The relationship between proficiency level and patterns of use of the English Language: the influence of audiovisual resources

Abstract

The present study aims to shed light on the relationship between levels of proficiency and patterns of using English as a second language (L2). The understanding of which patterns of use have greater interaction with higher levels of proficiency brings non-trivial suggestions about habits that can foster a greater incentive for the development of this L2. We analyzed English as L2 proficiency and usage patterns of 133 participants from technical high school at the Centro Federal de Educação Tecnológica de Minas Gerais. Proficiency was measured through a word association test, the Vocabulary Levels Test or VLT (NATION, 1990), and the patterns of use were investigated with questions taken from the Questionário de Levantamento de Usos de Línguas (VALADARES, 2017). Our results indicated that the items (i) playing games with English speaking (p = 0.014) (ii) watching videos in English (p = 0.024) and (iii) accessing information in English on the internet (p = 0.003) explain the variation proficiency among participants. These results suggest that the development of English as L2 can be enhanced by contact with audiovisual genres and with internet interactions in this language.

Keywords

• aquisição de l2
• proficiência
• gêneros audiovisuais