Transition from senior secondary to tertiary languages study: student attitudes in three Sydney schools.

Moloney, Robyn ; Harbon, Lesley

ABSTRACT

This paper reports on a small study of attitudes to tertiary language study amongst senior secondary language learners in three independent New South Wales schools. The study examines what elements of preparedness may be the most effective in supporting transition to tertiary study for this sample of languages students. An analysis of survey data indicates that motivation, confidence in language achievement, and the construction of a 'future self' as a language user and learner appear to be useful elements positively supporting transition to tertiary study. Findings from this study point to a relationship between the construction of 'future selves' as language users, and academic performance, motivation, self-esteem and aspirations.

KEY WORDS

university language learning, university language teaching, transition, student experience

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INTRODUCTION

Recent studies and reports have expressed concern about the dropping participation rates for languages education, both at secondary and at tertiary level (Absalom, 2011; Group of Eight, 2007; Hajdu, 2005; Liddicoat, Scarino, Jowan Curnow, Kohler, Scrimgeour & Morgan, 2007; Lo Bianco & Gvozdenko, 2006; Lo Bianco & Slaughter, 2009; Ren, 2009; West-Sooby & Bouvet, 2004; Winter, 2009). Within this context, issues in the transition between secondary and tertiary languages education have been of more limited research interest (Absalom, 2011).

In this paper we report a small sub-set of data from a study (with Stott and Fielding, through a research grant from the Languages and Cultures Network of Australian Universities in 2012, see www. Icnau.org) that aimed to provide indicative data about structural and attitudinal aspects of the transition of language learners from the final year of secondary school to first-year university.

This study focuses on a small set of survey data from senior secondary language learners from three independent schools in New South Wales (NSW). It is informed by the findings of the Fielding and Stott (2012) study where the focus was on first-year university language students. While the study was conducted in NSW, and has most relevance to that context, we believe there are findings that may be of interest nationally, as other school leavers across Australia consider continuing their study of languages at university.

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Literature review

This review firstly examines literature that informs our understanding of issues related to continuity in secondary and tertiary language study. The study's larger context is adolescent development of identity, and thus, the review secondly briefly considers literature that relates to the role of language learning in the development of a future additional language learning/using self.

Sustained achievement in language learning is best supported by a continuous trajectory of learning and use, optimally beginning in primary school or before, but more commonly (as is common practice in NSW), from lower through to upper secondary school and beyond (Savignon,2006; Spolsky & Lambert, 2006). In 2012 in NSW, nine per cent of final-year matriculation students (in NSW, the Higher School Certificate [HSC]) were examined in a non-English language subject (New South Wales Board of Studies, 2013). From this matriculation candidature, some may then proceed to either higher-level study of a school-learnt language, or commence study of a new language at university. While attention has been directed to continuity within the secondary school years (e.g. Hajdu, 2005; Jowan Curnow & Kohler, 2007; Liddicoat et al., 2007; Reitzenstein, 2013; Ren, 2009), continuity between upper-secondary and lower-tertiary sectors has been less frequently examined (Absalom, 2011).

Despite political rhetoric in support of national need for linguistically able young Australians (Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, 2012), many factors, social, educational and economic, contribute to student numbers shrinking in elective study of languages in Secondary Years 8 to 10 (Lo Bianco & Slaughter, 2009). This may result in small numbers electing to continue, or pick up new languages, in Years 11 and 12. The NSW senior language syllabuses are designed to be stimulating, with objectives such as 'the exchange of opinions', and 'expression of original ideas' (New South Wales Board of Studies, 2009a) and to be used as an 'adjunct to career paths' (New South Wales Board of Studies, 2009b, p.6), relevant to students' lives and future career aspirations.

Tertiary language teaching over the past few decades has been marked by innovation and change (Jarkey, 2004; Lo Bianco & Gvozdenko, 2006; Travis, Hajek, Nettelbeck, Beckmann & Lloyd-Smith, 2014) and caters for both continuers from secondary school and beginner students. While tertiary beginner language courses offer opportunity to learn a new language, it is also essential for universities to nurture those students with six or more years of prior school language learning, and to build on that foundation. The universities acknowledge the role of language study in producing more interculturally competent graduates with global employment capabilities (see, for example http://sydney.edu.au/arts/ sic/). Areas of inconsistency have been identified (Lo Bianco & Gvozdenko, 2006) both between, and within school educational systems, impeding sustained successful learning. It has been identified that lack of consistency in establishing consistent course entry eligibility criteria, language unit offerings, and continuity and communication between school and university systems have all led to a situation where student language learning may be disrupted at key points in the progress through secondary and into the tertiary environment (BOS NSW, 2013; Erebus Consulting Partners, 2002).

