User:Yuri Lane/literature

Lack of motivation in children difficults the second language learning
Nowadays, lack of motivation in children produces a big problem in second language learning. The lack of motivation among young students firstly provokes bad behavior and as a result difficulties in the second language learning process. However, children need to be encouraged enough in order to perform any desired task; so, extrinsic motivation helps to create a good learning and teaching environment in the classroom, which at the same time prevents students’ inappropriate behavior. Additionally, extrinsic motivation involves positive and negative reinforcements, which facilitates more the students learning and motivation. Positive reinforcements assist children’s motivation by applying different and interesting tools to attract students’ attention and at the same time avoiding students’ misbehavior during the second language class. So, if language teachers take advantage of these positive rewards, the classroom management, as well as the language learning process in their students will be more effective. On the other hand, not only positive reinforcement facilitates students learning and provokes in children good behavior, but also negative reinforcement. Negative reinforcement refers when avoiding a bad behavior weaken an undesired action. Furthermore, negative behavior also includes punishments and extinction, which both aspect differ from each other, punishments make avoiding a bad behavior when adding an aversive action. On the other hand, extinction is eliminating something in order to control or avoid a bad manner. Finally, second language teachers take in advantage the extrinsic motivation with the intention of getting their students interested in the class and at the same time to have a good classroom management; however, there has to be a balance between positive and negative reinforcement.

Extrinsic motivation facilitates students to get interested in the L2 language learning
Extrinsic motivation encourages students to get interested in the target language. Students tent to use their mother tongue when learning a second language in an exaggerated way. However, learning a second language involves different aspects in order to get new knowledge. One of these aspects is motivation, an important aspect that education involves. According with Ryan, R. & Deci, E. (2000), motivation is the force that makes a person to initiate an action, continue with the action until to achieve the goal. Sansone, C. & Harackiewicz, J. (2000), explain motivating students in the classroom provokes that students get interested in learning a second language. Additionally, there are two different ways of motivation: Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. According with Straub, J. (2000), intrinsic motivation refers to incentive that comes from inside an individual and not from external issues or rewards as the extrinsic motivation. People have to be motivated all the time in order to do any task, for this reason people learn a second language when they have the encouragement to do it. For instance, students learn a target language through their personal needs and motivation (intrinsic motivation), but other people are encouraged through external reinforcements and rewards (extrinsic motivation).

Moreover, extrinsic motivation facilitates students to learn and produce the second language. Extrinsic motivation is effective when teachers work with adults, teenager and children. However, this external motivation facilitates the increase of interest of learning a second language with children. Songsiri, M. (2007), says children get more confident to produce the L2 language when they are receiving an external reinforcement from the teacher. Furthermore, children easily get motivated through interesting rewards or activities that facilitate their learning process. So, that is why teachers take advantage of dynamic and recreational activities in order to make the classes attractive for the children.

As a result, the lack of motivation causes the over use of L1 in the L2 classroom. The use of the mother tongue in the classroom is not always negative, for instance teachers are able to use the L1 language when it is necessary or in some cases like: when clarifying some vocabulary that is difficult for students to understand. However, several students tent to have and over use of their native language in the classroom, and some teachers do not do anything to avoid the exaggerated use of the L1 (Al-Zedjali, K., n.d.). For this reason, teachers need to motivate students in order to produce the second language. In addition, motivating students through external aspects is an effective manner to facilitate the production of the L2.

Consequently, extrinsic motivation attracts and encourages children to learn and produce the language. Children need to be motivated all the time in order to work better in the classroom. Chandler, C. & Connell, J. (1987), mention that if children are not motivated enough is hard to get them interested in the class. However, teachers has to be careful when motivating students because if a teacher motivates the students by extrinsic motivation, then it would be complicated for the child to make his own decisions when the child become an adult. That is why, there has to be a balance between extrinsic motivation and intrinsic motivation.

Regardless of the balance of both types of motivation in the classroom, extrinsic motivation helps not only with the production and outcome of the second language, but also with discipline circumstances (Rost, M, 2006). In order to give a satisfied class, teachers need students to behave during the class, if a student is misbehaving in the classroom, it would be hard for the rest of the students to focus on what the teacher is explaining. Therefore, extrinsic motivation involves not only positive reinforcement, but also negative reinforcement that is helpful to control students’ behavior and at the same time make students to be active during the class by participating.

