ActionResearchintheLanguageClassroom:

MotivatingTeenageLearners

CarolynLeslie

INTRODUCTION

Asalllanguageteachersknow,motivationisoneofthekeyfactorsforsuccesswhen
learning a language. Motivated students are persistent, enthusiastic and committed
learners whereas unmotivated students are insufficiently involved and therefore
unabletodeveloptheirlanguageskills.Motivationhasbeendescribedaswhypeople
decidetodosomething,howhardtheyaregoingtopursueitandhowlongtheyare
willing to sustain the activity (Drnyei, 2001a, p.7). Theories of motivation to learn
thereforetrytoexplainanextremelycomplexfacetofhumanbehaviouranditisnot
surprising that presently many theories of motivation exist, most of which address a
single theoretical perspective rather than presenting a comprehensive framework to
explain how these factors are interrelated. Motivation to learn a language is a
complex situation, as language learning is not only an educational activity, but also
involves social and cultural issues (Drnyei, 2001b, pp.4762).However, a number of
theories describing motivation to learn a second or foreign language have been
presented, and four of these will now be described in greater detail. They are
Tremblay and Gardners revised model of Gardners Theory of motivation, Linguistic
selfconfidence, Attributions of L2 learning successes and failures and Self
determinationtheory.

TremblayandGardenersrevisedmodel.
MuchoftheresearchonmotivationinlanguagelearningwasinitiatedbyGardnerand
Lambert(1972)instudiestheycarriedoutonlearnersinAnglophoneandFrancophone
communities in Canada. This work pointed to the importance of integrativeness,
whichwasdefinedasadesiretobelikemembersoftheotherlanguagecommunity,
and it was suggested that this identification with the L2 community was a principal
componentofmotivationtolearnasecondlanguage(Clement,Drnyei&Noels,1994,

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441).Thismodelwascriticisedhoweverasitdidnottakeintoaccountmoreindividual
aspects of motivation (Crookes & Schmidt, 1991, Oxford & Shearin, 1994).
Consequently, Gardners model was later expanded (Tremblay & Gardner, 1995), to
includemoreindividualfactorssuchas;
goalsetting,i.e.motivationisrelatedtosettinglanguagelearninggoalsand
pursuingthem,
valence,i.e.motivationisrelatedtotheperceivedintrinsicandextrinsicvalue
of the activity. For example, how interesting and enjoyable the activity is
(intrinsic)andhowusefulitwillbeinoneslife(extrinsic).
selfefficacy, which relates to how confident individuals feel of their ability to
carry out certain specific language learning tasks, and inversely how anxious
theyfeelaboutusingL2.

Linguisticselfconfidence
Clement, Drnyei & Noels, (1994, p.422) defined linguistic selfconfidence as low
anxious affect and high selfperceptions of L2 competence, and proposed that in
multiethnicsituation, those with positive attitudes towards the L2 community would
seekoutcontactwiththiscommunity.Linguisticselfconfidencewouldthendevelopif
this contact was frequent and pleasant. They further expanded this idea to foreign
language learning situations by proposing that in such situations, individuals could
establish contact with the L2 community through cultural products , for example
throughcontactwithmusic,advertisingandthecinema.

AttributionTheory
Attribution Theory (Weiner, 1992) concerns the reasons people present for past
successesandfailures.Learnerswhoattributetheirinsuccessinlanguagelearningto
theirinabilitytolearnwilleasilybecomedemotivated.However,thosewhoattribute
insuccess to temporary situations that they can overcome e.g. lack of attention or
effort,willbemoremotivatedtopersistintheirlanguagelearning.Attributiontheory
is of particular importance in language learning as few learners achieve the levels of
proficiency they desire, and so for many, language learning is an activity associated
withacertainamountoffailure.

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SelfDeterminationTheory
Oneaspectofselfdeterminationtheorywhichhasbeenappliedtolanguagelearning
is that of learner autonomy which involves learner independence, learner
responsibility and learner choice (Dickinson, 1995, p.168).In a review of this area
Dickinson(1995,p.174)concludedthatstudiesonmotivationrevealedthatmotivation
and success in language learning were related to learners taking responsibility for
theirownlearning,beingabletocontroltheirownlearningandperceivingthattheir
learningsuccessesorfailuresaretobeattributedtotheirowneffortsandstrategies
ratherthantofactorsoutsidetheircontrol,allcharacteristicsoflearnerautonomy.

