Unveiling the “Whys” of Japanese Third-age Learners’ English Language Proficiency

Japanese third-age English language learners, though growing, are still an under-researched demographic. Grounded on the quantitative results of Japanese third-age learners' English language proficiency (ELP), which is B1 on average, this descriptive-qualitative study explored why the particip...

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Main Authors: Dominic Bryan S. San Jose, Melona Q. Guitche, Dennis V. Madrigal
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos Graduate School 2024-12-01
Series:Philippine Social Science Journal
Subjects:
Online Access:https://philssj.org/index.php/main/article/view/1000
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author Dominic Bryan S. San Jose
Melona Q. Guitche
Dennis V. Madrigal
author_facet Dominic Bryan S. San Jose
Melona Q. Guitche
Dennis V. Madrigal
author_sort Dominic Bryan S. San Jose
collection DOAJ
description Japanese third-age English language learners, though growing, are still an under-researched demographic. Grounded on the quantitative results of Japanese third-age learners' English language proficiency (ELP), which is B1 on average, this descriptive-qualitative study explored why the participants got certain levels of ELP. Using the maximum variation sampling, the researchers chose five third-aged Japanese participants from the five cities of Aichi, Japan. The findings reveal two significant themes: motivational factors (with three sub-themes: personal interest, social engagement, and personal enrichment) and factors affecting ELP (with four sub-themes: dynamics of sex and ELP, dynamics of age and ELP, dynamics of education and ELP, dynamics of time and ELP), encourage the examination of learning a language as a means to greater autonomy, cultural sensitivity, and an understanding of the global community. It provides valuable insights for teachers or curriculum designers to improve EFL programs for third-age learners, enhancing accessibility, interest, and effective language acquisition.
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institution Kabale University
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spelling doaj-art-5b2a525a612d4b4aaaf81b2344d788092024-12-17T15:38:21ZengUniversity of Negros Occidental-Recoletos Graduate SchoolPhilippine Social Science Journal2672-31072704-288X2024-12-017310.52006/main.v7i3.1000Unveiling the “Whys” of Japanese Third-age Learners’ English Language ProficiencyDominic Bryan S. San Jose0Melona Q. Guitche1Dennis V. Madrigal2GLP International School, Nagoya City, JapanUniversity of Negros Occidental-Recoletos, PhilippinesUniversity of Negros Occidental-Recoletos, Philippines Japanese third-age English language learners, though growing, are still an under-researched demographic. Grounded on the quantitative results of Japanese third-age learners' English language proficiency (ELP), which is B1 on average, this descriptive-qualitative study explored why the participants got certain levels of ELP. Using the maximum variation sampling, the researchers chose five third-aged Japanese participants from the five cities of Aichi, Japan. The findings reveal two significant themes: motivational factors (with three sub-themes: personal interest, social engagement, and personal enrichment) and factors affecting ELP (with four sub-themes: dynamics of sex and ELP, dynamics of age and ELP, dynamics of education and ELP, dynamics of time and ELP), encourage the examination of learning a language as a means to greater autonomy, cultural sensitivity, and an understanding of the global community. It provides valuable insights for teachers or curriculum designers to improve EFL programs for third-age learners, enhancing accessibility, interest, and effective language acquisition. https://philssj.org/index.php/main/article/view/1000English as a foreign language, English proficiency, Descriptive-qualitative, Japanese third-age, Japan
spellingShingle Dominic Bryan S. San Jose
Melona Q. Guitche
Dennis V. Madrigal
Unveiling the “Whys” of Japanese Third-age Learners’ English Language Proficiency
Philippine Social Science Journal
English as a foreign language, English proficiency, Descriptive-qualitative, Japanese third-age, Japan
title Unveiling the “Whys” of Japanese Third-age Learners’ English Language Proficiency
title_full Unveiling the “Whys” of Japanese Third-age Learners’ English Language Proficiency
title_fullStr Unveiling the “Whys” of Japanese Third-age Learners’ English Language Proficiency
title_full_unstemmed Unveiling the “Whys” of Japanese Third-age Learners’ English Language Proficiency
title_short Unveiling the “Whys” of Japanese Third-age Learners’ English Language Proficiency
title_sort unveiling the whys of japanese third age learners english language proficiency
topic English as a foreign language, English proficiency, Descriptive-qualitative, Japanese third-age, Japan
url https://philssj.org/index.php/main/article/view/1000
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