Major english for banking and finance factors affecting motivation of first year english majored students towards learning english online at banking academy

STATE BANK OF VIETNAM BANKING ACADEMY OF VIETNAM FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES ---o0o--- GRADUATION THESIS MAJOR: ENGLISH FOR BANKING AND FINANCE FACTORS AFFECTING MOTIVATION OF FIRST-Y

STATE BANK OF VIETNAM BANKING ACADEMY OF VIETNAM FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES

-o0o -

GRADUATION THESIS MAJOR: ENGLISH FOR BANKING AND FINANCE

FACTORS AFFECTING MOTIVATION OF FIRST-YEAR ENGLISH MAJORED STUDENTS TOWARDS LEARNING

ENGLISH ONLINE AT BANKING ACADEMY

STUDENT: DOAN THI THU PHUONG STUDENT ID: 21A7510111

CLASS: K21ATCA SUPERVISOR: MS NGUYEN THI MINH HANG (MBA)

Hanoi, May 2021

STATE BANK OF VIETNAM BANKING ACADEMY OF VIETNAM FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES

-o0o -

GRADUATION REPORT MAJOR: ENGLISH FOR BANKING AND FINANCE

FACTORS AFFECTING MOTIVATION OF FIRST-YEAR ENGLISH MAJORED STUDENTS TOWARDS LEARNING

ENGLISH ONLINE AT BANKING ACADEMY

STUDENT: DOAN THI THU PHUONG

STUDENT ID: 21A7510111

CLASS: K21ATCA

SUPERVISOR: MS NGUYEN THI MINH HANG (MBA)

Hanoi, May 2021

Acknowledgement

During the process of doing this graduation paper, I have received many

necessary assistance, valuable ideas and timely encouragement from my

teachers, families and friends This paper could not have done without the help, encouragement and support from a number of people who all deserve my

sincerest gratitude and appreciation

First of all, I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor - Ms

Nguyen Thi Minh Hang, the English teacher of the English Department, who has always been willing to give me precious advices and suggestions so that I can complete this study successfully

I am so thankful to students of K23 and K24 at the Foreign Language

Department for their participation in this study

I would like to acknowledge my thanks to all the authors of the books, articles and the other materials which were listed in the reference part for their ideas that have been developed and contributed to the study

Last but not least, my particular thanks are given to my parents for their

encouragement and support which played a crucial role in my graduation paper

Declaration

I certify my authorship of the study report “Factors affecting motivation of

English major first-year students towards learning English online at Banking Academy”

I confirm that this graduation report is my own work, is not copied from any other person's work (published or unpublished), and has not previously

submitted for assessment either at Banking Academy or elsewhere

Student

Phuong

Doan Thi Thu Phuong

Abstract

Along with the situation of the pandemic called Covid-19, it can be accepted that motivation plays an inevitable role as one of the most important factors in learning foreign languages online This study aimed at investigating factors affecting motivation in learning English online of freshmen at Banking Academy Then, the study would indicate the solutions to enhance the motivation in learning English online The sample of the study consisted of 83 participants studying in the Faculty of Foreign Languages In the study process, the students received the questionnaire which was related to the factors mentioned Then, the collected data from this instrument were all analyzed The study indicated factors that can motivate first-year students towards learning English online including learning environment, teacher, parental, technological and intrinsic factors It is expected that this study could contribute to the benefit

of both students and teachers in learning and teaching English online

Keywords: motivation, first-year English majored students, learning English, online

