A study into EFL learner motivation a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of master of arts in TESOL

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY A Study into EFL Learner Motivation THE THESIS SUMMITED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS (TESOL) Submitted by TRAN THI THUY HANG Supervisor Assoc Prof Dr NGUYEN THANH TUNG SEPTEMBER 2016 STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I certify that this thesis entitled “A Study into EFL Learner Motivation” is my own work Except for the reference which is made in the text of the thesis, this thesis contains no material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part from a thesis by which I qualified for or awarded another degree or diploma No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the main text of the thesis This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or diploma in any other tertiary institution Ho Chi Minh City, 12 September 2016 Tran Thi Thuy Hang i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Assoc Prof Dr Nguyen Thanh Tung, for his generous assistance and great devotion to guiding me through the preparation and completion of this thesis Without his great help, I would have never been able to finish this thesis Secondly, I am sincerely grateful to all lecturers of the TESOL program at Ho Chi Minh Open University for their helpful instruction and dedication from 2012 to 2014 Thirdly, I want to express my thanks to all the students and English teachers at Ho Chi Minh University of Technology for their participation in this study Finally, I am deeply indebted to my beloved family and my friends for their support and encouragement so that I could have motivation to complete this thesis ii ABSTRACT The research was designed to investigate learner motivation at Ho Chi Minh University of Technology in terms of the reasons why the students learnt English as these reasons could reveal their motivation types and the factors affecting their learning motivation This study also aimed at determining the lecturers’ perceptions toward their students’ motivation It has been said that the low English performance of the students in Ho Chi Minh (HCM) University of Technology has not received enough attention from any studies Therefore, the researcher conducted the research with 275 students and their twelve lecturers in twelve classes in the lowest English level course which requires the most motivational support All the students and the lecturers were asked to answer the questionnaires specially written for them Furthermore, twelve students chosen randomly and the lecturers participated in the one-by-one interviews with the researcher The results gathered from these questionnaires and interviews were analyzed with the support of SPSS The results from the survey with 275 students indicate that the students are both extrinsically and intrinsically motivated to learn English However, their extrinsic motivation is the dominant because of the better job opportunity in the future and the usefulness for effective communication in the modern society The findings also show that both internal factors and external factors play an important role in enhancing learner motivation and performance Among those factors, the English teachers are considered as a crucial element because they can help the students to follow their learning goals, create a friendly classroom environment, give supportive feedback, conduct interesting classroom activities, and design the most suitable materials for their particular classes In conclusion, although the lecturers could understand their students’ learning motivation types and applied varied methods to motivate the students to learn English in class, they also need more activities to increase the students’ time of using English outside the iii classrooms and more support from the administrative staff at the university Based on the research findings, some pedagogical implications for the students, the lecturers and the administrative staff were withdrawn Hopefully, the results from this research can be helpful to improve learner motivation in particular as well as the quality of teaching and learning process at HCM University of Technology iv TABLE OF CONTENTS STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS II ABSTRACT III TABLE OF CONTENTS V LIST OF TABLES IX LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS X CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the study 1.1.1 English in Vietnamese tertiary level 1.1.2 Main constraints in Vietnamese learner motivation 1.1.2.1 Vietnamese learning style 1.1.2.2 Teachers’ action and perception 1.1.2.3 Classroom organization 1.2 Statement of the problem 1.3 Purpose of the study and the research questions 1.4 The significance of the study 1.5 Limitations of the study 1.6 The organization of the study CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Definitions of learner motivation 2.2 The importance of learner motivation 2.3 Learner motivation types v 2.3.1 Integrative and instrumental motivation 10 2.3.2 Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation 11 2.4 Research framework 13 2.5 Motivation factors 14 2.5.1 Internal factors 14 2.5.1.1 Goal setting 15 2.5.1.2 Expectancy 15 2.5.1.3 