Validating a Motivation Theory Model among Iranian Kurdish and Azerbaijani EFL Learners Using Structural Equation Modeling Approach
Subject Areas : All areas of language and translation
Faran
Rasoulian
1
(Department of English Language, Qeshm Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qeshm, Iran)
Fazlollah
Samimi
2
(Department of English, Bandar Abbas Branch, Islamic Azad University, Bandar Abbas, Iran)
Shahram
Afraz
3
(Department of English Language, Qeshm Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qeshm, Iran)
Keywords: motivation, Validation, model, Azerbaijani EFL Learners, Kurdish EFL Learners,
Abstract :
This study intended to develop a model of motivating factors to learn English among Iranian Kurdish and Azerbaijani EFL learners. For this purpose, at first, an endeavor was made to discover motivation factors and validate a model. Therefore, in the qualitative phase, a semi-structured interview was done with 18 Azerbaijani interviewees (in the Azerbaijan University of Tabriz) and 18 Kurdish ones (in the Kurdistan University of Sanandaj) and 6 participants of focus group from each ethnic group to brainstorm their ideas. After discovering seven EFL motivating factors with 29 categories, a questionnaire was made which reflected the factors. In the quantitative phase, the 80-item questionnaire underwent an exploratory factor analysis to test validity, and after the confirmation of its validity and reliability through a pilot study with 234 participants, the questionnaire was distributed among 320 EFL participants. To corroborate the validity of the proposed model, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) analysis was used with LISREL 8.8. Eventually, confirmatory factor analysis was run and the model of motivating factors was developed with three factors related more to Azerbaijani students leading to integrative motivation and four for Kurdish students making instrumental motivation. The emerged model is helpful for policymakers of education and teachers caring about better English instruction.
Acat, M. B., & Demiral, S. (2002). Sources of motivation in learning a foreign language in Turkey. Kuram ve Uygulamada Egitim Yonetimi, 3, 312-329.
Afshari, A., Tajeddin, Z., & Abbasian, R. G. (2019). Sources of de-motivation among English language learners: novice & experienced teachers’ beliefs. Journal of Modern Research in English Language Studies, 6(4), 59-81.
Ager, D. (2001). Motivation in language planning and language policy. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters. Caulderwood, K. (2015, May 19).
Aliakbari, M., & Hemmatizad, M. (2015). On Students’ De-Motivation, Gender, Major, and Educational Level in Iranian EFL Context. English Language Teaching, 8(4), 106-116.
Alibakhshi, G., Nezakatgoo, B., & Popescu, M. (2019). Construction and validation of Iranian EFL teachers’ teaching motivation scale. Cogent Education, 6(1), 1585311.
Alipour, A. (2016). Effectiveness of Motivational Interviewing on physical and Mental Indicators in patients with essential hypertension. RPH. 2017; 10 (4):10-18.
Amirian,M. R., & Adel, S.M. R. (2018). From the state of motivated to demotivated: Iranian military EFL learners’ motivation change. Journal of Asia TEFL,15(1), 32–50.
Bhutta, M. F. (2011). Widening access to medical school. Could proficiency in English be a factor? BMJ, 342, d1942. doi:10.1136/bmj. d1942.
Brown, H. D. (2000). Principles of language learning and teaching. New Jersey, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Çankaya, P. (2018). De-motivation factors in foreign language learning. Journal of Foreign Language Education and Technology, 3(1), 1-17.
Choubsaz, Y., & Choubsaz Y. (2014). Motivational Orientation and EFL Learning: A Study of Iranian Undergraduate Students. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 98, 392-397.
Clément, R. (1980), Ethnicity, contact and communicative competence in a second language. In H. Giles, W. P. Robinson, & P. M. Smith (eds.), Language: Social Psychological Perspectives. Oxford: Pergamon, pp. 147–154.
Corbin, J., & Strauss, A. (2015). Basics of Qualitative Research. Thousand Oaks CA: Sage.
Covington, M. V. (2000). Goal theory, motivation, and school achievement: An integrative review. Annual Review of Psychology, 51, 171–200.
Dornyei, Z. (1990). Conceptualizing Motivation in Foreign-Language Learning. Language Learning, 40, 45-78.
