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English Language Proficiency Level of BangladeshiStudents:
A Social Psychological Study
Md. Kamrul Hasan
Assistant Professor, English English Language Institute
United International UniversityDhanmondi, Dhaka-1209
Bangladesh
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Content
page
Chapter 1: Introduction 5
Chapter 2: Cloze procedure and
Theoretical Background 12
Chapter 3: Methodology 25
Chapter 4: Result and Analysis 36
Chapter 5: Conclusion 66
Appendices
Appendix A: Cloze Test
Appendix B: The Questionnaire
Appendix C: Variable, Mean and Coding
Appendix D: Mean, Standard Deviation and
Correlation Matrix
Bibliography
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Introduction
In the last three decades or so, the research work in second language
learning has brought out the significance of socio psychological aspects of second
language learning. In the context of successful foreign/second language learning,
several researchers have stressed on the significance of learner variables such as
attitudes, aptitude, motivation (motivational intensity/motivational orientation),
authoritarianism, ethnocentrism, etc. This work shows that achievement in a
second language is related to measures of attitudes and motivation. Two questions
come to the fore in spite of these relations. One of them concerns the validity of
the measurement of attitudes and motivation. The other concerns the precise
meaning of the correlation between measures of attitudes and motivation on the
one hand and second language achievement on the other. Though the nature of
analysis has generally been correlation implication which prompts the obtained
relationships to indicate that attitudes and motivation contribute to determine
achievement in the second language or that proficiency in the second language
influences attitudes and motivation.
The study of attitudinal and motivational variables is gaining in significance
as can be seen from some recent publications in the field. The pioneering research
work in this field was established by the contributions of Canadian scholars such
as W.E Lambert, R.C. Gardner and their associates. Lambert and their associates
conducted a series of studies over a period of twelve years in the U.S.A, Canada
and Philippines. Several of their studies were in Canada (e.g. Gardner and Lambert
1959, Gardner 1966, Anisfeld and Lambert 1961, Lambert, Gardner, Barik and
Tunstall 1962 and Feenstra and Gardner1968). Their findings show that along with
verbal intelligence and language aptitude, attitudes and motivation play
considerable importance as variables in second language proficiency. Gardner and
Lambert tested their initial hypothesis outside Canada in three American settings
(Louisiana, Maine and Connecticut). They were quite successful in establishing
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that a friendly outlook towards the other group whose language is being learned
can ‘differentially sensitize the learner to the audio-lingual features of the
language, making him more perceptive to pronunciation and accent than is the
case for a learner without this open and friendly disposition’. (Gardner and
Lambert 1972: 134). According to Gardner and Lambert (1972) and others,
motivational orientation can be divided into four different types: integrative,
instrumental, resentment and manipulative. They made a distinction between
integrative and instrumental motivation. A motivational orientation is said to be
integrative if a person learns a foreign /second language in order to enter into an
active interaction with the target language speakers, that is, socially and culturally
he wishes to become a part of the target language community. It is instrumental if
one learns the target language to get a job, etc., that is a person learns a second
/foreign language with utilitarian objectives, such as obtaining admission in a
particular course or for trade purpose. They do not explore the last two
motivations in detail. Gardner and Lambert (1972) emphasize the role of
integrative motivation in second language learning situations. Their French-
American studies show that positive attitudes towards French-American culture
along with favorable stereotypes of the European French are associated with
certain expressive skills in French. Lambert and Gardner made a very significant
distinction between integrative and instrumental motivation and in most of their
studies conducted in Canada and America claimed that higher achievement in
foreign language learning correlated significantly with the motivation to integrate
with the target language. Gardner’s (1985) socio-educational model envisaged
integrative motive as a hypothetical construct comprising motivation, positive
attitudes to the learning situation (i.e. attitudes to the language teacher and the
course) and integrative (i.e. attitudes to the other community or communities,
integrative orientation and interest in foreign languages). They conclude that
success in foreign language learning would be less if the underlying motivation is
instrumental rather than integrative. Many studies provided considerable support
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for Gardner and Lambert’s hypothesis that language proficiency will increase
directly in proportion to the intensity of integrative motivation (see Gardner 1985,
Gardner and ment 1990 for reviews). It is interesting to note from the
Philippines study that (reported in Gardner and Lambert 1972) they considerably
distanced themselves from their original position and thought that in settings
where there was an urgency about mastering a second language for utilitarian
ends, the integrative orientation won’t be prevailing. But, they found that the
instrumental approach to language study was extremely effective in the context of
Philippines.
Inspired by the work of Gardner, Lambert and their associates, research in
the social psychological aspects of second language acquisition gets intensified in
several other parts of the world (e.g. Lukmani 1972, Oller and Hudson and
Liu1977). These studies demonstrate that the measures of proficiency in second
language learning are significantly related to measures of attitudes and motivation.
However, several other research studies failed to find support for their hypothesis
and raised several questions. For instance, Burstall (1975) working with the
teaching of French in primary schools finds that although pupil’s attitude and
achievement prove to be closely associated, motivational characteristics of
individual pupil’s appear to be neither exclusively integrative now instrumental.
Lyczak, Fu and Ho (1976), Khanna and Agnihotri (1982,1984); Khanna (1983),
Au (1988), Oller, Hudson and Liu (1977) and Young and Gardner (1990) showed
that the theoretical claims of Gardner and Lambert lacked generality as the
variance in second language proficiency was not explained not so much by
motivational or attitudinal variables as by some social variables. Lyczak, Fu and
Ho (1976) found no significant correlation between achievement and attitudinal
variables. Wong (1982) obtained motivational orientation of Chinese students
learning English did not pose any correlation with their achievement. Au (1988)
found desire to learn English correlate negatively with English proficiency
measures. Au (1988) provided substantial evidence against the hypothesis that
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integrative motive was positively related to second language achievement.
Agnihotri, Khanna and Mukherjee (1982,1988) measured proficiency in the use of
English tenses of 356 undergraduates of University of Delhi and correlated it with
19 sociopsychological variables such as sex, socioeconomic status, schooling,
exposure to English, pattern of language use, attitudes, claimed control on English
etc. They found that the proficiency of the undergraduate students in their use of
English tenses correlates significantly with their schooling, patterns of language
use and stereotypes of English. From their study, schooling came up as the most
significant predictor of achievement in the use of tenses in English. Khanna,
Verma, Agnihotri and Sinha (1990) found that proficiency in English of the adult
immigrants learning English as a second language in Britain correlates
significantly with claimed control, patterns of language use, exposure to English,
use of English in the family, motivational orientation and desire to learn English.
Mathur (1991) worked with twenty-nine students learning German in Delhi and
found that educational background; self-image and exposure to German were most
closely associated with proficiency in German.
From the above, it is easy to draw the conclusion that second/foreign
language learning is an extremely complex process including the contributions of
the learner and his environment. Gardner's (1985) socio-educational model is more
comprehensive as along with individual differences, it also includes the social
milieu, the formal and informal language acquisition contexts and the linguistic
and non-linguistic outcomes as important ingredients of the model. Although
Gardner’s socio-educational model includes ‘social milieu’ as an important
component, his firm belief is that second language learning is essentially a social
psychological phenomenon. Gardner (1988) says that social variables which
reflect the complexity and dynamism of a given social situation can in fact prove
to be confounding variables.
Earlier, we have mentioned that the hypothesis put forward by Gardner and
Lambert (1972) is not beyond question. Several studies like Khanna and Agnihotri
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(1982) and Khanna (1983) have provided substantial empirical evidence against
Gardner and Lambert’s theory. Khanna (1983) found that achievement in English
was influenced more by schooling, claimed control of English, exposure to
English, use of English among friends, family, etc. than by attitudes and
motivation. Attitudes were found to have significant correlations only with
variable of exposure and language use suggesting thereby that attitudinal variables
have only indirect bearing on achievement in English in India. Similar result was
reported in Khanna and Agnihotri (1982). Sahgal (1983) working with educated
Indians found that the prestigious variants of different phonological variables
correlated far more strongly with schooling, socio-economic status than with such
social psychological variables as integrative motivation, linguistic stereotypes and
ethnocentrism. According to them, the people of India learn English for a variety
of reasons but all of them have an unmistakable instrumental colour: some are
integratively instrumental, some instrumentally instrumental, some manipulatively
instrumental and some instrumental despite resentment. They conclude that the
different types of motivational orientation show a high degree of overlap. It is
clear from their study that there is a substantial overlap between different types of
motivational orientation and that different types of informants are characterized by
different elements of motivations than exclusively by a given individual
motivational orientation. It is possible that the same informant may be influenced
equally by instrumental or resentment motivation. The main point which Khanna
and Agnihotri attempt to make is that the fundamental reasons for learning English
in India are instrumental rather than integrative if we regard manipulative and
resentment motivation as essentially instrumental in nature. Some work has
already been initiated in the attitude towards English in Bangladesh. In this
connection, the work of Shahed (2001) can be mentioned. He has concentrated for
his data in some urban areas only leaving the vast countryside out of his view. In
this context, it seems that his study is a restricted one based solely on a
questionnaire. His work reveals a largely negative attitude towards English though
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its instrumental function is also well recognized. Since changes due to
globalization are occurring at a rapid pace in Bangladesh, it is felt that the attitudes
towards English in Bangladesh may have become more positive. In the present
work, an attempt will be made to study the attitudinal and motivational variables
in the context of English in Bangladesh. The model proposed by Gardner and
Lambert will be employed and the findings will be compared with those of
Agnihotri and Khanna in India and those of Shahed in Bangladesh.
English is taught as a compulsory foreign language in Bangladesh right
through school up to the end of pre-university level. The need for the knowledge
of English becomes apparent among Bangladeshis as it can give access to the
advancing knowledge of the world. Apart from this, there is need for many to
interact academically and socially for purposes of politics, economics, etc. with
people beyond the national borders. As competition in the employment sector
increases the urge of students to learn English to give them an edge over others
understandably increases too. The need becomes most real in the context of the job
market. At this point, many employers of organizations with international contacts
often see proficiency in spoken and written English as a desired requirement.
Thus, proficiency in English has become more sought-after for Bangladeshis.
However, a large number of people feel that Bangla should be given more
prominence over English at all levels of education, administration and other
sectors. The people of Bangladesh have fought and laid down their lives for their
mother tongue. This carries a unique chapter in the history of the country. After
the inception of independence in the country, the demand for Bangla at all levels
intensified. As a result, the spread and establishment of Bangla in education,
administration and in other sphere of lives got approved by the government as well
as by the common people of our country. Now, within thirty years of its
independence the growing demand for learning English and dissemination of
English in all other institutions, organizations, administrations, etc. is also coming
to the fore. This whole spectrum can have the potential outlook of highlighting a
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change in the attitude towards English in Bangladesh. The general observations
which can be seen in Bangladesh are the following. English is not the language of
home. The number of programmes available in English has multiplied manifold
with the advent of cable TV. In the recent years, there has been a greater interest
in western music and plays in English among the young generation, particularly, in
the capital city of Bangladesh. The new youth wants to come out of the restrictions
imposed by their previous generations. The more ‘forward looking’ parents want
some amount of English to be used in teaching at all levels of education and
preferably want to send their children to English medium schools. On the other
hand, we also notice a concern for the greater use of mother tongue at the primary
to higher secondary level of education among academicians, researchers and the
politicians engaged in the race to increase their vote banks. It is often seen that the
children of the politicians who demand mother tongue education at all levels of
instruction are sent to study abroad or in English medium schools. English is
primarily learnt for higher education, career enhancement and to upgrade one’s
prestige and personality. It is seen that most educated people in the capital of
Bangladesh are fully aware of the importance of English in education, science and
technology. The general Bangladeshis are positively oriented towards English-
speaking Bangladeshis. In the context of motivational orientation, the relevance of
resentment motivation can be linked in the context of learning English in
Bangladesh. Not everyone is willing to learn English. For them, it is a compulsion
imposed by the system of education; others learn it because they are forced to do
so by their parents/guardians as a means of survival or for some other equally
compelling reasons. The stereotype which can be seen among educated
Bangladeshis is that scientific knowledge is not complete without learning English
as well as without education through the English medium. It would not be far from
truth to say that the ruling class in Bangladesh wants to continue to have English
in administrations and other important sectors because it is an important tool for
keeping the underprivileged marginalized.
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Cloze Procedure and Theoretical Background
Cloze procedure was initiated by Ebbinghaus in 1897. The origin of the
word ‘cloze’ goes back to 1953 when Taylor was trying to design appropriate
reading materials for native students. Cloze procedure prominently came into light
when Taylor investigated its effectiveness as a tool for determining the readability
of passages of prose in the reader’s native language. Deleting words from a
selection and requiring the examinee to fill in the blanks constructed the test. The
term ‘cloze’ was used with the notion of Gestalt ‘closure’ in mind, referring to the
natural human psychological tendency to fill in gaps in pattern. He coined the
word as a reminder of the concept of ‘closure’ which was well known in Gestalt
psychology. According to Gestalt psychology, the whole is considered different
from the sum of its parts. The development of Gestalt psychology has influenced
the way the process of language and language learning are described. Cloze
procedure is based on the Gestalt psychology. It refers to the ability of individuals
to complete a pattern once they have grasped the structure of the pattern. As for
example, if one sees a picture of a man’s face without one ear and one eyebrow,
provided he grasps what it is meant to be, he will be able to complete the picture.
