Luận văn thạc sĩ VNU ULIS second language learning motivation a case study of students with visual impairment at a university in hanoi

INTRODUCTION

Along with research in the field of English language learning and teaching history, second language (L2) learning motivation has always brought great passion and interest to the researcher The researcher, through her teaching experience, realized that learning motivation plays a vital role in students‘ process of language learning Consequently, the researcher has insistently sought ways to motivate her students as well as enhance their positive learning experience This attempt drove the researcher to do a study of L2 learning motivation

Moreover, the researcher believes that it is necessary to conduct a qualitative research which presents a close look at individual learners by taking learners‘ difference and identity into account It is undeniable that L2 learning motivation has constantly received noticeable attention of researchers and teachers However, the majority of researchon L2 learning motivation focuses only on the stable and generalized motives of learners (Zaragoza, 2011) For example, many studies applying quantitative approach investigate learners‘ contemporary motives in a specific time and ignore their past and future motivation Besides, by collecting a large range of participants, these studies try to single out the most noticeable and common motives but ignores learning differences and dynamic feature of motivation

Finally, it is the cases of students with visual impairment in the researcher‘s institution that urged her to do research on L2 language motivation of sightless learners In the context of Vietnam education, there are few language universities, such as University of Languages and International Studies, accepting students with visual impairment Realizing their learning difficulties, especially when these institutions have not provided enough support for these special learners, the researcher decided to study their learning motivation that was believed to keep them pursuing L2 learning and overcome learning barriers Therefore, the recent research brings in an insight into language learning motivation as well as learning barriers of sightless students who are attending University of Languages and International Studies as well as the researcher‘s institution The researcher conducted this paper aiming at investigating the L2 learning motivation through the lens of sightless students as considering their L2 self and identity

The research was conducted to seek the answers for the following question:

What factors affect second language learning motivation of visually impaired students?

3 Aims& objectives of the study

First of all, the study aims to explore what motivate students with visual impairment to learn L2 before and after they enter the University Secondly, it is to investigate what factors impact on their L2 learning motivation

The aim of the study is to investigate the language learning motivation of students with visual impairment in and outside classroom setting Therefore, the two visually impaired students at University of Language in International Studies were selected as the targeted population of the research The selection of core participants based on three criteria: visual impairment, previous academic background and willingness to join the research The research was conducted at Faculty of English Language Teacher Education of the university, which is the biggest provider of English teachers for the whole country Every student in this faculty is English major and future English teacher, so it is important for them to master English language Moreover, this faculty accepts students with visual impairment and recently there are some sightless students attending it Therefore, it might be the best context to carry out the research of language learning motivation of visually impaired students

The study employs case study to investigate what motivate visually impaired students to learn L2 The research goals are achieved by means of qualitative data

The study was carried out by some steps as follows:

First, the language learning autobiography was employed to find out their second language learning stories in the connection with learning motivation

Second, personal interviews with two students were conducted in order to:

 Study their rationales for learning

 Study their past and present learning experience to find out how L2 learning motivation was generated and changed

 Find out the difficulties in students‘ L2 language learning and their impacts on L2 motivation

Then, the data were collected, sorted and analyzed qualitatively to obtain realistic results

To end with, pedagogical implications for enhancing students‘ motivation in L2 language learning was proposed based on the results found from all data collection instruments

The study is considered to be significant for some reasons Firstly, the results will, for a certain extent, help the English teachers and parents who are educating and fostering visually impaired students raise awareness of the importance of motivation in L2 learning Secondly, the paper is expected to contribute information on sightless students‘ L2 learning motivation, as the second language education for students with disabilities has not received enough concern Hopefully, the study will bring about the insight into language learning motivation and barriers of sightless students to others who are learning or are going to learn the English language, and then, encourage them to step forward on their English language learning journey with essential preparation Finally, the study might be a source of material for students to study motivation in learning from the lens of sightless people

This research consists of five chapters:

This chapter aims at stating the research problems as well as the significance of the study, proposing questions to answer, and explaining the used methodology

This includes the explanation of key definitions of Motivation, L2 learning motivation and L2 motivational self-system Moreover, it presents the review on different previous works on Motivation and L2 Motivation to point out the research gaps

This chapterpresents research methodology;the setting of the study and participants;data collection instruments and procedures The portrait of participants is also clearly analysed in this chapter

This chapter presents the findings of the data analysis, which will be divided into four parts: portrait of two learners, rationales for learning, learning experience and learning difficulties After that, the data will be explained by using L2 motivational self system

In this chapter, the three conclusions of the paper will be presented.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Motivation

―Motivation is, without question, the most complex and challengingissue facing teachers today.‖ (Scheidecker & Freeman, 1999)

It is widely accepted that motivation is a fundamental constituent of the learning and teaching process Although the term ―motivation‖ is frequently used in both educational practice and study contexts, no consensus has been reached among researchers on the exact definition of motivation (Dornyei, 1998) Analogously, Steel and Konig (2006) also share the same viewpoint about the inconsistent definition of motivation and put forth the reason as for the complexity of ―intricate and realistic situation‖ that motivation and motivational subsets occur In spite of the inconsistency of the term definition, most researchers seem to agree that motivation involves ―the choice of a particular action, the persistence with it and the effort expended on it‖ (Dornyei, 2000, p 520) In a broader sense, it is understood as the reasons, desire and willingness for acting in a certain way, according to Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionaries Hence, a motivation study is the study of why people think and behave as they do (Graham & Weiner, 2006)

Motivation was initially studied seriously in the language learning realm as social psychologist recognized its strong impact of social and cultural elements on learners‘ academic achievement (Dửrnyei, 2003) In the educational field, the most influential motivation theory in second language acquisition is proposed by Gardner

(2001) with the revised definition of motivation as ―a central element along with language aptitude in determining success in learning another language in the classroom setting‖ (p 2) Similarly, Crookes and Schmidt (1991) defined motivation to learn a second language as the learner's orientation regarding the goal of learning a second language According to the present author‘s knowledge, L2 motivation is concerned with the reason why a learner studies L2, the persistence and willingess to pursue it and the desire to succeed in learning it Once more,

―Motivation, like the concept of gravity, is easier to describe (in terms of its outward, observable effects) than it is to define Of course, this has not stopped people from trying it.‖ (Covington, as cited in Dornyei, 2001, p.7) Due to the complexity of motivation, the history of motivation in second language teaching and learning has witnessed various debates when researchers study it.

