case of the integratively motivated FELTE students. Without
slang, nonnative speakers possibly remain the forever outsiders.
A vast majority of EFL and ESL teachers agree that familiarizing students
with slang is more favorable than having students pick up this type of
language haphazardly from some random situation” (Burke, 2008).
The problem is that students often hear slang words used loosely
and gratuitously without fully understand the meaning and connotation of
the term; therefore, it is likely that the many students may find
themselves in embarrassing or awkward situations. In short, “learning to
know this nonstandard type of English may even be important for
students' safety and well-being” (Burke, 2008). Therefore, teachers may
at least consider starting to give students some brief introduction on slang
together with instructions and recommendations of reliable sources to
learn slang from.
49
5.3. Limitations and suggestions for further researches
In spite of the researcher’s effort, there are unavoidable limitations
regarding different aspects of the study. They are pointed out as follows
in order to reduce or avoid any possible overgeneralization or
misinterpretation.
The study is confined to only 102 students due to the time and
financial pressures. The sample size is still relatively small compared to
the total number of the fourth-year graduates at FELTE, ULIS, VNUH,
making the findings and results of the study quite a reflective of the
motivation and attitudes of those who participated in this research only.
Among the participants (n=102), there are 92 females, but only 10
males due to the fact that there is usually a small number of male students
learning at FELTE. The results might be more or less affected and
overgeneralization may be unconsciously caused by this gender
imbalance.
The target of this research is to investigate motivation and attitudes
which are mostly psychological factors in language learning. They are
objectively perceived by the students themselves. The issue is that a
student may think this way, but act the other way round. Thus, this study
may not be practically valuable in reflecting the actual situation of the
learning slang process.
Further researches on the similar topic may learn from these
limitations to enhance the quality of the studies. For instance, the sample
can be enlarged to the double size to improve the representative
capability of the research. Gender imbalance can also be lessened by
intentionally picking out more male participants for the study. The
50
females are still likely to outnumber the males, but overgeneralization is
hopefully reduced to some extent. Finally, other researchers concerning
about learning slang may consider the investigations on the current
situation revealed by the students’ difficulties in learning slang, their
techniques in learning it or their level of slang vocabulary to provide
more practical views on the same issue.
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6
APPENDICES
Appendix 1: Questionnaire form
MOTIVATION AND ATTITUDES TOWARDS LEARNING SLANG IN
ENGLISH
I am Vi Diệu Thuần from E1K41, FELTE, ULIS, VNU. I am working on my graduation paper on
Motivation and Attitudes towards Learning Slang in English: A Study of Fourth-Year
Undergraduates at FELTE, ULIS, VNU. I would highly appreciate it if you could carefully and
sincerely give answers to the questions in this questionnaire. That would certainly play a major part in
the success of my final thesis. Thank you for your cooperation!
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Your name: ................................................................................................................................................
Your class: ................................................................................................................. .................................
Gender:
Contact information: Email: ................................................................ Mobile: ........................ .................
Definition: Slang is nonstandard language used among particular groups, consisting of words and expressions which vividly convey the speakers’ feelings and attitudes in an informal way. Example (The words and expressions that are underlined and in italics are slang):
A: What’s up, dude?
B: Not much. How are you?
A: I’m doing awesome. Hey, wanna, like, hang out at the mall now?
B: Cool! Let’s roll!
Answer the questions by putting a into the box. Give more additional details as you please.
1. Have you ever tried to learn any slang words or expressions? Yes No
*If No, please skip question 2 and move to question 3
2. What are your reasons for learning slang? Rate the following reasons according to their
importance.
Reasons for learning slang in English Very
important
Important Of some
important
Of little
important
Not
important
2.1. Because it helps me pass my
examinations more effectively.
Male Female
7
Reasons for learning slang in English Very
important
Important Of some
important
Of little
important
Not
important
2.2. Because it is necessary for my future
job.
2.3. Because I will travel to English
speaking countries someday and need to
use it.
2.4. Because via slang, I know more about
the culture and values of English speaking
countries.
2.5. Because I want to make contact and
communicate with native speakers of
English.
2.6. Because I want to live in an English
speaking country someday.
2.7. Because I want to fully understand
the movies, T.V. programs and magazines
in English.
2.8. Because I want to be smart and
thoroughly competent of English
language.
2.9. Because of my personal development.
Others (please specify):..............................
3. Would you like to learn more slang words and expressions to improve your
vocabulary and proficiency in English language?
Yes No
4. What are your attitudes towards the following opinions?
Opinions Agree Disagree Undecided
4.1. Slang creates friendly atmosphere and improves social relationship.
4.2. Using slang helps me stay more up-to-date and feel young around
my friends.
4.3. It is necessary for advanced learners of English like FELTE
students to learn slang.
4.4. FELTE students may not have to use slang, but should at least
know it.
4.5. I feel like an uneducated person if I use slang at school.
4.6. Slang should not be encouraged to use in the educational
environment.
