The Influence of Middle-School Learners’ Psychology on English Learning.doc

中学生心理因素对其英语学习影响的研究The Influence of Middle-School Learners Psychology on English LearningAbstract: In middle school, English teaching is a hard work involving numerous and diverse activities. That whether it can achieve a good result or not depends on a series of involving factors giving proper play to its effect. And the inside factors play a decisive role, in which learners psychological factor (here mainly refers to motivation, personality, attitude, anxiety and self-esteem) is included. Learner psychology is a key factor to English learning and teaching. So the study of the influence of middle-school learners psychology on English learning makes great sense to both learning efficiently for students and teaching flexibly for teachers. The paper is intended to deal with learners psychology, mainly including motivation, personality, attitude, anxiety and self-esteem, and the influence of these five psychological factors on English learning as well as the enlightenment for English teaching.Key words: middle-school learners psychology; influence; English learning; English teaching; teaching enlightenment摘 要: 中学中的英语教学是一项繁复多杂的活动,教学效果的好坏取决于参与该活动的一系列要素是否发挥了应有的作用,其中内部因素占决定性的地位,学者的心理因素(文中主要指动机、个性、态度、焦虑及自尊)就是内部因素之一。学者心理因素是影响英语学习和教学的重要因素。所以,研究中学生心理对其英语学习的影响对学生有效学习和教师灵活教学具有重要意义。本文就中学生心理,主要包括动机、个性、态度、焦虑及自尊，同时就这五个心理因素对英语学习的影响进行讨论,并就它们对外语教学的启示进行探讨。关键词:中学生心理； 影响； 英语学习； 英语教学； 教学启示ContentsI. Background of the Thesis.1II. Necessity of Putting Forward the Argument .2A. To meet the needs of “suiting teaching to the aptitude of the students” 2B. To help the students expand cognitive learning and positive psychology.2C. To satisfy the needs of perfecting teaching strategies and enhance teaching efficiency.2D. The requirement of current situation.3III. Basis of Theories .3A. The principle of “suiting teaching to the aptitude of the students” 3B. Theory of “filter hypothesis” .4C. Theories based on Lambert, Ellis and other researchers.4D. Empathic understanding theory.4. Learner Psychological Factors and Their Influence on English Learning.5A. Motivation.51. Instrumental motivation.52. Integrative motivation.63. Resultative motivation.64. Intrinsic motivation.6B. Personality.7 C. Attitude.7 D. Anxiety.8 E. Self-esteem.9.  Enlightenment to English Teaching.9. Conclusion.11Works Cited.12.  Background of the ThesisThere are a lot of inside factors influencing the second language acquisition, one of which is the learners individual differences, including cognitive style, learning strategies and psychological factors which are considered to at large influence learners cognitive style and their learning strategies, proposed by psychologists. However, in practice, the action of learner psychology on English teaching is seemingly ignored to a great extent. One thing we should admit is that nowadays new methods of English teaching have been booming. Yet another one we should also inevitably admit is that whatever teaching type is adapted or whatever the text context is, there are always existing two types of learners: one type of the two makes a lot improvement quickly while the other one is at a relative low speed to make improvement, even giving up English learning on half way or leaving English poor all the time. The latter may be in a greater proposition to the front.Why did this problem happen? Mei Dengming argued “there is some lack of English teaching. One lack is that the aim of English teaching still mainly focuses on vocabulary and grammar; the second is lack of practice in interactive ability of listening and speaking; another one is lack of satisfying learners needs, especially their psychological needs” (Mei 58). As we can see, to know and recognize learner psychology could be a guideline of teaching. In our times, it emphasizes people-oriented, and in teaching, it enhances students foremost, so it is important for a teacher to adapt proper teaching style according to his students psychology, which presents a way of humanity teaching. This point, however, is always ignored in teaching practice by a greater number of teachers, particularly by the ones in high school, who imposes their teaching style on the students since their teaching aim is to foster high sort gainers in the Entrance Examination of University.Therefore, English teaching should mainly be a process of students learning but not be the teaching procedures which should play a role of guiding, helping learners to satisfy their needs, including the need of language, culture and especially psychology. But at present, a lot of teachers havent put the needs urged by the students in the first place, especially psychological need which is almost ignored. Thus, the learners cannot achieve their emotional need and this of course cannot inspire their interest of learning either, which as a result has caused anxiety and shyness that would restrain the students from extending their learning potential as well as enhancing the learning effective. So the paper is intended to deal with learners psychology, mainly including motivation, personality, attitude, anxiety and self-esteem, and the influence of these five psychological factors on English learning as well as the enlightenment for English teaching.  Necessity of Putting Forward the ArgumentThere are four points which are regarded as the necessity of raising the argument as following:A. To meet the needs of “suiting teaching to the aptitude of the students”It is probably for every student to be a man of great promise and to improve the students quality is an unshakable duty for a teacher, who cannot neglect learners differences and never leave the poor students lagging behind others. Teaching from the point of learner psychology is the basic and key way to know how the learners learn and then can be aware of what the real needs urged by the students are. This shows that the study on learner psychology and its influence on English learning is favorable to make teaching be tailored for the students.B. To help the students expand cognitive learning and positive psychologyParts of the students are not good at English. If their psychological needs are paid no or little attention, the teaching efficiency will be bound to be affected. Realizing how learner psychology influences learning procedure can help the teacher adroitly guide psychological strategies of matching teaching methods to inspire the poor students to grow self-confident. In another words, the study on the influence of learner psychology on English learning is conductive to help the students expand cognitive learning and positive psychology. In this way, it also helps the students find a profitable learning strategy fitting them.C. To satisfy the needs of perfecting teaching strategies and enhance teaching efficiencyTo pay close attention to learner psychology and its influence on English learning adroitly guides teaching action according to individual differences, which suits teaching to the aptitude of students and rationally arranges teaching work and teaching aim. Thus it enables all learners who are at various gap accomplish learning task; therefore, it will not only help poor students overcome the sense of inferior but also accelerate the promotion of outstanding learners. And the aim for raising teaching efficiency would be achieved.D. The requirement of current situation.Nowadays, it is a society that advocates a doctrine of students-oriented that requires teachers should well satisfy learners needs, especially psychological needs. In consideration of the fact that psychology is important for language learning, its necessary for students as well as teachers to known well the influence of learner psychology on English learning and this is of course a question for the study urged by current requirement.Evidently, to study and learn learners psychology and the psychological factors which influence their second language acquisition will benefit both learners and teachers.  