Gestalt psychology was developed in Austria and Germany toward the end
of the 19th century. Gestalt is a German word which does not have an exact
translation in English. The word puts stress on the notion that properties of the
whole influence the way in which the parts are perceived; perception acts to draw
the sensory data together into a holistic pattern or Geslaltien. For that reason, the
theory is sometimes referred as the theory of the ‘whole’. The proponents of this
theory refute the idea that percepts are built up from distinct atoms of sensation.
The theory leads to the conclusion that human beings possess a natural ability to
perceive unfinished or incomplete Figures as complete entities. A typical example
of visual perception is completing an incomplete geometrical pattern–a pattern
with a closure–such as the ones illustrated below:
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Thus, if a person has developed a perception of an object, the object will be
perceived completely even if it contains some incomplete parts or closures. The
same approach, applied to language processing, claims that if one has developed
an ability to use language, he will be able to complete his perception of a piece of
a language even if the piece of language contains some closures or blanks. Taylor
(1953) suggested that the closure procedure could be treated as an alternative to
traditional reading comprehension texts. He believed that when certain closures,
i.e., blanks were made in a passage, it would result in an incomplete whole. The
words around the blank would function as the stimuli to activate reader’s mental
mechanism. Thus, the reader would try to find clues from the passage that might
help him trace the missing words. In this case, the reader’s ability to complete the
incomplete passage would be an indication of his reading comprehension ability in
general and that shows, in particular, his language processing ability. In more
technical terms, Cloze procedure is a means of assessing learner’s internalized
grammatical knowledge. In fact, the Cloze procedure indicates the efficiency of
the learner’s utilization of grammatical processes to retrieve the missing or
mutilated parts of the text. Cloze tests are deceptively simple devices that have
been constructed in so many ways for so many purposes that an overview of the
entire scope of literature on the subject is challenging.
Various research projects were conducted to investigate the efficiency of
Cloze procedure as text for non-native learners’ language proficiency. The
possibility of using Cloze procedure for testing foreign–language proficiency has
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been known since a study by Carroll, Caron and Wilds (1959) employed the Cloze
method with high school foreign–language students. In spite of the utility of their
study, the Cloze procedure is not even mentioned in many standard test books on
language testing (Lado 1961) nor is it discussed in the most widely used language-
teaching manuals (Lado 1964). The definition of Cloze procedure is provided by
Taylor as ‘any passage of appropriate length and difficulty with every nth word
deleted.’ There are several terms of the definition need to be clarified. The first
line of research focuses on determining the value of ‘n’. It is clear that the
minimum value that ‘n’ can take is ‘2’. That is, every other word should be
deleted. Though the minimum is easy to determine, it is not so with the maximum.
To determine the most appropriate value of ‘n’, Cloze tests with every 3rd, 4th,
5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th word deleted are developed. In practice, tests with
every 5th or 7th word deletion have become more popular. More specially, Cloze
tests with every 7th word deleted tests considered as standard Cloze tests though
they may not possess significant advantages over other types of Cloze with
different rates. MacGinite (1961) has found that words are equally restorable
under sixth, twelfth and twenty-fourth deletion systems but when every third word
is deleted, restoration is more difficult. Fillenbaum, Jones and Rapport (1963)
have shown that deleting words more frequently e.g. one out of five creates a test
of such difficulty that much discriminatory power is lost. On the other hand, to
delete words less frequently than one out of twelve does not substantially change
the quality of the test. We can see that a very low value of ‘n’ e.g. 3 or 4 will make
the test extremely difficult and a very high value e.g. 10 or 11 will make it very
easy.
The second line of research centres around determining the appropriate
number of deletions ranging from 20 up to 100. Since the number of deletion
determines the length of the passages, generally, more care is taken in this regard.
Following the tradition of developing reading comprehension tests, most scholars
believe that the length of the passage should not exceed 300-400 words. These
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numbers of words would accommodate approximate 40-50 deletions. The number
of items should be determined at a level which would produce both high reliability
and high validity. Experiments show that Cloze tests with 25-30 deleted items
have as high a validity index as those with 40 to 50 deleted items. Thus, the
common sense criterion for the number of deletions in a Cloze test is set to be 25-
30. It means that considering the 7th word deletion rate and 25 to 30 blanks, the
length of the Cloze passages would be somewhere between 175 to 210 words.
The most common form of a paragraph is the so-called ‘I’ shaped one. That
is, the topic sentence which carries the heaviest load of information, usually
appears at the beginning of the paragraph and the concluding sentence which
summarizes the context of the paragraph, comes at the end of the paragraph. In
other words, these two sentences provide a great amount of information which
may have a key role in understanding the total passage. Therefore, it is felt that
leaving the first and the last sentences intact in the Cloze passage will help readers
to comprehend the passage easily. It eventually becomes an accepted norm to
leave the first and the last sentences intact. In fact, later research also supports this
hypothesis. Adding the number of words in these two sentences would lengthen
the Cloze passage to 220-250 words.
Literature on judging the passage difficulty is old and rich. Within the last
few decades many readability formulas have been developed. Readability
formulas, though variant on the surface, have some common characteristics. Most
of them utilize factors, such as, number of syllables or words, length of sentences
or the syntactic complexity of sentences. Research on foreign or second language
indicates that a Cloze score of 53% or above corresponds to ‘what has traditionally
been called an independent level of reading.’ A score of 44% to 53% is in the
appropriate range for instrumental materials, the so-called ‘instrumental level’ and
the score below 44% falls into the ‘frustration level of reading.’ Oller (1972). The
same phenomenon has been also explicitly supported by Haskell (1976). In using
Cloze test procedure as a readability measure for foreign language texts, it is
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mentioned that if the mean score of a group of foreign students is over 53% correct
on a passage, then they will have the ‘independent’ level which means that the
passage is easy enough for the students and they can read and comprehend the
passage without getting help from a teacher. If the mean score of the students is
between 44% and 53%, then they are reading at the ‘instructional’ level, i.e., the
students will require help from a teacher. If their mean score is less than 44%, then
they will have the ‘frustration’ level, that means, the passage is too difficult for the
students even with the help of a teacher. Other researchers, like Anderson (1976)
suggested that the actual percentage might vary a little.
Considering the complexion and controversies related to readability
formulas, and also taking account of the differences between a native and non-
native speakers of a language, it is difficult to advocate strongly a particular
formula or criterion for selecting a Cloze passage for non-native speakers. For
selecting a passage for non-native speakers, it is suggested first to determine the
content of the materials studied or expected to be studied by the target population
for whom the test is intended to be given. Then, a random sample of passages from
the content should be selected. A particular readability formula should then be
applied to these passages and the average index should be taken as the criterion for
selecting an unseen passage for the group. Among the methodological questions
concerning Cloze tests which have been investigated systematically with non-
native speakers are scoring methods, difficulty levels, grammatical categories of
deletions and the performance of native and non-native speakers on the same texts.
Taking the difficulty level of a passage into consideration, the definition of the
term ‘cloze’ can be redefined as a passage of appropriate difficulty (determined by
readability formulas) and of appropriate length (220-250 words) with every
seventh word deleted. This definition though not a standard one nor
experimentally superior to other definitions can serve as a reasonable working
definition for those who are interested in working with Cloze procedure.
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In comparison with other earlier tests that generally measured discrete skills,
Cloze test is considered to be an integrative test. After the investigation of Taylor
(1953), a number of studies have been conducted to investigate the
appropriateness of the use of Cloze procedure as a measure of readability of L1
and L2 materials (e.g., Knight 1966, Bormuth 1962, Brual 1962, Anderson 1967,
McLeod 1962, Miller and Coleman 1967 and Keer 1968) measure of reading
comprehension in L1 and L2 (e.g., Bormuth 1969, Weaver and Kingston 1963,
Tuinman, Blaton and Gray 1975 and Alderson 1978) and the measure of overall
L2 proficiency (e.g., Carroll, Carton and wilds 1959, Conrad 1970; Darnell 1970,
Oller and Inal 1971, Oller 1972, Pike 1973, Stubbs and Tucker 1974, Jonz 1976,
Alderson 1979a, Hinofotis 1980, Brown 1980, 1983; Bachman 1985,etc.). Cloze
procedure involves a cognitive task ‘based on understanding and reasoning’ (Rye
1982). It is termed as a ‘constructive language process’ by Ryan and Semmel
(1969). Rye later on pointed out that a more appropriate term for it would be
‘Construction Procedure’ as the subjects were asked to build up or construct the
deleted words with the help of grammatical, syntactical, semantic and stylistic
information.
There can be two bases on which the deletions are generally made. The
deletions are either on the basis of ‘fixed-ratio deletion cloze’ where every nth
word (5th to 10th word) is deleted and replaced by a blank of standard length or
‘variable-ratio’/‘rational’ deletion where specific items, such as, articles, nouns,
prepositions, verbs, etc. are deleted. The latter suits grammatical testing/teaching
.The scoring is generally worked out either on the basis of ‘exact-word’
replacement requiring retrieval of the original word or on the basis of ‘acceptable-
substitute’ that allows acceptance of any alternative word that is contextually
appropriate. Bachman (1985) made two tests, in one of them different types of
deletions were made according to the range of context required for closure, while
in the other a fixed-ratio deletion procedure was followed. Bachman found that
while both tests (rational deletion procedure and fixed-ratio deletion procedure)
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were equally reliable and had equal criterion validity, the fixed-ratio test was
significantly more difficult.
Oller (1973) has termed the Cloze procedure as a ‘stroke of raw genius’.
The Cloze test is easy to construct, score and also it shows very significant
correlations with other measures of language proficiency. Taylor (1953) attempted
to show that the Cloze test procedure ranked passages as much as the two most
prominent readability formulae, Dale-Chall and Flesch. Cloze researchers have
focused on its utility as measure of overall second language proficiency (e.g.,
Carroll, Carton and Wilds 1959, Oller 1972, Stubbs and Tucker 1974, Mullen
1979, Khanna 1983 and Sahgal 1992). Not only for measuring readability and
assessing language proficiency but also for educational, medicinal, social,
translation and other purposes Cloze tests have played significant roles.
Fillenbaum and Jones (1962) were successful in making distinction between
transcripts of the speech of aphasic patients and control speakers. Klare, Sinaiko
and Stolurow (1972) showed that Cloze procedure possesses valid technique for
evaluating the quality of translations of technical training manuals used by the
military.
One of the major issues related to Cloze tests ‘what does it test/measure?’
Oller (1973) refers to the measurement of Cloze test as ‘grammar of expectancy’.
He feels that the underlying process of taking a Cloze test shows more than
‘passive reading’. On the other hand, Alderson (1983) and Foley (1983) are
sceptical of the validity of Cloze procedure as a measure of overall language
proficiency. Alderson (1983) reports:
‘The Cloze procedure is not a unitary technique, since it results in tests
which are markedly different, different tests give unpredictably different
measures’. (Alderson 1983:211)
Researchers have tried to explore the influence of different cognitive abilities and
styles on Cloze test performance. There are many studies which show contrary
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views about the existence of the influence of different cognitive abilities and styles
on Cloze test performance. Bialystok and Howard (1979) investigated the
influence of inferencing on Cloze test performance. They have defined inferencing
as the ability to exploit maximally all the available information sources in order to
arrive at new insights into the unknown aspects of the second language. They
found that inferencing is an integral component in performance on Cloze tests. A
lot of research has also been conducted to explore the influence of field
dependent/independent cognitive style (FD/I) on Cloze test performance. FD/I
refers to individual differences in performed ways of perceiving, organizing,
analyzing or recalling information and experience. Field dependence indicates a
tendency to rely on external frames of reference in cognitive activities whereas
filed independence suggest reliance on internal rules and strategies for processing
information and the existence of mental restructuring abilities. The results of the
studies exploring the relationship between FD/I and Cloze test performance are far
from consistent. Hanseen (1984) came to the conclusion that the relationship
between field sensitivity and Cloze test performance might not be very significant
for all cultures.
The next issue related to Cloze test is whether Cloze items are sensitive to
cross-sentential ties. Many researchers, such as, Carroll (1972), Alderson (1983),
Porter (1983) and Markham (1985) found that Cloze items were not sensitive to
long-range constraints. Carroll (1972) emphasized that Cloze test is based on
working with the ‘local redundancy’ of a passage i.e., the missing elements can be
supplied by the linguistic clues present in the immediate environment-generally in
the same sentence. Alderson (1983:216) writes in this regard:
‘My research, and particularly that reported in the Journal of Research in
Reading in 1979, shows that increasing the amount of context on either side of a
Cloze gap has no effect on the case on average. No increase in predictability is
gained by a bilateral context of eleven words rather than five words. If amount of
context has any effect, the critical amount is less than five words’.