Self-confidence 16 2.5.1.4 Self-efficacy 17 2.5.2 External factors 17 2.5.2.1 Teachers 18 2.5.2.2 Feedback 18 2.5.2.3 Classroom environment 19 2.5.2.4 Materials 20 2.5.2.5 Activities 20 2.6 Teachers’ perceptions toward students’ motivation 21 2.7 Related studies on learner motivation 21 2.7.1 Around the world 22 2.7.2 In Vietnam 24 2.8 Research gap 27 2.9 Summary 27 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 29 3.1 Pedagogical setting 29 3.2 Research design 30 3.2.1 Research subjects 30 3.2.1.1 Students 30 3.2.1.2 Teachers 31 3.2.2 Research methods 31 3.2.3 Research instruments 33 3.2.3.1 Questionnaires 33 3.2.3.2 Interviews 35 vi 3.2.4 Analytical framework 37 3.3 Data collection procedure 39 3.3.1 Administering the questionnaires 39 3.3.1.1 Questionnaire for students 39 3.3.1.2 Questionnaire for lecturers 40 3.3.2 Administering the interviews 40 3.3.2.1 Interview with students 40 3.3.2.2 Interview with lecturers 41 3.3.3 Summary of the data collection procedure 41 3.4 Validity and reliability 42 3.5 Summary 45 CHAPTER 4: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION 46 4.1 Data analysis 46 4.1.1 Students’ questionnaire 46 4.1.1.1 Students’ profile 46 4.1.1.2 Students’ types of motivation 50 4.1.1.3 Factors affecting students’ motivation 53 4.1.2 Lecturers’ questionnaire 60 4.1.2.1 Lecturers’ profile 61 4.1.2.2 Lecturers’ perception towards students’ types of motivation 63 4.1.2.3 Lecturers’ perception towards factors affecting students’ motivation 65 4.1.3 Students’ interviews 72 4.1.4 Lecturers’ interviews 81 4.2 Discussion of the findings 90 4.3 Summary 92 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 93 5.1 Conclusions 93 5.2 Research findings 94 5.2.1 Findings for students 95 5.2.2 Finding for lecturers 96 vii 5.3 Research implications 97 5.3.1 Implications for students 98 5.3.2 Implications for lecturers 98 5.3.3 Implications for administrative staff 101 5.4 Recommendations for further research 102 REFERENCES 105 APPENDICES 112 Appendix 112 Appendix 2A 113 Appendix 2B 115 Appendix 3A 117 Appendix 3B 119 Appendix 121 Appendix 5A 122 Appendix 5B 137 viii LIST OF TABLES Table The procedure of delivering and collecting data 42 Table Students’ information (gender) 46 Table Students’ information (English in their university entrance exam) 47 Table Students’ information (mid-term score) 48 Table Students’ information (English learning experience) 49 Table Students’ information (using English outside the classroom) 50 Table Students’ reasons for studying English 51 Table Factors related to the students 54 Table Factors related to the teachers 56 Table 10 Other motivational factors 58 Table 11 Lecturers’ information (gender) 61 Table 12 Lecturers’ information (academic qualification) 61 Table 13 Lecturers’ information (teaching experience) 62 Table 14 Lecturers’ perception toward students’ reasons of learning English 63 Table 15 Lecturers’ perception toward motivational factors related to the students 66 Table 16 Lecturers’ perception toward motivational factors related to the teachers 68 Table 17 Lecturers’ perception toward other motivational factors 70 ix Interviewer: So what is the reason you think? Is it because the lessons are too difficult for them? Interviewee: No This course is not difficult for them at all They are just lazy They don’t want to study or any exercises I guess that they watched soccer the night before so they come to class just to sleep It often happens in the classes with all male students Interviewer: I see So how can you conduct the activities in class? Interviewee: I have to yell in class and push them to join in They participate as long as I keep asking them to Furthermore, the good students work actively so the lazier follow them in the activities However, I still have to call exactly the names of those lazy students to answer my questions Interviewer: I got it So these activities are group work or pair work? Interviewee: Both of them They don’t like big groups They work much better in pairs because they like to talk to each other Interviewer: It’s nice So you give them any bonuses for it? Interviewee: Yes, of course They can get bonuses for answering the questions, correcting the exercises, going to class early to motivate them But if they don’t the homework, I will give them some minuses Interviewer: So you give them any bonuses for regular attendance? Interviewee: I check their attendance every day If they skip three days, they won’t be allowed to take the test But they even don’t care Many often missed four or five days Many of them just don’t care about anything, even the scores But I still give them bonuses when they come to class early to encourage them to go to class Interviewer: I see How about the course book Outcomes What you think about it? 139 Interviewee: I don’t really like teaching that book The contents are just normal They are not interesting enough to attract the students Some parts are too difficult while some are too easy In general, it cannot interest the students to learn English About grammar, it’s not organized and correct as the previous book (New Cutting Edge) Outcomes isn’t as logical as the previous book Interviewer: I understand That’s all for the interview Thank you so much Lecturer Interviewer: Could you tell me something