Positive reinforcement encourages students to use the L2 in the classroom
On the other hand, positive reinforcement encourages students to use the L2 in the classroom. According with Ames, C. & Archer, J. (1988), “positive reinforcement is a behavior-management strategy. The goal of positive reinforcement is to give something to somebody to make a behavior happen again.” Subsequently, students, especially children, need to have an encouragement of a positive reinforcement in order to produce an action. In addition, positive motivation involves two different ways of positive reinforcement. Not only a teacher is allowed to motivate the students with the use of tangible rewards, such as: candy, toys, and anything else material. But also teachers encourage their students by social rewards and symbolic rewards. These social and symbolic rewards are also imperative for the classroom management. However, these types of rewards encourage young students to produce the second language.

Tangible rewards play an important role in classroom management, and consequently in their language learning process. Chandler, C. & Connell, J. (1987), mentions children get interested and motivated to perform a task when they know they receive a reward after the child performs the action correctly and as it was expected. However, the use of physical reinforcement has to be applied moderately when working with children. Additionally, the application of tangible rewards produce that children get habituated to receive something material whenever they produce an action, subsequently, tangible rewards provoke in these children to start to want all the time money, candy, a toy or anything else material, in order to do a positive action or a stop a negative action. So, motivating students, especially children, through tangible rewards has to be balanced in order to be effective and not a negative method.

Besides of tangible rewards, symbolic rewards motivate students to learn a second language. Symbolic rewards are rewards that can be “banked” by children’s behavior or for the good performance of a task, as well as avoiding a negative behavior (Chandler, C. & Connell, J., 1987). For instance, teacher use as symbolic rewards: stickers on a chart, fake coins or dollars, anything that students can bank. Children earn these symbolic rewards when they do a good action or for good behavior. Symbolic rewards also encourage students to learn and produce the second language better. For example, teacher gives to children one happy face sticker when they ask anything in English, and then teacher can give them now two stickers when they are able to have a short conversation in English, and so on. Nowadays, teachers tent to use creative, imaginative and productive symbolic rewards that facilitate the increase of students’ motivation.

In contrast, not only stickers, coins, candy and toys increase students’ motivation in order to produce the language, but also social rewards. According with Ames, C. & Archer, J. (1988), social rewards are rewards that someone else gives as an attention and time. Inside a classroom, most of the students that suffer difficulties with learning, behavior and attention are the ones that have problems regarding lack of attention from their parents or their home. For this reason, teachers are in charge of giving their attention and time to focus to the children who have these difficulties. Thus, teachers provide their attention to those children who has more problems in learning or participating during the class. For instance, when a student is afraid, shy or insecure to speak in English, teachers talk to the child and encourage him to speak the second language by telling the student phrases like: “You can do it, you are a smart child”, and consequently when the child speaks English correctly or gives a try, teacher must encourage the child with expressions like: “Excellent!”, “Great job!”, and many other verbal rewards. So, social rewards also encourage children to get attracted and motivated to learn and use the target language.

Negative reinforcement increase students’ motivation in the L2 classroom
As well as the use of positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement facilitates motivation to use the second language. Levine, A. (1999), explains that “in negative reinforcement a particular behavior is strengthened by the consequence of the stopping or avoiding of a negative condition.” However, negative reinforcement also has positive effect in children’s motivation. Negative reinforcement is devised to guide a person to the appropriate action in order to avoid the unwanted consequence. Furthermore, negative reinforcement can have long-term effects and must be used barely with paying careful attention to the aversive stimuli used. This, negative reinforcement increases or maintains behavior in order to escape or avoid a stimulus. For example, a student may misbehave in order to be sent out of a class he dislikes. Consequently, many of the problem behaviors that teachers experience from their students have a long history of negative reinforcement.

