SEEU Review vol. 5 Nr. 2 (pdf) - South East European University

SEEU Review Volume 5, No. 2, 2009
Summary
In summary, it can be said that most authors view motivation as central in
education. In addition, teachers play a very important role in student
motivation. Some of the most oft-cited strategies are teachers’ attitudes,
personality, and the relaxing and stress-free atmosphere that the teacher
should create. Moreover, beyond the teacher’s personality and attitudes, the
materials and tasks the teacher uses are important as well as classroom
management. After reviewing the literature about motivation, a list of factors
of motivation was created. (See Appendix A for the list of Factors of
Motivation)
Methodology
Hypothesis and Data Collection
The hypothesis of this research is that: in foreign language classes at
university level where teachers use several identified factors for motivating
students, students will confirm that they are motivated. Such a hypothesis
would be difficult to prove without appropriate methods of data collection.
In order to obtain relevant results about students’ motivation and the
teachers’ role in this motivation, this research focused on the perspectives of
the students, teachers and the researcher, all of whom were participants in
this study. The study used mixed methodologies because both quantitative
and qualitative data were collected and analyzed. The three methods of data
collection were: classroom observation, students’ responses -- both
numerical selections and written comment -- and teacher’s responses -- both
numerical selections and written comments. These methods of data
collection were selected because the researcher could observe what was
happening in the classroom (qualitative) and then collect both comments
(qualitative) and percentages (quantitative) to demonstrate perceptions.
Having all three sides involved in the research is important because
discovering what motivates students requires more than observation alone; it
also requires a thorough study of students’ opinions and responses.
The research took place at South East European University, in the end of
the summer semester 2008. Requests were made to all teachers of English at
intermediate and upper-intermediate level. Of the teachers who agreed, six
were selected because they fit the times the observers could be present.
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