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Correlations Among Motivation Orientations, Metacognitive Strategies And Proficiency In Postgraduate EFL Listening

Posted on:2009-01-10Degree:MasterType:Thesis
Country:ChinaCandidate:J YuFull Text:PDF
GTID:2155360272488437Subject:English Language and Literature
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
It's one of the most important issues to explore the factors that affect foreign language learning. It's been proved that foreign language learning is influenced by personality, cognitive styles, affective factors, motivation and learning strategies, among which motivation and learning strategies play a key role in the successful acquisition of a second language (L2). As a higher level of executive learning strategies, metacognitive strategies have drawn the attention of researchers in the fields of education and psychology. In China researchers began to explore the relationship between learning strategies and motivation decades of years ago, but most previous studies dealt with the confirmation, description and classification of learning strategies and motivation in the Chinese context. The subjects of empirical researches were mainly undergraduates. Therefore, there is a need to investigate the relationship between motivation, metacognitive strategies and language proficiency among non-English major postgraduate students.Based on the theories of motivation and learning strategies, the present study was carried out among 264 non-English major postgraduate students in Nanjing Agricultural University through a questionnaire survey, trying to examine the following four questions: (1) What kind of motivation orientations do postgraduates show in EFL learning? (2) What metacognitive strategies are used in the listening process by postgraduates? (3) What relationship exists between learning strategies and motivation orientations in EFL listening? (4) What are the correlations among motivation orientations, metacognitive strategies and listening proficiency? The aim of the study is to make an investigation of postgraduates' motivation orientations and their use of metacognitive strategies, and analyze the impact of different motivation orientations and learning strategies on the learners' English achievements. The study also provides empirical implications for postgraduates and teachers in listening teaching and learning.The data are processed by SPSS (10.0). The results of the study show (1) postgraduates hold stronger extrinsic motivational orientation in English learning than intrinsic motivational orientation; (2) most postgraduates apply evaluation strategy more often than other metacognitive strategies; the frequency of listening metacognitive strategies falls within medium range (Mean=3.441); (3) listening strategies are negatively correlated with amotivation (AM); both intrinsic motivation (TM)and extrinsic motivation (EM) correlate positively and significantly with metacognitive strategies; the correlation between metacognitive strategies and the IM and EM orientations is stronger than that between cognitive strategies and the IM and EM orientations; (4) EM has a minor direct effect on listening proficiency; IM has an indirect effect on listening proficiency via metacognitive strategies and cognitive strategies.The research findings shed some light on English teaching and learning in the Chinese context. Though postgraduates are strongly motivated, they should have efficient learning strategies, especially the metacognitive strategies. Teachers can help to encourage students' use of learning strategies in the process of English learning so as to enhance their listening proficiency.
Keywords/Search Tags:motivation, learning strategy, metacognitive strategy, listening proficiency, English teaching, postgraduate
PDF Full Text Request
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