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Porter (1983) also reached the same conclusion. He writes:
‘There was no indication that quantity of context beyond five or six words
bilaterally is a factor affecting predictability’.
On the other hand, there are many researchers, such as, Ramananskas
(1972), Oller (1975), Chihara, Oller, Weaver and Chavez-Oller (1977), Cziko
(1978), Brown (1983) and Jonz (1990) are of the opinion that Cloze items are
sensitive to long-range constraints. Ramananskas (1972) reached the conclusion
that at least some Cloze items are sensitive to cross-sentential constraints and also
said that the affect of such constraints tend to increase as the examinees become
more proficient in the language concerned. Chihara, Oller, Weaver and Chavez-
Oller (1977) found that both native and non-native speakers of English performed
much better on Cloze items in intact texts than did on the same items in the
scrambled texts. Other studies, such as, Shanahan, Kamil and Tobin (1982),
Alderson (1979) and Porter (1978) have shown that Cloze texts are not sensitive to
contexts beyond the sentence. Alderson (1979) found no evidence that increases in
context affected his subjects’ ability to complete items successfully. The current
study of Chavez-Oller, Chihara, Weaver and Oller, Jr. (1985) concluded that some
Cloze items are sensitive to constraints that reach even beyond 50 words on either
side of a blank. Their research also showed that this sort of context sensitivity was
inaccessible to rank beginners but became increasingly accessible to more
proficient language users. With the reviewing of the experimental data from
Chihara et al. (1977), they found about 10% of the items in each of the two texts
examined were highly sensitive to constraints ranging across sentence boundaries.
Researchers have also come up with alternative suggestions of modifying the basic
Cloze test so that it becomes a better measure of cross-sentential cohesive ties.
Those researchers who gave alternative suggestions are Clarke (1979), Bachman
(1982), Bensoussan and Ramraz (1984), Deyes (1984) and Mauranen (1987).
Clarke (1979) and Bachman (1982) suggest that content words tend to reflect
grammatical process at the sentential level. According to these researchers a
21
content-word deletion procedure is superior to every nth word procedure since it is
capable of measuring both syntactic and discourse level relationship in a text.
Bensoussan and Ramraz (1984) worked with a multiple-choice rational Cloze
which they named as the ‘fill-in-test’ is not random; they are chosen because of
their key function in a rational argument which the candidate has to reconstruct.
They found that this ‘fill-in-test’ is a reliable measure of EFL reading
comprehension. According to Deyes (1984), a more discourse-oriented approach
in Cloze testing is needed. Units based on communicative value are more
appropriate deletion items than single words if the aim is to test the comprehension
of a test.
The other important issue related to Cloze procedure is the frequency of
word deletion of a Cloze passage. Words of a Cloze test are generally deleted on
the basis of either rationally or semi-randomly or randomly. The rational Cloze
deletion process includes selection of words for deletion on the basis of linguistics
principle. For example, it can be only nouns or verbs deletion. Most researchers
have preferred to use the more simple every nth deletion procedure. A number of
these have employed an every 5th deletion system. A number of studies have been
conducted to investigate the effect of the rate of deletion on Cloze test
performance and to answer the question as how much context should be left
between Cloze items. MacGinite (1961) compared the effect of deleting every
third, sixth, twelfth and twenty-fourth word. He took into account the fact that
different deletion rates took out different sets of words. To control this factor, only
results on blanks common to all deletion rates were analyzed. Since different
deletion rates were multiple of 3, the possibility of having the same word deleted
in different Cloze tests was fairly high. MacGinite found that words were equally
restorable under sixth, twelfth and twenty-fourth deletion systems but restoration
was more difficult when every third word was deleted. He concluded that context
more than about five words distant exercised relatively little constraint. Anderson
(1976) points out MacGinite employed passages of text that would have been very
22
easy reading for the sample he took and that the effect of employing too easy
reading materials for subjects is to run the risk of masking differences which might
exist. Fillenbaum, Jones and Rapport (1963) compared the effect of deleting every
second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth word and found that Cloze scores increased
moderately as frequently of deletion decreased from every second to every sixth
word. Most of the researchers, such as, Fillenbaum, Jones and Rapport (1963),
Oller (1973), Potter (1968) and Alderson (1980) have preferred to employ the
every nth word deletion procedure. To Cohen (1980), the rational deletion process
shows more of a discrete point test. The semi-random deletion process involves
deletion of every nth word (N can be any number) neglecting its linguistic
characteristics. Random cloze involves the deletion of a percentage of words using
a statistical random sampling technique.
Another issue related to the Cloze procedure is the scoring procedure. The
most common way of scoring responses is to give credit only for the restoration of
the exact word deleted. However, it is not uncommon to take as correct retrieval of
either synonyms of the deleted words or semantically acceptable words. There are
other alternative scoring procedures, e.g. Darnell (1986). Darnell used a scoring
procedure based on a prior determined distribution of response frequencies to each
item as answered by the native speakers.
Many studies, such as, Stubbs and Tucker (1974), Alderson (1980) and
Khanna (1983) showed that there existed high correlations between the exact word
scoring method and the contextually acceptable word among non-native speakers.
Alderson (1983) concluded that the method which gave credit for any semantically
word appears to be the most valid procedure for the purpose of English as a
Second Language (ESL) testing. Thus, it appears that for native speakers the exact
word scoring procedure is the best and for non-native speakers acceptable word
scoring is the best. Several researchers attempted to modify various aspects of the
basic Cloze test. Instead of the usual written form, Peisach (1965) and Potter
(1968) presented the Cloze passage in auditory form. Ozete (1977) used
23
‘attended–choice’ approach in which the students will have choice to select one
out of two words rather a blank at random intervals. Jonz (1976) presented the
‘multiple-choice’ approach where the students had to choose one out of four
choices. On the other hand, Allen (1968) proposed using fill-in-blank tests instead
of the multiple-choice types. Clarke (1979) and Bachman (1982) suggested that a
rational-deletion Cloze test based on content-word deletion procedure was superior
to every nth word procedure.
The following issue related to Cloze test concerns the nature of the text. It is
well known now that if a student is familiar with the text of a Cloze passage, his
performance rises significantly than others who are not familiar with the text of the
Cloze passage. Darnell (1968) showed that engineering majors outperformed non-
majors on passage that was taken from engineering texts. Many studies have
investigated the kind of relationship that exists between the level of difficulty of
the text and the Cloze scores. Agnihotri and Khanna (1991) found that the difficult
text appeared as more difficult Cloze test rather than Cloze test based on easy text.
The most important issue related to Cloze procedure concerns the
performance of native versus non-native speakers’ differences on Cloze tests.
Alderson (1980) found that if Cloze tests were claimed to be texts of linguistic
proficiency then native speakers would perform invariably well on Cloze tests than
non-native speakers. He found that the effect of the changes in deletion frequency
was also similar for native and non-native speakers. It was shown by Alderson
(1980) that native and non-native speakers perform similarly on Cloze tests and
non-native speakers achieve scores as high as the highest native speaker. Although
native speakers are somewhat better at the task they are still far from perfect and
are not clearly distinguished from non-native speakers. Carroll et al. (1959) found
no differences in mean scores between native speakers and non-native speakers.
On the other hand, Oller, Jr. and Inal (1971) found that there were significantly
differences between the mean scores of native and non-native speakers though
Whiteson (1979) found somewhat different results.
24
The last issue concerning Cloze procedure is about the number of deletions
a Cloze test can have. The recommendation comes from the research literature is
that a Cloze test should have 50 deletions and a minimum length of 250 words
passage with 5th word deletion. To test this recommendation empirically, Rand
(1978) designed an item-analysis programme which artificially lengthens Cloze
tests one item at a time. The programme provided standard statistics for a two-
items, three-items, four-items and so forth, up to a fifty-item Cloze test for four
different scoring procedure (exact- word, acceptable word, Cloze-tropy, multiple
choice). Twenty-five items had achieved the maximum reliability achieved across
scoring methods. Rand concluded that little precision is gained by making a Cloze
test longer than 25 items. Sciarone and Schoorl (1989) tried to determine the
number of blanks minimally required to ensure parallelism for Cloze tests
differing only in the point at which deletion starts. They found that the required
minimum number of blanks for Cloze tests depended on the scoring method used.
25
Methodology
Introduction
This chapter discusses the details of the sample, tools and procedure employed to
examine the relationship between social psychological variables on the one hand
and proficiency in English on the other. The proficiency in English is measured
through the Cloze procedure.
Sample
The sample consisted of students from class eight (30), class ten (30) and twelve
(30) from different institutions in Bangladesh. Figure 1 provides the details of the
sample design.
Figure 1: Sample Design N = 90
class 8 class 10 class 12 (30) (30) (30)
school type
I II III I II III I II III (10) (10) (10) (10) (10) (10) (10) (10) (10)
We had 30 students from each class, that is, a total of 90 students. Three different
kinds of schools (an English medium public school, a government aided public
school and an ordinary school) were selected to take care of the socio-economic
variables. English medium children were taken from a school of Dhaka,
government-public school students from Jessore town and ordinary students from
26
Navaran, Jessore, Bangladesh. We preferred the co-educational schools so that we
could collect data from both male and female students of the same class. Random
sample selection was used in each class to select ten students. The information
about the students and their socio-economic background were obtained from their
admission forms in the institutions. All of them were Bengali speakers though
some of them learn Arabic in their earlier years and were in the age group of 12-19
years. The students were learning English as a second language. It is to be noted
that English in most of the institutions in Bangladesh is taught from class one till
class twelve as a compulsory subject. We can also mention that the learning of
English does not take place in a natural setting as most of the teachers of English
are not native speakers of English and the target community is also absent in our
country. The existing scenario shows that the students of ordinary schools in
Bangladesh generally don’t use English with their family members, among
classmates and friends. On the other hand, those who are from English medium
schools use English as a language of peer-group communication particularly with
the opposite sex. The reason for the greater use of English with the opposite sex
may be to impress them. There has been in recent years a greater interest in
western music and plays in English among the youth in Bangladesh. In spite of all
this, English is not the language of home and family for the students in
Bangladesh.
3.3 Tools
We used the following tools to collect data from our informants.
I. A Cloze test (Appendix A).
II. A detailed social psychological questionnaire (Appendix B).
The tools employed in this study were initially designed and tested in a pilot study.
Broadly speaking, we isolated three sets of measures, proficiency in English,
personal and family information and attitudes and motivations.
27
The Cloze Passage
Proficiency in English was measured through the Cloze test procedure. This
procedure was initially designed and developed by Wilson Taylor (1953) in the
early 1950s to measure the readability of texts in the reader’s native language.
This technique is also found to be very useful for testing overall language
proficiency of native speakers. Recently, it has been used as a measure of
proficiency in the case of non-native speakers in foreign and second language
situation. This section consists of a Cloze test designed to measure the proficiency
levels of the students in English. Following the principles of ‘Cloze procedure’,
we used an extract from Jim Corbett’s ‘Lalajee’ where every sixth word was
deleted after leaving the first and the last sentence unmutilated. It was a very
simple and an interesting passage. It was about 242 words in length. We had a
total of 30 blanks. The blank size was kept uniform throughout the entire passage.
Procedure
Examinees were given a copy of the test containing the instructions which
stresses that only one word was to be used in each blank which seemed the most
appropriate within the context of the passage. Students were advised to read the
passage twice before starting to fill in the blanks. Students were also told that
spelling would not count against them as long as the scorer could read the intended
word. The test administrator read through the complete instructions with the
candidates. He then asked whether there were any questions. The time allowed for
this test was thirty minutes. Students were told to consider the test as a challenge
to their English language ability.
Method of Scoring
The test was scored twice for each candidate: once by the exact word
method whereby only the words which were originally deleted from the text were
considered correct and second by the acceptable scoring method whereby any
word which was considered contextually and grammatically correct was also
28
counted as correct. Each blank when filled correctly was assigned one point;
hence, the score range of the Cloze test was 0-30. There were 30 blanks in the
Cloze test passage. Following ‘exact retrieval’ scoring procedure, every ‘exact’
recall was given a score of 1. Thus, a subject could get a maximum score of 30.
We adopted the following criteria for a contextually-acceptable response (i) any
non-grammatical form (e.g., he say for he says) would be automatically excluded
even though the meaning happened to be exact and (ii) any blank which contained
two words was excluded even though the result may have been acceptable
semantically. All other contextually-or semantically-acceptable possibilities were
accepted.
The Social psychological Questionnaire
This section consists of a detailed social psychological questionnaire
designed for the informants (students) to elicit the following kinds of information:
(a) Personal background, age, sex, socio-economic status, types of education
received
(b) Medium of instruction
(c) Attitude towards English
(d) Attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis
(e) Motivational orientation
(f) Parental encouragement to learn English
(g) Classroom anxiety
A total of 25 variables (v/vs) were created to examine the patterns of correlation
obtaining in our data. A complete list of these variables is provided in Appendix
C.
