UNIT
1
Motivation
and Good Language Learners
A. Definition of Motivation
At almost goes without
saying that good language learners are motivated. Common sense and everyday
experience suggest that the high achievers of this world have motivation, a
word which derives from the Latin verb “movere” meaning to move. Thus, symply define, we say that motivation concerns what
moves a person to make certain choices, to engage in action, and to persist in
action.
Getting a dictionary to
arrive at the definition of motivation is not enough to fully comprehend the
definition of the word and to understand the things that it entails. Human
motivation seems like a very common word, but the truth is, it can get quite
complicated to grasp. In any way, it is something that can be of high value
especially when it comes to success.
Motivation is one of
the factors that are critical in accomplishing a set of goals. There are many
hindrances that can get in the way of achieving these. This is why behavior,
desires, and emotions must be in control to succeed, but how is that possible
if motivation is not even clearly understood ?
Motivation is the
desire that fuels a person to do certain things based on the wants and needs of
a person. If a person wishes to meet these wants and needs, then it
necessitates him to motivate himself so that he can make certain moves. A
person is unique and apart from another so his wants and needs vary greatly
from that of the other. The same is true for the people's levels of motivation.
The
different wants and needs in every person vary in intensity based on the focus,
goals, and the total human psyche of the person. This is why the motivation of
a person is unique despite having similar wants and needs with others.
B. Developing of Motivation
The decision to
increase your motivation is the key to the bringing a greater sense of it for
yourself. This can be done by putting greater focus on the things that you want
to achieve until you actually accomplish them. The stronger your focus is on
the goal, the greater the motivation will be. The truth of the matter is if you
are unable to keep track of your goals, it can be generalized that you do not
really desire to achieve it. Motivation can come naturally, and no amount of
inspirational talk will set you to action if you really are not into taking the
goal seriously. Setting goals that stir positive feelings within you are
important to keep yourself motivated. Once you have found these, focus yourself
on being able to get a hold of them. There will be a lot of distractions so
pick up at a comfortable pace and make things happen. The definition of
motivation involves the total understanding of the self. Receiving rewards is
one reason for being motivated, but beyond that is a set of benefits that are
more valuable than concrete rewards. These can be enhanced work output, more productivity,
better work habits, and an increased of understanding of yourself.
C.
Kinds
of Motivation
If you are trying hard
to finish work so that you could beat the deadline set by your boss, then you
are pushed by extrinsic motivation. On the other hand, if you are working so
hard so that you could develop into a better employee, then that is intrinsic motivation.
Anything that comes from within the individual is considered intrinsic, and the
opposite goes for extrinsic. So, there are two kinds of motivation, they are intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation.
1.
Intrinsic
Motivation
Intrinsic
motivation refers to motivation that is driven by an interest or enjoyment in
the task itself, and exists within the individual rather than relying on
external pressures or a desire for reward. Intrinsic motivation has been
studied since the early 1970s. Students who are intrinsically motivated are
more likely to engage in the task willingly as well as work to improve their
skills, which will increase their capabilities. Students are likely to be
intrinsically motivated if they :
a.
attribute their educational results to factors
under their own control, also known as autonomy.
b.
believe they have the skills to be effective agents
in reaching their desired goals, also known as self-efficacy beliefs.
c.
are interested in mastering a topic, not
just in achieving good grades.
2.
Extrinsic
Motivation
Extrinsic
motivation refers to the performance of an activity in order to attain an
outcome, whether or not that activity is also intrinsically motivated.
Extrinsic motivation comes from outside of the individual. Common extrinsic
motivations are rewards (for example money or grades) for showing the desired
behavior, and the threat of punishment following misbehavior. Competition is in
an extrinsic motivator because it encourages the performer to win and to beat
others, not simply to enjoy the intrinsic rewards of the activity. A cheering
crowd and the desire to win a trophy are also extrinsic incentives.
Extrinsic and intrinsic
motivation can also play an important role in learning settings. Some experts
argue that the traditional emphasis on external rewards such as grades, report
cards, and gold stars undermines any existing intrinsic motivation that
students might have. Others suggest that these extrinsic motivators help
students feel more competent in the classroom, thus enhancing intrinsic
motivation.
"A person's
interest often survives when a reward is used neither to bribe nor to control
but to signal a job well done, as in a "most improved player" award.
