With rapid globalization, it is an urgent task for universities in an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context to provide practical English education. Particularly, one that enables students to participate in the global society as well as the global business market. The challenge for these universities is to achieve this goal with limited class…

Given the importance of academic motivation, numerous inquiries have scrutinized the antecedents of this psycho-emotional variable in various educational environments. Nonetheless, the role of students' attitudes in their academic motivation has remained elusive. Put simply, it is unclear whether students' attitudes can make positive changes in…

Video streaming is a common social practice in modern society, especially among today's youth. Many people are also using these services as a resource for informal learning. However, few studies have examined the use of video streaming for self-directed foreign language (FL) learning beyond the classroom. The present study addresses this research…

In this study, the authors investigated the attitudes of Japanese junior high school students towards studying English from the perspective of the Self-worth Theory. A total of 383 students aged 12 to 15 years participated in the qualitative study. Students were required to write three essays about how they would react under hypothetical…

Motivations-beliefs for learning and their relationship to instructional experiences are a poorly understood aspect of higher education. Notably, interest is an individual difference that both researchers and educators alike believe should be supported. However, this support is too often relegated to the craft of instruction. To be enhanced…

In Japan, calls for students to become global human resources (GHR) has placed pressure on universities to internationalise. Traditionally, Japanese universities have relied on student mobility to foster GHR, but a decline in mobility numbers has highlighted the need for educators and administrators to consider how an intercultural mindset can be…

This study aimed to examine the effect of incorporating the generative pre-trained AI chatbot, ChatGPT, into an instructor-led writing class on the motivation of Japanese university students. This study examines changes in students' Ideal L2 Self, Ought-to L2 Self, and L2 Learning Experience using Dörnyei's L2 Motivational Self System (L2MSS)…

Recently, Japanese medical students are expected to acquire a high degree of English proficiency with the tacit understanding that it will feature in their future profession through interactions with non-Japanese patients and/or engagement with medical research. However, to the best of our knowledge, the motivation of Japanese medical students to…

This study compares two leadership styles, emergent leader (EL) and assigned leader (AL), to explore effective leadership in second language (L2) group work. ELs were spontaneously chosen by the group, while ALs were pre-assigned by teachers before the task. The study involved 45 university students, who were divided into seven EL groups (n = 21)…

The present study explored whether two semester overseas study programs had any impact on participants' language ability and motivation to study English. The language ability, L2 learning motivation and learning attitude of 65 Japanese university students participating in semester-long study abroad programs were measured pre departure and on their…

Due to its accessibility and popularity, anime has been explored as a motivation for learning Japanese and as a pedagogical tool linking Japanese-as-a-foreign-language (JFL) literacy practices inside and outside of the classroom. However, JFL learners' actual practices in anime-mediated self-directed learning have not been fully investigated.…

Despite progress in recent years, Japanese classrooms continue to present challenges for educators seeking to promote language learner autonomy. Adopting an action research/case study design, the present study explored how, in a 5-week student-led project, an intact group of learners could contribute to the development of their own autonomy. Data…

Role models and motivators can influence young people in a general sense and have a significant effect on their values and beliefs. As part of a larger project, we investigated the presence of L2 (second language) role models and motivators among 12 Japanese high school students (aged between 15 and 18), who took part in one-to-one interviews with…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of a digital storytelling assignment on the motivation for learning English of students with low proficiency and confidence in English. The participants of this study were non-English major students in Japan who studied in four courses of English as a Foreign Language (EFL). Each course was…

This study empirically compares two often-utilized motivation theories in L2 studies: self-determination theory and the L2 motivational self system. It also examines the relationships among their motivational constructs, learners' intended L2 learning effort, and L2 proficiency. While a number of studies have utilized these models in order to…