Previous Research on Motivation and L2 Motivation

2.2.1 The History of Motivation Research

In education and psychology fields, different researchers suggest their own different way to approach students‘ motivation in acquisition second language

Hence, educators witness almost hundred motivational theories such as Socioeducational model (Gardner, 1985), Expectancy-Value Theory (Martin, 1970s), Attribution Theory (Bernard, 1970s), so on and so forth According to Graham and Weiner (2006), ―the development of theory in the field of motivation has had disparate impact at different points in history‖(p.63) Through the history of scientific theories of motivation, a wide range of studies and practices have emerged, developed and reformed In this chapter of the study, the researcher will provide an overview of the growth and changes in this field

There are two main approaches toward motivation: ―Mechanistic approach‖ and ―Cognitive approach‖ (Graham & Weiner, 2006) The mechanistic approach was raised at the beginning of its history The theories belonging to the mechanistic period (1930-1960) try to understand ―what moved a resting organism into a state of activity‖, with heavy reliance on concepts such as instinct, drive, need, energisation, and homeostasis (Weiner, 1990) Pintrich and Schunk (2002) found out in their survey of motivation in education that human behaviour was mainly perceived in many primary explanations as 'mechanistic', nonhuman action and following the principles of laws of nature (as cited in Lamb, 2007) The two most noticeable theories of this approach, Hull‘s Drive theory and Lewin‘s Field Theory, had their own formulas to measure human motivation According to Hull‘s Drive theory, when a response toward a stimulus was followed by a satisfying state of affairs, the strength of the bond between that stimulus and response would be increased, and then, formed a new habit Hence, he proposed a formula: Behaviour = Drive x habit

Lewin‘s Field Theory, on the other hand, stated that behaviour was determined by both person and environment (Behaviour = f(P,E) It was agreed by Hull & Lewin that motivated behaviour determined by needs of the person (tension/drive), a priority of the goal object, and a directional variable (Graham & Weiner, 2006)

This period clearly brought influence upon most of the theories in L2 motivation that formed later

However, the 1960s brought about important changes The mechanistic views of behaviourism went through the counter opinion of humanistic psychologists such as Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow Proposed by Maslow in

1970 (as cited by Dornyei, 2001), the famous ―Hierarchy of Needs‖ distinguished between five basic classes of needs, which were defined as:

• physiological needs (e.g hunger, thirst, sexual frustration);

• safety needs (need for security, order and protection from pain and fear);

• love needs (need for love, affection and social acceptance);

• esteem needs (need to gain competence, approval and recognition);

• self-actualisation needs (need to realise one's potential and capabilities, and gain understanding and insight)

According to the hierarchy, physiologically based needs have to be satisfied first, before we can strive for the deeper happiness and fulfillment that comes from satisfying our higher-level needs Hence, he stated that ―the central motivating force in people's lives (unlike in rats' or dogs') is the self-actualising tendency, that is the desire to achieve personal growth and to develop fully the capacities and talents we have inherited.‖ (Dornyei, 2001, p.8)

In the second half of the 20th century, the ―cognitive revolution‖ in psychology transformed our views of motivation; instead of being explained as machines with instinct behaviours, ―humans were seen as essentially rational creatures guided by their own thoughts and beliefs about the world and their place in it‖ (Lamb, 2007, p.19) As stated by Dornyei (2001), cognitive theories ―places the focus on how the individual's conscious attitudes, thoughts, beliefs, and interpretation of events influence their behaviour; that is, how mental processes are transformed into action ( ) In other words, whether people decide to do something is determined first by their beliefs about the values of the action, and then about their evaluation of whether they are up to the challenge and whether the support they are likely to get from the people and institutes around them is sufficient.‖ (p.8)

Within the overall cognitive view of motivation that characterises the field, there is a surprising number of alternative or competing sub-theories Created by Dornyei (2001), the table below might provide the readers with an overview of motivation theories belonging to the cognitive approach

Expectancy of success; the value attached to success on task

Motivation to perform various tasks is the product of two key factors the individual's expectancy of success in a given task and the value the individual attaches to success on that task

Expectancy of success, incentive values, need for achievement, fear of failure

Achievement motivation is determined by conflicting approach and avoidance tendencies

Self-efficacy refers to people's judgment of their capabilities to carry out certain specific tasks, and, accordingly, their sense of efficacy will determine their choice of the activities attempted, the amount of effort exerted and the persistence displayed

Attributions about past successes and failures

`causal attributions') of why pastsuccesses and failures have occurred have consequences on the person‘s motivation to initiate future action

People are highly motivated to behave in ways that enhance their sense of personal value and worth

Goal properties: specificity, difficulty and commitment

Human action is caused by purpose, and for action to take place, goals have to be set and pursued by choice

Ames (1992) Mastery goals and performance goals

Mastery goals (focusing on learning the content) are superior toperformance goals (focusing on demonstrating ability and getting good grades) in that they are associated with a preference for challenging work, an intrinsic interest in learning activities, and positive attitudes towards learning

Intrinsic motivation concerns behaviour performed for its own sake Extrinsic motivation involves performing a behavior as a means to an end, that is, to receive some extrinsic reward or to avoid punishment

A great deal of human motivation stems from the socioculturalcontext rather than from the individual

Attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control

Attitudes exert a directive influence on behaviour, because someone‘s attitude towards a target influences the overall pattern of the person‘s responses to the target

The reason for this diversity might lie on the variety of motives that can potentially influencehuman behaviour

As cited in Dornyei‘s research (2001), the spirit of the general psychology of motivation in this period was largely impacted by two sets of theories: ―expectancy- value theories‖ and ―attribution theories‖, which was initiated by Lewin's ―resultant valence theory‖ and Atkinson's ―theory of achievement motivation‖ and Rotter's

―social learning theory‖ respectively The common principle behind the theories is that "individuals maximize their hedonic pursuits by selecting those activities with the highest likelihood of reaching the most valued goal" (Weiner, 1992) In other word, people pursue activities they deem valuable and relevant to the personal goals that they desire to reach

In a nutshell, the history of motivation research has proved the surprising variety of theories Despite its limitation, each theory has its own influence in the development of the field, and each has contributed to our understanding of motivation in its own unique way

2.2.2 Traditional Approaches to L2 Learning Motivation

Besides the development of motivation research, L2 learning motivation research shows an evolution from the social psychological explanation of the connection between motivation and L2 achievement to the effort to establish a more comprehensive accounting for the complex and multifaceted concept of motivation in different contexts (Lee, 2001)

Visual Impairment

It is not difficult to define visual impairment According to Doctor Salvin (n.d.), the term describes ―any kind of vision loss, whether it's someone who cannot see at all or someone who has partial vision loss‖ Williams (n.d.) shared the same idea when explaining the term as losing part or all of ability to see He also added that this condition was permanent despite the intervention of eyeglasses, contact lenses, medication, or surgery On the other hand, they also agreed on the causes of visual impairment as

- Amblyopia, or the lack of use of an eye in childhood

- Eye injuries, such as accidentally being poked in the eye at work

- Inherited conditions, such as retinitis pigmentosa

- Infections such as German measles and chlamydia that can be transmitted from the mother to a fetus during pregnancy

In conclusion, the definition of visual impairment condition and its causes are highly agreed by experts

According to Tran (2008), Vietnam had a great number of the impaired people (about one million) This fact was caused by tough and prolonged wars and nature condition The majority of disable peopleare concentrated in rural and mountainous areas where their living conditions are still limited That makes it more difficult for children with disabilities to be able to expose to L2 and have the opportunity to study L2 For that reason, L2 language learning of sightless students should be received attention from the government, educators and parents.

