Motivation and Ways to Motivate Students of Middle School

云南省昭通市昭阳区一中 朱洪琼

Motivation and Ways to Motivate Students of Middle School

云南省昭通市昭阳区一中 朱洪琼

Motivation is critical in English learning of middle school,thus,how to effectively motivate students in English learning is an important problem.This study intends to find ways to motivate students of middle school.Self-report data were collected from 45 students in The Experiment Middle School Attached to Yunnan Normal University by using a close-ended questionnaire.

Motivation middle school

1.Introduction

The problem of learning English effectively always haunts the motivation of students.Those students who have different motivations often get different achievement in English learning.The majority top students always have strong intrinsic motivation while some students can’t study English well just because of lack of motivation,even on motivation.And some personal factors in motivation also play an important role in English leaning of middle school.

Therefore,my purpose of this study is to explain intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and their relations in English learning of middle school,hoping to find several effective ways to motivate students in English learning.Four research questions are raised for this purpose:

Q1:What are intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and their relations?

Q2:What are the problems for students’motivation in English study of middle school?

Q3:How do the problems affect their motivations?

Q4:What can be done to enhance students’motivation in English study of middle school?

2.Discussion

There was a general convergence between the results of questionnaire and interviews.Now that,the answers will be discussed in regard to the three research questions mentioned above.

2.1 What are intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and their relations?

Motivation can be described in many types and the main broad categories are intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.Intrinsic motivation is a response to needs that exist within the learner,such as curiosity,the need to know,and feelings of competence or growth.This has a great value and importance in learning,for the inward interest makes them self-starting and self-perpetuating and can keep the motivational machinery going for a long time.In contrast,extrinsic motivation is as an outward force in the form of expectation,praise and rewards powers students in English learning.It exists when individuals are motivated by an outcome that is external or functionally unrelated to the activity in which they are engaged.Both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations are important,Sometimes,a good grade,the threat of failing and praise move students from an inactive to an active state.

2.2 What are the problems for students’motivation in English study of middle school?

2.2.1.Lack of purpose for learning

From the result of questionnaires,we found that the purpose of the majority of students in learning English is just for a good job,passing exams,a few of them even haven’t purpose of learning English.Some students Learn English just for get/avoid teacher’s praise/punishment..From the interview one,some students learn English just for it is required by school,parents and every student learn it.Some learn it in order to go to high school and college and passing the examinations.

2.2.2 Lack of interest for learning

We know some students have no or little interest in English learning,a strong point was found in the interview 1 that students can’t learn well for lake of interest.

2.2.3 Lack of need

A need is the lack of something necessary or desirable.But some students don’t know whether they need learn English or not which can decrease their motivation of learning.In the interview 2,the girl can learn English well;she needs to learn it for future as an interpreter.But the boy in interview 1 who thinks it is useless to learn English for his future,which becomes the barrier in his study.

In short,it is clear that many students can’t learn English well because they lack motivation or their moti-vation is not so strong.

2.2.4.Lack of self-confidence

In contrast to the top students,some students think it is difficult to learn English and doubt their own capacity for learning English.

2.3 How do the problems affect their motivation?

The problems caused by different factors and they have some effects on students’motivation.

2.3.1 Study purpose

Students’purpose influence their motivation and effort in English learning.With learning goal,students study purposefully and throw great effort into English learning.They are concerned about mastering of language and accomplishing tasks and not worried about failure or comparison to others.

2.3.2 Personal self-confidence

Personal factor affects people’s motivation is their beliefs.An optimistic belief about one’s ability in English learning can help students increase their motivation.In incremental view of the beliefs about ability,human can hold the beliefs that ability can be improved with effort.they have an optimistic view of their ability to a certain extend which cause their self-confident originally.

2.3.3 Needs

The need for achievement drives students to fulfill their goals.Students with a high need for achievement tend to be motivated by challenging assignments,high grading standards,explicit feedback,and the opportunity to try again.In contrast,students with a need to avoid failure avoid challenging tasks and experience anxiety in testing situation.Being aware of these differences can help teachers respond to different students with different needs and as a result,teach all students more effectively...

2.4.What can be done to enhance students’motivation in English study of middle school?

2.4.1 Helping students to know their purpose for learning English.

We should help students to know the value of learning English in an all-round way;they will try their best to learn it only when they are aware of the value of the English.It is effective to help students set realistic and appropriate purpose in motivating them in learning.It is necessary to help student to set a lofty-ideals and right belief.English teachers are organizers or leaders in teaching.They have responsibility to teach students in this aspect and push the students’learning behavior by combining the text book.

2.4.2 Making extrinsic motivation change into intrinsic motivation

Extrinsic—motivated students need to be refueled by outward energy such as teachers’high expectations,praise and some rewards.Research demonstrates that teacherexpectationsinfluence studentachievement—higher expectation can yield better performance from students.“I know that you can all solve these problems if you work at it.Now get started and I’ll help you if you run into some problems.”This can increase their intrinsic motivation.Teachers should provide opportunities for students to experience success in learning.Success tends to encourage students to raise their level of aspiration and make extrinsic motivation change into intrinsic motivation.

2.4.3 Using various and interesting activities to develop their interest.

It is effective to apply various and interesting activities to attract students to arouse their curiosity in English learning in view of intrinsic motivation.Language learning is a little different from other subjects that it need students to develop roundly in four skills of listening,speaking,and reading and writing by remembering plenty of work,sentences and grammar,practicing and speaking more in class.Students think they are boring,only let them realize that English learning can be interesting and fun with their involvement in what is the key to maintaining motivation throughout a lesson.

2.4.4 Knowing and meeting the needs of students.

It can improve the motivation for learning English by knowing and meeting the needs of students.We can know the need of students,especially the mental needs by observation,investigation,and talking to one by one.And help them solve the problems.

Maybe,there are many other ways to improving the motivation of learning English,but the most important is initiating students’intrinsic motivation.

3.Conclusion

In conclusion,motivation is very important and the ways to motivate students in English learning is more important to English learning.The results of the study indicate there are some problems in students’English study of middle school.As a teacher,it is essential to acquire more knowledge of helping students promote their motivation in English study.

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