大学生英语学习动机的研究英语专业毕业论文

A Study on Motivation of College Students in English LearningAbstract: Based on the concept of the learning motivation and its development, this paper points outs the main factors influencing the English learning motivation in Chinese college students. Through the motivational questionnaire of 60 students in Yinxing International Hospitality Management College, this article draws from the related scholars and historical reviews, and analyzes the main factors affecting the English learning motivation of college students from the students internal, social and educational perspectives. The purpose of this paper is to put forward four strategies to stimulate the English learning motivation. These four strategies can help students enhance the ability to learn English that: 1) to communicate with the English teachers actively, in order to establish a good relationship between teachers and students; 2) to evaluate and attribute reasonably the students English learning; 3) to enhance their interest in English learning through a variety of ways; 4) to develop students sense of social responsibility and self-worth.Key words：College students; English learning motivation; major factors; strategies大学生英语学习动机的研究摘要: 本文从学习动机的概念及其发展出发，着重研究了影响我国大学生英语的学习动机的主要因素。论文通过对本校60名大学生英语学习动机的相关问卷调查，并借鉴相关学者研究的观点，从学生自身内部，社会和学校教育三个角度分析出了影响当今大学生英语学习动机的主要因素， 旨在为大学生提出一些激发英语学习动机的策略。本文为激发大学生英语学习动机, 帮助大学生提升英语学习的能力提出了四个策略：1）要主动与英语老师沟通交流，以便建立一个良好的师生关系；2）要对自己的英语学习进行合理的评价及其归因；3）通过多种方式来提升自己对英语的学习兴趣；4）培养自身的社会责任感和自我价值观。 关键词：大学生；英语动机；主要因素；策略Contents1. Introduction12. Motivation on English learning22.1 Definitions of learning motivation22.2 The classification of learning motivation32.2.1 Intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation32.2.2 Integrative motivation and instrumental motivation33. The research on the English learning motivation43.1 Description of the research43.2 Data collection and analyses of the results54. The factors influencing English learning motivation64.1 Internal factors64.1.1 Students beliefs or interests about English learning64.1.2 Students goals about English learning74.1.3 Students attitudes on the scholastic records84.2 Social factors84.3 Educational factors95. Strategies about how to stimulate the English learning motivation105.1 Establishing a pleasant and supportive classroom atmosphere105.2 Evaluating and attributing the students own English learning 115.3 Enhacing students interest in English115.4 Developing the sense of students social value and self-worth116. Conclusion12References13Acknowledgments14Appendix1514A Study on Motivation of College Students in English Learning 1. Introduction Nowadays, English language has played an important role in the world, so in the university learning and mastering English also become a compulsory course in China. English is an important tool for exchanging information and expressing inner thoughts. The elevation of English learning bases on a long period which includes listening, speaking, reading and writing. In order to learn this language better, the proper motivation has been regarded as the most dynamic factors affecting the English learning. Just as Corder (1981) put it, “given motivation, anyone can learn a language”. Up to now, many researches have been conducted to describe and analyze the motivation of college students in English learning. The word “motivation” has appeared in the book in 1930s officially. Motivational level is reflected by the learners motivational behavior and its influenced by many motivational variables. In recent years, much work has been done to research into the motivational variables. Gardner (1972) and Lambert (1972), as pioneers in the field of SLA, have researched into motivation mainly from socialpsychological dimension and divided motivation into integrative motivation and instrumental motivation. In the 1990s, researchers of second languages had not only conducted research from this dimension, but also introduced some other kinds of motivations and motivational variables comprehensively from many other perspectives. Many Chinese linguists have attached great importance to motivation study in LEFL in recent years. The main research on Chinese students English learning motivation includes Liu Runqing and his colleagues study of “The Main Determinants of English Majors Language Learning Situation” (1991). Most research takes motivation as one of the determinants of language learning achievement and investigates the influence of motivation on English learning. But few studies have analyzed the factor effecting the motivation of college students in English learning from intrinsic and external perspective. So this paper aims at researching the learning motivation of college students in China. And it analyzes the motivational questionnaire of 60 college English learners, and further analyzes of the main factors affecting English learning motivation from intrinsic and external perspective of college students. The last the author offers some suggestion on how to stimulate the motivation in English learning.2. Motivation on English learningThis chapter introduces several different famous definitions of motivation and some recognized classifications of motivation. What will be discussed in this chapter is the theoretical basis of the study.2.1 Definitions of learning motivationThe word of motivation is derived from the Latin term “motivus” (a moving cause), which suggests the activating properties of the processes involved in psychological motivation. Although researchers acknowledge unanimously the importance of motivation in foreign language learning, so far there has been no general agreement on the definition of motivation. Here are some definitions provided by some specialists. Keller (Crookes & Schmidt, 1991, p.219) defines motivation as: “the choices people make as to what experiences or goals they will approach or avoid, and the degree of effort they will exert in that respect”. This definition is too simple and gives people an initial idea about what motivation is.Gardner (1997) defines motivation in his social-psychological model as referring to “the combination of effort plus desire to achieve the goal of learning the language plus favorable attitudes towards learning the language”.Heckhausen (Dornyei, 1998, p.43) sees motivation as a global concept for a variety of processes and effects whose common core is the realization that an organism selects a particular behavior because of expected consequences, and then implements it with