Publication:

Parental and learners' attitude to EFL learning, and learners' speaking performance in peer interaction

There is a growing body of research supporting the influence of parents’ attitudes on their children’s language learning. However, findings with L1-Spanish learners learning English as a foreign language (EFL) seem far from conclusive. The present study features a proposal mode, with the intention to provide a framework for future studies analysing the impact that parents and caretakers can have on their children’s attitude towards EFL-learning in an L1-Spanish Secondary School setting and a possible correlation between learners’ attitudes and their speaking performance. The proposed method is designed for 4th year students from a Spanish Public Secondary School and their parents within the framework of two suggested pedagogical activities. For data collection, two adapted questionnaires based on Gardner’s (1985) Attitude/Motivation Test Battery and one of the speaking parts in the Cambridge Preliminary English Test are to be used. As possible outcomes according to the existing literature, the author expects to find a positive relationship between parental and learners’ attitudes. As for the correlation between learners’ attitudes and speaking abilities no solid assumptions can be made.