Assignment title:

Portrait of a Successful Language Learner

1. Introduction

Not all learners we teach are equally successful and some are not successful at all. As

teachers we have to ask ourselves why this is the case. We can examine our practice, the

materials we use, the learning context and the learners themselves and their individual

differences (IDs). Dörnyei (2005) focuses on three core variables: personality,

ability/aptitude and motivation as well as factors such as learning styles, learning strategies

– including self-regulatory capacity, plus a number of other factors. In this assignment I will

examine the themes of Aptitude (including self-regulation and learning strategies),

Motivation and Learning in a Group, three themes that, in their optimum form, combine to

give a sound foundation for success. I will also touch on some of the other factors

mentioned above.

First of all we need to consider what we mean by success in language learning. We might

use a proficiency test such as the Cambridge First Certificate in English. It is a global

achievement test which does not relate directly to course content. It tests skills as well as

grammar, vocabulary, chunks of language or ‘declarative’ knowledge, and it is widely

recognised. Much of the test is marked objectively with clear frameworks for the marking of

the Speaking and Writing papers.

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We also use progress tests and achievement tests that help us assess how well our learners

are doing on the course and whether or not they have achieved the course goals. Achieving

high marks in a test is not the only measure of success. Students feel a sense of success

when their teacher praises them for distance travelled – perhaps they did not get a very

good score but have made considerable improvement.

However, success is not all about class test results, evidence of procedural knowledge is also

a measure of achievement. For example, if the boss or their family members have noticed

an improvement in the learner’s English, or they have succeeded in getting a better job, or

they now feel more confident when talking to their child’s teacher or to their doctor. For

some learners here just the fact that they now understand their Scottish neighbour better is

a measure of their success. The interpretation of success depends very much on the

individual and their context.

2. Review of Literature

2.1 Aptitude, Self-regulation and Learning strategies

In the context of language aptitude testing, Sternberg (2002, p. 15) states that “One’s ability

to achieve success depends on one’s capitalizing on one’s strengths and correcting or

compensating for one’s weaknesses through a balance of analytical, creative and practical

abilities in order to adapt to, shape and select environments.” These are underpinned by the

processes of planning, monitoring and evaluating.

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Indeed, the range of components of language aptitude is very wide and can be described as

multi-componential and include cognitive abilities, affective factors and personality-related

factors (Kormos, 2013). Oxford (2015) agrees with the tripartite division of aptitude but with

a slight difference, she describes three dimensions – cognitive, affective and socio-cultural.

The latter of these links back to Sternberg’s (2002) focus on the environment.

Aptitude suggests innate ability or natural talent but we can see from the above that the

agency of the learner plays a central role hence the idea of self-regulation. “Self-regulation

refers to the degree to which individuals are active participants in their own learning”

(Dörnyei 2005 p191). While Dörnyei prefers to keep self-regulation and learning strategies

separate on the basis that learning strategies could be conscious as well as subconscious

and self-regulation is part of a conscious psychological system, Oxford (2013) links self-

regulation and learning strategies together in her Strategic Self-Regulation Model or S2R

model. For each of the dimensions above she provides a detailed list of types of meta-

strategies and strategies that language learners can apply for increased effectiveness in

language learning.

Tseng, Dornyei and Schmitt (2006) listed five dimensions of self-regulatory capacity in

relation to learning vocabulary: commitment control, metacognitive control, satiation

control, emotion control and environmental control. This was in connection with the SRCvoc

aptitude test which is designed to assess the amount of creative effort that learners use in

vocabulary learning, as a predictor of success. However, the dimensions could also be

applicable to other aspects of language learning, or indeed learning in general.

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Sykes (2015) revisited the work on the ‘Good Language Learner’ initiated in the 70s and in

the light of further studies in the 80s and 90s. He does not refer to self-regulation but to

“Use of Strategies” and “Risk-taking”. In the list are characteristics of a Good Language

Learner, this is No2 which, although he does not use the term ‘self-regulation’,

demonstrates the connection between it and learning strategies.

The Good Language Learner is actively involved in language learning. He or she

responds positively to, and utilises learning opportunities, engages in a variety of
practice activities, intensifies his or her efforts when necessary, and deals
constructively with language learning problems. He or she responds to the learning
situation in order to overcome negative anxiety and inhibitions about using the
second language.

2.2 Motivation

The description of motivation in second language learning has changed over the last sixty

years. The terms associated with Gardner and Lambert’s (1959) early studies of motivation

are instrumental motivation and integrative motivation. A learner is said to have

instrumental motivation when he or she is learning a language in order to get a better job or

a higher salary. A learner who desires to communicate with the community of the target

language is said to exhibit integrative motivation. These two types of motivation were

presented as a dichotomy while in practice a learner can be motivated by both aspects as

we will see in the discussion below.

Noels (2001) brought together a motivational construct based on self-determination theory.

This focussed on three types of motivation for learning a second language: for extrinsic

reasons – this time including external pressures as well as those imposed by the learner, for

integrative reasons which went beyond the goal of communicating with the target group,

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and finally for intrinsic reasons – the enjoyment of learning in itself. No longer a dichotomy

but viewed as interrelated levels of motivation.

