MINISTRY OF EDUC ATION AND TRAINING NGUYEN TAT THANH UNIVERSITY NGUYEN TAT THANH Nguyên Thị Hông Nhi THE MOTIVATION OF SECOND-YEAR NON ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS IN ENGLISH AT NGUYEN TAT THANH UNIVERSITY MASTER PROJECT IN ENGLISH LINGUISTICS Ho Chi Minh City - 2024 MINISTRY OF EDUC ATION AND TRAINING NGUYEN TAT THANH UNIVERSITY NGUYEN TAT THANH Nguyên Thị Hông Nhi THE MOTIVATION OF SECOND-YEAR NON ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS IN ENGLISH AT NGUYEN TAT THANH UNIVERSITY Major: English Linguistics Major Code: 8220201 MASTER PROJECT IN ENGLISH LINGUISTICS SUPERVISORS: NGUYEN THANH LONG, PhD HO VAN HAN, PhD. Ho Chi Minh City - 2024 i DECLARATION BY THE AUTHOR I, the undersigned, hereby declare that this submission is entirely my own work, in my own words, and that all sources used in researching it are fully acknowledged and all quotations properly identified. It has not been submitted, in whole or in part, by me or another person, for the purpose of obtaining any other credit / grade. I understand the ethical implications of my research, and this work meets the requirements of the Faculty and Institution.
Student Name: NGUYEN THI HONG NHI Student Number: 2200012820 Signed ii ABSTRACT This study aims to identify the motivations of second-year non-English major students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University and the factors that significantly influence their learning motivation. Data were collected from 200 students through a questionnaire, which was developed based on the results of group interviews with 10 students. The research applied qualitative and quantitative methods: qualitative data from the interviews were used to refine the survey questions, while quantitative data from the survey were analyzed usmg SPSS for descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). The results mdicate that extrinsic motivation strongly influences students' language learning, with factors such as job opportunities, learning enviromnent, and teaching methods having a positive unpact.
Based on these findings, the study proposes strategies to leverage extrinsic motivation to enhance students' learning outcomes. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENT Firstly, I thank my supervisors, Dr. Nguyen Thanh Long and Dr. Ho Van Han.
While completing my project, I always received timely support from both sides. They always guided and helped me thoroughly understand issues related to my project. They are always enthusiastic and dedicated, and whenever I need support, they provide very practical msights, bringing me many valuable lessons during the research process. Because this is also the final stage of completing my project, I would like to thank the teachers and the Department of Foreign Languages at Nguyen Tat Thanh University.
Here, I experienced the Master's program in foreign languages with many exciting experiences and learned many things. The first notable experience was the deans' attention and monitoring of the progress of graduate students. Second, I have gained valuable experience from experienced and enthusiastic lecturers; they are a great source of motivation and help me overcome all difficulties. The third experience is meeting classmates who always support and encourage each other during difficult tunes.
I am here to thank everyone, including my teachers and friends, who have been a great source of motivation and helped me complete the research on English learning motivation of second-year students at the University where Nguyen Tat Thanh studied. In addition, I also thank the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, where I work, for always creating favorable conditions in terms of time and encouraging me to study and improve myself. I would also like to thank my colleagues for facilitating and supporting me in distributing survey questionnaires to students and helping me collect data to analyze the motivation of second-year students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University. I also appreciate the school's students for then- cheerfill cooperation and diligent participation in the surveys, which reflects the real motivation behind their studies at the school.
iv TABLE OF CONTENT DECLARATION BY THE AUTHOR. iii TABLE OF CONTENT. iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS. vn LIST OF TABLES.vui LIST OF FIGURES.
ix CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM.3 RESEARCH AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY. 4 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.1 DEFINITION OF TERMS.2 TYPE OF MOTIVATIONS.3 REVIEW OF PREVIOUS RELATED STUDIES.1 Studies in the World.2 Studies ill Vietnam.5 Self-Determination Theory.6 Social Cognitive Theory.5 FACTORS INFLUENCING MOTIVATION.1 Role of the Teacher.2 Teaching Methods and Classroom Envữonment.4 DATA COLLECTION AND PROCEDURE.2 Data Collection Procedure.3 Data Analysis Method. 21 CHAPTER 4: PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA 23 4.1 PRESENTATION OF DATA.2 ANALYSIS OF DATA.1 Descriptive Statistical Analysis.2 Inferential Statistical Analysis.3 DISCUSSION OF KEY FINDINGS.4 SUMMARY OF CHAPTER. 49 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION.
56 Appendix A - THE SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE.59 Appendix B - BẢNG CẢU HỎI KHẢO SÁT.62 Appendix c - INTERVIEW QUESTIONS. 65 Appendix D - CÂU HỎI PHỎNG VÁN. 66 vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CV: Curriculum Vitae EFA: Exploratory Factor Analysis EM: Extrinsic Motivation GPA: Grade Point Average IM: Intrinsic Motivation L2: Second Language NTTU: Nguyen Tat Thanh University viii LIST OF TABLES Table 4.2: Descriptive Statistics of Intrinsic Motivation.3: Descriptive Statistics of Extrinsic Motivation.4: Population Cronbach's Alpha coefficient of 24 observed variables Reliability Statistic.5: Item-Total Statistics.6: KMO and Bartlett's Test.7: Rotated Component Matrix.8: KMO and Bartlett's Test.10: Total Variance Explained.11: Rotated Component Matrix. 45 ix LIST OF FIGURES Figure 2.1: Structural diagram of study on learning motivation.1: Distribution of gender in the sample.2: Distribution of majors in the study sample.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY According to the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), the need to use English in daily work is sustainably high (69%) based on surveys.