If a reward boosts your feeling of competence after doing good work, your
enjoyment of the task may increase. Rewards, rightly administered, can motivate
high performance and creativity. And extrinsic rewards (such as scholarships,
admissions, and jobs that often follow good grades) are here to stay,"
explains David G. Meyers in his text Psychology: Eighth Edition in Modules[1].
As you have seen,
extrinsic motivation and intrinsic motivation are both important ways of
driving behavior. In order to comprehend how these can be best utilized, it is
important to understand some of the key differences between the two types of
motivation including the overall impact that each can have on behavior.
D. Components of Motivation
There are three major components to motivation: activation, persistence and intensity. Activation involves the decision to initiate a behavior, such as enrolling in a psychology class. Persistence is the continued effort toward a goal even though obstacles may exist, such as taking more psychology courses in order to earn a degree although it requires a significant investment of time, energy and resources. Finally, intensity can be seen in the concentration and vigor that goes into pursuing a goal. For example, one student might coast by without much effort, while another student will study regularly, participate in discussions and take advantage of research opportunities outside of class.
E.
Motivation for
the Teaching/Learning Situation
Motivation is of
particular interest to educational psychologists
because of the crucial role it plays in student learning. However, the specific
kind of motivation that is studied in the specialized setting of education
differs qualitatively from the more general forms of motivation studied by
psychologists in other fields.
Motivation in education
can have several effects on how students learn and how they behave towards
subject matter. It can :
1. Direct
behavior toward particular goals
2. Lead
to increased effort and energy
3. Increase
initiation of, and persistence in, activities
4. Enhance
cognitive processing
5. Determine
what consequences are reinforcing
6. Lead
to improved performance.
Because students are
not always internally motivated, they sometimes need situated motivation,
which is found in environmental conditions that the teacher creates. If
teachers decided to extrinsically reward productive student behaviors, they may
find it difficult to extricate themselves from that path. Consequently student
dependency on extrinsic rewards represents one of the greatest detractors from
their use in the classroom.
The majority of new
student orientation leaders at colleges and universities recognize that
distinctive needs of students should be considered in regard to orientation
information provided at the beginning of the higher education experience.
Research done by Whyte in 1986 raised the awareness of counselors and educators
in this regard. In 2007, the National Orientation Directors Association
reprinted Cassandra
B. Whyte's research report allowing readers to ascertain
improvements made in addressing specific needs of students over a quarter of a
century later to help with academic success[2].
F. How to Get Motivated
Motivation is literally
the desire to do things. It's the difference between waking up before dawn to
pound the pavement and lazing around the house all day. It's the crucial
element in setting and attaining goals and research shows you can influence
your own levels of motivation and self-control. So figure out what you want,
power through the pain period, and start being who you want to be.
UNIT
2
Age
and Good Language Learners
The issue of age was
first addressed with the critical period hypothesis. The strict version of
this hypothesis states that there is a cut-off age at about 12, after which
learners lose the ability to fully learn a language. This strict version has
since been rejected for second-language acquisition, as adult learners have
been observed who reach native-like levels of pronunciation and general
fluency. However, in general, adult learners of a second-language rarely
achieve the native-like fluency that children display, despite often
progressing faster in the initial stages. This has led to speculation that age
is indirectly related to other, more central factors that affect language
learning.
Health is an important
factor in all learning, and many chronic diseases can affect the ability of the
elderly to learn. Hearing loss affects many people as they age and can affect a
person's ability to understand speech, especially in the presence of background
noise. Visual acuity also decreases with age. (Hearing and vision problems are
not restricted exclusively to the older learner, however.) It is important that
the classroom environment compensate for visual or auditory impairments by
combining audio input with visual presentation of new material, good lighting,
and elimination of outside noise.
A.
The Role of Age in Learning Foreign Languages
If you’ve gone through
puberty already, you’ll no longer be able to speak a foreign language
perfectly.” This and other blanket statements are not the only thing disputed
among brain researchers and linguists. But they agree on one thing: Children
learn languages differently than adults. “Good morning, boys and girls!” For
decades this was how English class started for most fifth graders in Germany.
They were the first bits of vocabulary and basic phrases. For years now,
however, increasing numbers of primary schools in Germany as well as even
Kindergartens and daycare facilities are exposing younger children to their
first foreign language. In order to better prepare toddlers for a multilingual
future, parents, educators and policymakers are rallying support behind the
concept of “the earlier the better” when it comes to learning foreign
languages. But does this necessarily mean that small children in general learn
foreign languages better than adolescents or adults ?.
B.
