Towards Lessening Learners’Aversive Emotions and Promoting Their Mental Health:Developing and Validating a Measurement of English Speaking Demotivation in the Chinese EFL Context

While a plethora of studies has been conducted to explore demotivation and its impact on mental health in second language(L2)education,scanty research focuses on demotivation in L2 speaking learning.Particularly,little research explores the measures to quantify L2 speaking demotivation.The present two-phase study attempts to develop and validate an English Speaking Demotivation Scale(ESDS).To this end,an independent sample of 207 Chinese tertiary learners of English as a Foreign Language(EFL)participated in the development phase,and another group of 188 Chinese EFL learners was recruited for the validation of the scale.Exploratory Factor Analysis(EFA)and Confirmatory Factor Analysis(CFA)were employed to determine the factor structure of the scale.The EFA results revealed a six-factor solution with Teacher-related Factors in Learning Spoken English(TFLSE),Interest and Valence in Learning Spoken English(IVLSE),Self-efficacy in Learning Spoken English(SELSE),Negative Peer Influence in Learning Spoken English(NPILSE),Undesirable Environment for Learning Spoken English(UELSE),and Negative Influence of Assessment and Learning Materials in speaking class(NIALM).In the validation phase,Confirmatory Factor Analysis(CFA)was performed to validate the internal structure of the scale.The CFA results showed that the model fits the data well.Overall,the ESDS is a robust and trustworthy psychometric tool that could be utilized to examine L2 speaking demotivation.Implications for diminishing EFL learners’demotivation,lessening their aversive emotions and promoting their mental health are also discussed.

Promoting the Learners’Motivation in Learning Chinese as a Second Language:From Demotivation to Motivational Strategies

Motivation is a key factor that influences the outcome of second language(L2)learning.Chinese as a second language(CSL)learners,however,may experience demotivation in their Chinese learning process which will,more often than not,reduce their learning interest and eventually affect their learning effect,therefore,it is necessary to enhance the learners’motivation level.This article first reviews the research literature in motivation in general,then discusses the CSL learners’demotivation in their Chinses learning process studying in China.Finally,it introduces motivational strategies to activate CSL learners’motivation in learning Chinese.

Motivation and Demotivation in L2 Learning

Motivation has been regarded as one of the most important factors in the process of second language leaming in recent years. This paper aims to find out the motivation intensity in students＇ language leaming and why some students become demotivated in the learning process. According to the study, the reasons why some motivated students become demotivated are multifaceted. But we found teachers played an important role in this process. Most students depend greatly on their teachers to motivate them. So teachers should attach more importance in this field and try to find out ways to maintain the high motivation and create situations to make students become more motivated.

Coping With Teacher Demotivation Toward Directed Motivational Currents

In the field of Second Language Acquisition （SLA）, motivation has played a crucial role for language learning and teaching. Just as motivation is important in SLA, demotivation constitutes an important factor for both students and teachers. In our previous study, investigating 97 teachers for demotivational factors, the teachers felt demotivated to see students＇ lack of interest and bad attitudes, as well as dissatisfaction with curriculum, teaching material and poor facilities. We concluded further investigation was necessary as to how teachers regain motivation and hopefully toward directed motivational current （DMC）, which not only provides a direction for action, but it also energizes action （D6myei et al, 2016）. In our present study, compared to our previous study which was analyzed quantitatively, we have collected qualitative data from some 34 college teachers investigating when they felt demotivated, what they did to cope with it, and how they regained their motivation. Data was collected, analyzed qualitatively, and factors which may lead to DMC was extracted. It is hoped that this study will be beneficial for facilitating better SLA learning and teaching, and also for teacher training.

Perspectives of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for Kenyan Midwives

Continuing Professional Development (CPD) provides an important strategy for reduction of maternal morbidity and mortality with the aim of attaining Millennium Development goals (MDG) four and five. However, there is lack of information about how Kenyan midwives understand and perceive CPD and how this is situated in the practice and social context. This research aimed to explore Kenyan midwives’ experience and perceptions of CPD. A descriptive explorative approach gathered focus group discussion and questionnaire data on beliefs, opinions, and perceptions, demotivating and motivating factors to CPD of a total of 25 midwives in a level five hospital in Kenya. Questionnaires were piloted and self-administered after cleaning and focus groups taped and transcribed verbatim. Data were analyzed thematically using inductive approach with the aid of SPSS computer program. Results: Four key themes emerged from the data: Midwives’ views of CPD, their motivators for undertaking CPD, the choices they made around CPD, their demotivators for undertaking CPD. Congruence with the issues evident in the literature were: the difficulties with role diversity, the importance of CPD in personal and professional growth, the importance of flexible modes of study and the importance of a supportive culture for ongoing learning. The study findings helped in identifying gaps in the literature about Kenyan midwives’ perspectives on CPD.

The Dilemma of English Teaching in the EFL Classroom in a Vocational Technical Institute

English teachers are commonly confronted with the dilemma in the EFL classroom.However,Ellis(2009)mentioned thatless attention has been paid to this domain.The aim of this paper is to examine sources of demotivation among 17 English teachersin a vocational technical institute in China.The findings indicated that teacher demotivation is mainly attributed to six factors:thediscordance among the polarization of student language proficiency level,big class size and inappropriate course book,inhibitedteacher self-efficacy,government-mandated policy,inadequate school facilities and low student self-autonomy/self-efficacy.

A Review of Research on Demotivation in SLA

This paper is a review of studies on demotivation at home and abroad. Demotivation has become a commonly existing phenomenon in foreign language learners. And experts and scholars have paid a lot of attention to demotivation phenomenon recently. Despite their remarkable achievements, previous studies have displayed some problems, including: a lack of clear theoretical foundation; research methods are not diversified and scientific and effective measurement tools are in great need.

Differences Between Amotivation and Demotivation

Though both amotivation and demotivation concern a lack of motivation,they are two different things.There are many differences between them.

Introduction to the Model Building of English Learning Motivation Drops

By means of interviews with some demotivated students in English learning and questionnaires among 16 teachers of English and 170 non-English majors, this study identifies six latent variables and 18 observable variables that result in demotivation in English teaming. Then a causal model of demotivation in English teaming is constructed. Relationships within the model are examined through analysis of Moment Structures analysis. It is found that learning environment, valence, learning purposes, interest in English, and anxiety had direct effects on demotivation in English learning. Besides, the interactions among the variables also affect demotivation in English learning.

Study on Motivational Changes of Non-English Majors

This paper is on the study of motivational changes of Chinese non-English major students in their first two years of college English learning. The current study was carried out through the quantitative research method. The research question to be addressed is：During the first two years of college English learning, does non-English majors＇ learning motivation （i.e. types of motivation and motivational intensity） change？ The analyses of the data reveal that motivational changes do exist in the first two years of college English learning. Generally, most types of motivation （i.e. intrinsic interest motivation, information medium motivation, personal development motivation, and social responsibility motivation） decrease significantly except for the slight increase of immediate achievement motivation, and the decline of motivational intensity is also obvious.

A Study on Demotivating factors of English Learning in Higher Vocational Colleges

In this study,a questionnaire is used to investigate the demotivating factors affecting English learning in higher voca-tional colleges.Altogether 7 demotivating factors are extracted:Lack of self-confidence;Lack of effective learning strategies;Inappro-priate curriculum setting;Negative attitude toward learning English;Inadequate teaching materials;Lack of teaching facilities in class;Teacher's inadequate competence.And some suggestions to minimize students' demotivation are given in this study.