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Self-Esteem, Self-Expectancy and Oral Achievement in the Tunisian EFL Context

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English Language Teaching Research in the Middle East and North Africa

Abstract

This study aims at examining the relationship between students’ task self-esteem, expectancy for success, gender, and L2 oral achievement. Data on thirty students’ task self-esteem and task expectancy for success were gathered by means of a questionnaire adapted from Al-Hattab (2006) and Hermessi (2006) and a scale to identify students’ oral proficiency. The data were analyzed by means of Spearman Rho correlation, linear regression, and t-test. The results revealed that there was no direct relationship between task self-esteem and L2 oral achievement. However, they confirmed the relationship between task self-esteem and task expectancy for success and the linkage between task expectancy for success and L2 oral achievement. The present study showed that self-esteem was related to oral achievement indirectly through task expectancy for success.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Table 2 was structured according to the information provided by ISLT English oral expression teachers and ISLT English pronunciation teachers.

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Appendices

Appendix A: The English Version of the Questionnaire

Part A Check (Ă—) the box corresponding to the response you opt for. Give only one response.

Item No.

Statements

SA

A

U

D

SD

1

I cannot learn English

     

2

I feel my ideas in English are meaningless

     

3

I do not dare to say my thoughts in English

     

4

I feel uneasy in the oral English lessons

     

5

I understand a lot of things during the listening and speaking lessons

     

6

I do not feel shy of reading aloud during English classes

     

7

I can speak English in front of my classmates

     

8

I dislike competing in English oral lessons because I fear failure

     

9

I feel embarrassed when I discuss anything in English

     

10

I feel embarrassed when my English teacher asks me to repeat my answer

     

11

I feel I am ineffective in oral English tasks

     

12

I like group discussions in oral English classes

     

13

I can speak English with my teacher only in private, but not in front of others in the classroom

     

14

I do not work hard on my English oral tasks because I doubt that I will do them successfully

     

15

I feel unconfident that I did the right thing in English speaking tasks unless others tell me so

     

16

I make mistakes in the oral English class without being shy

     

17

I do not feel nervous on oral tests in English

     

18

My participation in the oral English class adds nothing to the class

     

19

I believe my speaking abilities in English are the worst in the class

     

20

I do not feel confused when it is my turn to answer in English

     

Part B Check (Ă—) the box corresponding to the response you opt for. Give only one response.

Item No.

Statements

SA

A

U

D

SD

1

No doubt, I will become a fluent speaker of English

     

2

When I realistically assess my capacity to learn English, I never expect to reach an advanced level in speaking this language

     

3

I am afraid speaking in English will be an obstacle for my academic future

     

4

Knowing that I am good at languages, I will end up hopefully with a native-like oral proficiency in English

     

Part C Check (Ă—) the box that corresponds to you oral proficiency in the English language.

Appendix B

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Mekni Toujani, M., Hermessi, T. (2019). Self-Esteem, Self-Expectancy and Oral Achievement in the Tunisian EFL Context. In: Hidri, S. (eds) English Language Teaching Research in the Middle East and North Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-98533-6_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-98533-6_8

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

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