It is clear that these four theories have much in common. The idea of linguistic self
confidence/efficacy is important in both Clements Theory of Self Confidence and
Tremblay and Gardners revised model. Learner autonomy is an important aspect of
Tremblay and Gardners revised model (through the use of goalsetting), Attribution
Theory and SelfDetermination theory. Accordingly some aspects of goal setting,
building linguistic selfconfidence and encouraging learners to become more
autonomouswillnowbediscussedingreaterdetail.

GoalSetting,LearnerAutonomyandSelfConfidence
Lock and Latham (1990) argue that individuals who set themselves specific, difficult
goalswilloutperformthosewhosetnonspecific,easygoals.Ithasalsobeensuggested
that goalsetting can have a positive effect on academic achievement (Schunk and
Swartz,1993),andithasbeenfoundespeciallyusefulforelementarylevellearners
orstudentswhohaverecentlytakenupacourseofstudy(Gabb,2001).Goalscanbe
grouporindividualgoals,longorshortterm,andresearchersagreethatforgroupsto
workproductively,theymustsharethesamegeneralgoals(Senior,1997,p.5).

Individualgoals,whichcanincludebothlanguagelearningandbehaviourgoals,should
beclear,specificandmeasurable.Oncegoalshavebeenset,itisnecessarytoassessif
these goals have been achieved, and for this self assessment of performance and
instructor feedback have been found helpful (Kato, 2009, p.179). Self assessment is

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importantasitallowslearnerstobecomemoreinvolvedinthelearningprocessand
thereforebecomemoreautonomouslearners.Manysecondaryschoolanduniversity
studentsarepassivelearnerswhoaremoreconcernedwithgettinggoodmarksthan
really learning the language. If learners are asked to assess their performance in the
classroomtheymaybegintoperceivethelanguagemoreintermsofwhattheycando
withthelanguageratherthanwhattheyknowaboutthelanguage.

Teacher assessment of learner progress is a very valuable way of increasing student

selfconfidence and helping learners become more independent. To increase self
confidence and thereby motivate students, it is important that feedback focus on
comparisonwithstudentspreviousachievementsratherthancomparisontoothersin
theclass(Drnyei,2001a,p.124).Feedbackshouldalsoofferpraisewhenappropriate,
acknowledgepositivecontributionsandshowhowlearnerscanimproveinthefuture
(Drnyei, 2001a, p.123). It is equally important to help learners attribute lack of
successwithlackofeffortoruseofinappropriatestrategiesratherthanlackofability.
This is therefore another opportunity to increase learner autonomy by introducing
learners to various learning strategies, which have been defined as operations
employedbythelearnertoaidacquisition,storage,retrievalanduseofinformation
(Oxford,2001,p.166).Researchshowsthatstrategyuseandincreasedproficiencyare
related,andalthoughitisrecommendedthatstrategyinstructionbeinterwovenwith
language lessons, even a oneoff learning strategy workshop resulted in better final
grades(Flaitz&Feyten,1996).Learningstrategieswhichcouldbeeasilyintroducedin
classincludeteachinglearnershowtotakenotesormakevocabularyrecords,giving
them the opportunity to guess unknown words from context, and encouraging
learners to ask when in doubt. The use of such strategies could be included in short
term goals, and when learners perceive that these strategies help them complete a
taskmoresuccessfully,itcanimprovetheirselfefficacy(Bandura,1997).

This paper aims to demonstrate what strategies can be used in class to encourage
learners to set their own learning goals, improve linguistic selfconfidence and
encourage them to become more autonomous learners. The goal setting and self/

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teacherassessmentstrategiesusedinclasswillbedetailedandresultsofselfreport
questionnairesdistributedtostudentswillbediscussed.

METHODOLOGY

Respondents
Thelearnersinvolvedinthissmallscaleprojectwere17teenagestudentsbetweenthe
agesof13and16whoattendeda3hourclassonSaturdaymorningatB1level,i.e.
preintermediate level, in the British Council, Lisbon. This group was chosen for the
study as it became obvious in term 1 that many students in the group were very
reticentabouttryingtouseEnglishorallyinclass,andsomehadnounderstandingof
the need to do so. It was therefore decided that during terms 2 and 3, a number of
strategieswouldbeusedinclass,principallytotrytoencouragethemtospeakmore
English,butalsotodevelopautonomyandlinguisticconfidence.