More recently Dörnyei (2005) introduced three new aspects to the description of motivation

in the L2 Motivational Self-system Theory. This is a much broader description of motivation

and it builds on the idea of goal-driven desire to communicate in L2 but with the learner’s

notion of the Ideal Self and their aspirations at the centre. The Ought-to Self focuses on

extrinsic motivation but the reverse side of it. In other words, not what is to be gained by

becoming a competent L2 speaker but what can be lost if the outcome is failure. Fear of

failure is an extremely powerful driving force and merits inclusion in the spectrum of

motivation. The third aspect is the L2 Learning Experience. As teachers we are responsible

for maximising what the learners bring to the course. We know that motivation can be

enhanced by the learning process, the curriculum, the classroom activities, the attitude of

the teacher and the harmony of the working group. It is only appropriate that this aspect of

motivation is recognised. The L2 Motivational Self-System Theory proposes that motivation

is multi-faceted and process-oriented, a kaleidoscope of overlapping and ever-changing

interplay.

We hear about visualisation as an important technique in popular culture, especially in the

world of sport where it is used to help athletes achieve their goals, which may be a long way

in the future. It is no surprise then that in the field of second language learning where

learners are also attempting to achieve the long-term goals of communicative competence

or proficiency in a language that the connection between vision and motivation has been

explored. Peirce takes the idea of imagined self further and links the idea of motivation in
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language learning as an investment which will reap return in cultural capital. “Thus an

investment in the target language is also an investment in a learner’s own identity, an

identity which is constantly changing across time and space.” (Peirce 1995, p. 18).

2.3 Learning in a Group

One of the advantages of learning in a group is that it allows for opportunities of assisted

performance which as Lantolf and Thorne (2007) describe are similar to the concept of the

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) as defined by the early 20th century psychologist

Vygotsky. Vygotsky was particularly interested in child development and the role of

language as a tool by which humans mediate their relationship to the environment. Modern

Socio-cultural Theory (SCT) was borne from this premise and has had an impact on his

theories on second language learning. Vygotsky defined ZPD as “the distance between the

actual developmental level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of

potential development through problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration

with more capable peers.” (Vygotsky 1978, p.86).

However, for assisted performance to be beneficial it needs to be specifically calibrated to

suit the individual learner as Aljaafreh and Lantolf (1994) described in their study on

negative feedback. This may be possible for a teacher to manage in small groups but not in a

class of 20. Teachers can attempt to manage the peer assistance but cannot guarantee its

precise nature – even when pairings are planned there will be varying degrees of capability

and the level of collaboration may be anything from simply social at the lower end of the

scale or fully corrective.

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In ‘Interaction as Practice’ Mackey offers a more classroom-friendly appraisal of the learning

potential in peer interaction based on the Interaction Hypothesis “Simply put, the

hypothesis suggests that participating in conversational interaction facilitates L2 learning.”

(Mackey 2007, p86). However she goes on to conclude that task-type and design as well as

task management and staging were essential considerations to ensure positive outcomes.

Dobao investigated collaborative dialogue in the classroom both between peers and

between learners and native-speakers (Dobao ,2012). I am interested in the first of these

two. Collaborative dialogue provides opportunities for what Swain and Lapkin (1998)

defined as language-related episodes or LREs. They may involve such things as negotiating

meaning, focusing on form, vocabulary or peer correction “when learners collaborate to

solve linguistic problems they engage in language-mediated cognitive activities that serve to

build linguistic knowledge. By pooling their resources they are able to co-construct new

language knowledge.” Dobao, like Mackey, did warn in her conclusion however, that

“attention needs to be paid not only to the task design and instructions, but also to the

participants’ orientation to the activity” in order to ensure maximum benefit (Dobao).

3. Method of Research

In order to find out more about what leads to success in second language learning I

interviewed a student of ESOL in X (name of place). I chose this student because he was

recommended by his teacher as a successful learner. As it turns out he was successful on

several counts: we have objective evidence - he passed FCE before starting at college, which

he prepared for on his own, without a teacher, and his progress test results (see appendix)

are consistently high and indicate that he has improved at an above average rate compared
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to his group. In terms of his profession, he can now read a legal textbook which previously

was beyond him (Q21). In terms of English language use outside the classroom, he can

converse with Scottish people and other international students (Q32), he has got a job

which requires him to use English (Q32) and he feels proud that he can now understand a

conversation between Scottish people (Q43). Finally, he feels confident and that his long

term goals are attainable (Q45).

3.1 Student’s Background and Current Learning Context

Antonio is from Spain, he’s 26 and a Law graduate. He has also completed a Masters in

Administrative Law. He started learning English at primary school and continued studying in

school until the age of 18. He stopped when he started studying Law and only came back to

it in March 2016, four months before sitting the FCE.

Since August 2016 he has been a full-time student of ESOL in the top group at Y (name of

the college) College working at Upper-Intermediate / Advanced level. He passed the FCE in

June 2016 with a grade C and he is aiming to sit the CAE in June and apply to study for a

Masters in Environmental Law, starting 2017 or 2018. He has worked part-time or

temporary as a trainee lawyer but not in his desired field of Environmental Law. He

currently has a part-time job in housekeeping in a hotel in X (name of place).

There are 21 students in the group aged from 19 to 63 with an average age of 35.5. The

students are almost all from Europe with twelve from Poland, four from other East

European countries, four from Spain and one from Japan. The four Spanish students are all

young men and as a result have some things in common but in class they sit separately.
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Most students in the group are long-term residents of X (name of place, many having

emigrated from central and eastern European countries to come and live and work here.

Most students in ESOL in general have families and jobs and are learning English to improve

job prospects, help their families or apply for another college course or university course.

Around half the students in Antonio’s group would like to go on to further study.

Full-time ESOL is a general English course which focuses on all four skills, vocabulary,

functional language and grammar, mostly using a coursebook but not exclusively. Students

also undertake a group project, receive IT training and have one hour of guided self-study a

week.

