JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS OF -------- ATTITUDE TOWARDS

SPEAKING IN ENGLISH

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT AS A REQUIREMENTS OF ENGLISH10 SUBJECT

RESEARCHERS:

Adviser

April 26, 2024

JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS OF SAN ------ATTITUDE TOWARDS

Abstract
This research focused on assessing students' attitudes towards speaking English, using a

descriptive-correlational approach to analyze their profiles and attitudes. The study revealed

that students from Junior High School generally value speaking English, despite feeling

insecure about their proficiency, fearing mistakes and potential ridicule. They recognize the

importance of English for future careers and believe practice will enhance their skills.

Emphasizing the need for classroom motivation to enhance student’s English speaking

attitudes.

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Keywords: attitude towards speaking in English, Junior high school

CHAPTER I:
INTRODUCTION
I.I: Background of the study

The prominence of English as a global language has significantly elevated its role in

worldwide communication, encompassing both spoken and written language skills.

However, in the San Isidro Integrated School, particularly among Junior high school level

students, speaking English appears to pose notable challenges. Various factors impact the

acquisition of spoken English skills, with attitude being a key determinant. Attitudes, shaped

by beliefs and evaluations, significantly influence language learning motivation. Research

underscores the importance of positive attitudes in fostering language acquisition. Gender

dynamics also play a crucial role in language learning, with females often exhibiting greater

interest and performance compared to males. Understanding these affective aspects,

especially through a gender lens, is pivotal for enhancing student engagement and

outcomes in second language acquisition. This study delves into the significance of attitudes

as a crucial factor in students' success in spoken English, focusing on Junior high school

students and considering variables such as gender and academic specialization.

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 1.2 Statement of the problem:

This study focused on assessing students' attitudes towards speaking in English of Junior

High School at San Isidro Integrated School, City of Isabela, Division of Cagayan.

1.3 Purposes of the study:

This study tries to achieve the following purposes:

1-To investigate the attitudes of Junior high school students towards speaking in English
2- Examining whether the attitude of the students towards speaking in English
significantly differs according to their profile variables such as their Grade and sex.

1.4 Scope and delimitation:

This study is focused to investigate the Junior High school students towards speaking

in English at San Isidro Integrated School.

The respondents of the study are the Junior High School of San Isidro Integrated

School.

The research excludes Elementary students as participants due to its specific

emphasis on Junior High School students, aiming for a more targeted and sex-appropriate

analysis within that particular academic level.

Attitudes- A settled way of thinking or feeling about someone or something

typically one that is reflected in a person’s behavior.

CHAPTER II:
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

These chapter deals with the literature relevant to this study. Many studies have been

conducted to investigate the different attitudes towards speaking English as foreign

language. In this chapter a review of relevant studies is also discussed.

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Herwiana & Laili (2021) conducted a study on 'Students’ Attitude towards English Language Learning.

This study tries to find out the students' attitude towards English language learning in Jombang

elementary schools. Attitude is one of the factors that influence language acquisition. The study

used a qualitative research methodology. The data were gathered by using a questionnaire. The

findings showed that most of the students have a positive attitude towards English.

Delić (2020) studied the attitude towards learning English as a foreign language. This study aimed to

investigate the negative attitudes that students may have towards language learning in high school.

The data were collected from 160 high school students in Bosnia and Herzegovina (B&H) using a

questionnaire adapted by researchers. The results show that our participants report more negative

than positive attitudes towards language learning and that the factors, which influence their

negative attitudes, are school policy, learning environment, and teaching methodology. The results

also indicate that there exists no statistically significant difference between genders, as well as

between four high school grades in terms of their interpretation of positive and negative attitudes

towards English language learning.

In their study, Abidin Dr. et al. (2012) investigated Libyan secondary school students' attitudes

toward learning English in terms of the behavioral, cognitive, and emotional aspects. A total of 180

participants in the three study years from three specializations of Basic Sciences, Life Sciences, and

Social Sciences took a questionnaire as a measuring instrument. Regarding the three aspects of
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attitude, i.e., cognitive, behavioral, and emotional, the participants showed negative attitudes

towards learning English. On the demographic profile, there were statistically significant attitudinal

differences regarding gender and field of study but not year of study. Based on the research findings,

some recommendations are finally presented.

CHAPTER III:
METHODOLOGY

This study employed a quantitative using descriptive-correlational design to investigate the

Junior High School student’s attitude toward speaking in English. The participants of this

study consisted of students at San Isidro Integrated School.

