| This paper investigated students'tolerance of ambiguity (TOA) in the process of English learning. The subjects for the study were 183 freshmen students enrolled in one state University in China. They represented two types of students, 98 of whom were English-major students, and 85 of whom were non-English-major students. The data for the study were obtained by using two measures: (1) Second Language Tolerance of Ambiguity Scale (Ely, 1995), and (2) Matriculation English Test (MET). Specifically, this study examined the subjects'general tendency of TOA in L2 learning. It also explored the effect of majors and English proficiency on students'TOA. Finally, it tried to find out whether there was any relationship between TOA and L2 learning proficiency. All the data were analyzed using SPSS (version 11.5).The study produced a number of findings regarding the students'TOA in their English learning. Firstly, the subjects'Intolerance of Ambiguity (ITOA) was a little above the mid point level in their English learning. In terms of the learning of different language skills, this study revealed that the subjects were most intolerant of ambiguity in learning pronunciation, and they showed the lowest intolerant in practicing reading. Moreover, learners were more tolerant in dealing with ambiguities from L2 perception than from L2 production.Secondly, as for the differences in TOA between English major students and non-English major students, the study indicated that no significant difference existed in general. However, careful data analysis of individual SLTAS items revealed that significant difference existed in pronunciation between those two groups. English majors favored high level intolerance of ambiguity in pronunciation, while non-English majors preferred moderate level intolerance of ambiguity in pronunciation. Furthermore, it was found that English majors were more tolerant than non-English majors when encountering ambiguities in reading. Thirdly, no significant difference was found in TOA between high proficiency students and low proficiency students in general. However, careful data analysis of individual SLTAS items revealed that high achievers were less tolerant in the skills of writing, grammar, speaking, words, pronunciation, but they were more tolerant in the skills of reading and teacher's using of unknown words than low proficiency students. It was found that high proficiency subjects showed different level of TOA in different aspects of L2, while low proficiency subjects showed almost the same level of TOA in every aspects of L2.Fourthly, ANOVA Analysis revealed that there were significant correlations between TOA level and English learning proficiency. Those students who were moderate TOA did better on MET than high and low TOA students , thus indicating that moderate TOA students were more likely to obtain better achievement in L2 learning.Several implications can be offered on the basis of the findings above. First, the findings in this study revealed that moderate degree of ambiguity tolerance was more likely to obtain high proficiency in L2 learning, therefore language learners should develop a moderate degree of ambiguity tolerance. Next, this study showed that tolerance of ambiguity varied, depending on skills and language learning situations, therefore teachers should treat different skills and situations with different ways. In addition, teachers should give introductions about the cultural backgrounds of the L2 materials. To reduce students'ambiguity intolerance, teachers should also help students use different learning strategies and learning styles when facing with different learning tasks. They need see to it that students should be taught according to their own learning style, so the ambiguity in learning a foreign language can be reduced, resulting in high efficiency of second language acquisition. |
