An Investigation of English Learning Motivation among Chinese Undergraduates and Postgraduates (original) (raw)
Related papers
2017
The study reported in this paper employed Dörnyei's L2 motivational self system to investigate the correlation between motivational variables and L2 English learning, both within and between undergraduates and postgraduates. 210 university students (including undergraduate and postgraduate students) from two mainland Chinese universities completed online questionnaires and 7 of them were interviewed based on the L2 motivational self system. The results showed that students at both undergraduate and (post)graduate levels of study had a generally favourable disposition toward English learning, although the higher the education level of the student, the higher the importance of the ideal L2 self domain (and the notion of instrumentality-promotion within this domain) for English learning. Significant correlations were also found for undergraduate students between English learning achievement and ideal L2 self, as well as English learning achievement and attitudes to L2 learning, sug...
2016
The primary objective of this study is to understand and analyse the English language motivation of a sample of Turkish undergraduate students through the lens of L2 Motivational Self System. In this study, Taguchi et al.’s (2009) Motivational Self System scale was used to collect data. The scale was composed of two parts. The first part was the background information about the knowledge of the participants. They were primarily necessitated to supply their bio-data, such as gender, major, age at which they began to study English. The second involved a questionnaire. The current research was carried out at the Preparatory School of Hasan Kalyoncu University in the spring semester of the 2015-2016 academic years. The quantitative data was collected from 125 learners for the questionnaire, originating in 81 males and 44 females. The data was exposed to descriptive analyses. Moreover, independent samples t-test was used to see the differences in the responses of the respondents with respect to their gender, and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to examine the differences in motivational factors in relation to the sub-groups of the sample based on the variables of L2 motivational self system. The major results include the following: First, the students formed an L2 component in their L2 self as responsible for their efforts to master an L2. With the answers to the statements, it is evident that the students consider themselves as successful L2 learners in the future. Second, the results of quantitative data ascertained a powerful existence of L2 motivational factors relevant to ought-to L2 selves of the participants. Third, students’ overall attitudes towards learning English are positive. Fourth, female learners were more positive towards learning English than male learners. Moreover, according to the t-test result, both Ideal L2 Self and Attitudes towards learning English have highly significant impact. Fifth, the findings revealed that learners who have learned foreign language(s) aside from English enhanced their ideal L2 self which had the strongest effect on learning English. The t-test represents that there was no statistically significant difference. Sixth, living abroad for more than six months experience influenced participants’ motivational selves. The result of independent samples t-test regarding the learners who had lived abroad and those who had not was significant and meaningful in terms of Ought-to L2 Self. Finally, even though the result of one-way ANOVA regarding age showed that learners’ age had no significantly important difference with their L2 Motivational Self, based on the averages of mean scores, it is evident that motivation decreased with age.
Development of the L2 Motivational Self System: English at a University in Japan
JALT Journal, 2014
This paper reports on a study investigating changes in L2 motivation for Japanese learners of English as they completed their first communicative English language course at university. I aim to describe the strength and structure of students’ motiva- tion and the degree to which these changed over one semester. A 36-item question- naire was used to measure components of the L2 Motivational Self System and In- ternational Posture. The questionnaire was administered twice to 202 second-year university students in Japan: during the first week of the semester and 11 weeks later. Structural equation models were created to describe the causal relationships between motivational variables for the two time periods. Paired t tests revealed that both motivated learning behavior and ought-to L2 self significantly increased over the semester. A comparison of the two models indicated that there was a change in the motivational structure from Week 1 to Week 12.
English ability and the L2 motivational self among Japanese university students
2011
(SLA) research. This area has been led for many years by Robert Gardner, and more recently Zoltán Dörnyei and his L2 Motivational Self System; a system that suggests learners are motivated best when they have an image of themselves using English in the future to aspire to. In this study of 638 Japanese university students, we used an online survey designed to understand the ideal L2 self to compare students who have intermediate-level English ability with those who have beginner-level English ability. The results indicated that the clarity of a student's images of using English in the future is related to his/her English ability. This in turn, reflects on the student's attitudes to English classes, English native speakers, and the effort he/she make in his/her studies. This has implications for teachers, especially in the early stages of English education where the roots of the ideal L2 self and future motivation for learning are laid.
North American Journal of Psychology, 2008
Guided by self-determination theory, the present study sought to (1) construct a scale of English learning motivation in a particular Chinese context, the Intrinsic /Extrinsic Motivation Scale of English Learning (I/EMSEL) and (2) explore the relationship between intrinsic motivation, extrinsic motivation and English achievement. The I/EMSEL scale was administered to two samples of first-year non-English-majors. Factor analysis of the results revealed a multidimensional construct composed of motivation for knowledge, motivation for challenge, internal fulfillment regulation and external utility regulation, together explaining 53.3% of the variance. Pearson correlations and multiple regressions were then performed between different kinds of motivation and English achievement. Results indicated that autonomous extrinsic motivation correlated positively with intrinsic motivation and achievement, while controlled extrinsic motivation correlated negatively with them. The results were discussed from the aspect of self-determination theory and the reference to their relevance in the EFL classroom.
To motivate students to learn English requires teachers to utilise more motivational strategies in order to improve students' achievements. Thus, the aims of this article are to discuss whether motivational strategies affect students' achievements in respect of the scores and focus on which motivational strategies influenced students' achievements. A questionnaire was administered to collect the data from 130 students in non-English major at Jilin University. In addition, several teachers of English at Jilin University were interviewed. The result indicates that the relationship between the student language achievement level at Jilin University and motivational strategies is direct. Statistical analyses suggest that protection of the learners' self-confidence is most important in language learning. The analysis shows that this present study tallied with the theory, on the whole, which the questionnaire is based on. In order to provide a set of motivational strategies that are consistent with Chinese culture, the questionnaire was designed based on Dornyei's framework (Appendix 1). After the discussion some suggestion will be given.
This research aimed at investigating the students' motivation in English learning as a second language. The method used was a survey by randomly asking the students in Pritchard English Academy (PEACE) to fill out a questionnaire which adapted from Attitude Motivation Test Battery (AMTB) designed by R.C. Gardner. The questionnaire was administered to a group of 30 students who come from intermediate until advanced level. The data were analyzed by using SPPS program. It was used to find out mean score and standard deviation. The main findings show that the students are relative "highly" motivated and found to be slightly more "instrumentally" motivated to learn English. This reveals that instrumental motivation is a significant factor among this group of students learning English. Based on this study's findings, some relevant and useful motivational learning implications are recommended for enhancement and improvement of the students' motivation.
The current study aimed to examine the factors affecting for English language learning motivation of undergraduates by utilizing Dornyei's (2009) L2 Motivational Self System. The study was conducted among 361 Sri Lankan undergraduates by using an adapted motivation questionnaire. Pearson correlation analysis was run to examine the relationships between the variables of ideal L2 self, ought to L2 self, motivated self, mastery goals, performance goals and social goals. The results of the study indicated the close link between social requirements of learning English and learner English learning self-concept. Further study validated the L2 motivational self system in Sri Lanka.