Demotivating Factors among Undergraduate Distance English Learners: A Chinese Case Study

Abstract

This study explores demotivating factors for undergraduate English majors in a Chinese university in the context of distance courses during the COVID-19 lockdown. Delving into students' reflection in this unusual period through in-depth interviews, a qualitative analysis of what demotivates students is provided, as well as a comparison of the findings with those obtained in earlier studies conducted in traditional classrooms. In all, ten students participated in the study and provided their insights. The interviews were transcribed and coded following established qualitative research methods. It is shown that in the context of distance education, the lack of learning strategies demotivated students the most, followed by teacher-related factors, learning environment, technical problems, and peer influences. The lack of self-regulation was pinpointed as the largest demotivator, trailed by teacher-student interactions in class, inappropriate institutional management, long screen time, and negative peer influences. Supporting previous results, this study found that self-related and teacher-related factors impacted demotivation, but in this research they had different weightings, such as the lack of self-regulation which was more powerful than previously documented. Technical problems, such as the long screen time, were related to inappropriate institutional arrangements, and this also diverged from previous findings. These findings may prove a springboard to future discussion on blends of traditional and nontraditional language education, with possible effects on student demotivation at the forefront.

Perspectivas de los docentes y del alumnado universitario sobre los factores que influyen durante el aprendizaje del inglés como lengua extranjera

“…En esta línea, en situaciones donde la motivación extrínseca es insuficiente, como podría ocurrir en casos de ansiedad o baja autoestima para poner en práctica las competencias orales (Foncubierta et al, 2018), el ambiente en el aula y el estilo de enseñanza desempeñan un papel crucial para fomentar la motivación intrínseca (Liu, 2022), la cual se vincula con resultados positivos en los niveles de interés y autonomía durante el aprendizaje de idiomas (Jiménez, 2018). En este escenario, la responsabilidad de analizar el contexto de enseñanza-aprendizaje y proponer estrategias innovadoras que faciliten el desarrollo de las habilidades necesarias para alcanzar el éxito en la adquisición del idioma recae en el profesorado (Real et al, 2020).…”