Early Foreign Language Learning from the Children’s Perspective

Many European children begin to learn a (foreign) language at a very early age, and early foreign language learning has thus evolved into a paradigm that seems to have settled as a steady companion of everyday school life. The aim of this contribution, which addresses the topic of early foreign language learning from the participant’s, i.e. the student’s, point-of-view, is to determine students’ reasons for learning a foreign language, as articulated by the students themselves. The research analysis will investigate the motivational aspects that influence learning, and will also illustrate and interpret the research results of a study in which approx. 300 students aged 6-10 years from 9 different countries participated. The analysis will not be country specific, but will highlight common motivational features that recur in all the students’ replies and reveal – as expected-not a linguistic, but a decisively pragmatic focus in the process of language learning.

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