Learning English as a foreign language in Taiwan: students’ experiences and beyond

Abstract

In Taiwan, earlier English instruction has become prevalent in response to the trend of English as an international language. Current studies are interested in investigating the outcomes or developmental process of learning English from a linguistic perspective. However, this article aims to reveal children's subjective experiences of learning English, examine implicit meanings of parents' attitudes towards earlier English instruction, and explore how children's experiences are shaped by the school context. By using the framework of the Mosaic approach by Clark and Moss, this study collected data from classroom observations, interviews with children and relevant adults, and children's drawings. The results described how the children learned English under drill-focused teaching practices. The children can identify what they did and what they liked in English class. However, they considered English to be a difficult language to learn because they recognised that they did not truly understand the meaning of the target vocabulary or sentences. The children would have found English easy to learn if the teacher had translated English expressions into Mandarin. The students' experiences exposed the inappropriateness of English instruction and revealed the gap between parental expectations towards earlier English instruction and school anticipations of parental involvement in children's English learning.

A Comparison of Teaching Methods in Taiwan for Young Learners of English

“…The same suggestion was made by Wang (2008) to study how individual teachers have been implementing the English instruction on a local basis. Hsieh (2011) proposed a comparison of English learning by observing different instructional methods with young learners. Chen and Tsai (2012) found that the majority of research had been conducted on college and adult students, but suggested that research on primary and secondary school levels could result in a more unified framework on which to monitor and define English education in Taiwan.…”

“…In addition to those issues, some teachers mentioned demands from parents and administration (Hsieh, 2011). Lack of support and sufficient resources were cited additionally in regards to the school setting, along with the teachers questioning their own teaching abilities (Chiang, 2003;Her, 2007).…”

“…Large class size, limited instructional time, lack of consistent resources, and demands from a variety of sources were some of the challenges described by many researchers (Hsieh, 2011;Chiang, 2003;Enever & Moon, 2010;Chern, 2010;Chang, n.d.). In addition to those issues, some teachers mentioned demands from parents and administration (Hsieh, 2011).…”

Between Local and Global: The Implementation of International Education in a Taiwanese Preschool

“…The biggest problem of English teaching in Taiwanese preschool is the curriculum emphasizes too much on English and neglects the fundamental developmental tasks for children such as expressing their emotions through their mother tongue. This situation is mainly due to the parental held myth that 'learning English equals being international' (Hsieh, 2011;Liu, 2006). This is understandable of parents' expectation of international education in early years, but it so lacks clear focus and proper purposes in curriculum design.…”

“…In this research, direct contact means the meeting of cultures but not English conversation. According to Hsieh (2011) andLiu (2006), many private preschools in Taiwan view English proficiency as an important part in foreign contact. In this study, with the assistance of translators to overcome the language obstacle, children could focus more on non-language contact such as listening, observing, and playing with people from other cultures.…”