Previous Research on L2 Motivation of Impaired Students

Even though motivation is acknowledged as being important in the education of all students (Sideridis & Scanlon, 2006), relatively little research has been conducted on the field for students with disabilities Among these studies, much of attention was drawn to the role of motivation in enhancement of impaired students‘ academic achievement.Margalit (2003) concluded that motivational cognitions, which ―mediate[d] the impact of stress from failure, might play a critical role in the healthy functioning of students with learning disabilities (LD) at school‖ Nelson and Manset – Williamson also contributed new information about the role of motivation toward students with LD In their experimental study, they pointed out that cognitive intervention that concluded motivational components might influence students‘ affective experience along with their achievement Sideridis, Morgan, Botsas, Padeliadu andFuchs (2006), authors of the article Predicting LD on the Basis of

Motivation, Metacognition, and Psychopathology: An ROC Analysis, stated that motivation was essential for teachers to understand reading comprehension difficulties of learners with learning disabilities and provided recommendations for practice

On the other hand, ―there is some research that focused on providing ways to foster L2 learning motivation of students with LD Weiser, in her Ways to Motivate and Engage Students with Learning Disabilities article, provided manyeffectivestrategiesandinstructionalroutines to help students with LD increase their motivation and engagement For instance, she discussed how to give feedback and presented RAFT – writing – to – learn strategy and Think – Tac – Toe activity.‖Besides, Jedynak (2010) provided suggestions for teachers to encourage L2 learning motivation of visually impaired students In her study, one of the most noticeable points is that materials and in-class activity should be well-prepared to ensure the suitability for sightless students These two studies emphasize the teachers‘ role but lack of concern about learners‘ autonomy and self-regulation On the contrary, Csizér (2015), in his An investigation of the self-related concepts and foreign language motivation of young Deaf and hard-of-hearing learners in Hungary study, paid attention to intrinsic motivation The study aimed to describe the foreign language learning motivation of 14-19 year old learners with a severe or profound hearing loss However, due to the large scale of the research (with 105 participants), it could not present a deep understanding of motivational issues related to self and identity

In terms of teaching L2 to sightless students, Coşkun (2013) believed in the essence of training teacher to teach visually impaired learners His study English Language Teaching for the Visually Impaired Learners: Training Non-native English Teachers presented key stages of an international project aiming to train non-native English teachers in Turkey to become aware of the concept of using T3 as a vehicle for teaching English A similar study was done to introduce tools and aids for visually impaired learners such as screen readers, touch screens with voice, Braille devices, MP3 players, large print books, magnified screens, real objects and so on (―Teaching English to Visually Impaired Learners‖, n.d.) In addition, the study also presented challenges of teaching English to the visually impaired, classroom tasks to avoid or adapt, useful communication skills to teach and tips for teaching sightless students.

Previous Research on the Education of Visually Impaired Students in Vietnam

Beside the scarcity of international research on L2 learning motivation of impaired students, it is, also, hard to find a study on this topic conducted in Vietnam However, there are some studies of the education of visually impaired children in Vietnam The research Đại Cương Về Giáo Dục Trẻ Khiếm Thịhas a detail and sufficient presentation of the sighted and education (Tran, 2008) It was divided into four main parts: the common issues of visually impaired children, skill development for the visually impaired, visual assistant system and Vietnamese education system for the sightless The first part seems to be the most noticeable one as it provided profound insights of the sightless‘ mentality, cognition and language as well as barriers related to these concepts However, the information was generalized sometimes For example, when introducing features of the sightless‘ mentality, the author concluded that they were shy, unconfident and passive in communication It is undeniable that being sightless does not lead to the consequence that they are reluctant to communicate In addition, early intervention for children with visual impairments has been received noticeable attention from educators in Vietnam In his research Technical Methods to Improve the Quality of

Early Intervention for Blind Children (Aged 0 through 6 Years) at Nguyen Dinh Chieu Special School – Da Nang City, Nguyen (2011) stated the essence of enhancing the quality of early intervention for sightless children and presented some technical methods to fulfill the given goal.

Research Gap

Due to the limited number of study on the topic, the recent research, which has a strong focus on the individual self, is hoped to make contribution tothe field of L2 learning motivation of students, particularly those with visual impairment in Vietnam Secondly, while other researchers studied specific group‘s L2 learning motivation, the researcher will try to analyze each L2 learner‘s individual motivation By relying on a qualitative approach, the recent research can avoid being macro perspective as the previous studies which applied the quantitative design Finally, as the researcher mentioned before, many previous works of L2 motivation mainly paid attention to the stable and generalized motives of learners‘ motivation to learn L2 but neglected the complexity and dynamic of motivation In this research, the researcher will delve into the lifelong experience with L2 of the learners through the lens of L2 motivational self-system framework and through autobiography instrument, and then, point out the movement in their L2 motivation.

METHODOLOGY

Research methodology

The methods were used in this study can be broadly understood as qualitative With only a few exceptions (Kimura, 2003; Ushioda, 2001; Williams &

Burden, 1999), most L2 motivation studies have used a large-scale quantitative data collection method Therefore, a study with the qualitative approach is beneficial to provide thick descriptions of L2 learners‘ motivation Moreover, the aim of the recent research is to bring in an insight into language learning motivation as well as learning barriers of the two sightless students Hence, the qualitative approach is suitable for the study todig into the lifelong experience with L2 of the learners In addition, the participants of the recent research are visually impaired students that are supposed to have unique, complex and dynamic L2 learning motivation, difficulties and experiences Their special features should never be generalized and grouped by quantitative instruments such as questionnaire or survey

In this study, the researcher narrows the focus to two participants In order to explore carefully their L2 learning motivation, a case study is applied to look closely at contexts, people, and change over time (Casanave, 2010).The study employs case study to investigate how visually impaired students perceive L2 learning motivation The research goals are achieved by means of qualitative data

Among kinds of designs, the researcher chose a case study for this study because it provides an in-depth and detailed analysis of a particular case or a subject

According to Birnbaum, Emigand Fisher (2005) the main advantage of case studies is that they allow the researcher to focus on the individual in a way that is rarely possible in group research Case studies successfully ―provide insights into the complexities of particular cases in their particular contexts‖ (Birnbaum, Emig&

Fisher, 2005, p 127).Therefore, a case study is a suitable design for the recent study as the aim of the study is to conduct an in-depth exploration of the participants‘ specific learning motivation It is noteworthy that the subjects of this study are sightless students who might have uniqueness in learning experience, learning difficulties and sources of motivated behaviours By applying case study, the researcher was able to shed light on their unique difficulties in learning English and learning experiences Moreover, this case study brought the researcher a good opportunity to provide thick description of the participants‘ L2 learning motivation

Finally, it was useful to compare and contrast the sources of motivated learning behaviors between the two sightless students Specifically, the present author uses language learning autobiography and semi-structuredinterview to investigate L2 motivation of sightless students

Ha language learning autobiography Semi-structured interview Hang

The setting of the study and participants

For the last two years, the researcher has been employed as an English language lecturer in two different universities in Hanoi She has taught hundreds students with various backgrounds, characteristics, learning behaviours and sources of motivation While applying different methods to motivated her students and improve their academic achievement, she recognized that there was no single method or technique that can be applied to all students Also, each language learner is a unique self and has different learning motivation Hence, the curiosity and passion for L2 learning motivation and learning differences have gradually emerged and urged the author to do research on these topics Accidently, her mentor and her best friend as well as her colleague informed her that there were sightless students studying at a language university in Hanoi It is noteworthy that there are a few impaired students who can actually pursue their L2 learning journey until university