Inweekoneofterm2,agroupdiscussiontask(Appendix1)wasusedtoconsiderideas
suchaswhatextrinsicbenefitstheycouldgainfromlessons,theimportanceofusing
Englishinclassesandtheroleofmistakes.Italsoaskedstudentstodiscusssomebroad
behaviouralgoalsinclasssuchasdoinghomework,arrivingontimeetc,andoutofthis
discussion a class contract of goals to work towards was drawn up, signed by all
(includingtheteacher)andpostedontheclassroomwall.

GoalSettingandEvaluation
Tobeeffective,goalsmustbespecific.However,writingspecificgoalscanbedifficult,
and left to their own devices, learners will often write very vague goals such as
improve my grammar, or learn more words. For this reason it can be useful to
initiallysetstudentsgoalsforthem,sotheylearnfromexample.Shorttermgoalsfor
thelessonwereusedastheyaremoreimmediateandthereforeeasierforteenagers
tofocuson.Aftersometime,whenlearnersaremorefamiliarwithgoalsetting,they
canbeaskedtosettheirowngoalsandencouragedtochallengethemselvesbysetting
moreandmoreambitiousgoalsonaweeklybasis.Appendices2and3showexamples

5
of selfassessment, goal setting handouts used with this class. Such handouts were
distributedatthebeginningofclass,learnersworkedonachievingtheirgoalsduring
class, and then either assessed themselves or one of their peers at the end of the
lesson.Theseassessmentsheetswerethencollectedin,commentsmadeonstudent
performanceduringclassthatweekandredistributedtolearnersatthebeginningof
thefollowingweekslesson.Thiscontinuedoveraperiodof20weeks,althoughin4
randomly chosen lessons, students were not asked to set goals or assess their
performance.

Questionnaireprocedureandanalysis
An11itemquestionnairewasdesigned(Appendix4)basedonasimilarquestionnaire
used by Kato (2009) and a 5 point Likert scale used to analyse statements. The
questionnaire,whichwasconfidentialbutnotanonymous,wasadministeredinclassat
the end of term 2, and students took approximately 10 minutes to respond, results
being expressed as percentages. The same questionnaire was also distributed to
students atthe end of term 3, i.e. after a totalof 20 week, and in addition students
were asked to complete 6 open ended questions about goal setting and assessment
(Appendix5)attheendofterm3.Itshouldbenotedthattheresultsobtainedare
representativemerelyofthesampleinvolved.

RESULTS

Results for the questionnaire distributed at the end of term 2 and 3 can be seen in
Table1,withresultsexpressedaspercentages.Studentsweregenerallyverypositive
aboutsettinggoalsandusingselfassessmentwithalmosttwothirdsoflearners(55%
interm2and59%interm3)agreeingthattheyspokemoreEnglishinclassbecause
they set goals for speaking. The percentage of students who agreed that they felt
moreconfidentaboutusingEnglishroseinTerm3(23%interm2to59%interm3)
and students also agreed that trying to achieve their goals helped improve their
English (47% term 2 in comparison to 67% in term 3). More than half the students
disagreedthatfocusingongoalseachweekwasawasteoftimeorunnecessaryand

6
the percentages of those who strongly agreed that self assessment and teacher
comments were useful rose by 12 and 19% respectively over the 20 week period.
However,percentagesofstudentswhostronglyagreedoragreedthatcommentsfrom
theteachergavethemmoreconfidencetotryharderinclassfellduringterm3(94%
to75%respectively).Thiscouldbebecausetheteacheroftenrepeatedthesametype
ofcomments,whichcouldbegintoloseimpactovertime.Inadditiontherewasalsoa
decreaseinthepercentagesofthosewhoagreedthattheytookamoreactivepartin
classbecausetheysetgoalsfor

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Table1Resultsforquestionnairedistributedattheendofterms2and3withresultsexpressedasapercentageoftotalnumberofresponses(N=17).
Stronglyagree Agree Neutral Disagree Stronglydisagree
Statement Term2 Term3 Term2 Term3 Term2 Term3 Term2 Term3 Term2 Term3