Basis of TheoriesFrom 1970s, many scholars began to realize that whether a learner could learn English well or not was to see whether the inside factors worked efficiently or not rather than mainly make study on teaching methods and the text context which should be attributive to the outside factors. So the central study of foreign language education has been tremendously changed and turned the study from how the teachers teach to how the students learn.A. The principle of “suiting teaching to the aptitude of the students”Confucius, the well-known educationist and ideologist in ancient time of China, advocated that “teachers should suit their teaching to students”. Confucius thought reflects a doctrine of “students-oriented” which requires the teacher should know well leaners needs. Another educator Zhu Xi (Zhu; cited in Dai 129) proposed “adapting a proper style to educate learners and to develop them according to their own restrain.” In addition, Kalorea, an American scholar, held his idea like this: almost all of the learners can achieve a designed aim as long as enough time or chance and proper learning situation are provided with (Kalorea 1999; cited in Lui 119-21). Therefore, “suiting teaching to the aptitude of the students” can be comprehended as: teachers in teaching should take care of learners psychology.B. Theory of “filter hypothesis”Krashen (1985) in 1982 presented his famous hypothesis called “filter hypothesis” which is used to favor his theory-psychology factors play a leverage effect-that means the side effect of filter will increase if the learners are lack of motivation and self-confidence or the learners are over afraid of failure; however, this function will decrease when a learner can control himself to release his stress or when take an active part in group work.It is thus clear that learner psychology plays an essential role in language learning. Effective learning should be built on effective combination between teachers and students. So studying on psychology influencing learning process is of value to English teaching.C. Theories based on Lambert, Ellis and other researchersA great number of linguists and researchers such as Lambert, Burstall, and Gardner etc. have done a series of study which have proved that a great number of psychological factors will impress influence on ones learning outcome in the procedure of second language acquisition. Ellis also counts that “psychological factors at some degree even determine ones English level being higher or lower than others” (Ellis 2000, 249). Furthermore, other researchers in the field of second language acquisition study have testified that “there existsindispensable necessary connectionbetween psychology and the achievement of language learning” (Diane 172-75).All these have shed light not only on how vital the learner psychology is for learning success but also on how valuable it is for a teacher to know well, from the perspective of learner psychology, how the learners study.D. Empathic understanding theoryRogers counted new relationship between the teacher and students must be provided with three key elements, one of which is empathic understanding. It requests that the teacher knows the situation of students inner world, life environment, experience through their growing up as well as their personality (Rogers; cited in Dai and Ren 79-80). In other words, teachers should understand students thought and their psychology by standing on the opposite side. Rogers also thinks humans cognition is always going with certain psychology. “Ones creative ability cannot meet its development and achievement when the psychology is constrained” (Dai 102).From what Rogers has considered, we can see that only when learners inner world receives respect and understanding can the learners enthusiasm be stirred up and self-confidence be strengthened. Psychological Factors and Their Influence on English LearningLearner psychological factors that are related to English learning here mainly refer to motivation, personality, attitude, anxiety and self-esteem.A. MotivationMotivation has been widely accepted by both psychologists and researchers as one of the key factors that influence both rate and success of second or foreign language learning. Motivation provides a primary impetus to initiate learning second language, later becomes a driving force to sustain the long and often tedious learning process. It plays a role in how much effort the learner makes, what attitude one holds and what emotions he maintains. Besides, learning motivation gives rise to individual differences among learners. The motivation for learning is so decisive that it could decide what one will learn for, how much effort one will make, and what emotion he will sustain, all of which bring about individual differences and finally cause score variance among students. Rod Ellis (1994) has divided the learning motivation into the following four types:1. Instrumental motivationInstrumental motivation refers to the motivation to acquire a language as means for attaining instrumental goals such as furthering a career, reading technical material, passing through tests, translation and so forth. This type of motivation, in China, is regarded as a chief factor to mainly determine whether one is successful or fail in English learning.2. Integrative motivationAn integrative motivation is employed when learners wish to integrate themselves within the culture of the second language group, to identify themselves and become a part of that society. A language learner would embrace a positive attitude to try hard to learn the language of a country, if he, for instance, takes a great interest in the culture of this nation and thirsts for both its historic culture and social knowledge; whereas he would contain a negative attitude, and put himself into a passive learning position which certainly cannot produce satisfying result.3. Resultative motivationThe resultative motivation is one that can result in success in language learning, yet it may also be the outcome of foreign language learning. In other words, learners achievement of language learning in some degree is going to arouse greater motivation for learning.4. Intrinsic motivation The motivation is intrinsic wh