Table of Contents

Acknowledgement ii

Abstract ii

List of tables and figures……… v

Chapter I: Introduction 1

1.1 Significance of the study 1

1.2 The aims of the study 1

1.3 Research questions 2

1.4 The scope of the study 2

Chapter II: Literature review 3

2.1 Fundamental concepts of motivation 3

2.1.1 Motivation 3

2.1.2 Motivation in online learning 4

2.1.3 Demotivation 5

2.2 Self-determination theory 5

2.3 Factors affecting students’ motivation in learning English online 7

2.3.1 Intrinsic factors 7

2.3.1.1 Short-term and long-term goals 8

2.3.1.2 Learner autonomy 8

2.3.2 Extrinsic factors 9

2.3.2.1 Learning environment 9

2.3.2.2 Teacher issues 10

2.3.2.3 Parental issues 11

2.3.2.4 Technological issues 12

Chapter summary 13

Chapter III: Methodology 14

3.1 Research design 14

3.2 Research participants 15

Chapter IV: Results and Discussion 16

4.1 Intrinsic factors 16

4.2 Extrinsic factors 19

4.2.1 Learning environment 19

4.2.2 Teacher issues 21

4.2.3 Parental issues 24

4.2.4 Technological issues 25

Chapter V: Conclusion 28

5.1 Summary of the study 28

5.2 Recommendation 29

5.2.1 Intrinsic factors 29

5.2.2 Extrinsic factors 30

5.2.2.1 Learning environment 30

5.2.2.2 Teacher issues 30

5.2.2.3 Parental issues 31

5.2.2.4 Technological issues 31

5.3 Limitation 32

References 33

Appendix 41

List of tables and figures

Table 1: Intrinsic factors of motivation 16

Table 2: Learning Environment 19

Table 3: Teacher issues 21

Table 4: Parental issues 24

Table 5: Technological issues 26

Chapter I: Introduction

1.1 Significance of the study

Nowadays , it goes without saying that English is one of the most popular and influential foreign languages in the world Indeed, living in an era of globalization, this language acts as a bridge in communicating with other countries’ people, connecting to new cultures and knowledge Moreover, based

on English fluency, we can obtain job opportunities in a variety of aspects such

as international business, education, media, aviation, etc Due to its significance, nowadays, more and more international businesses or firms are recruiting candidates with their proficiency in English However, mastering a foreign language like English is not a simple thing Thus, creating motivation plays an important role as the deciding factor in grasping the mastery of English to reach the international level

However, this could be challenging for students when in the first place, English

is not an easy language to master Moreover, due to Covid pandemic, we have turned to emergency remote learning, which has caused many difficulties for students Especially for freshmen, they have to face not only the above two problems, but also the trouble in the transition period between high school and university All of the three factors I have mentioned could result in lack of motivation for all students, especially English major students at Banking Academy without an exception

For those reasons, I decided to carry out a research about “Factors affecting motivation of first-year English majored students in learning English online at Banking Academy” as my graduation thesis

1.2 The aims of the study

The study focuses on the following aims:

1 Identify the factors affecting motivation of first year English majored students at Banking Academy toward learning English online

2 Provide some recommendations to stimulate students’ motivation in learning English online

1.4 The scope of the study

This research was conducted for nearly 3 months, from the end of February to the end of May, completing on 23rd May 2022 The study analyzes the factors affecting motivation in learning English online for first-year English majors students Indeed, the scope is limited to engage the feedback of students from K23 and K24 who both experienced the online version of their first-year studying for the first time This period would last for the maximum of nearly 2 weeks and because of time and knowledge limitations, this study can only investigate a small number of English department freshmen (83 responses) Besides, this study could not represent all students at Banking Academy, it only focuses on first-year English majored students

1.5 The structure of the thesis paper

Chapter I: Introduction

Chapter II: Literature review

Chapter III: Methodology

Chapter IV: Results and Discussions

Chapter V: Conclusion

Chapter II: Literature review

2.1 Fundamental concepts of motivation

2.1.1 Motivation

There are many definitions of the term “motivation” mentioned by many researchers in linguistics, some of which are mentioned below

First of all, a definition extracted from Oxford Dictionary commented that

“motivation is the reason or cause for doing something” or in other words

“motivation is the feeling of wanting to do something, especially that relates to being hardworking and effective” To be more well-defined, John M.Keller (2009) showed that “motivation refers widely to people’s aspiration, their choice and commitment to what to do” Tae-Young Kim (2021) also briefly concluded that the word “motivation” indicated “person’s desire or willingness

to begin”

Jeffrey S Nevid (2021) wrote that “The term “motivation” refers to factors that

activate, direct and sustain goal-directed behavior” and “Motives are the

“whys” of behavior – the needs or wants for driving behavior and explain what

we do” For instance, employees who are motivated tend to work productively,

meet the business’s needs and put effort in every task; or students with motivation could participate more actively in class and help create a positive learning environment