(a) Personal background and family information
Age (v. 1) was quantified as a running variable.
29
Sex (v. 2) was quantified in terms of ‘1’ for males and ‘2’ for females.
Exposure to English (v. 3) was quantified as a running variable ranging from 0 to
14.
Schooling (vs 4-6) was seen in terms of the nature of schooling at two different
levels, primary and secondary (post-primary). The score for total schooling (v. 6),
as may be seen from Question 11 (in Appendix B), could vary from a minimum of
6 to a maximum of 18. It was measured in terms of prestige of the institution,
medium of instruction used there and facilities available for learning English. That
is, the medium of instruction and other facilities were seen as indication of the
type of school that the subject attended. Thus, there are English medium schools
where not only the medium of instruction is English but also other facilities
required for an optimal control over English are also available. Similarly, there are
other schools (mostly run by the government) where the medium of instruction is
Bengali and facilities for learning English are minimal. A high school score is
suggestive of a strong English bias in the total education of the informants.
Residence/Address (v. 7) was quantified on a 5-point scale ranging from 1 (lower
class residential area) to 5 (posh residential area). This information was collected
from the address given by the subjects. The score was calculated as follows
Type of Locality Score
Lower Class 1
Lower Middle Class 2
Middle Class 3
Upper Middle Class 4
Posh 5
Socio-economic status or SES (v. 14):
30
The socio-economic status of the informants was elicited from Question 12
(Appendix B). Socio-economic status was measured in terms of the educational
qualification of the subject’s parents (vs 8-9), their monthly income (vs 10-11) and
occupation (vs 12-13). A modified version of Kuppuswamy’s (1962) SES-scale
was used to quantify father and mother’s education, occupation and income. Total
socio-economic status was seen as an aggregate of the above variables (vs 7-13).
The score for total SES (v. 14) could vary from a minimum of 7 to a maximum of
35.
(i) Educational qualifications:
Education is very important in uplifting a family socially and financially.
The following scale was used for the calculation of scores for educational
qualification.
Educational Qualification Score Ph D 5Professional Degrees or Masters 4Bachelor 310+2 2 Below Class12 1
(ii) Occupation: the following scale was used for the calculation of scores foroccupation.
Occupation Score Professionals 6Teacher/Government Servant 5Businessman/Private Company 4Farmer 3Labourer/Clark 2Housewife 1
(iii) Monthly Income: The scale used for the calculation of scores for monthlyincome is as follows:
31
Income (TK. Per month) Scores Below 2000 12000-3499 23500-4999 35000- and above 4
(b) The desired medium of instruction in different domains of education
The medium of instruction (v. 15): In question 13 (Appendix B), we wanted
to provide what our informants thought should be the medium of instruction in
different level/fields of education, such as, school, college, medicine,
management, engineering, etc. All the responses to question 13 were scored as
follows:
Medium of Instruction ScoreBengali 1Both Bengali and English 2Only English 3
The score for total medium of instruction (v. 15) could vary from a minimum of
12 to a maximum of 36.
(c) Attitudes to English-speaking Bangladeshis
An attitude scale was designed (Question 14: Statements i-iii) to measure
informant’s attitudes towards English-speaking Bangladeshis. There is a
westernized elite group in urban Bangladesh; one of their defining features is the
knowledge of English. A 5-point scale was given after every statement which
ranged from ‘agree’ to ‘disagree’.
There were 2 positively (Statements i and ii) worded and 1 negatively
(Statement iii) worded statement(s). The score for total attitudes to English-
speaking Bangladeshis (v. 15) could vary from a minimum of 3 to a maximum of
32
15. Scoring the positive and the negative statement(s) was done as follows:
Positive Negative Agree 5 1Slightly Agree 4 2Neither Agree nor Disagree 3 3Slightly Disagree 2 4Disagree 1 5
(d) Attitude to English (v. 17)
An attitude scale (Question 14: Statements iv-v and xxv-xxx) was designed
to measure the attitudes of the informants towards English. A 5–point scale
ranging from ‘agree’ to ‘disagree’ was given after each statement. There were only
one negatively (Statement xxx) worded statement and the rest were 7 positively
(Statements iv-v and xxv-xxix) worded. The score for total attitude to English
could vary from a minimum of 8 to a maximum of 40. Scoring for the positive
and the negative statements was done as follows:
Positive Negative Agree 5 1Slightly Agree 4 2Neither Agree nor Disagree 3 3Slightly disagree 2 4Disagree 1 5
(e) Motivation to learn English
All the items in these attitudinal scales were followed by a 5-point scale
ranging from ‘agree’ to ‘disagree’. Items were modified to suit the Bangladeshi
situation. The subjects were asked to circle the alternative which best indicated the
extent to which he/she agreed or disagreed with the statements.
Integrative motivation (v. 18) consists of 4 statements (Question 14: Statements
vi-ix) and the score for total integrative motivation could vary from a minimum of
4 to a maximum of 20. Primarily, it focuses on assimilation with the target
33
language community (here, the personality, traits and social roles of the English-
speaking Bangladeshis).
On the other hand, Instrumental motivation (v. 19) (Question 14: Statements
x-xi and xiv and xv) concerned with learning English for social and occupational
mobility. The score total for instrumental motivation could vary from a minimum
of 4 to a maximum of 20.
Not every one in Bangladesh learns English willingly. For some, it is a
compulsion imposed by the system of education; others learn it because it is a part
of their course requirement. The score for total Resentment motivation (v. 20)
(Question 14: Statements xii-xiii) could vary from a minimum of 2 to a maximum
of 10.
Manipulative motivation (v. 21) has been measured through statements xvi and
xvii in Question 14 and the score for total manipulative motivation could vary
from a minimum of 2 to a maximum of 10. Scoring for the motivation to learn
English was done as follows:
Agree 5
Slightly Agree 4
Neither Agree or Disagree 3
Slightly Disagree 2
Disagree 1
(f) Class-room anxiety (v.22) was elicited through 3 statements (Question 14:
Statements xxii- xxiv) and a 5-point scale ranging from ‘agree’ to ‘disagree’ was
given after each statement. The score for total class-room anxiety (v. 22) could
vary from a minimum of 3 to a maximum of 15. It was meant to be an index of
how comfortable a subject feels in the English class. Scoring was done as follows:
34
Agree 5
Slightly Agree 4
Neither Agree or Disagree 3
Slightly Disagree 2
Disagree 1
(g) Parental support in learning English (v. 23) was measured through 4
statements (Question 14: Statements xviii-xxi) and was quantified as in the other
(above) cases using a 5-point scale. The score for total parental support could vary
from a minimum of 4 to a maximum of 20. The students were asked to rate the
extent to which their parents actively encouraged them to study English.
The remaining two variables deal with the Cloze test; one of them is Cloze
test exact (v. 24) and the other is Cloze test acceptable included (v. 25). The
discussion of the two variables can be seen in the previous section 1 which deals
with Cloze procedure. The questionnaire was administered to the students only
after assuring them that the data to be collected from them would be strictly
confidential and it has nothing to do with their college evaluation. The
questionnaire was provided followed by the Cloze test.
We give below a list of variables we examined:
A. Individual Variables
(a) Biological Variables
(i) Age (v. 1)
(ii) Sex (v. 2)
(b) Attitudinal Variables
(i) Attitude to English (v. 17)
35
(ii) Attitude to English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16)
(iii) Motivational orientation (vs 18-21)
(c) Class-room Variables
(i) Class-room anxiety (v. 22)
B. Social Variables
(a) Socio-economic Variables
(i) Residence (v. 7)
(ii) Occupation (vs12-13)
(iii) Income (vs 10-11)
(iv) Education (vs 8-9)
(b) Socio milieu Variables
(i) Parental support (v. 23)
(ii) Medium of instruction (v. 15)
C. Language Proficiency
(a) Cloze test variables
(i) Cloze exact (v. 24)
(ii) Cloze acceptable included (v. 25)
36
Result and Analysis
Data was collected from schools; three types of school were identified for
collecting data; an English medium school, a government-aided school and an
ordinary school in Bangladesh. We preferred the co-educational schools so that we
could get data from both male and female students in the same class. As pointed
out in Chapter 3, we collected data from class eight (30), class ten (30), class
twelve (30) students and tried to make equal numbers of male and female students.
We took 30 students from each class, that is, a total of 90 students.
The average age was 15.33 with a range from 12 to 19. We used random
sample procedure for each class to select ten students. We always sought
permission from the head of each institute for the purpose of collecting data. After
getting the required permission, we first got the questionnaire (Appendix B) filled
in and then administered the Cloze test (Appendix A). In addition to it, we
informed the students about the objective of our study and assured them that this
study had nothing to do with the evaluation of their class-performances. Though
they were told to take the Cloze test as a challenge for their knowledge of English.
The administration of the tests and questionnaire was supervised at all times
by the test administrator. This was to ensure consistency in the collection of the
data. The total time spent on administering the questionnaire and the Cloze test
ranged from one to one-half hour. Allowance was made for five minutes for the
students to rest between the administrations of test and questionnaire. Sometimes,
along with me the class teacher invariably gave the instructions and also guided
the students. The teacher read each item of the questionnaire before it was
answered. This was to make sure that the students understood the questions and
responded appropriately. Due consideration was given to the fact that the medium
of questions was not the mother tongue of the students. The data collected was
codified and tabulated for every student. A large matrix was prepared on a
checkered sheet. The matrix consisted of twenty-five variables on the horizontal
37
axis and ninety informants on the vertical axis. Each student had been assigned a
number.
The analysis was done by using a software package SPSS/WIN. The data
were analyzed for means, standard deviation and correlation of 25 variables. The
total number of students in our study is 90. We did not face any problems in the
process of data collection. There was no question left unanswered by our
informants. They were very cooperative, patient and sincere in filling the
questionnaire (Appendix B). In our following tables, number before the issues
listed in Column I refer to the statements numbers in Question 14 in Appendix B.
Table 4.0: Cloze Retrievals (%) of the Students
Class
School 8 10 12
English Medium (n=30) 33.00 47.66 48.33
Government-aided (n=30) 31.66 34.33 41.66
Ordinary (n=30) 16.00 20.66 29.66
Table 4.0 shows vertical progress of performance among schools. The students of
government-run school have performed better than students of ordinary schools.
The students of English medium school have also performed better than students
of government-run school. For example, the students of class eight of government-
run school have better performance (31.66%) than the students of class eight of
ordinary school (16.00%) and the students of class eight of English medium school
have better performance (33.00%) than the students of class eight of government-
run school. The same can be said for other two classes (class ten and twelve) of
students as well.
We also see horizontal progress of performance within schools. The
students of class ten of any schools (English medium or government-run or
ordinary school) have performed better than students of class eight and class
38
twelve students of any of the three schools have performed better than the students
of class ten. Thus, we can say that the students of class twelve of English medium
school are the best performer in the Cloze test. Whereas the students of class eight
of ordinary school have performed very poorly in the Cloze test. Here, we can
also mention that as the students move up to higher classes, their English
proficiency level also increases.
The interpretation of the variables based on Mean score, Standard Deviation (S .D)
and percentage is shown in the following tables.
Age: The mean age of the sample is 15.33 (S.D 2.02). On an average, the students
involved in this study are found to be half a year above the standard age of their
respective classes. The students of the ordinary schools were perhaps sent late for
primary education by the parents.
Sex: The mean score of sex for the sample is 1.42 (S.D .49). This score shows that
on an average, the numbers of female students are more than male students. The
reason behind this can be the policy of our government which has started granting
many schemes, scholarships from class 6 to 12 to encourage female students to
study.
Exposure to English: English is taught from class one as a subject throughout
Bangladesh. The mean score of exposure to English for the sample is 9.43 (S.D
2.27) on a scale ranging from 0 to 14. The reason for this healthy figure is because
of their learning English from class one onwards.
The following Table 4.0 shows the mean and standard deviation of the variables of
our study.
Table 4.1: Variable, Mean and Standard Deviation
Variable No Variable Mean Standard Deviation1 Age 15.33 2.022 Sex 1.41 .4963 Exposure to
English9.43 2.27
39
4 Schooling Primary 5.14 1.725 Schooling
Secondary5.65 1.49
6 Schooling Total 8.92 3.6214 SES 18.50 4.3615 Medium of
Instruction32.27 2.31
16 Attitude toEnglish-SpeakingBangladeshis
11.46 2.35
17 Attitude to English 31.49 4.7918 Integrative
Motivation16.74 3.21
19 InstrumentalMotivation
17.87 2.40
20 ResentmentMotivation
7.93 2.40
21 ManipulativeMotivation
7.23 2.49
22 Class-roomAnxiety
8.53 3.94
23 Parental Support 16.47 3.8424 Coze Test Exact 10.11 3.9425 Cloze Test
AcceptableIncluded
16.73 5.65
Schooling: The mean scores of primary schooling, secondary schooling and total
schooling are 5.14 (S.D 1.72), 5.65 (S.D 1.49) and 8.92 (S.D 3.62) respectively.