The author believed that there might be a great motivation which drives them to persiston learning despite their disability That thought urged the author to conduct a motivation research on these high achieving learners Consequently, she decided to recruit them as participants of her motivation research

The research was conducted at Faculty of English Language Teacher Education of a University in Hanoi To select core participants, the researcher set up three criteria: visual impairment, previous academic background and willingness to join the research In terms of previous academic background, the author selected participants those had the different previous academic backgrounds because the author wanted to see how different learning experiences might effect to each individual learners‘ motivation As regards to willingness, as the data was collected through interview and language learning autobiography, participants need to be willing to share deeply about their L2 learning For the mainpurpose of this study, two visually impaired learnersattending this university were selected

Name Age Gender Level of English Student status

Ha 22 Female Advance Last year student Hang 22 Female Intermediate Second year student

In terms of their impairment condition, the two participants cannot see at all

Hang is congenitally blind Ha, on the other hand, lost all of her ability to see when she was seven due to the degeneration of her eyes As they are sightless, their learning, generally, is different from normal students They use Braille writing devices to write and Braille documents to read They also have a recorder to record lessons Since they were able to use laptop, they can type out lessons‘ content and make use of software that supports screen reading such as Jaws and NVDA

Thesoftware transmits texts displayed on the computer screen into auditory or tactile format In terms of learning English, the two participants think that the most effective way to self-study islistening to English stories, songs and movies then notingdown new words and repeating after these inputs They also practice speaking skill by talking with classmates and foreign friends The most noticeable difficulty when learning L2 is reading skill as they cannot see at all The support of screen readers is limited because not all of learning materials are soft copy available and format – supported.

Data collection instruments and procedures

In the present study, language learning autobiography and semi-structured interview were employed as data collection instruments

As the participants of the recent research are quite special, the researcher tried to find data collection instruments that are subtle but are able to get rich information also Clearly, language learning autobiographyis asuitable choice It is undeniable that writing is the best way to tell a story, and at the same time, convey thoughts, feelings and ideas Novel and diary are cases in point Through writing autobiography, the two participants had an opportunity to recollect second language experience, and then, shared their stories meticulously and honestly They might feel comfortable while writing about their L2 learning journey as they did it privately and they fully took control of what they want to share without the interference of the researcher.As Kim (2007) stated, language autobiography can provide an emic perspective (an insider‘s subjective view) which served as a life narrative By that way, the researcher can grasp their lifelong experience with language learning and understand how their previous experiences had influenced their current level of L2 learning motivation

As Kvale (1996) notes, qualitative interview ―attempts to understand the world from the subjects‘ point of view‖ (p 6), hence it helps researchers get details and in-depth subjective information (Carolyn &Palena, 2006) This advantage fits the recent research because its aim is to investigate the L2 motivation from the lens of sightless students In addition, interview is a flexible and effective method to collect qualitative data because it helps the researcher to dig deep into any complex and interesting information by keep asking questions around specific points

Furthermore, the environment outside the classroom while collecting information using interviews is comfortable and relaxing for interviewees, especially when they might be shy and reluctant to share about their disability and learning barriers

Finally, an interview enables the researcher to investigate students‘ L2 learning motivation from a longitudinal perspective (past and present learning experiences)

Regarding this merit, an interview is a suitable choice for the researcher to gather the data

In conclusion, language learning autobiography enabled the researcher to collect the participants‘ lifelong L2 learning experience and learning motivation

Interview, on the other hand, helped the researcher to dig deep into interesting and valuable information that she had collected from language learning autobiography

First, the participants were asked to write an autobiography of their L2 learning journey The researcher did not require them to follow any given format but provide them a list of guideline questions:

- How do you define yourself?

- Who would you like to become?

- What is your very first English learning experience? How do you feel about it?

- Why do you study English? Do you have any learning goal or motivation?

- Do you have any learning barriers?

- Have you overcome these barriers? How?

- Are there any differences in your learning experiences (before and after you entered the University)?

- What / Who affected your learning motivation? How?

By that way, they can freely express their story along with their perception, idea and feeling without being affected by the researcher They were instructed to write about their L2 learning history since their early childhood and express how their previous learning experiences had influenced their current level of L2 learning motivation They typed their language learning autobiography on their laptop and then, sent them to the researcher‘s email address The data then was collected and investigated before their interview All the autobiographies were written in English by the participants

First, the researcher built a general idea about the aim of the interview and designed a set of questions These questions were specified and refined, depending on the outcomes from the language learning autobiography All interviews were conducted in Vietnamese, the first language of the participants and the researcher in order to elicit more in-depth responses from the participants because they might feel more comfortable as using their superior Vietnamese proficiency Each participant was interviewed in about forty-five minutes After each interview ended, the researcher transcribed the audiotapes in Vietnamese and emailed the transcript to the participants to have their reviews.

Data analysis methods

As stated above, the data collection instruments were language learning autobiographies and semi-structured interviews The data set was then analysed

Thematic analysis (Merton, 1975) is followed According to Braun and Clarke

(2006), ―thematic analysis provides a flexible and useful research tool, which can potentially provide a rich and detailed, yet complex account of data‖ As highlighted before, the aim of the study is to conduct an in-depth exploration of the participants‘ specific learning motivation; hence, thematic analysis is suitable for this purpose Moreover, thematic analysis is ―a process of coding the data without trying to fit it into a pre-existing coding frame, or the researcher‘s analytic preconceptions‖ (Braun & Clarke, 2006, p.83).Hence, thematic analysis can guarantee the reliability and objectiveness of the result

First, the researcher read through the entire data set several times and then, searched across the data set to find repeated patterns of meaning At this very first stage, there were some ideas, identification of possible patterns were shaped and emerged such as learning environment, perception of L2 language learning and learning experience These meanings were then noted down and made ideas for coding Then, the researcher coded data by writing notes on the texts and tagging and naming selections of text within each data item Because the researcher did not want to miss any interesting ideas, she coded for themes relating to the topic (such as integrative / instrumental motivation, identity, learning difficulty, culture interest, extrinsic / intrinsic motivation, learning experience and rationales for learning) The researcher sorted the different codes into potential themes, and collated all the relevant coded data extracts within the identified themes At the end of this phase, the researcher had a collection of main themes (rationales for learning, learning experience and learning difficulties), and sub-themes, and all extracts of data that had been coded in relation to them These three themes were chosen because they were the most prevalent themes across the data set, and, together they captured an important element of the participants‘ L2 learning motivation After that, the author reviewed the themes by reading all the collated extracts for each theme to make sure they appeared to form a coherent pattern The recent author also checked their relevance to the framework L2 motivational self – system.

