论学习动机对外语学习的影响.doc

19大理学院毕业设计（论文）论外语学习中学习动机的影响On Effects of Learners Motivation in Foreign Language Learning学 院： 外国语学院 专 业： 英语 年级班级： 08级英本4班 学生学号： 2008123419 学生姓名： 汪月涵 指导教师： 朱锦轩 起止日期： 2011.8.15一 2012.3.20 制表日期： 2011 年 11 月 20 日On Effects of Learners Motivation in Foreign Language LearningYang YueEnglish 2008-4Zhu Lin (Associate Professor)August 15, 2011摘 要外语学习作为学习者的一种认识活动，是智力因素和非智力因素共同参与并相互作用的过程。学习动机是教育心理学中的一个重要概念，也是近年来教育心理学领域研究的热点问题之一。学习动机的形成不仅受学生情感特征、个人特征等主观因素的影响，也受家庭、社会和学校教育等客观因素的影响。本选题基于教育心理学理论，依据教学现状,重点探讨外语学习动机的涵义、作用以及课堂教学特定情境中的动机状况和分类,分析影响外语学习动机的因素；结合国内英语教学的特点，探讨英语教师的教学行为与学习者英语学习动机的关系，提出激发学习者学习动机的相关策略，以此提高学习者的积极性，提高外语学习及教学效率。关键词：外语学习；学习动机；影响因素；激发策略AbstractForeign language learning as a kind of learners understanding activity is the process of mental factors and non-intellectual factors participate commonly and affect each other. Learning motivation is an important concept of psychology and education, and is also the hot issue in the field of study in recent years. Its forming is not merely influenced by some subjective factors (learners emotional characteristics, individual characteristics, etc), but also influenced by some objective factors (an education in family, society and school). This essay is based on education and psychology theory. According to the teaching situation, aims at discussing the definition of foreign language learning motivation, function and classification of specific situation in class teaching, and analyze the affecting factors. Combined with the characteristics of English teaching, it focuses on the relationship between English teachers teaching behavior and learners learning motivation, and puts forward the related strategies of stimulating the learners learning motivation and optimizing the classroom teaching, so as to improve the learners enthusiasm and foreign language learning and teaching efficiency.Key words: Foreign language learning；Learning motivation；Affecting factors；Stimulating strategiesContentsIntroduction.11. Motivation overview.21.1 Definitions of Motivation. .21.2 Classification of Motivation.31.2.1 Instrumental and Integrative Motivation.41.2.2 Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivation.61.3 Functions of Motivation.71.3.1 Stimulation .71.3.2 Direction .71.3.3 Reinforcement .72. Factors affecting Motivation.82.1 Subjective factors 82.1.1 Self cognitive and Successful stimulation.82.1.2 Target factors. .92.1.3 Emotional factors92.2 Objective factors.102.2.1 Teacher. .102.2.2 Learning community.112.2.3 Family and Social factors113. Strategies stimulating Motivation.113.1 Enhancing the goal awareness123.2 Fostering curiosity and interest.123.3 Giving timely feedback and reasonable evaluation.143.4 Applying of reward and punishment appropriately.143.5 Removing constraints.153.6 Paying attention to optimize teaching environment.15Conclusion .16Notes .18Bibliography. 19Acknowledgements. IntroductionSince the 1970s, foreign language teaching research focus has transferred from teaching methodology to the difference of the study. Learning motivation is one of the most dynamic individual factors in language learning. It has attracted much attention of researchers and education workers. One of the researches based on Gardner social psychology, is a dominant model in foreign language learning motivation research. The foreign language learning motivation researches mainly refer the theoretical framework of the mainstream motivation psychology, and they pay more attention to the context of the union with school foreign language education. Studies have shown that, the more clearly of learners learning motivation, the more intense, the higher learners enthusiasm, the harder learners will study. Learning motivation is such an important factor, does not only affecting the learning efficiency but also its one of the most important targets of school education.There has been a great deal of researches on the role of motivation in foreign language learning. Motivation in foreign language learning is a complicated phenomenon which can be defined in terms of two factors: learners communicative needs and their attitudes towards the foreign language community. “Motivation is regarded as one of the most important variables affecting learners performance of English, which is widely concerned by foreign language learners and teachers for a long time.” 1 The research of motivation is very important in foreign language teaching. Teachers can not effectively arouse learners motivation and improve their teaching effects until they know what motivational factors influence learners language learning achievement and understand learners internal and external needs. Motivation is one of the most appealing, complex variables used to explain individual differences in language learning. By the 1990s Gardners motivation had overwhelming dominance in second language motivation research. Gardner and Lambert (1959) focus on “both integrative and instrumental motivations in second language learning.” 