Motivational models for English Foreign Language (EFL) improve student motivation. Research has shown that motivation provides the basic impulsion to begin foreign language learning and subsequently the stimulus to keep up the often mind-numbing learning processes. Sound hypothetical consideration supports contemporary motivational strategies. However, no empirical evidence backs up the strategies causing the need for further research.
Research has revealed the significance of the learning environment in shaping the motivational aspects of learners. The systematic motivation strategy by Dornyei provides a parsimonious system of four dimensions. The first dimension is creating basic motivational conditions. This involves establishing a positive teacher-student relationship, supportive classroom condition, and creating a cohesive learn group.
The next dimension is generating initial motivation. The strategy provides that teachers have a role to use appropriate strategies to enhance the learners’ anticipation for success and adopt a positive mindset regarding the language. The other technique is maintaining and protecting motivation through simulations and engaging in enjoyable tasks. This technique aims at promoting learner autonomy and positive culture. The teacher should also encourage students to undertake positive retrospective self-evaluation.
The Macro-strategy is effective for teaching English Foreign Learners because it has the four dimensions. It gives priority to appropriate teacher behavior. Both the Taiwan and Hungarian survey provide that presenting a personal role model is an extremely influential device for motivating students.
Teachers need to understand their responsibility as leaders in all learner teams. The research confirms the significance of the teachers’ projection of enthusiasm in the subject matter to have a strong influence on the motivational disposition of the learners.
Another provision of the macro-strategy is the essentiality of recognizing the efforts of learners and celebrating any of their success. The strategy provides that successful EFL teachers recognize the efforts of their students. This concept concurs with the Confucian ideology that recognition of efforts is an effective motivational tool.
Educational psychology researchers have accepted macro-strategy because it provides mechanisms for promoting self-confidence of learners. The manner in which learners perceive their ability determines the efforts they will be willing to devote to accomplish a task. Notably, self-confidence leads to self-efficacy.
Another outstanding requirement of the macro-strategy is that teachers must create a pleasant and relaxed learning environment. Learning a second language is certainly one of the most difficult experiences students come across during their erudition. A tense classroom is a powerful negative element that hinders students from achieving their objectives. The strategy reinforces it is the responsibility of the teacher to create a safe learning environment, where participants shy away from social comparison but promote risk-taking.
Next, the strategy advocates for presenting tasks properly. The mode of presentation of information apparently bears a strong impact on how the students learn. It is imperative that teachers put in mind why learners should do particular exercises and watchfully put across what the lesson intends the students to learn. Instructional clarify is, therefore, an indispensable motivational medium.
The strategy also requires teachers to increase the goal-orientation of learners. English Foreign Learners researchers have adopted a more education-specific notion of objectives, illustrating their influential ability on student motivation in classroom settings. The macro-strategy encourages teachers to promote the creation of personal objectives. It suggests that a lack of recognition of the scope of goal setting affects negatively the performance of learners.
Besides, the strategy provides that teachers should make the learning tasks stimulating. It recognizes that students are always eager to invest substantial resources in activities that arouse their curiosity. Teachers who do not regard interesting learning tasks imperative motivational aspects risk underperforming.
Another provision of the strategy that teachers should use to improve their performance is familiarizing learners with the L2 culture and related values. There is pragmatic evidence that the disposition of English First Learners towards the target culture has significant impact on their achievement. Raising this group of learner’s cross-cultural awareness enables them to appreciate the need to excel in the language, irrespective of any prevailing de-motivating circumstances.
Additionally, promoting group cohesiveness and setting group rules also enhances English learning. This provision confirms earlier findings that group behavior determines the development of beliefs and actions of its members.
However, experts, including Dornyei and Murphey, have presented a contradicting opinion regarding this provision. They have argued that researchers have not accorded the group-building issues due significance. The provision needs not to gain recognition a major motivation enhancing technique, as research is underway.
The macro-strategy advocates for learner autonomy. It has heightened that an autonomy-supporting environment influences an increase in intrinsic motivation. The language teachers’ communicative style determines the autonomy of learners. When learners govern their own learning process, they become innovative.
Conclusively, most motivational models are transferable across various cultural settings. Promoting learners’ confidence, creating an interesting learning environment, displaying motivational teacher behavior, and presenting tasks properly are components of this strategy that are acceptable universally. Outstanding motivational techniques provide many common outcomes. However, some cultural settings portray promoting learner autonomy, which is an effective motivational technique, as extraneous.