The Portrait of Participants

In the following part, the researcher is going to present the portrait of the two participants by analyzing the data taken from their learning autobiography and semi-structured interview

It is noteworthy that Ha, a last-year student, had an impressive academic performance She shared that she rarely had any bad mark, despite the fact that she was studying at one of the top Universities of languages in Vietnam:

Sometimes, I got bad points Actually, I considered them as bad points, but they are not too low Because normally my points are pretty well, but they are always the same Therefore, I was not being satisfied with myself

Ha expressed herself as a small gentle girl but having a strong will To her, her visual impairment is not a disadvantage but a difference, hence, she wants to receive the same learning condition with others and fair evaluation, not priority

Excerpt 2: Ha’s language learning autobiography

My visual disability seems to make me different from other peers in my university I do not consider it a shortcoming; it is just a difference I receive the same education and assessment as other students although this difference brings me some disadvantages in studying

Born and raised in Hanoi, she is lucky to be able to access to English early and keep pursuing her language learning road despite the limited opportunities for L2 learning of sightless people The first time she exposed to English was 18 years ago and from then on, English has been her thing

Excerpt 3: Ha’s language learning autobiography

Look back to 18 years ago, when I was a four-year-old girl, I started learning English by usually sitting next to my cousin and listen to what his sister taught him To be honest, at first, I had no particular purpose of learning English I joined my cousin‘s lessons because I had not got anybody to play with while he was busy studying In another word, I learnt English for fun By this way, English was subconsciously absorbed, and since those days, my love for English emerged Having begun with a limited number of vocabulary and structures, I, day by day, got used to making simple conversations in English My first communicative partner was no one else, but my cousin

Not only interested in learning English, but Ha also had a dream to become an English teacher She mentioned in her interview that she understood the limitation on her opportunity; hence, she had to try her best to overcome all challenges From her first talk to the researcher, she showed her identity as an independent girl, not a person with physical defect She had a strong determination to express herself:

Excerpt 4: Ha’s language learning autobiography

I believe that I am able to do whatever others can, but in another method Whenever daunting feeling caused by unexpected troubles invades my mind, I hear a voice inside my heart: ―Calm down! Be stronger! You are the only person who can escape yourself from this unpleasant situation‖ And I do what my heart says Afterward,

I have overcome all challenges I think it can be the response to those who were once afraid that I would drop the courses early due to their difficulty

Hang: A girl with dreams Compare to Ha‘s gentle and calm characteristics, Hang possesses lovely and outgoing traits in her personality Hang lived in Nam Dinh, where has fewer opportunities and information about English language learning for sightless people

For that reason, it took her two years to hear about a university which is open to students with visual impairment Now, she is a second-year student and she does not hide her proud of that At the same time, she is also nervous about the learning journey ahead However, difficulties have never been able to stop her from moving forward She once expressed her feeling for English:

Excerpt 5: Hang’s language learning autobiography

English is one of my favorite subjects because learning a foreign language is my fascination when I was a child I started to learn English since 2009

Her love for English is not the only reason for her studying Hang shared her dream to study abroad and have an English related job with a happy and energetic voice:

I: What about your long-term goal of learning English?

Q: My long-term goal is to study abroad

I: Have you chosen any country yet?

H: Maybe it is Australia, because Australia is very supportive full of opportunities I: After studying abroad, do you have any other plans?

H: I plan to apply for NGO to have more opportunities to help people with disabilities

She seems quite optimistic about her future as an L2 language learner Hang is a girl with beautiful dreams However, these dreams all have the same root, which is her will to support people with physical limitation

Excerpt 7: Hang’s language learning autobiography

In the future I want to become an English teacher because I hope to have an opportunity to help the blind people like me As their chances of approaching English are low, I really want to teach them so that they will get more job opportunities

When the researcher asked her about her hobby of reading English products, she once again expressed her desire for helping students like her:

I: Do you read the documents, books, newspaper because you want to gain more knowledge or for any other purpose?

H: I want to enrich my knowledge Moreover, later, when I teach the visually impaired students, maybe I will tell them stories and share the information that I have read from those materials

In conclusion, the two participants have several similarities First, they both have exposed to English since they were children and have a positive attitude towards this language Second, their learning goal, as well as their dream, is becoming an English teacher However, Ha pursues her goal to prove her ability and identity Hang, on the other hand, try her best on her learning journey to support sightless community

Throughout the chapter, the methodology of the study, which is the qualitative method, was fully shown First, the research context, the participants and materials were clearly described, and after that the reasons for choosing a case study was stated Following with those sections was the thorough description of data collection instruments Also, the chapter was finally concluded by a full account of the methods and procedure of data analysis.

FINGDINGS

Rationales for L2 learning

All of the participants indicated that they know why they are studying English, and many of their reasons overlapped One of the common motivators among participants for studying English is to have better job opportunities, as they believe that English is popular and the key to employment English, the participants believe, will expand their possibilities in the future They also expressed their interest in the language itself as well as English cultural products Moreover, they enjoy learning English, despite the difficulties in reading tasks they have to deal with Finally, they indicated they want to be able to express their opinions in English, regardless in or outside the classroom On the other hand, they also presented their unique L2 learning motivators In the following part, the researcher will give a detailed analysis of the two students‘ learning goal along with their learning motivation

As mentioned before, all the participants expressed their positive attitude to English To them, their inerest in this language is the very first reason for learning it

Let‘s take Hang‘s response as an example:

I: Who do you study English for?

H: Firstly, I learn English because English is my favorite

Secondly, my parents also tried to find out which jobs are suitable to the blind After searching some information, my parents said that everyone advised me to learn language Therefore, I am also oriented by my parents However, the most important reason is my favorite of learning English

It is noticeable that although parents influence also accounts for Hang‘s learning motivation, it comes after her interest in English Ha‘s response did not differ from Hang‘s:

I learnt English for myself, and I was not influenced by anybody

Everyone just encouraged me Nothing affected or changed my interest in English

They always mentioned such interest-related L2 learning motivations from the beginning to the end of the entire interview, which can prove the consistency in their attitude to English However, it is noteworthy that their interest in English took its root from their learning experience in the past Hang shared the reason why she is keen on English:

I: Why are you interested in English?

H: When I was 7 years old, I often stayed at home alone, as my parents went to work all the time Therefore, my parents always opened the cartoon disks and English songs for me to hear Besides, when I was at school, I was taught English by teachers Then, I did not realize when I liked it

Apparently, since the very first experience of L2 learning, she has enjoyed it and her love for this language gradually emerged and bloomed inside her This process is also the same in the case of Ha, except that Ha has a clear perception of it

To Ha, she did not love English at the first place, but just enjoyed the feeling of learning it:

I: According to your autobiography, you have started learning English with your cousin since you were a child So is it right that through it, you started keening on learning English?

H: At that time, I just liked sitting and studying with her, and I had no idea whether I liked it or not Actually, I also enjoyed learning and worked hard on it but it is not because I love it

L2 learning experience, which includes teachers, peers, classroom, learning success or failure and so on, is the third dimension of Dornyei‘s L2 motivational self system According to Dornyei, if a person starts learning L2 without any internal or external self-guides, his/her L2 motivation is shaped by the learning environment and experience The data of two participants has shown a similar result

Since the two learners exposed to English at a very early age, they could not have a perception, idea or vision of what they want to become an L2 learner Therefore, their L2 motivation is fostered by their immediate learning experience

Besides the language interest, Ha and Hang indicated the strong need to learn English for their future career For example, Ha responded that he needed to study English to get a good job:

In my opinion, firstly, it (English) can be the means that help us have chances to find a better job Nowadays, more and more people use English to communicate in working, so if our English is good, our opportunity to find a job is bigger