some measure of energy, along a particular path.Williams and Burden (刘东楼, 2002, p.58) define motivation as “a state of cognitive and emotional arousal, which leads to a conscious decision to act, and which gives rise to a period of sustained intellectual in order to attain a previous set goals”.He Zhaoxiong (高一虹, 2003, p.43) thinks motivation as “a progress whereby a certain amount of instigation force arises, initiates action, and persists as long as no other force comes into play to weaken it and thereby terminate action, or until the planned outcome has been reached”.2.2 The classification of learning motivationIn the light of the views from different branches of psychology, motivation is generally classified into two types: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, proposed by cognitive psychologists, which focus on the reasons why people choose to act in certain ways; and integrative and instrumental motivation, initiated by Robert Gardner and Wallace Lambert (1985), which represents reasons for studying the language.2.2.1 Intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivationCognitive psychologists classify motivation into two types: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Intrinsic motivation deals with behavior performed for its own sake in order to experience pleasure and satisfaction, such as the joy of doing a particular activity or satisfying ones curiosity. While extrinsic motivation performs a behavior as a means to an end that is receiving some extrinsic reward or to avoid punishment. The reason might be related to the traits of situational motivation. The students dominated by that motivation are easily affected by the external environment, such as teachers, textbooks, or the classes they are studying in. Their most typical feature is the dependence on the actual situation they are involved in, which means if they are satisfied with the external environment, they would like to devote into the study of English; otherwise, they would not.2.2.2 Integrative motivation and instrumental motivationThis famous classification was firstly made by Gardner and Lambert (1959). Gardner and Lambert are pioneers in the field of SLA. Integrative motivation refers that the desire to achieve proficiency in the target language in order to know the target culture and be identified in the target language community. They get pleasure and satisfaction from the language itself. The attractive culture of the community is another factor that drives learners to learn. Integrative motivation is an essential requirement for successful language learning. However, learning English for college students in China is a complicate process. Most important exams of entrance have certain requirements for English, some college students learning English just meet the demand of tests. Nowadays, our composite society demands these talents who can master the multiple working ability. So study the English language is to make the good preparation for steeping into society and seeking for a satisfied job. Above these motivation can be called “instrument motivation”.3. The research on the English learning motivation In this chapter, the author will introduce the survey which includes purpose, procedure and results. It analyzes the motivational questionnaires of 60 college English learners, which makes preparation for the next chapter that analyzes the factors effecting the English learning motivation. 3.1 Description of the researchThe research of English learning motivation in college students is made by Gao Yihong who is the professor of foreign language department in Peking university, which is the latest and greatest achievements for Chinese scholars in recent years. The author draws the questionnaire from Gao Yihong professor (高一虹, 2003). In the course of analyzing the research, percentage was calculated from each item across all questionnaires. The author analysis the factors influencing English learning motivation based on the percentage. This questionnaire was made among 60 students in Yinxing International Hospitality Management College.It consists 30 items in the Gao Yihongs questionnaire. There are five answers on the each question, which used a 5-point scale, with the following answer: 1 (strongly disagree), 2 (disagree), 3 (no clear answer), 4 (agree), 5 (strongly agree). The 30 items are divided into six parts based on the Gao Yihongs research achievements: intrinsic interests, learning environment, going aboard, scholastic records, social responsibility, information media and personal development. The results can be calculated through the total proportion of SA (Strongly Agree) and A (Agree). According to the related data, the author analyzes some factors from the students internal and external perspective stimulating English learning motivation and puts up with some strategies about how to promote the English learning motivation. 3.2 Data collection and analyses of the results The author sorts out the relevant data, and calculates the respective proportions by students answers. The results are following:FactorsPercentage (%)Strongly Disagree (SD)Disagree (D)No Clear AnswerAgree (A)Strongly Agree(SA)Intrinsic interests (1-6)2.83.816.332.644.5Scholastic records (7-10)5.814.22938.212.8Learning environment(11-16)6.521.624.832.214.9Going aboard(17-19)2425.436.224.813.6Social responsibility(20-22)15.427.725.323.28.4Personal development(23-28)27.226.218.521.36.8Information media (29-30)272624185From the graph, the results can be seen that: in the “intrinsic interest” part, 44.5 percentages of students strongly agree and 32.6% students agree that internal interest is crucial for the English learning motivation. And for the scholastic records, 12.8 percentages of strongly agree and 38.2% students agree that they would be influenced by the scores in the some examinations. By contrast, 47.1% students say their English learning motivation are related to the learning environment. While only 38.4% students point out that they learn English in order to go aboard. For the “social responsibility”, 8.4 percentages of students strongly agree and 23.2% students agree that learning English contributes to the development of the society. At the meantime, 28.1% students choose the “personal development” as the factor influencing their learning English motivation. And only 23 percentages of students think they regard “learning English” as the information media just for keeping up with the changeable world. It reaches a conclusion that the main important factors affecting English learning motivation are “intrinsic interests” and “scholastic records”. Next important factors are “learning environment” and “going aboard”. At last, by contrast, students motivations are influenced the learning motivation a little by “social responsibility”, “personal development” and “information media”. 