Exploring Learner's Difficulties in Learning Spanish as a Foreign Language : The Case Study: AinTemouchent Secondary Schools

Abstract

Teaching and learning languages process is the most important subject presented by many researchers. As in our case, we tend to look for this study especially for the Spanish language. It seems as a third foreign language in Algeria. This study aims to explore the pupil’s difficulties in learning Spanish in AinTemouchent High Schools (Sayam Haddach Kada and Abi Der Alghifari Secondary Schools in the district of Hammam BouHadjar, and Mihadji Mohammed Lahbib in the district of Ain Larbaa, to find out the main reasons behind these difficulties. Another objective is to look for the teaching methods, and we try to develop these techniques in order to help both teachers and pupils to overcome the difficulties related to four skills (speaking, writing, reading and listening). In this research work, we used two research instruments which are presented in classroom observation and a questionnaire which was distributed to both teachers and pupils of Ain Temouchent high schools in order to examine the proposed hypotheses. After collecting data and analyzing them, they demonstrated that teachers rely only on the use of books as a source or as a teaching method which led pupils to communicate ineffectively and fail in mastering the four skills in learning the Spanish language. For the pupils, they face many difficulties in listening skills which let them fail in other skills that are mentioned in the hypotheses.