Student motivation and learning: the impact of collaborative learning in English as foreign language classes

Teaching approaches and techniques shape classroom practices and ultimately contribute to students’ learning and achievement. While abundant research exists on how such practices impact student learning in EFL classes around the world, this research still remains scarce in Kosovo. Therefore, the current research addresses this existing gap by exploring the link between teacher classroom practices and student learning. Participants of this study included 10th and 11th grade students across six municipalities in Kosovo (N=237). The respondents were asked to complete a questionnaire inquiring about practices adopted by teachers to teach EFL. The results reveal disparate teaching practices adopted by teachers to teach the material. To that end, female students report enhances participatory and collaborative approaches used by teachers and in the meantime an overall higher perception of the chances given by teachers to express opinions and ideas in class, compared to male students. Similarly, 10th grade students reported higher opportunities provided by the teacher in class to express opinions as well as collaborate with other students to complete tasks. Finally, significant positive correlations are evident between certain collaborative and participatory approaches utilized by teachers in class as well as students’ motivation. Evidently, students enjoy problem solving tasks and are much more active in cases when they collaborate with other students. In conclusion, this study sheds light on how students perceive teacher techniques and teaching methods used in EFL classes.