Cristian D.

Paderes
LL 201 THEORIES OF LANGUAGE AND LANGUAGE LEARNING

IDENTITY, MOTIVATION, AND AUTONOMY IN LANGUAGE LEARNING

(Garold Murray, Xuessong Gao, Terry Lamb)
BOOK REVIEW

Motivation and autonomy are factors that play an integral role when it comes to learning. They
help a learner become self-reliant and gritty along the process of learning. Ironically, these two
learning factors are not given enough attention by parents, educators, and learners themselves.
While it may be true that motivation and autonomy are skills taught to learners, there are no
explicit instructions or activities that aim to cultivate these skills. The importance of the
aforementioned skills can’t be stressed enough. In the context of language learning, identity and
motivation are both crucial. They can, to a certain extent, dictate how well and how far can a
learner go. The book entitled “Identity, Motivation, and Autonomy in Language Learning” by
Garold Murray, Xuesong Gao, and Terry Lamb is a rich source of information in terms of where
motivation and autonomy can be located in language learning. This book review will discuss the
following; Links Between Identity, Motivation and Autonomy, Motivating Learners to Speak as
Themselves, Agency and Metacognition as Interrelated Theoretical Perspectives on Learner
Autonomy, Language Learning and Motivation through the Lens of Chaos. Furthermore,
discussions will be made on Identity, Motivation, and Autonomy in Second Language
Acquisition from the Perspective of Complex Adaptive Systems, Imagination, Metacognition
and the Second Language self in a Self-Access Learning Environment, Identity, Motivation, and
Plurilingualism in Self-Access centers, and Maintaining Motivation in Distance Learning. Lastly,
this book review will also tackle Beliefs, Identity, and Motivation in Implementing Autonomy,
and Identity, Motivation, Autonomy as two tales.

Much of the research conducted in the recent years were focused on understanding motivation,
identity including autonomy. As per the researches in relation to autonomy, it has been identified
that motivation plays a crucial role in language acquisition in general. The more the researchers
link motivation, identity, and autonomy, a more diverse approach in exploring these issues may
provide increased coherent views as well. Chapter 1 aims to make findings from the three
mentioned areas (Identity, Motivation, Autonomy). To better understand their roles in the
language learning process. One important feature of this chapter is Ema Ushioda’s “Motivating
Learners to Speak as Themselves”. Ushioda argued that perspective from autonomy theory and
practice are relevant in its analysis. She extensively studied how engaging, constructing, and
negotiating identities are the focus of this analysis. Ushioda also contends that language learners
as fully rounded beings with different sets of social identities. These constructs are far different
from those which are found in writing.

Chapter 2 discusses motivating learners to speak as themselves. For several years, motivation
and autonomy became a research prospect to the authors specifically on how the mentioned areas
interact with language. Language learning today is starting to look beyond traditional abstract
frameworks and models and is now touching on context-based and identity-based viewpoint. On
a broader scale, motivation theory in the context of general psychology has been heavily
anchored on achievement. Also, researchers in education acknowledges the relevance of non-
achievement related goals in the classroom. On the downside, theories of motivation in the
context of education have struggled to accommodate the idea of goal multiplicity. Instead, it
gives more emphasis on achievement-related goals including motivation behaviors grounded on
success or failure, self-efficacy, and performance orientations. Chapter 3 on the other hand talks
about how agency and metacognition have interrelated theoretical perspectives on learner
autonomy. Researchers for the last two decades, suggest that language learning can be
considered as social act connected to learners’ identity. Some researchers have proven that real
world situations are necessary not auxiliary to learning. In researches on cognitive perspectives
however, real world situations may be seen as factors changing the internal learning process
which takes place in an individual’s mind. This chapter also tackles strategic language learning
and how it relies on language learning strategy. Strategic language learning is known to involve
the utilization of LLSs. As far as the the researches on this subject is concerned, the use of
language learner’s strategy plays an important role on learner’s linguistic development. To
support this assertion, the case study of Liu was suggested. Liu’s parents are well-educated and
are closely hands-on with her language learning. During her elementary years on the Chinese
mainland, she started utilizing different strategies to hone her listening and speaking skills. She
found that her English proficiency was way better than that of others. Interestingly, he level of
English is way ahead compared to her teachers’. Her story is a proof that inner motivation and
autonomy can help in achieving excellent English skills. Liu

In the present time, people are presented with multiple pathways and can take different course of
actions because of the many discourse options in the globalized world. This reality convinces us
that there are different ways for us to see similar occurrences using broader notions. With this,
chapter 4 centers on the motivation to learn a second language in the lens of social perspective.
This lens views motivation as an experience of belonging as opposed to a personal trait. The
authors define motivation as the choice of a particular action, the persistence with it, and the
effort given to it. In the field of psychology, different kinds of motivation are identified such as
intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. The assertion in this chapter points to social aspect being an
integrated part of the individual. Following this view, motivation is therefore undeniably
interrelated with social processes. Meanwhile, chapter 5 discusses identity, motivation, and
autonomy in second language acquisition from the perspective of complex adaptive systems.
Specifically, this chapter touches on some characteristics of complex adaptive systems as the
context for better understanding of language and second language acquisition. According to the
authors, language can be considered as non-linear dynamic and adaptive system. As such, it is
composed of linked bio-cognitive, socio-cultural, historical and political elements which allows
humans to think and act in society. Furthermore, a speaker’s behavior is the result of conflicting
factors including perceptual constrains and social motivations. It is also said that the structures of
language surface because of interrelated patterns of encounters, interaction in the society, and
cognitive mechanisms.

