Motivating Learners: A Helping Hand from the Teacher-as-a-Person
Mia Tarau
When Zoltán Dörnyei and Jill Hadfield published Motivating Learning in 2013, I had just enrolled in an MA in Applied Linguistics at the University of Waikato (New Zealand). That was the context in which I first encountered the book, and as a life-long language learner myself, I found I could relate to it instantly. I realized that the idea of the ideal [second language] self, or the ideal L2-self (Dörnyei & Hadfield, 2013) deeply resonated with my own journey, so I immediately incorporated techniques from the book into both my assignments and my teaching practice, and I even published a book review accompanied by an overview of how I guide learners at the start of a course in creating a realistic vision of their ideal L2-self (Tarau & Pu, 2014).
However, as I was reflecting on this topic in preparation for writing this blog post, I found the reasons behind my own ideal [L2]-self vision to be closely related to my own language teachers from my school years, rather than to some [lofty] academic goals for my future – which is understandable at a young and impressionable age. I distinctly remember that my female language teachers had all been elegant, interesting, inspirational, strong, and feminine. My French teachers had a bohemian air about them, reflected in their flowy dresses and interesting choice in jewellery; my Latin teachers were vibrant and passionate about the language and history of Latin in our region; my English teachers had this strict yet classy aura that prompted both respect and admiration; and my Romanian teacher in high school had a most distinguished air about her, completed by very fashionable personal aesthetics. I had never really thought about this until today – on the impact of the human dimension of our instructors on our ideal future self, but I now realise that their influence was one of the most significant reasons behind my aspirations to become an [inspirational] educator myself. This prompted me to further reflect on the feedback that I now receive regularly at the end of each learning cycle. I have been reading some of the comments left by my students over the past few years, and I noticed that many have highlighted the ways in which I as a person have inspired them to learn. Enter today’s blog post idea: yes, learners have/need both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation that helps them achieve their academic goals, but how can we as teachers and individuals contribute to their goals and give them a helping hand in achieving these goals? I will explore below my own teacher journey in scaffolding both learning AND learner motivation.
The Role of the Teacher-as-a-Person in Motivating Learners
Growing up and attending school in post-communist Eastern Europe, there was little focus on both teachers and students as people: students were seen as learning machines, and teachers made an appearance for two main reasons: pouring facts and information into our brains, and regularly cause distress with impromptu testing that stressed us out and emphasized scores, rather than learning. This is where my language teachers from back then made a difference: they all saw us as little humans with personalities and interests, and once they identified those interests, they incorporated them into our learning to the best of their ability in relation to strict curriculum demands. This prompted me to both study hard and to want to become like them, and that willingness to learn and do my best has helped me shape a beautiful life, framed by ongoing learning. Moving to New Zealand and completing higher education in another language and in a completely different educational paradigm would not have been possible without the motivational foundation inspired by my former language teachers; I credit a large proportion of my academic successes and achievements to those early role models. As such, I now realise that what I have learned in my own tertiary journey, my learning strategies, and my successes were all prompted and sustained by that early ideal [L2-]self. This personal learning history has now become a collection of small stories that I can tell to encourage individuality and creative learning among my own students. It has also formed a beautiful mosaic of both academic and personal outcomes that I can show to my students as examples of what can be achieved whenever they struggle in their own path of preparing for university in a new country, in a new language, and/or in a new educational framework. I actively incorporate these stories into the learning experiences of my students when the time is right, or when I feel that they need something extra to keep going. Their comments on experiencing this in my class are EVERYTHING: they show the crucial role of teachers as humans in motivating learners, especially when the road gets bumpy. A small collection from a variety of courses that I have taught since 2021, below:
I really appreciated how she seemed to really care about us succeeding and being okay in the hard times, and wasn't teaching us just for the sake of it. I also appreciated how she gave us opportunities to stay connected in isolation, with online events etc. I just wish the tutes had been longer - they always went so fast!
You are really an excellent woman, I love your class and things which I learned from your experience. Thank you.
She was always very kind, welcoming and helpful with finding the relevant parts to match with the […] questions. I appreciated her encouraging words as well when we approached the […] marks needed to pass.
Supportive and patient. Thank you so much~
The clear teaching ideas and gentle speed enabled me to better understand the content of the class.
Mia is always creative and energetic. I like her smile so much. She is also provoking and providing interesting examples to evoke our awareness.
And this is what keeps me going, because we as teachers also need motivation!
How do you motivate your learners, and what keeps you going as a teacher?
References:
Dörnyei, Z., & Hadfield, J. (2013). Motivating learning. Routledge.
Tarau, M., & Pu, A. (2014). Motivating learning [Review of the book ‘Motivating learning’, by J.
Hadfield and Z. Dornyei]. Modern English Teacher, 23(2), 81.