An investigation into high school students motivation to learn english

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
VINH UNIVERSITY

NGUYỄN XUÂN THÀNH

AN INVESTIGATION INTO HIGH SCHOOL
STUDENTS’ MOTIVATION TO LEARN ENGLISH

MASTER’S THESIS IN EDUCATION

Nghê An, 2016


MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
VINH UNIVERSITY

NGUYỄN XUÂN THÀNH

AN INVESTIGATION INTO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS’
MOTIVATION TO LEARN ENGLISH

Major: Theory and methodology of English language teaching
Code: 60.14.01.11

MASTER’S THESIS IN EDUCATION

SUPERVISOR
Assoc. Prof. Dr. LÊ VĂN CANH

Nghê An, 2016

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
TABLE OF CONTENTS………………………………………………………… ii
ABTRACT ………………………………………………………….…...………. iv
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION …………………………………………........ 1
1.1. Rationale …………………………………………………………. ………… 1
1.2. Aims and objectives of the study…………………………………………….

1

1.3. Significance of study………………………………………………….............. 2
1.4. Research questions …………………………………………………………… 2
1.5. Scope of the study ……………………………………………………………. 3
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ……………………………………... 4
2.1. Definition of motivation in language learning………………………………… 4
2.2. Types of motivation…………………………………………………………… 7
2.3. The role of motivation in language learning………………………………….. 11
2.4. Factors affecting students’ motivation………………………………………… 12
2.4.1. Personality variables ………………………………………………………… 12
2. 4.2. Attitudes of learners…………………………………………………………. 14
2.4.3. Learning styles………………………………………………………………. 15
2.4.4. Teacher as a motivating factor……………………………………………… 16
2.4.5. Teacher teaching methodology as a motivating factor………………………. 19
2.4.6. The Text………………………………………………………………. …….. 22
2.4.7. The Task…………………………………………………………………….. 23
2.4.8. The Test……………………………………………………………………… 25
2.5. Teachers’ role in motivating the students……………………………………… 27
2.6. Previous studies on language students’ motivation……………………………. 29

i


CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY ……………………………………………

36

3.1. Design of Research Methods …………………………………………………. 36
3.2. Participants …………………………………………………………………… 36
3.3. Research instrument …………………………………………………………… 36
3.3.1. The questionnaire……………………………………………………............. 37
3.3.2.The interview………………………………………………………………… 39
3.4. Data collection ………………………………………………………………… 39
3.5. Data analysis…………………………………………………………………

39

3.6. Procedures …………………………………………………………………….. 41
CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DICUSSIONS ……………………...……….

43

4.1. Findings from questionnaire and data analysis………………………………… 43
4.2. Findings from interview and data analysis……………………………………. 53
4.2.1. Motivating factors…………………………………………………………… 54
4.3. Discussion of the questionnaire and interview findings ……………………… 60
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS ……………………… 60
5.1. Conclusions……………………………………………………………..…….. 66
5.2. Pedagogical implications ………………………………………………. …….. 67
5.2.1. For teachers…………………………………………………………… …….. 69

5.2.2. For students………………………………………………………….............. 71
5.2.3. For facilities, teaching and learning equipment …………………………….. 72
5.3. Recommendation………………………………………………………………. 72
5.4. Limitations……………………………………………………………… …….. 73
REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………… 75
APPENDICES……………………………………………………………………. 82

