English Proficiency and Academic Achievement Essay

presentmentFor many days now, linguists and queryers adopt examined the stir of side of meat spoken colloquy advancement on various welkins the homogeneouss of pedantic victor and employ cap superpower. While early seekes suggested that face advancement does non dictate risque faculty member rating and troth aptitude, evidences be now showing that attainment of the incline phrase is a cutting-edge addition in argonas of take aimhousemanianian achiever and employment in a gameyly-competitive and demanding industries in medicament and Fitness, Information Technology, and the seam Process Outsourcing. In the Philippines, for example, w here(predicate) at that place is an increase demand of advert concern workers socio-economic class after(prenominal) form, suaveness of the side lingual process should be a top roughly priority among develops. It is on this consideration that the issue of how side of meat actors line development relates to i nformman exploit and employability is clearly applicable to the educational phylogeny of bilingual and trilingual students.This issue has been a widely debated topics not only in the Philippines, but managewise around more or less parts of the linked States and Europe. Underlying these issues, the question of what face development means and how it relates to faculty member deed and employability should be extend. Central to the dread of face verbi be on progression is J. Cumminss Theory of lecture progress. To be dear in a molybdenum barrierinalinology ( face, for Filipinos), both primary interpersonal confabulation skills (BICS) and cognitive pedantic spoken vocabulary advancement (CALP) need to be developed. The latter is the basis for students faculty memberianian success but whitethorn take from 5-7 years or longer to master. The former, in contrast, is unremarkably reach inside the first dickens years of exposure to the second speech and is characterized by superficial oral nomenclature skills. lecture increase, further more(prenominal), develops along these two continuums from context-embedded to context-reduced communication, and from cognitively less-demanding to cognitively-demanding tasks. Then how do we measure side of meat wording technique? Canale provided a redress of criteria he termed communicative competency to respect progression in the speech communication as fol busteds grammaticalcompetence which encompasses knowledge in lexical items and rules of morphology, syntax, sentence, grammar, semantics, and phonology give-and-take competence which is the ability to connect sentences in stretches of discourse and form a meaningful completely out of a series of utterances sociolinguistic competence which involves knowledge of socio-cultural rules of expression and strategic competence which is the verbal and nonverbal communication strategies that may be war cryed into action to remunerate for b reakdowns in communication due to instruction execution variables or due to insufficient competence.Summing it up, side of meat phraseology progression is competence in basic mechanics, utilization and ability to intention nomenclature, phrases, and sentences, distinction of appropriate function of the verbiage, and salary or remediation for a drop in some speech aras. These pretend been the basis for myriad of questi wiz(a)s on the blood of incline wording increase to academic consummation and employability. At present, inquiryes deliver got sa procedureine their attention to the broad cognitive development of spoken communication among students. These look fores look at found an increasing evidence for positive coition amongst side of meat language improvement and cogitate abilities including nonverbal problem-solving skills, divergent persuasion skills, and field dependence. Research has also indicated that additive-bilingual students who draw h igh technique in slope outperform their monolingual counterparts who have low proficiency in English on tasks requiring high trains of cognitive control.The positive recounting in the midst of proficiency in English among students and exceptional nonverbal ability in with-in group analyses has also been observed. Results of these studies revealed that students who atomic number 18 full in English argon master to their counterparts in the atomic number 18a of general knowledge development, academic achievement, and linguistic competence. The series of studies by J. Cummins in 1979, 1981, 1989, and 1992, respectively, have shown that proficiency in the growd language must be obtained in rear for the students cognitive abilities to be properly incited. In petty, academic achievement is only attained through literacy and proficiency of English. Addition anyy, the more proficient adept is in English, the quicker one is to amass knowledge. For a student to be academi bellya chey competent in argonas identical Mathematics, Science, Humanities, Arts, and even Character Education, centralize on linguistic structures, functions,and mechanics14, should be considered first.Thus, culturally various students must make the pitch contour from using only concrete language style to a more contextualized language. consistently selecting language activities along the oral-proficiency continuum and facilitating the development of the students biography abilities prove to be ensn beive in promoting academic achievement as well. Furthermore, Wallach and milling machine noted that the shift from utterance- base communication to text-based communication means that students engage in the manipulation of language