Dörnyei, Z. (2009). The L2 motivational self-system. In Z. Dörnyei & E. Ushioda (Eds.), Motivation, language identity and the L2 self (pp. 9-42). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Dornyei, Z. (1994). Motivation and Motivating in the Foreign Language Classroom. The Modern Language Journal, 78, 273-284.
Dornyei, Z., & Ushioda, E. (2011). Teaching and researching motivation (2nd ed). Harlow: Longman.
Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Teaching and researching motivation. Harlow, UK: Longman.
Edwards, J. (2009). Language and identity: An introduction. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
Falout, J., & Maruyama, M. (2004). A Comparative Study of Proficiency and Learner De-motivation. TheLanguage Teacher, 28(8), 3-9.
Fathi, J., Torabi, S. & Arashpour, K. (2019). A Qualitative Exploration of Demotivating Factors in English Language Learning among Iranian EFL Learners. International Journal of English Language & Translation Studies, 7(2). 01-11.
Fredy, F., Luz, M., & Angela, V. (2019). Motivation and E-Learning English as a foreign language: A qualitative study. Journal of Heliyon, 5(9), 11-25.
Gardner, R. C. (2000). Correlation, Causation, Motivation and Second Language Acquisition. Canadian Psychology, 41, 10-24.
Gardner, R. C., & Lambert, W. E. (1972). Attitudes and motivation in second language learning. Rowley, Mass: Newbury House.
Gardner, R. C., & Tremblay, P. F. (1994). On motivation, research agendas and theoretical frameworks. Modern Language Journal, 78, 359-368.
Gholami, R. (2012), Social Context as an Indirect Trigger in EFL Contexts: Issues and Solutions. Published by Canadian Center of Science and Education, Vol. 5, No. 3. Retrieved on March 2012, from: www.ccsenet.org/elt, January 2013.
Han, T., Takkac-Tulgar, A., & Aybirdi, N. (2019). Factors causing de-motivation in EFL learning process and the strategies used by Turkish EFL learners. Advances in language and Litereracy Studies, 10(2), 56-65
Harmer, J. (2007). The practice of English language teaching. Harlow, England: Pearson Longman.
Hosseini, A., & Shokrpour, N. (2019). Exploring motivating factors Iranian among medical and nursing ESP learners. Cogent Arts & Humanities, 6(1), 1634324
Huang, L. M. (2019). Perceptions of college students with disabilities. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 32(1), 21–33.
Hussin, S., Maarof, N., & D’Cruz, J. (2001). Sustaining an interest in learning English and increasing the motivation to learn English: an enrichment program. The Internet TESL Journal,7(5). http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Hussin-Motivation/ [retrieved 15-09-2014]
Kavianpanah, S., & Ghasemi, Z. (2011). An investigation into sources of de-motivation in second language learning. Iranian Journal of Applied Linguistics (IJAL), 1(2), 89-110.
Kazantseva E.S, (2016). Estimation of the ontogeny stage durations for herbaceous plants, specifically Anthyllis vulneraria L. The North Caucasus Ecological Herald. 2016, Vol. 12, N1. pp. 4-9.
Khudgir Agha, T. H. A. (2015). Ethnic Identity and Culture in Foreign Language Motivation: EFL forKurdish and Arabic Students in Iraqi Higher Education. Københavns Universitet, Det Humanistiske Fakultet.
Kikuchi, K. (2009). Listening to our learners’ voices: What demotivates EFL high school students? Language Teaching Research, 13(4).
Lamb, M. (2009). Situating the L2 self: Two Indonesian school learners of English. In Z. Dörnyei, & E. Ushioda (Eds), Motivation, language identity, and the L2 self (pp.229-247). Bristol: Mulitilingual Matters.
Lee, L. (2011). Blogging: Promoting learner autonomy and intercultural competence through study abroad. Language Learning & Technology, 15(3), 87–109. Retrieved from: http://llt.msu.edu/issues/october2011/lee.pdf
Majid,F. (2012). A study on the on-line language learning anxiety among adult learner Int. J. e-Educ., e-Bus., e- Manag. and e-Learn., 2 (3) (2012), pp. 187-192
May, S. (2008). Language and minority rights: Ethnicity, nationalism and the politics of language. New York, NY: Routledge.