ii


ABTRACT
The research entitled “An investigation into high school students’ motivation to
learn English” was conducted in an attempt to provide high school teachers with a
deep, comprehensible view of the role of motivation in language learning, factors
affecting students’ motivation and their role in motivating the students. To fulfill the
above purposes, the research paper consists of five chapters. Chapter 1 provides
background information, rationale, the aim of the research and then states three
research questions. In the chapter 2, the relevant theories and documents of the
previous researchers on this field are selected carefully and cited appropriately for the
content and scope of this study. Next, in the chapter 3, the data for this research are
gathered from the questionnaires and interviews. Questionnaire was distributed to 100
students in Tinh Gia 2 high school. The results taken from questionnaire are clarified
and reinforced through in-depth interviews with students. The study is continually
developed in the chapter 4. The first section focuses on analyzing the information and
discussing involving the role of motivation in language learning of high school
students. The aim of second section is to get an overall view of the type of dominant
motivation effecting high school students. In the final section, the research provides
best factors motivating students to learn English by synthesizing and analyzing
students’ ideas of this matter. Finally, standing firmly on these reliable foundations, the
research draws out conclusion of the role of motivation in language learning, effective

suggestions for motivating students to learn English. Besides, implications for teachers
are presented with a view to fostering students’ learning motivation and enhance the
efficiency of English teaching.

iii


CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.Rationale

Motivation is perhaps the single most important factor affecting the outcome of second
language learning. Indeed, Dörnyei (2001, p. 5) contends that when second language
learners have sufficient motivation, most of them can acquire a working knowledge of
the language. He further maintains that second language learners’ ultimate success or
failure is determined by their sustained ‘enthusiasm, commitment and persistence’ in
the long and drawn out process of language learning. While there have been a large
number of studies on student motivation, little has been researched regarding the
motivation to learn English in a rural high school in Vietnam. This is the rationale for
conducting this study, which is aimed at gaining information about students’
motivation at Tinh Gia 2 High School. The understanding gained could have positive
implications for current teaching and learning practices, based on the adopted
motivational theory. Furthermore, students’ motivation to learn English may be
enhanced, thus enabling them to better integrate into their new learning environment,
eventually improve their careers, and ultimately contribute more to society.

2. Aims and objectives of the study
The research was conducted with the aim of investigating the students’ motivation to
learn English, what type of motivation that dominates and factors shaping their
motivation in language learning. The findings of this research would make an attempt

to raise awareness of teachers of the importance of motivation towards students’

1


success in learning English and find suggestions for motivating students in English
classes.
Therefore, the study is designed to achieve the following objectives:


To find out the students’ motivational orientations in learning English as

a curriculum subject;


To find out the factors that shape the students’ motivational orientation.

3. Significance of study

It is hoped that through this research, I will get deeper insight into about the reality of
teaching and learning English at Tinh Gia 2 High School in Thanh Hoa. The wonderful
thing is that, the researcher is thirsty for gaining better knowledge of motivation as well
as its impact on English teaching and learning process with a view of applying them to
teach efficiently. My further desire is that this study’s outcome will make small
contribution towards boosting the efficiency of English teaching and learning, which
will be helpful for the researchers as well as counterparts in teaching job in the future.

4. Research questions

In order to fulfill the purpose mentioned above, this study was designed and conducted

to seek answers to the following questions:

1. How motivated are the students in learning English?
2. What are their motivational orientations?
3. What factors shape their motivational orientations?

2


5. Scope of the study

Motivation in second language learning achievement has been a heated issue attracting
attention of researchers. However, unlike other researches, this study only focuses on
exploiting and analyzing the kind of dominant motivation and factors shape students’
motivation at Tinh Gia 2 High School in Thanh Hoa. Due to time limit, to implement
the study, 100 students of three graders at Tinh Gia 2 High School were chosen
randomly in order to fill out questionnaire. Then, 20 students were invited to interview
for in-depth and valuable information.

3


CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

Motivation in learning English as a second or foreign language is not a new topic. In
fact, it has been investigated by many scholars and researchers. However, because
motivation is, as reported by scholars and researchers, dynamic and context-specific,
the researcher of this study did not have adequate information about the motivation in
learning English of the students at Tinh Gia 2 High School. This chapter reviews the
relevant literature in order to develop a conceptual framework for the study.

