STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF STUDENT AGENCY IN ENGLISH FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES LEARNING

Abstract

This study aims to explore students’ perceptions of student agency in English for Specific Purposes (ESP) learning at a vocational college in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. A qualitative research design was employed for data collection. A cohort of 60 students being sampled based on the convenience sampling technique participated in answering a questionnaire. The SPSS software was run for data analysis in terms of descriptive statistics. The findings indicated that research participants were aware of their critical roles (e.g., participants, initiators and autonomous learners) in English for Specific Purposes learning. Additionally, research participants believed in their agency in learning as they got engaged in ESP learning actively thanks to their positive attitudes toward, positive personalities, and good skills in ESP learning. This study suggests pedagogical implications in an attempt to enhance the quality of ESP teaching and learning in the research context and other similar ones.