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Imagined Communities: A Mixed Methods Study of Patterns among English and Spanish Language Learners

Ramanayake, Selena
http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0628-3577
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1535636778278414

Abstract Details

2018, PhD, University of Cincinnati, Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services: Educational Studies.
Adult language learners face negative sociocultural conditions that affect their language learning investment, learners’ commitment to learning with the understanding that they will receive a return on their investment (Norton Peirce, 1995; Norton, 2013). Understanding what language learners’ experience in their learning contexts is important to improving adult learners’ language development (Kern & Schultz, 2005) and pedagogical practices in language education. The construct of imagined communities (ICs) is a theory of second language studies to understand adult language learners’ investment which involves the target language communities that learners aspire to as they learn a language. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine the ICs of individual and groups of adult English as a Second Language (ESL) and Spanish as a Foreign Language (SFL) language learners in order to identify potential pedagogy for the two contexts of language learning. The study is framed in an interpretation of four dimensions embedded in ICs theory and Gee’s (1996; 2001) theory of Discourse communities, and uses a convergent parallel mixed methods design (Plano Clark & Creswell, 2011). The qualitative strand, interviews and journals, revealed that SFL learners tended to have future or travel related ICs and ESL learners tended to have current context ICs or career ICs, likely due to differences in access to native speakers within their different learning contexts. Face-to-face speaking interaction was valued most, but SFL learners’ limited access to Spanish speakers was a challenge. There were many nonlinguistic skills that learners found essential to reaching their ICs, such as confidence or content knowledge, a dimension not accounted in the a priori four dimensions. The quantitative strand, an online survey, revealed that out of the four dimensions on the survey—access/barriers, social relationships/distance, capital gains, and language domains—capital gains (i.e., reasons to invest) were most agreed upon. Further, SFL learners were more confident in their value as a multilingual in their IC. ESL beginners were the most likely to agree or disagree as a group. ESL advanced learners were more confident in their language skills and hard work. Learners in all groups were neutral or disagreed about changing one’s behavior/beliefs to fit into their ICs. The integration strand used corpus analysis and joint displays to examine corroborative and contrastive data among strands and of five participants who completed both strands. This analysis led to pedagogical recommendations for ICs (e.g., a research assignment that asks the learner to research the entire identity kit of their ICs). Advanced learners may find ICs pedagogy most suitable given their greater proficiency and better understanding of their language context and development. Learners may increase their investment in language learning and power over their learning if they are aware of ICs, the characteristics of those groups, and how to gain membership. By integrating this deliberately in university language courses, instructors may further empower language learners.
Haiyang Ai, Ph.D. (Committee Chair)
Holly Johnson, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Hye Pae, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
234 p.
Sociolinguistics
imagined communities; ESL; Spanish as a Foreign Language; mixed methods research; motivation; language education

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Ramanayake, S. (2018). Imagined Communities: A Mixed Methods Study of Patterns among English and Spanish Language Learners [Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1535636778278414

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Ramanayake, Selena. Imagined Communities: A Mixed Methods Study of Patterns among English and Spanish Language Learners. 2018. University of Cincinnati, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1535636778278414.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Ramanayake, Selena. "Imagined Communities: A Mixed Methods Study of Patterns among English and Spanish Language Learners." Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati, 2018. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1535636778278414

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ucin1535636778278414
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This open access ETD is published by University of Cincinnati and OhioLINK.