Identifying metaphoric perceptions of secondary school students towards English lessons

Students' perceptions and beliefs about foreign languages have positive or negative effects on their learning by shaping their goals and motivations. These perceptions can also influence students' learning strategies; students with negative perceptions tend to use less effective learning strategies, which can increase anxiety and adversely affect their learning. Positive perceptions of foreign languages facilitate language learning and contribute to a progressive and continuous improvement of the process. In addition, considering that foreign languages serve as an important bridge for communicating with the world and keeping up with technological and scientific developments, it is crucial to determine the perceptions of students learning foreign languages towards those languages. This study aims to determine students' perceptions of English lessons through metaphors. The concept of metaphor can generally be defined as a means of illustrating abstract concepts in more concrete ways to facilitate understanding and enhance retention. In the field of education, metaphors are frequently utilized to explain and uncover assumptions related to specific concepts. Defining English learned as a foreign language through metaphors forms the essence of this study. This study aims to determine the metaphorical perceptions of 6th and 7th grade students towards their English lessons. The study employed a qualitative research method known as phenomenology design. The reason for choosing a phenomenological design in this study is the belief that mental images (metaphors), being neither observable phenomena nor things that can be examined under a microscope, can be understood through the descriptions provided by individuals who are the actual sources of the data. The research was carried out with a total of 325 students in the 6th and 7th grades from three different middle schools in the Şehitkamil district of Gaziantep province. Data collection was conducted using a metaphor questionnaire form and focus group interview form. The metaphorical perceptions of students regarding English lessons were explored using the metaphor questionnaire form, and follow-up focus group interviews were held with those students who volunteered. The analysis and interpretation of the data obtained from the study were conducted using the chi-square test and content analysis. The findings from the research indicated that the students generally have positive metaphorical perceptions towards the English lesson. Besides, the study also showed that female students have a more positive metaphorical perception of the English lesson compared to male students. No statistically significant relationship was found between grade levels of the students and positivity/negativity of metaphors that were used to describe English lessons. This study would contribute teachers and researchers at stages such as determining students' perspectives on foreign languages before the learning-teaching process, preparing foreign language education programs in the country, determining language policy, and preparing and planning materials. Keywords: Metaphor, Metaphorical perceptions of students, English lessons, Secondary school students