1. Learner Characteristics

2. What are learner characteristics?
Learner characteristics include a learners’
Motivation
Learning styles
Learning strategies
Maturity (grown up physically, mentally and emotionally)
Past language learning experience

3. Motivation
Motivation is one of the most challenging areas when we are teaching teenagers English

4. What is motivation
It is thought and feelings we have which make us want to do something, continue to want to do it and turn our wishes into action.

5. Importance of motivation
“A student’s willingness, need, desire and compulsion to participate in, and be successful in, the learning process” (Bomia et al., 1997, p.1)
Less motivated or disengaged students, on the other hand, “ are passive, do not try hard, and give up easily in the face of challenges”
( Skinner & Belmont, 1991, p. 4)

6. Nothing worse than going into a class full of people who don’t really want to be there
Teenagers probably don’t have much say about being in your classroom
Parents pay and have a higher level of motivation to ensure learning succeeds

7. Why were you motivated to learn English?

8. Overseas studying
Proficiency test
Communication with foreigners
Traveling
Better jobs
Research
Show off
Online games

9. Do teenagers have ability to see the future or to understand whether their English is or is not improving?
We need to encourage immediate motivation.
This motivation must come from the task we as a class are doing at the present time.

10. Think it about for a moment—
A highly motivated group of students is usually going to be easier to teach.

12. Key concepts
Learners may have strong motivation in an area and little in another.
Motivation can change.
Different learners will be motivated in different ways.
Motivation can change with age too.
Motivation needs to be created and continued.

13. Types of motivation Extrinsic Intrinsic
Engaging in behavior to attain a reward or to avoid a punishment form and external source.
Intrinsic
Engaging in behavior out of curiosity, sense challenge and an internal sense of gratification.

14. Research on student motivation
Over-reliance on extrinsic motivators can decrease achievement and student perceptions of motivation
Greater intrinsic motivation is associated with
Higher achievement
Higher confidence
Longer retention of concepts

15. What are the reasons for lack of motivation and enthusiasm?
Lack of failure in the past           
 Lack of faith in the ability              
 Low self-esteem                     
Lack of enough interest
Fear of what others might say       
Laziness
Being too stressed or nervous     
Being too stressed or nervous
No awareness of importance and usefulness of the English or goal
Absence of enough stimuli or incentives.

16. Fun Lesson Element The importance of planning Giving praise
Reinforce and repeat with fun activities
Vary your material
Be consistent in your approach

17. Factors influencing motivation
The usefulness of knowing the language well
Interest in the target language culture
Feeling good about learning the language
Self-confidence=feeling that we can do things successfully
Learner autonomy/independence=feeling responsible for and in control of our learning

18. More factors
Encouragement and support from others: parents, teachers, classmates, school, society
Interest in the learning process:
the interest and relevance to us of the course content, classroom activities, teacher’s personality, teaching methods.

19. Effective teachers will make sure that students know WHY they need to learn the language that is the target of the day’s lesson

20. These reasons stifle motivation and enthusiasm, and are only excuses for not acting. However, we learn to overcome and disregard them, by becoming aware of them, acknowledging them, and understanding that we can change the programming of our mind.

21. Resources for planning activities
Beginner’s Communication Games by Jill Hadfield, Longman 1999
English Vocabulary in Use Elementary, by Michael MaCarthy and Felicity O’Dell, 2010