Relationships between secondary and tertiary sectors need to be understood and supported in order for language teachers in both contexts to maximise the benefits of coherent and continuous language study from secondary through to tertiary levels. It has been suggested by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA, 2011, p.8) that school authorities need to consider their responsibility in relation to program conditions (such as time allocated, and continuity) to ensure quality and sustained provision, concluding that 'language learning requires significant time, regularity and continuity'. Similarly Lo Bianco and Gvozdenko (2006, p. 11) maintain that 'institutions interested in supporting innovation in pedagogy and delivery of language programs must ensure that they build into their operating arrangements mechanisms for sustaining the innovation or collaboration over time'. Fielding and Stott (2012) have drawn attention to the lack of research on the crucial transitional stage from secondary school to university, and hence have focused their research on the experience of first-year tertiary language learners, with a view to understanding this transition better.

Studies of the issues in secondary-tertiary transition, or more accurately, the First Year Experience (see for example, Kift, 2005, 2008; King & Thalluri, 2006) have identified difficulties for the first-year student (West-Sooby & Bouvet, 2004). These difficulties have included a learning 'gap' between secondary and tertiary pedagogies and expectations, and a lack of preparation at the secondary level for ongoing study. There has been a perception of the need for intervention at the secondary level. Brady and Allingham (2007), for example, have complained about the poor preparation and information about university life that is provided at the secondary level. There is a tendency from the tertiary perspective to critique secondary pedagogy as breeding too much dependence, 'spoon feeding' style, which lacks the autonomy expected at university. Fielding and Stott (2012, p. 2) note that first-year students need such autonomy, to cope with a faster pace of learning, and mixing with a broad range of students who have had varied learning experiences (p. 8). Fielding and Stott (2012) conclude that many first-year language students struggle with the 'culture of learning a language at university level' (p. 9).

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As this study sits within the context of the adolescent learner in senior secondary years, the analysis has also been informed by literature that has underlined the significance of study choices in identity development in older adolescents.

Kalakoski and Nurmi (1998) have suggested that, in secondary students' choice of subjects in the senior years, they express a personal alignment and investment with subjects that are important to their futures with regard to meaningful pathways to jobs and tertiary studies. Adolescents' identity exploration, commitment, and 'possible selves' (Markus & Nurius, 1986) are affected by how these choices are shaped.

Leondari, Syngollitou and Kiosseoglou's study (1998) established a relationship between 'possible selves', academic performance, motivation, self-esteem and persistence on task. They suggested that students who construct and envision themselves at a desired goal, produce learning that favours that goal and students are able to construct more efficient plans to achieve it. Strong academic performance and more persistence on-task occurs for students who are able to produce well-elaborated, vivid pictures of 'future selves.' Similarly, Stake and Nickens (2005) have also underlined that students may envision a 'future self,' arising from a particular subject area, serving as a personalised representation of one's goals, and providing a context which makes meaning of study. In particular for these language students, it is the 'Second Language future self (Dornyei & Ushioda, 2009; Dornyei, 2009), which is motivating them to pursue and attach value to further language study. Their emerging identity as a language user is constructed around the ability to communicate, to express oneself, and to participate in a language community.

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In this study we understand identity as socially constructed, that is, constructed through interaction and negotiation with, in this case, teachers, school peers, parents, peers in the target language country, and many others (Cummins 1996, 2000, 2003; Lave & Wenger, 1991; McNamara 1987 1997; Norton, 2000). It will be fluid, complex and contradictory, constructing and being constructed by, language (Norton, 2006). One's language repertoire, including additional languages, is a key element in the process as it assists individuals to balance the various roles and aspects of their identities (Fought, 2006). Adolescent bilingual individuals may position themselves between two (or more) languages and two (or more) cultures (Kanno, 2003) as they create a new hybrid identity for themselves.