4.7. When I hear someone using slang fluently, I wish I could speak like
him.
4.8. Movies in which lots of slang is used are more enjoyable than the
other movies in plain standard English language.
8
Thank you for your cooperation!
Appendix 2: Guideline questions for interviews
1. What are your reasons for learning slang in English?
2. Do you want to learn to know more slang?
3. What is your attitude towards learning slang in English?
9
Appendix 3: Interview Transcriptions
Time: 28th April 2011
Place: Front yard of French Building
Interviewee: B
Interviewer (A): Can you restate the reasons why you learned slang?
Interviewee (B): I have tried to learn slang by myself for a while. The
main reason I think is because I simply just love English language. I
know that slang is a part of the language. Thus, I care [about slang] and
try to learn as many [slang] terms and expressions as possible. That way I
can improve my English.
A: I see. So you have learned slang before and you love it. But how is
your slang vocabulary? Good enough or not? Do you wish to know more
slang?
B: Compared to my classmates’, I think my slang vocabulary is quite
good. But I do still meet difficulties sometime when I experience an
authentic daily native speakers’ conversations in which lots of slang is
used. So yes, I want to learn to know more slang terms and expressions.
A: It seems like you have positive attitude towards slang, right? (Yes)
Can you specify how you really feel about slang?
B: I simply love slang [because] it’s cool. There are a lot of feelings and
attitudes [you can convey] through some simple [slang] words. While
standard English just gives you the exact meanings [of the words], slang
gives you a lot more than that. As a language learner, I find slang a very
10
interesting and expressive language that I would love to be able to be
fluent in it someday.
A: I believe with such interest and enthusiasm for slang, you are surely
going to reach that goal soon. Thank you so much for the short interview
and good luck!
11
Time: 28th April 2011
Place: Front yard of French Building
Interviewee: C
Interviewer (A): Hello (hi), as I can see from your answers in the
questionnaire. You have learned slang words before and you seem to
have certain reasons to do it. Would you like to give me more details
about that? (yes)
Interviewee (C): The culture and lifestyle of the English speaking
countries have always inspired my way of life. To me, these are the most
sophisticated ones compared to other cultures and lifestyles in the world.
Slang is not simply a language, but also [the carrier of the] culture, so I
learn a lot about it [via slang]. I wish I could live in the U.S. or the U.K.
someday. Well, at least spend some time of my life living there.
A: So you have a pretty strong connection with the culture and the people
of the English speaking world, right? (yes) You also appear to have a
fairly insightful view of slang. Do you want to know more slang then?
C: Of course, I do.
A: Okay. So in general, your attitude towards slang in English is positive?
(yes) Alright. What do you think about the use of slang at school?
C: I find nothing wrong with using slang at school. It actually helps [us
students] more relaxed and intimate. We may not see or hear us students
using slang often just because we do not know many slang words or
12
expressions to use. If we ever did, I’m sure it would be very popular
among us.
A: Thank you for the ideas.
Time: 28th April 2011
Place: Front yard of French Building
Interviewee: D
Interviewer (A): Okay. As you do not have much free time, we are going
to keep this short. Why did you learn slang?
Interviewee (D): I met many native speakers [of English] in Hanoi. I saw
how often they used slang in everyday conversations. Then I tried to learn
the most common and up-to-date slang words to keep up with the current
trend and communicate with the native speakers more easily.
A: I understand. Do you want to know more slang?
D: Certainly.
A: What is your opinion of slang then?
D: I think slang is the symbol of the youth. Using slang makes us appear
young and even fashionable. As youngsters, who doesn’t want to be
young and fashionable? I personally find it most fun if we use slang when
my friends are around.
A: Thanks a lot.
13
Time: 28th March 2011
Place: Front yard of French Building
Interviewee: E
Interviewer (A): Would you like to tell me why you learned slang?
Interviewee (E): I got people commenting on how natural and native I
sound whenever I use slang. It’s like one of my favorite praises, so I will
just keep on learning to know more slang and use it more often.
A: That’s very impressive. You sound like you have decent knowledge
and vocabulary of slang. Do you still wish to learn more slang?
E: Thank you. Mine is still at a sort of average level though. I do want to
know more slang. As I told you how like it when people commenting on
how good I sound as I use slang.
A: I see. So you do have a positive attitude towards slang. Any further
details you feel like adding?
E: Slang is an interesting language, but we should make sure we
understand its meanings and usage before trying to use it. Or else, we
might be in some trouble, I think.
A: That’s a good point. Thanks for sharing.
14
Time: 28th March 2011
Place: B2 Building
Interviewee: F
Interviewer (A): Why did you learn slang?
Interviewee (F): I like to watch movies in English. They are either British
or American most of the time. My favorite [T.V.] shows are FRIENDS,
High School Musical, Hannah Montana and Glee. They are all about
teenagers and youngsters, so lots of slang is frequently used. If I don’t
know those [slang] words, I wouldn’t understand and enjoy [the shows] at
all.