In terms of language learning, it should be noted that motivation plays a vital role in the process of learning a foreign or second language Zoltán Dörnyei &

Jill Hadfield (2014) stated that “teachers often use the term “motivation”in order to describe learning successful or unsuccessful” To put it differently,

“motivation is considered as one of the factors that influences the academic success of students”, according to Esti Royani Furthermore, Rebecca.L Oxford

(1996) also introduced three levels in learning motivation which are desire to learn, integrativeness ( reason for language learning), and attitudes Indeed, a desire for language acquisition is found on all levels within the construct of motivation Therefore, due to lack of motivation, learners may encounter a

number of obstacles Without goals or desire to learn, it would be challenging for learners to achieve effective results in learning

To sum up, motivation is one of the most important factors that cause success or failure in learning

2.1.2 Motivation in online learning

Remote education today has become a prevalent phenomenon since the

outbreak of the Covid epidemic Indeed, online learning can be explained as “

forms of learning partly or entirely based on the internet” (Fitzgerald and et al.,

2018) or “learning that is facilitated by electronic technologies” (Nicole A Buzzetto-More, 2007) However, in this condition, these concepts should be

defined and according to Jennifer Mathes (2020), “Online learning uses the

internet as a delivery method to offer thoughtfully designed, quality, focused learning experiences, built on proven best practices that create effective interactions between learners, peers, instructors, and content”

student-In relation to motivation in online courses, Ucar, Hasan, Kumtepe, Alper Tolga

(2021) stated that “motivation is crucial for successful completion of the

students’ online courses” and also mentioned some factors that could affect

online learning such as “digital fatigue, poor instructional design, facilitator

competence, course design, assessment practice and student support”

In terms of English online courses, Emily Stark (2019)’s study showed differences in the reported motivations and the use of learning strategies between students in online courses, and exposed some connections between different types of motivation and learning strategies and student performance in

a course Moreover, the importance of interaction between teachers and students exploited by Hasan Aydin (2013) and the use of technology in language learning are important factors in order to increase student motivation, according

to Panos Panagiotidis, Pinelopi Krystalli (2018)

Therefore, it can be concluded there is an interplay between learners’ motivation and online classrooms

2.1.3 Demotivation

Having delved into the nature of motivation, a fact is that during the online learning process, if students can not get motivated, they may be negatively influenced Therefore, beside the positive angle, it can be implied that demotivation is the dark side of motivation

Demotivation can be simply understood as the feeling of no interest in learning English online Indeed, the loss of interest can come from distinct sources of demotivation For instance, unplanned lessons or inappropriate teaching methods can perform as one of the reasons for demotivating students However, demotivation is not only external and Keita Kikuchi (2015) stated his point of

view by describing demotivation as “the specific internal and external forces that reduce or diminish the motivational basis of a behavioral intention or an ongoing action”

Based on the concept of Keita Kikuchi, demotivation can also wrap up internal and external factors such as learning environments, lecturer issues, parental factors, technology factors, etc As Gilly Salmon (2004) said, “an uninteresting

e-activity” or “a chance unfortunate remark” could be strong demotivators for

learning online Additionally, technology also plays an indispensable role in a virtual class For instance, joining an English course on zoom and realizing that you lost the sound or the picture could make learners feel demotivated and dispirited in learning online

Therefore, being aware of demotivational factors is able to help students avoid

or minimize adverse influences

2.2 Self-determination theory

The concept of self-determination has been brought into play in education

Indeed, Deirdre K Mithaug and et al (2002) stated their explanation in “why

and how opportunities to learn affect learning” The “why” factor indicates how

favorable the challenges are faced by learners, and the “how” factor expresses how efficient the learner’s adjustment in expectations, choices ,and actions for expected gains

In the book “Self-Determination Theory: A Macrotheory of Human Motivation, Development, and Health” published by Edward L Deci & Richard M Ryan in

2008, they differentiated the motivation into two types: autonomous motivation and controlled motivation Indeed, autonomous motivation consisted of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, while controlled motivation comprised both external regulation and introjected regulation However, in that book, they also mentioned that the research on autonomous versus controlled motivation had

been conducted at conscious and non-conscious levels, and at all two levels, the

benefits of autonomous motivation which include intrinsic and extrinsic motivation came to be apparent

