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It is widely accepted that for most fields of learning that motivation is vital to success: that we have to want to do something to succeed at it. Without such motivation we will almost certainly fail to make the necessary effort. As a result, I would like to spend my summative task on "Motivation in the classroom" in order to help me understand what motivation is, where it comes from and how it can be sustained. These will assist me to inspire my students intrinsically and extrinsically so that they are able to learn English more actively in my classes. From the authors’ different viewpoints on the role of motivation in teaching and learning English, I subscribe to the view that motivation is an integral part of language learning. Crookes and Schimts (as cited in Norris, 2001) argue that motivation can orient students towards the target of second language acquisition. According to Brown (2000), the application of motivation to teaching the second language is challenging; however, motivation can make the difference. Dornyei and Ushioda (2011) shares the same thought when this author claims that motivation illustrates students’ attempts to study the target language and that it is a decisive factor impacting on language learning acquisition. A case in point is I as a language learner before becoming a teacher. When I was a university student, I felt inspired whenever I read a beautifully-written sentence. I then imitated such excellent style of writing and made rapid progress in my writing skill. More importantly, as a teacher of English, I need to consider both intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation to facilitate students’ language learning process (Lewis, 2002). Having applied this theory, I realize that students who are intrinsically motivated to speak English more actively, thereby achieving higher scores in school examinations. It seems that the more highly motivated students are, the harder they attempt to practice speaking English. This is probably because they are well aware of the advantages of studying English permanently. This reason is entirely consistent with earlier research suggested by Lewis (2002) when he emphasizes that students with “strong intrinsic motivation know the benefits of learning a particular language. Others need to be reminded of where success could lead.” Therefore, for this group of students, I tend to recommend good sources of English reference books, videos or programmes in order that students can proactively approach English with an effective method. Another group of students requiring a great deal of my effort is unmotivated learners. This group of learners are those who need extrinsic motivation such as rewards to stimulate their interest in the process of speaking a foreign language. In chapter 4 discussing classroom management, Lewis (2002) lists some innovative teaching ideas such as inviting native speakers to create a good environment in communication or organizing concerts with plays and singing to enhance students’ interaction with the target language. Other suggestions of the author include providing additional reading sources, using videos, group presentations, group debates have been already implemented in my speaking classes. As a result, my students have made a considerable change in learning attitude when participating in speaking activities. For example, my classroom atmosphere became more exciting during the lessons of debate. For the foregoing discussions, I learn that inspiring students to learn English with a positive and active attitude demands a great deal of a teacher’ experience, creativity and competence. It is a challenge to me as a neophyte teacher in the field of language teaching in the context of education in Vietnam. However, the most meaningful aspect here is my persistence in motivating students to participate in classes more voluntarily. In the future, my target is designing more dynamic and creative activities so that students can have real motivation in the process of language learning in class. Reference lists: Brown, D. H. (2000). Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy (2th ed.). New York: Pearson Education Company. Dornyei, Z., & Ushioda, E. (2011). Teaching and researching motivation (2th ed.). Great Britain: Pearson Education. Lewis, M. (2002). Classroom management. In J. C. Richards & W. A. Renandya (Eds), Methodology in language teaching. (pp. 40-48). New York: Cambridge University Press. Norris, J. (2001). Motivation as a contributing factor in second language acquisition. The Internet TESL Journal, 7(6). Retrieved from http://iteslj.org/Articles/Norris-Motivation.html