2.1. Definition of motivation in language learning

Motivation in language learning is defined differently from different theoretical
perspectives. According to Oxford Advanced Learner Dictionary - 7th edition (2005),
motivation is “that which moves or induces a person to act in a certain way; a desire,
fear, reason, etc which influences a person’s volition: also often applied to a result or
object which is desired.” To think of motivation as belonging only to the initial stages
of an action, - that is as concerned with arousing initial interest and turning it into a
decision to engage in some activity - is only a limited understanding of the term. The
need to maintain this state of arousal, to determine someone to make the necessary
effort to complete an action is also of great importance. This idea is reflected in the
definition given by Williams and Burden (1997, p. 120) who see motivation as “a state
of cognitive and emotional arousal, a state which leads to a conscious decision to act
and gives rise to a period of sustained intellectual and/or physical effort”. Thus intellect
and affect combine with volition and perseverance to result in what is known as
motivated behavior. The same idea is conveyed in different words by Gardner (1985),
who seems to explain the term with the precision of mathematical demonstration:
motivation is a combination of effort plus desire to achieve a goal plus favorable

4


attitudes towards the goal to be accomplished ( p.11). Thus the simple existence of
desire, strong reasons for doing something or favorable attitudes towards a particular
thing or action do not reflect motivation in and of themselves. The same R.C. Gardner
gives the example of individuals who may have a strong desire to do something or may
enjoy an activity and who can not be considered to be motivated, since their intentions
are not linked with a striving to accomplish that particular thing. Similarly, a person
can put a great deal of effort toward a goal without being necessarily motivated: the

decision to accomplish something may be triggered by different causes, both internal –
such as interest, curiosity, or even a general desire to achieve – and external ones such
as another person, social pressure, material rewards, etc.

Since the emergence of conception of motivation, it has grabbed special attention of a
lot of researchers, experts on this field. The major reason is that motivation plays an
indispensable part in English learning success. Until now, there have been some
various theories of motivation. Geen (1982) confirmed that motivation refers to the
initiation, direction, intensity and persistence of human behavior. Apparently,
motivation is the desire, determination and willingness to do something. According to
Little Wood (1984) “Motivation is the crucial force which determine if a learner
motivation centers on the task at all, how much energy he devotes to it, how long he
preserves”. However, there are opposing views of theories of motivation. Dornyei
(2001) confirmed “There are over 20 internationally recognized theories of motivation
with many opposing point of views”. Kong (2009) has contrasting opinion of concept
of motivation. He believed that motivation is something like the engine and steering
wheel of automobile that can move students from boredom to interest. This means that
motivation is inner power that pushes students forward, encourages them to study
harder. Cook (1996) stated the conception of motivation for teachers “The meaning of

5


motivation for the teacher is probably the interest that something generates in students
such as participant exercises, or particular songs make students involve in class”.

Harmer (1991, p.3) explains the meaning of motivation as the “internal drive” that
pushes somebody to do something. If we think that our goal is worth doing and
attractive for us, then we try to reach that goal; this is called “the action driven by
motivation”.

Lightbown and Spada (1999, p. 56) note that motivation in second language learning is
quite complicate to study which can be explained in terms of two factors: learner’s
communicative needs and their attitudes toward the second language community.

In addition, Parsons, Hinson and Brown (2001, p. 28) define motivation as an
important component or factor in the learning process. Learning and motivation have
the same importance in order to achieve something. Learning makes us gain new
knowledge and skills and motivation pushes us or encourage us to go through the
learning process.

Gardner (1982), in his socio-educational model, notes that motivation is perceived to
be composed of three elements. These are effort, desire and affect. Effort refers to the
time spent studying the language and the drive of the learner. Desire indicates how
much the learner wants to become proficient in the language, and affect means the
learner’s emotional reactions related to language study.

Aree Punmanee (1991) views motivation as the process aroused by stimulus to achieve
desired purposes, behaviors or conditions. Motivation is the continuous process based
on a person’s desire.