We acknowledge that scholars have struggled with the limitations of the term 'identity' and have preferred to move to a focus on the process of identification (Block, 2006; Omoniyi, 2006). Similarly, Lo-Philip (2010) uses the term 'identity processes', in an effort to reflect the 'multiple dynamic relationships between language and social/individual identity' (Lo-Philip, 2010, p. 282). Teachers need to be aware of the significance of group membership and 'belonging' (Weeks, 1990, p. 88) as important factors that contribute to better learning of language, in the shaping of student identities (Kanno, 2003).

Very limited research attention has been paid to the aspirations, expectations and needs of senior language students making the transition to tertiary language study. The goal of this small study is to open a timely enquiry into the attitudes of learners at this transition point, to begin to address this gap in the research literature.

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Methodology

The methodology of the larger project, from which the data for this paper have been taken, involved the administering of an online survey to Year 12 and first-year university students at two Sydney universities and three Sydney secondary schools. The survey was designed to investigate students' attitudes to, and perceptions of, possible issues in languages learning transition.

Fielding and Stott (2012) found that students reporting a smooth transition into first-year language study identified three common factors. These were: previous study of the language; what they perceived to be good teaching in Year 12; and possession of independent learning strategies. Thus this study was designed to examine the presence of these characteristics in students in secondary schools.

The survey consisted of 25 items, including information about language(s) studied, length of study, opinion statements using Likert scale, and open-ended items for additional optional comment.

For this study, as a subset of the larger study, surveys were completed by 57 students in Year 12 languages classes at three independent schools in Sydney. In line with the approved Human Research Ethics Committee protocol, the senior language teacher in each school mediated the invitation from the researchers and provided class time in which the students had the opportunity to voluntarily and anonymously participate in the survey. Participants do not represent the total cohort of the classes.

The survey was conducted as the students were preparing to leave school and undertake their NSW HSC examinations.

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Findings

We report the findings in two sub-sections. Firstly, we examine the demographic information about the participants, and their school study experiences. Secondly we report their attitudes to tertiary languages study.

Respondents and demographic data Fifty-seven respondents indicated the Year 12 language course(s) in which they were enrolled, as presented in Table 1.

Nineteen of the students were studying two languages. Forty-three respondents were female, and 14 male, consistent with the known existing gender imbalance in languages study (Carr, 2002). All but four respondents reported that English was their first language. Fifty-four of the 57 respondents were domestic students, and three were international students. Fifty-one of the 57 respondents indicated they lived at home, with six students indicating they were boarding or living away from home. While it may not be individually true for every student, the overall cohorts of all three independent schools may be considered as coming from high socioeconomic backgrounds.

The students indicated how many years they had been studying their first additional language and their second additional language. Fifty per cent had studied their first additional language for three to six years, with 16 per cent having studied more than seven years. In the case of a second additional language, over ninety per cent had studied between two and six years.

Of the 57 students, 34 reported having been to a country where the additional language is used, within the last three years. Of the 19 students taking a second additional language, six reported that they had been to a country where the language was used, in the last three years. In the open-ended response section of the questionnaire, it is clear that the majority of those travel experiences were due to school exchange programs.

The participants' languages classes were mostly between six and 10 students in size, as shown in Table 2, with the exception of the large Italian Beginners class (16 to 20 students).

Overall, most respondents were studying in small enrolment classes, in schools able to support small class size in order to offer sustained study pathways. While this small study was located in independent school contexts, thus not representative of all senior language students in NSW, these students nevertheless represent a significant sector of senior language learners, as represented in language participation statistics (Lo Bianco & Slaughter, 2009). These students are part of the cohort with whom university language departments might wish to engage, and recruit, for continued tertiary language study.

Having established the profile of this group, we turn to examine student attitudes towards transition to university language study.

Attitudes to tertiary language study

Participant attitudes towards transition to university language study were mixed. Of the 57 respondents, 29 (approximately 50 per cent) reported that they would continue with their first additional language at university, while 6 students agreed they would continue with a 'second' school-learnt additional language at university. Sixteen of the respondents (28 per cent) also indicated that they were intending to take up a new language at university.

Students not continuing language study at university offered additional comments noting their regret that limited choice in their desired degrees precluded language study. Students were also asked about travel plans associated with their tertiary language learning, as a possible indicator of motivation and further investment. Almost half of the respondents had plans to travel to a country of the language they intended to study at university.

