Nghiên cứu tình huống về động lực học tập ngôn ngữ thứ hai của sinh viên khiếm thị tại một trường đại học trên địa bàn hà nội​

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES NGÔ PHƯƠNG THANH SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING MOTIVATION: A CASE STUDY OF STUDENTS WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT AT A UNIVERSITY IN HANOI (Nghiên cứu tình động lực học tập ngôn ngữ thứ hai sinh viên khiếm thị trường Đại học địa bàn Hà Nội) MA THESIS – TYPE Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231.01 HANOI – 2020 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST GRADUATE STUDIES NGÔ PHƯƠNG THANH SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING MOTIVATION: A CASE STUDY OF STUDENTS WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT AT A UINVERSITY IN HANOI (Nghiên cứu tình động lực học tập ngôn ngữ thứ hai sinh viên khiếm thị trường Đại học địa bàn Hà Nội) MA THESIS – TYPE Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231.01 Supervisor: Dr Mai Ngoc Khoi HANOI – 2020 DECLARATION I hereby state that the paper is the result of my own work in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Art of Faculty at Postgraduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University of Hanoi This research has not been submitted to any other universities or intuitions In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper Signature Ngo Phuong Thanh November 23, 2019 i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I am much honored to be supervised by Mr Mai Ngoc Khoi, to whom I would like to send my deepest gratitude It is him who gave me the confidence to work on visual impairment students – the subject that brought me a lot of inspiration I am too lucky to have you as my mentor It is obvious that without your all-around supervision and guidance, this thesis could not be finished In addition, all my heart is dedicated to my parents, who have been standing by my side, giving me tender care and support to tirelessly work on this paper Without you – my source of motivation, I would never have enough courage to finish the research Moreover, many thanks should go to my boy friend Mr Truong Hoang Long for his continuous encouragement I fully appreciate your advice when I got lost with my thesis Besides, I would like to thank my class classmates for being my motivation to complete this paper Last but not least, the research is dedicated to me myself – the brave strong girl who have gone through many struggles and constantly tried hard on this road I deserve to be proud of myself ii ABSTRACT The purpose of this work is to explore the motivation of students with visual impairment through their longitudinal L2 learning journey To this end, the research was conducted with two Vietnamese sightless learners at a University in Hanoi The students‘ language learning autobiography and semi-structured interview were employed to collect data Three findings emerged from the data analysis Firstly, sightless students had clear goals for learning English such as to get an English – related job, to communicate with other L2 speakers or to enhance knowledge Secondly,their motivated learning behaviours were impacted by L2 learning experiences Thirdly,they recognized learning difficulties as a source of motivation Based on the findings, the thesis strongly suggests that parents and teachers should empower sightless students to have a dream and shape their future L2 self by providing them with a supportive and comfortable learning environment iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Motivation 2.1.1 Definitions of Motivation 2.1.2 Definition of L2 Motivation 2.2 Previous Research on Motivation and L2 Motivation 2.2.1 The History of Motivation Research 2.2.2 Traditional Approaches to L2 Learning Motivation 10 2.2.3 The L2 Motivation Revolution in the 1990s 12 2.2.4 Recent L2 Motivational Theories & The L2 Motivational Self System 16 2.3 Visual Impairment 20 2.4 Previous Research on L2 Motivation of Impaired Students 21 2.5 Previous Research on the Education of Visually Impaired Students in Vietnam 22 2.6 Research Gap 23 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 24 3.1 Research methodology 24 3.2 The setting of the study and participants 25 3.3 Data collection instruments and procedures 27 3.3.1 Language learning autobiographies 28 3.3.2 Interview 29 3.4 Data analysis methods 29 3.5 The Portrait of Participants 30 Summary 34 iv CHAP 4: FINGDINGS 35 4.1 Rationales for L2 learning 35 4.2 L2 learning experiences 43 4.3 L2 learning difficulties 48 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS & DISCUSSION 55 Conclusion 55 Conclusion 58 Conclusion 59 IMPLICATIONS 60 REFERENCES 64 APPENDICES I Appendix A I Appendix B V Appendix C VI Appendix D XIX Appendix D XXXII v CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION Rationales for the study 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 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 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 Statement of research questions The research was conducted to seek the answers for the following question: What factors affect second language learning motivation of visually impaired students? 