Motivational Strategies in Language Learning: Student-Teachers’ Perceptions and Views

Abstract

In English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context, students’ perceptions of teaching strategies affect their motivation towards their language learning. These perceptions are influenced by the context in which they learn. The study is a modified replication of Cheng and Dörnyei (2007) to which it added interview as an extra data collection tool. This paper aims to investigate student teachers’ perceptions and views of motivational strategies in the Turkish educational context. To determine their perspectives, a questionnaire was administered to 103 student teachers studying at the department of English language teaching of a state university. Thirteen volunteers were interviewed to identify their views on motivational strategies. The results indicated that EFL student teachers in Turkey were aware of the importance of motivational strategies. Furthermore, unique to this study, all the examined strategies were highest-ranked relative to their perceived importance, indicating that Turkish student teachers attached high importance to all strategies.

Özet

1. 2. 3. English as a foreign language 4. Studentteachers’ motivational strategies