ATTITUDES TOWARDS USING CANVA IN LEARNING ENGLISH AS A SECOND LANGUAGE: A STUDY OF MALAYSIAN PRIVATE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS AT UTAR

Abstract

This study investigates undergraduates’ attitudes at Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), a Malaysian private university, toward using Canva in learning English as a second language. It examines the correlation between students' attitudes and their proficiency levels, as well as gender differences. This study contributes to understanding how the lower proficiency of learners find this instrument helpful in writing. Also, it increases commitment, inspiration and gender dynamics in ESL classroom settings. Adopting a quantitative approach, data were collected from 103 respondents using a questionnaire adapted from Gardner’s (1985) Attitude and Motivation Test Battery (AMTB). Respondents were grouped according to their Malaysian University English Test (MUET) results to explore potential links between Canva use and language proficiency. The findings reveal that undergraduates generally expressed positive attitudes toward integrating Canva in English learning. Students with lower proficiency levels reported stronger positive attitudes, indicating a significant relationship between students’ proficiency and attitudes towards using Canva in learning the English language. In addition, female students showed more positive attitudes than their male counterparts. The study highlights the importance of supporting learners with lower proficiency when integrating digital tools in language learning practices in the second language classroom. It depicts the empirical quantitative justification in the use of digital instruments in learning ESL. It bridges the gap between conventional learning and contemporary learning with technology tools by adapting a validated AMTB framework. It also shows that attitudes vary by gender. These findings offer practical insights for the use of Canva in ESL classrooms.