Willingness to Communicate in English Among ESL Undergraduates In

Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development. Vol. 4(1), Sept 2018

COGNITIVE SCIENCES AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

Willingness to Communicate in English among ESL Undergraduates in

Malaysia

Ai Siok KHO-YAR1, Shameem RAFIK-GALEA2 and Elise Ai Hwee KHO3*

1,2 Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication, Universiti Putra Malaysia. 3 The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Brisbane Australia 4072

ABSTRACT

Students’ unwillingness in communicating (WTC) English has many factors especially in second language acquisition. This study investigates the willingness to communicate (WTC) in English among ESL undergraduates in Malaysia. A hypothesised model that inte- grates WTC in English, motivation, self-efficacy, mindset, and performance was tested us-

ing structural equation modelling (SEM). The results show that the personality of learners are directly affecting motivation and WTC in English. Further, the results also demonstrate

that both motivation and academic achievement influences WTC in English indirectly through self-efficacy. The final model correlates well with the data, thereby indicating the potential of academic achievement can contribute to ESL communication.

Keywords: Willingness to communicate; low proficiency; second language acquisition; speaking

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial- ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) license which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, for non-commercial purposes, provided the original work is properly cited.

INTRODUCTION language development by providing learners with opportunities in receiving comprehen- Communication has become increasingly sible input, to produce and to modify their important among L2 learners. In the past, output, to test out hypotheses, and to notice the L2 communicative competence was gaps existing in their interlanguage (Ellis, developed via performance and exchange of 2008). MacIntyre and Charos (1996) believe information (Ellis, 2008) and it is said that that communication is a goal in itself, rather second language interaction can facilitate than a means of facilitating language learn- ARTICLE INFO ing. This recognition on the actual use of the E-mail address: L2 as an important part of L2 learning has [email protected] (Elise Ai Hwee KHO) led to a growing frame of research into the *Corresponding author willingness to communicate, a vital con- e-ISSN: 2550-1623 struct within the discipline of L2 practice.

Manuscript received: 20 April 2018; Accepted: 28 May 2018. Date of publication: 30 Sept 2018 However, in the recent years, Willingness to communicate (WTC) has given the oppor-

Ai Siok KHO-YAR, Shameem RAFIK-GALEA and Elise Ai Hwee KHO tunity of accomplishing communication cating in English is related to the constructs when free to select to do so is of unique that were considered as possible variables in significance in revealing learners’ commu- contributing to deficiencies in their speaking nication psychology and promoting com- of English. munication engagement in class. Mac- Intyre, Clement, Dornyei and Noels (1998) The current study aims to find out the rela- have recommended that a right goal for L2 tionships among the factors considered in education is to create WTC within the lan- influencing Malaysian undergraduates by guage learning process, so that it will pro- using WTC as an important means of en- duce learners who are inclined to searching hancing English language capability. Addi- for communication opportunities and in fact tionally, the current study will determine the to speak in them. Nevertheless, the model proposed model (Figure 1) correlate with does not state if academic proficiency is the data. another factor in contributing to WTC. Gen- erally, there is a need to find out if academic Willingness to Communicate (WTC) achievement affects WTC in L2 context. When the purpose of learning English is Previous research has focused much atten- also defined in terms of communication, tion on learners’ characteristics, for example issues such as if learners will communicate motivation, language anxiety, aptitude, and in English when they have the chance or language learning strategies, and their influ- what is affecting learners’ willing-ness in ence on L2 learning Gardner, 2009). Little communicating are important. A model was research (e.g. Yashima, 2002; Yashima et developed by McIntyre, Clement, Dornyei, al., 2004) has been conducted in a foreign and Noels (1998), “Willingness to Com- language learning (EFL) context where municate (WTC) model” includes psycho- there is usually no immediate linguistic need logical, linguistic, and communicative vari- for learners to use English in their daily life. ables to describe, explain, and predict sec- Therefore, the researcher is investigating to ond language (L2). Willingness to com- contribute in finding out the WTC in the municate is being ready in entering into a Asian context, especially in Malaysia. discourse at a particular time with a particular person or per-sons, using L2 (McIntyre, The poor academic achievement and the Clement, Dornyei, and Noels, 1998). The willingness to communicate in English model was being tested by re-searchers and could be partially attributed to students’ scholars since its existence. WTC is a con- motivation, self-efficacy, and mindsets. cept whereby, learners are given the free- Therefore, such factors influencing learners’ dom to choose to use or not a second lan- WTC in the Malaysia context may differ guage, English, to speak in this investiga- from other Western and Asia countries. tion. In the MacIntyre et al.’s (1998) version Thus, such investigation is needed to deter- of WTC, the factors causing WTC in a sec- mine how the English as Second Language ond language are linguistic, communicative (ESL) undergraduate students’ academic and social psychology. The team believed achievement and willingness in communi- that a learner’s choices to speak the lan-

Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development. Vol. 4(1), 28-34, Sept 2018