Hang agreed about the essence of English when commenting that it was

―popular‖ and people need it to communicate Their perception might have been influenced by social discourse such as English is the key to employment, which is widely accepted in Vietnam From Dửrnyei‘s (2009) point of view, their desire to learn English for their future job seems to reflect their ought-to L2 self because it relates to the social pressure coming from the learner‘s environment This self- image plays a role as a future guide for them to prevent possible failure and disappointment

When digging deep to their job-related L2 learning motivations, the researcher found out that they also express the participants‘ ideal L2 self According to Jamie Kathryn Butler (2016), ideal L2 self is a powerful motivator to learn an L2

It includes our hopes, aspirations, and wishes—that is, our dreams With a vision of job orientation, the two participants can image their future teacher self as an L2 user

Becoming a teacher is not only what they think they need to do to ensure their future or avoid any negative outcomes but also their dreams Hang shared in her language learning autobiography:

Excerpt 14: Hang’s language learning autobiography

In the future, I want to become an English teacher because I hope to have an opportunity to help blind people like me As their chances of approaching English are low, I really want to teach them so that they will get more job opportunities

Ha also indicated that the dream of being a teacher was her long-term goal of learning English:

Excerpt 15: Ha’s language learning autobiography

At first, my dream was to become an editor, but then I changed my mind and wanted to become an English teacher I still do not change my intention until now because I gave careful consideration

Their ideal L2 self has played a substantive role as a self-guide in determining motivated behavior For example, Ha indicated her study effort after she decided her future career:

Excerpt 15: Ha’s language learning autobiography

Being aware of job orientation, I spent more time on self-study

In other words, Ha and Hang are eager to study the second language in order to achieve their desired ―self-image‖ as English teachers

L2 learning experiences

This chapter will explore participants‘ past and present learning experiences in relation to L2 learning motivation They include classroom processes, teachers, peers and successful language learning As stated in MacIntyre, Mackinnon, and Clément (2009), the L2 learning experience ―is related to the motivation inspired by prior experience interacting with the present learning environment‖ (p 49)

Therefore, the researcher will investigate the two paticipants‘ L2 learning experiences through their past and present lessons

In terms of past learning experience, both participants shared comfortable learning memories, which contributed to their positive attitude toward English As mentioned before, their interest in English, as well as the motivation to study English, has emerged and bloomed since their very first learning experiences To

Ha, it is her lessons at home with a cousin To Hang, it is home-alone days with cartoons disks and English songs By that way, English was unconsciously absorbed and hence, it has been their favourite subject since then According to MacIntyre, Mackinnon, and Clément (2009), positive L2 learning experiences was the strongest predictor of motivated learning and English proficiency for the learners in the study

This statement is especially valid for young learners who have not had stable or crystallized self-images to motivate self-regulated learning Here, the researcher wants to restate Dornyei‘s point about the relationship between L2 self-guides and L2 learning experiences That is: if a person starts learning L2 without any internal or external self-guides, his/her L2 motivation is shaped by the learning environment and experience.Ha is an example:

Excerpt 26: Ha’s language learning autobiography

To be honest, at first, I had no particular purpose of learning English I joined my cousin‘s lessons because I had not got anybody to play with while he was busy studying In other words, I learnt English for fun By this way, English was subconsciously absorbed, and since those days, my love for English emerged

Thanks to her very first positive learning experience, her love for English emergerd In terms of Ha, L2 learning experience that fostered her motivation included learning environment, teachers, subject content and syllabus Among of these, teachers play the most crucial role

I: Do you know when you have started being interested in this subject?

H: I don‘t remember exactly Maybe when I was at Secondary School, my English teacher at school taught very well and was also enthusiastic I also had private tuition from one older brother His teaching method was not so good, but it made me more excited to learn

To her, teachers play a crucial part in regulating her interest in English

When being asked about how the tutor could increase her learning excitement, she mentioned his ―not so good‖ but ―special teaching style‖:

He taught me how to use language Vocabulary and grammar are just tools to use language, and we just focus on them for tests when studying at high school

It is noticeable that she believed teaching method focusing on grammar, vocabulary, exercises at textbook and tests is ―onerous‖ In contrast, the one paying attention to the use of language and pronunciation is more interesting and exciting

According to Center for Open Educational Resources & Language Learning, The University of Texas at Austin (n.d.), integratively motivated language learners (who want to learn the language because they want to get to know the people who speak that language) are more successful because their motivation is stronger than that of instrumentally motivated students Hence, in the school setting, teachers should play a crucial part in the classroom in sharpening students‘ view on the value of using English to interact with people of other languages

Teachers have been found to be one of the most influential (de)motivators in many studies (e.g Falout et al., 2009; Kikuchi, 2009; Lai, 2008; Sakai & Kikuchi, 2009; Shahbaz & Liu, 2012; Yashima, 2007, 2009; Yashima & Zenuk-Nishide,

2008) Ha is not an exception Although she is proved to be an independent and capable L2 learner, her learning motivation, to some extent, was affected by the learning atmosphere created by the teacher

When Ha emphasized teachers‘ role in influencing her learning motivation, Hang, on the other hand, mentioned how peers motivated her L2 learning

I: Do you have any learning experiences, moments, memories that bring you a feeling of love and pleasure?

H: I sat next to a friend studying with me now His name is Hai

He loves speaking English He talked to me in English everyday in class Most of the time in class, we practised speaking English including even normal things he also told me in English I am happy because there is someone sharing the same interest with me

It is very interesting to sit together and talk in English to each other

Thanks to her peers, she has a natural speaking context where she can feel comfortable and enjoyable By that way, positive learning experience cultivates her willingness to invest effort and voluntary learning outside classes To be more specific, her friends have motivated her to practice speaking English as a self- regulated learner.Along with peers, materials are proved to motivate her to learn:

I: Since you start learning English until now, does your love of English change a lot?

H: Yes, especially when I enter university When I get into university, I like it more Even though I have to run many deadlines, I get to learn more, get access to more materials I feel that it is much more interesting

It is noteworthy that when L2 learning environment supports her Ideal L2 self as knowledgeable, her L2 learning motivation is also supported

Regarding the learning environment, the two participants share the same idea about its impact on L2 motivation To be more specific, the learning environment with pressure might make them stressful In contrast, the comfortable and happy one will bring to them excitement and willingness to learn

I: In your opinion, does the learning environment affect your learning and your learning motivation How does it affect?

H: Yes, because when I come to class, teachers and friends make me feel happy, so I am interested in absorbing knowledge and working

If the class environment is always stressful and full of pressure or problems such as those who are not psychologically good or are too demanding for my level, I will also feel pressure

Ha also agreed with Ha that the learning environment created by teachers has an effect on students‘ motivation In her interview, Ha shared how learning environment impacts her L2 learning:

[ ]the pressure in the classroom made me feel stressed and heavy

In addition, the two learners also emphasized the support factor

I: Do you have any expectations for your English learning environment? Which environment do you feel very encouraging and give you great learning motivation?

H: According to me, I need the environment providing enough equipment to support myself, teachers, and friendly friends

Agreed with Hang about how a motivated learning environment should be,

Ha also added the importance of equality

L2 learning difficulties

Given that the two participants are special students who have a visual impairment, the researcher supposed they might have to deal with barriers in learning This chapter will investigate how the participants perceive L2 learning difficulty and its impact on their learning motivation

The first challenge that they have to confront is learning material problem In discussing her difficulties relating to material sources, she mentioned the limitation in documents that she were able to approach

I: How does your deficiency affect your learning English?