about how your class is studying? Interviewee: They are studying quite well However, there are two groups in the class One group majors in French They are learning better The other one is from Industry Department They are slower and more passive than the first group I see that the first group can think much more quickly so they learn much better and are more interested in answering my questions while the second group seems to be so quiet Interviewer: So is the level of the course higher than the level of the students? Interviewee: No, I don’t think it’s higher at all The lessons are not difficult for the students to learn My students are just lazy and quiet Interviewer: I see What activities you often have in your class? Interviewee: It depends on the lessons Normally, I give them more speaking activities, listening tasks taken from other materials, sometimes some songs for them Interviewer: Are there any group work or pair work activities? Interviewee: Yes Interviewer: Do you like them? 140 Interviewee: It depends on each activity I think they prefer to work with the students from their group They find it more fun than working with the students in the other group For example, they enjoyed the activity “Confession” the other day when they can talk to their friends Interviewer: I understand How about the course book? What you think about it? Interviewee: The contents are ok but the reading texts aren’t interesting The listening tasks are too difficult for the students I think it’s hard to avoid that The university divides the same book into three parts for three classes so the listening tasks are the same at their difficulty It leads to the fact that many tasks are too difficult for the learners in English and Therefore, I have to simplify the tasks or choose other tasks of the same topics from other materials Interviewer: I see How about bonuses? Do you give them any? Interviewee: In some games, I usually give the winners some gifts like cakes or candies For the exercises in class, I mark them and give them bonuses I don’t check their attendance Some days, there are more than a half of them coming to class Sometimes, none of them go to class Interviewer: Thank you so much for answering my questions Lecturer Interviewer: Thank you accepting to join in this interview today What you thinking about how well your students are learning? Interviewee: Honestly, they’re learning badly Firstly, the levels of the students are too different from each other Secondly, they failed this course last semester so they have to repeat the course They have already learnt everything so they don’t feel interested any more Actually, their ability is limited Even when I try my best to help them to be prepare for the test, they may only pass it with low score Thirdly, they’re senior students 141 so they have a lot of projects of other major subjects They think English isn’t important to them Lastly, they are lazy Interviewer: So how many students are there in the student list? Interviewee: More than 20 but as you can see only some students today even though they have a test today Interviewer: So they skip the test? Interviewee: Exactly It’s normal for the repeating classes like this Normally only less than a half of them go to class Interviewer: So how can you conduct the activities in class? Interviewee: No I don’t conduct any because it is impossible To these students, the more activities I give them, the less they learn because there would be too many things for them to remember They wouldn’t remember anything after class I only focus on their English weaknesses and what they need to learn to for the test For instance, I teach grammar so carefully, give them a lot of exercises with the same format of the test It means only multiple choice questions I even don’t ask them to write anything For vocabulary, every day I say their meanings again, test them and ask the students to write them on the board Otherwise, the students won’t remember anything Interviewer: So when they have correct answers, you give them any bonuses? Interviewee: Of course However, normally no one has the correct answers Interviewer: How about minuses? Interviewee: I dare not give any minuses Interviewer: Have you ever checked their attendance? 142 Interviewee: No I never They are university students now They have to go to class voluntarily and study seriously if they want to pass the test If they go to class regularly, I will give them some bonuses at the end of the course Interviewer: How about the course book Outcomes? What you think about it? Interviewee: In generally, it’s a good book to teach speaking and listening for universities students because the topics are simple and familiar in our daily life Speaking skill is taught so carefully in this book For example, there are “developing conversations” giving sample structures for students to practice However, the book is too difficult for the students who have to repeat the course because almost all the vocabulary is new to them So it’s not suitable for them at all It’s only suitable for the students who has pretty good English foundation and are confident with their English Those students will learn this book more effectively Interviewer: Thank you for sharing Lecturer Interviewer: Thank you for agreeing to participate in the interview today Can you tell me something about how well your students are studying? Interviewee: They’re not learning well They’re not good at anything from vocabulary to grammar because they have retaken the entrance test many times so that they can take this course Interviewer: So you think that the level of the course is much higher than the level of the students? Interviewee: Yes, it’s higher than the students’ level They can’t keep pace with the lessons The course is also too difficult for them Interviewer: I see In this case, what activities you often have in class? 