OPPapers.com

A Case Study About The Motivation Of Englishmajors For Efl Learning

A Case Study about the
Motivation of English Majors for EFL Learning

1. Introduction
Learning English as a foreign language has been prevailing in China for a long time. Since the national language in China is Chinese which is different from English in many ways, and there is no English-speaking environment, English is mainly acquired through school courses and in the classroom context. Therefore, in recent decades, many Chinese researchers are borrowing and adapting some Second Language (L2 hereinafter) theories from the west, which can guide English teachers to better develop the English proficiency of students. Among various L2 theories, motivation is universally acknowledged as an important factor that affects L2 learning, and it also has been drawing much attention on the part of Chinese researchers.

2. Literature Review
2.1 What is L2 motivation?
According to online encyclopedia Wikipedia, “Motivation is often defined as a psychological trait which leads people to achieve a goal. For language learners, mastery of a language may be the goal.” In Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching & Applied Linguistics, motivation is defined as “the factors that determine a person’s desire to do something. In SECOND LANGUAGE AND FOREIGN LANGUAGE learning, learning may be affected differently by different types of motivation”. To put it simply, motivation in L2 learning is the desire to develop the L2 language proficiency.
2.2 Why do we explore motivation?
First of all, motivation is one of the most important variables that determine the achievement of L2 learners, and stronger motivation can lead to greater achievement. As Gardner (2001) claims, “other variables are dependent on motivation for their effects to be realized”. He gives two examples to illustrate: “Language learning strategies probably will not be used if the individual is not motivated to learn the language, and/or there is little or no reason to take risks using the language if there is little...