Social and emotional foreign language learning perceptions of students in rural schools

In the 21st century, it is aimed to provide students with social and emotional skills as well as to increase their academic success. On the other hand, it could be seen that there is still not enough study to examine the Social and Emotional Learning perceptions of students in the rural context. In this study, the Social and Emotional Foreign Language Learning perceptions of secondary school students studying in rural schools and the rural challenges that affect students socially and emotionally were investigated. The "Social and Emotional Foreign Language Learning Scale" developed by Zaimoğlu (2018) was used to measure students' social and emotional language learning competencies. Additionally, semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect data about the challenging situations affecting the participants. The research was carried out in schools located in the 4th, 5th, and 6th compulsory service areas in the province of Niğde, and the sample of this study consisted of 768 secondary school students. The results of the study indicated that students in rural schools had moderate SEFLL competencies. It was also determined that these competencies showed significant differences according to factors such as gender, family attitude, family education level, family income level, perceptions of academic success, and service area. Moreover, the qualitative results of the study present the social and financial challenges experienced by students studying in rural schools and the emotional and mental effects of these challenges.