3.2 Design of the Interview

I prepared around fifty questions in advance and grouped them into themes covering

personal information, learning context and preferred learning activities, motivation,

feelings, goals and aspirations. I then interviewed Antonio for one hour using the prepared

questions and topics. I did not follow the prepared questions exactly or in the same order

but used them more as a checklist. Where I felt it was necessary I asked Antonio to

elaborate on his answers. I recorded and transcribed the interview which is attached as an

appendix.

In addition I also asked Antonio’s teacher for some background information on his group

and how well he works with the other students. He was described as initially reticent but

gaining confidence, a student who enjoys being with his colleagues and who is gelling well

with his project group. He has a good sense of humour and his teacher also used these very
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positive adjectives: reliable, diligent, motivated, academic. This contrasts with his Spanish

colleagues who were described as somewhat lackadaisical.

4. Results and Discussion

I will now turn to the interview itself and analyse it with reference to the constructs outlined

above in the review of literature.

Initially it seems that Antonio’s primary motivation is classically instrumental “In Spain right

now it’s really hard to find a job and I really need a good level of English if I want to work in

a good position.” Q14. As a step towards that goal he set himself the task of sitting the FCE,

an example of extrinsic motivation, although based on his own decision. He also wants to

switch from Administrative Law to Environmental Law and this will mean studying for

another Masters degree, possibly in an English-speaking country (Q15). This is where we

begin to see the aspiration behind his motivation, a vision of his possible self: “possible

selves denote a powerful and at the same time versatile motivational self-mechanism,

representing individual’s ideas of what they might become, what they would like to

become…” (Dörnyei & Ryan 2015, p87).

As they emerge, Antonio’s reasons for studying English are complex and fluid. In his

response to Q22 he describes the Erasmus students he met at university. He sees them as

an attractive community. He does not say this but we know that Erasmus students are high

achievers, have a sense of adventure and can converse in a multi-national environment. His

motivation in this case can be described as integrative in that by learning English he

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becomes part of that community “I’ve always wanted to go on an Erasmus and this is my

particular Erasmus” Q14. This is echoed later on in the interview (Q16) he talks about the

importance of being able to function in the global English speaking community “everywhere

you’re gonna find people who can’t speak your language and someone has to … [know or

learn a language in order to communicate]”. He extends this to say how important it is for

English speakers to learn other languages (Q17) and I can only agree.

Finally towards the end of the interview he seems to be motivated intrinsically by the

challenge of becoming fluent in English. He actually identifies this as his future self “I want

to speak without having to think all the time. I think that’s the main reason why I’m here

because I think this is the moment when you think you control the language, the language

comes out, that’s what I want.” Q44, see also Q45. Although his work in the hotel is not the

type of work he is aiming for, and the English-speaking environment is outside his comfort-

zone he does recognise that it provides a challenge and he gets a taste of what it might be

like to be his future self as a fluent English-speaker: “it’s good to use English under pressure

- it makes you feel that English come out of you without having to think.” (Q32)

The fact that Antonio’s motivation is multi-layered provides the inner strength and power

he needs to fuel his endeavours. He is no stranger to the requirement for effort in order to

succeed in his studies “If you work hard…I think this is one of the keys to be a good language

learner.” (Q46). As an experienced student Antonio is adept at using the processes of

planning, monitoring and evaluating as outlined by Sternberg (2002). These are akin to

Oxford’s (2013) range of meta-cognitive strategies and are part of the portfolio of a good

student in any subject and as someone who is relatively fresh out of university, Antonio is
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primed in these learning strategies. “I’ve been a student all my life … I have a law degree

with good … grades” (Q10). It is clear from the interview that these strategies are not innate

abilities but consciously applied strategies and evidence for their success can be found in

the fact that he succeeded in passing the FCE without attending lessons. As an autonomous

learner he was able to apply his learning strategies to language study “I feel really good

studying by myself maybe I get used to it because all the time with my degree and my

Masters I really take advantage of my self-study” (Q18). This is illustrated even more

significantly in his closing comments here: “I’m good … working on my own … my whole life

I’ve been a good student on my own, but you have to know how to work” (Q46).

We have seen in the introduction and the method of research that success in language

learning is not only about language study but also involves language use or performance.

Antonio is aware that his English language learning is benefitting from working in a group,

and this is also evident in his excellent test scores since starting the full-time course – see

appendix. “When we speak with each other we feel more comfortable and you can improve

faster” (Q27). This is a general statement building on his description of a typical speaking

activity (Q26) which Antonio highlights as an effective learning activity. It seems to be a

semi-controlled task in that the teacher provided a scheme for the discussion as well as the

phrases to be used. We do not know what the teacher’s instructions were or how well they

were understood but we can perhaps assume that it fulfils the criteria of task design and

management outlined above (Mackey, 2012).

One aspect of Antonio’s aptitude is his cognitive ability to deal with language systems in a

study context. “It’s easy for me to learn the rules - like a game” (Q3). This ability is also
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evident in the interview as he monitors his own language use and self-corrects on occasions,

for example, “harder hardest” (Q3), “good notes good grades” (Q10), “in different subjects

in different situations” (Q26) and “Scottish persons Scottish people” (Q32). In the classroom

he is also aware of errors in his colleagues’ language (Q7) “I can see mistakes when I am

speaking right now. I can see my mistakes in class. I can see others’ mistakes...” He also

demonstrates that he is aware of how mistakes can assist in the language learning process

and goes on to describe a general situation in which he and his fellow classmates engage in

mutual correction, an LRE as described above (Dobao 2012). The area that Antonio is least

confident about is his pronunciation and he compares himself with classmates who are

more fluent and who correct his pronunciation while he corrects their grammar: “I think it’s

very important because … you have mistakes, they have mistakes, and you can learn from

your mistakes and sometimes you think you know something and you’re wrong and they

correct you …” (Q29).

