Influence of lecturer, family, and personal will on primary school students' perceptions in learning English

Abstract

The study of students' perceptions of learning English is most interesting to researchers, especially in the context of lower-secondary school students. The purpose of the study was to understand the level of students' perception of learning English, to compare the level of students' perception of learning English between students studying in schools in provincial towns and rural areas, and to understand the main factors influencing students' perception of learning English. The study used a sample of 380 students studying at the lower-secondary level in two public schools in Banteay Meanchey province. Samples were selected using a multi-stage sampling method. This research is a quantitative study using the correlational approach. The data collection instrument is a questionnaire in the form of a five-level Likert scale. Data analysis used frequency analysis, percentage analysis, Pearson correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis using SPSS v26 software. The results showed that students in public lower-secondary schools had a high level of positive perception of learning English. The comparison of the perception of learning English showed that the lower-secondary school students in the provincial town had a higher score in the perception of learning English than the students who studied at lower-secondary schools in rural areas. However, the students had the same high level of perception when learning English. The main factors influencing English language learning perception included students’ personal will, family factors, and teacher factors, with standardized coefficients of 0.298, 0.147, and 0.196, respectively. In conclusion, students have a high perception of learning English, whether students in rural or urban areas. Family factors, teacher factors, and students’ personal will be able to explain 29.60% of the variance in their perception of English learning. Learning English is very important for students studying at the lower-secondary level, and to promote students' perception of learning English, the school management team and parents should pay attention, as important as, to family factors, teacher factors, and students’ personal will.