Gender interacts with other facets of English Language Learners’ social identity like race and ethnicity to guide their learning experiences, desires, and outcomes; however, much of traditional Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL) research has focused on how motivation and language learning beliefs differ between male and female English as a Second Language/English as a Foreign Language (ESL/EFL) students with the intent to identify difference, if it exists. English Language Learners who are studying abroad or who have immigrated to the United States have already established a gender identity influenced and created by their experiences in their first language and culture. Yet, immersion in a new culture and acquiring a second language may cause these students to re-evaluate their perceptions of gender roles and influence their choice of language, as previously found by Gordon (2004) and Schmenk (2004). This thesis attempts to break from this tradition of ‘differential tendencies’ research in the creation of two pilot surveys, one of which was tested, that attempt to solicit information on English Language Learner’s perceptions of their own gendered identity and their consciousness of the catalyst for identity change that is learning a second language. In this case, an English pilot survey asked 32 ESL students to evaluate their beliefs about their own perceptions of gender identity, their conscious choice of language utilization, and their perception of their inclusion in American culture; from that survey, a second has been created but not piloted. A conclusion is drawn that incorporates research about the appropriateness of addressing developing gender identity by teachers inside of the classroom.
","abstract_html":"<p>Gender interacts with other facets of English Language Learners’ social identity like race and ethnicity to guide their learning experiences, desires, and outcomes; however, much of traditional Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL) research has focused on how motivation and language learning beliefs differ between male and female English as a Second Language/English as a Foreign Language (ESL/EFL) students with the intent to identify difference, if it exists. English Language Learners who are studying abroad or who have immigrated to the United States have already established a gender identity influenced and created by their experiences in their first language and culture. Yet, immersion in a new culture and acquiring a second language may cause these students to re-evaluate their perceptions of gender roles and influence their choice of language, as previously found by Gordon (2004) and Schmenk (2004). This thesis attempts to break from this tradition of ‘differential tendencies’ research in the creation of two pilot surveys, one of which was tested, that attempt to solicit information on English Language Learner’s perceptions of their own gendered identity and their consciousness of the catalyst for identity change that is learning a second language. In this case, an English pilot survey asked 32 ESL students to evaluate their beliefs about their own perceptions of gender identity, their conscious choice of language utilization, and their perception of their inclusion in American culture; from that survey, a second has been created but not piloted. A conclusion is drawn that incorporates research about the appropriateness of addressing developing gender identity by teachers inside of the classroom.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Ged, Geneva"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Arts","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Department of English","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Elizabeth Winkler (Director), Alex Poole, Sandra Hughes"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2013,"date_issued":"2013-12-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2013-12-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:08:26Z","subjects":["ESL","Linguistics","English Language Learner","Language Classroom","Communication","English Language and Literature","Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication","International and Intercultural Communication","Reading and Language"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1317","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Elizabeth Winkler (Director), Alex Poole, Sandra Hughes"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Ged, Geneva"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Department of English"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Arts"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["ESL","Linguistics","English Language Learner","Language Classroom","Communication","English Language and Literature","Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication","International and Intercultural Communication","Reading and Language"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1317"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Gender interacts with other facets of English Language Learners’ social identity like race and ethnicity to guide their learning experiences, desires, and outcomes; however, much of traditional Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL) research has focused on how motivation and language learning beliefs differ between male and female English as a Second Language/English as a Foreign Language (ESL/EFL) students with the intent to identify difference, if it exists. English Language Learners who are studying abroad or who have immigrated to the United States have already established a gender identity influenced and created by their experiences in their first language and culture. Yet, immersion in a new culture and acquiring a second language may cause these students to re-evaluate their perceptions of gender roles and influence their choice of language, as previously found by Gordon (2004) and Schmenk (2004). This thesis attempts to break from this tradition of ‘differential tendencies’ research in the creation of two pilot surveys, one of which was tested, that attempt to solicit information on English Language Learner’s perceptions of their own gendered identity and their consciousness of the catalyst for identity change that is learning a second language. In this case, an English pilot survey asked 32 ESL students to evaluate their beliefs about their own perceptions of gender identity, their conscious choice of language utilization, and their perception of their inclusion in American culture; from that survey, a second has been created but not piloted. A conclusion is drawn that incorporates research about the appropriateness of addressing developing gender identity by teachers inside of the classroom.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Conscious Reconstruction: The Effects of Second Language Acquisition on Self-Perception of Gender Identity"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Elizabeth Winkler (Director), Alex Poole, Sandra Hughes"],"dc:creator":["Ged, Geneva"],"dc:description.abstract":["Gender interacts with other facets of English Language Learners’ social identity like race and ethnicity to guide their learning experiences, desires, and outcomes; however, much of traditional Teaching English as a Second Language (TESOL) research has focused on how motivation and language learning beliefs differ between male and female English as a Second Language/English as a Foreign Language (ESL/EFL) students with the intent to identify difference, if it exists. English Language Learners who are studying abroad or who have immigrated to the United States have already established a gender identity influenced and created by their experiences in their first language and culture. Yet, immersion in a new culture and acquiring a second language may cause these students to re-evaluate their perceptions of gender roles and influence their choice of language, as previously found by Gordon (2004) and Schmenk (2004). This thesis attempts to break from this tradition of ‘differential tendencies’ research in the creation of two pilot surveys, one of which was tested, that attempt to solicit information on English Language Learner’s perceptions of their own gendered identity and their consciousness of the catalyst for identity change that is learning a second language. In this case, an English pilot survey asked 32 ESL students to evaluate their beliefs about their own perceptions of gender identity, their conscious choice of language utilization, and their perception of their inclusion in American culture; from that survey, a second has been created but not piloted. A conclusion is drawn that incorporates research about the appropriateness of addressing developing gender identity by teachers inside of the classroom.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/theses/1317"],"dc:subject":["ESL","Linguistics","English Language Learner","Language Classroom","Communication","English Language and Literature","Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication","International and Intercultural Communication","Reading and Language"],"dc:title":["Conscious Reconstruction: The Effects of Second Language Acquisition on Self-Perception of Gender Identity"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Department of English"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Arts"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:08:26Z"}