Learning in a group provides Antonio with a great deal of valuable input and he actively

draws on his self-regulatory capacities to manage this learning: “… when you are working

with other people you are learning but it’s somehow more chaotic and you need some time

to put all your ideas… in your notebook, to put, organise your thinking” (Q31). He uses a

range of strategies in the S2R cognitive dimension such as activating knowledge, reasoning

and conceptualising, which assist him in processing and remembering (Oxford 2013). He

refers to this again in Q36 and makes an explicit link to the importance of organising new

language to aid memory.

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Although Antonio is enjoying the environment in which he is studying and says he is happy

in his group (Q39) he describes himself as introvert (Q25) and anxious (Q2). Both

characteristics are potentially negative for second language learning (Dörnyei 2005 p200)

however, he is able to use his self-regulatory strategies in the affective dimension (see

Oxford 2013 p16 for S2R strategies in the affective dimension or Tseng 2006, ‘emotion

control’) to overcome this and maintain his motivation. “I’m introvert … my shyness don’t

make me stop doing things” (Q25). This self-regulation of emotion in order to benefit is also

evident in Q8: he feels inhibited about correcting other people “…kind of embarrassing ...

but I like them to correct me so I think I should do it without this thinking. It’s just stupid [of

me to feel embarrassed]’. It may even be possible to conclude that his shyness is also part of

his self-regulation in the affective dimension in that despite doing well, he seeks to avoid

arrogance: “I’ve never been over-secure … and I don’t like these kind of people… I’m a little

bit shy but I feel that I’m confident” (Q25).

We have seen above how working with other students gives Antonio the reflective mirror he

needs in order to be able to use metastrategies to evaluate his own abilities in terms of

language use (Sternberg 2002) (Oxford 2013). This is particularly significant in the way he

compares his speaking skills to that of the other students. On as many as five occasions he

talks about being impressed by their fluency or pronunciation, which he feels he is lacking –

see Qs 2, 5, 23, 29, 37. The last of these is a particularly notable example because he

anticipates his interlocutor’s impatience with his slow delivery, again a source of potential

embarrassment. However, he feels confident enough to continue to strive to try out new

language and that that by making an effort and by using his self-regulatory capacity to

organise and remember new language, he has gained an advantage over his more fluent
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peers “… most of them have a little, a short range of vocabulary … but they’re not expanding

… they are not making any effort …but I think it’s better to try to do it properly …if I have to

speak slower I prefer to do that than stay in the comfort zone…” (Q37).

In the context of the interview I did not feel that his delivery was slow. He did hesitate as he

marshalled his thoughts and appeared to assess what he wanted to say before speaking, but

the interview allowed time for this and it did not interfere with communication in any way.

In my view this was not an example of monitor over use (Krashen 1982). However, it is

possible in the context of social dialogue, where there is a more rapid exchange, this

hesitancy might be less appropriate.

What is interesting about Antonio’s view is that once he has used his peers’ performance to

evaluate his own learning he then turns the gap in his perceived performance into a learning

goal: “ I [‘m] suppose[d] to have the same level … because I’m in the same class so I feel that

I have to improve faster” (Q23). On another occasion, in the FCE speaking test, he compares

himself to the other candidates and feels nervous but he is able to control his emotions by

drawing on his self-regulatory capacity in the affective dimension (Oxford 3013) and

maintain motivation: “I can remember feeling impressed by their English so I started quite

nervous but in general I was ... I felt good …” (Q24).

We have seen from some of the above examples how much Antonio is enjoying the

environment in which he is studying. He says he is happy in his group (Q39) and in line with

his long-term goals he identifies with those students in his group with similar goals but he

feels comfortable with the group as a whole. He also feels part of the wider college (Q38)
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and understands the mechanisms for giving feedback. For example, he completed the

Student Development Plan (Q40) and he has asked for more classroom time to be spent on

pronunciation (Q41).

As well as managing his classroom learning, Antonio also seeks opportunities for exposure

to English by watching TV shows and reading song lyrics (Q34, Q35) as we would expect

from a Good Language Learner (Sykes 2015). Perhaps more significantly he manages his

external learning environment in a self-regulatory way. He socialises with other

international students and Scottish people and, despite the fact that there are a number of

Spanish-speakers in the group, he uses English: “it’s weird the night that we are not with

Scottish people, or from other countries so I always try to go out with foreign people

because I don’t want to be all the time with Spanish … always speak English” (Q32).

5. Conclusion

In terms of understanding what makes a successful language learner there are several

limitations to this study. Just one student was interviewed and I have focused on a small

number of issues – motivation, language aptitude, self-regulation and learning strategies,

and learning in a group so in that respect, it is a portrait sketch. Other relevant points to

focus on might be risk taking, personality, learning styles, working memory capacity,

willingness to communicate and age. Also the method used was an interview which depends

on self-reporting, and the interviewee was talking to myself, a teacher from his college, so

even with the best of intentions the relationship cannot be described as neutral. Finally,

while the test results provide some objective evidence of the interviewee’s success the
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information the results provide is limited and they do not include a speaking test result.

Despite these caveats, the interview as a method does provide and extended body of text

produced by the learner rather than the researcher as in a survey, for example. For this

reason I believe that further interviews with language learners could contribute to a fuller

picture.

Despite its small scale, it is still possible to draw some broad conclusions from this study.

