Ushioda (2013) asserted, “Motivation is widely recognized as a significant factor influencing success in second or foreign language (L2) learning, and is perhaps one of the key variables that distinguishes first language acquisition from second language acquisition” (p. 1). Therefore, one can assume that “skills in motivating learners should be seen as central to teaching effectiveness” (Dornyei & Csizer, 1998, p. 207). Teachers need to understand the different types of, and factors affecting, motivation, and employ a model of intervention that enhances learners’ motivation.

Educators often think of extrinsic rewards, which instructors have no control over, as being the primary motivators of language learning. However, Noels, Clement, and Pelletier (1999) found that “stronger feelings of intrinsic motivation were related to positive language learning outcomes…Moreover, perceptions of the teacher’s communicative style were related to intrinsic motivation, such that the more controlling and the less informative students perceived the teacher to be, the lower students’ intrinsic motivation was” (p. 23; see also Dornyei, 2005).

Learner autonomy increases by “perceiving that their learning successes and failures are to be attributed to their own efforts and strategies rather than to factors outside their control” (Dickinson, 1995, 173–74). One way teachers can support learner autonomy and improve their level of attributions to their own efforts is through instructing students in methods of self-regulation (Kormos & Csizer, 2013). There is some debate about the causal relationship between motivation and autonomy, as “motivation may lead to autonomy or be a precondition for it” (Spratt, Humphreys, & Chan, 2002, p. 262). The Iterative Intervention Model for Enhancing Learner Intrinsic Motivation (see Figure 1) is a way to apply the preceding theoretical concepts related to intrinsic motivation in a practical methodology L2 teachers can use in a wide variety of contexts. There are three basic types of intrinsic motivation: IM-Knowledge, IM-Accomplishment, and IM-Stimulation (Noels, Pelletier, & Vallerand, 2000). The model addresses all three types by including informative feedback and supporting learner autonomy in stimulating ways, and acknowledges that motivation and autonomy have a relationship that is not one directional.

References

• Dickinson, L. (1995). Autonomy and motivation: A literature review. System, 23(2),165-174.
• Dornyei, Z. (2005). The Psychology of the Language Learner: Individual Differences in Second Language Acquisition. New York: Routledge.
• Dornyei, Z. & Csizer, K. (1998). Ten commandments for motivating language learners: results of an empirical study. Language Teaching Research, 2(3), 203-229.
• Kormos, J. & Csizer, K. (2013). The interaction of motivation, self-regulatory strategies, and autonomous learning behavior in different learner groups. TESOL Quarterly, 0(0), 1-25.
• Noels, K.A, Clement, R., & Pelletier, L.G. (1999). Perceptions of teachers’ communicative style and students’ intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Modern Language Journal, 83(1), 23-34.
• Noels , K.A, Pelletier, L.G., & Vallerand, R.J. (2000). Why are you learning a second language?: Motivational orientations and self-determination theory. Language Learning, 50(1), 57-85.
• Spratt, M., Humphreys, G., & Chan, V. (2002). Autonomy and motivation: Which comes first? Language Teaching Research, 6(3), 245-266.
• Ushioda, E. (2013). Motivation and ELT: Global issues and local concerns. In E. Ushioda (Ed.). International perspectives on motivation: Language learning and professional challenges (pp. 1-17). Palgrave Macmillan.

Figure 1