Introduction

Students have always told each other stories about language learning. For example, in one Midwestern language program, the Korean students told each other that if you did not know the answer to an item on the TOEFL to choose C because it is more likely to be correct. This study explores how this folklore impacts their educational experiences. While existing research indicates that there are strong relationships among values, beliefs, and experiences involving international students learning language abroad (Kouritzin et al, 2009; Montgomery & McDowell, 2009; Kim & Yang, 2010; Amuzie & Winke, 2009), the processes by which one factor influences another have not been investigated in detail. To address one of these gaps in knowledge, this study focuses specifically on the kind of information students exchange about language learning, or what we refer to in this study as “folklore”.

We are focusing on student beliefs about language learning and the advice given and received. The fact that there are patterns of advice suggests that there are consistencies of narrative depending on linguistic and cultural groups. For our purposes, we are calling these consistencies “urban legends.” Brunvand (2002) defines urban legends as

a form of modern folklore consisting of stories that may or may not have been believed by their tellers to be true. As with all folklore and mythology, the designation suggests nothing about the story's veracity, but merely that it is in circulation, exhibits variation over time, and carries some significance that motivates the community in preserving and propagating it. (p. 423)

The Study

The study took place in an intensive English program (IEP) at a large Midwestern university in the United States. Out of a total of 367 students in the program, 130 responded for a 35% response rate. Students that participated in this study included speakers of Arabic, Assyrian, Catalan, Chinese, Creole, Japanese, Korean, Kurdish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Spanish, Tibetan, Turkish, Turkmen, Urdu, and Vietnamese. To analyze the results, we eventually focused on the two largest national groups in the sample: Saudi Arabian and Chinese.

The survey included several questions regarding advice exchanged about language learning. This study focuses on three questions in particular:

1. Who do you usually spend time with outside of class?
2. What do your friends tell you is the best way to learn English?
3. What advice do you give your friends about language learning?

Responses were categorized into four groups: social, skills, media, and academic. Responses categorized as social included the mention of some kind of interaction with English speakers such as making friends with Americans, participation in activities, interaction with other cultures, having a host family, romance, anxiety, and shyness. Those categorized as skills specifically mentioned grammar, listening, speaking, reading, writing, vocabulary, pronunciation, or translation. Those categorized as media mentioned using sources such as movies, TV, music, radio, internet, and games to facilitate language learning. Those categorized as academic mentioned completing homework, participating in class, studying independently, paying attention, attending class every day, and respecting the teacher. The most marked differences in responses fell within the social and skill categories.

Responses

When responding to questions, participants often gave responses that fit into multiple categories. In response to the first question (“Who do you spend time with outside of class?”), the majority responded that they spent time with people from their own country. In response to the second question (What do your friends tell you is the best way to learn English?”), 54% of the Chinese and 67% of the Saudi students responded in the social category while 67% of the Chinese and 24% of Saudi students responded in the skills category. In response to the third question (“What advice do you give your friends about language learning?”), 50% of Chinese and 38% of Saudi students responded in the social category while 56% of Chinese and 19% of Saudi students responded in the skills category. Therefore, the most salient differences between the Chinese and Saudi students are that the Saudis emphasized social learning while the Chinese emphasized learning skills.

Interestingly, when we compared advice given and received, the Chinese students exchanged advice in the categories of social and skills at roughly the same rate. However, the Saudi group reported receiving advice in the social category at a higher rate than they did giving it. The emphasis that both groups placed on the social category is interesting in light of the fact that they reported spending time with classmates from their own countries much more than with English speakers.

Students reveal their vision of the pathway to language learning success through the advice they share. However, students are creating narratives of language learning that do not necessarily match their own behavior. They are advising each other to socialize with English speakers, but spending most of their time with their compatriots.

Limitations

While these findings are interesting, the study leaves some questions unanswered:

1. Exactly who is giving the advice?
2. Whose advice did students tend to follow the most?
3. How does educational culture influence exchange of advice and the extent to which it is followed?
4. How do students’ beliefs about language learning conflict or comply with those of their teachers?

Conclusion

It is clear that these participants, in the midst of language learning, have some ideas about the best way to learn language. When seeking answers to questions about language learning, they turn to each other for advice, and in doing so they create communities of practice resulting in a narrative of success that they may or may not believe. In order to create a more effective learning environment for our IEP students, we need to understand student narratives and harness them for the most beneficial effect.

REFERENCES

Amuzie, G. L., & Winke, P. (2009). Changes in language learning beliefs as a result of study abroad. System,37, 366–379.

Brunvand, J. H. (2002). Encyclopedia of urban legends. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.

Kim, T., & Yang, J. (2010). Learner beliefs in study abroad experience: A qualitative case study of two Korean ESL learners. English Teaching, 65(2), 75–99.

Kouritzin, S. G., Piquemal, N. A., & Renaud, R. D. (2009). An international comparison of socially constructed language learning motivation and beliefs. Foreign Language Annals, 42, 287–317.

Montgomery, C. & McDowell, L. (2009). Social networks and the international student experience: An international community of practice? Journal of Studies in International Education, 13, 455-466.

Carole Goddard, MA, is an ESL instructor at Kent State University and the University of Akron. Her research interests include cross-cultural perspectives of education and developing teaching strategies to aid students’ enculturation into the American academic context.

Karl Uhrig, PhD, has been teaching ESL and TESOL-related courses for 20 years. His research interests revolve around the dynamics of teaching academic English to international students and the social, cultural, and cognitive elements that compose learning contexts.