6


Ausubel (1968) pointed out six desires or needs of human organism which underguide
the structure of motivation; the need for exploration; for seeing the other side of
mountain, for probing the unknown things; the need for activity, both physical and
mental; the need for stimulation, the need to be stimulated by the environment, by the
other people, or by thought and feelings; the need for knowledge, the need to process
and internalize the result of exploration, manipulation, activity and stimulation, to

resolve contradictions, to question for solutions to problems, and for self-consistent
systems of knowledge; finally, the need for ego enhancement for the self to be known
and to be accepted and approved of by others. Motivation needs a lot of time. It has
been seen that “ Motivation make all students desire to learn” Briefly speaking, it isn’t
easy to find out the perfect definition for motivation.

Basing on Gardner’s definition, this study was conducted to identify the students’
motivation to learn English in a rural high school in Thanh Hoa. Gardner (1982), in his
socio-educational model, notes that motivation is perceived to be composed of three
elements. These are effort, desire and affect. This definition is an adequate rationale for
conducting this study, which is aimed at gaining information about students’
motivation.

2.2. Types of motivation

Motivation has been classified into integrative motivation vs. instrumental motivation;
intrinsic motivation vs. extrinsic motivation in the literature. These types of motivation
are reviewed below.

7


1. Integrative motivation, defined as the desire to be a part of recognized or important
members of the community or that society that speak the second language. It is based
on interest in learning the second language because of their need to learn about,
associate or socialize with the people who use it or because of purpose or intention to
participate or integrate in the second language using the same language in that
community; but sometimes it involves emotion or affective factors a great deal.
(Saville-Troike, 2006, p. 86). This type of motivation is defined as desire to identify
with and integrate with the target language culture (Ur, 1996, p. 276).

2. Instrumental motivation involves the concepts of purely practical value in learning
the second language in order to increase learners’ careers or business opportunities,
giving them more prestige and power, accessing scientific and technical information, or
just passing a course of their study in school (Saville-Troike, 2006, p. 86).
Another classification of motivation distinguishes extrinsic motivation and intrinsic
motivation.

1.Extrinsic motivation refers to a desire to get a reward and avoid punishment. It
emphasizes external need to persuade the learner to take part in learning activity
(Arnold, 2000, p. 14), such as homework, grade, or doing something to please teachers.
Both integrative and instrumental motivations are also grouped under the branch of the
extrinsic motivation (Harmer, 1991, p. 4).

As extrinsic motivation is based on external outcomes such as rewards and punishment.
This motivation could bring a negative impact to the students, because with extrinsic
motivation, students do not learn with their strong intention or will but they study it
because they are pushed by the interest in the rewards or the punishment. When a
student is learning because he is promised rewards or because he wants the rewards, he

8


will be highly motivated to come to classes and learn and achieve the goal that is set
for him. But when these rewards are taken away, or sometimes even if they do not see
any punishment, the student will not be interested in coming to class and learn the
language any longer.

2. Intrinsic motivation refers to learning itself having its own reward (Arnold, 2000, p.
14). It means the learners are willingly and voluntarily (not compulsorily) try to learn

what they think it is worth or important for them. When students have intrinsic
motivation, they have the internal desire to learn and they do not have the need for
external outcomes. There are no negative impacts in having intrinsic motivation. In
addition, intrinsic motivation pushes the student to learn without rewards, because the
need is innate or come from inside or depends on their own will. Lightbown and Spada
(1999, p. 56-57) mentioned that teachers do not have many effects on students’
intrinsic motivation since the students are from different backgrounds and the only way
to motivate students is by making the classroom a supportive environment.

With regard to types of motivation, Gardner and Lambert (1972, cited in Cook, 1996)
identified two types of motivation including integrative, instrumental motivation .
Instrumental motivation refers to motivation which acquires language as means for
attaining instrumental goals: passing in the examination, getting place in the university,
furthering a career ( Garner, 1985).