The score for primary schooling (v. 4) and secondary schooling (v. 5) could vary
from a minimum of 3 to a maximum of 9 whereas the score for total schooling (v.
6) ranges from 6 to 18. The mean of total schooling shows that the students are
from quite prestigious schools and also there are some facilities for learning
English.
Socio-Economic Status (SES): The mean SES of the sample is 18.50 (S.D 4.36) on
a scale ranging from 7 to 35. The mean score suggests that most of the students
belong to middle class and lower middle class.
40
Medium of instruction: The mean score of medium of instruction for the sample is
32.27 (S.D 2.31) on a scale ranging from 12 to 36. The mean score indicates that
most of the students want greater amount of English to be used in teaching at all
levels of education. The figures tend to suggest that there should be very little use
of English at the primary level and more in professional levels of education. It is
also noticed that if a student prefers English medium at one level of education, he
prefers English medium for other levels of education as well.
Cloze test
The mean score exact, exact and acceptable included of the Cloze test are 10.11
(S.D 3.94) and 16.73 (S.D 5.65) respectively. The score range of the Cloze test
was 0 to 30. The mean scores reflect the poor performance of the students. The
nature of the text coupled with the below standard of our education as well as the
lack of qualified English teachers can be reasons for poor performance of the
students.
Attitude towards English: The mean attitude towards English of the sample is
31.94 (S.D 4.79) on a scale ranging from 8 to 40. On an average, the attitude
towards English of the students is on higher side. The mean score suggests that the
level of attitude towards English of the students falls between slight positive (high)
to total positive orientation. The attitude towards English measured through it’s
suitability for creative writing (see following Table 4.2) is not totally positive
unlike scientific thinking. However, it is considered overwhelmingly (67.7%)
suitable for scientific thinking. Most students agree that the present system of
education has benefited enormously (73.3%) from English and greater efforts
(81.1%) should be made to spread English throughout Bangladesh.
41
Table 4.2: Distribution of the Sample on the Scale Measuring Attitude Towards
English
Agree Agree Slightly
Neither agreenor disagree
Slightlydisagree
DisagreeIssueselicitingattitudetowards English
Noofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
4.Suitableforcreativewriting
23 25.5 24 26.6 9 10.0 9 10.0 25 27.7
5.Suitableforscientificthinking
61 67.7 15 16.6 1 1.1 5 5.5 9 10.0
25.Goodinfluence on thesystem ofeducation
66 73.3 18 20.0 3 3.3 0 0 3 3.3
26.Moreeffort tospreadEnglish
73 81.1 10 11.1 5 5.5 1 1.1 1 1.1
27. Essentialfor aleader
32 35.5 16 17.7 13 14.4 11 12.2 19 21.1
28.Goodforscienceandtechnology
67 74.4 14 15.5 4 4.4 0 0 5 5.5
29.Important forpoliticalunity
22 24.4 16 17.7 15 16.6 5 5.5 32 35.5
30AbolitionofEnglish
5 5.5 5 5.5 7 7.7 1 1.1 72 80.0
The attitude towards English, measured through it’s requirement to become
a leader in Bangladeshi society, is positive. However, about 36 per cent informants
agree that knowledge of English is necessary to become a leader in Bangladesh.
Nearly 75 per cent of the informants agree that progress in science and technology
will be hampered without English. It is expected in the context of Bangladesh that
English will not play an important role in bringing about political unity. Nearly 36
42
per cent of the informants disagree that English is important for achieving political
unity in Bangladesh. The reason behind this goes back to history. The
Bangladeshis have fought for their mother-tongue against the imposition of Urdu
by then West Pakistan government. They have more positive attitude towards
Bengali than any other language. In the present context of Bangladesh, the
pressing need for English in the first globalising society shows that English has
come to stay and will become part of our society. Almost 73 per cent of our
informants disagree that English should be abolished from Bangladesh.
Attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis: From Table 4.3, we can see that
most of the informants are positively oriented towards English-speaking
Bangladeshis. The mean score of attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis
for the sample is 11.46 (S.D 2.35) on a scale ranging from 3 to 15. The mean score
suggests that most of the students have slight positive attitude (high) orientation
towards English-speaking Bangladeshis.
Table 4.3: Distribution of the Sample on the Scale Measuring Attitude Towards
English-Speaking Bangladeshis.
Agree Agree Slightly
Neither agree nordisagree
Slightly disagree DisagreeIssueselicitingattitudetowards English-speakingBangladeshis
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage No ofpersons
Percentage
1.Warm-hearted
20 22.2 36 40.0 13 14.4 13 14.4 8 8.8
2.Progressive
38 42.2 32 35.5 11 12.2 5 5.5 4 4.4
3.Dishonest
5 5.5 5 5.5 22 24.4 5 5.5 53 58.8
About 42 per cent of the informants agree that the English-speaking Bangladeshis
are progressive. Nearly 59 per cent of our students disagree that the English-
speaking Bangladeshis are generally dishonest. A smaller percentage (22.2%) of
them agree that they are warm-hearted also.
43
Class-room Anxiety: Table 4.4 shows that nearly 47 per cent informants agree that
the other students in their class speak better than them. This shows that they do not
lack confidence in their use of English totally. Nearly 44 per cent of them disagree
that they get nervous and confused when they speak English in their class. On the
other hand, 56 per cent of them agree that they get confused and nervous when
they speak in English in their class. However, interestingly a noticeable percentage
(65%) of them disagree to have a fear of being laughed at when they speak in
English. Whereas about 35 per cent, that is, one third of the students agree to have
fear of being laughed at when they speak in the class. The overall picture one gets
from this spectrum of responses is that most of the students experience class-room
anxiety in a mixed way.
4.4: Distribution of the Sample on the Scale Measuring Attitude Towards Class-
room Anxiety
Agree Agree Slightly
Neither agree nordisagree
Slightly disagree DisagreeIssueselicitingclass-room Anxiety
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
22.OtherstudentsspeakEnglishbetter
22 24.4 20 22.2 12 13.3 12 13.3 24 26.6
23. Getnervousandconfusedwhilespeaking
18 20.0 32 35.5 2 2.2 5 5.5 33 36.6
24.Fear ofbeinglaughed atwhilespeakingEnglish
17 18.8 14 15.5 8 8.8 4 4.4 47 52.2
The mean score of class-room anxiety of the sample is 8.53 (S.D 3.94) on a
scale ranging from 3 to 15. The mean score suggests that the level of anxiety is not
alarmingly high. The reason can be that most of the students claim themselves as
good students in their classes.
44
Parental Support: The mean score of parental support of the sample is 16.47 (S.D
3.85) on a scale ranging from 4 to 20. The mean score suggests that most of the
students have high degree of parental support when it comes to learning English. It
is evident from Table 4.5 that more than 64 per cent informants agree that they
have parental help for their English. Nearly 64 per cent of them agree that their
parents encouraged them to seek help from their English teachers whereas about
61 per cent of them agree that their parents emphasize the importance of English
after leaving school/college. However, about 53 per cent of them agree that their
parents have advised them to spend more time on their English studies. Most
parents understand that the career prospects of their children depend on subjects,
such as, physics, chemistry and mathematics. Therefore, they do not exaggerate
the importance of English as a subject.
Table 4.5: Distribution of the Sample on the Scale Measuring Parental Support
Agree Agree Slightly
Neither agree nordisagree
Slightly disagree DisagreeIssueselicitingparentalsupport
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
18.Help inEnglish
58 64.4 14 15.5 5 5.5 2 2.2 11 12.2
19. More timeto Englishstudies
48 53.3 23 25.5 7 7.7 6 6.6 6 6.6
20.Importance of English
55 63.3 20 22.2 12 13.3 12 13.3 24 26.6
21.Seek helpfrom Englishteacher
57 63.3 20 22.2 12 13.3 12 13.3 24 26.6
45
Table 4.6: Distribution of the Sample on the Scale Measuring Integrative
Motivation
Agree Agree Slightly
Neither agree nordisagree
Slightly disagree DisagreeIssueselicitingintegrativemotivation
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
6.Importantfor interactingEnglish-speakingBangladeshi
53 58.8 20 22.2 4 4.4 3 3.3 10 11.1
7.Importantfor interactingwith variedpeople
77 85.5 7 7.7 1 1.1 3 3.3 2 2.2
8.Helps toappreciateEnglish artand literature
60 66.6 17 18.8 8 8.8 0 0 5 5.5
9.Helps tolive andbehave likeEnglish-speakingBangladeshi
37 41.1 22 24.4 12 13.3 2 2.3 18 20.0
Integrative Motivation: We see from Table 4.6 that out of the four integrative
reasons for learning English in Bangladesh, the largest number (85.5%) of
informants agree to have the desire to ‘interact with more and varied people in the
world’. Nearly 59 per cent of the informants agree that English learning would be
important for them to interact with English-speaking Bangladeshis. About 76 per
cent of them agree that it would help them to appreciate English art and literature.
However, a lesser number of informants (41.1%) agree that English is important
for them because ‘it will help them live and behave like English-speaking
Bangladeshis’. It is obvious from the responses of our informants that most of the
informants have the desire to learn English to interact with people, not necessarily
to assimilate or imitate the way of life of English-speaking Bangladeshis. The
mean score of integrative motivation of the sample is 16.74 (S.D 3.21) on a scale
ranging from 4 to 20. Compared with instrumental motivation, the mean score
46
shows lower level of orientation in integrative motivation. It looks like the
students wish to learn English without surrendering their unique identity as many
students desire to learn English for appreciating arts and literature which are
accessible through the knowledge of English. Very few students feel to imitate the
way of life of English-speaking Bangladeshis
Instrumental Motivation: Most informants, that is nearly 86 out of 90 agree (see
Table 4.7) that English is important for them because ‘it would help them to build
a career’.
Table 4.7: Distribution of the Sample on the Scale Measuring Instrumental
Motivation
Agree Agree Slightly
Neither agree nordisagree
Slightly disagree DisagreeIssueselicitinginstrumentalmotivation
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
10.Helps tobuild career
77 85.5 9 10.0 2 2.2 0 0 2 2.2
11.Useful forhighereducation
70 77.7 14 15.5 4 4.4 1 1.1 1 1.1
14.Makes apersonknowledgeable
68 75.5 10 11.1 5 5.5 2 2.2 4 4.4
15.Adds toprestige andpersonality
48 53.3 19 21.1 6 6.6 5 5.5 15 16.6
Nearly 78 per cent of them agree that English would be useful for them in higher
education in Bangladesh. On the other hand, about 76 per cent of the students
agree that English-learning would make them more knowledgeable. More than
half of them (53.3%) agree that English would add to their prestige and
personality. It looks like that the students wish to use English largely for
instrumental reasons. It is very interesting to note that English is perceived not
only as an academic and economic mobility but also as a means for enhancing
social mobility and individual personality. The mean instrumental motivation of
the sample is 17.87 (S.D 2.40) on a scale ranging from 4 to 20. The mean score
suggests that most of the students are fully aware of the significance of learning
47
English for their future career. They realize well that most white-collar jobs and
social mobility require the knowledge of English.
Resentment motivation: Nearly 63 per cent of the informants agree that they learn
English because it is a part of their course requirement whereas about 52 per cent
of them agree that they learn English as they are forced by their parents/guardians
to learn it.
Table 4.8: Distribution of the Sample on the Scale Measuring Resentment
Motivation
Agree Agree Slightly
Neither agree nordisagree
Slightly disagree DisagreeIssueselicitingresentmentmotivation
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
12.A part ofcourserequirement
56 62.2 20 22.2 0 0 4 4.4 10 11.1
13. Parentswant it to belearnt
47 52.2 8 8.8 15 16.6 2 2.2 18 20.0
The mean score of resentment motivation of the sample is 7.93 (S.D 2.40) on a
scale ranging from 2 to 10. The mean score suggests that most of the students
learn English as more of compulsion than anything else.
Manipulative motivation: Nearly 70 per cent of the informants (see Table 4.9)
agree that English will enable them to get their work done everywhere in
Bangladesh.
Table 4.9: Distribution of the Sample on the Scale Measuring Manipulative
Motivation
Agree Agree Slightly
Neither agree nordisagree
Slightly disagree DisagreeIssueselicitingmanipulativemotivation
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
No ofpersons
Percentage
16.Helps toget work doneeverywhere
45 50.0 19 21.1 6 6.6 7 7.7 13 14.4
17.Helps touse otherpeople forpersonal gains
26 28.8 28 31.1 12 13.3 5 5.5 19 21.1
48
On the other hand, 20 per cent of them disagree on this issue. About 50 per cent of
the students agree that English would help them to use other people for their
personal gains. It shows that manipulative motivation is instrumental in nature.
The mean score of manipulative motivation of the sample is 7.23 (S.D 2.49) on a
scale ranging from 2 to 10. This is not as high as of resentment motivation. The
mean score suggests that most of the students wish to learn English for
instrumental and not manipulative reasons.
