Applied Linguistics for Language Teachers 30.11.

2015
Lecture 8

Motivation in SLA

Applied Linguistics for Language Teachers, WS15-16

Dr Achilleas Kostoulas
(w/ thanks to Dr Nancy Campbell for materials)

Lecture outline
1. What is motivation?
2. Social-psychological approaches
3. Cognitive-situated approaches
4. Process-oriented approaches
5. How might we motivate learners

Different approaches to motivating

Which of the following tasks might motivate a child learning to play the
cello?
1. Offering her a reward every time she plays well
2. Not allowing her to play before she finishes her daily practice
3. Constant praise and encouragement (regardless of how well she plays)
4. Scolding her when she makes a mistake
5. Allowing her freedom to choose when to practice and for how long
6. Setting clear goals for her
7. Regularly discussing progress and future goals
8. Making a fixed practice schedule for her
9. Asking her to make a practice schedule
10. Encouraging her to believe that she’s more gifted than other children

Based on Williams et al. 2015: 100

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Lecture 8

I. DEFINING MOTIVATION

What is motivation?
• “the choices people make as to what
experiences or goals they will approach or
avoid and the degree of effort they will exert
in this respect” (Keller 1983: 389)
• “Generally considered one of the primary
causes of success and failure in second
language learning” (Richards & Schmidt 2002:
343)

Types of motivation:
Self-determination theory
Extrinsic orientation Intrinsic orientation
• “driven by external factors, • Learning a language
such as parental pressure, because you are interested
societal expectations, in the culture and people
academic requirements or who speak that language
other sources of rewards • Completing a language
and punishments” (Richards activity because you find it
& Schmidt 2002: 343) exciting

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But remember!
• While self-determination theory is often
understood as a dichotomy, it’s more accurate
to think of it as a continuum.
• What might be extrinsic motivation for one
learner might be intrinsic for others.
• The nature of motivation can change over
time.

Overview of motivation theory

Social – Cognitive –
Process-oriented
psychological situated
approaches
approaches approaches
(2000 - )
(1959-1990) (1990s)

II. SOCIAL-PSYCHOLOGICAL
APPROACHES

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The socio-educational model

“The socio-educational model of second
language acquisition was developed […] in an
attempt to provide a fundamental basis for the
role played by different classes of variables […] It
is intended to provide a platform where the role
of these variables can be understood in the
context of learning a second language in a22
Gardner 2010:
classroom context.”

Aspects of motivation
• Motivational intensity
• Desire to learn the language (orientation)
• Attitudes towards language learning

Motivation orientations
Instrumental orientation Integrative Orientation
• Relating to “practical
concerns such as getting a • “willingness to be like
job or passing an valued members of
examination” (Richards & the language
Schmidt 2002: 343) community” (Richards
& Schmidt 2002: 343)
• More direct impact on
achievement. More
effective (?)

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Lecture 8

Things to remember!
• Orientations refer to reasons why someone might
be motivated; not the motivation itself.
• Instrumental and integrative motivation are not
mutually exclusive.
• Is the distinction between instrumental and
integrative orientations still relevant in a
globalised world?
• A social-psychological approach helps us to
understand broad traits across large groups; less
helpful in dealing with individual in context.

Importance of Gardner’s work

• Focus on importance of social milieu on
language learning
• L2 learning seen as different from learning
other subjects (adoption of new social and
cultural behaviours, change in self-image...)
• Established research techniques for
motivation (empirical studies model)

Why is motivation reserach important?

• It focuses on empirical studies and therefore
can be seen as reflecting classroom reality as
experienced by learners and teachers.
• It enhances our awareness of the centrality of
learner motivation to effective teaching.
• It provides a complex picture of motivation.
• It gives teachers guidelines on how to
promote motivation among their learners.

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III. COGNITIVE – SITUATED

APPROACHES

Williams & Burden (1997)

Basic tenets Implications
• Psychological and • Motivation more
contextual factors come susceptible to teacher
together to create control
motivation
• Motivation is created by the
learner’s understanding of
the context.
• Motivation fluctuates over
time, even within a single • Important to both generate
lesson. and sustain motivation

The role of context (1)

We no longer consider learners to be motivated
or non-motivated; rather, we think of them as
being motivated:
• at a particular time
• in a particular place
• to do a particular task

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The role of context (2)

Context might refer to the learning
environment, but also encompasses factors less
directly connected to learning, e.g.:
• Time of day, weather
• Teacher behaviour
• Classmates’ behaviour
• Long-term and short-term goals
• Competing social identities

Things to remember
• The influence of context is unpredictable
• Human behaviour is not always rational;
importance of emotions

IV. PROCESS-ORIENTED
APPROACHES

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The L2 Motivational Self-System

Ideal Self

SELF
Learning Ought-to
experience self

The L2 Motivational Self-System

• Ideal self: the person we would like to
become
• Ought-to self: attributes we should have to
meet expectations / avoid negative outcomes
• Learning experience: motives relating to the
immediate environment

V. HOW MIGHT WE MOTIVATE

LEARNERS?

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Dörnyei and Csizér’s study (1998)

AIM:
• to “generate practical guidelines for
motivating learners”
METHOD
• “semi-formal survey”
PARTICIPANTS
• 200 Hungarian teachers of English

Ten commandments
1. Set a personal example with your own behaviour
2. Create a pleasant relaxed atmosphere
3. Present the tasks properly
4. Develop a good relationship with the learners.
5. Increase the learner’s linguistic self-confidence.
6. Make the language classes interesting.
7. Promote learner autonomy.
8. Personalise the learning process.
9. Increase the learners’ goal-orientedness.
10.Familiarise learners with the target language culture
(or cultures).
Dörnyei & Csizér 1998: 215

Motivational strategies in
the language classroom
Zoltán Dörnyei (ed.) 2001. Cambridge,
CUP.

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Final words
• You cannot, and don’t have to, implement all
the motivational strategies all the time.
• Different learners will respond to the same
strategies in different ways.
• There is a minimum level of support needed
for successful learning. Your job is to attain
that, i.e., to be good enough motivators.
• If, despite your efforts, some students are not
motivated, that is not your fault.

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