H: Actually, it does not affect very much It just causes that I cannot read the material easily, so the sources of material I can approach is less For example, ordinary people can buy books to read easily, but I have to use computer resources to support Hence, the sources of documents are not various

It is surprising that Ha did not weight physical impairment.To Ha, the limitation in materials is a slight disadvantage and did not bring in demotivation

Hang, in contrast, considers it as a huge barrier which has constantly affected her learning for a long time:

Excerpt 36: Hang’s language learning autobiography

I started to learn English since 2009 At that time, it was not so easy for blind students to approach with this subject Because there was no many sources of Braille English documents to help us widen our knowledge So that I often spend most of my free time transwriting some English books into Braille, which discourages me to try my best to study English

Not only mentioning this problem in her language learning autobiography, but she also revealed it (three times) in her interview Therefore, the fact that she cannot read and the lack of documents appeared to be her most noticeable concerns and challenges

H: We see the document problem makes the biggest impact on us because we all use the soft copy documents However, sometimes, there are some books without soft copies If there is a PDF file, that PDF file is the image file, so we cannot read We also cannot read hard copy books Therefore, I realize that it affects a lot

Sometimes, there are some great materials, but we do not have the opportunity and the conditions to reach them

As stated above, Hang pursues her Ideal L2-self as knowledgeable Hence, it may not be surprising that material problem has a strong impact on her learning

However, her passive attitude in the classroom due to her visual impairment even contributed to her learning frustration

H: […]In the classroom, the teachers check the exercises and call me to fix them I wanted to tell teachers that this file was an image file, and I could not read it I intended to share that problem with teachers, but I think that if I keep asking and demanding too much, teachers will think that I rely on my disabilities to be lazy and ask for many things Therefore, I sometimes felt shy to share with teachers

As stated in this excerpt, Hang‘s particular difficulty in reading was not able to be coped with due to the lack of communication between her and her teachers

Without well-prepared insight into sightless students, teachers might find it hard to understand their problems For that reason, learners with visual impairment should actively share their difficulty and ask for support A typical example of active L2 learner is found in Ha In order to deal with this problem, she always gives her voice first

Almost while studying, I am often active For example, in the first lesson, I usually ask for the books During the learning program, when I need something, I can ask teachers to support me

Besides, to compensate for her physical defect, she puts more effort into learning, especially in reading skill

I: How do you solve if you cannot read the documents in class?

H: At secondary school, it was easier to read because I had documents in braille At high school and university, I asked the teachers to send me the soft copy of documents and textbooks Of course, I had to spend more time and effort doing exercise than ordinary people I have to try a lot to finish exercises, but I'm still lucky because I have documents to learn

It is noticeable that Ha has a positive attitude toward document problem caused by her visual impairment Given that Ha sees her Ideal L2 self as capable and respectable, it is understandable why she has never taken her visual impairment as an excuse but kept trying extremely hard

In addition to the material problem, the two participants have to meet the challenge of reading tasks In her interview, Hang indicated her fear relating to reading skills:

I: So which moment, memory do you feel uncomfortable when learning English?

H: I remember and am still afraid of learning skills of doing reading exercises until now For normal people, it is very easy because they just need to look and skim through to find the keywords Nevertheless, I read via the computer, it took me a long time to listen to what computer spoke

Ha also shared her anxiety for dealing with reading exercises:

I also determine that I have the disadvantage in reading, especially extremely difficult reading exercise I'm afraid of this skill, and the results I achieve in Reading is not really good

As stated in the two excerpts above, the two participants considered reading as their disadvantage in L2 learning and even feared to do reading tasks This learning anxiety might take it root from the fact that there were not any suitable reading strategies for them According to Hang, her teachers and friends taught her to apply some reading tips but they were proved to be unsuccessful

For instance, my friends told me that I just needed to skim through

When I did the exams, the teacher always advised me to read the questions before finding the keywords in the reading Although I followed that method, it still took me a long time, as we had to listen and read in each line, sometimes in each sentence Therefore, I spent a long time doing it and did not often get high scores in my Reading

It is noteworthy that typical reading strategies for normal learners are not effective for sightless people Hence, there is a need for investigating the suitable reading strategies for this special learning group

Ha and Hang have their own goals for learning English Firstly, they both agreed that they study English to get an English-related job This idea took roots from social discourse and family influence that ―English is the key of employment‖

In Vietnam, it is widely acknowledged that employers having English competence are competitive and qualified In recent days, Vietnamese parents are likely to encourage their children to study English at very early age in order to broaden their future opportunity Hence, the two participants believed that they need to master this language to ensure their future career This future image, which has external sources of motivation(social origins and parents), expresses their ought-to L2 self

The fact that the ought-to L2 self serves as one of the primary sourcesof motivation for these students is quite surprising to the present author There are some studies applying the L2 motivational self system that stated a different conclusion For instance, Kathryn Butler (2015), in his Doctor dissertation, concluded that the ought-to L2 self did not prominently appear To be more specific, his participants seemed to resist the idea that they had to learn L2 for any reason other than simply because they wanted to do so In general, studies on typical learners using Dornyei‘s framework tend to come to conclusion that ought-to L2 self is low predictive of subsequent students‘ engagement and motivated behavior in L2 learning The difference in result between the recent research and other studies on typical learners might stem from the special features of students with learning disabilities The fact that they are disabled narrow down their job opportunity Consequently, they believe that they should follow the social current to ensure their future career

However, the dream of becoming an English teacher gradually emerged and fostered inside the two participants Learning English is not only their obligation but also their wish to reduce the gap between their actual self and ideal self as an English teacher It is noteworthy that Ha and Hang have internalized their ought-to L2 self and created ideal self through L2 learning experience At this point, the present author comes to another conclusion that L2 learners‘ ought-to L2 self can be transformed into the ideal L2 self when the learners personalize and internalize the external reasons to learn L2 In other words, job orientation can be both described as ought-to and ideal L2 selves related motivation

In terms of Ha, she has two more learning goals, which are to communicate with other L2 speakers and to express herself as a capable and respectable L2 user

First, Ha‘s aspiration to prove her self-image came from an ought-to L2 self, which mirrors social pressure and has a prevention focus She responded to negative comments on her abilities by learning hard and getting good academic results

However, the researcher believes that it has switched to an ideal L2 self as Ha gave a careful consideration for why she is studying About Ha‘s communicative needs, thanks to her international communication opportunity when she was at secondary school, this memorable L2 experience gradually fostered her strong desire to communicate in English By seeing herself as a global citizen who will participate freely in activities of other cultural groups, she expressed her ideal L2 self The chart below demonstrates Ha‘s learning goal system It is noteworthy that goal 1 and 2 do not have any interlinks when goal 3 supports the others and vice verse

As regards to Hang, she has two unique L2 learning goals, which are to enhance her knowledge and to help other people First, she has a strong desire to enrich her knowledge, which becomes an essential rationale for L2 language learning because by mastering English, she can expose to a wide range of useful material Moreover, she believes that English might be an effective tool empowering her to help her students, her family and sightless people like her These two learning goals express their ideal L2 self as knowledgeable and helpful As proved in the previous chapter, Hang‘s ideal self as knowledgeable has a connection to her ideal L2 self as an English teacher On the other hand, her goal to help other people links to her job-related and knowledge expansion goals

It is not easy to conclude that whether Ideal L2 self or ought – to L2 self is the most important source of L2 learning motivation to the two participants

However, it is noteworthy that ought – to L2 self basically emerged first and serves

Goal 1: To get an English-related job

Goal 2: To communicate with other L2 speakers

Goal 3: to express herself as capable and respectable L2 user

Goal 1: To get an English- related job

Ideal L2 self and ought-to L2 self

Ideal L2 self and ought-to L2 self

Ideal L2 self and ought – to L2 self as primary source of motivation Then, ought-to L2 self was internalized and ideal L2 self was created through the two participants‘ learning experience.

