The Impact of English Teaching Assistants on English Learning in Taiwan

• Main Authors: Yen, Hsin-Jou, 顏欣柔
• Other Authors: Wu, Mei-Chen
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2016
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/49m7m9

碩士 === 國立臺灣師範大學 === 英語學系 === 104 === This study aimed to investigate the impact of English Teaching Assistants (ETA) on young Taiwanese learners’ English learning in Taiwan. Research questions were designed to examine: young Taiwanese learners’ perception of their motivation in the beginning and at the end of the school year, the English Teaching Assistants’ (ETAs’) perception of their learners’ motivation in the beginning and at the end of the school year, the Local English Teachers’ (LETs’) perception of their learners’ motivation in the beginning and at the end of the school year, and how the ETAs influence their learners’ motivation towards English learning in class. The participants were learners and teachers (ETAs and LETs) from six areas: Taipei, Yilan, Taitung, Kaohsiung, Taichung, and Kinmen. 4056 young Taiwanese learners (ranging from 10-13 years old), 149 teachers (56 ETAs and 93 LETs) participated in this study. An attitude and motivation questionnaire was employed to assess the learners’ attitude and motivation towards English learning with the presence of the ETAs at the beginning and end of the school year. The teachers (both ETAs and LETs) were also asked to complete an attitude and motivation questionnaire based on their perception of their learners’ attitude and motivation towards English learning. Cross tabulation was utilized to analyze the learners’ and teachers’ questionnaires, examining the general idea of all the learners’ attitude and motivation, and the teachers’ perception of their learners’ attitude and motivation. Finally, interviews and classroom observations were conducted to explore a more in-depth understanding of learners’ attitude and motivation towards English learning, and the impact of ETAs on learners throughout the school year. The results can be summarized as follows. First, the cross tabulation showed that the learners’ attitude and motivation, in general, were positive, and that there was an increase in their attitude and motivation from the pretest to the posttest. Second, from the cross tabulation, the teachers (both ETAs and LETs), in general, perceived their learners’ to have a positive attitude and high motivation towards English learning with the presence of ETAs. Even though there was also an increased number of teachers’ (both ETAs’ and LETs’) who perceived their learners to have a positive attitude and high motivation in the posttest, the ETAs had given lower scores in the questionnaires at the beginning of the year compared to the LETs. This difference in perception between the ETAs and LETs may be explained by the teachers’ familiarity with learners, teachers’ different views, teachers’ different cultural contexts and educational experiences, and their knowledge of Taiwan’s educational system. Third, the interviews and classroom observations showed the impact of ETAs on the learners in the following areas: change of classroom atmosphere, interaction between teachers and learners, cultural exchanges, and broadening of perspectives (globalization). At last, based on the findings of this study, pedagogical implications are offered for future researchers and English teachers, hoping to shed light on the learners’ English learning attitude and motivation with the presence and the impact of English Teaching Assistants on young EFL learners in Taiwan.