According to Richard M Ryan & Edward L Deci (2018), self-determination

theory, or SDT, is a theory of “human behavior and personality development” and centered on the “basic psychological needs for competence, relatedness and

autonomy” In other words, this theory shows that people are capable of being

self-determined when fulfilling their needs for competence, relatedness and

autonomy He also mentioned the function of three factors in conforming “the

results of behavioral experiments concerning the effects of environmental events and interpersonal contexts on intrinsic motivation” and “the internalization of

extrinsic regulations” Therefore, we can see that SDT results from intrinsic

and extrinsic motivation

As a result, this study would give priority to the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation to analyze factors affecting motivation

According to R Bénabou, J Tirole (2003), intrinsic motivation describes “the individual’s desire to perform the task for its own sake” and extrinsic motivation includes “contingent rewards” We can see the fundamental

difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation is that intrinsic motivation comes from within, while extrinsic motivation comes from the outside

Indeed, K Valerio (2012) first emphasized that intrinsic motivation is fundamental in students’ learning However, there is an objection to that “Some

people learn more by outside influences, but others may achieve more by their personal goals” (Barbara Bray & Kathleen McClaskey, 2016) Despite that, the

distinction between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation is still useful, according to Gianluca Baldassarre and Marco Mirolli (2013)

However, intrinsic motivation is typically a long-term technique more effectively for accomplishing goals and fulfilling tasks, whilst extrinsic motivation is beneficial in certain cases, but sooner or later it may result in burnout or lose usefulness over time Roland Benabou and Jean Tirole stated that extrinsic motivation (reward) had a limited influence on performance and led to the decrease in the motivation to carry out related tasks in the future

2.3 Factors affecting students’ motivation in learning English online

There are two types of motivation: intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation Both types of motivation are important for learning English online

2.3.1 Intrinsic factors

As mentioned above, intrinsic factor is one of the main aspects generating motivation Intrinsic motivation is a motivation in learning that is from internal force such as the learner’s desire or interest

Gary Falloon (2011)’s research was based on Moore’s theory of transactional distance and virtual classroom Indeed, independence, self-direction and intrinsic motivation are the factors associated with distance learners The role of intrinsic motivation in students’ learning is considered to be a key aspect and when students are intrinsically motivated, they will be inclined to engage in learning The first concept by R Bénabou, J Tirole (2003) described intrinsic

motivation as a factor based on the “desire to perform the task for its own sake”

This kind of motivation characterizes the action we perform for pure enjoyment

or satisfaction In addition, other authors have extended different aspects other than interest and enjoyment in the study of intrinsic motivation For example,

Kenneth Wayne Thomas (2009) introduced purpose and self-management as they were considered two key aspects at the root of intrinsic motivation or Mario E Moreira (2017) concluded that enjoyment, curiosity, ownership, autonomy and pride are factors driving the intrinsic motivation In the book

“Drive”, Daniel H Pink (2011) also introduced 3 core principles including autonomy, mastery and purpose Specifically, autonomy is the principle of self-determination, or in other words, in this factor, students are encouraged to have self-control in work and skill development Mastery is the sense of growth in

skills and knowledge; and purpose simply ties these above two factors together Edward L Deci & Richard M Ryan (2013) summarized and stated that intrinsic

motivation is based on the needs for “competence and self-determination” for which rewards are the experiences of “effectancy and autonomy”

In conclusion, intrinsic motivation is a crucial topic in education According to

Edward L Deci (2012), “intrinsically motivated activities are related to internally rewarding consequences” Intrinsic factors could come from short-

term goals, long-term goals and learner autonomy

2.3.1.1 Short-term and long-term goals

Based on the book “Triumphs of a Little Girl: Workbook” by Dr Ingrid J Benjamin Ph.D., goals were classified into two aspects: short-term and long-term, and two of which were based on timing of the goals Specifically, short-term goals needed a short period of time (between three months and three years)

to accomplish while long-term goals required more time, particularly three to ten years

