Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, mokėjimo ir mokymosi

BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ Lietuvių kalbos institutas MOKINIŲ POŽIŪRIS Į LIETUVIŲ KALBĄ: RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LANGUAGE USE, TEACHING AND LEARNING KEY WORDS: Lithuanian language, student language, language proficiency, language use. This article presents the results of a survey conducted in 2018-2019, which aimed to determine which languages predominate in the language of pupils and to show how the answers given by pupils relate to their attitudes towards Lithuanian language lessons, Lithuanian language teaching and Lithuanian language. It turned out that as the everyday language of the pupils, depending on the area of use, two languages predominate: Lithuanian and English. Most of the pupils state that they speak Lithuanian at home and almost all of them read books in Lithuanian. Other language usage results vary with age: the older pupils are, the more English they use (e.g. surfing the web, watching movies). From the answers given by the pupils, a strong relationship between the Lithuanian language proficiency and the evaluation of Lithuanian language lessons emerged: those pupils who do not succeed in learning Lithuanian language do not like Lithuanian language lessons and vice versa. INTRODUCTION Researches on the language of pupils are increasingly attracting the attention of scientists and the public, and it is discussed how much the development of pupils’ language and deteriorating literacy can be caused by other languages. It is important to talk about changes in the use of Lithuanian language at school age because it is at this time that the influence of other languages is mainly established, and the possibilities to influence the use of the language are the greatest in school, because only there is compulsory teaching of Lithuanian language. By identifying which languages have the greatest influence on the Lithuanian language used by lietuvių kalbos galias. pupils, by assessing the links between Lithuanian language and its teaching and learning, it is possible to act and strengthen the Lithuanian language used by pupils through educational (pradinių klasių (3–4 kl.), pagrindinio ugdymo (5–6, 7–8 kl.) klasių mokinių), veikiančių AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, contents. The object of this article is an analysis of the relationship between pupils’ language use, proficiency and learning, based on data from 536 questionnaires collected from pupils’ language use, proficiency and learning in schools with Lithuanian as the language of instruction. BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 įvairiose Lietuvos apskrityse: Druskininkų, Kauno, Klaipėdos, Panevėžio, Šiaulių, Vilniaus (the purpose of the survey is to investigate the attitude of pupils to Lithuanian language). The aim 1 of the article is to analyze the results of the pupils’ survey to determine which languages are atsakymai į anketos klausimus, parodantys ryšį tarp kalbos vartojimo, mokėjimo ir mokymosi. predominant in the pupils’ language, to show how the answers given by the pupils are related to their attitudes about Lithuanian language lessons, Lithuanian language teaching and Lithuanian language. To achieve the aim, the following main tasks were set: 1) to perform a survey of the language use at home of pupils of different age groups and genders, looking at 2) to determine how pupils evaluate their knowledge of Lithuanian and foreign languages; 3) to reveal the possible filmus, skaitant knygas, naršant internete analizę; connection between Lithuanian language proficiency and self-assessment of proficiency. (calculation) method is used to calculate and report response rates. The first chapter of the Nagrinėjant mokinių atsakymus taikomas aprašomasis analitinis metodas, kiekybinis article provides an overview of the relevance and nature of the study, the second presents the results of the study and provides a comparative analysis of the data. 1. RELEVANCE AND NATURE OF THE INVESTIGATION In Lithuania, a number of studies on linguistic attitudes of various social groups have been carried out, often examining specific issues in individual aspects. However, there is still a lack of consistent empirical research aimed at the language use and learning motivation of pupils in primary and secondary schools where the language of instruction is Lithuanian. Lately, much attention has been paid to the language attitudes of students. The most frequently investigated are the attitudes of upper-class students towards the Lithuanian language, studies of the attitudes of students of national minority schools towards the Lithuanian language are carried out, and there are a number of studies showing the connections between the attitude towards the common language and dialects (e.g.: Aliūkaitė et al. 2017; Ramonienė 2010; 2013; Ramonienė, Extra 2011). A number of studies have been carried out in Lithuania and abroad on the subject of linguistic attitudes of various social groups, as well as the peculiarities of Lithuanian language use and proficiency (e.g.: Čubajavaitė 2013; Urbaitytė 2018). The study examined how the learning of foreign languages mokinių požiūrį į lietuvių kalbą, tirtos sąsajos tarp šių veiksnių ir požiūrio į lietuvių kalbos 1 The data were collected during the participation in the project funded by the State Lithuanian Language kalbų poveikis mokinių lietuvių kalbai ir savimonei: situacija, tendencijos ir galimybės“ (Valstybinės lietuvių Commission “Program approved by Order No. V-10 of the Chairman of the Other Language Commission of 16 January 2018 “Program for the Research of the Functioning and Change of the Lithuanian Common Language, Dialects and Other Language Variants”, implementing authority Lithuanian Language Institute, date of conclusion of the contract 16 July 2018, No., K-2/2018). AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, mokėjimo ir mokymosi | 3 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 pamokas. Iš pateiktų rezultatų matyti, kad „vaikų požiūris į lietuvių kalbą yra labiausiai susijęs with the <...> child's interest in reading, writing and speaking <...>; children who enjoy this activity usually say that they like Lithuanian language lessons” (Dabašinskienė et al. 2011: 143). Studies emphasise the importance of students’ attitudes and motivation to learn. A great deal of emphasis is placed on learning a second (usually second) language. It is acknowledged that the success of language learning is determined by motivation related to language attitudes, learning environment (Ushioda 2013; Dörnei 2014; 2014). Recent studies examine the attitudes of children and adolescents towards the Lithuanian jos prestižo. Tyrimai rodo, kad vertybinės nuostatos dėl kalbos susiformuoja jaunesniame language and at school age, unfortunately, “the prestige of the Lithuanian language decreases with age – the higher the class, the less pupils value its social significance” 215). Pristatomi naujausi motyvacijos mokytis ir nuostatų dėl lietuvių kalbos modeliai, (Poderienė, Vaičiakauskienė 2019: it is stated that “[T]e negative attitudes towards the Lithuanian language, Lithuanian, Lithuania and their own identity affect motivation, which leads to better quality of language proficiency” (Vilkienė et al. 2019: 63). The data for this study were collected in 2018-2019. The questionnaire consists of two parts. The first part of the questionnaire contained general questions, the second – statements, with the option to choose one of the answers (I do not agree / I do not agree, neither do I disagree / I agree). Students of higher grades (5-8) filled out the questionnaire independently, students of lower grades (3-4) were read aloud the questions and statements of the questionnaire, they marked the answers. The data collected during the study were statistically processed manually, analyzed in the electronic spreadsheet Microsoft Office Excel. The article focuses on the following aspects, depending on its topic: 1. Age of pupils (class). 1. Which class are you in now? __________ 2. Gender of pupils. 3. Select your gender: □ male / □ female. 3. Use of language. 6. Which language(s) do you usually speak at home? □ Lithuanian, □ Polish, □ Russian, □ English, other ______________ (record) 7. Įrašyk, kuria kalba paprastai Tu a) watching movies ___________________________________________ b) read books c) naršai internete ________________________________________ AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, _________________________________________ payment and learning | 4 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 4. Attitudes of pupils to Lithuanian language lessons, Lithuanian language teaching and Lithuanian language kalbos. 9. Pažymėk, kaip Tau sekasi mokykloje mokytis šiuos dalykus: 9b. In Lithuanian: 1 – very bad, 2 – bad, 3 – good, 4 – very good (overview) 9d. Foreign language: 1 – very bad, 2 – bad, 3 – good, 4 – very good (outline) What is your opinion about Lithuanian language? Think about what you think and mark the answer that suits you best. Statements Disagree Neither agree nor disagree I agree 6. I like to read books. 11. Lithuanian language is difficult, I have trouble speaking and writing well. 14. Lithuanian language lessons are not interesting. 19. I like Lithuanian language lessons. 25. I don’t like Lithuanian. The research sites were chosen in different parts of Lithuania, therefore Druskininkai, Kaunas, Klaipeda, Panevezys, Šiauliai, Vilnius counties were chosen. 