'French is the language of love and stuff': student perceptions of issues related to motivation in learning a foreign language

This digest found in

Gender
Thinking skills
Modern Foreign Languages

Authors

Williams M., Burden R., and Lanvers U., School of Education and Lifelong Learning, University of Exeter, UK

Publisher

British Educational Research Journal, Vol. 28, No. 4, 2002, pp. 503-528.

Introduction

Are British pupils well motivated towards learning foreign languages?

The reluctance of the British to learn a foreign language is a cause for concern. This study investigated differences in pupils' motivation for learning foreign languages in Years 7 and 9, and suggests ways in which teachers could improve their pupils' motivation.

Following a questionnaire survey and pupil interviews, the study found that motivation for learning a foreign language decreased as pupils got older. The authors also report higher levels of motivation among girls than boys and stronger motivation to learn German than French, particularly among boys. Pupils at all ability levels made little use of metacognitive strategies designed to enable them to link new knowledge with existing knowledge, to exercise choice between approaches or to evaluate their approach to learning. They did however, recognise the importance of using such strategies.

Other findings were that French was considered feminine and German masculine, it was not "cool" for boys to be seen making an effort with French and there was a tendency for boys not to try at anything that appeared to be tedious. The authors conclude with suggestions for how to improve pupil motivation.

Several specialised terms are used in this study. For definitions of these, click here.

Keywords
United Kingdom; England; Second language learning; Motivation; Gender; Girls; Boys; Learning strategies; Attitudes; Secondary schools; Pupils; Stereotypes; Self evaluation; Ability; Parents; Cognitive development

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Research Home Themes \| Find digests \| About the digests resources glossary researchers contact TRIPS Introduction How motivated are British pupils to learning a foreign language? Are there differences in motivation between pupils of different abilities? Do boys and girls differ in their motivation to learn a foreign language? Are pupils more motivated to learn some languages than others? Are there differences in motivation between pupils of different ages? How could teachers improve pupils' motivation? How was the study designed? What are the implications of the study for schools and teachers of modern languages? Where can I find out more? Definitions of technical terms used in the study Send us your feedback Collated digests To find out more about collated digests click here Get Word Reader 'French is the language of love and stuff': student perceptions of issues related to motivation in learning a foreign language This digest found in Gender Thinking skills Modern Foreign Languages Send to a friend Word doc 60KB Printer friendly Collate for later Authors Williams M., Burden R., and Lanvers U., School of Education and Lifelong Learning, University of Exeter, UK Publisher British Educational Research Journal, Vol. 28, No. 4, 2002, pp. 503-528. Introduction Are British pupils well motivated towards learning foreign languages? The reluctance of the British to learn a foreign language is a cause for concern. This study investigated differences in pupils' motivation for learning foreign languages in Years 7 and 9, and suggests ways in which teachers could improve their pupils' motivation. Following a questionnaire survey and pupil interviews, the study found that motivation for learning a foreign language decreased as pupils got older. The authors also report higher levels of motivation among girls than boys and stronger motivation to learn German than French, particularly among boys. Pupils at all ability levels made little use of metacognitive strategies designed to enable them to link new knowledge with existing knowledge, to exercise choice between approaches or to evaluate their approach to learning. They did however, recognise the importance of using such strategies. Other findings were that French was considered feminine and German masculine, it was not "cool" for boys to be seen making an effort with French and there was a tendency for boys not to try at anything that appeared to be tedious. The authors conclude with suggestions for how to improve pupil motivation. Several specialised terms are used in this study. For definitions of these, click here. Keywords United Kingdom; England; Second language learning; Motivation; Gender; Girls; Boys; Learning strategies; Attitudes; Secondary schools; Pupils; Stereotypes; Self evaluation; Ability; Parents; Cognitive development