A Comparative Study of Adult Learners’ Motivation for Learning English as a Foreign Language According to Their Instruction by Single or Multiple Instructors at Geos Language Centre, Thailand

Abstract

The purpose of this quantitative study was to compare adult learners’ motivation for learning English as a foreign language according to their instruction by either a single instructor or by multiple instructors over a period of six weeks at Geos Language Centre in Bangkok, Thailand. The sample population of this study consisted of 67 adult-learner students enrolled in private English as a foreign language courses during the period of April to July 2020. These students comprised two groups under investigation during the period of this study: 1) Those who received instruction from a single instructor, and 2) Those who received instruction from multiple instructors. The Questionnaire for Measuring Motivation for Learning English as a Foreign Language (QMMLEFL), adapted from the Attitude / Motivation Test Battery (AMTB) by Gardner (2004), was used to measure the level of adult learners’ motivation for learning English as a foreign language (EFL). Descriptive statistics (means and standard deviations) were calculated, and statistical hypothesis testing (comparative analysis using paired samples t-tests and an independent samples t-test) was performed from data collected to pursue the research objectives and accept or reject the research hypotheses of this study. The research findings did not indicate that there was a statistically significant difference in the gain in motivation for learning English as a foreign language over a six-week period of study between adult learners who studied with a single instructor and adult learners who studied with multiple instructors. Recommendations for adult learners and instructors of English as a foreign language and language institute administrators and future researchers are provided.