Besides, an additional division is to classify motivation into extrinsic and intrinsic
motivation, Ur (1996) adds that the intrinsic learners are linked to the image of the
ones who learn English for their own sake, whereas the extrinsic learners have a
motivation that is deprived from external factors. As English is taught as a curriculum

9


subject in the researched school, this study uses the instrument-integrativeness
categorization of motivation.

In order to summarize briefly the ideas presented so far, we could define it in terms of
two factors: learners’ communicative needs and their social and educational attitudes.
An extension of the first part of the definition would take into consideration the types
of motivation as identified by researchers at different moments in time (Gardner, 1985;

Lightbown & Spada, 1993; Wright, 1987; Spolsky, 1989). They all have come to draw
a distinction between two types of motivation: when the only reason for learning a
foreign language is to gain something outside the activity itself, such as passing an
exam, obtaining financial rewards, getting a job or pleasing another person(s), the
motivation is likely to be extrinsic/instrumental. As the terms themselves indicate, it is
caused by a combination of external factors and used as a means or instrument to
obtain something. When its purpose is to enable one to communicate with the members
of a specific language community, then motivation is considered to be intrinsic or
integrative. In order to offer a clear image of the intrinsic-extrinsic dichotomy, Spolsky
(1989, p.124) borrows Harter’s model (1982) and represents it in the following way:
Intrinsic

Preference

for

challenge,

Curiosity/interest,

Independent

mastery,

Independent judgment, Internal criteria for success. Versus Extrinsic Preference for
easy work, Pleasing a teacher/getting grades, Dependence on teacher in figuring out
problems, Reliance on teacher’s judgment about what to do, External criteria for
success. Following this model, it comes out clearly that the greater the value the
individuals attach to the accomplishment of an activity, the more highly motivated they
will be to engage in it and later to put sustained effort until they achieve their goal.

This distinction also tells us that both internal and external factors have an important
role to play in motivating learners.

10


(Harmer, 1991, p. 3) uses the word ‘goal’ to categorize the motivation in second
language learning into two types :

1. Short-term goal means when students wish to succeed in doing something in the
near future, for example, students who want to pass their examination or to get good
grade or high scores.

2. Long-term goal refers to a wish of students or learners who want to get a better job
in the future or to be able to communicate with people who use the language that they
study or the target language.
This classification is similar to the dichotomies that have presented above.

2.3. The role of motivation in language learning

So far, many researchers proved and clarified the importance of motivation in teaching
and learning process especially language teaching and learning process. Most of them
come to the conclusion that motivation is an indispensable factor in successful learning
English. Concerning this role of motivation, Brown (2000) proved that “ It is easy to
measure that success in the task is due simply to the fact that someone is “ motivated”.
It is easy in second language to claim that a learner will be success with the proper
motivation” Sharing with common point of view, some researchers such as Brophy
(1998) have put forward the ideas that students learn best when being motivated. When
students are motivated, they will set proper goal, invest effort, persist in goal by
studying hard, attending activities enthusiastically and achieve the goal. Furthermore,

Cook (1996) also emphasized that some learners do better than others because they are
better motivation. It is clear that students who don’t have proper learning motivation
will find it difficult to attend the class, take part in activities in English classes. Truer (

11


2002) also added that apart from English knowledge, intelligence, skill, students need
to identify proper and positive motivation. Students are often motivated for ample
reasons, but in many cases, the motivation leads to effective English learning. To
conclude, it is proved that motivation take a paramount important part in determining
the success or failure in English learning. Moreover, learner’s motivation makes an
utmost significant contribution towards facilitating the English teaching and learning.
Therefore, teachers need to concern about students’ motivation in English teaching
process. This means that apart from teaching job, teachers need to spend time
understanding more about students’ motivation as well as helping them identify the
proper learning motivation by coming up with interesting, original activities in English
classes, creating active, lively class atmosphere.

