The effect of the drama-based German foreign language course application on motivation and flow experience

Abstract

The investigation of feelings, attitudes, and perceptions with regard to learning a foreign language takes an essential place for learning quality and success. In addition to traditional methods of learning a foreign language, the tendency towards more interactive and student-centered methods such as drama affects the teaching process positively. This study aims to examine the effect of the drama-based German foreign language course application on motivation and flow experience. The study was carried out with drama-based activities for 12 weeks in the “Drama in German Teaching” course at the Department of German Teaching of a state university in Turkey in the fall semester of the 2019 - 2020 academic year. The study was conducted with fourteen 2 nd -grade students who took this course. The data were collected using the “Motivation Scale for Learning German” and the “Flow Experience Scale-Short Form” as pretest and posttest. Upon examining the average scores obtained from the scales, significant differences were determined in terms of motivation and flow experience in the drama-based German foreign language course. Accordingly, it was found that students experienced positive emotions against the drama-based German foreign language course and achieved high motivation and also had flow experience.