A Study Of The Effects Of Qu:Est Strategy On The English Learning Motivation Of Vocational College Students

Effective questioning is one of the teaching strategies which are most frequently used in English classes.Teachers' effective questioning plays a significant part in the cultivation of students' interest in learning English and the activation of their English learning motivation.A great quantity of researches show that only when students' English learning motivation is stimulated will they be more eager for learning.Therefore,a study on how a teacher raises questions so as to exert a positive effect on students' English learning motivation is not only necessary,but also of great practical significance.However,nowadays,there are relatively few domestic studies on the effects of effective questioning on English learning motivation.Besides,the focuses of these studies are on high school students and undergraduates,instead of on vocational college students.And as for researches on Qu:Est strategy(Questioning for understanding:empowering students' thinking)put forward by Marylou Dantonio and Paul C.Beisenherz,a kind of effective questioning,emphasis has been put on its effectiveness and applications to each subject,without any investigations on what effects it has on learning motivation and the specific methods of using the strategy to stimulate students' English learning motivation.Therefore,the present study intends to investigate the effects of Qu:Est strategy on the English learning motivation of vocational college students based on a survey on the current situation of vocational college students' English learning motivation,hoping to put forward some applicable suggestions on using Qu:Est strategy to stimulate students' English learning motivation.The 149 participants of the study are vocational college students chosen from Jinan Vocational College.Questionnaires are used to collect the data for this study,and then SPSS 17.0 to process these data so as to answer the following three questions: 1.What is the main English learning motivation type of today's vocational college students? How is their English learning motivation intensity? 2.What effects does Qu:Est strategy have on the English learning motivation of vocational college students? 3.If Qu:Est strategy can stimulate vocational college students' English learning motivation,what kinds of questions of Qu:Est strategy play a major role?The major findings are 1.Nowadays,the main English learning motivation type of vocational college students is immediate achievement,and their English learning motivation intensity as a whole is relatively not strong.2.After the implementation of Qu:Est strategy,the participants' English learning motivation intensity is strengthened,but there are no significant changes in their English learning motivation types.3.The questions of Qu:Est strategy that mainly stir up vocational college students' English learning motivation are recalling questions,observing questions,verifying questions,supportive questions,clarifying questions,and redirect-asked questions.Finally,according to the findings of the study,the author gives relevant suggestions on how to use Qu:Est strategy to stimulate vocational college students' English learning motivation,and puts forward the limitations of the study and some pieces of advice for further research.