Exploring Differences in Motivation between Students Who Excelled and Underperformed in Learning English

LanguageKhoo Hooi Shyan

The University of Nottingham Graduate School

The study attempts to answer the following research questions: 1. What are the motivation levels of underperforming students learning

English language?2. What are the motivation levels of students who excel in learning English

language?3. How can the underperformers’ motivation levels be improved?

“ Hard to define multi-faceted concept ”

(Dörnyei, 2001)

“ More researches needed ”

(Ushioda, 2008)

“ Sharing from teachers would be greatly beneficial ”

(Ushioda, 2008)

Theoretical Framework• Based on the tripartite motivation construct of developed by Dörnyei

et al. (2006)• Had been tested in the Asian context of China, Japan and Iran by

researchers Taguchi, Magid, & Papi in 2009Learner-internal factor Social psychological milieu Pragmatic

Need for achievement Sociocultural Instrumentality

Motivational intensity Family orientation Integrativeness

Attitudes toward learning English Friendship orientation

Perceived group cohesion Anxiety in class

English use anxiety

Attitudes towards learning English

Methodology• A mixed method approach is chosen questionnaire (quantitative) interview with English Language teachers (qualitative)

• This method enables the researcher to get a richer data from the integration of two different perspectives: teachers and students (Creswell, 2003)

Pilot study: Survey

forms with Chinese translation given to four students from Form 2 and Form 3

Respondents indicate their motivational levels (1 - ‘strongly disagree’ and 6 - ‘strongly agree’)

Students list down their English Language marks

from their final examination for filtering

Researcher will be present during the distribution of questionnaire

Students are allowed to take home with them the questionnaires for completion

A short dialogue is conducted with the subject teachers

Findings Figure 1 Motivation levels of excellent and underperformed students

Indicator: 1 – Low; 2 – Moderately Low; 3 – Slightly Low; 4 – Slightly High; 5 – Moderately High; 6 – High

DiscussionExcellent students Underperformed students

More concerned with the pragmatic benefits of learning the target language

Less attentive to the pragmatic objectives of learning

More assured of their competence Less confident in succeeding in their learning

More intrinsically motivated Less intrinsically motivated

Exert more effort into their school work Fewer attempts were exercised in the process of acquisition

Possess higher level of enthusiasm and conviction in their learning of English

Did not see the point of learning English

• Ratings were tied in orientations of family, sociocultural, need for achievement and perceived group cohesion• Likely explanations: Parents or family members saw little need of exerting pressure to someone who

were already internally motivatedUnderperformers could be ignorant towards the families’ believes of academic

achievement Excellent and underperformed students shared the same level of appreciation

towards its media products (e.g., movies, television programmes, reading materials, music)

They were as equally motivated to learn without feeling the need to succeed, they might not view L2 achievement affecting their perceived overall competence

As it was an independent school with a class size of thirty, students were generally satisfied

Implications for English Language Education

• Teachers should concentrate on developing skills in motivating learners (Dörnyei, 1998)

• Dörnyei et al. (2006) emphasized on the importance of integrative factors in promoting L2 learning:• Teachers should encourage students to have a perceptive mentality towards the L2 and its speakers• Teachers could familiarize students on cross-cultural awareness or share positive L2 related experience • Teachers could expose students to L2 cultural content and supplement lessons with authentic materials • Teachers could invite L2 speakers or organize school trips to L2 community and alike

• Imparting intrinsic values in students would improve motivation levels (Pintrich & De Groot, 1990): • Teacher could raise students’ awareness on self-regulating strategies such as having achievable learning goals,

planning, monitoring students’ understanding and encouraging persistence in students

• Most students’ motivation can be worked on and increased• Teachers do not have to resort to the conventional methods of reward and punishment

Conclusion• What are the motivation levels of underperforming students learning English language?

• They are of slightly high level• The students were showed to be less keen in acquiring target language for pragmatic gains, less concerned with its

culture, had a more negative attitude towards learning English and were more anxious in using the language• Their teacher commented likewise that the students needed constant push to learn

• What are the motivation levels of students who excel in learning English language?

• Students are of moderately high level • They were more welcoming towards the target language, more goal oriented, exhibited better attitude and

showed more internal motivation• Their teacher mentioned that they were keen in learning and were frequently pushing themselves to do better

• How can the underperformers’ motivation levels be improved?• Teacher could cultivate a positive, cross-cultural interests among students, consciously impart intrinsic

value in raising the motivation levels in underperforming students. Students would need to have interest and positive dispositions for increased motivation in learning a second language.

Limitations• There are several limitations to these findings:

• It can be recommended that a more elaborate research with all its constituents be carried out in future

All the responses were measured with a self-

report instrument

Unmarked answers where students left the

columns blank

Sample participants being confined A segmented research

Thank you.

Exploring Differences in Motivation between Students Who Excelled and Underperformed in Learning English Language

Khoo Hooi ShyanThe University of Nottingham Graduate School