2.4. Factors affecting students’ motivation

2.4.1. Personality variables

In general, many people see an association between personality attributes and the
successful acquisition of a second language. While successful students may display
different types of characteristics (they may be extrovert, self-confident, active, passive,
independent as well as introvert or shy), unsuccessful students are more frequently
described as demonstrating a lack of self-confidence and being shy, afraid to express
their opinions and nervous. Whatever their form of behavior, students who try to adopt
a more flexible attitude towards the learning of a foreign language seem to have greater

chances of success than those whose affective filter is constantly up. Referring to the
problem of motivation, W. Rivers (1964) has observed that personal motifs such as fear
or anxiety may combine with learned social motifs such as a desire for status in a group
and for social approval, creating a series of reactions that may inhibit or work towards

12


progress in a foreign language. Up to a point, an anxious learner may try hard to catch
up with the group and acquire proficiency in a language. A friendly/supportive
environment may be decisive in such a situation. But the judgment of classmates can
also be harmful, destroying the self-belief in one’s ability to succeed. Combined with a
generalized fear of negative evaluation, it may inhibit or distract the learner from the
task of attending and remembering new items. Williams and Burden (1997, p.100) also
speak of a state called “learned helplessness” referring to people who feel that they had
no control over their actions and see intelligence as something unchangeable and
failure as essentially due to a lack of ability. In conclusion, learners’ inhibition may be
the result of both internal and external factors, and being related to the ability or
inability to find solutions to problems in the past.

Another important component influencing motivation to learn is the individual
learners’ feelings of competence and self-efficacy. Displaying no signs of inhibition,
they are usually eager to take risks, are not afraid of making language mistakes and
ready to adopt some of the identity characteristics of another cultural group. Their
affective filter is low and they can grasp much of the comprehensible input they are
faced with. Such people often referred to as “mastery oriented” tend to understand
failure in terms of lack of effort and seek to improve their subsequent performance.
Obviously, there might be other categories of learners between these two extremes
such as those who hide their shyness behind a face of openness and willingness to take
risks or people who avoid situations in which failure would signify low ability, trying

to look smarter by all means. But in those situations we can speak of the appearance of
motivation, rather than the reality of it. Given the diversity of personality types, some
researchers have tried to find connections between them and receptivity to different
aspects of language learning. In a book dedicated to the way in which languages are
learned, Lightbown & Spada (1993, p.36) do not exclude the possibility of motivation

13


to be more related to particular aspects of language proficiency than others. They base
their suppositions on several studies among which a language proficiency test in which
highly motivated students were found to be more successful in the part of the test
which measured oral communication skills but not more successful than others in the
part assessing grammatical knowledge. Though, motivated students may have a better
self image and more confidence than non-motivated ones, and such characteristics
might make them feel more at ease when interacting with others, the fact that the two
things occurred at the same time do not necessarily mean that one caused the other.
Even if cases when students preferred oral practice to written assignments or work on
grammatical structure do exist, they cannot make us jump at the conclusion that
motivated students will draw a line between different aspects of a language, accepting
some and rejecting others.

2. 4.2. Attitudes of learners

In general, most people seem to agree that attitudes and motivation are closely related
to success in language learning. This explains perhaps why some people have a much
easier time of learning languages than others; in the same classroom setting, some
students progress rapidly, while others just struggle along and never achieve command
of a second language. Krashen has drawn attention to the fact that variables in second
language acquisition derive both from the amount of comprehensible input the acquirer

receives and understands and from the strength of the affective filter. When the only
reason for learning a second language is external pressure, internal motivation may be
minimal and attitudes towards learning are likely to be negated. On the other hand, if
students have favorable attitudes towards the foreign language and its speakers,
towards the teacher and the course, they will probably be more attentive in the class,
would take assessments more seriously and, willing to achieve more, would look for

