Faculty of Education and Social WorkInvestigating Motivational Teaching Strategies and Teacher Self-Evaluation in Adult English

Language Classrooms in Australia

Dr Lindy Woodrow & Dr Aek Phakiti (Supervisors)

Katie Bokan-Smith | PhD Candidate

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The Focus › Study focuses on the ESL teaching community in New South Wales

› Students are study-only students

›Multilingual / multicultural environment

› Gather data from teachers and students with different experiences

ESL = English as a Second Language

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› “Almost everything a teacher does in the classroom has a motivational influence on learners, which makes teacher behaviour the most powerful motivational tool” (Dörnyei, 2001, p.120).

›Motivation produces successful second language communicators and fosters self-confidence (Ebata, 2008).

› Second language (L2) research currently has a lack of empirical evidence that shows how teachers can effectively promote and sustain motivation in students.

Teachers want to motivate their students…but how?

The Problem

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The Gap

› Past research has only addressed which motivational strategies are most frequently used rather than the effects of the motivational strategies (Moskovsky et al., 2012).

› Past research has relied on quantitative methods such as questionnaires and surveys outside of the classroom context (Bernaus & Gardner, 2008; Madrid, 2002).

Photo: www.internationalprojects.com

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Aims of Research Study› Aims of study:1. To provide observational

evidence of the teacher’s use of motivational strategies

2. To examine students’ perceptions of the teacher’s strategies in adult ESL context

3. Connect theory to practice

4. Evaluate teacher claims vs. teacher practices

›Methods to be used:1. Collect mixed methods

data from multiple perspectives

2. Teacher self-evaluation & reflection during pre / post observation interviews

3. Student perspective through questionnaires and interviews

4. Methodological triangulation through questionnaires, observations, and interviews

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Theoretical Framework

› Dörnyei (2001) created a list of 35 motivational strategies for teachers to implement, which are organized into 4 key phases:

› 1. Creating the basic motivational conditions› 2. Generating initial motivation› 3. Maintaining and protecting motivation› 4. Encouraging retrospective self-evaluation

› IMPORTANT STUDY: Guilloteaux & Dörnyei (2008) collected data and observed during ‘real time’ classroom lessons using the MOLT tool**

Classroom Context is more Practical for L2 Research

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Research Questions1). Do teachers’ beliefs about motivational strategies mirror their teaching practices? If not, what is the reason for the misalignment?2). How does the students’ perception of motivation strategies align with the teachers’ perspective?3a). What specific motivational teaching strategies do novice and experiences ESL teachers use to promote motivation in the upper-intermediate and advanced level classrooms? 3b). Do they differ in their motivational teaching strategies, and if so, how?4). Is there a connection between using specific motivational strategies and students’ level of participation and interest?

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Participants and Setting

› Novice and expert ESL teachers (N = 29 to date)

› International students are from the global community (Intermediate to Advanced levels with class sizes between 10-20 students each).

› Three adult ESL schools in New South Wales

Novice teacher: less than 5 years of classroom teaching experienceExpert teacher: more than 5 years of classroom teaching experience

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Research Methods in Steps#1:

Teacher Questionn

aire35 Items

#3: Classroom Observation (MOLT)

#2: Pre-Observati

on Teacher

Interview

#4: Student

Questionnaire

#5: Post-Observation Teacher Interview

#6: Student

Interview

Blue boxes = Teachers only Green boxes = Students only Purple box: Teachers and Students

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Novice and Expert Teachers

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Teaching Experience in Years

Number of Teachers = 29

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Teacher Questionnaire Data

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Top 5 Motivational Strategies1. Create a pleasant and supportive atmosphere in the classroom.2. Increase students’ individual and class goals and help them to attain them. 3. Make the curriculum and the teaching materials relevant to the students. 4. Present and administer tasks in a motivating way. 5. Build your learners’ confidence by providing regular encouragement.

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Lowest 5 Motivational Strategies 1. Develop a collaborative relationship with the students’ family or support group.2. Use contracting methods with your students to formalize their goal commitment (e.g. have students set goals through written contracts).3. Offer rewards in a motivational manner.4. Promote the learners’ language-related values by presenting peer role models. 5. Have the class rules consistently observed.

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Initial Analysis›Top motivational strategies indicate a strong teacher awareness of encouragement, feedback and support.

›Low motivational strategies suggest a teacher ‘disinterest’ in forcing students to be motivated through grades, contracts or rewards.

›Teachers seem aware of the importance of motivation for students.

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Teacher Self-Evaluation

Semi-structured interviews allow researcher to explore how teachers self-evaluate their own teaching practices Questions:1. What teaching strategies (TS) do you usually use in the classroom to motivate your learners?2. Have these TS created successful learning outcomes? Why or why not?3. Do you plan TS in advance? Why or why not?4. Which TS are generally the most valuable for promoting motivation among your students? What evidence do you have for this success?

Teacher Pre-Observation Interview

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Initial Findings from Self-Evaluation

› Initial findings suggest that teachers hope to make ESL curriculum relevant to students’ lives.

› Teachers tend to use methods of encouragement to motivate students in ESL classrooms.

› Initial interview findings indicate that extrinsic rewards/motivational strategies are not perceived as being as useful as intrinsic motivational strategies such as encouragement, positivity, and support.

Teacher Pre-Observation Interview

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Implications and Conclusions Implications:Help teachers and students better understand second language (L2) motivation

Enable teachers to use more motivating strategiesStudents’ opinions are valued by their teachers

Conclusion: More L2 motivation research is neededConnecting theory to practice is valuable

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Questions or Comments?

Thank you!

Contact: kbok9262@uni.sydney.edu.au

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ReferencesBernaus, M., & Gardner, R. C. (2008). Teacher motivation strategies, student perceptions, student motivation, and English achievement. The Modern Language Journal, 92(3), 387-401.Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom. Cambridge University Press.Ebata, M. (2008). Motivation factors in language learning. The Internet TESL Journal, 14(4). Retrieved from http://iteslj.org/Articles/Ebata-MotivationFactors.html Guilloteaux, M., & Dörnyei, Z. (2008). Motivating language learners: A classroom-oriented investigation of the effects of motivational strategies on student motivation. Tesol Quarterly, 42(1), 55-77.Madrid, D. (2002). The power of the FL teacher's motivational strategies. CAUCE, Revista De Filología Y Su Didáctica, (25), 369-422. Retrieved from Google Scholar.Moskovsky, C., Alrabai, F., Paolini, S., & Ratcheva, S. (2012). The effects of teachers motivational strategies on learners motivation: A controlled � �investigation of second language acquisition. Language Learning, 1-29.