Students' boredom in English language classes: Voices from Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Although academic research on English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) emotion has recently increased, there is a paucity of studies related to boredom in the Saudi context. To address this issue, the present study aimed to identify the causes of students' boredom in English classes in the Saudi context and the fluctuations of boredom experienced by students while taking language skill courses. Utilizing a mixed-methods design, the study drew upon a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. The questionnaire was completed by 356 participants from different EFL programs in Saudi universities, and the interviews were conducted with 20 students. The results of this study provided a detailed account of the causes of boredom in the Saudi EFL environment. Specifically, an exploratory factor analysis revealed the following seven factors that account for boredom: demotivation, low language learning ability, type of skills-based courses and over-challenging tasks, unfamiliar instructional techniques, teacher feedback areas, under-challenging tasks, and classroom mode, permanent correction, and redundancy. The study also highlighted boredom fluctuations in courses based on language skills via the use of descriptive statistics (means, standard deviations, and percentages). Compared to other courses/lessons, the students of EFL programs were found to have the highest boredom levels in grammar and writing. The study ends with a discussion on the implications of the results and provides suggestions for future research.