143 Interviewee: Usually, we play games when we have some time for them Mostly the games are about vocabulary Interviewer: How about group work or pair work? Interviewee: We have both pair work and group work every lesson because they work so slowly alone They seem not to be able to the exercises by themselves Interviewer: Are they interested in the activities? Interviewee: No They often don’t enjoy those activities Interviewer: Then when they get the correct answers, can they get any bonuses? And minuses for their wrong answers? Interviewee: When they make any mistakes, I give them my comments to help the students to recognize them When they the exercises correctly or their homework, they can have bonuses Interviewer: Do you check attendance every lesson? Interviewee: No I don’t Interviewer: What you think about the course book Outcomes? Interviewee: It’s quite a good book for speaking However, we don’t have time for speaking Listening tasks in the book are too difficult comparing to their level Interviewer: Are the contents interesting and relevant to the students’ life? Interviewee: Some are interesting Some are not They don’t like the lessons about jobs or education Food and entertainments are more attractive to them Interviewer: Thank you for your answers Lecturer 144 Interviewer: Thank you for joining the interview today Could you tell me how well the students are leaning? Interviewee: They’re learning quite badly They are still affected by the way they learnt English in high school It just focused on grammar Furthermore, they are learning English at university just for the score I usually encourage them to learn English well so that they can communicate in English or in case they travel to other countries However, they don’t care about it They lack of motivation to learn English Most of them just come here to get bonuses for attendance However, few students still come to class although I don’t check attendance It means that they come here for knowledge Interviewer: So you check attendance? Interviewee: I just sometimes check attendance for bonuses At the beginning of the course, all of them come to class but now only less than a half of them maybe because it’s after holiday break Interviewer: Do you think that the level of the course is high for them? Interviewee: No, not at all The vocabulary isn’t difficult for them at all Actually I think it’s easy They just don’t want to invest in learning English They only learn English some days before the test I always check the vocabulary they have already learnt but they almost forget everything I think the vocabulary isn’t difficult The problem is that they never review any lessons Interviewer: So what activities you conduct to help them learn better? Interviewee: I give them pair work, group work or games They really love games For example, once they played “skimmed memory” which required them to remember the pictures and discuss them in groups They were really excited it because they had a chance to talk to other students Then, based on the pictures, I taught them the vocabulary All of them like it I think instead of showing the meanings of the words in a boring way, the pictures and games can arouse their interest and curiosity so effectively 145 Interviewer: It’s so interesting How about the course book Outcomes? Could you share some comments? Interviewee: The book looks beautiful and eye-catching The contents are nice The teachers can modify the contents to make it more interesting if they have time However, because of the high pressure from the test, we have to teach students all the vocabulary For instance, in listening tasks I have to teach passive words because they may appear in the tests It causes that there are too many vocabulary for the students to learn Interviewer: I understand, how about bonuses or minuses? Interviewee: It’s ok if they answer something wrong I randomly check attendance to give them bonuses If they answer my questions correctly, they will have bonuses too When they win the games, I often give them some gifts like cakes or candies Interviewer: They must really like it Interviewee: Yes at first they were excited about it Maybe it was the first time for them to get candies and candies by winning the games They only have these gifts when studying English Interviewer: I think so Thank you for your sharing Lecturer Interviewer: Thank you for joining the interview today Can you tell me how well your students are learning? Interviewee: Most of them are first year students but they took the entrance test twice to study in English There are students from two different classes The classroom is too small for 37 students They aren’t learning well