According to John Furia (2003), he mentioned the relationship between term and long-term goals In detail, he compared the long-term goal as a reward

short-at the end of route and short-term as the guide for you along the route

Therefore, if short-term goals did not exist, people seemed discouraged to

accomplish long-term goals

2.3.1.2 Learner autonomy

Zuraina Ali (2022) investigated the intrinsic motivation among second language learners using the digital platforms during Covid pandemic Results showed that the intrinsic motivation could be demonstrated when students are motivated to learn English This research also indicated that their intrinsic motivation could

be improved due to the autonomy and power to control their learning activities Learner autonomy has become a central topic in language learning all the time David Newby (2003) introduced the definition of learner autonomy by Holec

which is “learner autonomy is the ability to take charge of one’s own learning”

In addition, a research by Pipit Muliyah and et al (2020) was conducted to investigate the students’ perceptions of learner autonomy in learning language online in STAI Sufyan Tsauri Majenang In this research, learner autonomy is

required in covid era and online learning, although the number of adaptations is not equal to that of traditional learning, this is still a positive number in the future

In online learning, according to Ucar, Hasan, Kumtepe, Alper Tolga (2021), digital fatigue, poor instructional design, facilitator competence, course design, assessment practice and student support are the factors that could affect learners’ motivation Specifically, the research conducted by Shivani Dhingra and et al (2021) discovered students’ motivation in digital classrooms and stated that internet connection and learning environment could affect online learners’ motivation This conclusion was also emphasized in the study by Kiymet Selvi (2010) and the role of instructors was mentioned as one of the most important factors influencing students’ motivation Moreover, remote learning is kind of learning having no direct control of teachers over students’ studying (Safeeullah Soomro, 2010), hence, parents could act as a substantial element in their children’s online learning

To conclude, extrinsic motivation include parental issues, teachers issues, learning environment and technology If students are not intrinsically motivated,

it should be noted that extrinsic factors of learning motivation can affect their learning and play an important role in helping them obtain interests

2.3.2.1 Learning environment

According to Kyei-Blankson, Lydia (2015), an online learning environment is

simply “a learning environment with no physical location and where the

teachers and students are separated by space”

Identifying types of learning motivation that are effective for an online learning environment has become an essential research issue for researchers Especially during the Covid epidemic, when people should keep themselves safe by avoiding interaction and gathering in groups, for students, online learning has become one of the responses to educational needs

Toby Greany & Jill Rodd (2003) stated that some schools identified the impact

of different aspects of a learning-friendly environment such as creating low threat, learning opportunities with high challenge, interactive whiteboard and music in different curriculum areas, etc

Ella Hendrix (2019) mentioned several factors that could affect a learner's ability including: seating, light, noise and color and all these four elements could make the learning environment positive or negative For instance, about noise, Buchari & Nazaruddin Matondang (2017) investigated the impact of noise on learning performance of students and came to the conclusion that noise could bring psychological impacts for students in the form of dizziness Therefore, a good learning environment may contribute greatly to the success of

an online course

Moreover, it is not only about creating an atmosphere which is positive for students to feel engaged and motivated in learning but also encourages the instructor-learner connection and student-centered methodology that require students to be motivated to study in a continuous and consistent manner

In conclusion, making a positive and advantageous online learning environment would make students feel motivated during the knowledge acquisition process

2.3.2.2 Teacher issues

The role of teachers is one of the most important factors in creating an environment that encourages motivational qualities for learners in online courses

According to Vitor Silva (2020), five elements in teachers including kindness, optimism, positive feedback and encouragement can affect learners’ motivation

to learn in a positive way For instance, if a student has a negative feeling towards his/her teachers such as fear or hating, that can negatively lower their attitude toward the subject as a whole

She also mentioned the factor of teaching methods and learning activities which could decide whether they affect motivation positively or negatively For instance, students are more likely to gain their motivation in education if educators use different teaching methods, especially at the time when students who adapt to face-to-face education and have to turn to virtual learning due to the pandemic would get bored in online classes Like in the research of Andi Wahyu Irawan and et al (2020), they concluded that students feel bored with learning online after the first two weeks of learning remotely Thus, a teacher is more likely to satisfy these needs by applying or finding different teaching methods

Moreover, the study of Hasan Aydin (2013) also shows the importance of participant interaction for the success of the online environment Students felt difficult to communicate with their peers with the absence of face-to-face contacts in online settings Thus, the teachers play an imperative role in educating students through online teaching As digital technology is progressing and becoming more complicated, teachers are required to get to know how to use teaching devices in online settings

