Students Demotivating Factors in the EFL classroom: The Case of Morocco
Abstract
This study was conducted to investigate the problem of demotivation in English language learning (ELL) within the Moroccan context. To attain this objective, two instruments were adopted: a questionnaire and a writing test. The participants involved in this study were 201 baccalaureate students (second year) from six secondary schools, 84 were males and 117 were females. The data gathered was quantitatively analyzed through frequency distribution and percentages, Cross-tabulation, Chi-Square Tests, Independent Samples t-Test, in addition to the statistical significance which was set at the level of .05 (95%) for all statistical procedures. Six main findings were reported: (1) students positively perceived themselves in ELL; (2) students did not consider English language as a demotivating factor while learning it itself; (3) students were largely positive towards their teachers of English; (4) crowded classrooms were the main demotivators in learning environment among classmates, textbook of English, and classroom atmosphere; (5) generally, learning environment was the main demotivating factor in ELL; (6) as for gender, there was no significant difference between males and females in terms of the number of demotivating factors that they encountered. In the light of these findings, some pertinent implications were provided.
Keywords
Full Text:
PDFReferences
Addison, R., & Brundrett, M.(2008). Motivation and demotivation of teachers in primary schools: The challenge of change. Education, 36, 79 – 94.
Arai, K. (2004). What ‘demotivates’ language learners?: qualitative study on demotivational factors and learners’ reactions. Bulletin of Toyo Gakuen University, 12, 39–47.
Brown, H.D. (1987). Principles of language learning and teaching. USA: Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Callaghan, M. (1998). An investigation into the causes of boys’ underachievement in French, Language Learning Journal 17, 2-7.
Chambers, G. (1993). Taking the ‘de’ out of demotivation. Language Learning Journal, 7, 13-16.
Chambers, G. (1999). Motivating language learners. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Chomsky, N. (1959). A review of B.F. Skinner’s Verbal Behavior. Language, 35, 26-58.
Chomsky, N. (1968). Language and Mind. New York: Hartcourt Brace Jovanovich.
Christophel, D. M., & Gorham, J. (1995). A test-retest analysis of student motivation, teacher immediacy, and perceived sources of motivation and demotivation in college classes. Communication Education, 44, 292 – 306
Cook, V. (1991). Second language learning and language teaching. London: Edward Arnold.
Deci, E.L., & Ryan, R.M. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior. New York: Plenum.
Dörnyei, Z. (1990). Conceptualizing motivation in foreign language learning. Language Learning, 40, 45-78.
Dörnyei, Z. (1994). Motivation and motivating in the foreign language classroom. The Modern Language Journal, 78, 273-284.
Dörnyei, Z. (1998) Demotivation in foreign language learning. Paper presented at the TESOL’ 98 Congress, Seattle, WA. March.
Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Teaching and Researching Motivation. Harlow, England: Longman.
Dörnyei, Z. (2003). Questionnaires in second language research. London : Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Ellis, R. (2000). Second Language Acquisition. New York: Oxford University Press.
Fromkin, V., & Rodman, R. (1993). An introduction to language. USA: Harcourt Brace College Publishers.
Gardner, R. C. (1985). Social psychology and second language learning: The role of attitudes and motivation. London: Edward Arnold.
Gardner, R.C., & Lambert, W.E. (1959). Motivational variables in second language acquisition. Canadian Journal Of Psychology, 13, 266-272.
Gorham, J. (1988). The relationship between verbal teacher immediacy behaviors and student learning. Communication Education, 37, 40-53.
Gorham, J. & Christophel, D. M. (1992). Students' perceptions of teacher behaviors as motivating and demotivating factors in college classes. Communication Quarterly, 40, 239-252.
Gorham, J., & Millette, D. M. (1997). A comparative analysis of teacher and student perceptions of sources of motivation and demotivation in college classes. Communication Education, 46, 245 – 261.
Hall, E. T. (1976). Beyond culture. New York: Anchor Books.
Halliday, M.A.K. (1975) Learning How to Mean. London: Edward Arnold.
Hargreaves, D. (1972). Interpersonal relations in education. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
Hasegawa, A. (2004). Student demotivation in the foreign language classroom. Takushoku Language Studies, 107, 119–36.
