No abstract

Falling asleep in class is a common phenomenon among students in Japanese universities. There are several possible reasons for this: tiredness from daily routine such as commuting, difficulty concentrating in 90-minute classes, or simply a lack of motivation to study. In the English as a foreign language (EFL) classes, university students are usually not as motivated as high school students, considering that English education in Japan is generally aimed at preparing students for university entrance examinations. This study, therefore, aimed mainly to examine ways to prevent students from falling asleep in class by improving their motivation levels. Based on the results of questionnaire surveys and focus group interviews, it sought to identify ways in which student attention and alertness in class can be improved. The participants in this study were asked to take a vocabulary test in class before completing exercises in their textbook. After four weeks, follow-up research was conducted using questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The study results showed that taking a vocabulary test at the beginning of class was an effective method of motivating students; however, this alone did not prevent university students from falling asleep in class.

Background: The present study aims to investigate which variables affect English as a foreign language (EFL) students' listening comprehension test performance. It examines two types of variables: (1) test formats and (2) test materials.

The purpose of this study is to examine students' perceptions of L1 translations when learning L2 vocabulary as a pre-listening activity and to investigate their listening comprehension test performance. Higher and lower level Japanese university students were required to learn vocabulary as a pre-listening activity. Both levels were divided into two groups. One group was asked to learn vocabulary items using L1 translations, whereas the other used L2 definitions. Previous research has suggested that using L1 translations is preferable for lower level students. However, the results of the present study contradict the findings of previous studies. The present study shows that both higher and lower level students tended to prefer L2 definitions when learning L2 vocabulary, and that this tendency was stronger among lower level students. Moreover, regarding listening comprehension test performance, the results show that higher level students who used L1 translations consistently outperformed those who used L2 definitions, although lower level students did not show such consistency.