The two participants recognized the impact of L2 learning experience on their learning motivation At their very first stage of studying English, their positive learning experience created their interest in the language and then, fostered motivated learning behaviors When being asked about the learning environment at their university, they both believed that teachers, peers, classroom and lesson content somewhat influenced their motivation For example, if the learning environment is comfortable and supportive, they will be willing to share and invest more effort It is interesting that the impact of L2 learning experience appeared to be less important when they entered University with stronger L2 self-concept By having a vision of their future L2 self, they receive fewer influences of external

To get an English- related job

To be a capable and respectable L2 user

To be a helpful L2 user learners‘ L2 motivation is also evident in several studies that examined aggerelatedvariations in L2 motivation Csizér & Kormos (2009); Kormos & Csizér (2008); Papi & Teimouri (2012), in their surveys of secondaryschool students and university students, showed that teenage languagelearners‘ attitudes toward the language learning experiences contributedmore to the criterion measures as compared to their adult counterparts In conclusion, positive L2 learning experience, along with ought – to L2 self, is one of the primary sources of the participants‘ L2 learning motivation These two elements then transformed into ideal L2 self when the two participant entered University with stronger vision of their future L2 self and be less affected by external factors.

Normally, typical students tend to claim heavy workload, stressful learning environment or laziness as their learning barriers In the case of the two participants, their learning difficulties, which are material problem, reading challenge and opportunity limitation, origin from their visual impairment According to Klassen, Krawchuk, Lynch& Rajani (2008), in most cases, a learning disability has been

L2 learning experience Ought - to L2 self associated with procrastination behaviors, lowered motivation and lack of ability to succeed.However, in this study, the data showed that the challenges that they have to confront rarely cause negative learning behaviours In fact, they are often perceived as a source of motivation to them In terms of opportunity-related challenge, the learners understand that they have fewer chances than normal people

For that reason, they see it as a reason to try their best and focus on learning English

The ought-to L2 self as it appeared here stems from the social discourse which considers English as an essential factor to employment About reading challenges, the two participants determined to invest more effort and made it up for other skills

Ha and Hang proved that the disability was not a disadvantage but served as a motivating factor and source of strength.It is quite counterintuitive that the disability actually became a driving force that gives them a unique advantage over others who do not have a disability To explain this phenomenon, Margalit (2003) pointed out that: ―their lifetime experiences with difficulties, their ongoing frustrations and daily struggles in different environments, alongside their strong desire to integrate like everyone else, have become a driving force, one that carries significant weight and impacts their ability to persevere and succeed‖.The only challenge that might discourage the participants is the material problem Because of her future self-guide as knowledgeable L2 user, Hang considers the lack of materials is her biggest problem in learning Ha, however, believed that it is a slight disadvantage and she was thankful for having documents to study

Ideal L2 self and ought-to L2 self are the strongest predictors of motivated learning behaviours Both Ha and Hang have a vision of their future L2 selves, not only the desirable L2 self but also the obligation one They play the role as a guide for them to pursue their learning journey For that reason, parents and teachers should empower sightless students to have a dream and shape their future L2 self

In the recent university context, where the two participants have been educated to become future English teachers, lecturers should be their shining examples, nurturing their motivation and dream In order to do that, they should provide enthusiastic support and guarantee fairness also In addition, administrators should conduct career workshop with practical and meaningful content for students with disabilities so that they can be well equipped for their future career Teaching club and opportunity to practice in various teaching environment are also great ideas to foster their ideal L2 self as an English teacher Learning motivation relating to ideal L2 self is powerful because of the desire to reduce the discrepancy between the participants‘ actual self and their ideal self as an English teacher However, due to their impairment, their dream of becoming an English teacher is hard to actualized, which might lead to deterrence In Vietnam context, sightless people are still discriminated and unrecognized Hence, the university‘s authorities need to provide them internship opportunities when they are undergraduates and have actual actions to prepare for their future career when they are graduates For example, instead of sending a general list of job opportunities for the whole graduated students, the administrators should give sightless students a specific list that is suitable for them

The university‘s authorities should also connect them with employers that appreciate and respect qualified impaired employees

The L2 learning experience, on the other hand, is proved to be less important when they grow up with the stronger perception of their study rationales However, it still somewhat influences the learners‘ learning motivation Hence, parents should pay attention to children‘s very first English learning experience carefully This experience need to be wonderful so that they are able to enjoy learning L2 and grow interest in the subject It is not a good idea to force them to learn but listen to them and let them to choose their own learning environment Moreover, teachers should provide sightless students supportive and comfortable learning environment

Especially, they need to pay attention to the material problems, make sure that they can access to format-supported materials In the recent unviversity context, materials of the subjects that sightless students enrol on should be checked carefully

Lectures should exclude image contents or convert these contents into text format

If the materials are irreplaceable, lectures should summarize the content for sightless students or let students read these materials in group before class By that way, sightless students can receive support from their classmate

Due to the reading difficulty that students with vision loss have been struggling with, the authorities of the university should make sure that the learning facilities, especially the sound ones, function well The visually impaired students are able to receive auditory input only so if the sound is not clear, they cannot learn at all In addition, lectures have to exclude reading questions / tasks that are not suitable for sightless students or replace them Here are some suggestions:

Tasks Examples How to replace

Check understanding of words in context

The word impairment in paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to

The word impairment in the following paragraph is closest in meaning to

―It is not difficult to define visual impairment According to Doctor Salvin (n.d.), the term describes ―any kind of vision loss, whether it's someone who cannot see at all or someone who has partial vision loss‖

Check phonetic Look at the phonemes and decide which word it is

Listen and decide which word it is

Finally, lectures need to understand their problems and the way they deal with reading tasks, and then, research into particular reading strategies to support them

LIMITATIONS AND SUGESSTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH

The data of the recent research were all taken from the participants‘ words (in both spoken and written forms) Hence, the reliability of the result might be questioned if the participants did answer honestly or just shared a part of the truth The result of the research will be more reliable if the researcher applies other instruments such as classroom observation

While the recent research concluded that participants‘ learning motivation relating to ideal L2 self as an English teacher is the most powerful, it provided few suggestions to support their future career Further research should be conducted to discuss practical plans and solutions to support impaired students to pursue their dream career Moreover, since reading is a learning barrier toward visually impaired students, reading strategies for sightless learners invites future research Finally, a future research could be conducted to investigate reading tasks that are not suitable for sightless students and how to replace them

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