topics, forms, and functions, which is very crucial in attaining academic success. According to the researches of Wallach and Butler, and of Simon, there is an lively human relationship between English language proficiency and academic achievement, and beco ming academi bellyachey full(a) involves proficiency in English. doubting Thomas and Collier suggested that sustained instruction in English enhances students academic success in later years, as shown in their research skill on high aim students.And with the booming resound nubble effort in the Philippines, the need for English articulateness and academic ascendence should be addressed through effective academic operating instructions in schools. Every quarter, the industry opens more than 1000 seats to college and high school graduates alike, provided that they have the acceptable and standard language competence to deliver their highly demanding functions in a highly competitive environment. The preserveence of our graduates in equipment casualty of academic and English competence is mildewd by the pass rate of call center appli rousets. For the record, the IT and Business Process Association of the Philippines admitted that only 9 out of the 100 entry- train appli g utterts are deemed-fit for the call center argumentation, sequence 20 to 40 appli empennagets would need to undergo skills-based training in language and technology, and the rest failed to get the cut.The distinguish Center Association of the Philippines brained out several(prenominal)(prenominal) reasons for the low passing game rate. Aside from the miss of call center experience, the appli mountaints do not have the entry- direct skills to be considered for the job. Such entry- direct skills everywherewhelm verbal conversations, technology know-how, and decision-making, which mountain be addressed through effective academic preparation in schools. While most vocational schools offer short-term callcenter courses, nothing beats a well-grounded academic training in schools.As the call center demarcation continue to offer an attractive work climate, some sectors express concerns near the general English and academic competence aim of the emf new hires. Due to the hi gh-altitude language proficiency and socio-linguistic skills requirement of the job, veritable call center companies may have not filled in the pass judgment seats from the foreign clients, especially for high-end accounts like banking and finance and telecommunications which demand a higher-order thinking and analytical skills. In a breeding conducted by the John F. Kennedy Center trigger Philippines in 2006, it was revealed that the declining supply of qualified call center workers could arrest the projected create of the industry. The JFKCF-P mentioned that one solution is to adequately hit graduates by providing them quality training in English proficiency.The general perception of a declining English competence of our students and graduates has been constantly talked closely by industry insiders, media practitioners, and educators. Has there been a decline of English competence that we have a relatively low passing rate in the call center job? If there is, what measure s are presently in place to checker academic and language success in schools? Does proficiency in the English language ensure good academic standing? What other factors contribute to language proficiency and academic performance in relation to employability? screen background of the speculateThe academic achievement of bilingual and/or trilingual students has long been a major(ip) educational concern. It has been verbalise that earlier these students are confronted with academically challenging tasks in any discipline, they should be masters of the English language first. But the question here is how do these learners acquire the standard of English proficiency? There are several factors that affect or inhibit learners in attaining mastery of English thus, attaining academic success is near to impossible. Such factors include age and/or aim of maturity, first language proficiency, and attitude and individual differences. Age and/or train of maturity here refer to the prepar edness or set of the learners to acquire competence in the language. Collier said that foracademic achievement, it does not matter when second language begins, as long as cognitive development continues at to the lowest form through age 12.First language proficiency is also a major factor, as what was noted by researchers that it may inhibit the development of the second language. spatial relation and individual differences refer to language learning styles and behavior of the learners towards the language. It is on this premise that this research employment is geared to prove or disprove the validity of the said effects of English language proficiency on academic achievement and employability. Sufficient selective development are then gathered to hang on the research reputation and to aid the researcher with the proper procedures in conducting the theatre of operations. These data are grouped gibe to relevance and greatness and on the degree of reference. The interest of the research study started as a operable observation in the call center setting. It has been observed that those who have the ability, in whatsoever direct of proficiency, in the English language have the competitive advantage over those who are less or no ability to use English in terms of academic performance, employability, and even job promotion. The interest was then broadened into a solid research work. Theoretical Framework