Participants were however tentative about their knowledge of university language programs. Only 23 per cent of respondents 'knew what to expect'. For one third, their teachers had played some role in preparing them for what to expect of a language course at university. Where respondents felt their teachers had not prepared them for university, they understood that teacher attention was focused on their immediate examination needs. Students appear to be able to access more general information about university from other sources, as almost half of them agreed they had been informed by family, friends, university open days and internet sources, as to tertiary options and the expected learning environment.

Respondents were asked what had influenced them in their decision to study their language(s) in the senior secondary years, at the end of Year 10 (the fourth year of secondary school) and they were able to choose more than one option: nearly 58 per cent chose the option 'a family member or close friend', 21 per cent indicated 'a positive exchange opportunity', and 37 per cent indicated 'a positive school language experience'. Their additional comments to this item suggest that even at this point in Year 10, their future aspirations and identity as language users were in formation. They were expressing opinions such as 'a desire to be able to speak a second language and the potential opportunities this could offer me, not just in the work place'; and 'wanting to speak a language other than English- to be more worldly/cultural'.

We were also interested in the pedagogic environment in which these students were studying. It has been noted that one practice that supports a quality language-learning environment is sustained communicative social interaction in the target language by the teacher and students (Savignon, 2006). While we acknowledge that teaching in the target language per se does not automatically lead to efficient learning (Pachler, Barnes & Field, 2009), maximum exposure to, and purposeful use of, the target language, in the context of senior secondary teaching, is beneficial to students' linguistic confidence and competence (Scarino & Liddicoat, 2009). It is also effective preparation for speaking and listening skill assessments that are part of the high stakes assessment regime. The survey asked students to give information about the degree to which their teacher(s) used the target language in class. Two thirds (66 per cent) of students indicated that the teacher spoke in the target language more than 70 per cent of the time. Nearly half of students indicated that they respond to the teacher in the target language more than 70 per cent of the time in class.

Students were also asked for their perception of their own language skills in reading writing, speaking and listening. Acknowledging that there are other competencies involved in language learning, this item was designed as an informal self-reported indicator of their linguistic confidence. Our assumption was that they would interpret the word 'strong', in assessing themselves only in relation to their knowledge of Year 12 standards in the NSW HSC performance, as seen, for example, in exam performance descriptors, past examinations and available resources. Students responded using a 5-point Likert scale, from Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree.

Table 3 indicates students' reported confidence in their language abilities. The fifth item in Table 3 displays particular confidence both in student personal capacity to perform in their language, and, without accurate forward knowledge, to meet imagined tertiary demands.

Three-quarters (75 per cent) of participants reported that, in their perception, the learning environment in their language class was stimulating. Furthermore, 40 of 57 students agreed that they have been encouraged to work independently within their language learning. This accords well with the qualities of independence and autonomy that Fielding and Stott (2012) identified as expected and required in first-year tertiary language study.

Discussion

As noted, studies of the issues in secondary-tertiary transition, or more commonly, the First Year Experience, have identified a learning 'gap' between secondary and tertiary learning, and lack of preparation at the secondary level (WestSooby & Bouvet, 2004). Fielding and Stott (2012, p. 9) note that first-year students need autonomy to cope with a faster pace of learning, and conclude that many first-year language students struggle with the 'culture of learning a language at university level'.

However, this current study, while limited, offers a contradiction to these observations. It indicates that this particular sample of senior secondary language students, within their current frame of reference, feels prepared for tertiary language study. There are three aspects of their preparedness. Firstly, while they are unclear about specifics, they have received information about university in general, from teachers, family and friends. Secondly, in their perception, they have been members of stimulating classrooms in which they have engaged with a degree of independent learning, in courses where critical thinking and independent construction of opinion are required (Cooper, 2010; New South Wales Board of Studies, 2009b). Thirdly, many appear to have engaged already with personal alignment and investment in possible future choices and identities (Kalakoski & Nurmi, 1998), constructing a 'future self in pathways to jobs and tertiary studies. This study may support the findings of Leondari, Syngollitou and Kiosseoglou (1998), by suggesting in these students a relationship between self-reported strong academic achievement in their language study, motivation, and 'possible selves' as future language users. In terms of motivation, their knowledge of tertiary study and career pathways may be playing a role in the construction of aspiration and investment. One student reflected this in the comment: 'I recognise that many doors will be open to me if I continue studying this language to be fluent'.

