Influences of Meaning-Oriented Output Activities on Learners’ Preferences for Instructional Language

Abstract

This paper tries to clarify how meaning-focused output activities would influence Japanese English learners’ preferences for instructional language. Seventy-nine undergraduates were employed as the participants. Based on whether they were engaged in meaning-focused output activities, the authors put them into two groups: The Output (+) group and the Output (-) group. Both groups took an English course taught by one of the authors. Only the Output (+) group had opportunities to produce meaning-focused output. To clarify the participants’ preferences for instructional language, a questionnaire called Student Preferences for Instructional Language (SPIL) was employed. SPIL is a scale designed to measure student preferences for instructional language. The analysis of the data shows that the Output (+) group would like the teacher to use English more in class than the Output (-) group. The authors then argue that the readiness for teaching English in English gradually develops and that learners of English should be provided opportunities where they negotiate for meaning since when they are at a rudimental level.