Examining the Impacts of Cartoons on Motivating EFL Beginner Students to Speak English Language in Beninese Secondary Schools: The Case Study of Some Secondary Schools in the Atlantic Region

Abstract

In Benin, a French speaking country where English is taught and learnt as a foreign language, secondary school learners and their teachers encounter a variety of problems related to EFL learners’ poor oral performance. This research work investigates the impacts of cartoons on motivating EFL students to speak English in classrooms. Throughout this study, the motivating potentials of visual aids and of cartoons have been explored as a means to improve the teaching/learning of English as a Foreign Language in the Beninese context. This research work was carried in two secondary schools located in the Atlantic Region where two EFL classes have been selected. One representing the experimental group and the other the control group. Four (4) teachers and two hundred and thirty (230) EFL students were selected to participate in the study. Two types of questionnaires were designed and distributed to both EFL learners and teachers. The data collected were presented in forms of frequency, tables, and figures. The findings revealthat although students love games, movies, a large majority of Beninese EFL teachers rarely resort to them as a technique. Thefindings also reveal that cartoons when used appropriately yield positive impacts on EFL beginners’ listening, speaking, reading and writing abilities. 75% of  Beninese teachers recognize that  cartoons is  an efficient means for fighting anxiety  and motivating EFL beginners to develop their oral production. As a result, the study recommends that teachers should be trained on the practical strategies and techniques to use cartoons to motivate their learners to communicate fluently in English language and to create a less-stressful classroom atmosphere