a) I speak more English in class because I 23% 25% 55% 59% 15% 8% 7% 8% 0% 0%
setgoalsforspeakinginlessons.
b) I took a more active part in classes 0% 0% 70% 59% 15% 33% 15% 8% 0% 0%
becauseIsetgoalsforparticipation.
c)IfeelIlearnedmorevocabularybecause 23% 25% 63% 33% 7% 34% 7% 8% 0% 0%
Isetgoalsforlearningwordseachweek.
d)IfeltmoreconfidentaboutusingEnglish 23% 0% 23% 59% 47% 16% 7% 25% 0% 0%
becauseIworkedtowardsmygoals.
e)Tryingtoachievethegoalshelpedmeto 23% 25% 47% 67% 30% 8% 0% 0% 0% 0%
improvemyEnglish.
f)Focusingongoalseachweekwasawaste 0% 0% 0% 17% 23% 8% 54% 58% 23% 17%
oftime.
g) Focusing on goals each week was 0% 0% 7% 8% 7% 8% 55% 67% 31% 17%
unnecessary.
h) Selfassessment was useful because it 30% 42% 63% 50% 7% 8% 0% 0% 0% 0%
helpedmethinkaboutwhatIdidinclass.
i) Comments from my teacher each week 23% 42% 87% 8% 0% 25% 0% 0% 0% 0%
werehelpful.
j) Comments from my teacher gave me 31% 42% 63% 33% 6% 25% 0% 0% 0% 0%
moreconfidencetotryharderinclass.
k) Comments from my teacher were 0% 0% 0% 0% 6% 25% 31% 33% 63% 42%
unimportant.

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participation (70% to 59%) and percentages of those who felt they learned more
vocabularybecause they set goals for learningwords each week (63%to 33%). This
couldbeexplainedbythefactthatmoreemphasiswasgiventosuchgoalsinterm2.

Asampleofanswerstotheopenquestionsasked(Appendix5)canbeseeninTable2
below. All students responded positively to these questions, except one, who
respondednegativelytoquestions1and2andwhofeltthatgoalsettingwasuseless
ashewouldworktotrytoimprovehisEnglishirrespectiveofsettinggoals.Anumber
ofstudentsseemedtofeelmorallyboundtotrytoachievegoals,oncetheyhadbeen
set,othersbecauseithelpedthemfocusonwhatwasnecessarytoworkoninclass.It
isalsointerestingtonotethatallstudentsreportedhonestlyassessingthemselvesat
theendoflessons,andthatanumbermentionedthattheideaofimprovingfromone
week to another was important to them. The most common reasons for not using
Englishwere,aswouldbeexpected,difficultyinexpressingthemselvesinEnglish,the
easeofusingtheirL1andthefactthatPortuguesewasbeingusedbyotherstudentsin
pairandgroupwork.

DISCUSSIONANDCONCLUSION

Many previous studies (Meader, 2000, Yang, 1998) have reported that student
learningandachievementareenhancedbyintegratedgoalsettingandselfassessment
procedures.Resultshereshowthatapproximatelythreequartersofstudentsinthis
groupstronglyagreeoragreethattheyspokemoreEnglishinclass,tookamoreactive
partinclassandimprovedtheirEnglishbecausetheysetgoalseachweek.Similarly,
approximately three quarters strongly agreed or agreed that selfassessment was
usefulbecauseithelpedthemthinkaboutwhattheydidinclass,andthatcomments
fromtheteacherwerehelpfulandgavethemmoreconfidencetotryharder.Onlyone
student surveyed had negative comments to make about goalsetting, and all were
positive in their comments on self/teacher assessment. Typical comments made on
goalsettingstatedthat,iftheywrotetheirowngoals,thentheyhadtotrytoachieve

9
them, that setting goals gave them a focus for the lesson and that trying to achieve
thesegoalshelpedthemimprovetheirEnglish.

