A Preliminary Study on Oral Performances of English learners in L1 and L2

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Author
Author
Meral Melek Ãnver, Belgin Aydın, Åžener EÅŸ
Institutional Author
Anadolu University
Details
Resource Type
Journal
Acquisition Number
BE026698
Published Date
01-08-2018 2:53 PM
Published Year
2016
Number of Pages
26
Language(s)
Subscription Only
No
Abstract
Performing well in oral examinations is a great challenge for language learners in EFL contexts because test takers have many linguistic concerns while performing let alone thinking of what to say. In our context, School of Foreign Languages, Anadolu University, Turkey, our students mostly perform poorly in speaking exams, claiming that they would perform better if it were in Turkish. Thus, the question arises whether it is learners' linguistic incapability or lack of topical knowledge, which prevents them from performing. This study aims to investigate how Turkish learners of English (N=35; 18-B1 and 17-B2 Level) would perform if they were given the same oral test in L1, and compares the scores they got from L2 and in L1 to see if their performance differs and if proficiency level is a variable for this difference. The analysis of the quantitative data collected through oral interviews reveals that the learners' performance was a lot better in L1; and B2 level students performed well in both languages while B1 level learners performed significantly better in L1. The qualitative data from interviews and the survey shows how learners reflect on the exam process and their performance.
Topics
School Statistics
Oral Language
English Learners
English Learners
Demographics