Motivational-Regulation Strategies Used by Chinese College Students

Abstract

Chapter 4 focusses on the survey study on motivational-regulation strategies used by Chinese EFL college students. It explored the different types of motivational-regulation strategies used by Chinese EFL college students by collecting large amount of first-hand data. It was found that Chinese college students use a variety of strategies to sustain or increase their motivation in English learning. Eight types of motivational-regulation strategies were identified: interest enhancement; performance self-talk; mastery self-talk; self-reward; negative-based incentive; task-value enhancement; volition control; and self-efficacy enhancement.

The chapter also examines the overall pattern in using the eight strategies and the differences in the frequency of use. The students used all the eight motivational-regulation strategies with medium to high frequency. However, the students did not use these strategies with equal frequency. Also presented are results about the differences in using these strategies in terms of students’ gender, specialty, and English proficiency. There were statistical differences between females and males in using motivational-regulation strategies. Students’ specialties did not affect the use of motivational-regulation strategies. Language proficiency was found to be an important factor affecting the use of motivational-regulation strategies.

Appendices

Appendix 1

Motivational Regulation in English Learning

Language learning is a long process, and English learning is no exception. In English learning, you may encounter a situation where you are not willing to or lack motivation to study although there are learning tasks to finish. There are various reasons for such situations, for example, the learning task is dull or the learning task seems unimportant. Then how would you do to maintain or increase your motivation to make yourself continue finishing the task? Please give your answer to the following questions based on the specific situations.

Situation One: Learning in Class

Learning in class is an important step and the students should listen carefully and take notes to thoroughly understand what is conveyed in class. But sometimes it may be difficult for you to do that for certain reasons. Please write down what would you do to maintain or increase your motivation to keep yourself listening carefully when encountering the following problems.

• 1. The learning material in class seems useless or unimportant to you, then how would maintain or increase your motivation to continue listening attentively?

• 2. If you find what the teacher is teaching is difficult for you to understand, what would you do to make yourself continue listening carefully?

• 3. You think that what the teacher is teaching is boring or uninteresting. What would you do to maintain or increase your motivation to continue listening attentively?

• 4. You may be affected by a disturbing environment in class (e.g., the noise). What would you do to keep yourself listening carefully when you are disturbed by the environment?

• 5. A bad mood or a feeling of tiredness may reduce your motivation to learn in class. What would you do to get yourself to continue listening carefully under such a situation?

Situation Two: Learning after Class

Self-study is of great importance and usually there are different learning tasks for students to finish after class, such as preview and review the text, learning for the goal set for oneself. However, you may encounter such situations, that is, you are not willing to or lack motivation to study although there are tasks to finish. Please write down what you would do to maintain or increase your motivation to keep yourself working on the learning tasks when encountering the following problems.

• 1. You think the learning task is useless or unimportant when you study after class. How would maintain your motivation to finish the task?

• 2. You find the learning task is difficult and lots of effort is needed to finish the task. What would you do to get yourself to continue working on the task?

• 3. When you work on the learning task, you find the task is boring or uninteresting. What would you do if you wanted to maintain your learning motivation to finish the task?

• 4. When you study after class, you may lack the motivation to study due to the influence of a disturbing environment, such as the temptation of games or the influence of others. What would you do to keep yourself studying carefully to finish the task?

• 5. When you study after class, you may be not willing to work on the task because of a bad mood or feeling of tiredness. How would you motivate yourself to finish the learning task carefully under such a situation?

Situation Three: Preparing for Exams

Taking exams is necessary for students, such as the quiz in class, middle or final term exams, CET4. You have to put great effort into preparing for exams. However, it is also unavoidable for that at some point you find yourself unwilling or lack the motivation to study. How would you regulate your motivation to make yourself concentrate on the study under such situations?

• 1. You think what you are studying is useless or unimportant when you prepare for exams. How would you maintain or increase your motivation to keep studying carefully?