English, the most utilized foreign language in Vietnam right now, is also a requirement for promotion and salary raises. In addition, according to another statistic from Ethnologue magazine in 2021, English is one of the most widely used languages in the world. Therefore, studying English is essential to a student’s academic pathway, regardless of occupation or university. 4) showed that “when asked about the factors which influence individual levels of success in any activity - such as language learning -most people would certainly mention motivation among them.
142) states that the “motivation of the students is one of the most important factors influencing then success or failure in learning the language." Motivation plays an important role, especially for second language learners. However, maintaining motivation to learn English for second-year non-English major students is a tremendous challenge. After completing the first year, students often have to focus more on theft core subjects of the major. Thus, motivation to learn English in subsequent years tends to declme.
Second-year students not majoring in English often view English as a required subject to complete in theft curriculum. According to Tran (2007), students who do not major in English mainly learn English due to external needs, such as pursuing higher education and preparing for future careers. Therefore, it is crucial to identify factors that maintain the motivation of non-English major students in the following years. This helps students meet course requirements effectively and improves theft ability to use English in the future work environment.
This study aims to explore and understand the critical factors in maintaining and promoting students' motivation to learn English.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM It is a general challenge for nonmajor undergraduate students to keep learning English motivation. The students at Nguyen Tat Thanli University are not exceptions. In the second year, their motivation is influenced by many internal and external factors. The enthusiasm of the first year is overwhelmed by other concerns, which are causing severe impacts on their motivation.
The students often focus more and more on then specialized subjects, which decreases then motivation to learn English. In addition, the learning environment, teaching methods, and students' perceptions also change significantly in the second year. Many teaching methods are no longer appropriate. The students experienced difficulties and pressure from the specialized topics, which decreased their interest in and motivation for English.
Furthermore, the changing learning environment, including the growing up of academic and social activities, causes students to be overwhelmed and have no time or energy to learn English. Therefore, this study surveys the main factors affecting the motivation to learn English among non-English major students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University. The main goal is to detect and interpret these factors to propose effective solutions that help to maintain their motivation. This research hopes to improve the results of learning English and help the students complete the subject requirements and use English confidently and effectively in their future work.3 RESEARCH AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY This study aims to determine the motivations for learning English for second-year non English major students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University.
By analyzing specific motivational factors that affect second-year non-English major students, this study helps students maintain motivation to study, especially English, throughout their studies at Nguyen Tat Thanh University. Specifically, the research seeks to achieve the following objectives: • To determine the motivational orientations that non-English major second-year students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University are inclined towards 3 • To identify the factors that influence these students' motivation to learn. • To propose measures to increase the motivation of non-English major students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University. In summary, this study amis to survey the learning motivation and the mam influencing factors on the learning motivation of second-year non-major students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTION This study amis to investigate the following research questions: 1) Wliat motivation do second-year non-English major students at Nguyen Tat Thanli University aim to achieve with English learning? 2) Wliat practical and effective suggestions can be proposed to improve the learning motivation of second-year non-English major students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University? 1.5 SCOPE OF THE STUDY This study aims to determine the motivations of second-year non-English major students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University, a diverse academic community in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
Research time: The study was conducted during the 2023-2024 school year. This timing allows for continuous and consistent data collection over a school year, ensuring that factors influencing academic motivation are fully observed and documented. Research subjects and samples: This study amis to determine the motivations of second- year non-English major students at Nguyen Tat Thanh University, a diverse academic conununity in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The study population consisted of students from various faculties who had to take English courses as a compulsory subject in their university program.
As second-year noil-majors, they have spent a year studying at university and are starting to face more challenges in staying motivated to learn English. Research Methods: The research topic combines qualitative research and quantitative research. Qualitative methods include in-depth interviews to understand whether the factors affecting learning motivation are internal or external to adjust survey questions. 4 Quantitative method with survey method via questionnaire.
The sample was selected using a convenient method and surveyed via Google Forms. Data was processed in Excel to analyze the factors influencing students' learning motivation.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY This study contributes to a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of the factors affecting non-major students' motivation to leani English at Nguyen Tat Thanh University. These findings not only offer a deeper understanding of how career-related goals, teaching methods, and learning envữomnents shape motivation but also present usefi.ll data for future studies aimed at validating or refming motivational theories in the context of non-English majors. Additionally, the study’s findings could help bridge the gap between general motivation theories and then practical application in diverse educational settings, thereby enhancing the theoretical frameworks used to study motivation in second-language acquisition.
The results of this study have important practical implications for educators, language instructors, and administrators at Nguyen Tat Thanh University. Schools can utilize the findings to implement more effective incentive strategies tailored to non-English major students, such as offering career-oriented rewards, adopting creative and interactive teaching methods, or organizing extracurricular activities that foster a sense of community and involvement in language learning.