Revisiting the socio-educational model of second language acquisition in Turkish tertiary EFL context

Abstract

The aim of this study is to analyze and determine the various socio-psychological orientations of undergraduate students in learning English as a Foreign Language (EFL) to have a comprehensive overview. The study was originally intended by the school administration to improve the quality of instruction and promote positive attitudes by understanding individual students, mainly in terms of their language learning motivation and attitudes towards learning English. The participants were 793 university prep-year students studying a one-year EFL program to complete their postsecondary education in an English-medium state university in Turkey. The data were collected using Attitude-Motivation Test Battery (AMTB) (adapted Turkish version, Gardner, 2004). The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 23 software firstly to be able to display the current situation regarding the 6 constructs measured by AMTB, mainly; integrativeness, attitudes toward the learning situation, motivation, language anxiety, instrumental orientation and parental encouragement levels of Turkish tertiary students in EFL learning by gender and level of proficiency. The results of this study identified that Turkish EFL learners at tertiary level showed relatively high levels of the qualities measured by the AMTB constructs and their sub-scales, except in attitudes toward English speaking people and anxiety. As an interesting finding, the participating students of the study were found to be often anxious in participating the English classes and using English, while female students felt more discomfort concerning these issues.