10
Table2.Aselectionofcommentsmadeinanswertoopenquestions.
Questions
1.DoyouthinkyouspokemoreEnglishinclasseswhen
yousetgoalsforspeakinginlessons?Why?Whynot?
2.Doyouthinktryingtoachieveyourgoalshelpedyou
improve your English more than when you didnt set
goals?Why?Whynot?
3.Doyouthinkselfassessmentattheendoftheclass
helped you think about what you did or didnt do in
class?Why?Whynot?
4.Didyoualwaysassessyourselfhonestlyattheendof
classes?Why?Whynot?
5. Did you usually, sometimes, never achieve all your
goalsinclass?Why?
6. When did you speak more Portuguese in class? If
youdidntachieveyourEnglishspeakinggoals,whydid
thishappen?
Comments
Yes,becauseitsimportanttotrytoimprovefromonelessontoanother.
Yes,becauseitgavemeanobjective,mademethinkmoreaboutspeakingEnglish
Yes,ifwesetgoalswehavetotrytoachievethem
No,becauseIwanttoimprovemyEnglish,notbecauseofgoals.
Yes,becauseIfocusonmygoalsandtakeamoreactiverole
Yes,wehavetodowhatwesetoutinourgoals
Yes,Itrytoachievemygoalsbyspeakingmore,thenIknowmydifficultiesbetterandtry
toimprove
No,becauseallIwantistobebettergoalsareunimportant
Yes,itslikeasummaryofwhatwedidinclass.
Yes,becauseIknowwhatIdowellandnotsowellandcanimprovenextlesson
Yes,becauseitwouldbeawasteoftime,uselesstolie
Yes,IneedtobehonesttotheteacherbutIneedtomehonesttomyselfmore
Usually/sometimes
Sometimesmygoalsaretooambitious
InpairandgroupworkbecauseImnotfocused
WhensomeonespeakstomeinPortuguese
WhenIhavetroubleexpressingmyselfinEnglish
WhenIdidntsetgoals
Itseasier,fastertospeakPortuguese.
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Apopularresponsetoselfassessmentwasthatassessingthemselvesattheendofthe
lesson made them more aware of what they could and couldnt do and this helped
them focus on areas for improvement in subsequent lessons. This very positive
responsetogoalsettingandselfassessmentcouldbeduetothelowerlevelofthese
students, as it has been shown that advanced level learners find such intervention
much less helpful than beginner, elementary and intermediate level learners (Kato,
2009,p.192).Thefactthattheresearcherwasalsotheteacherofthisgroupcouldalso
haveinfluencedtheirresponses.

Thisdualroleofteacher/researcherhasanadvantageinthatitputstheteacherinan
ideal situation to observe the learners in class each week, and a number of such
observations are worthy of comment. Firstly, the teacher agreed with students that
more English was used in class when students set goals than in those classes where
goalsetting was not employed. Secondly, it was felt that goalsetting and self
assessment was a useful tool that the teacher could use to encourage students, and
referencetotheirgoalswasawaytoremindandmotivatestudentstouseEnglishin
class.Asmentionedatthebeginningofthisarticle,motivationisanextremelycomplex
areaofhumanbehaviour,andthereforewhatmotivatesonestudentwillbeunlikelyto
motivatethewholeclass.Althoughmoststudentswerepositiveintheircommentson
goalsetting and selfassessment, and although most students are thought to have
benefited to a certain extent in that they generally used more English, participated
moreinclass,andweremoresystematicaboutkeepingvocabularynotes,asignificant
differenceinuseofEnglishoccurredwith4studentsinthegroup.Thesestudents(2
boysand2girls)eithersetveryambitiousgoalsandthentriedhardtoachievethemin
class,orsetincreasinglymoreambitiousgoalsoveraperiodoftimeandworkedover
the 20 week period to achieve them. The fact that all students in this study reacted
positively to self/teacher assessment and that all but one was positive in relation to
goalsettingisencouraging.Inaddition,thefactthatstudentswereaspositiveintheir
attitudestowardsthesemotivationalstrategiesafter20weeksastheywereafter10is
interesting, and suggests that such strategies could be of use when implemented
systematicallyovertheacademicyear.Onewayofmotivatingmorestudentscouldbe
to try a variety of motivational strategies over a period of time, implementing those

12
which appear most successful, until they become an automatic part of teaching
(Drnyei,2001a,pp.137144).

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bandura,A.(1997).SelfEfficacy:TheExerciseofcontrol.NewYork:Freeman.

Clement, R., Drnyei, Z., & Noels, K. (1994). Motivation, SelfConfidence and Group
CohesionintheForeignLanguageClassroom.LanguageLearning,44(3),417448.

Crookes, G., & Schmidt, R. (1991). Motivation: Reopening the Research Agenda.
LanguageLearning,41(4),469512.

Dickinson,L.(1995).AutonomyandMotivationALiteratureReview.System,23(2),
165174.

Drnyei,Z.(2001a).MotivationalStrategiesintheLanguageClassroom.Cambridge:
CambridgeUniversityPress.

Drnyei, Z. (2001b). Teaching and Researching Motivation. Harlow: Pearson

Education.

Flaitz,J.&Feyten,C.(1996).Atwophasestudyinvolvingconsciousnessraisingand
strategy use for foreign language learners. In R.L. Oxford (ed.), Language Learning
StrategiesAroundtheWorld(pp.211343).Maona:UniversityofHawaiiPress.

