Learners' situated motivation in oral grammar practice with an ASR-enabled CALL system

Advances in speech recognition (ASR) technology have resulted in computer applications that provide compelling forms of speaking practice to learners of a second language (L2). Evaluation of such applications typically does not include an analysis of how learners’ situated motivational states fluctuate during language practice. In connection with recent developments in L2 motivation theory, this paper investigates situated learner motivation in practice with an ASR-enabled system. An experiment was conducted in which our system provided oral grammar practice for Dutch L2 under two learning conditions: with and without corrective feedback. We report on learners’ motivational experiences by triangulating an analysis of 1) motivational trajectories from a periodic motivation questionnaire, 2) post-practice reflective questionnaires, and 3) behavioural log data recorded by the system during practice. Our analysis shows that learners maintained positive attitudes towards the system throughout practice and became increasingly confident over time.