We acknowledge that the demands of tertiary language courses will certainly be different from secondary languages syllabuses, and these students may well encounter more difference than they anticipate, in their first year of university language learning. As the limits of the study did not allow us to follow the students into their first year at university, this response remains unknown.

Despite the unknown responses of these students to continuing study once at university, the nurturing of a 'Second Language future self' (Dornyei & Ushioda, 2009; Dornyei, 2009), appears to have motivated the students to study in the senior secondary years and the stimulation of that study appears to support the pursuit of further goals in language study. From these limited data, it may be suggested that they have constructed identities around the ability to communicate, to express themselves, and to participate as language users in a language community. The strength of this second language future self, or adult language user identity, and its goals, may be a small part of the instrumental motivation which Macaro and Wingate (2004) found to support success in first year tertiary study.

This small study suggests that the development of an identity as confident language user likely supports student intention to study languages at university. We suggest that secondary teachers consider this development in the earlier years of language learning. We are mindful that attitude formation is multifaceted, influenced by a variety of personal and environmental factors over a period of time (Bohner & Wanke, 2002). We suggest, however, that the explicit building of a positive 'self' through the regular recognition of small achievements and mastery at lower levels of language education, may nurture this identity development earlier, supporting greater retention into senior secondary years, and thus ultimately into tertiary study. In particular we noted that for many of these students, the decision-making process at the end of Year 10, selecting senior subjects, is a critical point. The subject selection involves looking ahead to longer-term language goals, and the young adult identity, or future self that the student is envisioning for him/herself. This suggests that at this point in Year 10, advocacy for language study needs to include some aspirational goal setting, contact with influential role models, and the cultivation of student's future language-user identity.

We would also like to note, that, even amongst those students not planning to continue into tertiary programs, there were many comments indicating the positive personal impact of their language learning on their life, and their comments showed a desire to continue involvement with the language and culture, just 'for fun', in social use, or in visits to countries where the language is spoken.

If 'motivation is one of the main determinants of second/foreign language learning achievement' (Dornyei, 1994, p. 273), and motivation is identity-based (Oyserman, 2007, p. 432), then it may be that even if these students encounter difficulties when they get to university, they already possess some important transition strategies, including motivation, and an established identity as a language learner and user. Possibilities for the self will continue to be shaped by successes and failures, and the interpretation of those successes and failures (Oyserman, Bybee & Terry, 2006). Teachers' explicit positive encouragement of risk-taking and perseverance, and cultivation of longer-term goals, are important aspects of the construction of this 'self'.

As noted, the three common factors identified for successful transition into tertiary language learning are previous study of the language, good teaching in Year 12, and possession of independent learning strategies (Fielding & Stott, 2012). First-year students in the Stott and Fielding study who reported an unsatisfactory transition into first-year language studies suggested that, in addition to the lack of the three factors above, the diversity of language level competence in classes, teacher expectations of autonomous study, differences in pedagogies between school and university, the impersonal nature of the tertiary environment, and lack of preparation for university whilst at school were all reasons contributing to such difficulty. While they may still encounter some of these obstacles and conditions, the particular sample of students of this study possess the three factors identified by Fielding and Stott (2012) common to smoother transition. We thus posit that they have a degree of preparedness for their initial interaction with tertiary language study.

We support Fielding and Stott's (2012) call for the search for a mechanism which might enable a collaborative consultation between the secondary and tertiary language teaching sectors, to establish better bridges of experience, expectations and sustained motivation. We acknowledge the unchartered and problematic nature of creating pathways between particular schools and universities. Students follow many diverse pathways of transition, nationally and internationally. The degree of communication possible between schools and universities may depend on the types of languages, geographical location, an individual school's previous contacts with university departments, and the constitution and attitudes of university language departments. To open a dialogue between secondary and tertiary language teachers would be complex, and necessarily a national initiative, between professional organisations such as the Languages and Cultures Network of Australian Universities (LCNAU) and the Australian Federation of Modern Language Teachers Associations (AFMLTA). Further research to follow students as they transition across the years of school learning and into tertiary study is also needed, and might usefully be conducted by these associations. Also, tertiary teacher time invested in contact with secondary teacher colleagues needs to be recognised and valued as service to the community by tertiary professional development systems.

