Applications of Language Studies
A semiannual International Research Journal

The Relationship between the Cultural Identity of the Iranian EFL Students and their Speaking Proficiency

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Mahdi Mardani 1
Maryam Ghareghani 2

1 Assistant Professor, Behbahan Khatam Alanbia University of Technology, Behbahan, Iran.

2 Master of English Language Teaching, Ministry of Education, Iran.

https://doi.org/10.22034/jals.2024.713345
Abstract
The present study made an attempt to examine cultural identity as a factor potentially prompting English language speaking production, an area that has only recently begun to receive much attention in the field of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) research. This study focused on three tasks to analyze the speaking performance of the participants (sixty EFL learners). As the first instrument, a modified Michigan test was used to select sixty male and female learners at the same level of proficiency from among 100 pre-intermediate learners of English language. The findings of the study showed that cultural identity affects speaking; that is, holding a secondary identity and readiness to learn a foreign language affects foreign language speaking of Iranian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students.  The findings of the present study can be implied as a warning to both EFL learners and instructors in Iran that language learners do not show any interest in following a native-like accent. Moreover, the learners are not provided with the required facilities to improve their speaking skills.

Keywords

EFL
Cultural identity
Speaking proficiency

Subjects

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Applications of Language Studies
Volume 2, Issue 1
April 2024
Pages 81-96

  • Receive Date 10 March 2024
  • Revise Date 27 April 2024
  • Accept Date 23 May 2024

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