1 PAV. Counties selected for the study (map from the Internet, access on the Internet: http://www.lietuvoszemelapis.com/apskriciu-zemelapiai) The following criteria were used for the selection of the sample: age (class) of the respondents, gender of the respondents. TABLE 1. Subject characteristics of learning and learning | 5 County Druskininkai Kaunas Klaipeda Panevėžys Šiauliai Vilnius Total: 73 96 62 42 70 193 Words. Man. Mot. Man. Mot. Man. Mot. Gender Man. Mot. Man. Mot. Man. 40 33 44 52 31 31 20 22 35 35 105 88 3,4 5,6 7,8 3,4 5,6 7,8 3,4 5,6 7,8 3.4 5,6 7,8 3,4 5,6 7,8 3,4 5,6 7,8 18 22 33 19 19 58 18 22 22 0 42 0 39 15 16 55 77 64 Class AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 2. RESULTS OF THE INVESTIGATION In view of the objective of this study, the use of language in the daily life of pupils, language proficiency (self-esteem of pupils) and the relationship between language proficiency and learning were examined. 2.1. Use of language in everyday life The study focused on the use of the language of choice by pupils in everyday life, i.e. the language that pupils use at home, when watching movies, reading books, and surfing the Internet. The results show that the majority of respondents speak Lithuanian at home (93%), less often English (20%), Russian (16%), Polish (3%) and only occasionally other, less commonly spoken languages: Spanish, French, German, etc. The results show that the choice of everyday language is independent of gender. The answers received are roughly distributed: most girls (71%) and boys (68%) speak Lithuanian at home, less often English (girls – 14%, boys – 15%), Russian (girls – 11%, boys – 13%) or other languages. In the questionnaires provided, students could also record several languages. Although most respondents indicated that they only speak Lithuanian at home, there were also those who noted that they use English and less often Russian in addition to Lithuanian. These data are difficult to assess unequivocally. It may be assumed that some pupils have chosen to indicate several languages not because they communicate in both languages at home, but because there are isolated cases when they communicate in both languages with friends, write on social networks, etc. The resulting data are shown in Figures 2 and 3 of EIA 2. Language created by students 3 PAV. Language spoken at home: data on pupils speaking at home by gender AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, mokėjimo ir mokymosi | 6 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 The study aimed to determine how the age of pupils determines the choice of language. More than half of the 8th grade pupils (77%) stated that they speak Lithuanian at home, and the figures for other grades are almost identical (64–69%). The highest percentage of pupils who stated that English is spoken at home was in grades 6 (22%) and 3 (21%), the results in grades 5, 7 and 8 amounted to 10-14%, while the lowest percentage of pupils who stated that English is also spoken at home was in grades 4 (8%). Students in grades 7 (17 per cent) indicated that they communicate in Russian most often, students in grades 4, 5, 6 and 8 reported roughly the same results (10-14 per cent), while students in grades 3 indicated the least Russian as the language used at home. Detailed information on the tendency of different grades of pupils to use the language at home can be found in Figure 4 of the PISA 4. Languages spoken at home: data by class The answers to the question of the language in which films are usually watched vary. Half (50%) of pupils indicated that they watch films in Lithuanian, the rest (35%) chose English and only in rare cases Russian (3%) and Polish (1%) were mentioned. Students also mentioned relatively rarely spoken languages such as Arabic, Korean, French, etc. It is believed that they may not have understood the question completely correctly. For example, the choice of Korean language is highly questionable. You can consider watching Korean movies, which are very popular at the moment, but they are probably translated into English or another language or are shown with subtitles. In spite of these circumstances, the main tendencies have become clear and they are obvious – Lithuanian and English prevail (see Figure 5). The analysis of the data focused on whether gender influences the choice of language. The results are similar: more girls (53 per cent; boys – 48 per cent) indicated that they watch movies in Lithuanian, respectively, girls AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, watch movies in English less frequently. | 7 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 (32 proc.; plg. berniukų – 38 proc.), apylygiai mokinių (mergaičių – 12 proc., berniukų – 13%) watch films in Russian (see Figure 6). 