What stands out is Antonio’s self-regulatory capacity in how he manages his learning, his

emotions and his environment. In addition, he clearly has the strong motivation necessary

to fuel the tremendous effort that it takes to stay focused when the task is so challenging “If

I just try to focus more on this matter [learning enough English to work in his field] I think in

a short period of time I [‘m] gonna be able to do that but have a conversation [that’s] fluent

in English, that’s not easy.” (Q45).

Not all students have Antonio’s good fortune or educational background but I believe that

some of what makes Antonio a successful learner can be taught, or learned. For example,

there are practical ways in which we can help our students develop aspects of the self-

regulatory capacity and as teachers it is our responsibility to create a favourable

environment which fosters collaborative interaction and maximises the variety of

motivations that our learners bring to the course.

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 Appendix

Antonio – Summary Profile

• Spanish,
• 26
• Degree in Law
• Masters in Administrative Law
• Wants to do a further masters in Environmental Law

Timeline

• February 2016 - Planned to do FCE and started studying English - self-study

• April - Arrived in X (name of place 8 months ago. Continued self-study.
• May - Sat placement test for FT ESOL
• June - Sat FCE here in and passed with a grade C.
• August - Started FT ESOL
• December - interview

ESOL group at D&A - 21 students

• One of four Spanish males in their 20s

• 8 males in the class, 16 females
• 12 Polish
• 4 Spanish
• 4 other East European
• 1 Japanese

Test results

Placement test - May

Speaking Writing Multi-choice

B1/B2 - 5 B1 – 8 Range 53 – 82
B2 – 13 B2 – 11 Average 71.5
C1 - 2 C1 - 1 Antonio - 74

Week one diagnostic testing - August

Listening Reading Writing Grammar, Vocab, Pron,

Skills
70% - 1 student Range 47%-93% Range 70-90% Range 45%-86%
80% - 2 students Average 80.45% Average 78.5% Average 62.5%
90% - 4 students Antonio – 93% Antonio – 80% Antonio – 79%
100% - 12 students
including Antonio

Progress test results – Empower B2. Tests focus on language and skills and reflect FCE test design.

Unit 2 Unit 3 Unit 4 Unit 5

Range 67-97 56-97 54-95 67-100
Average 82 83 80 82
Antonio 87 95 90 92

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 Interview transcript
1. Can you tell me where you come from?
I’m from Madrid, little city south of Madrid and it’s called X (name of place
How old are you
I’m 26

2. How would you describe your level of proficiency in English?

Well, I think I have a good level at grammar and I have a good level of vocabulary too
and I have a good grades but maybe my big weakness is my speaking.
Why do you say that?
Because … I can compare myself to my mates in my class I can see that I have more
facility to do the exams with the grammar I think that it’s easily for me but when I
start speaking I feel quite uncomfortable because they are better than me - most of
the class

3. When you say you have a good level of grammar you measure that by your ability
to do grammar exercises?
Yes. I think for me it’s easy for me to learn the rules like a game you know. I know
how to connect things with others and for me this is easy I don’t know why but it’s
easy but of course I’ve been here just for 8 months so the harder hardest things for
me are the speaking and the listening

4. And your colleagues in the class have been here for longer?
Most of them have been here for more than 5 years, even more, people who is living
here for 10 or 15 years so they speak really really good.

5. When you say they speak well or they speak good… how do you judge that? What
makes you think that they can speak well?
The main thing is when I see them speaking I feel that they are not thinking. When I
have to speak I have to think all the time what I say. Sometimes still I have to
translate in my head before I say the thing that I want to say and that’s I think that’s
the difference between me and them - that they speak fluent and without having to
think.

6. And what about accuracy? Are you aware of how accurately your colleagues speak
compared to you?
Accurate? What is this?
7. So are you aware of your colleagues making lots of mistakes or not really?
Yes yes. I can see mistakes when I’m speaking right now I can see my mistakes in
class I can see the others’ mistakes, but for me it’s easy to see the mistakes - what is
difficult is speak and work with English without having to think. I have to think all the
time this is let’s say arduous job and I think yeah but I can see mistakes in my mates.

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8. How do you feel about correction? How do you feel about being corrected yourself
and how do you feel about correcting other people? How do you feel about your
teacher or your peers correcting you?
I like that they correct me. Actually, when there’s someone, mainly Scottish people
they don’t want to correct me and I would like to, them to do it but it’s different
when I have to correct other people I feel quite prudent because I don’t want to look
you know like I don’t know this kind of embarrassing – yes? but I like them to correct
me so I think I should do it without this thinking. It’s just stupid.

9. We’ve jumped ahead a little bit to a topic I was going to ask you about later but I’ve
got a few more preliminary questions I need to ask you.
We’ve talked about your level of proficiency in English: you passed FCE didn’t you?
Yes
With a grade C?
Yes
When was that?
In June
In June this year?
Yes
OK so it’s very recent.

10. How would you describe your educational background?

In general? Not just English?
In general.
Well, I’ve been a student all my life. I passed all my courses without problem I have a
law degree with good notes, good grades and Master in legal practice and that’s all.

11. Have you experienced any learning difficulties at all? One example might be
dyslexia.
No.

12. Nothing like that. OK. And your first language is Spanish?
Yes.
Castellano?
Castellano.
Do you speak any other languages?
I can speak some Italian. I’ve been there twice or three times. Quite a long time so I
can understand them almost everything and I can speak a little so I can communicate
with Italian people.
What about other languages that are spoken in Spain? Catalan? Basque? Galician?