Additionally, punishment contributes in motivation by modifying the child’s behavior. Firstly, punishments are stimuli that provoke a behavior gets weak after a negative result from a bad behavior, (Dweck, C. 1986). For example, if a student misbehave during class, teacher does not let the child go to recess as a punishment caused by the bad behavior the child had, so the teacher repress the child’s bad behavior. In this example the punishment makes weak the bad behavior in order to decrease the strength of that action. Nevertheless, teachers apply punishments in the classroom to add an aversive action in order to decrease a behavior. However, extinguishing something to control a bad behavior facilitates students’ motivation.

Besides negative reinforcement and punishment, extinguishing controls an unwanted behavior inside the classroom. According with Levine, A. (1999), extinction decreases a behavior by removing something away. For instance, a teacher takes away a child’s toy because the child does not pay attention in class. In this example the teacher takes away the student’s toy in order to decrease the lack of attention from the child to the class, with this action the child must pay attention to the teacher after that. In addition, extinction facilitates the classroom management more instead of the learning process. Students learn better when the teacher motivates students through attractive material and activities instead of punishments and extinction. Moreover, Chandler, C. & Connell, J. (1987) mentions that positive reinforcement is the most powerful of any other reinforcement. Adding a positive to increase a response not only works better, but also allows both parties to focus on the positive aspects of the situation. On the other hand, punishment can be effective when teachers apply immediately following the negative behavior, but results in extinction when it is not applied consistently. Additionally, punishment can also invoke other negative responses such as anger and resentment.

Therefore, children learn and produce the second language learning through external reinforcements: positive and negative reinforcement. However, a relaxing and attracting environment incite students to be active during the class. In addition, children get more motivated when they work by a positive incentive than a negative reinforcement (Chandler, C. & Connell, J. 1987). In order to make the students’ motivation increase, the activities and material applied in the class have to be also an essential way of positive motivation, as well as fun activities that provoke children get interested in their second language class. Nevertheless, negative reinforcement also contributes to make the class interesting to children. Dweck, C. (1986) mentions that there has to be a balance of positive and negative reinforcement in the class in order to have students motivated and active in the second language classroom. On the other hand, every single teacher need firstly to know how exactly their group of children work better, as well as knowing how to implement the different ways of motivation. Positive rewards, negative reinforcement, punishments and extinction facilitate having a good classroom management, but at the same time these aspects can also provoke problems and difficulties in the classroom if there is not a good management and application of each of the types of motivation. Consequently, EFL teachers must be conscious of the use, advantages and disadvantages of these ways of motivation.

Conclusion
Extrinsic motivation increase children’s second language learning. Additionally, children need to be encouraged all the time in order to have them participating and performing the desire tasks. If a child is not motivated enough, the lack of motivation affects classroom management and the learning process of the child. However, external rewards produce in children interest and facilitation in the learning process, including participation and production of the second language. Moreover, positive reinforcement has an effective solution when a class of children is misbehaving and having problems of lack of motivation. EFL teachers of children could give to their students a simple reward to make them participating during the class. These rewards involve tangible, symbolic and social or verbal rewards, so giving a positive reinforcement to each of the students is not a big problem. But firstly, each teacher must know their group’s profile and what type of motivation works better in the group.

On the other hand, negative reinforcement also provides a good classroom management, but not an effective language learning as applying positive reinforcement in the classroom. Consequently, punishments and extinction have to be applied in the classroom carefully because these types of reinforcement can produce violence in the child. However, extrinsic motivation has to be moderated in all the aspects because students can have problems later about the over use of these aspects. To conclude, ESL teachers of children need also to know when positive and negative reinforcements have to be applied during the classes in order to have an effective English class.

Annotated Bibliography
Al-Zedjali, K. (n.d.) Student’s Beliefs’ about Learning to Speak English. Muscat Region

In this article, the main point is to investigate students’ beliefs in learning to speak English as a second language. It mainly focuses in what students think about to learn to speak English. So, for this research, the author uses different tools such as: questionnaires, classroom observations and interviews. The result is that most of all students have a positive view about learning to speak English; however students like to produce orally the language through attractive tasks in order to do it successfully. For instance, this study is helpful for my research because it shows how students get motivated by these tasks in order to encourage them to speak English.

Ames, C. & Archer, J. (1988) Achievement Goals in the Classroom: Students' Learning Strategies and Motivation Processes, Journal of Educational Psychology 1988, Vol. 80, No. 3,260-26.