2In education practice, people gradually found that learners academic achievements, not only need learners intelligence but also the correct and appropriate learning motivation. Learners are the main body of teaching activities, whether learners actively participate in learning activities, and achieve good results, are closely related to their learning motivation. Research shows that only when learners have a good learning motivation, when their cognitive powers and emotion are put into teaching, can they achieve self-knowledge, independence to study, to optimize the best teaching effect. So in teaching, we should make learners combine short-term goal with the broad ideal close together to form the best learning motivation. Only in this way can learners give full play to initiative of ones own study, can they learn consciously, voluntarily, persistently. Based on this consideration, this essay studies the present situation and the development trend of the change of learners in foreign language learning motivation, it will focus the discussion on the function, the influence factors of motivation to encourage and train learners learning motivation, and puts forward some inspiring strategies so that to provide necessary basis.1. Motivation overview 1.1 Definition of motivationThe word “Motivation” comes from Latin word Mover, namely the meaning of “push”. Later, the researchers mostly based on this intention to explain about motivation. Some people thought that motivation is the dynamical reason to promote and sustain human activities psychological. This definition emphasized the role of motivation and the essence, but did not show the causes of motivation; also someone pointed that motivation is a push power, the dynamic behavior to achieve certain goals. This definition emphasized the substantial contacts of the need and motivation, but ignored the function of the target; and still others thought motivation is individuals make their own intrinsic demands (such as instincts, needs, drives, etc) harmony with behavior of the external incentives (such as targets, rewards and punishments, etc.), so as to form the power factor to coordinate motivating, maintain behavior. This definition reveals the external and internal mechanism of motivation production, and explains the role and the essence of the motivation. Psychologists think: people doing any activity have a certain motivation reason. Learning motivation is caused by the need of study, a psychology inclination and attitude towards the study goal. It aims at revealing people, whether they want to learn, what to learn, why to learn and how much effort they are willing to make. Foreign language learning motivation is one of the human behavior motivation, and it suggests a strong desire and thirst for knowledge of foreign language learning. It is an internal power that directly promotes foreign language learning, it is a kind of initiative and positive psychological state of foreign language learners in foreign language learning activities. “Motivation energizes, sustains, and directs behavior towards a goal,” which is the dynamically cumulative factor. 3 Some psychologists perceive that motivation is some kind of internal drive which encourages people to pursue a course of action, such as, the motivation of shopping, the motivation of hunting a job, etc. Concretely speaking, motivation is what moves us from boredom to interest. It is something like the engine and steering wheel of an automobile. There are different views on the definition of motivation. According to Gardner, motivation consists of four aspects: a goal, effortful behavior, a desire to attain the goal and favorable attitudes towards the activity in question. Gardner defines motivation to learn the foreign language as “the extent to which the individual works or strives to learn the language because of a desire to do so and the satisfaction experienced in this activity.” 4 Brown defines motivation as such: “motivation is commonly thought of as an inner drive, impulse, emotion, or desire that moves one to a particular action.” 5 On the whole, “Motivation is defined as the learners orientation with regard to the goal of learning a second language.” 6 Researchers have found a strong, positive correlation between motivation and achievement. 1.2 Classifications of MotivationIf learners have motivation to study foreign language, its effect will be good, if not, they often regard foreign language learning as a kind of burden, the effect is not well. Different society and education have different requirements for foreign language learners, so motivation reflected in the minds of foreign language learners is different. There are many kinds of classification of motivation, such as, the integrative and the instrumental, the intrinsic and the extrinsic, etc.1.2.1 Integrative and Instrumental MotivationGardner and Lambert focus on both integrative and instrumental motivations in second language learning based on social linguistic. Learners with high integrative motivation tend to be interested in learning a foreign language, in order to make friends with other speakers and travel where the particular language is spoken. Learners with higher Instrumental orientation tend to pay more attention on education and career. They study the foreign language in order to do well on tests, job selection and professional achievement (Gardner and Lambert, 1959). 7 Brown (2000) makes the point that both integrative and instrumental motivation is not necessarily mutually exclusive. 