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 Scope of the study 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 Methods of the study 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 Significance of the study 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 it took me a long time to listen to what computer spoke 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 score in my Reading I: I: Who is the most influential person to you as a language learner? Q: Perhaps it‘s Huong who is a blind like me She has helped me a lot I: Specifically, how did she affect you? H: For example, when I was attending an English club for visually impaired people, she supported and helped us to practice pronunciation other skills When I got mistakes, she commented in very detailed, enthusiastic way Moreover, she orientated us what we should when reading, writing and speaking English I: Among the people who helped you, how did it affect your English learning? H: For the first time, I thought that my Reading skill was so obsessive and difficult; even I could not it Then, she told me that I should not think it was hard, just think I could it and it in another way As a result, she taught me how to use the software to adjust the speed to become slower and to read each line and each sentence Thanks to that method, I also got better at doing Reading exercises I: Which personal factors had a strongest influence on your English learning? H: The strongest factor is my family, because there are two siblings who are visually impaired in my family I totally understood the difficulties of the visually impaired people while studying, working and doing daily activities Therefore, I want to know English so that I can learn foreign materials to help them I: Regarding your visual impairment, how does it affect your English learning, particularly your learning experiences? H: We see the document problem makes a biggest impact on us because we all use the soft copy documents However, sometimes, there are some books XXVIII without soft copy 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 not have the opportunity and the conditions to reach them I: What about motivation for learning? H: In terms of motivation to study, I think that there are many opportunities for people who can see If they not learn this, they can some other things In my opinion, I cannot look, so I should try to focus well on one field; as a result, the opportunity will come to me I: That you cannot see is your motivation or makes you demotivated? H: I think that my visual impairment is one reason for me to try my best I: How you feel about your English teachers at school now, especially in English? H: I feel that all teachers at school are very friendly and enthusiastic Sometimes, I had some difficulties and asked teachers about those, and they answered in very enthusiastic way However, maybe teachers still not understand all of our troubles Besides, it is partly our faults because we are not very active in telling the teacher how to help us or how we need help, as we sometimes feel shy to it If we ask, teachers will create the most favorable conditions for us I: So you see that teachers make you feel more motivated, more inspirational in learning? H: Yes, when the teacher came to the classroom in the first lesson, the teacher came to me, asked what my methods of studying are, and asked me to send email to teachers if I need their support They will support as much as possible When examining, the teacher prepared the soft copy for us in a very thoughtful way I: H: Are there any teachers who make you feel inspired? Actually, Ms Hang teaching 1B subject inspired me the most when I am learning The most favorite thing of mine is her confidence and dynamism While studying, she always thinks of games, specific situations, gives us the comfortable XXIX learning environment We never feel bored because she always tries to link what she teaches with reality I: any Do you feel demotivated when you study in any classroom or with teacher? H: No, I always feel happy and interested in lessons when going to classroom I: H: How you feel about your classmates? My classmates are enthusiastic In the beginning, when I was new student of the class, they did not get familiar to my appearance, but they actively asked me how I studied like this Somedays, I did not go to school, they texted me to ask if I need them to come and read the documents, need any help, need them to type anything, or need to ask them anything I: H: Are they going to become one of motivation for you? Yes, when I started studying at university, I felt panic, as I heard some reviews of people that university environment is very bored and different with high school However, when I am studying here, I feel different Because some university divides into the credit classes, not study in the normal class, so they feel in that way I still feel the same at my school 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 I: Do you have any expectations about your English learning environment? Which environment 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 XXX I: Which difficulties are you afraid to share with your teacher? H: For example, sometimes, there are some books and PDF file that we cannot read When we go to school, the teachers check the exercises and call us to fix them I wanted to tell teachers that this file was image file, and we 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 XXXI Appendix D Table of Coded Transcript ait Participants XXXII Rati onales for Learning XXXIII Excerpt 13: Ha’s interview 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 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 not change my intention until now because I gave careful consideration Excerpt 18: Ha’s language learning autobiography my temporarily interrupted since I lived far away from my cousin‘s house, and my primary school did not set English as a compulsory subject in the first years When restarting, I had weekly tutorial classes at home besides classes at school From that time on, learning for communication partly made room for exam purpose Passing all exams with excellent results was both my parents‘ requirements ambition It was about years that English