A Study Of The Correlation Among Foreign Language Enjoyment,L2 Self And Academic Achievements Of Junior High School Students

Though emotions are important factors affecting foreign language learners,studies tend to focus on learners’ cognitive aspects on foreign language education,largely ignoring the emotional level(Pekrun et al.,2014;Swain,2013).The traditional psychology of foreign language teaching research focuses on negative emotions,such as anxiety,negative motivation,especially language anxiety by scholars’ in-depth research(Horwitz,2010;Mac Intyre,2017).Foreign language enjoyment(FLE),as an emotional factor in foreign language learning,has been gradually valued by scholars.Second language(L2)self embodies ideal L2 self and ought-to L2 self,and they are two concepts derived from Markus and Nurius(1986)’s explanation of“possible self”.They are two core components of the whole second language motivational self system(L2MSS).In the environment of junior high school English classroom teaching,the level of students’ English efficiency is different,and individual differences are also distinct,which are related to students’ FLE and L2 self to some extent.Previous studies have shown that a strong L2 self will positively influence students’ FLE and their foreign language performance.Therefore,it is necessary to conduct an in-depth investigation of FLE and L2 self of junior middle school students,so as to provide some help to improve junior middle school English teaching and enhance students’ interest and motivation on English learning.This study took 175 ninth grade students of a middle school in Shandong province as the subjects.Dewaele et al.’s(2018)Foreign Language Enjoyment Scale and Taguchi et al.’s Second Language Motivational Self System Scale were adapted based on the reality of junior high school students.Descriptive analysis,independent samples T test,Pearson correlation and analysis of variance were performed by using SPSS 22.0,based on the data obtained from the questionnaire.To explore the correlation between FLE,L2 self and academic achievements,this study mainly explored the following three research questions:(1)What is the current situation of FLE and L2 self of junior high school students?(2)Are there any differences in FLE and L2 self among junior high school students with different English proficiency?(3)Is there any correlation between FLE,L2 self and English achievements of junior high school students? To what extent do the first two influence the latter?The results obtained from the data analysis showed that :(1)FLE-Teacher was at a high level,FLE-Private was at a medium high level,and FLE-Atmosphere was at a medium level;the ideal L2 self was at medium high level,and the ought-to L2 self was at medium level.(2)There were significant differences in FLE-Private,FLE-Teacher,FLE-Atmosphere,ideal L2 self and ought-to L2 self of students with different scores,and the high achievement group students were higher than the low achievement group students in all dimensions.(3)Junior high school students’ ideal L2 self and ought-to L2 self were positively correlated with FLE-Private,FLE-Teacher and FLE-Atmosphere;FLE-Private and FLE-Atmosphere were positively correlated with English achievements.There was a positive correlation between ideal L2 self and English achievements,but there was no obvious correlation between ought-to L2 self and English achievements.(4)Junior high school students’ FLE-Private and ideal L2 self had certain predictive effects on their English achievements.Based on the research results,this paper draws the following conclusions and teaching enlightenment:(1)Teachers should cultivate their own personal appeal,create a amicable and attractive learning atmosphere in class and enhance students’ strong interest in English learning;(2)Students are the main body of learning.Teachers can carry out cooperative learning in teaching,strengthen communication and cooperation among students,and help students find a sense of belonging;(3)Teachers can design abundant classroom activities so that students can experience the fun of English learning;(4)Teachers,peers and pleasant classroom atmosphere all affect students’ learning motivation,to which teachers should attach importance and thereby improve students’ academic achievements.