13. So you studied Law? And have you ever worked in that field?
Yes
Can you tell me a little bit about that?

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 All my works in this field were temporary jobs and most of them as a trainee lawyer.
They weren’t exactly the job that I want to do in my life. They were just ways to
introduce myself in the job market. But it’s not that … they were jobs I had to do
some researches in these jobs. It was I interesting for me but for example I’ve never
worked in a law firm in the field that I want to work. I want to work in Administrative
Law, mainly Environmental Law and I’ve never had the chance to do it but there’s no
a lot of choices in Spain right now so I had to work in those works that came to me.
But the work wasn’t exactly what I want; something interesting, something that
really complete you I don’t know how to say that.
A fulfilling job.
Exactly.

You’re looking for a fulfilling job or position in this area.

Yes and it was kind of between an office work and a lawyer work so it’s not what I
want but it was good to learn something about this.

14. So it was a step in the right direction. So why did you decide to apply for FT ESOL?
What was your reason for that?
First…in the first place I think that I’ve never been on an Erasmus when I was
studying so I’ve always wanted to go on an Erasmus and for me is my particular
Erasmus. In Spain right now it’s really hard to find a job and I really need a good level
of English if I want to work in a good position. And mainly because the field I want to
work in, Environmental Law, Administrative Law, is mainly European law and it’s
really important to have a good English level
So is your year in Scotland like a ‘year out’?
Yes something like that.

15. So in that case your plans for the end of the year for example in June…what do you
think you might do?
My idea when I came here was to be just one year and come back to Spain. But now
I’m thinking maybe a bit more time because I thought it was going to be easier for
me to learn the language but it’s not. It’s not easy. Maybe… I don’t know if I’m gonna
stay here but maybe another year abroad I don’t know if in Scotland or another
place because I want to study a Master abroad.
So a second Masters in Law?
One Master more specific on the Environmental Law sector or within the
administrative field some kind of specific Master.

16. So you’ve talked about how important it is to improve your English to improve your
job prospects, apart from that how important do you think it is to communicate
well with other people in English sort of in a broader …?
I think it’s really important. When everywhere you’re gonna find people who can’t
speak your language and someone has to … yes … I don’t know I think it’s really

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 important. Maybe in the past I wasn’t aware of that and since I’m here I realise that
it’s really important.

17. So English as a lingua franca? As a language of international communication? What

is it about your experience here that’s made you realise that that’s important?
I don’t know I think I think the culture interchange couldn’t be something real if we
don’t try to share with other countries our culture so I think not just for the Latin
world to study English I think the English speakers should learn another languages
because it’s really good it’s really good for everyone to go to another country and
could share a lot of things without having to look it up in a dictionary or …
OK so cultural exchange or intercultural exchange?
I would say this is the main reason.

18. I can only agree … In what contexts have you learned English? How did you get to
this point?
I started studying English in Spain. We used to start when we were 5 or 6 year old
and I keep studying from then to 18 when I finish high school and after that I started
university and I put it aside and six years later I realised that I needed it, so when I
decided to come here I started to learn English again, I realised my level was low. I
just started studying English 2 months before I came here and when I arrived here
my - I have one friend who was going to do the advanced exam in June so I said
maybe I can try the First the same date and I start studying these two months, and I
don’t know in 4 months I studied a lot I have to say that in what was a short period
of time but I think - I haven’t teacher or something in these 4 months, but I feel
really good studying by myself maybe I get used to it because all the time with my
degree and my Masters I really take advantage of my self-study.

19. So in preparation for the First Certificate you studied for four months and it was
self-study – you didn’t go to the academia or anything like that? And that was the
first time you’d studied for 8 years more or less?
Yes. I tend to listen English music all my life and sometimes some TV shows I used to
watch them in English too, with subtitles, but nothing like that study grammar
vocabulary or speak with other people.

20. So let me just check I’ve understood this correctly, so from the age of 5 or 6 to 18
you had English in school as part of your normal curriculum?
Yes
Were your teachers Spanish teachers or native-speaker teachers or both?
Spanish teachers.

21. From the age of 18 until you started preparing for our FCE so you were exposed to
English language through films and music and internet?
This was the only contact with English for me during this my university studies and
Masters.

22
 Was any of the material you had to study at university in English?
Yes just one subject - it was corporate law and the teacher make us buy manual in
English but I couldn’t understand one word so I bought another one in Spanish but
now I’m starting to read this book because it’s really good.
21.07 minutes

22. Have you ever had opportunities to speak English while you were in Spain? Have
you met, made friends with English speakers?
It was so common, so usual, to have contact with, because in my university there
were a lot of Erasmus students but they spoke Spanish so we didn’t need to speak
English but maybe where I had to speak English in these years was at parties,
Erasmus parties, actually I had during four months an Australian girlfriend so it was
the only moment I could train my English skills.
So for about 6 months?
4 months
So the language you used with your girlfriend was English? Or sometimes English?
We used sometimes English and sometimes Spanish. She was better at speaking
Spanish than me at English.

23. Do you ever feel anxious when you’re speaking English?

Yes
Can you give me some examples of occasions?
I think since I’m here I have some situations when I have to speak with people who
speak a really good English I feel a little bit uncomfortable because I, for example in
my class, they speak really good English, and I suppose to have the same level
because I’m in the same class so I feel that I have to improve faster than I can, so this
situation makes me feel a little bit uncomfortable with my English but for example
here in the Spanish community in Dundee maybe I am one of the most qualified in
English so in this situation I feel better of course.

24. Does the fact that you have First Certificate not give you more confidence?
No, not at all.
How did you feel in the First Certificate exam? Did you feel anxious then? For
example in the speaking part of the exam?
I started nervous but just because when I went to the exam, out of the class we were
waiting and we were a lot of students, we started to talk between us I can remember
feeling impressed by their English so I started quite nervous but in general I was I felt
good because First Certificate for me is not really important, it’s not the level that I
really need it so was just a step for me to reach more level so I went to this exam just
to feel that I was going in the right direction and it depend on the situation I think
these feelings in exams.