Respondents

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The method of data collection employed for the present study was the stratified random

sampling. There are 104 students in San Isidro Integrated School. The purposive sampling

method was also adopted. As a result, the students were selected from the Junior High

School students with a total of 56 males and 48 females.

Instruments

As the present study’s context is the same with that of Bui and Intarapresert (2013), their English

speaking Attitude Questionnaire (ESAQ) was used. It was constructed on the basis of the Language

Learning Attitude Questionnaire (2004) and Okert’s (2010) language learning questionnaire. The

statements in the ESAQ specifically pertains their feelings towards speaking in English, reasons why

they speak in English, reasons why English is important to them as well as their perceived English

speaking capability. Moreover, to ensure that the respondents knew the purpose of investigation

and answered the questionnaire with less fear and honesty, which, as stated by Intaraprasert (2000),

is very important, the questionnaires’ general instruction followed Dörnyei’s (2003) suggestion. This

involved providing information on the purpose, the importance of the study, and the organization

responsible for conducting the study, stating there is no right or wrong answer, requesting honest

answers, promising confidentiality, and expression appreciation.

Procedure

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The ESAQ was administered to students from the Junior High School. The researchers themselves

carried out the process strictly following the sampling plan so as to achieve the desired number and

qualified responses.

CHAPTER IIII:

RESULTS

Table 1: Shows that 48 total number of respondents are male while 43 of the remaining number of

respondents are female. Accordingly, there are relatively more male than female students in the

Junior High School.

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 Table 1: Profile of the respondents when grouped according to sex.

Males Females
56 48

Table 2: Present the attitude of the student’s towards speaking in English.

STATEMENTS AGREE DISAGREE PERCENT

1.You enjoy speaking English. / 70%

2. Speaking English is fun. / 62%

3.Being able to speak English often makes you happy. /

4. Being able to speak English gives you a feeling success. /

5.Speaking English is important to you in general. /

6.Do you speak English because it will make your parents or your teacher /

proud of you.

7. Speaking English is important to you because you might need it later /

for your job.

8. Do you think if you put much effort in practicing, you can speak well. /

9. You are worried about making mistakes when you speak English. /

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10. You are afraid of being laughed at when you make mistakes in /

speaking English.

Conclusion

The study concludes that the junior high school students have positive attitude towards speaking in

English and that they view speaking in English as important in general. However, speaking in English

is

feared by most students because they are afraid of being laughed at when

committing mistakes in speaking. They may not like to speak the language

because they lack self-confidence on their conversational ability. Nevertheless,

they think that they can speak English well if provided opportunities to practice.

Chapter IIIII
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Appendix

ESAQ (English Speaking Attitude Questionnaire)

Instructions: To what extent do you agree with the following items? The

following items ask about your attitudes towards speaking in English. Remember

there is no right or wrong answers; just answer as accurately as possible. Please

read the statements below carefully and tick the appropriate choices that reflect

your attitudes and perceptions towards English language.

Note: Tick (√) only one option for each item in the questionnaire

STATEMENTS AGREE DISAGREE

1.You enjoy speaking English.

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2. Speaking English is fun.

3.Being able to speak English often makes you happy.

4. Being able to speak English gives you a feeling success.

5.Speaking English is important to you in general.

6. You speak English because it will make your parents or your teacher

proud of you.

7. Speaking English is important to you because you might need it later

for your job.

8. Do you think if you put much effort in practicing, you can speak well.

9. You are worried about making mistakes when you speak English.

10. You are afraid of being laughed at when you make mistakes in

speaking English.

STATEMENTS AGREE DISAGREE

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 1.You enjoy speaking English.

2. Speaking English is fun.

3.Being able to speak English often makes you happy.

4. Being able to speak English gives you a feeling success.

5.Speaking English is important to you in general.

6. You speak English because it will make your parents or your teacher

proud of you.

7. Speaking English is important to you because you might need it later

for your job.

8. Do you think if you put much effort in practicing, you can speak well.

9. You are worried about making mistakes when you speak English.

10. You are afraid of being laughed at when you make mistakes in

speaking English.

Note: Tick (√) only one option for each item in the questionnaire

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 STATEMENTS AGREE DISAGREE

1.Do you enjoy speaking English.

2. Speaking English is fun.

3.Being able to speak English often makes you happy.

4. Being able to speak English gives you a feeling success.

5.Speaking English is important to you in general.

6. Do you speak English because it will make your parents or your

teacher proud of you.

7. Speaking English is important to you because you might need it later

for your job.

8. Do you think if you put much effort in practicing, you can speak well.

9. You are worried about making mistakes when you speak English.

10. You are afraid of being laughed at when you make mistakes in

speaking English.

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