THE EFFECTS OF ENGLISH ''STILL THOUGHTS TEACHING'' ON EFL ELEMENTARY STUDENTS’ MOTIVATION AND ANXIETY:A PRELIMINARY STUDY

• Main Authors: Shu-Yu Hsu, 許淑玉
• Other Authors: Hsin-Yi Lien
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2011
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/41921500218681944113

碩士 === 銘傳大學 === 應用英語學系碩士在職專班 === 99 === Motivation and anxiety have long been recognized as important factors in English learning, so the ability to motivate learners, promote their English proficiency, and decrease students’ language anxiety is central to English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teaching. Although much research has explored motivational strategies (Brown, 1994; Dörnyei, 2001; Oxford & Shearin, 1994; Williams & Burden, 1997), few studies focus on valid motivational strategies for EFL elementary students. The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of implementing ‘Still Thoughts Teaching’ on the EFL elementary classroom. The participants were 230 third graders at an elementary school in northern Taiwan. These students were divided into two groups. The control group attended a regular 4-period English class each week, but the experimental group received a regular 3-period English class and 1-period of English Still Thoughts Teaching curriculum each week for one semester. Three questionnaires were administrated: a Motivation Questionnaire (adapted from the Foreign Language Learning Motivation Scale, Schmidt, Boraie, and Kassabgy, 1996), an Anxiety Questionnaire (adapted from the Foreign Language Learning Anxiety Scale , Horwitz, Horowitz, and Cope, 1986), and a Feedback Questionnaire designed by the researcher to explore the experimental group’s self-reported learning experience after receiving the English Still Thoughts Teaching Instruction. Results showed that the motivation of the experimental group increased, but there was no significant reduction in the level of anxiety. Additionally, the findings indicate that third-graders were interested in learning English Still Thoughts. Limitations and implications for incorporating the humanitarian education into language teaching were discussed.