• 2. When you prepare for exams, you find the learning material is difficult to understand. What would you do to get yourself to continue working on the task?

• 3. When you prepare for exams, you think the learning task is boring or uninteresting. How would you maintain your learning motivation to work on the task?

• 4. When you prepare for exams, you may lack the motivation to do so due to the influence of a disturbing environment, such as the temptation of games or influence of others. What would you do to keep yourself concentrating on your studies?

• 5. When you prepare for exams, you may be not willing to work on the task because of a bad mood or feeling of tiredness. How would you spur yourself to study carefully?

Appendix 2

Questionnaire on Self-regulated English Learning

The questionnaire aims to learn about the motivational-regulation strategies and language-learning strategies used by Chinese College students in their English learning as well as their motivational beliefs. Please read each question carefully and finish the questionnaire according to your real situation. There is no right or wrong answer. All the data collected will be highly confidential and will be used for research only.

Part One: Personal Information

Gender: ————Age: ————

Grade: ————School: ————

Major: ————CET4 Score: ————

Part Two: Motivational Regulation

In your English learning, no matter whether it is in class, after class, or when you prepare for the exams, you may encounter such a situation, that is, you are not willing to or lack the motivation to study although there are learning tasks to finish. Of course, there are various reasons for such situations. But how would maintain or increase your motivation to get yourself to continue working on the tasks?

The following are some thoughts or behaviors that English learners use to regulate their motivation. Please read each item carefully and write down the number that best represents your situation in the bracket at the end of each statement. Remember there are no right or wrong answers. The numbers stand for the following responses:

• 1 = This statement is never or almost never true of me.

• 2 = This statement is not usually true of me.

• 3 = This statement is somewhat true of me.

• 4 = This statement is usually true of me.

• 5 = This statement is completely or almost completely true of me.

• 1. I convince myself to keep studying by thinking about getting good grades.

• 2. I persuade myself to keep at studying just to see how much I can learn.

• 3. There is no problem that cannot be solved as long as I try my best to do it.

• 4. I promise myself some kind of reward if I get my reading or studying done.

• 5. I make an effort to relate what we are learning to my personal interests.

• 6. I tell myself I should keep at it, for English is a course of importance and practice.

• 7. I think about becoming good at what we are learning or doing.

• 8. I tell myself I could not fall behind others and I should keep studying.

• 9. I tell myself that I can do what others can.

• 10. I promise myself I can do something interesting to me if I finish more of the task.

• 11. I compete with other students and challenge myself to do better than them.

• 12. I think of a way to make class work seem enjoyable to complete.

• 13. I think about the importance of English for my future.

• 14. I adjust myself to study by going outside to make myself calm down when I am in a bad mood.

• 15. I try to study at a time when I can be more focused.

• 16. I tell myself I should keep studying to improve my competence.

• 17. I make doing class work enjoyable by focusing on something about it that is fun.

• 18. I tell myself I should stick it out and should not give up halfway.

• 19. I tell myself that I can do well if I spend more time and make greater effort.

• 20. I think about how disappointed others (family or friends) will be if I do poorly.

• 21. I try to connect the material with something I like or find interesting.

• 22. I push myself to see if I can do better than I have done before.

• 23. I reward myself with every part of the work being completed until I finish all the work.

• 24. I try to regulate my mood by doing other things before studying.

• 25. I try to find a quiet place to study so that my study will not be disturbed.

• 26. I spur myself to keep studying by comparing myself with my classmates who are better than me.

• 27. I try to get myself to imagine how the learning is interesting.

• 28. I tell myself that I should keep studying just to learn as much as I can.

• 29. I think about the sacrifices that my parents are making to put me through school.

• 30. I set a goal for how much I need to study and promise myself a reward if I reach that goal.

• 31. I make an effort to connect what we were learning to my own experience.

• 32. I tell myself I should keep working on it because English is necessary for communication in future.

• 33. I think about how my grade will be affected if I do not keep studying hard.