To sum up, we can conclude that teacher’s enthusiasm, warm and friendly teachers, and the role of instructors are the most important factors for creating motivation for online courses, according to Kiymet Selvi (2010)

2.3.2.3 Parental issues

Parents play a more prominent role in tutoring and monitoring their children’s home-based online learning and they act as the root which directly affect learners’ motivation because they are close and most influential people

In the research by Kahl & Christian (2020), they stated that parents could affect children’s academic knowledge and their confidence Moreover, parents’ participation in the learning process can increase the performance of their children Deegoda Gamage Indu Ramira Sumanasekera and et al (2021)

conducted a research and came to the conclusion “The more parents engage

with their children, the higher performance their children achieve”

In addition, individual differences in parental support are also related to academic motivation and according to Christel L T Klootwijk and et al (2021), students with lower levels of parental support showed lower academic motivation on online learning compared with traditional learning

However, parents could have both negative and positive attitudes towards online learning Like Chuanmei Dong and et al (2020) researched, parents held a belief that online learning is less effective than traditional learning They believed that online education lacked a learning atmosphere and social interactions to engage learners, leading to poor learning performance With this

in mind, these generally negative beliefs about online learning could be related

to lack of online learning motivation

In short, parental impact and encouragement also act as the most influential role for students in the online learning process

2.3.2.4 Technological issues

Technology assumes the strongest factor in shaping the educational landscape in the 21st century and the use of technologies now has become part of the students’ daily life

Albertina Raposo and et al (2019) investigated and their results show us that technology helps students to feel confident since it doesn’t reveal individual knowledge, but allows them to learn with pleasure, generates group dynamics and creates happy moments that could increase learners’ motivation and improve their learning

However, while technology brings many positive sides, it can also leads to adverse effect to students Rehmat Ullah (2022) also showed some negative impacts of technology in education: killing social skills, distracting students and affecting students’ health issues For example, about health, it affects not only physical but also mental health Due to Covid, students’ learning style is often sitting in front of the camera instead of studying in a vibrant classroom

environment Thus, this situation could cause some diseases such as obesity and poor eyesight and this can directly affect learning motivation

Moreover, students also have to face technological issues According to the website USA FACTS, it has been mentioned that about 4.4 million households with students lack consistent access to electronic devices and 3.7 million lack internet access at the time This could cause the loss of motivation for students when we are living at the time that online education is the only solution for education in the pandemic

In summary, technology which meets the requirements of classroom access along with the proper use could make students feel motivated and reach their full potential

Chapter summary

In Chapter Literature Review, by using reliable resources from Google Book and Google Scholar, the study was provided information which was worth for the research and contributed to make the research more completed

In this chapter, the researcher included three parts The leading one is the

fundamental concepts of motivation, which mentioned the definition of

motivation and demotivation, along with motivation in online learning The next part is the theory related to motivation, self-determination theory, which mainly focused on intrinsic and extrinsic motivation applying to analyze the factors affecting motivation The final one is factors affecting students’

motivation consisting of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation Explicitly, intrinsic motivation is divided into short-term and long-term goals along with learner autonomy; and extrinsic motivation is the combination of learning environment, teacher issues, parental issues and technological issues

Chapter III: Methodology

3.1 Research design

This research was conducted for nearly 3 months, from the end of February to the end of May This study uses quantitative as a research method, in which concerned materials including reference books along with a survey questionnaire to the first-year English majored students at Banking Academy to gather information and evidence Due to the need to collect information on a large scale for freshmen, questionnaire is the suitable method In order to answer the research question, this survey was organized at Banking Academy,

as a result, the participants were also English major students at Banking Academy Then, the collected data was analyzed to show “the factors affecting learners’ motivation in learning English online”

The questionnaires were inspired and referenced from the research by Thi Bao Dung Dang and et al conducted on Motivation on English majored students towards learning English Then, they were modified to be more suitable for first-year students when learning English online at Banking Academy and they consisted of two aspects of questions Therefore, the survey questionnaires for students were delivered to 83 English- majored students including K23 and K24

at Banking Academy Among the questions, the first part (from question 1 to 3) which was set as multiple choice aims at gathering general information of students in order to filter and remove invalid subjects and the second, also the last part (question 4 and 5), according to the Likert Scale which included: Strongly agree, Agree, Neutral, Disagree, Strongly disagree, essentially emphasizes the intrinsic and extrinsic factors that can affect freshmen’s motivation in the process of learning English online

