The Relationship Between Grit And English Achievement Of Middle School Students

Proficiency in the English language more or less assures a better future,greater academic achievement and improved job security.English has been given increasing importance as a subject in middle schools nationwide in China.Many students fail to achieve good grades.Most girls out-performed boys in English learning in our school.What is the main factor in the learning process responsible for this difference?Are there any gender-related differences in English language achievement among first-year middle school students?"Grit",or perseverance and the ability to sustain effort,was proposed as an influential personal trait in education by Angela Lee Duckworth in 2007.Since then,many scholars have conducted research to underscore the importance of grit in the educational development of individuals.The relationship between grit and English learning is likewise of interest to educators abroad;however,there seems to be a lack of relevant studies on middle school learners in China.The present study aims to explore the relationship between grit and English achievement among teenagers,taking into account genders,and seeking strategies to help students cultivate their grit.To be specific,I intended to answer two questions:1.Is middle school student’ English achievement related to their grit?2.Do male middle school students differ from female middle school students in their development of grit?In this study,176 participants(first-year students)were divided into 98 top students(36 male and 62 female students)and 78 underachievers(63 male and 15 female students)according their performance on English exams.A significant positive correlation exists between grit and English learning competency in the participants.The results also showed that top students are grittier than underachievers,and that the gender difference is not significant.That is,male top students had significantly higher scores in grit than male underachievers;female top students had significantly higher scores in grit than female underachievers.While male top students’ scores in grit were slight higher than those of female top students,male underachievers tended to have slightly lower scores than female underachievers.To make the results more convincing,observations and interviews were also employed.The observations focused on the class and after-class activities requiring grit,note-taking,asking questions,handing in homework and correcting mistakes.Interviews followed the observations,the questions for which were based on the questionnaire by Duckworth.The interviews concerned students with different levels of English proficiency.The results of the observations and interviews accorded with the results of the questionnaire;that is,English achievement is positively related to teenagers’ grit,and there is no significant gender difference with respect to the relationship between grit and English learning ability.The students with lower scores in grit had significantly worse performances in classroom activities and after-school activities.The results also suggested that students with grit were more likely to be confident,concentrated and competitive.Although teachers seemed to have done a lot to instil grit in their students,the students probably needed help from their parents and/or from the community in cultivating their grit,which emerged in student performance in after-school activities.Parental support is critical in encouraging grit in students.In accordance with the above findings,we also suggest that more effort should be made to help cultivate grit in English learning for underachievers,mainly through establishing learning goals,arousing students’ interest and developing positive attitudes towards English learning.