The effects of Community Service Learning projects on L2 learners’ cultural understanding

Zapata, Gabriela

Abstract

This small-scale study investigates the effects of community service learning (CSL) projects or a cultural presentation on the development of the cultural understanding of low- and high-intermediate L2 students. Fifty-two learners in four sections of two Spanish classes in Canada participated in the study. The participants also completed pre- and postquestionnaires which explored their attitudes towards the target language and culture. The results show that, after completing their CSL or cultural presentation projects, the CSL learners had more positive attitudes towards the target language and culture than those who worked on the presentation. In addition, the high-intermediate CSL participants saw an increase in their self-confidence as L2 speakers. However, this was not the case with the low-intermediate CSL students, whose CSL experience may have been inhibited by their L2 proficiency and problems in the delineation of their CSL duties.

Citation

Zapata, G. (2011). The effects of Community Service Learning projects on L2 learners’ cultural understanding. Hispania, 94(1), 86-102

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Publication Date: 2011
• Deposit Date: Oct 3, 2024
• Journal: Hispania
• Print ISSN: 0018-2141
• Electronic ISSN: 1988-8368
• Publisher: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 94
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 86-102
• Keywords: community service learning, cultural presentation, cultural understanding, second language pedagogy, Spanish as a second language
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/17087391
• Publisher URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/23032087?seq=6