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Motivation in English learning

Abstract: Learning a foreign language is not a simple and easy job but sometimes it is boring and dull. Thus how to effectively motivate students in English learning is an important problem. Motivation plays an important role in language learning. The paper mainly analyses the classification of motivation and the motivation characteristics of learners. In addition, it focus on the influence of motivation on the learners. With regard to the students’ responses to the study, the research goes further to discuss about the stimulation of learners'motivation in language teaching through class instructions and consequent Meanwhile, it gives some suggestions to make use of motivation to learn.
Key words: motivation influence of motivation students ways to arouse motivation
1. Introduction
As we all know, Chinese students pay more and more attention on their English. A lot of factors may influence learners'language learning, which are intelligence, age, language aptitude, learning strategies and affective factors and so on. And someone says the there affective factors that determines the speed of success, are motivation, self-confidence and anxiety. In fact motivation has been considered to be one of the main factors in determining learning outcomes. Motivation concerns the direction and magnitude of human behavior.
2. The definition and classification of motivation
Motivation is what moves us from boredom to interest, it is something like the engine and steering wheel of automobile, Dennis Child think :”motivation is a process that learner meet some needs.” A simple definition is provided by Keller (1983) in current psychology: “motivation refers to the choices people make as to what experiences or goals they will approach or avoid, and the degree of effort they will exert in that respect” (cited in Crookes and Schmidt, 1991: 481). By this definition, readers may know that motivation includes making choices and exerting efforts. And Gardner, the researcher in Canada, thinks learning motivation should include 4 aspects: a goal, effortful behavior, a desire to attain the goal, attitude.
As early as in the early 1970s, Gaedner and Lamber classify motivation into two types: classify motivation into two types: extrinsic and intrinsic motivation. The extrinsic motivation means people have interest in acting or subject itself, and intrinsic motivation refers to people learn or complete the task for external reward. What is more, motivation is divided into instrumental and integrative motivation (i.e., in order to meet and communicate with the members of the second language community)
3. The influence of motivation in English learning
Many English majors agree that learning is most likely to occur when people are motivated to learn. Most learners who are low or high in achievement all search for ways to learn because motivation promotes it. A motivated learner can overcome any unfavorable cond

ition in language learning. There is an example for it. There are some girls that do not want to learn at all. They are often late for school; they don't listen to the teachers carefully, talking with each other in class; they don't do exercises and hand in their homework in time. After class they even pick a quarrel or fight with others. Later their head teacher talks with their parents then find out a way: they make girls to work outside in different place. Soon they can not bear the press without any knowledge, they also find they can not adapt to the society. Later they come back school to learn hard and improve themselves generally. Obviously they have got motivation in their practices, they want to stand in the society in future.
There is a survey about the motivation, in a class a teacher asked students one question: why do you choose English as your major?”
“I chose it in order to find a good job”
“I learn English because I am interested in it”
“I learn English because of the requirement of my parents”

And then the teacher asked them another question: question: “why do you study hard?”
“I want to get great grades and learn more knowledge “
“I make a foundation to find a job after graduation”

And then it shows about 60% of students learn English so as to their career, and almost 35% of students aim to develop their interests, but others are mostly affected other factors. We know different motivation affect the thoughts of students, especially intrinsic motivation. Thus English learning motivation is closely related with the learner's study performance, and it promotes the English learning effectively. It is effective to help students setting realistic and appropriate goals in learning.
3. To arouse learning motivation of students in English language teaching
Motivation is critical in language learning according to psychology and ways to motivate students are more important to English learning. “ You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.” Motivating students is a little like that. It involves not only leading them to English, but also making them thirsty for knowledge and understanding of English. And Clark,L,h said it was important for teachers to find ways to motivate students to learn, because every teacher has worthy goods to sell reluctant “customers”, as language learning, English learning has its own characteristics that need the learners remember, practice and communicate more than other subjects. Students’ motivation is important for English learning. English teachers have responsibility to increase their students’ inclination to perform willingly and actively on English learning. Teachers should take advantage of students's potential motivation ,curious, willing and love of fun to make students have receptive mood and develop all intelligence of students There are four ways for teachers to motivate students to learn in English teaching as foll

ows:
a. Using various and interesting activities
It is effective and functional to apply various and interesting activities with moderate challenge to attract students to arouse their curiosity in English learning in view of intrinsic motivation,. Sometimes games are highly motivating since they are amusing and at the same time challenging. Furthermore, they employ meaningful and useful language in real contexts.
b. Involving new and effective teaching tools.
As some tools have been employed in teaching, there are more choices and more methods for teachers to stimulate students’ intrinsic motivation such as multimedia, using Internet and educational software. These methods are innovative, interesting, practical and effective with colorful pictures.
c. Create a relaxed and positive learning environment
In a friendly atmosphere, students can feel secure and their sense of understanding and challenge as well as learning motivation can be promoted. In English learning, students need a great deal of practice to speak in class, thus it makes them feel safe and comfortable and they can be away from criticism and laughing by making mistakes. They can learn well
d. Cooperative activities
In cooperative activities, students can decrease fear of failure while communicate and exchange information effectively and involve with high emotion and efforts to solve problems. r.
4. Conclusion
In a word, motivation is fatal important and the ways to motivate students in English learning is more important to English learning. Motivation produce success, the learning motivation is an extremely complex psychological activity; learners may their motivation to improve themselves, and teachers can use it to help students more.(1078)

Reference:
朱纯,《外语教学心理学》,上海外语教育出版社 .1994.9
贾冠杰,《外语教育心理学》,广西教育出版社,2003.1
.Rod Ellis. Understanding Second Language Acquisition.【M】.上海:上海外语出版社,1999,42,48.
Ding Yanren. Second Language Acquisition for English Majoes. 上海外语出版社.2004
Gardner, R. C. 2001. Language Learning Motivation: The Student, the Teacher, and the Research. On Internet.




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