Ai Siok KHO-YAR, Shameem RAFIK-GALEA and Elise Ai Hwee KHO guage or not depends on the situation they Another near comparison study was done by are in and the decision to speak depends on Asker (1998) stated that Hong Kong stu- their self-confidence. Moreover, it is being dents showed lower level of L2 WTC. A suggested that if a learner is given proper research was done in the Asia country, Chi- guidance, he or she will be able to get out na, Wen and Clement (2003) studied the from the fear and speak. WTC of college learners and presented a Chinese conceptualisation of WTC based on Despite the rich findings from previous the houristic WTC model of MacIntyre et al. research, most of the previous studies have (1998). The variables investigated in the been conducted in Western countries, in study were other-directed self, face protec- particular, among Canadian Anglophone tion, and a submissive way of learning. An- students learning French as a second lan- other Asia qualitative research done by Peng guage (e.g. Baker & MacIntyre, 2000; Mac- (2007) identified eight factors classified into Intyre et al., 2002). Additionally, previous two contexts, mainly, individual context and re-search has focused much attention on social context which influenced L2 WTC. learner characteristics, such as motivation, self-efficacy, mindsets, and their influence METHODOLOGY on L2 learning (Gardner, 2009) in the West- ern countries. In a Malaysia ESL context, Participants empirical research into L2 WTC is still at a nascent stage. The recent study done by The study was conducted at the University Yousef, Jamil & Razak (2013), investigated Sains Malaysia (USM). Similar to any other WTC in Malaysia context focusing on learn- university in Malaysia, USM has the re- ing communication strategies. The results quirements to pass the Malaysian University showed that motivation influences the two English Test (MUET) for students who wish components of communication confidence to be qualified to enter the university. The and WTC indirectly through two variables study included 50 undergraduates from first of self-perceived communication compe- and second year students of Computer Sci- tence and communication apprehension. ence, Engineering, Language Studies, Edu-

Figure 1: Proposed Model

Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development. Vol. 4(1), 28-34, Sept 2018

Ai Siok KHO-YAR, Shameem RAFIK-GALEA and Elise Ai Hwee KHO cational Studies, and Management. This scale used in this study contained 16 items. study was carried out based on proactive In the Personality section 10 items were approach (Marcoulides & Saunders, 2006), utilized to measure learner’s extraversion/ where samples are chosen involving con- extraversion dimension of personality. The ducting simulation studies of the hypothe- learners were asked to respond on a 9-point sised model (Figure 1) with relationships scale. They were explained to select a among targeted factors. This approach is number between 1 and 9 according to the chosen because this study has its basis in degree of their perception. theory and relevant literature. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Procedure From this further application of the study, The current study involved a two-stage pro- all variables were selected for the overall cess, where the instrumentation was validat- use in the main study as planned. They ed using confirmatory factor analyses were chosen based on the high internal con- (CFAs), and the hypothesised structural sistency levels as shown above and there- relationships among factors were tested. fore they were considered appropriate for Analysis of Moment Structures (AMOS) the intended subjects in the research. In was used in testing the hypothesised rela- order to address the research questions, the tionships and maximum likelihood estimat- Table 1 is referred. ed was used for estimation purpose. From Table 1, MI showed weak correlations Instruments to gender (P <.001), ethnic (P = .008) and mother’s education (P = .001). Females are The questionnaire used in the study to more likely to score higher in MI than measure students’ willingness to communi- males. Malays are more likely to score cate is based on the WTC scale. The ques- higher in MI compared to other races maybe tionnaire used in the study included 52 because of them being not willing to speak items in all. A 7-point Likert Scale when they were younger, so they have to (1=strongly disagree; 7=strongly agree) struggle more in the university level in order were used to measure. The items of the to be in par with the other races. The stu- questionnaire and scale were translated into dents whose mother’s education was less the national language, Bahasa Melayu so the than high school were more likely to score surveys can be collected back as expected. higher in MI. There are no significant fac- A back translation method was employed to tors observed for IO. verify the compatibility of item translations from English to Bahasa Malaysia. The WTC

Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development. Vol. 4(1), 28-34, Sept 2018

Ai Siok KHO-YAR, Shameem RAFIK-GALEA and Elise Ai Hwee KHO

Table 1: Regression Results for the Relationships between Variables

Relatedness to: Age Gender Ethnic Mother's education Father's education

Motivation

MI -.170 -.455*** -.340** -.442*** -.121

IO -.107 -.199 -.075 -.182 .072

Self-efficacy

PCC .374** 0.194 0.226 0.109 0.172

DLE -.381** -.249* -.318* -.199 -.366**

Mindset

ALE .208 .050 -.067 .081 .117

AAT .137 .150 .152 .162 -.022

WTC 0.130 0.329** 0.249* 0.260* -0.082

Academic performance

SPM .831*** .725*** .858*** .355** -.045

MUET .811*** .782*** .824*** .462*** .200

GPA .004 -.090 -.050 .023 .036 Note. n = 50 students and Grade: Form 5. * p < .05, ** p < .01. *** p < .001.

