This study examined the motivation to learn English of Indonesian junior high school pupils, 13-14 years of age, in three distinct contexts: a metropolitan city, a provincial town, and a rural district. Utilizing Dörnyei's second language (L2) Motivational Self System as the theoretical framework, this study employed a 50-item questionnaire to sample the views of 527 learners, and a C-test to measure their current proficiency in English. Motivation was found to be similar in strength and character in the two urban settings but significantly different in the rural setting. A positive view of the experience of learning English was the strongest predictor of both motivated learning behavior and L2 proficiency, whereas the Ideal L2 self was only a significant factor among the metropolitan group.
This article reports on research into the motivation of Indonesian children aged 11-12 years old, as they begin formal study of English in an urban junior high school. The research used closed and open questionnaire items, backed up by class observations and interviews with a selected group of learners. Very high levels of motivation to learn the language were found throughout the cohort, including both integrative and instrumental orientations, but these two traditionally distinct constructs were found to be almost indistinguishable. The article argues that as English loses its association with particular Anglophone cultures and is instead identified with the powerful forces of globalization, the desire to 'integrate' loses its explanatory power in many EFL contexts. Individuals may aspire towards a 'bicultural' identity which incorporates an English-speaking globally-involved version of themselves in addition to their local L1-speaking self. It is speculated that changes in individuals' motivation to learn the language may therefore be partly explained by reference to ongoing processes of identification, especially during the formative years of adolescence.
Motivation is recognized as a vital component in successful second language learning, and has been the subject of intensive research in recent decades. This review focuses on a growing branch of this research effort, that which examines the motivational effects of language teaching. This is pertinent because, despite enhanced mobility and expanding access to foreign languages online, most learners' early encounters with the second language (L2) still take place in classrooms, and these encounters may shape attitudes and determine students' willingness to invest further in the L2. Four main types of research are reviewed: first, that which deliberately seeks to identify and evaluate strategies to motivate L2 learners; second, that which has tested the validity of psychological theories of motivation by applying their precepts in L2 classrooms; third, that which assesses the motivational effects of a pedagogical innovation or intervention; fourth, research on what has been too often the unintended outcome of language education, namely learner demotivation. The review highlights the complexity of the relationship between teaching and learner motivation but an attempt is made to articulate some emerging verities and to point towards the most promising avenues for future research.
There is much evidence that, in general, learners' motivation to study declines as they move through school and that the causes are both developmental and environmental. By contrast, the attitudinal basis of language learning motivation has been regarded as relatively stable, though recent empirical studies in various countries have also pointed toward a fall-off in interest and enthusiasm for foreign languages among pupils. This article reports on research into the motivation of Indonesian adolescents toward learning English over the first 20 months of junior high school. Using a mixed-method design, the study aimed to track changes in their reported motivation and learning activity and to identify internal and external factors which might be associated with the changes. It was found that the learners' initially very positive attitudes toward the language and expectations of success were maintained over the period, whereas their attitudes toward the experience of formal learning tended to deteriorate. Explanations for these outcomes are sought in the social context and, in particular, in how individuals view English as pertaining to their futures.
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