El modelo de análisis de las orientaciones de rol de los parlamentarios

A picture of complex motivational dynamics has emerged from previous research on foreign language learning at school level. Adolescent motivation for language learning in compulsory UK school settings seems to be characterised by different forces than language learning in non-Anglophone contexts, where instrumental orientations are stronger, and can, through a protective motivational factor, override feelings of

dissatisfaction with the learning situation (e.g. Lamb, 2004, 2007). Learners in the UK seem to struggle against a background of socio-economic division and perceptions that languages have low utilitarian value. There appears to be a misalignment between what learners hope to engage in and gain from language learning (communication in the target language) and experiences of the classroom learning situation and learning outcomes (limited communication and success). The models and the empirical studies which tested them reviewed above had initially been chosen for their supposed relevance for this study. After evaluation of these models, it seems that a combination of elements from a range of models is likely to be the best fit to investigate adolescent learner motivation for German in the UK. Given that the data required to answer the research questions of the study are

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necessarily diverse, an eclectic theoretical framework drawing on aspects from a number of theories was considered most suitable.

Gardner’s influential socio-educational model incorporates three aspects which have emerged as relevant for the current study. The first is the motivational variable of perceptions of the value of the target language, framed by Gardner as cultural beliefs in the learners’ home community’s social milieu. The second is the focus on the learning

situation and its impact on learning outcomes, and the third is the view of language

learning as a social process. However, Gardner’s model includes motivation as only one of four individual difference variables, and the other three (intelligence, language aptitude, and situational anxiety) are not only complex, but also debated constructs, which remain outside of the boundaries of the present study. Furthermore, Gardner’s inclusion of informal language learning contexts seems much more relevant to a bilingual language landscape such as Canada, where the model was developed, but is not a perfect fit for the study of adolescent UK learners who learn German at school. Gardner’s concepts of integrative and instrumental orientation seem useful constructs, but would most likely need to be adapted for British learners, for whom, arguably, integrating with the target language community might not be a key motivating factor. Nevertheless, Gardner’s model combines concepts considered relevant for the present study, and theorises them in a model based on empirical foundations.

Gardner was amongst the first researchers to formally propose a definition of motivation and attitudes. His definitions for these key terms incorporate concepts considered relevant for the study, which are, in the case of motivation, effort and affect. Gardner (1985a) defined motivation as “the effort, want (desire), and affect associated with learning a second language”, which is “important in determining how actively the

individual works to acquire second language material” (p. 147). This definition of motivation will be adopted as a working definition in this study. Gardner defined an

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individual’s attitude as “an evaluative reaction to some referent or attitude object, inferred on the basis of the individual’s beliefs or opinions about the referent” (p. 9). Gardner’s definition of attitude will be followed for the purposes of this study, since a general definition of attitudes (albeit one from an L2 scholar) allows for a broader application of the term referring to language learning, as well as related concepts such as the target language community and its speakers.

Several models and empirical investigations have demonstrated the importance of the learning situation (e.g. Dörnyei, 1994; Williams & Burden, 1997), which appears to become an even more crucial factor in settings such as the UK, where languages are generally perceived to possess low instrumental value (e.g. Courtney, 2014). Self-efficacy theory seems highly pertinent for the UK context, where learners commonly report that they find languages difficult. Yet, those learners who do choose to continue beyond the compulsory stage, appear to not only possess higher self-efficacy levels, but also report that they enjoy lessons more than their peers who decided to drop the language (e.g. Graham, 2004). Whilst to date, evidence around whether learners attribute instrumental value to languages is conflicting, there seems to be a consensus that for UK learners, a sense of personal (as opposed to general) utility is paramount (e.g. Taylor & Marsden, 2014).

From the range of self-based models reviewed above, Dörnyei’s L2MSS model seems useful in its emphasis of the importance of the learning situation, but less applicable to the learners of this study in the ideal and ought-to L2 self dimensions for reasons of Anglophone setting, and age of learners. However, the notion of the self is undoubtedly relevant for L2 learning motivation. Expectancy-value, self-determination and self-worth theories all seem useful for exploring this factor in connection with perceptions of value, and the emotional and psychological phenomena involved not just in language learning itself, but in making language-uptake decisions.

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After careful consideration of the literature in the field, the variables which have been considered most appropriate for investigating young UK German learners’ motivation in connection with uptake choices are the learning situation, self-efficacy, and perceptions of value of German. These would correspond to Dörnyei’s 1994 model of 1. language level (value/reasons for learning the language), 2. learner level (self-efficacy) and 3. learning situation level. Learner attitudes to learning situation, self-efficacy, and perceptions of value of the language appear to be closely linked (e.g. Taylor & Marsden, 2012), but the exact nature of this relationship is not entirely clear. Further research to unpick the

complex interplay of the constructs of learning situation, self-efficacy, and value in relation to UK learners might therefore be helpful. In addition, socio-economic factors have

emerged as a demographic variable, whose impact on the language learning landscape in the UK has been noted in surveys, but less so in academic research. Affective factors have been shown to underlie decision-making processes as well as learner motivation for the language itself, and Fisher’s studies have demonstrated how metaphor elicitation can be a helpful methodology for accessing this area.

Attitudes are held to be a key influencer of motivation. Whilst research has shown a link between learner attitudes and motivation, influences on learner attitudes beyond the classroom environment are not easy to pinpoint. Overall, sociocultural factors tend to be seen as more influential than educational ones (e.g. Bartram, 2010). For the UK context, the mass media are commonly blamed for the spreading of negative public values around languages (e.g. Coleman et al., 2007). Yet, whilst the impact of negative messages around languages in the mass media on learner attitudes is a frequent assumption, very few, if any, studies have investigated this relationship empirically, leaving a gap in the literature which the present study aims to address. Researchers from different traditions in the field appear to agree that attitudes towards the target language speakers and communities affect

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that for learners of German, the picture they have formed of the language, the target language community of speakers, and the country where most of this target language is spoken, might well have an impact on their attitude formation, and link with their German learning motivation. The current study therefore takes up the notion of the influence of societal attitudes on learner attitudes and learner motivation, and makes this a focus of the investigation. Therefore, the next chapter (3) will review how languages, German, the Germans and Germany are represented in UK school settings as well as in wider society.

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