Analysis of the Cloze Test
Following Haskell’s (1976) level of judging a Cloze score, we have divided
the sample into three groups in order to measure the overall global proficiency of
the students. This classification is aimed at determining the proficiency level of
second language learners and the difficulty level of the test the students are faced
with.
Table 4.10: Sample Distribution According to Haskell’s Criteria (N=90)
Mean Score Number of Students
Independent Level Over 54 5
Instruction Level 44-53 14
Frustration Level Below 43 71
A close look at the above Table 4.10 tells us that most of the students i.e. 71 out of
90 i.e.78 per cent of the students are at the frustration level. This indicated that the
passage is difficult for majority of the students and even extra help from the
English teacher would have not been useful for them. The average mean score of
Cloze Exact (see Table 4.1: Variables, Mean and Standard Deviation) is only
10.11 which suggests that the majority of the students are not proficient in English.
The poor performance of the students clearly shows that a few students are able to
49
acquire academic/cognitive level of proficiency in English in Bangladesh.
Fourteen students, that is, about 15 percent students are at the instruction level
which means that they are able to read and comprehend the passage and their
performance would have gone up with the help of the English teacher. Only five
students, i.e., nearly 6 per cent of the students are at the independent level which
indicates that they have acquired full grasp over English and have
academic/cognitive proficiency in English. It also shows that without the help
from the English teacher, they are quite capable of comprehending the test. The
average number of correct answers for the Cloze exact scoring is 10.11, with
Cloze acceptable included it rises to 16.73. The mean score is well over 50% now.
In second language learning situations, acceptable Cloze entries should be
considered seriously.
Classifications of the Deleted Words
We have classified the deleted words of the Cloze test (Appendix A) into
content words (Nouns, Verbs, Adjectives and Adverbs) and function/grammatical
words (Articles, Prepositions, Pronouns, Conjunctions, Determiner and Adverbial
particles). This kind of classification helps us to determine which category or
categories are easier or more difficult for students to retrieve. Table 4.11 shows the
exact number of words deleted in each category. Table 4.12 shows the percentage
of retrieval of function and content words in the Cloze test in terms of:
i. Exact retrievals
ii. Semantically and grammatically acceptable (SGA) retrievals
50
Table 4.11: Classification of Deleted Words
Parts of Speech Number of Deletion from Cloze Test
1 Nouns 7
2 Verbs (Main Verb) 2
3 Adjective 1
4 Adverb 1
Content Words
Total Content Words 11
1 Article 1
2 Prepositions 6
3 Pronouns 5
4 Conjunctions 3
5 Determiners 3
6 Adverbial 1
Function
Words/
Grammatical
Words
Total Function Words 19
Total Number of
Deletions
30
51
Table 4.12: Percentage of Retrieval of Content and Function Words (N=90)
Exact (%) Acceptable Included (%)
Content Words 24.94 50.80
Function Words 38.88 58.83
From the above Table, we can say that the students have found the exact function
words easier to retrieve than the content words of the Cloze test.
Table 4.13a: An Overview of Retrievals in Different Categories (Exact and
Acceptable Included)
Open Class Items Exact (%) Acceptable Included (%)
1.Nouns 18.73 50.15
2. Verbs (Main) 34.44 49.44
3. Adjectives 28.88 50.00
4. Adverbs 45.55 58.88
Mean Score 22.45 45.72
Tables 4.13a and 4.13b present an overview of the percentage scores of the
retrievals in different grammatical categories by the 90 students.
52
Table 4.13b: An Overview of Retrievals in Different Categories (Exact and
Acceptable Included)
Close Class Items Exact (%) Acceptable Included (%)
1. Articles 67.77 75.55
2. Prepositions 44.44 64.88
3. Pronouns 48.44 60.44
4. Conjunctions 20.00 45.92
5. Determiner 19.25 56.29
6.Adverbial 44.44 44.44
Mean Score 35.00 52.92
The mean score of the function words is higher than the mean score of the content
words. In the close class items, the percentage of retrievals of the articles based on
acceptable included score is the highest followed by the prepositions. The reason
can be the limited number of items falling in these categories. However, the
percentage of retrievals of the adverbials and conjunction based on acceptable
included score is on lower side among close class items. In the context of open
class items, that is, content words, verbs and adjectives have lower retrievals in
comparison with the rest of the content words. Comparing function words, we can
say from the above Table that function words for the students are easier to retrieve.
In fact, most studies have shown comparable results. Function words tend to be
predictable from the overall structure of the sentence. On this basis, we can draw
the conclusion that functions words are easier to learn.
Correlation Analysis
The level of significance of the values of the correlation coefficient (r-value)
is dependent on the sample size. The sample size of this study is ninety and the
53
loading considered significant is as follows: r ≥ .26 p ≤ .01 and r ≥ .20 p
≤ .05
Table 4.14: Correlation Matrix
1 -.119 -.079 .423 ** .432 ** .870 ** -.024 -.131 .522 ** .006 -.285 ** -.248 * -.109 .057 -.032 -.133 .263 * -.428 **
1 .000 -.282 ** -.243 * -.025 -.006 -.060 -.069 -.025 .195 .251 * .061 -.013 -.061 .146 -.059 .281 **1 .249 * .198 .063 .296 ** .338 ** .122 -.072 -.348 ** -.073 -.319 ** -.326 ** -.343 ** -.345 ** -.325 ** -.142
1 .920 ** .400 ** .504 ** .396 ** .598 ** .138 -.413 ** -.491 ** -.320 ** -.291 ** -.162 -.533 ** .104 -.459 **1 .411 ** .505 ** .430 ** .636 ** .149 -.377 ** -.429 ** -.287 ** -.259 * -.211 * -.499 ** .056 -.469 **
1 .055 -.254 * .463 ** .043 -.290 ** -.178 -.086 .030 -.089 -.164 .120 -.415 **1 .617 ** .589 ** .310 ** -.249 * -.394 ** -.218 * -.313 ** -.266 * -.610 ** -.071 -.271 **
1 .892 ** .395 ** -.325 * -.314 * -.464 ** -.401 ** -.221 -.364 ** -.241 -.2251 .241 * -.358 ** -.390 ** -.258 * -.164 -.251 * -.445 ** .052 -.385 **
1 .021 -.063 -.072 -.089 .078 -.093 .104 -.1501 .405 ** .416 ** .235 * .266 * .354 ** .046 .420 **
1 .326 ** .448 ** .294 ** .549 ** -.128 .574 **1 .536 ** .117 .368 ** .163 .513 **
1 .139 .534 ** .181 .427 **1 .281 ** .206 .208 *
1 .120 .431 **1 -.041
1
SEX 2SES 14CLOZ.EXA 24
COLZ.ACC 25EXP.ENG 3SCH.PRIM 4SCH.SECO 5
SCH.TOTA 6MED.INST 15
AT.EN.BA 16ATT.ENGL 17INTE.MOT 18INSTR.MO19RESE.MO 20MANI.MO 21CL.ANXIE 22PAR.SUP 30
V1 V2 V14 V24 V25 V3 V4 V5 V6 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23
Correlation is signif icant at the 0.01 lev el (2-tailed).**.
Correlation is signif icant at the 0.05 lev el (2-tailed).*.
AGE 1
The correlation matrix of individual and social variables can be seen in Table 4.14
which has been taken from Appendix D.
An Overview
Language Proficiency and Social Psychological Variables:
4.15: Correlation of Social Psychological Variables with Cloze Test
Social Psychological Variable Cloze Test
Age .42**
Sex -.28**
Exposure to English .40**
Total Schooling .59**
SES .24**
Medium of Instruction .13
54
Attitude to English-Speaking Bangladeshis -.41**
Attitude to English -.49
Integrative Motivation -.32**
Instrumental Motivation -.29**
Resentment Motivation -.16
Manipulative Motivation -.53**
Class-room Anxiety .10
Parental Support -.45**
i. A significant correlation (r= .42; p ≤ .01) is found between age (v. 1) and Cloze
exact (v. 24). It suggests that the older students have performed better than the
younger ones in the Cloze test.
ii. A significant inverse correlation (r= -.28; p ≤ .01) exists between sex (v. 2) and
Cloze exact (v. 24). It suggests that boys have performed significantly better than
girls in the Cloze test.
iii. Cloze test exact (v. 24) correlates (r= .40; p ≤ .01) positively in a significant
way with exposure to English (v. 3). This shows that those students who have
more exposure to English perform better in Cloze test.
iv. Cloze test exact (v. 24) shows positive and significant correlation with total
schooling (r= .59; p ≤ .01). These positive correlations show that those students
who have got better primary, secondary and total schooling perform reasonably
well in the cloze test exact.
v. A significant positive correlation (r= .24; p ≤ .05) is found between SES (v. 14)
and exact Cloze (v. 24) retrievals. This suggests that those who have come from
55
high socio-economic status perform better than those of low socio-economic status
in the Cloze test.
vi. Cloze test exact (v. 24) is seen to correlate (r= -.41; p ≤ .01) negatively in a
significant way with attitude to English-speaking Bangladeshis (v 16). This
suggests that those students who have performed better in Cloze test exact do not
have positive attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis.
vii. Cloze test exact (v. 24) bears significant negative correlation (r= -.49; p ≤ .01)
with attitude to English (v. 17). This inverse correlation indicates that those
students who have got better score in Cloze test exact do not view English more
favorably.
viii. Cloze test exact (v. 24) holds significant inverse correlation (r= -.32; p ≤ .01)
with integrative motivation (v. 18). This negative correlation shows that the
students who have performed well in the Cloze test exact have less integrative
motivation for learning English.
ix. The correlation (r= -.29; p ≤ .01) of Cloze test exact (v. 24) with instrumental
motivation (v. 19) is also negative. This suggests that those students who have
performed reasonably well in the Cloze test exact do not have high level of
instrumental motivation to study English.
x. Cloze test exact (v. 24) correlates (r= -.53; p ≤ .01) significantly in a negative
way with manipulative motivation (v. 21). This negative correlation suggests that
those students who have got better score in the Cloze test exact do not sustain high
level of manipulative reasons for learning English.
xi. Cloze test exact (v. 24) has inverse correlation (r= -.459; p ≤ .01) with parental
support (v. 23) suggesting that those students who have performed better in Cloze
test exact have received less parental support for learning English.
The correlation matrix of Tables 4.15 shows that proficiency in English is
correlated far more significantly with social variables, such as, schooling, age,
56
parental support, exposure to English, attitude towards English-speaking
Bangladeshis, integrative motivation, etc. Schooling is significantly correlated
with proficiency in English. Variables which have relatively low correlation with
achievement in the Cloze test include sex, socio-economic status and instrumental
motivation. Variables which are slightly more significant include age and
integrative motivation. Exposure to English has a significant correlation with
proficiency in English. It is found among those students who have studied in
English medium school. Attitude to English and manipulative motivation are also
found to have significant correlations with proficiency in English. It appears that
the learners who are negative in their outlook to English and have less
manipulative reasons for learning English tend to be proficient in English. It is
very rare that manipulative motivation turns out to be significant; this area needs
further investigation.
Cloze Test Acceptable Included (v 25):
A highly significant positive correlation (r= .92; p ≤ .01) holds between Cloze test
exact (v. 24) and Cloze test acceptable included (v. 25) (see Table 4.14). This
correlation suggests that the students who have scored well in Cloze test exact
have also got better score in Cloze test acceptable included (in the same Cloze
test). Except for resentment motivation (v 21), all the variables that are either
positively or negatively correlated with Cloze test exact (v. 24) are in the same
way either positively or negatively correlated with Cloze test acceptable included
(v. 25). Cloze test acceptable (v. 25) correlates (r= -.21; p ≤ .01) significantly in a
negative way with resentment motivation (v. 20). This negative correlation
suggests that those students who have scored well in Cloze test acceptable
included do not have high level of resentment motivation for learning English.
Correlation of Individual and Social Psychological Variables:
57
Age (v. 1):
i. A highly significant positive correlation (r= .87; p ≤ .01) exists between
exposure to English (v. 3) and age (v. 1) and it indicates that the older students
have more exposure to English than the younger students.
ii. A significant positive correlation (r= .522; p ≤ .01) exists between age (v. 1) and
total schooling (v. 6) which simply suggests the almost obvious that more the
number of years higher the schooling.
iii. Age (v. 1) has negative correlation (r= -.28; p ≤ .01) with attitude towards
English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16) suggesting that younger students have more
positive attitudes towards English-speaking Bangladeshis. It is important to notice
that as children mature, their 'fascination' for the English-speaking adult declines.
iv. A significant negative correlation (r= -.24; p ≤ .05) is seen between age (v. 1)
and attitude to English (v. 17). It suggests that the younger students view English
more favorably than the older students in the sample.
v. A significant positive correlation (r=. 26; p ≤ .05) holds between age (v. 1) and
class-room anxiety (v. 22). This indicates that the older students have experienced
higher levels of anxiety in the class than the younger students.
vi. Age (v. 1) has significant negative correlation (r= -.42; p ≤ .01) with parental
support (v. 23) suggesting that the younger students have received more parental
support for learning English than the older students.