A: Very nice. You must know a great number of slang words from such
sources. Do you think you should still learn more?
F: Sure. Those sources help a lot, but you know, slang is a language, it
changes and develops every day, we just can never stop trying to learn
more.
A: Very brilliant. So what are your ideas of slang in short? Or specifically
slang in English speaking movies like in your case.
15
F: Watching a movie in which lots of slang is used is more real life-like
and believable than the ones in sheer standard English. Everybody knows
native speakers of English always use slang in their daily life, so the real
society and culture are more vividly portrayed through such movies with
informal words and expressions. A great type of language. Another great
tool to connect us with the civilization and knowledge of the English
speaking world.
A: It’s very nice to know of these opinions of yours. Thanks.
Time: 28th March 2011
Place: B2 Building
Interviewee: G
Interviewer (A): The reasons you learned slang are….
Interviewee (G): Mostly for personal development. I like to be smart. I
don’t usually use slang even though I know it. In my opinion, using slang
too much makes us sound somehow less intelligent.
A: Can you explain more about that idea? How does slang make us sound
less intelligent?
G: It’s more like a personal idea though. I am a traditional type of person.
I tend to think and act like the old people. But I like being that way. Slang
is a bit too young for me.
A: I see your point. So you don’t like to use slang, but do you still want to
know it anyway?
G: Yes. As I said, I’m eager to learn more to develop my own knowledge.
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A: Yes, I got it. How about your opinion on the idea that movies with
more frequent use of slang are more enjoyable than the ones with mostly
standard English?
G: I can’t say that movies in which lots of slang is used are more
enjoyable than the others because there are ones in which lots of standard
and formal English is used like the old movies or the ones with the
settings of the old time, but they still manage to be great by reflecting the
culture and society of the old time.
A: Thanks a lot for the ideas.
Time: 28th March 2011
Place: B2 Building
Interviewee: H
Interviewer (A): You answered in the questionnaire that you have never
tried to learn slang before. Is it true?
Interviewee (H): No, I never really tried to learn slang terms. I don’t find
essential reasons to do it. It’s not going to help your study or your future
job then why spend time learning it?
A: You have a point. So you naturally just don’t want to learn more
slang?
H: I’m afraid not.
A: So your general attitude towards slang is basically negative?
H: I’m afraid so. To be honest, I think EFL students like us should not
learn to know slang. Instead, we should focus on the standard English
only. If we spend so much time on learning slang, we would end up with
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poor standard grammar and vocabulary, which is certainly not the point
of the education.
A: Thank you so much for the honest opinions.
Time: 28th March 2011
Place: B2 Building
Interviewee: I
Interviewer (A): Could you tell me why you learned slang?
Interviewee (I): It should be why I have ever tried to learn slang to be
more exact. I did try finding the meanings of some very common slang
terms since too many people were using it. But I never really attempt to
learn it as a language I would use.
A: Does that mean you don’t have desire to learn more slang?
I: No, I don’t.
A: Okay. Could you please clarify your negative attitude towards slang?
I: As a future teacher, I don’t think it’s appropriate to use slang at our
school. It’s an educational environment here. We’re supposed to be on
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our best behavior and acquire standard English in order to teach our
students in the future. Knowing slang doesn’t help them in exams.
A: Thank you so much for taking your time the interview.
Time: 28th March 2011
Place: B2 Building
Interviewee: J
Interviewer (A): What motivated you when you learned slang?
Interviewee (J): Because it’s very popular. Native speakers use it all the
time. I encountered it so often that I decided to get to know what it was.
A: I see. Would you like to know more slang words?
J: Yes.
A: There are negative attitudes towards slang, saying that it’s
inappropriate for formal and educational environment like school,
especial a very pedagogically related school like ours. What do you
think?
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J: It’s true that slang is very informal, even to the point of offensive to
some people sometimes, but that doesn’t mean we should not know about
slang. Whether we want it or not, slang is here to stay. It is existing in the
English language. We ignore it; we lack a considerable amount of
vocabulary [of the language]. As advanced learners of English, FELTE
students should at least know and understand [slang] even if we don’t use
it.
A: Very smart. Thank you so much.
Time: 28th March 2011
Place: B2 Building
Interviewee: K
Interviewer (A): You answered that you tried to learn slang before right?
What made you do that?
Interviewee (K): Just totally by chance. There were these English songs
that I really liked. I wanted to sing them so I went look for the lyrics.
These slang words were always there. Like in almost every song I
listened to. So I looked for their meanings.
A: Nice. So you want to know more slang?
K: Yeah. And singing them out loud is a good way to remember such
new words.
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A: Very great idea. But it’s all about songs and music. How about
something more academic like school. Do you think it’s necessary for
FELTE students to learn slang?
K: I’m not sure if it’s necessary for us FELTE students to learn slang. I
think it mostly depends on the learners themselves. School clearly doesn’t
require us to know slang. So it actually depends on the learners’ interest
and willingness for learning slang.
A: Thank you so much for the ideas.