A team in Cambridge explored the impact of Cambridge English Qualifications on children’s attitudes to learning English. The study found positive attitudes and low stress levels concerning English exams.
An impact study carried out by a research team from Cambridge highlighted positive attitudes and low levels of stress among children learning English in Argentina and Peru. The study was carried out by experts at Cambridge English, a department of Cambridge University. Amy Devine, Senior Research Manager at Cambridge English, who led the project, said they set out to explore the impact of taking a Cambridge English test for young learners on children’s attitudes to learning English.
The study compiled data from more than 130 11-15-year-olds from six schools in Argentina and Peru. It compared two groups of learners. Group 1 had taken A1 Movers or A2 Flyers and group 2 had either not taken a Cambridge English exam or had taken a different exam. The students were asked about their previous exam experience, anxiety levels, beliefs about intelligence, their confidence in speaking in English, and what activities they do outside the classroom to learn English.
The study found that 94% of students believed they could improve their English language abilities through hard work. Devine says this positive attitude is known as a ‘growth mindset’ and is typically linked to better learning outcomes. The study also found that only 10% of students reported high levels of anxiety when thinking about taking higher-level exams in the future. Interestingly students who had previously taken A1 Movers and A2 Flyers were less stressed about their forthcoming exams.
Graeme Harrison, Principal Impact Manager at Cambridge, commented: ‘Our research showed that taking a Cambridge English young learners qualification has a really positive impact on students in Latin America. We found the majority of students see the benefits of hard work when learning English and this is something that is often seen in high-achieving students. Other findings showed most learners were motivated to master the language, engaged in English activities outside the classroom and were not anxious about taking exams.’
The study also examined which extra-curricular English activities students engaged in at least once a week. The most popular were focused on receptive skills such as listening to music or watching TV.
Harrison remarked:
‘The research gives really useful data that can be used to support teachers so they can build on these positive attitudes and motivation to help students to continue to learn English. For example, we can focus on these out-of-class interests to help maintain strong levels of engagement with English language learning. Furthermore, we would encourage teachers to set achievable goals, reward progress, and encourage their young learners not to focus too much on their mistakes, as these all tend to correlate with improved language learning.’
Further information about this study can be found in Research Notes 80: Context and quality assurance in language testing.