Sex (v. 2):
i. Sex (v. 2) has significant positive correlation (r= .25; p ≤ .05) with attitude to
English (v. 17) suggesting that girls have more positive attitude towards English
than boys.
ii. Sex (v. 2) shows significant positive correlation (r= .28; p ≤ .01) with parental
support (v. 23). This indicates that girls have received more parental support for
studying English than boys.
58
Exposure to English (v. 3):
i. Exposure to English (v. 3) is seen to correlate (r= .46; p ≤ .01) positively in a
significant manner with total schooling (v. 6). This suggests that older students
have more exposure of learning English than the younger students in the sample.
ii. Exposure to English (v.3) correlates (r= -.29; p ≤ .01) negatively with attitude
towards English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16). This means that the greater the
exposure to English, the less positive the attitude towards English-speaking
Bangladeshis.
iii. A significant negative correlation (r= -.41; p ≤ .01) exists between exposure to
English (v. 3) and parental support (v. 23). This suggests that more the exposure to
English the less the support, encouragement for learning English from parents. It
suggests that perhaps parents themselves do not have very high level of
proficiency in English. As children grow older and study advance level texts,
parents are probably unable to help them.
Total Schooling (v. 6):
i. Total schooling (v. 6) is seen to correlate (r= .24; p ≤ .05) positively with
medium of instruction (v. 15). This suggests that those who have better schooling
recommend more use of English as a medium of instruction in different levels of
education.
ii. Total schooling (v. 6) has inverse correlation (r= -.35; p ≤ .01) with attitude
towards English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16). Surprisingly, it suggests that those
who have better schooling (involving greater exposure to English) don’t have
positive attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis.
iii. A significant negative correlation (= -.39; p ≤ .01) is found between total
schooling (v. 6) and attitude to English (v. 17). This suggests that those who have
received better schooling do not view English favorably.
59
iv. Total schooling (v. 6) correlates (r= -.258; p ≤ .05) in a negative way with
integrative motivation (v. 18). It indicates that the students who have got better
schooling have less positive attitude to integrative motivation. This suggests that
the students don’t wish to assimilate to or imitate the way of life of English-
speaking Bangladeshis.
v. Total schooling (v. 6) has inverse correlation (r= -.251; p ≤ .05) with resentment
motivation (v. 20) suggesting that the students of the sample who have better
schooling learn English not out of resentment motivation. They do not learn
English because it is a part of their course or because their parents force them to.
vi. A highly significant negative correlation (r= -.44; p ≤ .01) is seen between total
schooling (v. 6) and manipulative motivation (v. 21). This shows that the students
who have better schooling do sustain less manipulative reasons for learning
English.
vii. Total schooling has negative correlation (r= -.38; p ≤ .01) with parental
support (v. 23). It suggests that the students who have better schooling receive less
parental support to study English. The reason can be that most of the parents
encourage their wards to go for English tuitions.
Socio-Economic Status (SES) (v. 14):
i. Socio-economic status (v. 14) has significant positive correlations (r= .29; p ≤
.01) and (r= .33; p ≤ .01) with primary schooling (v. 4) and secondary schooling
(v. 5) respectively. It indicates that the students those who have come from higher
class of society also have both better primary and secondary schooling.
ii. SES (v. 14) bears significant negative correlation (r= -.34; p ≤ .01) with attitude
towards English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16) suggesting that those students who
have come from lower stratum of society hold more positive attitude towards
English-speaking Bangladeshis than those students who have come from high
socio-economic status.
60
iii. A significant negative correlation (r= -.31; p ≤ .01) holds between SES (v. 14)
and integrative motivation (v. 18). This suggests that those who have come from
low socio-economic status tend to less have reservations about assimilating or
imitating the way of life of English-speaking Bangladeshis.
iv. SES (v. 14) is seen to show a significant inverse correlation (r= -.32; p ≤ .01)
with instrumental motivation (v. 19). It indicates that the students who have come
from lower stratum of society wish to learn English for instrumental purposes.
They believe that their knowledge of English will help to get higher education and
good jobs.
v. A significant negative correlation (r= -.343; p ≤ .01) is seen between SES (v.
14) and resentment motivation (v. 20). This suggests that those students who have
come from higher socio-economic status tend to have less resentment motivation
for learning English.
vi. SES (v. 14) correlates (r= -.345; p ≤ .01) negatively in a significant way with
manipulative motivation (v. 21). It suggests that those students who are coming
from higher socio-economic status have less manipulative reasons for learning
English.
vii. We see significant negative correlation (r= -.32; p ≤ .01) of SES (v. 19) with
classroom anxiety (v. 22). This negative correlation indicates that the students who
have come from high socio-economic status do not have any significant amount of
classroom anxiety in English classes because their parents spend substantial
amount of money to encourage their wards to devote more time in acquiring
proficiency in that language.
Attitude to English-Speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16):
i. Attitude to English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16) shows positive and significant
correlation (r= .40; p ≤ .01) with attitude towards English (v. 17). This suggests
61
clearly that the students who have a positive attitude towards English have in
general positive attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis.
ii. Attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16) correlates (r= .41; p ≤
.01) positively in a significant way with integrative motivation (v. 18). This
correlation suggests that those students who have positive attitude towards
English-speaking Bangladeshis have wished to integrate with the way of life of
English-speaking Bangladeshis.
iii. Attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16) bears significant
correlation (r= .23; p ≤ .05) with instrumental motivation (v. 19). This positive
correlation suggests that the students who have more positive attitude towards
English-speaking Bangladeshis have more integrative motivation. This is due to
the fact that they have realized the importance of English for higher education,
better career, etc.
iv. Attitude towards to English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16) is seen to correlate
(r= .26; p ≤ .05) in a positive way with resentment motivation (v. 20). This
suggests that the students who desire to integrate with the way of life of English-
speaking Bangladeshis learn English due to the pressure of course requirement or
their parents force them to.
v. Attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16) is seen to show a
significant correlation (r= .35; p ≤ .01) with manipulative motivation (v 21). This
suggests that the students who have positive attitude towards English-speaking
have also manipulative reasons for learning English.
vi. Attitude towards English-speaking Bangladeshis (v. 16) correlates (r= .42; p ≤
.01) in a significant manner with parental support (v. 23). This correlation
indicates that those students who have more positive attitude towards English-
speaking Bangladeshis have more support for learning English from their parents.
62
Attitude to English (v. 17):
i. Attitude to English (v. 17) correlates (r= .32; p ≤ .01) significantly with
integrative motivation (v. 18). This suggests that the students who have positive
attitude to English have high level of integrative motivation for learning English.
ii. Attitude to English (v. 17) has highly significant correlation (r= .448; p ≤ .01)
with instrumental motivation (v. 19) suggesting that those who have positive
attitude to English have also high level of instrumental motivation for learning
English. This shows that English is perceived by the students not only as an
academic and economic ladder but also as means for enhancing social mobility
and individual personality.
iii. Attitude to English (v. 17) shows positive and significant correlation (r= .294;
p ≤ .01) with resentment motivation (v. 20). This indicates that the students who
have positive attitude towards English have high level of resentment motivation
for learning English.
iv. Attitude to English (v. 17) is seen to correlate (r= .549; p ≤ .01) positively in a
significant manner with manipulative motivation (v. 21). This correlation suggests
that the students who have positive attitude to English have very high level of
manipulative motivation.
v. Attitude to English (v. 17) shows highly positive significant correlation (r= .57;
p ≤ .01) with parental support (v. 23). This suggests that the students who have
positive attitude to English claim to have received more parental support for
learning English.
Integrative Motivation (v. 18):
i. Integrative motivation (v. 18) correlates (r= .536; p ≤ .01) highly significantly
with instrumental motivation (v. 19). This correlation suggests that the students
who have high level of integrative motivation also have high level of instrumental
motivation for learning English.
63
ii. Integrative motivation (v. 18) bears significant correlation (r= .36; p ≤ .01) with
manipulative motivation (v. 21). This indicates that those students who have
higher level of integrative motivation also have high level of manipulative reasons
for learning English.
iii. A highly significant correlation (r= .51; ≤ .01) exits between integrative
motivation (v. 18) and parental support (v. 23). This suggests that the students who
have high level of integrative motivation also have received more parental support
for learning English.
Instrumental Motivation (v. 19):
i. Instrumental motivation (v. 19) shows highly significant positive correlation (r=
.53; p ≤ .01) with manipulative motivation (v 21). This positive correlation
suggests that those students who have higher level of instrumental motivation also
have more manipulative reasons for learning English.
ii. Instrumental manipulative (v. 19) correlates (r= .42; p ≤ .01) significantly with
parental support (v. 23). This suggests that the students who have higher level of
instrumental motivation also have received more parental support for learning
English.
Resentment Motivation (v. 20):
i. A significant correlation (r= .28; p ≤ .01) exits between resentment motivation
(v. 20) and manipulative motivation (v. 21). This correlation indicates that the
students who have higher level of resentment motivation also have more
manipulative reasons for learning English.
ii. Resentment motivation (v. 20) shows significant correlation (r= .208; p ≤ .01)
with parental support (v. 23). This suggests that the students who have more
resentment motivation also receive significant support from their parents for
learning English.
Manipulative Motivation (v. 21):
64
A highly significant correlation (r= .43; p ≤ .01) exits between manipulative
motivation (v. 21) and parental support (v. 23). This correlation shows that the
students who have higher level of manipulative motivation also have received
substantial amount of support from their parents for learning English.
The network of all significant correlations can be seen in Figure 2.
+
+
From Figure 2, we can say that among the socio-biological variables, age,
exposure to English and schooling are not strongly and positively correlated with
Cloze but also among themselves. It is thus possible to say that in general, senior
students with higher exposure and better schooling have higher scores. Though
attitudinal and motivational variables are positively correlated among themselves,
they generally correlated negatively and strongly with Cloze scores. Though those
Age
English LanguageProficiency
Manipulative
Attitude toEnglish
Integrative Motivation
Exposure to English
Schooling
InstrumentalMotivation
ParentalSupport
AttitudeEng.Spe.Ban
. 42
. 40
. 59
- .41
-. 32- . 49
- . 53
- . 29
- . 45
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+ +
++
-
-
-
-
- -+
+
+
+
-
-
+
65
who are positively inclined towards English are also positively inclined towards
English-speaking Bangladeshis and have strong motivation to learn English. They
do not end up scoring highly on the Cloze. As in several other studies (Agnihotri
et al. 1985, Khanna 1983 and Khanna and Agnihotri 1982,1984), it seems social
variables are more important for proficiency in a second language. This study in
fact has shown that the cluster of attitudinal and motivational variables may in fact
be negatively associated with language proficiency.
66
Conclusion
The main objective of the present study was to examine the relationship
between different social psychological variables on the one hand and proficiency
in English on the other. We had a total 90 students from class eight (30), class ten
(30) and twelve (30) from different institutions in Bangladesh. A set of 25
linguistic and social psychological variables was examined to decide the main
diagnostic determinants of the proficiency levels of the students in English. The
proficiency in English was measured through the Cloze procedure.
We have found a significant correlation between scoring for exact versus
acceptable included responses suggesting the Cloze procedure would well be
appropriate for use with non-native speakers. Except for medium of instruction,
resentment motivation and class-room anxiety, all other variables, namely, age,
sex, socio-economic status, exposure to English, schooling, attitude to English-
speaking Bangladeshis, attitude to English, integrative motivation, instrumental
motivation, manipulative motivation and parental support are significantly
correlated with the Cloze scores. We have observed that age was positively
correlated with the Cloze test, exposure to English and total schooling indicating
that those students who are older have better schooling, more exposure to English
and also have performed better in the Cloze test. Sex has inverse correlation with
Cloze which suggests that male students have done better than female students.
Cloze has shown significant positive correlation with socio-economic status. This
indicates that the learners who are from lower rung of society have not done well
in the Cloze test though they have positive attitude to English-speaking
Bangladeshis and also have realized the importance of English for getting better
education and good jobs. The reason might be that they do not enough access to
English. Those students who have performed better have come from high socio-
economic status and do not sustain positive attitude towards English-speaking
Bangladeshis and view English unfavourably. We have observed that the
maximum numbers of students, that is, over 78 per cent of them are at the
67
frustration level. The other reasons that are responsible for this poor performance
of the students are lack of standard educational system and overall poor teaching
by the unqualified English teachers. It is obvious that those who are from high
socio-economic status can afford to learn English by private tutors and also have
access to other sources. Thus, we see from the result that more positive the
attitudes and more integrative the motivation, the lower the level of proficiency of
English of the learners.
Our study has shown that the variables which appear to be most significant
in their relationship with total achievement includes age, exposure to English and
the kind of school attended. Total achievement in the Cloze test is highly
correlated with primary, secondary and total schooling. Schooling, thus, appears to
be the most significant variable in relation to achievement in English. Schooling
also has been found to be a very significant variable in several other studies.
