Experiencing communicative situations in English

The students were also asked about the feelings they experienced during the communicative situations in the English language. Most of the feelings expressed can be regarded as positive:

(88, Iida) mut sit loppujen lopuks ni mä vaan selitin jotain vaikka en tienny mitä selitin

but then I just spoke something even though I did not know what I was saying

(89, Krisse) on se vähä aluksi sillee että no mitä mä nyt sanoisin tähän ja sit rupee vaan selittää hirveesti kaikkee

at first it is a bit like what should I say but then you just start explaining a lot

(90, Nea) joo no eka tuli jäätyminen ja sitte on sillee miettiny mitä pitää sanoa ja sitte kyllä se tulee

well first I froze and when I have thought what to say then I’m able to speak

In the communicative situations in Finland the students often felt surprised since the situation was unexpected. The students mentioned that they needed some time to think what to say but then started speaking English and spoke until they got their meaning across.

Negative feelings were rarely experienced in communicative situations in English:

(91, Eeva) ei kyllä mun mielestä oo kiva tilanne on sellanen epämiellyttävä eikä tiiä mitä sanois

I don’t think it is a very nice situation it is unpleasant and I don’t know what to say

Only one of the interviewees, Eeva, expressed clearly that she did not find the communicative situation in English pleasant.

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The findings indicate that the students were most often confident enough to take part in the situations:

(92, Iida) nii tai ei se oo sillai et kävelee vaan ohi jos joku alkaa höpöttää englantia

it is not like you just walk away if someone starts to speak to you in English

(93, Krisse) sitte vaa käsillä puolet et ei tuu heti mieleen että mitä sanois mut sit vaan yrittää hirveesti ni kyllä se siitä sitte kuitenki

then you just use hand gestures if you don’t know what to say you just try hard and it will be okay

(94, Juha) puhuu vaa jottai kyl ne siit sit ymmärtää you just speak something they will eventually understand

It was apparent that the students always tried to communicate with the English language even if they could not find the right words. Other means were used such as body language. The students clearly wanted to manage the situation rather than walk away. Thus, the students appear to have courage and confidence to communicate in the foreign language.

Interestingly, this fact certainly contradicts with the students’ general opinion that English language teaching does not provide enough sufficient support on the development of communication skills. This contradiction can be due to the aspects of adolescence or even be a part of the aspects of Finnish culture where unnecessary modesty and self-criticism are sometimes very common. In other words, the students feel that they do not have the skills needed even though when the chips are down they manage just fine.

However, some of the students reported that if possible they would not participate in the situations as the following example illustrates.

(95, Juha) mä anna muitte puhuu ketä ossaa I let others speak the ones who know how to speak

Juha mentioned that he let the others in a group speak since they spoke better English than him. In other words, he did not believe that he has enough skills to participate in the situation.

It was acknowledged in the interviews that speaking got more fluent after using it continuously:

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(96, Sami) ku se oli aika luontevaa ku sitä puhui kaks viikkoo niin ku putkee it was quite natural after speaking the language for two weeks straight

(97, Iida) se oli niin ku ihan normaalia tavallaan tai siihen tottu sitte eka pari viikkoo oli vähän sillee tangerteli

it was quite normal or you got used to it or first two weeks was harder

Sami reported that speaking in the foreign language got easier and even natural when he spent a longer period of time abroad. In addition, speaking English became normal after speaking it at home for two weeks. That was the case with Iida.

In addition, speaking English abroad was considered to be easier since usually that is the main language used and thus, communicative situations in English are expected:

(98, Jimi) on (helpompaa) tai varsinki jos on ollu vähä aikaa ulkomailla ja on puhunu vähän aikaa englantia pelkästään ni sitte se menee paljo helpommi ku jos tulee yhtäkkiä sellane tilanne et pitää ruveta englantia puhumaan

it is easier or at least when you have spent some time abroad and you have spoken just English it is easier than when suddenly you have to start speaking English

Jimi pointed out that when a person has spent a longer period of time abroad it is easier to speak English since it is a language a person speaks every day.

Whereas, in Finland, it is harder to start speaking English since the communicative situation where English is required, is more sudden and unexpected.

In addition, other reasons for why speaking English was considered to be easier abroad were provided in the interviews:

(99, Nea) helpompaa koska nekään ei puhu täydellistä englantia easier since even they don’t speak perfect English

(100, Siiri) mun mielest se oli niin ku iha kiva ku se kuitenki ymmärs sillee et me ei osata puhuu kauhee hyvi ja se oli semmone hauska

I think it was nice since she understood that we don’t speak English that well

The students pointed out that speaking English abroad is easier since often English is spoken everywhere and one can hear it and gets used to it. One of the students, Nea, mentioned that speaking English abroad was easier since she had noticed that the other people there did not speak perfect English

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either. In addition, Siiri pointed out that the situation was nice because the person they were talking to understood that their English speaking skills were not very fluent and she was still nice to them.

Finally, it was recognized that it is inevitable to use English abroad:

(101, Krisse) no joo varmaan (helpompaa) tulee vähän semmone et nyt mun on vähän pakko että sit se menee siihe

well yeah I guess it’s (easier) it feels like now I really have to start speaking like that’s how it goes

Speaking English abroad was viewed easier since it was regarded as a necessity. Krisse mentioned that it is easier since she did not have any other choice but to use the English language.

To sum up, most of the students had encountered situations in Finland where they had used their English language skills. Most of the encounterings occurred in larger cities. In addition, some of the students reported that they had also used their English language skills abroad.

Encountering communicative situations in English abroad was considered to be easier than in Finland since it was more expected. Furthermore, the students pointed out that speaking in English became more natural after using the language and hearing the language continuously. Interestingly, the interviews also indicated that the students were not afraid of communicating in English. The students mentioned that they needed time to figure out what to say but always tried to get the message across, either by using words and sentences or other means such as gestures. Most of the students viewed the communicative situations in English as positive. It is significant to notice that even the young people in Finland are expected to have good English skills.