This article is interesting because it shows some strategies used in order to motivate students. The article was based in how specific motivation is related in students’ performance and goals. This work is important to my search because it shows the role that teachers have in the classroom. On the other hand it mentioned also, some strategies that as teacher can implement in the classroom in order to motivate students.

Chandler, C. & Connell, J. (1987). Children's intrinsic, extrinsic and internalized motivation: A developmental study of children's reasons for liked and disliked behaviors. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 5, 357-365.

This article is very helpful for investigating motivation in children. The authors provide a great explanation of how intrinsic, extrinsic and internalized motivation works in children behavior. It is essential to know why children have bad and good behavior, and how to manage them. This article is helpful for people who want to look for information about motivation in children, the effects, advantages and disadvantages of these types of motivation. In addition, it facilitates a lot of information for my research because it is mainly focused on children’s motivation.

Dweck, C. (1986). Motivational processes affecting learning. American Psychologist, 41,1040-1048.

In this article, it is interesting how it describe the different types of motivation such as: intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Additionally, how these process of motivation affect the learning process. It is a helpful article for searches focused on motivation and the effects on the learning process. As a result, it is necessary for my theoretical framework because I can get a lot of important information about the effects of motivation regarding learning process.

Levine, A. (1999). Negative Reinforcement University. Retrieved on December 5th from: http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/proj/nru/

In this webpage it is shown the negative reinforcement and how it is defined. It is an interesting article about negative reinforcement, its characteristics and definitions. This article is helpful as a complement when searching about motivation. In this case, it says some details about the characteristics of these types of reinforcements. In my research it helps to get information about negative reinforcement.

Rost, M (2006). Generating students’ motivation. Retrieved on November 28, 2011 from http://www.pearsonlongman.com/ae/worldview/motivation.pdf

This author has written articles and book about teaching training. The article focuses on teachers who are interesting in helping students to be motivated while they are learning English. This work attends to show how motivation affects students’ English development, and what teachers can do about it. The author mentioned that teachers have to take into consideration three important aspects. These works are useful for teachers who teach English or other foreign languages in order to realize which elements they need in order to motivate students in their learning, and make the learning process easy and enjoyable to them.

Ryan, R. & Deci, E. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25: 54-67.

This article is interesting because it describes clearly the definitions of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, as well as their differences. Additionally, the authors compare classic definition with new definitions, applications and examples of both types of motivation. It is helpful for any person that investigates about managing people and how to encourage people. In the case of my research it is helpful because provides clear and simple definitions and examples in the educational field.

Sansone, C. & Harackiewicz, J. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation: The search for optimal motivation and performance.San Francisco: Academic Press.

The main objective of Sansone and Harackiewicz is to provide a good differentiation between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, as well as their main characteristics, advantages and disadvantages when performing a task. It is useful for people who are in charge of motivating people, like teachers. This paper is important for my research because it describes perfectly the characteristics of both types of motivation. In addition, these two types of motivation are not only helpful for adults, but also for children, and my research is focused on children and how they get motivated.

Songsiri, M. (2007). An action research study of promoting students’ confidence in speaking English. School of Education. Faculty of Arts, Education and Human Development. Victoria University

This research is about to investigate students’ attitudes towards language learning and speaking, at King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology, North Bangkok, Thailand. The main problem is to improve in Thai education the language teaching, especially speaking. The aims of the research are to improve Thai students’ motivation to speak English through the use of authentic materials and activities used for promoting students’ confidence in speaking English. The instruments that this Action Research mentions are: plan, act, observe, reflect and revise, these tools were used to study the processes and participant outcomes. In addition, this research is helpful for me because it provides strategies to use in order to improve students’ motivation in order to speak English in the classroom.

Straub, J. (2000). How do I increase student motivation to speak French in an L2 classroom/French immersion setting?. Sudbury Catholic District School Board

In this article, the author is based on the improvement of practicing the L2 speaking in the classroom, by examining internal or external factors affecting the classroom environment. This article mentions an important strategy used to motivate students which is a web page in which students upload their videos speaking the L2. For instance, even that it is only one main strategy; I find it really helpful because it also involves the multiple intelligences and other skills.

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