Williams (1981) concerned with the relative significance of different social and
psychological variables in relation to the ability of Nigerian children in reading
English also found that the ‘type of school’ accounted for no less than 37 per cent
of the variance in the combined scores. Agnihotri et al. (1982) in their socio-
psychological study of achievement in English tenses found that schooling
explained 29 per cent of variance in the total achievement in the use of tenses.
Khanna et al. (1984) pointed out that speech skills were significantly influenced
by the type of school a student had attended. The importance of schooling in
second language learning becomes clear when we realize that it is only good
schools which provide suitable facilities encouraging the conversion of ‘input’ into
‘intake’. Agnihotri et al. (1983) point out that these schools generally have
qualified teaching staff, very good libraries and several recreational facilities
where children can learn while playing. On the other hand, teaching in government
schools generally concentrate on discrete grammatical points and provide very
little interesting exposure. The ordinary schools cater to children coming from
relatively poor socio-economic background. There are minimal opportunities to
68
use English and the library and recreational facilities are limited. Not very
different situation prevails in Bangladesh. It is obligatory for the students to use
English all the time in English medium schools. On the other hand, English is
seldom used outside the class-room in government schools. There are minimal
opportunities to use English for the students in ordinary semi-government schools
and the teaching is done through Bengali even in English classes.
Socio-economic status was found to play a very important role in the
development of proficiency in English. This finding corroborates the results of
many other investigations reported by Burstall (1975). Robinson (1971) noticed
that children with parents in high status occupation tend to receive more parental
support when they approach new learning experiences than do those with parents
in lower status occupation. We have noticed that positive attitude towards the
English-speaking Bangladeshis do not correlate significantly with achievement in
English proficiency. It was expected that the socio-economic status of the learners
would correlate highly with their schooling and with overall achievement in the
Cloze test. Children from higher socio-economic background generally go to
schools and speak English more fluently than others. But, in the test administered
by us, socio-economic status seems to bear very low correlation with achievement.
The present study has shown that age is one of most significant predictors of
proficiency in English. Hamid’s (2001) work based on Syrian college students
acquiring English also found that age was one of the most significant predictors of
achievement and proficiency in English.
We have also found that social psychological variables significantly interact
with social variables and social variable are found to be more important for
language proficiency. Our study has also shown that out of all social psychological
variables only attitude toward English and English-speaking Bangladeshis and
motivation manipulatively instrumental in nature have significant correlations with
proficiency in English. It seems that in foreign language learning situation such as
those examined by Gardner and Lambert (1972), social psychological variables
69
may be more important in determining proficiency/ achievement in a foreign
language whereas in second language learning situations such as that of
Bangladesh, social variables are more important. Khanna (1983) found that the
best predictor of achievement in English were proficiency in English and
schooling. It appears that different sets of social psychological variables are likely
to cluster with different linguistic skills in different social settings. Our study
shows that attitudinal motivations have strong negative correlations. Though the
result is in line with Indian studies where socio-psychological variables, such as,
schooling and exposure to English are found as important predictors for English
proficiency. The high negative correlations of attitudinal motivations of our study
require further investigations.
We have examined the proficiency in English in a comprehensive
sociopsychological framework in our study. We have also noticed how statistical
tools such as correlation can be used to select significant variables from manifold
different social and social psychological variables. The results of our present study
confirm that schooling is the most significant predictor of achievement and
proficiency in second language learning. In addition to schooling, age and
exposure to English also contribute substantially towards language proficiency in
English.
70
APPENDIX A
Please read the whole text once without filling in the blanks. Read it again and fill
in the blanks with the most appropriate word you can think of.
Fill only one word in each blank.
LALAJEE
BY JIM CORBETT
And so Lalajee left me, taking with him the greater part of my savings. That I
would see him 1 I never doubted, for the 2 of India never forget a
3 ; but the promise Lalajee had 4 was, I felt sure, beyond 5
powers of accomplishment. In this 6 was wrong, for returning late 7
evening I saw a man 8 in spotless white standing in 9 veranda. The
light from the 10 behind him was in my 11 , and I did not recognize
12 until he spoke . It was 13 , come a few days before 14 expiry of
the time limit 15 had set himself. That night 16 he sat on the floor
17 my chair he told me 18 his trading transactions, and the 19
that had attended them. Starting 20 a few bags of grain 21 being
content with a profit 22 only four annas per bag 23 had gradually,
and steadily, built 24 his business until he was 25 to deal in
consignments up 26 thirty tons in weight, on 27 he was making a
profit 28 three rupees per ton. His 29 was in a good school, 30
as he could now afford to keep a wife he had married the daughter of a rich
merchant of Patna; all this he had accomplished in a little under twelve months. As
71
the time drew near for his train to leave he laid five one-hundred rupee notes on
my knee.
List of Deleted Words of the Test
1 Again 11 Him 21 And 2 Poor 12 Lalajee 22 Of 3 Kindness 13 The 23 He 4 Made 14 He 24 Up 5 His 15 As 25 Able 6 One 16 Near 26 To 7 Dressed 17 Of 27 Which 8 My 18 Success 28 Of 9 Room 19 With 29 Son 10 Eyes 20 And 30 And
APPENDIX B
INFORMANT NO:QUESTIONNAIRE
1. Name:2. Address:3. Telephone Number:4. Course: Science/Humanities5. Age:6. Sex:7. Date of Birth:8. The first language you learnt to speak as a child:9. At what age did you start learning/using English:10. In which class did you join this school?11. Using the scale below, please tell us about the educational institutions youattended in terms of their prestige, facilities available for learning English andthe medium of instruction:
Prestige Medium of instruction
Ordinary school =1 Bangla =1Quite prestigious =2 Both Bangla and English =2
72
Highly prestigious =3 Only English =3
Facilities for English
Very little =1Some =2A lot =3
(Please put the appropriate number in each box)
Level Prestige Facilities Medium ofInstructions PrimarySecondary
12. Using the Scale below, provide the following information about your familymembers:
Monthly Income Fluency in English(Tk Per Month)Below 2000 =1 Nil =12000- 3499 =2 Very little =23500-4999 =3 Moderate =35000-and above =4 Good =4
Very high =5
Age EducationalQualification
Occupation MonthlyIncome
Fluency inEnglish
Father Mother Brother (s) Sister (s) Any Other
13.What, according to you, should be the medium of instruction at the followinglevels of education?
Level Medium of instruction
Primary schoolSecondary schoolHigher secondary school
73
B.AB.Sc. M.AM.Sc. EngineeringManagementFashion designingTravel and TourismComputer education
14. Please indicate your opinion about each of the following statements by circlingthe alternative which best indicates the extent to which you agree or disagree withthat statement.
i. The English-speaking Bangladeshis are warm-hearted. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
ii. The English-speaking Bangladeshis are very progressive. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
iii. The English-speaking Bangladeshis are generally dishonest. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
iv. English is the most suitable language for creating writing (poetry, drama, etc). (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
v. English is the most suitable language for scientific thinking. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
vi. English is important for me because it will allow me to interact with theEnglish-speaking Bangladeshis. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
vii. English is important for me because it will allow me to interact with moreand varied people in the world. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
viii. English is important for me because it will help me to appreciate Englishart and literature.
74
(a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
ix. English is important for me because it will help me to live and behave likethe English-speaking Bangladeshis. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
x. English will help me to build my career. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xi. English is very important for me because it would be useful for highereducation in Bangladesh. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xii. I learn English because it is a part of my course requirement. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xiii. I learn English because my parents want me to learn it. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xiv. English is important for me because it will help me to become a moreknowledgeable person. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xv. English is important for me because it will add to my prestige andpersonality. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xvi. English is important for me because it will enable me to my get work doneeverywhere in Bangladesh. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xvii. English will help me to use other people for my personal gains. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xviii. My parents try to help me with English. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
75
xix. My parents think that I should devote more time to my English studies. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xx. My parents have stressed the importance on English will have for mewhen I leave school/college. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxi. My parents encourage me to seek help from my English teacher. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxii. I always feel that other students speak English better than me. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxiii. I get nervous and confused when I am speaking in my English class. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxiv. I am afraid of the other students will laugh at me when I speak English. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxv. English has exercised a good influence on the system of education inBangladesh. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxvi. Greater effort should be made to spread English throughout Bangladesh. (a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)
slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxvii. Knowledge of English is essential in order to be a leader in theBangladeshi society.
(a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxviii. If English is abolished, it would hamper the progress of science andtechnology in Bangladesh.
(a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxix. English has important role than Bangla to play in bringing about politicalunity in Bangladesh.
(a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
xxx. English should be abolished from Bangladesh.
76
(a) Agree (b) slightly agree (c) neither agree or nor disagree (d)slightly disagree (e) disagree
APPENDIX C
Coding Sheet
Variable No. Name Coding 1 Age Running 2 Sex Male=1; Female=23 Exposure to English Running 0-144 Primary Schooling 3-95 Secondary Schooling 3-96 Total Schooling (4-5) 6-187 Residence 1-58 Father’s Education 1-59 Mother’s Education 1-510 Father’s Income 1-411 Mother’s Income 1-412 Father’s Occupation 1-613 Mother’s Occupation 1-614 Total SES(7-13) 7-3515 Medium of Instruction 12-3616 Attitude to English-Speaking
Bangladeshis 3-15
17 Attitude to English 8-4018 Integrative Motivation 4-2019 Instrumental Motivation 4-2020 Resentment Motivation 2-1021 Manipulative Motivation 2-1022 Class-room Anxiety 3-1523 Parental Support 4-2024 Cloze Test Exact 1-3025 Cloze Test Acceptable Included 1-30
77
APPENDIX D
Variable, Mean and Standard Deviation
Variable No Variables Mean Standard Deviation1 Age 15.33 2.022 Sex 1.41 .4963 Exposure to
English 9.43 2.27
4 Schooling Primary 5.14 1.725 Schooling
Secondary 5.65 1.49
6 Schooling Total 8.92 3.6214 SES 18.50 4.3615 Medium of
Instruction 32.27 2.31
16 Attitude toEnglish-SpeakingBangladeshis
11.46 2.35
17 Attitude to English 31.49 4.7918 Integrative
Motivation 16.74 3.21
19 InstrumentalMotivation
17.87 2.40
20 ResentmentMotivation
7.93 2.40
21 ManipulativeMotivation
7.23 2.49
22 Class-roomAnxiety
8.53 3.94
23 Parental Support 16.47 3.8424 Coze Test Exact 10.11 3.9425 Cloze Test
AcceptableIncluded
16.73 5.65
78
Correlation Matrix
1 -.119 -.079 .423 ** .432 ** .870 ** -.024 -.131 .522 ** .006 -.285 ** -.248 * -.109 .057 -.032 -.133 .263 * -.428 **
1 .000 -.282 ** -.243 * -.025 -.006 -.060 -.069 -.025 .195 .251 * .061 -.013 -.061 .146 -.059 .281 **1 .249 * .198 .063 .296 ** .338 ** .122 -.072 -.348 ** -.073 -.319 ** -.326 ** -.343 ** -.345 ** -.325 ** -.142
1 .920 ** .400 ** .504 ** .396 ** .598 ** .138 -.413 ** -.491 ** -.320 ** -.291 ** -.162 -.533 ** .104 -.459 **1 .411 ** .505 ** .430 ** .636 ** .149 -.377 ** -.429 ** -.287 ** -.259 * -.211 * -.499 ** .056 -.469 **
1 .055 -.254 * .463 ** .043 -.290 ** -.178 -.086 .030 -.089 -.164 .120 -.415 **1 .617 ** .589 ** .310 ** -.249 * -.394 ** -.218 * -.313 ** -.266 * -.610 ** -.071 -.271 **
1 .892 ** .395 ** -.325 * -.314 * -.464 ** -.401 ** -.221 -.364 ** -.241 -.2251 .241 * -.358 ** -.390 ** -.258 * -.164 -.251 * -.445 ** .052 -.385 **
1 .021 -.063 -.072 -.089 .078 -.093 .104 -.1501 .405 ** .416 ** .235 * .266 * .354 ** .046 .420 **
1 .326 ** .448 ** .294 ** .549 ** -.128 .574 **1 .536 ** .117 .368 ** .163 .513 **
1 .139 .534 ** .181 .427 **1 .281 ** .206 .208 *
1 .120 .431 **1 -.041
1
SEX 2SES 14CLOZ.EXA 24
COLZ.ACC 25EXP.ENG 3SCH.PRIM 4SCH.SECO 5
SCH.TOTA 6MED.INST 15
AT.EN.BA 16ATT.ENGL 17INTE.MOT 18INSTR.MO19RESE.MO 20MANI.MO 21CL.ANXIE 22PAR.SUP 30
V1 V2 V14 V24 V25 V3 V4 V5 V6 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23
Correlation is signif icant at the 0.01 lev el (2-tailed).**.
Correlation is signif icant at the 0.05 lev el (2-tailed).*.
AGE 1
79
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