at all Many of them got less than marks in the midterm test They are really passive Interviewer: Do you think that level of the course is higher than the level of the students 146 Interviewee: No, the lessons are not difficult for them They understand them when I am teaching However, they are too lazy to study They don’t the exercises at home so they can the test well Interviewer: I got it What activities you often have in class? Interviewee: The students mostly work in pairs or individually I hardly ever ask them to work in groups because I can’t walk around the classroom to check their working The room is too small It also takes a lot time Interviewer: Do they enjoy pair work and group work? Interviewee: Yes, they Interviewer: Do you give them any bonuses or minuses? Interviewee: I only give them bonuses Some of them work actively to get bonuses but some of them don’t care about it Interviewer: I see What you think of the course book Outcomes? Interviewee: It is beautiful and colorful However, it’s the book specializing in communication while our tests focus on grammar I think it’s not relevant Furthermore, the listening tasks recorded with the non-native accent so it’s really difficult to listen to Interviewer: Thank you for your answers Lecturer Interviewer: Thank you for joining the interview today May you say something about how well your students are learning? Interviewee: They study hard However, they are really quiet They are slower than other classes Their English background is weak so they aren’t confident at all Interviewer: So is the level of the course too high for them? 147 Interviewee: Not at all I feel they can follow the lessons better and better The mid-term scores are quite nice Interviewer: So what activities you have in class? Interviewee: We often have mini games, extra exercises for vocabulary, pair work and group work Interviewer: Do they enjoy pair work and group work? Interviewee: Yes, they But I don’t give you many chance to work in groups or pairs I think that games and speaking activities takes a lot of time and are not effective to help them get high scores Therefore, I give focus more on extra exercises Interviewer: I see So you often give them bonuses? Interviewee: Yes, when they have correct answers Interviewer: Do you check their attendance? Interviewee: No, I don’t They still go to class regularly I think they know they have to improve English to have better scores Interviewer: I see What you think about the course book “Outcomes”? Interviewee: I don’t think it’s suitable for the course There are too many speaking tasks so I have to skip many of them The listening tasks are too difficult to listen too I have to add many easier listening tasks taken from other resources The contents of some lessons are too difficult and not practical The students don’t have enough vocabulary and background knowledge to follow those lessons I don’t think it’s suitable for them Interviewer: Thank you so much Lecturer 148 Interviewer: Thank you for allowing me to interview you today How well you think you’re students are learning? Interviewee: I don’t think the students are learning well because the highest score was only In class, I mostly speak Vietnamese They’re quite passive Furthermore, they don’t go to class regularly Interviewer: Do you check your attendance? Interviewee: Yes, I There are 40 students coming from four different classes Interviewer: What activities you often have in class? Interviewee: We often have games, group work, pair work and speaking activities Interviewer: Which one they enjoy the most? Interviewee: They love playing games They prefer pair work to group work When they work in groups, the weaker students don’t contribute to the activity at all They turn be more passive Interviewer: I see Do you give them any bonuses? Interviewee: Yes I When they contribute to the lessons in class, they can have some bonuses If they don’t the homework, they get minuses Interviewer: I get it What you think about our course book Outcomes? Interviewee: The contents are ok However, it’s too heavy for the students because of too much grammar The display is beautiful It provides the online helpful exercises which the students are interested in doing Interviewer: Thank you so much for sharing Lecturer 10 149 Interviewer: Thank you for attending the interview today May you tell me how well your students are learning? Interviewee: They are learning badly There are 15 students in class but only five or six students go to class I don’t know the reasons why They haven’t attended to any lessons This problem also happens in some other classes Those absentees come to class and tell me they’re too busy to participate in my lessons But only few students so Normally, mostly of them just skip classes by themselves Interviewer: So with only five students in class, what activities can you have? Interviewee: Actually, it’s more like a tutor class I have more time for each student I rarely conduct classroom activities because their level is too low to join in them Those students are repeating the course because they failed the exam last semester If I have to give the class some activities, I have to choose the ones which are much easier the lessons in the book But I normally stick to the course book so