motivation, comparative approach, Russian learning, compulsory and elective subjects
その他のタイトル
A Quantitative Comparison of Japanese Learners’ Motivation to Learn English as a First Foreign Language and Russian as a First or a Second Foreign Language
This paper examines the importance of measuring learners’ motivation to learn foreign languages and investigates the relevant diagnostic methods. Previous studies (Miyamoto et al. 2014) have applied expectancy-value theory to examine the specific characteristics of the motivation of learners of English as a first foreign language (EFFL) and Russian as a second foreign language (RSFL). Miyamoto et al. have indicated that the RSFL learners had lower ‘utility’ scores and higher scores in terms of time and effort ‘costs’ compared to the EFFL learners. Based on the findings, it appears that expectancy-value theory has great potential for use in the examination and comparison of the motivation levels of different groups of learners. However, the data collected were analysed to compare the group of learners studying English as a first foreign language (EFFL, a compulsory subject) and those pursuing RSFL (an elective or compulsory-elective subject, meaning that learners have to chose a prescribed number of subjects from a set group of subjects). Thus, the form of education—compulsory versus elective—may also influence these differences in motivation.
The author of this study employed the framework of Miyamoto et al. and compared their results with the motivation of the learners of Russian as a first foreign language (RFFL), a compulsory subject. A questionnaire survey was distributed to 69 first-year students and 60 second-year students at the Russian Department of Sophia University to collect the original data for this study.
The results of the study revealed that the motivation of RSFL and RFFL learners is still higher than that of EFFL learners. The fact that English is obligatory for all learners, regardless of whether they want to study it or not, may help explain this finding. On the other hand, despite some limitations, learners of Russian have a greater degree of freedom to choose Russian or some other language as an elective or even as a compulsory subject. However, this research also uncovered a difference in the motivation of RSFL and RFFL students, suggesting that distinct strategies should be employed to improve the motivation of learners of Russian as a compulsory or elective subject.
内容記述
Section 3: Guest Article
雑誌名
Eruditi : The CGCS Journal of Language Research and Education
巻
3
ページ
41 - 56
発行年
2019-07
権利
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, PO Box 1866, Mountain View, CA 94042, USA.
著者版フラグ
publisher
出版者
Center for Global Communication Strategies, College of Arts & Sciences, The University of Tokyo
外国語学習者の動機づけの測定方法 : 英語とロシア語、「必修科目」と「選択科目」の比較
Eruditi_03_04.pdf
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