Stephen Ryan, Senshu University

29 November, 2015

A practical classroom resource

Psychology

Oxford Day 2015

• Think about why language teachers need to know about

psychology

• Look at conventional understandings of psychology and

language learning

• Consider some of the ways in which thinking about

psychology in language learning is changing

• Suggest a set of guidelines for informed practice

Psychology:

A practical classroom resource

Outline

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Personality

Aptitude

Strategies

Openness

Agreeablene

ss

Neuroticism

Conscientiousne

ss

Extraversion

Motivation

Self-regulation

Attributions

Anxiety

Styles

Strategies

Beliefs

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People often react to events in unexpected ways. Look at the following list of

episodes that may happen to a language learner. How do you think they may

affect the learner’s approaches to language learning?

•getting a surprisingly high score on an important test

•spending time in a country where the target language is

spoken

•falling in love with a speaker of the target language

•breaking up after a serious relationship with that speaker of

the target language

•being praised by a language teacher for excellent

pronunciation

Unpredictable learners

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We are not doing science, we are doing the difficult stuff.

Science was developed for the physical world. We deal with

the symbolic world of abstract conceptualizations such as

motivation, intention, goals, rewards, wishes, imagined

futures. So we don’t do science; we explore phenomena of

interest. (Schumann, cited in Dörnyei & Ryan, 2015)

Moving away from a scientific approach

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Motivated learners

What is motivation?

Imagine you are the parent of a young boy beginning to learn the piano. Which of

the following do you think are likely to be the most motivating?

1. … offering a reward or treat each time he performs well

2. … not allowing him to play with his friends until he has completed

his daily practice

3. … adopting a policy of constant praise and encouragement,

regardless of actual performance

4. … striking his fingers with a stick each time he makes a mistake

5. … boosting his self-esteem by encouraging him to believe that he is

more gifted than those around him

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Motivated learners

• A common view of motivation

• What adjectives come to mind when you think of this animal?

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• Teachers need to understand motivation, not ‘impose’ it

• Long-term motivation is internally driven, not externally

• Motivation connects to other aspects of learner psychology

• Motivation can only really be understood in relation to

specific individuals in specific contexts

• Motivation fluctuates over time and in response to situations

Motivated learners

Rethinking language learner motivation

(motivation) provides the primary impetus to initiate

L2 learning and later the driving force to sustain the

long, often tedious learning process (Dörnyei & Ryan,

2015, p. 72)

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Dynamic groups

• Forming

A number of people start to become recognizable as a group

•Storming

Group members feel more secure and start to disagree openly with each

other

•Norming Cohesion develops based on shared norms and goals

•Performing The group is highly motivated, interdependent, and productive

•Adjourning

The group stops being effective and begins to dissolve

Social learners

Understanding people in groups

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Look at this list of activities from a language classroom. Imagine yourself as a

teacher announcing the upcoming activity to the class. What kinds of

emotional reactions might you anticipate from the different learners in your

class? Can you imagine why learners might respond differently to these

activities?

•singing a song in the target language

•a sudden, unannounced short vocabulary quiz

•watching a clip from a news programme in the target language

•individual presentations on famous people

•a role play about a business meeting

•reading poetry in the target language

Emotional learners

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• Accept, understand, and enjoy unpredictability

• Plan with motivation in mind

• Understand the groups you work with and those you are a

part of

• Understand that learners live lives outside the classroom

• Encourage positive emotions and reduce anxiety

• Be aware of yourself as a role model in the classroom

Guidelines for practice

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References

Boo, Z., Dörnyei. Z., & Ryan, S. (2015). L2 Motivation research 2005 - 2014: Understanding a publication surge and a changing landscape. System, 55, 145-157.

Dörnyei. Z., & Murphey, T. (2003). Group dynamics in the language classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Dörnyei. Z., & Ryan, S. (2015). The psychology of the language learner revisited. New York: Routledge.

Williams, M., Mercer, S., & Ryan, S. (2015). Exploring psychology in language learning and teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

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