MOTIVATION TO LEARN ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE IN BRAZIL - GIVING VOICE TO A GROUP OF STUDENTS AT A PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOL

Bambirra, Raquel

doi:10.1590/1982-4017-170204-5316

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Artigos de Pesquisa • Ling. (dis)curso 17 (02) • May-Aug 2017 • https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-4017-170204-5316 copy

MOTIVATION TO LEARN ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE IN BRAZIL - GIVING VOICE TO A GROUP OF STUDENTS AT A PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOL

Motivação para aprender inglês como língua estrangeira no Brasil - dando voz a um grupo de estudantes de ensino médio de uma escola pública

Motivación para aprender inglés como lengua estranjera en Brasil - dando voz a un grupo de estudiantes de enseñanza média de una escuela pública

Authorship SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

Abstract

This study investigated to what extent a group of Brazilian secondary public school students find themselves motivated to learn English at school. Motivation was conceptualized as participation, in terms of the students’ attitudes towards their English classes. With the use of a logbook created for data collection in this research, the students expressed their motivational levels at the beginning and end of each class, during a school semester. The students’ impressions were analyzed at individual (TURNER; PATRICK, 2008) and group (WENGER, 2009) levels. The results indicated that these students were usually motivated to attend these classes but the classroom experiences played an important role in motivating them even more. Also, the study acknowledged motivation as an ever-changing experiential construct deeply influencing the foreign language learning classroom, and at the same time, being deeply influenced by internal and external factors to the individuals and the language classroom as well.

Keywords:
Motivation; Participation; English learning; Public school.

Date	Comment/informant
April 29	“- Got very nervous in class”, [due to the oral presentation task]. (Cerezo) / “The mother of a friend of mine’s has died.” (Boo) / “I’m sick.” (Melissa)
May 13	“- I gave a bad [oral] presentation.” (Abobrão) / “- I can’t give a presentation.” (Tetheus) / “- My presentation was not a good one.” (Mafê)
May 20	“- I can’t learn English.” (Tetheus)
June 10	“- It's going to take long to go home - there's no bus!” (Mafê)
July 8	Mafê used the unhappy face but did not explain it.

Date	Comment/informant
April 1	“- I’m sleepy.” (Abobrão)
April 15	“- So tired…” (Dentinho) / “- My soccer team lost yesterday.” (The Best)
April 29	“- I am really tired.” (Nando Reis) / “- The mother of a friend of mine’s has died.” (Boo) / “- I’m sick.” (Melissa)
May 13	“- Presentation in English - worried!” (Tetheus) / “- I hate presentation tasks.” (Mafê)
May 20	“- I got to class late.” (Cerezo) / “- I can’t learn English here and don’t have time to go to a private course.” (Tetheus) / “- Tired, bad grades, fed up.” (Naga)
June 3	“- I am under stress.” (Cerezo) / “Headache.” (Mafê)
June 17	“- Tired.” (Lo Mejor)

Universidade do Sul de Santa Catarina Av. José Acácio Moreira, 787 - Caixa Postal 370, Dehon - 88704.900 - Tubarão-SC- Brasil, Tel: (55 48) 3621-3369, Fax: (55 48) 3621-3036 - Tubarão - SC - Brazil
E-mail: lemd@unisul.br

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Planes	Focus	Observable behavior
Personal	how students change through their participation in an activity	. frequency of change of students’ interest in classes over time (volatility) . reasons why it changed
Interpersonal	the ways in which activities and materials are communicated and coordinated among individuals and how they facilitate or hinder certain types of participation	. students’ perceptions or opinions about the teacher, the peers and/or the classes
Community	institutional practices and cultural values	. students’ perceptions or opinions about the external context of the class - the school, infrastructure of the classroom, class start and end times etc.

DATES	COMMENTS AND MOODS
DATES	Before class	After class
Mar 18	"- Beautiful teacher. I’m in love with her!"	"- Still in love but awful in English."
Mar 25	"- My teacher is beautiful."	"- Even more in love."
Apr 1	"- Beautiful teacher but I am very tired."	"- I am so hungry."
Apr 8	"- I’m in love with my teacher."	"- Still in love but very tired."
Apr 15	"- Still in love with my teacher."	"- In love with my teacher."
Apr 29	"- I arrived late and the gorgeous teacher is nervous."	"- Gorgeous teacher but my book isn’t complete and she has checked it…"
May 6	"- Cute teacher!"	"- Beautiful teacher."
May 13	"- Oral task presentation..."	"- Didn’t present that well."
May 20	"- Nice class, beautiful teacher."	"- In love with my teacher."
May 27	"- My teacher gets more beautiful each day."	"- It’s unbelievable how beautiful she is."
Jun 3	"- The teacher is really cute."	"- Going for a holiday!"
Jun 10	ABSENT	ABSENT
Jun 17	"- God conspires against me on Wednesdays."	"- Head over heels. The teacher is very beautiful!"
Jun 24	ABSENT	ABSENT
Jul 1	ABSENT	ABSENT
Jul 8	"- The teacher is gorgeous!"	"- She doesn’t give me any hope."