A study on motivation in the high school foreign language classroom through focus groups with third- and fouth-year high school Spanish students

Abstract

In the Florida Public Schools' Curriculum, there lacks a requirement for completion of foreign language credits in order for a student to graduate. However, many colleges and universities, as well as scholarship programs like the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship, require students to take a minimum of two consecutive years of a foreign language. In many schools, there is an abundance of Level 1 and Level 2 foreign language classrooms, but in the upper levels there seems to be a scarcity of students within those programs. Why is it that these few students are motivated to continue studying the language, even though it is not required of them? This study serves to show the variety of motivations felt by high school students during the 2007-2008 school year. After conducting several focus groups at Oviedo High School in Oviedo, FL, with Spanish 3 and Advanced Placement (AP) Spanish students, the researcher analyzed the variety of reasons given candidly by the students. Through the conversations with these students, a better understanding of the motivations of high school students can be attained. Through this understanding, educators can target other areas that might motivate students, and thus work to increase enrollment in classes and to ensure that students can see the benefits of learning a second language with fluency.

Notes

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Thesis Completion

2008

Semester

Spring

Advisor

Verkler, Karen

Degree

Bachelor of Science (B.S.)

College

College of Education

Degree Program

Foreign Language Education -Spanish

Subjects

Dissertations, Academic -- Education;Education -- Dissertations, Academic

Format

Print

Identifier

DP0022222

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Document Type

Honors in the Major Thesis

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