23
25. How might you describe your own personality? For example, would you say that
you are more extrovert or more introvert? Do you use your intuition quite a lot?
Are you open to new experiences? Do you think a lot?
I’m introvert, yes I am, but I relate I relate well with people. I feel comfortable with
people I’m… I think I’m quite shy but in a good way, I’m not… my shyness don’t make
me stop doing things. I’ve always been maybe a little bit, I don’t know… I’ve never
been over secure, I don’t know how to say that, and I don’t like these kind of people.
So I think that for that reason I’m a little bit shy but I’m…I feel that I’m confident.
So you perhaps feel that you have an inner confidence?
Yes something like that I think that’s a good way to describe me.

I’m just going to double-check that the video is working… 28 mins

26. I want to focus a little bit more on activities that you do in the classroom, activities
that you do or have done on your own in terms of language learning. So in the
classroom here at D&A College, what sort of activities help you learn more
effectively?
Speaking activities, mainly for example in JFs class, he tend to give us some ideas,
some topics, and he tend… tends to put on the board different ways describe things
or different ways of express ourself and since this sentences since this keys we have
to speak with each other and I think this is the exercise that I think makes me learn
most.
So there are phrases on the board and you have to use the phrases?
He gives us the scheme and we have to speak about everything but with this and I
think this is really useful. Because I think maybe because I have good grammar I
don’t need to learn how to put one thing in one part of the sentence, it’s more the
way you have to explain in different subjects in different situations because you can
use English translate into Spanish and then you can make them understand you but
maybe you are not using the correct use of English and when he gives us these
different ways and you have to use them all the time I think for me this is very
useful.

27. In our ESOL classrooms we do a lot of pairwork and groupwork - does that sort of
activity help you, working together?
Yes
In what ways do you think?
I think for me, for example, when we are doing exercises from the book for example,
you have to correct them with the teacher in front of the class, you have to speak in
front of all of the class, I think it’s harder for us to learn English if we have to be
thinking of doing it well in front of the class, so when we speak with each other we
feel more comfortable and you can improve faster. I think maybe it’s just question,
matter of time to learn English properly it’s better to start speaking with each other
not be the focus of the class, not being the spotlight and maybe this would be a
further step.

24
28. When you’re working in that way with a partner or with a small group do you
simply check the answers or do you correct each other? Do you discuss the
language points together?
We tend to do all of these things, all of these things, yes.

29. How much would you say you participate in the group?
Than normal depend on the partners but I participate yes, I… frequently.
And how important do you think it is to be part of a group when you’re learning?
I think it’s very important because you can… you have mistakes, they have mistakes
and you can learn from your mistakes from their mistakes and sometimes you think
you know something and you’re wrong and they correct you, for example in my case
the pronunciation is a… mess, and they are all the times like ‘what did you say?’ and I
repeat it and they said ‘this is not the proper pronunciation’ but I like it I like it
because I understand that I have problem with pronunciation.
That’s interesting, the other students correct your pronunciation?
I correct them with the grammar.

30. That sounds like a good idea. How do you think other people in the group see you?
What do you think they think about you?
I think they think I’m friendly I’m easy to treat, to handle, I don’t know how to say it.
I think they can see me as a smart person maybe that’s all.

31. In the classroom do you do any individual work?

Yes. Sometimes we have tests or yes mainly tests is the individual task because
sometimes with exercise of the book we work separately but at the end we have to
put all in common. The only exercise that is completely by our own is the test.
Do you think that helps you – individual work?
Yes. I think so. I think that’s important because when you are working with other
people you are learning but it’s somehow more chaotic and you need some time to
put all your ideas… not just in a test, in your notebook to put, organise your thinking.
I think working is more like teamwork, is more like rain of ideas, and extreme…
Like a brainstorm?
Yes – brainstorm! And the self-study is the way that you have to organise all these
ideas. I find the most useful the self-study hour. If it was up to me I would put more
hours of that. You’re obliged to come here and you are obliged to organise your
things so I think it’s really good.
So you can feed that back to A, your group tutor. He would be interested.

32. You said how important self-study was. So think about your learning outside the
classroom. For example how much time do you spend learning English outside the
classroom?
I speak English at work most of the time because I have Spanish workmates but most
of the time at work I speak English. Maybe it’s not formative; you are not learning,
but it’s good to use English under pressure it makes you feel that English come out of

25
 you without having to think sometimes - that is good and apart of work when I go
out with friends it’s weird the night that we are not with Scottish persons, Scottish
people, or from another countries so I always try to go out with foreign people
because I don’t want to be all the time with Spanish it’s unavoidable to be with them
but yes when you know on a party always something like that always speak English.

33. So what kind of work do you do here?

I work in a hotel.
Can you tell me – what’s your job title?
I work in housekeeping sometimes in conference and events as a waiter. And that’s
all.
How did you get that job?
I know a girl that worked in this hotel so before I came here I contact her and I said
to her there was any chance to work there so she did it.

34. So you’ve talked about using English with your friends who are also foreign in X.
What other things do you do to help make your learning more effective?
Watching TV shows. I think that’s the thing that makes me learn most, yep.
OK. That’s interesting. Do you do anything with that? Do you take a note of new
words for example?
I join a page, a webpage, it’s Oloro TV, this page is really good because you can put
the subtitles in English that is perfect and you can put the mouse in the word that
you don’t understand and they translate the meaning so it’s really good you are you
don’t have to be all the time stopping the er .. and yes it’s really good this webpage
and I tend to watch TV series daily it help me a lot, and music of course.