Are Children Better than Adults at Learning Languages
?
The greatest obstacle
to older adult language learning is the doubt--in the minds of both learner and
teacher--that older adults can learn a new language. Most people assume that
"the younger the better" applies in language learning. However, many
studies have shown that this is not true. Studies comparing the rate of second
language acquisition in children and adults have shown that although children
may have an advantage in achieving native-like fluency in the long run, adults
actually learn languages more quickly than children in the early stages
(Krashen, Long, and Scarcella, 1979)[3].
These studies indicate that attaining a working ability to communicate in a new
language may actually be easier and more rapid for the adult than for the
child.
Studies on aging have
demonstrated that learning ability does not decline with age. If older people
remain healthy, their intellectual abilities and skills do not decline. Adults
learn differently from children, but no age-related differences in learning ability
have been demonstrated for adults of different ages.
C.
The Difference between Children Learning with Adults
Learning
Children often respond
to new languages with curiosity and impartiality while adults increasingly look
to their own learning and life experiences to help them learn the words,
structures and concepts of a foreign language. The result is that children
learn more through games and gestures while adults take a more analytical
approach with stricter rules. Grotjahn thinks that good foreign language
courses should take these various requirements and methods into account. Either
way, whether you are able to sing along with Frère Jaques or La Bamba,
greet the waiter on your vacation in Polish or Turkish, enjoy Chinese
children’s books, or read Russian novels, the joy of learning a foreign
language is something both young and old can experience to equal degrees.
This study examines the
relationship between certain aspects of the second language acquisition process
and age. An oral production test was developed to assess the ability of
nonnative English speaking children to produce standard English morphology and
syntax. The test was administered to approximately 200 children (ages 6–15) who
were learning English as a second language in American public schools. The
results of this testing were used to examine the relationship between age and
1) the rate of acquisition of certain English grammatical structures and 2) the
order of acquisition of these grammatical structures.
The results indicated that
there was some relationship between age and rate of learning. Among children
exposed to English the same amounts of time, the older children scored higher
on the morphology and syntax subtests, whereas the younger children received
higher ratings in phonology. There were, however, no major differences observed
in the order in which children of different ages learned to produce the
structures included in the test. These results suggest that there is a
difference in the rate of learning of English morphology, syntax and phonology
based upon differences in age, but that the order of acquisition in second
language learning does not change with age.
D. Age No Excuse for Failing to Learn a Language
IT'S never too late to
learn another language. Surprisingly, under controlled conditions adults turn
out to be better than children at acquiring a new language skill. It is widely
believed that children younger than 7 are good at picking up
new languages because their brains rewire themselves more easily, and because
they use what is called procedural, or implicit, memory to learn - meaning they
pick up a new language without giving it conscious thought. Adults are thought
to rely on explicit memory, whereby they actively learn the rules of a
language. But some linguists now question whether this apparent difference in
language-learning ability reflects our attitudes to young children and adults
rather than differences in the brain. "If adults make a mistake we don't
correct them because we don't want to insult them,".
Ferman and Avi Karni
from the University of Haifa, Israel, devised an experiment in which
8-year-olds, 12-year-olds and adults were given the chance to learn a new
language rule[4].
In the made-up rule, verbs were spelled and pronounced differently depending on
whether they referred to an animate or inanimate object.
Participants were not
told this, but were asked to listen to a list of correct noun-verb pairs, and
then voice the correct verb given further nouns. The researchers had already
established that 5-year-olds performed poorly at the task, and so did not
include them in the study. All participants were tested again two months later
to see what they remembered. "The adults were consistently better in
everything we measured," says Ferman. When asked to apply the rule to new
words, the 8-year-olds performed no better than chance, while most 12-year-olds
and adults scored over 90 per cent. Adults fared best, and have great potential
for learning new languages implicitly, says Ferman. Unlike the younger
children, most adults and 12-year-olds worked out the way the rule worked - and
once they did, their scores soared. This shows that explicit learning is also
crucial, says Ferman, who presented the results at the International Congress for the Study
of Child Language in Montreal, Canada, this week. The
results are exciting, says David Birdsong from the University of Texas,
Austin - particularly the finding that children's pronunciation is inferior to
that of older subjects. But, Robert DeKeyser at the University of Maryland in
College Park warns that artificial experiments like this do not necessarily
transfer to the real world. Even if adults are better at implicit learning,
children are more likely to get the chance to learn implicitly.
REFERENCES