L2 Motivational Self System Among School, College, and University Students in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan: A Mixed-Methods Investigation

Abstract

This study explores the L2 Motivational Self System in the learners of English as a second language at the school, collegiate and university level in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhawa (KP), Pakistan. Even though the L2 motivation research has received a lot of academic interest in the Pakistani context, no other previously conducted study has directly compared the motivational profile of learners in these three educational levels using the L2 Motivational Self System framework of Dornyei (2009a). The mixed-method design was adopted, which included a structured questionnaire and semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of twelve participants who completed a structured questionnaire consisting of a sample of 800 students. There is quantitative evidence that university students scored significantly higher on the Ideal L2 Self and L2 Learning Experience elements, and the Ought -to L2 Self turned out to be more salient when working with school-level learners. Qualitative data will provide more detailed information on the way students of different education levels formulate their inspirational selves. The research concludes in the end that the L2 Motivational Self System operates differently at varying levels of education, and that contextual determiners peculiar to KP have a significant role to play in the development of L2 motivational selves. The repercussions of these results on English learning in the educational ladder in Pakistan are addressed.