that they can the test well Interviewer: So are they pair work or group work? Interviewee: Normally pair work Sometimes, when there are six students, we can have group work Interviewer: Are the students interested in the activities? Interviewee: Their English is really weak but they don’t give up They still come to class, which means that they really try to learn English However, their ability is limited I still recognize their effort It’s much better than many students who are indifferent and ignore my instructions Interviewer: So you have any ways to encourage them? Interviewee: I know their level is low so I give them a lot of chances to have bonuses If they answer my questions correctly or write the correct answers on the board, I give them 150 bonuses They’re really excited about it It helps improve their score so much and encourages them to study better Interviewer: How about Outcomes? What you think about it? Interviewee: It’s a good course book but only for the students how has the equivalent level For those students who failed the courses many times, this book is like a giant tree while they are tiny ants trying to climb up hopelessly I feel they are demotivated especially when they get bad marks in the test This book is students centered It requires students to work a lot and have good English background Interviewer: Thank you for your sharing Lecturer 11 Interviewer: Thank you for agreeing to answer my interview questions today Can you tell me how well your students are learning? Interviewee: I think they’re learning quite well Their learning attitude is good too Their midterm test scores are fine Interviewer: So what you think about the level of the course comparing to the level of the students? Interviewee: There’s no gap between them It’s equivalent to learners’ level They’re active in classroom activities with good attitude Interviewer: So what are the activities? Interviewee: Games, group work Interviewer: How about pair work? Interviewee: No I didn’t give them any pair work They seem to enjoy group work and work so seriously 151 Interviewer: Do you give them any bonuses? Interviewee: Yes, of course Normally I give them bonuses for their group work or individual work We don’t have any minuses at all If they make some mistakes, I just correct them It’s ok for them to make mistakes Interviewer: I see What you think about the book Outcomes? Interviewee: The book is not bad However, the grammar lessons are unorganized The topics are relevant and familiar to our life The listening tasks have too many accents Some accents are too difficult to listen to The display is nice The book is quite good There’re not many weaknesses Lecturer 12 Interviewer: Thank you for joining our interview today Can you tell me how well you think your students are learning? Interviewee: They are not learning well Normally only five students go to class although there are 16 students in the class list It’s the first time for them to study in this class but they had to retake the entrance test many times to be here Interviewer: So what is the reason why the others don’t go to class? Interviewee: I think they’re lazy I don’t check their attendance They are in their fourth or fifth year here so maybe they think English isn’t really important now Interviewer: Do you think the level of the course is too high for them? Interviewee: Just a bit difficult for them Generally it’s not too difficult for them except some exercises I think some exercises are not suitable especially some listening tasks I always have to give them the listening tasks outside the book Interviewer: Do they like your extra material 152 Interviewee: They don’t show their feelings They just the exercises because they have to Interviewer: I see With only five students in class, what activities you often conduct? Interviewee: It’s really hard to have pair work or group work so normally I ask them to work individually For example, they take turn to correct the exercise orally Interviewer: I see What you think about our book Outcomes? Interviewee: The display looks beautiful The contents are quite relevant However, it’s not as good as the previous course book, New Cutting Edge The contents are not as organized Outcomes is a new book so it has some mistakes in spelling and grammar Interviewer: I got it Do you give them any bonuses? Interviewee: When they have the correct answers, I always give them some compliments, such as “good”, “very good” Of course, it cannot be too much I only give them bonuses when they voluntarily go to the board and correct the exercises If they have wrong answers, it’s ok Interviewer: Thank you so much for sharing 153 ... integrative motivation and instrumental motivation are important in language learning In his study, the finding showed that the international students living in America were learning English for academic... concepts, intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation, to investigate the types of learner motivation in this study Besides the types of learner motivation, the motivation factors also get great attention... straightforward qualities of possitive feedback : Appropriate motivational feedback can have a gratifying function, that is, by offering praise it can increase learner satisfaction and lift the