5 PAV. Language in which students watch 6 PAV. The language in which students watch films: the hypothesis that the older students are, filmus, proc. duomenys pagal lytį, proc. Vertinta ir tai, kaip kalbos rinkimasis žiūrint filmus priklauso nuo mokinių amžiaus. Dar the more often they watch films in English has been confirmed. The results show that pupils in lower grades are more likely to watch films in English (see Figure 7). 7 PAV. Language filmus lietuvių kalba, 7 klasės mokinių pateikti rezultatai vienodi, o 8 klasės mokiniai jau in which pupils watch films: data by class As the survey data shows, the main two languages in which films are watched are Lithuanian and English (see Figure 8); films are less frequently watched in Russian (10 to 16% of pupils in different grades watch films in Russian). AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, payment and learning | 8 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 8 PAV. Language in which pupils watch films: data by grade The majority of pupils (as many as 85 %) who were asked to indicate the language in which they read books indicated Lithuanian (see Figure 9). Thus, almost all pupils read books in Lithuanian, much less often in English (13%), other languages are mentioned only in isolated cases. It is very important to pay attention to this: if students choose Lithuanian language when reading, through reading, the choice of good literature can have a positive effect on the language they use. The results by gender are approximate (see Figure 10): only a few percent fewer girls indicated that they read books in Lithuanian (83 per cent, compared to boys – 86 per cent), and only a few percent more girls indicated that they read books in English (14 per cent, compared to boys – 10 per cent). 9 PAV. Language developed by students 10 PAV. Language in which pupils read books: data read books by gender The results by class are approximate – Lithuanian language is predominant in all classes (77–91%). The majority of students in grades 5 (91%) and 3 (90%) choose to read in Lithuanian, the answers provided by students in grades 6-8 are distributed equally, i.e. 82% of students in these grades read in Lithuanian, while the data for grades 4 differ somewhat – 77% of AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, students in these grades indicated that they read in the language of learning and learning | 9 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 in Lithuanian, 19% read in English. The number of pupils in different grades who stated that the second language in which books are read ranges from 7 to 16%. The results are shown in Figure 11. Language in which pupils read books: data by class even less frequently – Russian Dar buvo klausiama, kokia kalba mokiniai naršo internete. Kiek didesnė dalis nurodo, kad internete naršo anglų kalba (47 proc.), šiek tiek rečiau naršoma lietuvių kalba (45 proc.), (7%) and other single languages (1%). Girls browsed Lithuanian boys – 55 per cent). Russian is kalba renkasi dažniau nei berniukai (49 proc.; plg. berniukai – 38 proc.). Naršymo anglų kalba rezultatas atvirkštinis: mergaitės naršyti internete anglų kalba renkasi rečiau (42 proc.; plg. used almost equally by 8% of girls and 6% of boys. The results are shown in Figures 12 and 13. Language created by students 13 PAV. Language used by pupils to browse the internet: browsing data by gender Even before the study was carried out, the hypothesis was raised that the older the students, the more often they choose to surf the Internet in English. The predictions were confirmed: the results indeed show that older pupils are more likely to surf the Internet in English (see Figure 14). AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, A marked change is seen from the payment and learning | 16 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 In summary, it can be stated that the relationships between Lithuanian language proficiency and attitude to Lithuanian language, as well as between Lithuanian language proficiency and evaluation of Lithuanian language lessons are significant, and the relationship between Lithuanian language learning and proficiency is very strong. CONCLUSIONS 1. The study of language use among pupils of different age groups and genders revealed: 1.1. Pupils of both sexes speak Lithuanian at home, much less often – English, Russian, Polish, only in isolated cases – other, less frequently used languages (Spanish, French, German, etc.). More than half of the students in all classes speak Lithuanian at home. The fewest Lithuanian speakers at home are among 7th grade pupils (almost three fifths), the most English speakers at home are among 6th grade pupils (almost a quarter). 