14


situations when they can obtain further practice in the foreign language. Some critics
(Gardner, 1985) make a distinction between different types of attitudes according to
factors in the environment or subject characteristics such as age or sex. Thus we can
speak of attitudes revolving around the educational aspects of second language
acquisition (educational attitudes) and of social attitudes, focusing on cultural
implications of second language acquisition. Sex differences are also thought to
influence attitudes and motivation: experience indicates that girls tend to demonstrate
significantly more positive attitudes towards learning languages than boys, a good
example in this respect being the overwhelming majority in the faculties of philology
and foreign languages. Though many researchers (Spolsky, 1989; Williams and
Burden, 1997) do not believe in an absolute biological basis for learning, there are
cases when differences of age may have an important influence upon the process of
foreign language learning. The notion that young children pick up foreign languages
more easily than older learners is clearly challenged by the evidence of areas in which
the latter do better. However, the adults’ emphatic capacity and openness to get
involved in “real communication”, their ego permeability may be lower especially
because of external causes.

2.4.3. Learning styles
Closely related to the problem of students’ attitudes towards the language course is the

problem of their different learning styles. Researchers and foreign language teachers
have gradually become conscious that individual students have preferred modalities of
learning. Consequently, when learners are given some freedom to choose one way of
learning or another, they might do better than those who find themselves forced to
learn in environments where a learning style, which does not suit them, is imposed as
the only way to learn. One of the views put forward by the initiators of humanistic

15


approaches to learning was that teachers should be allowed to adapt their programmes
with due attention to the objectives of their students and the needs of the area where
they are teaching. Though, this might not always be easy, a concern for the students’
learning styles might be of great help in motivating them to learn. The existence of
power relationships between languages is one of the reasons why people have
favorable or unfavorable attitudes towards learning a particular language. Subjects,
who select instrumental reasons over integrative ones, often take into consideration the
economic and practical advantages of learning a foreign language. A good example in
this respect is the present situation in Romanian schools where learners and the parents,
faced with the opportunity of choosing between English and French, generally choose
the former as it has become a kind of lingua franca, placing those who are able to use it
in a more favorable position then those who are proficient in French. In the same way,
members of a minority group may have different attitudes and motivation when
learning the language of a majority group than those of a majority group members
learning a minority language. Here, the case of immigrants is perhaps the most
relevant.

2.4.4. Teacher as a motivating factor

The teachers as the most powerful variable of motivation and demotivation, can

become a major part in demotivating the learners.
The teacher plays an important role in ensuring that students are motivated and
continue to be committed in their learning throughout the tenure of their studies.
Almost everything about the teacher, including his or her personal characteristics, can
have an influence on student motivation. Many studies on good language teachers have
identified general teacher characteristics deemed to be desirable and which tend to
generate positive appraisals of second language learning in the classroom. The

16


following characteristics are often cited as being associated with good teachers (Borg,
2006; Brophy, 1998; Dörnyei , 2001; Miller, 2012, Renandya, 2013, 2014b).

a. Good teachers are enthusiastic. Enthusiastic teachers love their subject matter, and
teach it with great passion. Their enthusiasm is infectious and acts as an open invitation
for the students to enjoy learning the subject matter as much as the teachers enjoy
teaching it.

b. Good teachers are warm and friendly. Students appreciate having teachers who are
friendly and approachable, those who they can talk to not only about school work, but
also about other things related to their personal and social lives.

c. Good teachers are caring. Students remember their teachers who are caring and show
sincere concern of their learning and also their general well-being. Students also feel
safe, knowing that the teachers are there to help them when they encounter learning
problems.

d. Good teachers are encouraging and patient. Students enjoy having teachers who are
encouraging and does not show any sign of unhappiness when students make the same

mistakes frequently, and who are always available to provide extra help even after
normal school hours.

e. Good teachers are humorous. Humorous teachers can make a dry subject interesting.
They use humor skillfully to make their lessons more appealing and make the key
points of the lessons more memorable by using anecdotes and hilarious stories etc.

