This study aims at exploring the influence of classroom environment (CE) on learners' affective factors. Recent studies have reported that CE has a significant impact on learners' affections and consequently on the progress of L2 learning (e,g., Khajavy, MacIntyre & Barabadi, 2018). This is especially true in the EFL context, where there are few opportunities to use the target language outside of the classroom. In such a context, classroom is an essential basis of using and communicating in the target language and therefore it has a greater influence on learners' emotions and L2 progress (Peng & Woodrow, 2010).
However, to our knowledge, a handful of studies has been implemented to examine the effects of CE on learners' emotions. Among them, Khajavy, MacIntyre and Barabadi (2018) report that positive CE increases EFL secondary-level learners' enjoyment and willingness to communicate (WTC) whereas it decreases their anxiety. Still, more studies conducted in a different context are awaited to apply the findings to classroom teaching practice. This study therefore attempts to replicate Khajavy, MacIntyre, and Barabadi (2018) at tertiary level in the Japanese EFL context and to reveal the effects of CE on learners' affections by adding relatively new concepts of their mindset (Dweck, 2006) and grit (Duckworth & Quinn, 2009).
Participants were Japanese-university students learning EFL. They were voluntarily asked to respond to two types of inventories; CE inventory and affective factors inventory. The former, originally developed by Peng & Woodrow (2010), consists of 13 items covering three types of CE factors, i.e., (a) teacher support, (b) student cohesiveness, and (c) task orientation. The latter is composed of 17 items for three kinds of affective factors: (a) enjoyment and (b) anxiety of learning EFL, and (c) WTC. In addition, data are collected on language learners' mindset (18 items, Lou & Noels, 2017) and grit (eight items, Duckworth & Quinn, 2009).
The data collected were analyzed by using the structural equation model. The results showed that positive CE increases participants' enjoyment and WTC, and decreases their anxiety, whereas it does not influence their mindset and grit. In the presentation, latest results will be reported in full detail, especially comparing with Khajavy, MacIntyre, and Barabadi (2018). Implications for future research and pedagogy will also be discussed.
Duckworth, A.L, & Quinn, P.D. (2009). Development and validation of the Short Grit Scale (Grit-S). Journal of Personality Assessment, 91, 166-174.
Dweck, C. S. 2006. Mindset: The new psychology of success. New York: Random House.
Khajavy, G.H., MacIntyre, P.-D., & Barabadi, E. (2018). Role of the emotions and classroom environment in willingness to communicate: Applying doubly latent multilevel analysis in second language acquisition research. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 40(3), 605-624.
Lou, N. M., & Noels, K. A. (2017). Measuring language mindsets and modeling their relations with goal orientations and emotional and behavioral responses in failure situations. The Modern Language Journal, 101, 214–243.
Peng, J.-E., & Woodrow, L. (2010). Willingness to communicate in English: A model in the Chinese EFL classroom context. Language Learning, 60(4), 834-876.