1.2 Half of the students surveyed watch movies in Lithuanian, more than a third watch them in English, individual students watch movies in Russian, Polish and other languages. Girls watch movies in Lithuanian slightly more often than boys, and vice versa – boys watch movies in English more often. Pupils of lower grades watch films more often in Lithuanian, pupils of higher grades (from 7th grade) – in English. Pupils of both sexes and different ages read books in Lithuanian, only a little over a tenth of them read books in English. Books to read in Lithuanian language choose lists mokiniai, taigi svarbu į tai atkreipti dėmesį sudarant rekomenduojamos skaityti literatūros of any age. It is through reading that the language used by students can be influenced. 1.4.Nearly half of the students surveyed browse the Internet in English, while the less lietuviškai. Mergaitės dažniau nei berniukai renkasi naršyti lietuviškai. Žemesniųjų klasių mokiniai taip pat linksta naršyti internete angliškai, o nuo 5 klasės, pramokus anglų kalbos, šia frequently used language is increasingly being used. Understandably, there is still a lack of Lithuanianized computer programs in Lithuania, they are not so common, and some of the suprasti, tačiau labai svarbu per įvairių dalykų pamokas pagal galimybes duoti mokiniams Lithuanian terms used in them are difficult to perform tasks online in Lithuanian. 1.5. Mokinių kalboje vyrauja dvi kalbos – lietuvių ir anglų. Lietuvių kalbai pirmenybė (nepriklausomai nuo mokinių amžiaus ir lyties) teikiama kaip namuose vartojamai kalbai, ja AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, mokėjimo ir mokymosi | 17 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 books are read. The choice of language for watching movies and surfing the Internet depends on the age: in lower grades Lithuanian is chosen, in higher grades English is used. 2. After examining how pupils evaluate their Lithuanian language proficiency, the following was established: 2.1 Less than half of the pupils think that they are doing very well in Lithuanian, a quarter think that they are doing well, and only a few pupils chose the answer very bad. Girls evaluate their knowledge of Lithuanian better than boys: more than one third of girls and only one fifth of boys evaluate it as very good. And vice versa: few girls and less than one in ten boys rate their knowledge very poorly. The Lithuanian language skills are best assessed by students in 4th grade. From grade 5 onwards, the situation changes: less than a quarter of pupils think that they are doing very well in Lithuanian, and the lowest number of such pupils is in grade 7. 2.2 Half of pupils in all grades feel that they are doing very well in a foreign language, one third – that they are good, and only a few pupils evaluate their foreign language knowledge very poorly. There were no significant differences in outcomes between the sexes. The students in grades 6-8 are the best in foreign language skills (the students in grades 4 are the best in Lithuanian language skills). 2.3. Pupils appreciate the proficiency in both Lithuanian and foreign language. The main difference is that more than half of the pupils think that they are doing very well in the foreign language, while when assessing their knowledge of Lithuanian, most of the pupils indicate that they are doing well in Lithuanian. Only a very small proportion of pupils in all grades think that their knowledge of Lithuanian and foreign languages is very poor. 3. After examining the relationship between Lithuanian language proficiency and teaching, it was established: 3.1 The relationship between Lithuanian language teaching and the perception that Lithuanian tiesioginis: jeigu mokiniai nurodo, kad lietuvių kalba sekasi blogai ar labai blogai, tai jie ją laiko language is difficult, is difficult, and vice versa. Regardless of how the pupils evaluate their knowledge of Lithuanian, most of them do not agree with the statement that they do not like mokėjimo ir jos mėgimo esama. 3.2. Esama stipraus ryšio tarp lietuvių kalbos mokėjimo ir lietuvių kalbos pamokų Lithuanian. However, the relationship between the assessment of Lithuanian language: the majority of students who do not succeed in Lithuanian language (they chose the answer very labai gerai, yra tik mažiau nei dešimtadalis). AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, badly) say that Lithuanian language lessons are not interesting (the assessment of the students who succeed in Lithuanian language | 18 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 LITERATŪRA Aliūkaitė D., Mikulėnienė D., Čepaitienė A., Geržotaitė L. 2017: Kalbos variantiškumas ir jos vertinimas perceptyviosios dialektologijos požiūriu: variantų ir vietų vaizdiniai, Vilnius: Vilniaus universiteto leidykla. Čubajevaitė L. 2013: Sociolingvistinis Kauno moksleivių paveikslas. Daktaro disertacija. Prieiga internete: https://www.vdu.lt/cris/handle/20.500.12259/56358. Dabašinskienė I., Balčiūnienė I., Krivickaitė E. 2011: Ar ankstyvasis užsienio kalbų mokymas lemia požiūrį į gimtąją kalbą? – Kalbų studijos 19, 143–147. Prieiga internete: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/265980537_Ar_ankstyvasis_uzsienio_kalbu_mo