Gabb,S.(2001).AuthenticgoalsettingwithABElearners:Accountabilityforprograms
orprocessforlearning.AdventuresinAssessment,13,1723.

Gardner,R.C.,&Lambert,W.E.(1972).AttitudesandMotivationinSecondLanguage
Learning.Rowley,MA:NewburyHouse

Kato,F.(2009).Studentpreferences:Goalsettingandselfassessmentactivitiesina
tertiaryeducationenvironment.LanguageTeachingResearch,13,177199.

Locke, E., & Latham, G.(1990). A Theory of Goal Setting and Task Performance.
EnglewoodCliffs,NJ:PrenticeHall.

Meader, P. (2000). The effects of continuing goalsetting on persistence in a math

class.FocusonBasics,4(A),710.

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Oxford, R. (2001). Language Learning Strategies. In Ronald Carter & David Nunan
(eds.), Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (pp.166172). Cambridge:
CambridgeUniversityPress.

Oxford, R., & Shearin, J. (1994). Language Learning Motivation: Expanding the
TheoreticalFramework.TheModernLanguageJournal,78,1228.

Senior,R.(1997).Transforminglanguageclassesintobondedgroups.ELTJournal,51
(1),311.

Schunk, D.H., & Swartz, C.W. (1993). Goals and progress feedback: Effects on self
efficacyandwritingachievement.ContemporaryEducationalPsychology,18,337354.

Tremblay, P.F., & Gardner, R., C. (1995). Expanding the Motivation Construct in
LanguageLearning.TheModernLanguageJournal,79(4),505518.

Weiner,B.(1992).Humanmotivation:Metaphors,TheoriesandResearch.Newbury
Park,CA:Sage.

Yang, N.D. (1998). Exploring a new role for teachers: promoting learner autonomy.
System,26,127135.

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Appendix1SB1ClassroomResolutions

Class

1. WhydoyoucometoEnglishclasses?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
2.IsitimportanttoknowEnglish?Why/Whynot?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
3.IfyouspeakEnglishwell,whatbenefitswillthisbringtoyoupersonally?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................

Classroom/Teacher/Students

1.Isitagoodideatocomelatetoclass?Why?Whynot?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................

2.Whydoesyourteacheraskyoutodohomework?Isitagoodorbadidea?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
3.Doyouthinkyoushoulddohomeworkeverylesson?Miss1perterm?.........?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
4.Isitagoodideatoeatchewingguminclass?Whydoestheteacheraskyounotto
dothis?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
5.Whatshouldyoubringtoclass?Why?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
6. Why is learning to SPEAK English especially important? What is the best way to
learntospeakEnglishinclass?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................

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7.HowmuchEnglishdoyouthinkyoushouldspeakinclass?Withtheteacher?With
otherstudentsinpairandgroupwork?Allthetime?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
8.Isitabadthingifyoumakeamistakewhenyouspeak?Why/whynot?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
9. Why does your teacher ask you to listen to him/her and the others when they
speak?Doyouagree?Why/Whynot?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
10.Whatisthebestthingtodoifyoudontknowordontunderstandsomething?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
11.Whyisagoodideatotrytohelpeachother?Isitagoodideatolaughifsomeone
makesamistake?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
12. Do you think its a good idea for the teacher to speak to you individually about
yourprogress?Why/whynot?Howoften?Onceaterm?Onceayear?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
13.Ifyougivetheteacherhomeworktomark,whenshouldyougetitback?After1
lesson,2lessons...?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
14.DoyouthinkcomputershelpyoulearnEnglish?Howoftenwouldyouliketouse
computersinlessonsperterm?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
15.DoyouthinkreadinginEnglishhelpsyoulearn?Howoftenwouldyouliketogoto
thelibrarytochooseabookperterm?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
16.WhatotheractivitieswouldyouliketodoinclasstohelpyoulearnEnglish?
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................
............................................................................................................................................

16
Appendix2Exampleofgoalsetting/selfassessmenthandout.

Name......................................Saturday,16thJan,2010
Inclassthisweekyourgoalsare:

Todiscusswithourgrouphowwethinktechnologywillchangeourfutureandreport
ideastotherestofthegroupUSINGONLYENGLISH.
Tomakevocabularynoteson7newwordsofyourchoicefromtheauthenticreading
text.
ToALWAYSlistentotheteacherandclassmateswhentheyspeak.