Interesting area of study on the role of imagination in L2 and foreign language learning induced
modern-day perspective regarding self and identity. This is the prime subject of chapter 6 which
centers on imagination and the L2 self in a self-access learning environment. This chapter also
gives nod to the work of different language educators as they find more ways to improve
learners’ motivation through bettering L2 learning experiences. The authors extensively
examined the role of imagination in terms of learning context which puts self-access learning and
classroom-based instructions together. This chapter identifies one of the limitations of the
research as far as the discussion on L2 self-system is concerned. This limitation can be located in
the fact that some studies are not specifically created to identify L2 self-system and the role of
imagination in this specific learning context. By learning different languages in a SAC, which
may be interpreted as the leaners working on their own, it may be presumed that learners have a
specific and profound motivations toward languages. On the other hand, chapter 7 deals with
motivation and plurilingualism in self-access learning centers. Looking into the literature of elf-
access centers, learners are viewed simply as people who learn only one language; hence, only
one aspect of learners can be studied. In reality however, SACs are considered as multilingual
and the learners have the ability to learn more than one language at a time. Meanwhile, chapter 7
tackles the mentioned gaps above through exploratory research project, which looks into the
identity, motivation, and autonomy of learners who wish to level up their proficiency in multiple
languages in two SACs in Mexico. Mexican learners know the importance of plurilingualism.
They take advantage of the resources in their environment like SACs and classrooms. Mexicans
learners make use of SACs for them to work on bi or plurilingual programs, which is not
necessarily advised by the centers. In a SAC, learners’ identity in relation to plurilingualism can
be better studied as it is through the center that learners can work toward the realization of their
objectives. By working in SACs, learners have the ability to improve themselves throughout
time. They are able to discover the connections between who they are, why and how they learn,
and who they want to become. This chapter revealed the interweaved identity, motivation,
autonomy, and plurilingualism.

Chapter 8 takes a turn on maintain motivation in distance language learning. Progress in

technology is inducing the growth of distance language learning including teacher education.
This set-up often combines face-to-face and technology meditated classes. Learners who are
under this program are expected to be responsible for their own schedule and are the ones to set
their personal goals. Additionally, they have the freedom to also select their own route by setting
the materials they deem necessary and advantageous. The abovementioned decisions are
expected to maintain learners’ motivation. Autonomous learners by definition are considered as
motivated learners. As motivated learners. They too experience setbacks or experience changing
circumstances. With this, self-motivation’s importance can’t be stressed enough in distant
learning. Data examined in this chapter provides a vivid picture of negative motivational
variables which affect part-time distance language learners whose level is considered to be
beginner. This study also shows the relevance of the sense of competence or interaction in
difficult tasks. It provides proofs of the influence of the ideal L2 self in maintaining motivation.
Furthermore, chapter 9 extends the discussion on identity, autonomy, and motivation by
examining the perspective of a teacher. Current discussions of identity and motivation when
learning a new language have improved our understanding of the highly personal learning
process. However, there is less understanding about teachers’ identity and motivation as
compared to the learners. One important question to ask is “what factors affect teachers’ identity
and motivation?”. The purpose of this chapter is to prompt teacher’s beliefs regarding autonomy
and students’ self-access language learning conduct, identify struggles between teachers’ beliefs
about autonomy and students’ self-access language learning behavior, and recognize conflicts
between teachers’ beliefs and institutional constraints. This chapter has also shown that
facilitating self-access learning comes with pros and cons. Although human resources do not
give enough importance on learners’ work, the teachers are there who believe in learners’
autonomy. A teacher’s role can’t be undermined as it is one of the factors which can lead to
learners’ success.

According to Alice Chik and Stephan Breidback, students who major in English or taking a
degree in foreign language have greater chances of learning a new language. It is a common
assumption that students in tertiary education in the abovementioned areas have sound English
proficiency. Although a relatively high level of language competence is required when entering
some European and Asian universities, there are some questions which need to be ruled out. The
questions are the following; When learners possess a high level of proficiency, is it related to
their level of autonomy and awareness? Are the students more motivated to learn because they
are more aware of their learning and more autonomous in making language learning decisions
for themselves? According to Benson and Nunan, learning a second or foreign language does not
follow a straightforward path and classroom-based learning is certainly not the only path
followed. Some students seek different routes to increase their level of proficiency.

After reading this book, I gained meaningful insights regarding the cognitive and emotional
processes which take place when learning a new language or foreign language. These insights
would be advantageous especially for me since I am already in the field of teaching where
teaching students a foreign language is at forefront. Motivation and autonomy both play a
significant role in the process of learning in general. Language teachers will be more effective in
their pursuit of teaching languages if they have a good grasp of the interrelatedness of the
abovementioned factors and language acquisition. The essence of motivation and autonomy is
what we can call passion. Successful learners know their goals and know how to achieve those
goals. Instructors should help students along this process.