The Problem of Demotivation in EFL Learning among Secondary School Students in the Rural Southern Punjab: An Empirical Study

Abstract

In developing countries like Pakistan, English is used as a mandatory subject from primary schools to secondary and higher secondary schools and in the rural areas of the country, secondary school students in socio-economically down trodden areas are often faced with English language acquisition as a daunting task as well as a source of anxiety. Demotivation in L2 research is an under-researched aspect of L2 acquisition, especially in rural under-resourced secondary school contexts where the positive aspects of motivation have been thoroughly studied. This empirical study aimed to find out the multidimensional internal and external demotivating factors influencing the English among students of Southern Punjab and to explore if there are significant perceptual differences between male and female students. The study adopted a quantitative cross sectional survey design and employed a multistage cluster sampling technique in tehsils of Bahawalpur and Bahawalnagar districts of Southern Punjab. The sample of the study was N = 191 students; each responded to a 50-item Likert-type scale questionnaire (Cronbach's alpha = .78) with seven factor domains. The empirical results indicated that the most prominent demotivating factors were Teacher's Personality (M = 3.63, SD = 0.70), Peer & Classmate Dynamics (M = 3.60, SD = 0.74), Inadequate School Facilities (M = 3.60, SD = 0.74), followed closely by Pedagogical Methods (M = 3.44, SD = 0.64), Course Content (M = 3.44, SD = 0.64), and Domestic/Socioeconomic Pressure (M = 3.26, SD = 0.53). Dominance of Grammar-Translation Method (GTM), memorization of paragraphs, classroom speaking anxiety, multi-grade teaching, overcrowding and fear of parental punishment were identified as major systemic factors. Comparative inferential analysis revealed that there was no statistically significant difference between female and male learners for the major construct domain (p > .05) and thus no significant difference in the structural experience of demotivation between the two.

Key words: EFL demotivation, students’ problem of demotivation, Rural secondary education, Southern Punjab, gender perception comparison.