kymasis_lemia_poziuri_i_gimtaja_kalba. Dörnyei Z. 2014: Motivation in Second Language Learning. – Teaching English as a Second or Foreign Language. Celce-Murcia, M., Brinton, D. M., Snow, M. A. (eds.), Boston, MA: National Geographic Learning / Cengage Learning, 518–531. Poderienė N., Vaičiakauskienė S. 2019: Lietuvių kalbos prestižas: mokinių nuostatos dėl lietuvių kalbos švietimo politikos kontekste. – Lituanistica 65, 3(117), 199–219. Ramonienė M., red. 2010: Miestai ir kalbos I. Kolektyvinė monografija, Vilnius: Vilniaus universiteto leidykla. Ramonienė M., red., 2013: Miestai ir kalbos II. Kolektyvinė monografija, Vilnius: Vilniaus universiteto leidykla. Ramonienė M., Extra G. 2011: Multilingualism in Lithuanian Cities. Languages at Home and School in Vilnius, Kaunas and Klaipėda, Klaipėda / Tilburg: Klaipėdos universiteto leidykla. Urbaitytė K. Kauno kitakalbių kalbinės nuostatos ir tapatybė [interaktyvus], Kaunas: VDU, 2018. Prieiga internete: https://www.vdu.lt/cris/handle/20.500.12259/35646. Ushioda E. International Perspectives on Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire Motivation. – Language Learning and Professional Motivation Challenges, New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. Vilkienė V., Vilkaitė-Lozdienė L., Bružaitė-Liseckienė J. 2019: Lietuvių kalba Vilniaus lietuviškose, lenkiškose ir rusiškose gimnazijose: mokėjimo kokybė, kalbinės nuostatos ir motyvacija, Vilnius: Vilniaus universiteto leidykla. Prieiga internete: https://www.vu.lt/leidyba/images/eknygos/Lietuviu_kalba_mokyklose.pdf. Gauta 2019 12 09 Priimta 2019 12 30 AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, mokėjimo ir mokymosi | 19 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 PUPILS’ ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE LITHUANIAN LANGUAGE: THE CONNECTION BETWEEN LANGUAGE USAGE, PROFICIENCY, AND LEARNING Summa ry The article presents the results of a 2018–2019 study aimed at identifying the most prevalent languages in pupils vernacular, showing the correlation between the pupils’ answers and their own attitudes towards Lithuanian classes as well as towards teaching the Lithuanian language and the Lithuanian language in general. Analysis of the data has revealed that, depending on the area of usage, the daily pupils vernacular is dominated by two languages: Lithuanian and English. The Lithuanian language takes the lead (irrespective of the age and gender of pupils) in several areas: Lithuanian is the language spoken at home and the language for reading books. In other areas, such as watching films and browsing, the choice of language depends on the age, with younger pupils opting for the Lithuanian language, while seniors make a transition towards English. Notably, all pupils choose to read their books in Lithuanian. This is an important factor to note, because it is through reading that the language can be empowered. Analysis of the self-grading of the proficiency of the Lithuanian language has showed that girls tend to give themselves higher grades for their Lithuanian language skills compared to boys. The highest self-grades of Lithuanian language skills have been observed among fourthgraders. Beginning with grade 5, the grades shift and the self-grading tends to go down. The study suggests that pupils tend to give themselves high marks in terms of their proficiency in both Lithuanian and foreign language. The main difference is that the majority – more than one-half – of pupils believe that their foreign language skills are excellent; in grading their own Lithuanian language skills, many pupils rated their Lithuanian language proficiency as good. And only a fraction of pupils across all grades believe that their Lithuanian and foreign language skills are very poor. Investigation of the connection between the proficiency of the Lithuanian language and teaching has highlighted a strong and direct relationship between the self-grade in Lithuanian and the belief that the Lithuanian language is very difficult: pupils who rate their Lithuanian AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ. Mokinių požiūris į lietuvių kalbą: ryšys tarp kalbos vartojimo, mokėjimo ir mokymosi | 20 doi.org/10.35321/bkalba.2019.92.13 BENDRINĖ KALBA 92 (2019) www.bendrinekalba.lt ISSN 2351-7204 language skills as poor or very poor also say that this language is difficult, and vice-versa. The pupils’ answers have also revealed a strong tie between the self-grade in Lithuanian and the fondness for Lithuanian classes, with pupils who are failing in Lithuanian having little fondness for Lithuanian language classes, and vice-versa. KEYWORDS: Lithuanian language, pupil vernacular, language proficiency, language usage. AURELIJA TAMULIONIENĖ Lietuvių kalbos institutas Petro Vileišio g. 5, LT-10308 Vilnius, Lithuania [email protected]