Abstract:

English is used as a language of teaching and learning in most South African universities. For this reason, both the students and the lecturers should be proficient in the English language to make and communicate meaning in spoken and written contexts. However, many university first-year students struggle with English language proficiency, which could have been exacerbated by a lack of motivation towards learning English as a Language.

The aim of this paper is thus to investigate the relationship between motivation and English Language Proficiency (ELP) of the first-year Foundation Programme, Management Services students at a university in South Africa. The study was qualitative in nature and a case study design was adopted. A Purposive sample of 40 students were purposefully selected to collect data. Focus group interviews were conducted with 40 purposefully selected students divided into four groups comprising of 10 members each and data were analysed thematically. The findings revealed that most students viewed it as important to be motivated to improve their proficiency in English. Furthermore, the findings indicated that students have a positive attitude towards English, due to their perception that English proficiency is likely to assist them in realising their dreams. The study recommended that English lecturers should develop new and innovative strategies to improve motivation amongst students, thereby possibly assisting them to improve their English language proficiency.

Keywords:

English language, Proficiency, Motivation, First-year students, Lecturers.