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THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
learning motivation of secondary school learners. Csizér and Lukács (2010)
drew the same conclusion in their study, in which they investigated Hungar¬
ian learners. Ihey hypothesized that secondary school students are not old
enough to develop their Ought-to L2 selves, which can successfully motivate
them.
However, as opposed to the findings of previous research on the Ought-to
L2 Self, my hypothesis is that in the Hungarian context, it may be an import¬
ant factor in the L2 learning motivation of secondary school students for two
reasons. First, from the academic year 2019/2020, it would have been compul¬
sory for students to obtain at least a B2 level exam to be admitted to a higher
educational program, but the Hungarian government withdrew the introduc¬
tion of this regulation (Öveges-Kálmán 2019). Also, further foreign language
exam certificates provide learners with extra points reguired to be admitted
to several higher educational programs. Second, at the time when this research
project was started (in 2020), in order to obtain the degree certificate at the
end of ones studies in a higher education program in Hungary, one had to
possess a foreign language certificate proving a certain level of foreign language
knowledge. Ihe most common prereguisite for obtaining a degree certificate
was possessing at least a B2 level exam; however, this could vary according to
different higher education programs in Hungary. It could be concluded that
atthe time I started this research project, the above-detailed regulations could
have encouraged Hungarian students to obtain a foreign language certificate,
which may have ultimately impacted their Ought-to L2 Self. In 2022, however,
this regulation was abolished, leaving universities the discretion to decide
whether or not to reguire their students to obtain a foreign language exam
certificate (for more details see Fajt et al. 2022a, 2022b). Nevertheless, at the
time of data collection (in 2020), obtaining a foreign language exam certificate
was still an important motivating factor for EEL learners, so I decided to keep
the data pertaining foreign language exams and include them in the upcoming
analysis (e.g., Chapter 5).
2.3.1.3 L2 learning experience
The third and last dimension of the L2 Motivational Self System is the L2
Learning Experience, which Dörnyei (2005: 29) defines as the “immediate
learning environment and experience.” This dimension differs from the other
two components, which are situated at the self-level. Csizér (2019) points out
that even though this dimension is fundamentally different from the other two
self-related concepts, which are based on Markus and Nurius’s (1986) possible
selves theory, the L2 Learning Experience is an integral part of Dörnyei’s (2005)
theory, as this component emphasizes the importance of context in language
learning.