Literature Review Of Motivation In Learning English As A Second Language

“Motivation in Learning English as a Second Language: A Literature Review” is a theoretical article written by Naghmeh Babaee in Canadian Journal for New Scholars in Education issued in 2012. This paper first introduces historical perspectives on motivation in leaning second language to give the readers some basic knowledge of how the study of motivation started, and then moves on to the main part of this paper, which is literature review. After that, it talks about the application as evidence to discuss how the research had helped second language learning education. At the end, the paper concludes itself with proposing the limitation if this study and suggestions for further study in this field. In this article review paper, I would first

The author believes that only learners with motivation “continue learning even after they fulfill a specific goal”. In the introduction of this paper, the definition of the term “motivation” is clearly given. Motivation in second language acquisition (SLA) refers to the attempt and desire to learn a language and the positive attitudes towards learning it (Dornyei, 1994). From historical perspectives, most scholars believe that there are two kinds of motivations, which are “extrinsic motivation” an “intrinsic motivation”. By “extrinsic motivation”, it means that the second language learner is applying “instrumental orientation”. In this case, learners are learning new language for external incentives such as “rewards” or “punishment”. For example, if a person is learning new language for career, money, exams, praise or grades, he or she is using a second language as a tool. This reflects more “utilitarian value of linguistic achievement”. On the contrary, “intrinsic motivation” means that the learner is applying “integrative orientation”, and they are learning a second language for “emphasizing identification with an L2 community”. For instance, if a learner is studying English for immigrating to an English-speaking country so as to identify himself or herself to the community, he

The author brings up an idea of “Chinese imperative”, which is to show that “among Chinese and Taiwanese second language learners, there’s strong adherence to traditional values”, and this can affect the learners’ motivation in second language learning. In literature review part of this paper, lots of other variables are mentioned as well such as “teacher’s motivational practice”, “metacognitive language learning strategies”, “the classroom atmosphere”, and “the usage of games, song and stories”. These variables can influence learners’ willingness and interest in learning a second language. Regarding the application of study of second language learning motivation, teachers and parents are also playing important roles. Teachers should “praise students’ accomplishment”, “build collaborate atmosphere”, “shape enjoyable and less complex interaction”, and also, teachers should hold enthusiastic and considerate attitude. Regarding parents, they need to know how to “appreciate what their children are doing” and “acknowledge their progress”. Besides, parents have to avoid “comparing their children with peers” as well as “setting unrealistic goals” for them. Nonetheless, the study still has its limitation. Learning motivation and suitable education measures can vary from person to person