Islamic drive and L2 motivational learning model among Tahfiz students

Abstract

Although Tahfiz students’ Islamic knowledge is generally accorded privilege, Tahfiz students’ English language proficiency is considered weak and insubstantial. The advent of technology and the 21st century reveal the centrality of English proficiency as it is still the most spoken language in the world. As such, to become global Da’ie, Tahfiz students might better possess English language proficiency commensurate with the global demands. Based on Dornyei’s (2005) L2MSS, a new L2 motivational model for Tahfiz students has been proposed. In this paper, the authors describe one specific factor in the new model, namely the Islamic Drive which contains five items extracted via the Exploratory Factor Analysis. The element of Islamic Drive used singly is useful because it substantiates a unique aspect of motivation for Tahfiz students. In essence, the Islamic Drive suggests that Tahfiz students’ motivation is closely associated with their spiritual vision; to use English mainly as a means of da’wah is to communicate with other global Muslims.