Hilgard, E.R., & Bower, G.H. (1966). Theories of learning. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.
Hirvonen, J. (2010). Demotivation in learning English among immigrant pupils in the ninth grade of comprehensive school. Unpublished Pro Gradu Thesis. University of Jyväskylä, Department of Languages.
Ho, M. C. (1998). Culture studies and motivation in foreign and second language learning in Taiwan. Language, Culture and Curriculum, 11, 165 -182.
Hockett, C. F. (1967). A course in modern linguistics. New York: The Macmillan Company and Canada.
Hofstede, G. (1980). Culture's consequences: International differences in work-related values. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
Hymes, D. (1972). On Communicative Competence. In J. B. Pride and J. Holmes (eds). Sociolingguistics. Harmondsworth: Penguin.
Kearney, P., Plax, T. C., & Burroughs, N. F. (1991). An attributional analysis of college students' resistance decisions. Communication Education, 40, 325-342.
Kızıltepe, Z. (2008). Motivation and demotivation of university teachers. Teachers and Teaching,14, 515 -530.
Koiso, K (2003). The characteristics of motivation of Japanese adult English learners. General Social Surveys [5] JGSS from JGSS-2003 Data. Retrieved November 26, 2008fromhttp://jgss.daishodai.ac.jp/japanese/5research/monographs/jgssm5pdf/jgssm5_8.pdf.
Larsen-Freeman, D. (2000). Techniques and principles in language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Logan, F. A. (1970). Fundamentals of learning and motivation. Dubuque, IA: William C. Brown.
Mitchell, R., & Myles, F. (1998). Second Language Theories. Arnold, London.
Muhonen, J. (2004). Second language demotivation: factors that discourage pupils from learning the English language. Unpublished Pro Gradu Thesis. University of Jyväskylä, Department of Languages.
Nash, R. (1976). Teacher expectations and pupil learning. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.
Oxford, R. L. (1998). The unravelling tapestry: teacher and course characteristics associated with demotivation in the language classroom. Demotivation in foreign language learning. Paper presented at the TESOL ’98 Congress, Seattle, WA, March. In Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Teaching and researching motivation. Harlow: Longman.
Oxford, R., & Shearin, J. (1994). Language learning motivation: Expanding the theoretical framework. The Modern Language Journal. 78, 12-28.
Ozsevik, Z. (2010). The use of communicative language teaching(CLT) : TurkishEFL teachers’ perceived difficulties in implementing CLT in Turkey.Unpublished Thesis. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Pidgeon, D. (1970). Expectation and pupil performance. Slough: NFER.
Purkey, W. W. (1970). Self-concept and school achievement. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Richards, J., & Rodgers, T. (1989). Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Sapir, E. 1921. Language: An introduction to the study of speech. New York: Harcourt, Brace and company.
Schunk, D. H. (1985). Self-efficacy and classroom learning. Psychology in the Schools, 22, 208-223.
Selinger, H. W., & Shohamy, E. (1989). Second language research methods. Hong Kong: Oxford University Press.
Spolsky, B. (1989). Conditions for Second Language Learning. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Thi Thu Trang, T. & Baldauf Jr. R.B. (2007). Demotivation: understanding the resistance to English language learning – the case of Vietnamese students. The Journal of Asia TEFL, 4, 79–105.
Trudgill,P. (1983). Sociolinguistics :An introduction to language and society. Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England: Penguin Books.
Widdowson, H.G. (1978). Teaching language as communication. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Williams, M., & Burden, L. R. (1997). Psychology for language teachers: a social constructivist approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Zhang, Q. (2007). Teacher misbehaviors as learning demotivators in college classrooms: A cross-cultural investigation in China, Germany, Japan, and the United States. Communication Education, 56, 209-227.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7575/aiac.alls.v.9n.2p.150
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
2010-2023 (CC-BY) Australian International Academic Centre PTY.LTD.
Advances in Language and Literary Studies
You may require to add the 'aiac.org.au' domain to your e-mail 'safe list’ If you do not receive e-mail in your 'inbox'. Otherwise, you may check your 'Spam mail' or 'junk mail' folders.