Usethefollowingtoassessyourselfandtheteacherinthislesson.Circlethecorrect
optionforyou.

1.IdidmyhomeworkYesNo
2.IbroughtallthenecessarymaterialtoclassYesNo
3.IspokeEnglish10,20,30,40,50,60,70,80,90,100%ofthetime.
4.IlistenedtotheotherswhentheyspokeNeverSometimesUsuallyAlways
5.IaskedforhelpwhenIdidntknow/understandNeverSometimesUsuallyAlways
6.TheteacherexplainedtheworkclearlyNeverSometimesUsuallyAlways
7.TheteachergavemehelpwhenIaskedNeverSometimesUsuallyAlways
8.ItookanactivepartinclassactivitiesNeverSometimesUsuallyAlways
9. I DID/DIDNT achieve the goals above because I

10.Teacherscomment

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Appendix3Exampleofgoalsetting/assessmenthandout.

Name..Saturday24thApril,20100423

Thisiswhatwewillbedoinginclasstoday:

Listeningtoanauthenticnewsreport
Notingthetypeofwordsandphrasesusedinnewsreports
Workinginpairstoproduceyourownnewsreport,usingonlyEnglish
Practisingthereport,soyoucanpresenttotheclasswithoutnotes
Listeningtootherreportsforspecificinformationandforinterestvalue
Assessingyourselfonachievementofyourgoalstoday.

NowletssetyourGOALSforthelessontoday.

1. To use English during the preparation and presentation of your news report
withyourpartner.

Nowthinkofanother3goalsofyourown.Thinkabouthowimportantitistolistento
yourpartner,totrytoworkwellwithyourpartner,toaskquestionswhenyoudont
know a word or dont understand, to note down any new words in your vocabulary
records,touseyourtimeinclasstoimproveyourEnglishasmuchaspossible.

BEAMBITIOUS!YOUCANDOITIFYOUTRY!

2.

3.

4.

Didyouachieveyourgoalsforthelessontoday?Why/whynot?

1.
2.
3.
4.

Teacherscomment

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 Appendix4SB1QUESTIONNAIRE


CONFIDENTIALName

ThisquestionnaireisdesignedtosurveystrategiesinlearningEnglish.Theinformation
willbeusedtoassiststudentstolearnEnglishandimprovethecourse.
Herearesomestatementsabouttheactivitieswehavedoneinclassrecently.Please
decide if you agree or disagree with the statements and tick () ONE of the boxes
accordingtohowyoufeel.Remembertherearenorightorwronganswers.

Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly
agree disagree
a)IspokemoreEnglishinclassbecauseIset
goalsforspeakinginlessons.

b) I took a more active part in classes
because I set goals for participation in
lessons.
c)IfeelIlearnedmorevocabularybecauseI
setgoalsforlearningwordseachweek.

d) I felt more confident about using English
because I worked towards my goals in class
eachweek.
e)Tryingtoachievethegoalshelpedmeto
improvemyEnglish.

f)Focusingongoalseachweekwasawaste
oftime.

g) Focusing on goals each week was
unnecessary.

h) Selfassessment was useful because it
helped me think about what I did in class
eachweek.

i) Comments from my teacher each week

werehelpful.

j)Commentsfrommyteachergavememore
confidencetotryharderinclass.

k) Comments from my teacher were
unimportant.

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Appendix5Goalsettingandassessmentopenendedquestions


Pleasetakeafewminutestomakeacommentaboutthefollowingpoints.Remember,
therearenorightorwronganswers.

1. DoyouthinkyouspokemoreEnglishinclasseswhenyousetgoalsforspeakingin
lessons?Why?Whynot?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
2.Doyouthinktrytoachieveyourgoals(forspeaking,vocabulary,participationetc,)
helpedyouimproveyourEnglishmorethanwhenyoudidntsetgoals?Why?Why
not?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
3.Doyouthinkselfassessmentattheendoftheclasshelpedyouthinkaboutwhat
youdidordidntdoinclass?Why?Whynot?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
4.Didyoualwaysassessyourselfhonestlyattheendofclasses?Why?Whynot?

_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
5.Didyouusually,sometimes,neverachieveallyourgoalsinclass?Why?
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________
6.WhendidyouspeakmorePortugueseinclass?IfyoudidntachieveyourEnglish
speakinggoals,whydidthishappen?

_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________

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