4. The factors influencing English learning motivation Motivation to learn is the key element in successful language learning. There are many factors from the students internal and external perspective stimulating English learning motivation which are considered important. 4.1 Internal factors From a cognitive perspective, the choice by oneself is the most important factors for students. College students have choices or ways in which they behave and, therefore, can control over their actions. If people attach a high value to outcome of all activity, they will be more likely to be motivated to perform it. The author discusses the internal factors that direct and shape Chinese college students inherent motivation.4.1.1 Students beliefs or interests about English learning From the data of graph, 77.1% students think they learn English because they are interested in English. So students internal interest is crucial for their English learning motivation. In English learning, students interests are related to their self-concept, self-belief and self-determination. It is a self-reflective capability, permitting the learners to reflect on and evaluate their own experience and thinking process. Self-concept is defined as “the totality of a complex and dynamic system of learned beliefs which each individual holds to be true about his or her personal existence and which gives consistency to his or her personality”. That is, self-concept is ones collective self-perceptions formed through experiences and interpretations of the environment, and heavily influenced by significant other persons. When college students have been learning English language, they often have their own concepts or understanding. In the meantime, students develop correct motivation to learn English actively. Self-determination or autonomy is one of central component of intrinsic motivation. In English learning, self-determination refers to the students beliefs about their capabilities to carry out the learning tasks. It is a self-reflective capability, permitting the learners to reflect on and evaluate their own experience and thinking process. Through the reflection, learners can engage in self-evaluation and alter their thinking and subsequent behavior. A learner may have all the necessary skills to perform a certain task, but unless he or she believes that he is capable of doing so, he or she would not like to demonstrate those skills in that context. Thus, learners beliefs will influence their choice of activities that they undertake and it also affects the amount of effort that they are prepared to exert and the level of persistence.4.1.2 Students goals about English learningThe goal refers that students want to be what or they should have certain ability. In other words, the goal is connected with the students personal development. In the last chapter, the author gets the results that 28.1% students choose the “personal development” as the factor influencing their learning English motivation. Goal-setting refers to the notion that all individual learners are able to set goals and has the plan and effective ways to achieve them. Studies have shown that goals regulate learners motivational behavior. If students have a proper goal, they will have the right motivation to learn English and get the final success. Without goal-setting, learners would feel aimless and lack a sense of direction and cant attain achievement. There are three mechanisms by which goals affect motivation (Dornynei, 2001, p.204): 1) They direct attention and effort towards goal-relevant activities at the expense of actions that are not relevant.2) They regulate effort expenditure in that people adjust their effort to the difficulty level required by the task. 3) They encourage persistence until the goal is accomplished.Individuals who have accepted specific and difficult goals will outperform individuals with nonspecific (“do ones best”) and easy goals. Individuals with specific and challenging goals persist longer at a task than individuals with easy and vague goals. Goals that are specific, moderately difficult, and likely to be reached in the near future tend to enhance motivation persistence. When someone has a clear goal, he is less likely to be distracted or to give up until he reaches the goal. Setting-goals can influence the amount of motivation, and students have to reach them. Setting-goals seem rather important in order to promote their motivation in the second or foreign language learning.4.1.3 Students attitudes on the scholastic recordsIt seems intuitively clear that English learners benefit from positive attitudes. When a learner takes a favorable attitude towards the native speakers, he is more likely to be motivated to some extent. There are 51% students learning English because of their scholar records. If the records are satisfied, students will have the confidence or the feeling of success. At the moment, students have the highly English learning motivation. The learner with more favorable attitudes will wish for more intensive contact with the English community. So favorable attitudes reinforce the extent to which a leaner perceives communicative need.To learn English means to adopt a new self-image and to think in another pattern. Ones attitude towards the English culture itself influences how one experience the English language learning process. If this attitude is negative, there may be strong internal barriers against learning and if learning has to take place because of external compulsion, it may proceed only to the minimum level required by these external demands. In some learning situations in which learners do not have sufficient experiences of community, they do not have attitudes for or against it. In such cases, learners attitudes related to learning probably results from the experience in language classroom, from the teacher and the materials or from his/her previous learning experiences, success or failure. There is no clear evidence that indicates that indicates that learners initial attitudes were an important contributor to their eventual proficiency. However, successful learners developed favorable attitudes as th