A Study Of The Demotivation Factors Affecting English Learning Efficiency Of Non-English Major Graduate Students

Motivation is one of the most significant factors influencing the results and achievements of English learners. There are always many obstacles that may hinder motivation, such as characteristics of learners, style of learning and learning environment. Demotivating factors are not fixed but changeable. Although some researchers have done plenty of experiments and researches related to the demotivating factors of English learning, there is still large room for its further studying. This research aims to study the specific factors of non-English major graduate students’ demotivation and to explore some measures to positively interfere with the demotivating factors that students may encounter in their English learning.Four questions are proposed to study the specific factors of non-English major graduate students’ demotivation, they are:What are the major demotivation factors that affect English learning efficiency of non-English major graduate students? Do family financial circumstances have effects on graduate students’ English learning demotivation? Whether teachers have effects on graduate students’ English learning demotivation or not and how to avoid the influence of these demotivating factors?With the introduction of the background, significance and the aim of the study at the beginning, this thesis reviews relevant theories and researches both at home and abroad concerned with the definition of motivation and demotivating factors’ research. It also points out the urgency and significance of solving the problems of demotivating factors in English learning. Based on the theories and with reference to the related researches, a survey which is composed of three parts was conducted on91first-year non-English major graduate students in Nanchang Hangkong University. It indicates that demotivating factors of non-English major graduate students have four major aspects and they are teacher-related factors, student-related factors, teaching materials-related factors and learning environment-related factors. Teacher-related factors include teaching strategy, teachers’ personality and responsibility, teachers’ teaching competence and controlling power of classroom orders, etc. Student-related factors include confidence, effort, attitude towards English learning, learning strategy, personal characteristic, etc. Teaching materials-related factors include content, design, difficulty extent, practicality, etc. Learning environment-related factors include pragmatic use of English, classroom atmosphere, group members, school facilities, correlation to the career in the future, etc. Through the survey, an analysis of the extension of the influences of the factors is provided and some measures are advised to make effective interference on the factors that would reduce the English learning efficiencies. Although there are some limitations to the study, the findings of this study can still shed some light on the improvement and reinforcement of non-English major graduate students’ English learning motivation and English learning outcome in the end.