Excerpt 19: Ha’s interview I: What is the biggest activities Therefore, I want to motivation helping you overcome know English so that I can learn obstacles in studying? H: I want to prove my abilities to somebody who undervalued me They will know XXXIV that people like me can things that ordinary people Despite our bodies‘ defects, we are second to none ordinary people And I think that if I try, I can get equal opportunities like others Excerpt 20: Ha’s language learning autobiography My strong effort seemingly originates from my aspirations to express myself I believe that I am able to whatever others can, but in another method […]I think it can be the response to those who were once afraid that I would drop the courses early due to their difficulty It is actually necessary to give thank to this unwanted external motivation because it has strengthened my determination Excerpt 21: Ha’s language learning autobiography I soon realize the advantages of learning English, so I am more prefer it and decide to learn, pursue and identify myself with it for a long term Excerpt 22: Ha’s language learning autobiography My lower secondary school was frequently visited by foreign guesses, and I was chosen to be one of the representatives welcoming them Unless my English had been good, I could not have communicated with those guesses without language assistants Excerpt 23: Ha’s interview I: In the future, you have a dream to communicate with many other foreigners? H: Yes, of course XXXV Lear ning Experience XXXVI language high school I: As a language learner, when writing, when speaking, who has the biggest impact on when messaging, when we met your English learning? H: As I mentioned before, becomes a habit, and I also it's my tutor Maybe it is not would prefer to speak English entirely because he had something special, but he had different teaching style Before, my English teacher was very strict and just focused on vocabulary and grammar I: When you were taught by her, were you afraid of learning English? H: I was not afraid of English, but I was afraid of her She annoyed when I was wrong or did exercise a little slow I: Did the fear of the stressful and full of pressure or teacher make you mind learning problems such as those who are English? the classroom more comfortable Excerpt 34: Ha’s interview If concerned, XXXVII Lear ning Difficulties H: Actually, it does not since 2009 At that time, it was affect very much It just causes not so easy for blind students to that I cannot read the material approach with this subject easily, so the sources of material I Because there was no many can approach is less For example, ordinary people can buy books to read easily, but I have to use computer resources Hence, the sources of documents are not various Excerpt 39: Ha’s interview Almost while 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 Excerpt 40: Ha’s interview I: How you solve if you However, sometimes, there are cannot read the documents in some books without soft copies class? H: At secondary school, it file is the image file, so we XXXVIII 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 the especially reading exercise I'm afraid of this skill, and the results I achieve in Reading is not really good in contest was not possible My teacher told me that she wanted me to take part in English excellent student contest, but I could not paper-based exams Besides, there is no Braille exam paper for me, so I could not participate in the contest I just only took part in Literature exams I see that it is a slight disadvantage Excerpt 42: Ha’s interview I also determine that I have disadvantage in Excerpt 44: Ha’s interview My opportunity to take part English Excerpt 45: Ha’s interview I: As far as I know, you very easy because they just need want to become an English to look and skim through to find teacher in the future Have you the keywords Nevertheless, I imaged your dream? H: Not yet, because it is justmy dream.Ourjob opportunities are very few, so I am not bold enough to image about my future XXXIX 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 Excerpt 46: Hang’s interview H: In terms of motivation to study, I think that there are many opportunities for people who can see If they not learn this, they can some other things In my opinion, I cannot see, so I should try to focus well on one field; as a result, the opportunity will come to me I: That you cannot see is your motivation or makes you demotivated? H: I think that my visual impairment is one reason for me to try my best Excerpt 47: Hang’s learning autobiography Later when I was in high school, I came across a very sad story However, because of that, I was strongly motivated to learn English In an English lesson, when I was sitting, suddenly my English teacher came over and told me that during her lessons, I could sleep or did anything I wanted as long as I did not make noise and affected the other students When the class had speaking tests, the teacher only XL asked me simple questions such as ―What your name?‖, ―How are you?‖… This behavior made me feel hurt and sad I talked to myself that I was just blind; I had no problem with my mind For that reason, I should not be discriminated and disrespected like that Hence, I was determined to strive to learn English I just wanted to prove myself XLI ... WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENT AT A UINVERSITY IN HANOI (Nghiên cứu tình động lực học tập ngôn ngữ thứ hai sinh viên khiếm thị trường Đại học địa bàn Hà Nội) MA THESIS – TYPE Field: English Teaching... studies of the education of visually impaired children in Vietnam The research Đại Cương Về Giáo Dục Trẻ Khiếm Thịhas a 22 detail and sufficient presentation of the sighted and education (Tran,