8 Learners rarely select one form of motivation when learning a foreign language, but rather a combination of both orientations. He cites the example of international learners resided in the United States, they learn English for academic purposes, at the same time, and they wish to become integrated with the people and culture of the country.Integrative motivation is characterized by the learners positive attitudes towards the target language group and the desire to integrate into the target language community. They not only want to learn the language, but also the native culture and life styles, etc. People may choose to learn English because they are interested in the people and culture represented by the second speaking group. Up to now, “dumb English” is a common phenomenon among English language learners. English language learning is a combination of listening, speaking, reading and writing, because of such kind of certificate motivation, learners often pay great attention to reading, but ignore the competence cultivation of listening, writing, speaking, etc. Communicative teaching method follows the discipline of student-centered rather than teacher-centered, which aims at reducing the time of teachers monologue.However, instrumental motivation refers to language learning for more immediate or practical goals. It is also called “task-oriented motivation” or “certificate motivation”. Instrumental motivation underlies the goal to gain some social or economic reward through second language learning achievement, thus referring to a more functional reason for language learning. With instrumental motivation the purpose of language acquisition is more utilitarian, such as meeting the requirements for school or university graduation, applying for a job, requesting higher pay based on language ability, reading technical material, translation work or achieving higher social status. They are motivated to learn a second language because it opens up educational and economic opportunities for them. While either integrative or instrumental motivation is essential element of success, it is integrative motivation which has been found to maintain long-term success when learning a second language. But nowadays the importance of instrumental motivation is also stressed especially for Chinese. It is remarked that integrative and instrumental motivation are not necessarily mutually exclusive, whereas integrative motivation is continually linked to successful second language acquisition. Both two forms of motivation are examined in light of research which has been undertaken to establish the correlation between the form of motivation and successful second language acquisition. In conclusion, integrative motivation has been shown to be strongly related to foreign language achievement. It serves as a powerful factor of success combining with instrumental motivation. Teachers should be able to identify both the types and the combination of motivation that assist in the successful acquisition of foreign language. In later studies, integrative motivation has continued to be emphasized, although now the importance of instrumental motivation is also stressed. However, it is important to note that instrumental motivation has only been acknowledged as a significant factor in some research, whereas integrative motivation is continually linked to successful second language acquisition. It has been found that generally learners select instrumental motivation more frequently than integrative motivation for the study of language. Those who do support an integrative approach to language study are usually more highly motivated and more successful in language learning.1.2.2 Intrinsic and Extrinsic motivationDeci and Ryan (2000) focus on both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation based on psychology linguistic. “Intrinsic motivation is the motivation to be involved in an activity for its own sake.” 9 Intrinsic motivation is also called self-motivation, because the feeling of competence and self-determination are significant factors of intrinsic motivation. If a person performs behavior for its own sake rather than for rewards or outcomes the behavior might produce, then this person is intrinsically motivated. People are intrinsically motivated not because accomplishing the activity they do brings a reward, but because doing the activity itself is a reward.By contrast, “Extrinsic motivation is characterized as the motivation to engage in an activity as a means to an end.” 10 Extrinsically motivated learners may study hard for a test because they believe studying will lead to high test scores, teacher compliments or some other. Extrinsic rewards are encouraged by outside force, which comes from the desire to get a reward or avoid punishment. “Although we tend to think of extrinsic and intrinsic motivation as two ends of a continuum (meaning the higher the extrinsic motivation, the lower the intrinsic motivation and vice versa), they are actually on separate continua.” 11About how to train and stimulate the foreign language learners intrinsic motivation, Oxford (1990) has put forward the following Suggestions: Help foreign language learners learn to build personal goals. Encourage learners to get self satisfaction through get good grades. Do not give learners too much external rewards. Provide convenience for the involvement in some teaching to make decision. Create cooperation learning opportunities. Make the learners participate into their interests based on the essential contents and pay their attention on language meaning and learning purpose, not verbs and prepositional (vocabularies, etc.). 12Extrinsic and intrinsic motivation also varies from the situation and time. Research shows that intrinsically motivated learners achieve higher than those who are only extrinsically motivated. Ideally, learners will be intrinsically motivated. Teachers are important in promoting intrinsic motivation and need to take effective measures to sustain learners intrinsic motivation.1.3 Functions of MotivationLearning motivation is the internal power and strength, which encourage people to act for a certain purpose. A persons motivation is always closely related to his satisfaction with his needs. The correct learning motivation which is trained and excited during educat