Study limitations

This study reports a sub-set of findings from a larger study as noted above. This study's limited sample of students, from a limited sample of schools, limits generalisation of the findings. However, we believe that there are indications in the data that senior secondary language learning experiences of the kind reported here will support students' future aspirations and language development. We acknowledge unforeseen assumptions, and omissions in the survey design, such as recognition of other elements of language learning beyond the four macro-skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking. We believe that the study may nevertheless serve as a useful pilot for a larger national study which could more closely take into account state differences and be designed to probe more deeply into the construction of language user identity in secondary students and its role in shaping goals and aspirations. As suggested above, the study would also have been able to confirm indications of the success of strategies such as conception of a future self as additional language user, for this cohort of students, if the students had been followed into tertiary contexts and could report on their first-year experiences of learning languages at university, to confirm or otherwise the Fielding and Stott (2012) findings.

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Conclusion and recommendations

This study set out to capture attitudes of final-year secondary students to continuing their languages study at tertiary level. The study has examined elements of preparedness that may be effective in transition to tertiary study for students. The independence of thought, critical thinking, and language expectations of the senior secondary courses are strong qualities that may transfer well into tertiary language study. The creation of motivation, and the construction of a 'future additional language using self, may well also be an important personal factor in preparedness. These findings need to be supported, however, by provision of access to information about tertiary language study choices, encouragement in the design of an individual study plan upon graduation, and open communication lines between all stakeholders. We suggest, like Oyserman and Saltz (1993) that students pursuing particular goals need to engage with language user role models, influential people whose identity has the power to bolster or impede the strength and direction of student goals.

The study suggests that those involved in languages education might be strategic in supporting informed choices for students' sustained, life-long language learning. Future studies could usefully examine how teachers communicate with their students in Year 10 about aspirations and goals of senior study and thence tertiary level study; students' knowledge about local and interstate tertiary language program availability; how to create better communication between students, parents and education sectors; and longer-term following of students as they make these transitions and can report on their experiences.

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Dr Robyn Moloney is a teacher educator in the School of Education in the Faculty of Human Sciences at Macquarie University. She teaches Methodology courses in Languages and ESL for pre-service teachers, and supervises doctoral projects in language education issues. Her research and publications investigate issues in teacher and learner development, intercultural education, heritage learners, and recently, the development of teaching in Chinese as a Foreign Language. Previously she was a teacher of Japanese French and German in secondary schools.

Dr Lesley Harbon is Professor and Head of School of International Studies at the University of Technology Sydney. She has been involved in languages education in Australian schools and universities since the early 1970s, teaching Indonesian and German in primary, secondary and tertiary contexts in four Australian states/ territories. Between 2007-2010, she was President of the Australian Federation of Modern Language Teachers' Associations (AFMLTA), the national peak body for language teachers in Australia. She has sole-authored and joint-authored/edited numerous book publications, book chapters and refereed journal articles since 1990. She has supervised numerous doctoral, masters and honours projects to completion. She has consulted on languages education to schooling systems and government agencies, and has designed and taught many language teacher professional development workshops and programs. Over her career, she has participated in beginner language classes in Tetum, Amharic, Dutch and Japanese.

Table 1: Languages studied by respondents across the three schools
(total of responses from 57 survey responses, some students studying
2 languages)

                        Number of
Languages               responses

French Continuers          13
French Extension            1
German Continuers           8
German Extension            2
Indonesian Continuers       7
Indonesian Extension        3
Italian Continuers         10
Italian Extension           1
Japanese Beginners          1
Latin Continuers            2
Spanish Beginners           1
Spanish Continuers          2

Table 2: Reported class sizes of respondents' Year 12 language
classes

                      Response   Response
                      per cent      Total

5 or fewer students      5.26%          3
6-10 students           47.37%         27
11-15 students           8.77%          5
16-20 students          33.33%         19
21-25 students           7.02%          4
26 or more students      1.75%          1

Table 3: Respondents' self-perception of their own linguistic
competence in the additional language(s) they were
currently studying
in Year 12

                                  Aqree/stronqly
                                      57 = agree
                                       (total N)       %

I have strong reading skills                  43   75.4%

I have strong listening skills                29   50.9%

I have strong speaking skills                 38   66.7%

I have strong writing skills                  38   66.7%

I am confident that I will be                 36   65.5%
adequately prepared in all
four skill areas to continue
my study at university