Students’ Perceptions of Demotivating Factors in Learning English for Specific Purposes at a Military Medical University in Vietnam
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.1505.08Keywords:
students’ perceptions, demotivation, demotivating factors, English for specific purposes (ESP), military medical universityAbstract
English for specific purposes (ESP) is currently incorporated and categorized in Vietnamese tertiary curricula. This study was conducted at a military medical university in northern Vietnam. The aim of the study was to identify the factors that demotivate medical university students in the military environment from learning ESP. The demotivating factors were divided into four categories: (1) connected to teachers; (2) linked to students; (3) related to infrastructure; and (4) associated with university/faculty. In this study, data gathered from questionnaires issued to 454 third-year students and interviews with 40 students has been processed using a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methodologies. The results of the investigation demonstrate that demotivating variables are essentially unrelated to teachers. Actually, the factors that make the students demotivated to learn ESP are mainly associated with the university/faculty, the students themselves, and the infrastructure. Furthermore, the findings contribute to recommendations for how to enhance ESP learning for students both at the military medical university and other education institutions.
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