conceptual FrameworkThis study is anchored on Jim Cumminss Theory on Second delivery Acquisition, where five full stops of acquisition are discussed in relation to students capacity or readiness to achieve academic proficiency. The five stages are as follows ramification 1 The tranquil/Receptive or Preproduction Stage, which throne withstand from ten hours to six months. Here, the students often have up to 500 hundred words that they locoweed pull in, but they may not be comfortable using Stage 2 The Early Production Stage, which can at la st additional six months after the initial stage. At this stage, students have usually developed close to 1,000 receptive or active words Stage 3 The Speech Emergence Stage, which can last up to another year. Students in this stage have usually developed approximately 3,000 words and can use short phrases and simple sentences to communicateStage 4 The Intermediate Language Proficiency Stage, which may take up to another year after speech emergence. Students have typically developed close to 6,000 words and are beginning to make complex conjurements, state opinions, ask for clarification, share their thoughts, and speak at greater length Stage 5 The AdvancedLanguage Proficiency Stage, which typically takes from five to seven-spot years. By this stage, students have already developed some alter content-area vocabulary and can participate richly in conversations that require great blandness convertible to that of native speakers. In relation to these stages, the achievement level of the students in their academics depends on what stage their proficiency of English is into. some other theory of Jim Cummins is that of Basic Interpersonal conversation Skills (BICS) and that of Cognitive academic Language Proficiency (CALP). This theory states that the average student can develop conversational fluency within two to five years, but that developing fluency is more technical, academic language can take from 4 to seven years depending on many variables such(prenominal) as language proficiency level, and the degree of support for achieving academic proficiency. The paradigm shown on the adjacent page features the concept of this study. The never-ending cycle begins with English language proficiency first, and after achieving proficiency in the language, students provide be able to powerful falsify language forms and patterns for easy understanding of academic lessons presented in English. This results to high academic performance, which willing also augment students proficiency in the language. The more proficient one is in English, the more academically good one becomes and the more one achieves academically, the more one becomes proficient in English.Paradigm The around-the-clock flow of English language proficiency to manipulation of language forms and patterns to academic achievement and then back to English language proficiency.Statement of the ProblemThis study determines and proves the square correlation of English language proficiency to academic achievement of graduation 9 students of Calumpang High School for the school year 2014 2015. Specifically, it seeks to answer the following questions 1. What is the profile of the respondents according to1.1. Age1.2. Sex1.3. Birth vow1.4. Parents Educational Background and1.5. Socio-Economic Status?2. What is the respondents level of English proficiency as a result of the English Proficiency running game? 3. What is the academic achievement of the respondents as reflected by the ir average strain in all subjects from their front year? 4. What is the degree of the variability of the respondents grades and scores on the English Language Proficiency Test? 5. What is the correlation of English language proficiency to academic achievement? 6. Does a positive correlation between English language proficiency and academic performance dictate high level of passing rate in the call center industry? Hypothesis of the filmFor statistical testing and data interpretation, this theory is considered English language proficiency has no fundamental effect on academic achievement of the students thus, no correlation can be made between the level of proficiency in English language and academic achievement. Scope and Delimitation of the StudyWhile there is a solid presence of the issue of bilingualism and trilingualism and second language acquisition, this study covers only the inherent and potential relationship of English language proficiency and academic achievement. T he above two issues are excluded here although some aspects have been tackled because of some relevance and association with the main focus of this study. This study also adheres to its main objective, which is to determine whether or not the ability to correctly use the English language has an effect on the students academic achievement, and in turn get a very high employability rate in the Business outsource Processing industry. Although results vary due to factors like age, gender, birth order, socio-economic status, and the like, any conclusions made in this study are solely based on one variable, English language proficiency. The term English language proficiency covers not only mastery of grammar and mechanics or sentence patterns, but more so on the mastery of the four macro skills reading, paternity, speaking, and listening.Proficiency in this study refers to the ability of the students to read, write, speak, and listen in English. every of these macro skills does not deter mine proficiencybecause proficiency means more that vertical the ability to read, write, speak, and listen. Rather, proficiency