As for PCC, only age was found to be a learn, the desire of learning is higher to strong factor (P = .004). DLE was weaker compare to Chinese or Indians or other rac- correlated to all demographic variables, es. DLE scores were also weak in the cate- except mother’s education. It was revealed gory of father’s education, where those that younger students were more likely to whose father had less than high school edu- score higher in DLE (P = .003). This is cation were more likely to score higher in maybe due to their braveness in trying out DLE. and not being shy when they are younger. The female students were more likely to Another weak strength is observed for score higher in DLE compared to male stu- mindset variables. However, student’s SPM dents (P = .040) because the females are results showed high positive correlations to usually more hardworking compared to the all demographic variables, except father’s males in nature. Malays were more likely to education (P = .379). Ethnicity seems to have higher DLE scores compared to other have the highest correlations to student’s races (P = .012). This is probably due to SPM results (P < .001), followed by age (P their unwillingness in speaking the language < .001), gender (P < .001) and mother’s when they were in secondary schools and education (P = .006). when situations are desperate for them to

Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development. Vol. 4(1), 28-34, Sept 2018

Ai Siok KHO-YAR, Shameem RAFIK-GALEA and Elise Ai Hwee KHO

Figure 2: SEM results of the proposed WTC model

Similarly, MUET results showed high posi- WTC but weak from the self-efficacy and tive correlations to all demographic varia- background. When the learners are good in bles, except father’s education (P = .082). It their proficiency, they are willing to com- was found that there was no demographic municate in English as compared to other variables were observed as significant fac- factors, namely motivation, self-efficacy, tors affecting GPA results (refer to Figure 2 background, and mindset. The reason for the for the structural model). weaker factors of background is that, the personality will not affect learners’ willing- CONCLUSION ness in speaking English. Self-efficacy also showed weak relation towards WTC, be-

As observed, the final model conformed cause the level of confidence or willingness well to the data. The findings showed that in speaking the language is low if they real- there was a strong relationship between ise they are not good in the examination. academic achievement (L2 Proficiency) and Learners believe that Examinations in Ma-

Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development. Vol. 4(1), 28-34, Sept 2018

Ai Siok KHO-YAR, Shameem RAFIK-GALEA and Elise Ai Hwee KHO laysia determine everything, it is important MacIntyre, P. D., Baker, S. C., Clément, R., and the grades are representing the compe- & Conrod, S. (2001). Willingness to tency of a learner. Motivation, self-efficacy, communicate, social support, and background, and mindset showed weaker in language-learning orientations of strength in the Malaysia context in the will- immersion students. Studies in second ingness of communication in English among language acquisition, 23(3), 369-388. the learners. The results have supported MacIntyre, P., Baker, S., Clément, R., & MacIntyre et al.’s (1998) heuristic WTC Donovan, L. (2003). Talking in order model in determining the factors influencing to learn: Willingness to communicate WTC in an L2 communication setting. and intensive language programs. However, the final model shows that aca- Canadian Modern Language Review, demic achievement is an important variable 59(4), 589-608. in the current study, as no previous study has ever examined its relationship with Matsuoka, R. (2006). Japanese college stu- learners’ WTC in English by using SEM. dents' willingness to communicate in Further research is recommended in order to English. ProQuest. determine the effect of other variables such Yashima, T., Zenuk‐Nishide, L., & Shimizu, as a learner’s desire to communicate with K. (2004). The influence of attitudes certain person and WTC in English. and affect on willingness to communicate and second language com- REFERENCES munication. Language learning, Bektaş, Ç. Y. (2005). Turkish collage 54(1), 119-152. students’willingness to communicate Wolf, E. J., Harrington, K. M., Clark, S. L., in English as a foreign language. Un- & Miller, M. W. (2013). Sample Size published doctoral dissertation, the Requirements for Structural Equation Ohio State University. Models: An Evaluation of Power, Bi- Blueprint, M. E. (2016). Blueprint 2013- as, and Solution Propriety. Educa- 2025. (2013). Ministry of Education, tional and Psychological Measure- Malaysia. ment, 76(6), 913–934. http://doi.org/10.1177/00131644134 Carson, L. E. (2007). Relatedness and 95237 learner autonomy: a case study of an adult refugee learning English. Place: Marcoulides GA, Saunders C (2006). PLS: Publisher. A silver bullet? MIS Quarterly. 2006; 30:iii–ix. MacIntyre, P. D., Dörnyei, Z., Clément, R., & Noels, K. A. (1998). Conceptualiz- Yousef, R., Jamil, H., & Razak, N. (2013). ing willingness to communicate in a Willingness to communicate in Eng- L2: A situational model of L2 confi- lish: A study of Malaysian pre-service dence and affiliation. The Modern English teachers. English Language Language Journal, 82(4), 545-562. Teaching, 6(9), 205.

Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development. Vol. 4(1), 28-34, Sept 2018