A study on ascertaining the undergraduates' perspectives on having exposure in English

Abstract

The importance and advantage of learning English as a second language is continuing to increase day by day as it is often considered as the World language. Hence, in Sri Lankan education arena, most often students are encouraged to have the exposure in English language. The present study intends to ascertain the Undergraduates' perspectives on having exposure in English. The sample of 165 Undergraduates who belong to eleven different Degree Programmes at Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka has been selected as the scope of the study. Subsequently, designed questionnaire was implemented as research instrument while using the statistical software for analytical purposes. The prime objective of conducting this research is to ascertain the viewpoints of Undergraduates on their competency in English language in pursuing the academic career. According to the results found through the research, it is significant that most of the Undergraduates (90.91%) are with difficulty of using correct spellings in their writing. Moreover, respondents have highlighted some of the areas which are related to English language where they are in need of more exposure in the pedagogical language classroom in order to achieve their academic success in the University. Study has shed the light on ascertaining the perspectives of Undergraduates regarding the target language which is English. Findings are crucial in designing activities and teaching materials for the better fulfillment of the objectives of Second Language Teaching and Learning while providing guiding light to future researches.