means the ability to correctly use these four macro skills in a give situation. In this study, the proficiency of the students in the English language is measured under these conditions. Academic achievement covers the school performance of the students through their grades from the previous academic year only. It includes academic subjects like Mathematics, Sciences, Language, Social Studies, Arts, and Livelihood Education. Academic achievement is measured here through the students grade from their previous year. The respondents of this study are enrolled Grade 9 students Calumpang High School of school year 20142015. Those who indicates in the survey questionnaire that they are foreigners and/or native speakers of English are excluded in the study. It is on these conditions where the results of this study can be concluded valid and reliable. deduction of the StudyThe study on the relationship of English language proficiency and academic achievement has been the subject of many researches for decades now. Educators and school administrators promote the idea that language proficiency affects academic performance and language proficiency and academic performance affect employability. Although there are some who contradicted such idea, the wedge of the results of these researches and studies proved to be interest-provoking and had alarmed those in the authority. That is why considerable number of similar researches is still conducted. The study on the significant effects of English language proficiency on academic achievement is the primaeval factor in understanding learners diverse ways on acquiring mastery of the subject matters specially those that use English as medium of instruction.The study all may eliminate subjectivity on the part of the teachers in terms of assessing the academic performance of the students. In such ways , the teachers are attached prior knowledge about the capacity of their students to use the English language and eventually make the necessary adjustments so that all students, in whatever level of English proficiency they have, shall learn efficaciously whatever the academic subject is. Additionally, understanding that the students are going through a predictable and sequential series of developmental stages in English language proficiency stand bys teachers predictand accept students current stage, while modifying their instruction to encourage progression to the next stage. This study can also help teachers develop appropriate instructional strategies and assessments that return students along a continuum of language development.This study will also benefit the students themselves. Having this background, they can already adjust to different academic tasks in the classroom. Also, this shall provide them with the necessary information on assessing their own competence in Engl ish and suit it to appropriate level of academic struggle. They will be given substantial help for them to understand their level of competencies in the language. In the case of those who are in the authority, they will be given enough background on the level of English proficiency and its effect to academic achievement of the students. With this, they shall have basis in future program implementation in relation to educational development.Furthermore, this research study is an important area in English language education, perhaps an area that can be significantly studied more. This study will generate new ideas that can be used for future researches colligate to the topic. As a mere research study, this may not be the be-all and end-all in describing students academic learning styles, but this will be a starting point in analyzing the important role of English not only as an world(prenominal) language, but also as a language of academics.Finally, understanding the concept of Engl ish language instruction and its impact to the overall academic performance of the students is a good birds eye opinion to course developers and educators of Call Center Programs in the K-12 curriculum. Identifying the areas of English our students are challenged with versus the English proficiency requirements of the call center job enables our school administrators to create skills-related teaching methodology to clothe our students in their job application in the future. Moreover, it is imperative for the whole academe to understand the demands of the global market and the relevance of language proficiency and academic performance to marketability and self-worth. This research ultimately seeks answers to the unidentified reasons of the declining English proficiency and what effective programs and solutions can we implement to address such issues. Definition of Termsthroughout the study, there are words and terms that are contextually and operationally used. This plane section includes clearly and concisely defined coined words and technical terms as follows Academic Achievement. This refers to the school performance of the students through grades. Bilingualism. This term refers to the use of two languages, the first language and English, as a medium in communication. Call Center Industry. Also cognize as Business Process Outsourcing, this term refers to the large operations of foreign companies in the Philippines. Communicative Competence. This refers to the ability to communicate effectively in whatever forms of speaking and writing as well as the ability to get messages through listening and reading. English Language Proficiency. This term refers to the competence in using English in forms of compose discourse and oral communication.