17


f. Good teachers are fair. Students have a deep respect for teachers who treat every
student fairly and who do not practice favoritism. In class, these teachers give equal
attention to every single student without regard to their ability level, gender, race,
ethnicity or social backgrounds.

There are also second language-specific characteristics that students value and expect
good teachers to possess. In outer and expanding circle countries where English is
normally taught by bilingual teachers of English, good teachers are those who can
serve as models or good users of English, who can serve as models of successful
learners of English, who are knowledgeable about English, who can code-switch when
necessary, who understand the students’ language learning goals and needs, who are
sympathetic towards students’ second language learning problems and who use
teaching methods that are socially and culturally appropriate (Brown, 2012; McKay,
2002).

Effective teachers have deep understanding of motivational factors that can enhance
students’ learning experiences in the classroom. They plan and deliver their lessons
based on sound motivational principles and deliberately infuse these principles in the
activities and tasks in the classroom. Listed below are principles derived from
mainstream motivational theories.

a. Students are likely to be more motivated when they have a high expectancy of
success in completing the task and when they value the outcome. This principle is
informed by the expectancy value theory (Brophy, 1998).
b. Students’ motivation increases if they feel that they have the ability to do a certain
task and are confident of successfully completing the task. In order words, the level of

18


their self-efficacy determines the amount of effort they will put in and the extent to
which they persist in their effort. This principle is based on the self-efficacy theory
(Bandura, 1997).

c. Students who are intrinsically motivated, who perform tasks because they want to,
tend to work harder and achieve more success compared to those who are extrinsically
motivated, and who do things because they have to. This is based on Ryan and Deci’s
(2000) self-determination theory.

d. Students become more motivated when they feel good about themselves as a result
of their being able to complete a task. Because of this they tend to do things that
increase their personal value and worth and avoid face-threatening activities as these
can undermine their self-worth (Covington, 1998). This self-worth theory of
motivation is particularly relevant for adult learners of English who often have to
participate in potentially face-threatening activities.

2.4.5. Teacher teaching methodology as a motivating factor

Teaching Method which refers to the way that students are taught must affect their
motivation. Whenever the learners feel bored at the teacher’s method, their motivation

would likely be lost or gradually decreased. As he said, “If the students loses
confidence in the method, they will become demotivated” (Harmer, 1991, p. 5).
Motivating teachers are knowledgeable about different kinds of teaching methods. But
more importantly, they have deep understanding about how these methods work with
different groups of learners in different learning contexts. They are not dogmatic about
certain kinds of methods and do not subscribe to a single method. They believe that
there is no single best method that will work with every group of students.

19


Instructional skills

Teaching is more than just making decisions about which specific teaching methods to
adopt. It is a complex process that involves making decisions about what we want to
teach, how we want to teach it, and how we know that we have been successful in
teaching it. What distinguishes effective from ineffective teachers often lies in their
skills in teaching their daily lessons. Effective teachers are very skilful in formulating
the objective of the lesson. They think through the objective carefully, making sure that
the objective relates to the overall plan of the language programme and is formulated in
ways that are achievable and measurable. They are effective in choosing and
organizing learning activities. Effective teachers carefully select and structure learning
activities that support the attainment of the lesson objectives in ways that engage
students’ interest and attention and stimulate their motivation. They are also good at
evaluating how well the lesson went. Good teachers use a variety of instruments, both
formal and informal, to find out how much or how little students have learned from the
lesson.

Keeping student motivation level high
It’s a well-known fact that student motivation goes up and down. In fact, in many

language classes, motivation tends to flow initially and then ebbs quite considerably as
time passes by. One of the reasons for this is that acquiring a foreign or second
language takes time, and it’s often hard to keep student’s enthusiasm and commitment
high throughout this lengthy process. What then are some of the strategies that teachers
can use to keep students sufficiently motivated and engaged in the language learning
process? I discuss below several strategies that can positively influence student
motivation (Renandya, 2014b).

20