• 34. I tell myself that I can do better with my intelligence.

• 35. I think about the possible negative consequences of doing poorly in the class.

• 36. I promise myself I can do something I want later if I finish the assigned work now.

• 37. I convince myself to keep studying hard by thinking about the pressure of job hunting.

• 38. I make myself study harder by thinking about the efforts other students are making.

• 39. I try to relate what we are learning to my real life.

• 40. I remind myself it is important to do well on the tests and assignments in this course.

Part Three: Language Learning Strategies

The following are some language-learning strategies that people use when learning a foreign language. Please read each statement and write down the number that best describes you in the bracket at the end of each statement. The number you choose must indicate your own real situation, not others’ thoughts or behaviors. The numbers stand for the following responses:

• 1 = This statement is never or almost never true of me.

• 2 = This statement is not usually true of me.

• 3 = This statement is somewhat true of me.

• 4 = This statement is usually true of me.

• 5 = This statement is completely or almost completely true of me.

• 1. I plan my schedule so I will have enough time to study English.

• 2. I have clear goals for improving my English skills.

• 3. I think about my progress in learning English.

• 4. Besides finishing the work assigned by the teachers, I have my own plan for self-study.

• 5. I evaluate my learning strategies to find out the ineffective ones and improve them.

• 6. I select English materials for self-study that are suitable to my language-proficiency level.

• 7. I evaluate my learning in English to find out my weak and strong areas.

• 8. I try to talk like native English speakers.

• 9. I practice the sounds of English.

• 10. I use the English words I know in different ways.

• 11. I start conversations in English.

• 12. I listen to English broadcasts and watch English TV programs or films.

• 13. I write notes, messages, letters, or reports in English.

• 14. I try to find patterns in English.

• 15. I find the meaning of an English word by dividing it into parts that I understand.

• 16. I think of relationships between what I already know and new things I learn in English.

• 17. I use new English words in a sentence so I can remember them.

• 18. I connect the sound of a new English word and an image of the word to help me remember the word.

• 19. I use rhymes to remember new English words.

Part Four: Motivational Beliefs

The following are some motivational beliefs on English learning, including the English learning-goal orientations and English self-efficacy. Please read each statement and write down the number that best indicates your opinion in the bracket at the end of each statement. The numbers stand for the following responses:

• 1 = I strongly disagree with this statement.

• 2 = I disagree with this statement.

• 3 = I neither agree nor disagree with this statement.

• 4 = I agree with this statement.

• 5 = I strongly agree with this statement.

• 1. I believe I will receive an excellent grade on the English course.

• 2. I like class work that I can learn from, even if it is so hard that I will make a lot of mistakes.

• 3. One of my goals in English class is to do better than most of the other students.

• 4. I want to do better in English class so that I can show my ability to my teacher and classmates.

• 5. One of my goals is to keep others from thinking I am dumb in learning English.

• 6. I am confident I can learn the basic concepts taught on the English course.

• 7. The main reason I study hard is to increase my English competence.

• 8. Doing better than other students in the English class is important to me.

• 9. I am confident I can understand the most complex material presented by the instructor in this course.

• 10. One of my goals in English class is to learn as much as I can.

• 11. It is important to me that other students in my class think I am good at English learning.

• 12. One reason I would not participate in the activities in English class is to avoid looking stupid.

• 13. I am confident I can do an excellent job on the assignments and tests in this course.

• 14. It is important to me that I thoroughly understand my class work.

• 15. One of my goals is to show others that learning English well is easy for me.

• 16. One of my main goals is to avoid performing worse in the English class.

• 17. I expect to do well in the English class.

• 18. One of my goals in the English class is to improve my English skills.

• 19. It is important to me that I do not look stupid in English class.

• 20. I am certain I can master the skills being taught in the English class.

• 21. An important reason I do my class work is so that I do not embarrass myself.

• 22. Considering the difficulty of this course and my ability, I think I will do well in this class.