35. When you’re listening to lyrics do you have any strategies or do you let it wash
over you? Do you look them up on the internet?
Yes I tend to look it up in the internet on the internet sorry and yes just no study just
read them and listen.

36. Is there anything you think you could do to improve your English that you don’t
do?
If I had more time I would have more self-study.
More self-study?
Yes.
What would you do in that time?
Just organise is more important to organise the thing that you learn because at the
end of one day I learn a lot of things, every day I learn new words and ways of
speaking and grammar and a lot of things if you don’t write it down you are going to
forget it so I think I need one more hour a day 25 hours this hour I would do it I
would organise all the things that …

37. That’s an interesting point as well. So you think that would help your memory?

26
 Yes. Yes. I think if you wanna learn a language really good you have to do it because
for example here in class there are people who have been living here for ten years
for fifteen years. But as I said before they can speak without having to think. I envy
them but, most of them have a little, a short range of vocabulary, so they can play
with this short range and communicate with just these words so when they have
completely control of this range of vocabulary they can use them without having to
think, but they’re not expanding, they are not trying to learn more to learn more
vocabulary, to use connectors to … I envy them because they are speaking really fast
and I know they are not making any effort, but I think it’s better to try to do it
properly, maybe you are going to be slower and get people in front of you
sometimes I gonna get mad or maybe I gonna think oh my god I should change and
go to speak with another because ‘you are wasting my time’ no, something like that
but I think it’s good to try, if I have to speak slower I prefer to do that than stay in
the comfort zone, you know, yes.

5 o clock 47 mins
38. You are here in D&A College, you’re in X (name of place), you’ve been here for four
months: How much do you feel part of the college? How much do you feel part of X
(name of place)?
I feel, I think just the fact that here in X (name of place) there’s this ESOL course, just
it makes me feel really really grateful so that feeling makes me feel part of the
college so makes me feel really comfortable because it’s really… I don’t know how to
say it, kind, it’s really generous from a country to do that so I think this part is what
makes me feel part of this college and this city.

39. And what about the group that you’re in? Do you feel that that’s part of your
identity here?
Yes maybe we are different we have different lands but we have a common goal. I
feel part of the class and I feel that we are a team maybe I feel more identified with
people who are studying who want to improve in order to get some titles to…
Qualifications?
Yes, to get a better job to, because maybe there are another people who just want
to learn the language to work here to communicate here, to live here there are
another people that who are here just for a while and we are plan on doing another
things and maybe I feel more identified with these another people plan that doesn’t
make me don’t get on well with the other people so I feel really good in the class.

40. You said that you would like to have more self-study time in college and I suggested
that you spoke to your group tutor about it, that’s one example of how it may be
possible to change the way we do things. Are you aware of the other ways of giving
feedback to your teacher or to college?
We have this Portfiolio in My Learning in the webpage and I think this is useful to
write on this webpage your worries your improvements, maybe we don’t have the
time that we want to do that but I think this is interesting and I think it’s useful.

27
41. Have you seen… four months isn’t such a long time, but have you seen any changes
happen as a result of you or other students giving feedback?
Maybe we have to do a feedback maybe one or two months ago yes and … but we
are a lot of class so each one put their preference so I put that I would like to have
more pronunciation… and maybe we don’t have all the time for pronunciation that I
wanted to but I think we are having more time of that since this er … but I know that
other people request for another things so maybe, probably I’m the only one who
put that so I’m happy with the time that we have.

42. Have you ever had one of those moments where you’ve made a connection
between something you learned inside the class and something that’s happening
outside the class?
Yes. Yes. I can’t remember now these moments but yes yes… but for example in the
beginning of the course we started with past habits and current habits and I didn’t
know the difference between the ways of … I used to, I tend to, I usually… this is
something we use a lot and outside I use it. That’s one example.

43. Are you aware of something you can do now in English that you couldn’t do
before? How has life changed for you?
I can follow a conversation between Scottish people.
OK!
Sometimes. When I came here I couldn’t. It was impossible for me I think that the
listening and the understanding is what I improve most since I’m here.
44. Looking ahead can you think of one thing that you’d like to be able to do in English
that you can’t do now?
I want to speak without having to think all the time. I think that’s the main reason
I’m here because I think this is the moment when you think you control the
language, the language come out, that’s what I want.
Is that how you imagine yourself in the future speaking English?
Yes. I hope so.

45. And is it something like that desire that is your primary motivation?
Yes. Yes. I want to have enough English to work in my field without problems but
actually I think that that’s easier than reach this goal that I said because at the end
it’s just a specific vocabulary and when you when I read a legal text I understand
almost everything, if I just try to focus more on this matter I think in a short period of
time I gonna be able to do that but have a conversation fluent in English, that’s not
easy.
Do you feel there are obstacles for you getting to that point?
No
So it’s just a matter of time and studying and you’ll get there?
I think so.

28
46. Let me just have a quick check that I’ve covered all the things I need to ask you
about… Is there anything you would like to say without a question about factors
that would make you a successful language learner?
I think I’m good working, not just studying, working on my own because sometimes
in the educative sector maybe they always think that work in class with the other
partner is really important and it is, but my whole life I’ve been a good student on
my own, but you have to know how you work and I think for example I pass the First
Certificate just studying by my own, and I found I didn’t find easy the exam but not
difficult, it makes me feel like that if you work hard and, I think, it’s difficult explain in
another language, you have to know you and I think this is one of the keys to be a
good learner, everything, not just in English, that’s all, it’s very general but I think
this is important.
Thank you very much.

29
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