Motivation to learn English in theological education. A Study of Student Motivation for Learning English at a Theological Seminary in Ukraine

Authors

  • Joshua TOKAR Joshua M. Tokar - Instructor of English as a Foreign Language Ukrainian Evangelical Theological Seminary (Kyiv, Ukraine), Ukraine

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29357/2521-179X.2018.21.20

Keywords:

Theological English, Motivation, EFL, Theological Education, Seminary

Abstract

This study was designed to determine what factors motivate students to learn English at an evangelical seminary in Ukraine. After the fall of communism, English was mainly taught at newly formed evangelical seminaries in Ukraine to enable students to access theological resources in English that were not available in Russian or Ukrainian. A mixed-method approach involving a written attitudinal questionnaire and follow-up focus group interviews was employed to collect data. Participants in this study were second-year music ministry and first- to third-year theology students enrolled in English courses. The results of this study revealed that twenty-five years later seminary students are primarily motivated to learn English by the desire to communicate with foreigners, travel abroad and find employment.

Author Biography

Joshua TOKAR, Joshua M. Tokar - Instructor of English as a Foreign Language Ukrainian Evangelical Theological Seminary (Kyiv, Ukraine)

Joshua M. Tokar, M.A. in English as a Second Language Instructor of English as a Foreign Language Ukrainian Evangelical Theological Seminary (Kyiv, Ukraine)

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How to Cite

TOKAR, Joshua. 2018. “Motivation to Learn English in Theological Education. A Study of Student Motivation for Learning English at a Theological Seminary in Ukraine”. Theological Reflections: Eastern European Journal of Theology, no. 21 (August):265-79. https://doi.org/10.29357/2521-179X.2018.21.20.