Muhonen, J. (2004). Second language de-motivation: factors that discourage pupils from learning the English language (Unpublished pro gradu thesis). University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland.
Mun, Wong Yin. 2011. A Study of Instrumental and Integrative Motivation as Factors Influencing UTAR Third-Year Chinese Undergraduates in Learning ESL. A Research Project. Faculty of Arts and Social Science. Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia.
Oxford, R., & Shearin, J. (1994). Language Learning Motivation: Expanding the Theoretical Framework. The Modern Language Journal, 78, 12-27.
Phinney, J. S., Horenczyk, G., Liebkind, K., & Vedder, P. (2001). Ethnic identity, immigration, and well-being: An interactional perspective. Journal of Social Issues, 57(3), 493–510.
Pishghadam, R. (2011). Attributional patterns with respect to major and attendance in private language schools: A case of EFL context. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 1(7), 888-894.
Rakes, G.C. & Dunn, K.E. (2010). The Impact of Online Graduate Students’ Motivation and Self-Regulation on Academic Procrastination. Journal of Interactive Online Learning, 9(1), 78- 93. Retrieved from: https://www.learntechlib.org/p/109409/.
Ritlyova, A. (2009). Cultural Studies in Language Teaching. Milan Ferencik, Juraj Horvath (eds.) Paper presented at the Language, Literature and Culture in a Changing Transatlantic World International Conference. Weiner, B. (1985). An attribution theory of achievement motivation and emotion. Psychological Review, 92, 548-573.
Sadeghi, K, & Richards, J. (2015). “Teaching Spoken English in Iran’s Private Language Schools: Issues and Options.” English Teaching: Practice and Critique. doi: pdfplus/10.1108/ETPC-03-2015-0019
Sakai, H., & Kikuchi, k. (2009). An analysis of demotivators in the EFL classroom. System, 37(1), 57–69.
Sahragard, R., & Alimorad, Z. (2013). Demotivating factors affecting Iranian high school students’ English learning. In: Cultures of learning (pp. 245-260). New York: McMillan.
Schiefele, U. (2017). Classroom management and mastery-oriented instruction as mediators of the effects of teacher motivation on student motivation. Teaching and Teacher Education, 64, 115-126. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.02.004
Seligman, M. (1975). Helplessness: On depression, development, and death. San Francisco, CA: Freeman.
Sharifzadeh, M., & Heisey, D. R. (2010). A Case Study in Using Imagination to Teach English in Iranian Public Schools. Retrieved from: http://www.michaelprosser.com/2011/06/a-case-study-in-using-imagination-to-teach-english-in- iranian-public-schools-manssourethsharifzadeh-and-d-ray-heisey-ph-d/
Soodbakhsh, N. (2009). An investigation into the nature of oral communication strategies used by Iranian EFL learners: The effects of level of oral proficiency, motivation, and attitude. Unpublished M.A. thesis, International Division of Shiraz University, Iran.
Spolsky, B. (1989). Conditions for second language learning. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Smith, T. B., and Silva, L. (2011). Ethnic identity and personal well-being of people of color: A meta- analysis. J. Couns. Psychol. 58, 42–60. doi: 10.1037/a0021528
Sun, J. (2018). An analysis of English learning de-motivation factors of minority high-school students in Western China: A case study of a county high school in Qiannan autonomous prefecture Guizhou Province. Advances in Higher Education, 2(2), 1-7.
Tabatabaei, O., & Molavi, A. (2012). Demotivating factors affecting EFL learning of Iranian seminary students. International Education Studies, 5, 181-190.
Williams, M., & Burden, R. (1997). Psychology for language teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Zamani, M., & Sadeghi, B. (2020). Investigating demotivating factors in foreign language learners: The case of non-Iranian Persian language learners. Cogent Education, 7(1), 1690232.
Zanghar, A. (2012). Instrumental and Integrative Motivation Among Undergraduate Libyan Students of English as A Foreign Language (M.A.). COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY.