| What Affects English as a Foreign Language | | | | English as a foreign language skills promoted in |
| Learners During Exams | | | | classo Insufficient English as a foreign language |
| Lina Maria Lopez* squirmed in her seat for the | | | | skills practice / repetition to successfully internalize |
| fiftieth time, scratched her scalp until it was nearly | | | | the skills and materialso Ineffectively focused |
| raw and sighed repeatedly. A mechanical pencil in | | | | teaching methodso Deficiency in English language |
| one hand and a bright red lollipop in the other, she | | | | classroom materialso "Chemical addiction |
| struggled abysmally with her final exam in English | | | | dependency" problems (i.e., caffeine, nicotine, |
| as a foreign language. Only in her second | | | | etc.)o Personal or family problemso Not taking |
| semester of English, the "lights" still hadn't "clicked | | | | English as a foreign language studies seriously |
| on" yet. Not a good university student across the | | | | enougho Poor language-learning aptitudeo Learning |
| board in her major, English as a foreign language | | | | disabilitieso Lack of sufficient or effective English |
| was still her worst subject. She gazed around the | | | | as a foreign language learning preparation |
| room, at other learners' papers, at the EFL | | | | resources |
| teacher and reluctantly, at her EFL test paper. | | | | This is certainly but a "partial" list of the |
| "Tap, tap, tappity, tap, tap". Luis Felipe Rodriguez* | | | | possibilities. These can affect not only English as a |
| drummed on the desk, tapped his well-worn | | | | foreign language skills development, but the overall |
| sneakers, hummed a Salsa beat and turned | | | | intrinsic and extrinsic motivation of the EFL |
| around to look behind him at the poster-plastered | | | | learners. |
| classroom wall for "inspiration". "Da, da, dada, da, | | | | EFL Teacher-Affective Factors |
| da - dat, dat dada, dum." His English as a Foreign | | | | Then, of course, as English as a foreign language |
| Language level two exam paper was still nearly | | | | teachers, we often endure a multitude of |
| blank. More than half the final exam allotted time | | | | additional factors which directly or indirectly impact |
| had already passed. It he failed this exam too, | | | | and affect the intrinsic / extrinsic motivation of |
| he'd almost surely have to repeat the English level | | | | our EFL learners. How many of you, for example, |
| next semester. It had already taken him an extra | | | | are negatively impacted by:o Large EFL learner |
| semester just to get this far. "What time is it?" | | | | class groupso An excessively low number of |
| he asked the teacher. But, it really didn't matter. | | | | English as a foreign language contact hours per |
| The Functional Needs of the Brain | | | | weeko Behavioral problems on the part of your |
| EFL teachers should know that the human brain | | | | English as a foreign language learnerso Excessive |
| needs three key elements to function at peak | | | | administrative demandso Lack of resources, |
| efficiency. These are: oxygen, water (fluids) and | | | | equipment and / or materialso Extremes of |
| sugar (preferably from complex carbohydrates). | | | | mixed ability in English language knowledge and |
| Both immediately before and during an exam, it's | | | | skills among your EFL learnerso Lack of sufficient, |
| not uncommon to see English as a Foreign | | | | on-going governmental, administrative, or parental |
| Language learners eating chocolate, hard candy, | | | | supporto Personal problems of your own |
| lollipops or even packets of raw sugar. I draw the | | | | Certainly, the list could go on, but you get the |
| line at chewing gum, largely due to its "tendency | | | | point, don't you? |
| to wind up" stuck under the desks. It's because | | | | What Can You Do, If Anything? |
| of the brain's need for sugars that I allow "eating" | | | | In upcoming article posts in this series, we'll |
| of high-carbohydrate and high sugar content | | | | continue to consider some possibilities which |
| "foods" before, during English as a foreign | | | | English as a foreign language teachers and EFL |
| language exams. | | | | learners have available to address, minimize or |
| Some Causes of Cheating on English as a Foreign | | | | eliminate many of the aforementioned intrinsic and |
| Language Exams | | | | extrinsic affective factors. Doing so will |
| When EFL learners openly or frequently "cheat" | | | | undoubtedly improve our EFL learners' motivation. |
| on exams, highly probable "causes" are typically | | | | With these incorporated into our curriculum and |
| one or more of these motivation-related factors | | | | daily schedules, we should be able to generate |
| which include:o Lack of English as a foreign | | | | some improvement and more success in our EFL |
| language grammar and theme studyo Poor English | | | | classrooms and our English as a foreign language |
| class attendanceo Failure to understand or apply | | | | learners themselves. |