To guarantee the reliability, as well as ensure the safety during the pandemic, the questionnaires were collected in a survey and distributed directly to students

of K23 and K24 through online Besides, easy-to-understand vocabulary along with clear explanations was presented to avoid uncertainty or confusion In the end, there were 83 participating in answering which can contribute to the study

The data collected in the study is derived from the survey which was subjected

to students who experienced online English courses in the first year at Faculty

of Foreign Language at Banking Academy To gather information about the issues of learning English online of first year English major students at Banking Academy, the survey made online was copied in a link and passed to students, and specifically received 83 valid responses After the accomplishment of the data, the result was received as percentage The data analysis was established and the results of questionnaires revealed the factors affecting their motivation

in learning English online

3.2 Research participants

This research was conducted on the participation of freshmen and received 83 valid responses of 83 first-year students including males and females in the English language department at Banking Academy, in which 46% (38/83) of participants were K24 and the remaining including 54% (equivalent to 45 students) were K23 The survey only focuses on students' experience when studying online in the first year, so the subjects contributing to the study were students in Banking Academy from K23 and K24, including 83 responses They were given questionnaires to gather the information, which can help to make this research more reliable and discover “factors affecting motivation in learning English online” of English majored first-year students at Banking Academy

Chapter IV: Results and Discussion

Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

As is observed, Table 1 represented 8 factors in total that indicated participants’

intrinsic motivation in learning English online

To begin with, the analysis starts with two factors which were enjoyment in learning English and enjoyment in new learning methods Let’s take a close look at factor 1 first Over 80% of freshmen consisting of 45.8% (38/83) strongly agreed and 37.3% (31/83) agreed with the opinion that factor 1 can affect learners’ motivation The remaining with 13.3% (11/83) was on neutral ground, 2.4% (2/83) gave disagreement and 1.2% (1/83) chose strongly disagreement Moving to factor 2, it is noticeable that the percentage of 5 levels ( strongly agree - agree - neutral - disagree - strongly disagree ) between these two first ones changed insignificantly The number of participants strongly agreeing and agreeing accounted for the largest percentage which was nearly 80%, while the students with neutral opinions, disagreement and strong disagreement made up 22.9% (19/83), 3.6% (3/83) and 7.2% (6/83), respectively Accordingly, it arrived at the conclusion that among the intrinsic factors, learners' interest in English and online learning method are the most major ones affecting English majored freshmen at BA

Coming to factor 3, there were 2.4% of respondents who objected to the idea that learners felt motivated in learning English online with the purpose to strengthen their English language level Next, in succession, there were 33.7% (28/83) strongly approving and 47% (39/81) agreeing, while 14 remainders (16.9%) were not on either side and no one chose strongly disagreement

For factor 4’s result, 30.1% of respondents (25/83) chose strong acceptance while students expressing agreement and neutral ideas had equivalent results which were in turn 25.3% (21/83) and 28.9% (24/83) The rest of participants included 7.2% (6/83) giving disagreement and 8.4% (7/83) with strong disagreement Moving to factor 5, the number of students who strongly agreed and agreed occupied the top 2 positions (38.6% and 36.1%, accordingly) in the

5 levels, and 16.9%, equivalent to 14 respondents showing hesitation The residual results with 2.4% (2/83) and 6% (5/83) were the equivalent of the

percentage of students choosing disagreement and strong disagreement Based

on data from these two factors, it reflected the fact that traveling abroad and getting dream jobs are two attractive goals that contribute to motivating students

In factor 6, nearly 80% of freshmen (the combination of 36.1% (30/83) and 41% (34/83)) consecutively showed strong approval and assent to the opinion that

grasping the importance of English contributing to future long-term goals can create and promote motivation

In two last factors 7 and 8, they both received the largest proportion in option

“neutral” which is 34.9% (29/83) and 33.7% (28/83) successively, as well as the same percentage 27.7% (23/83) of students choosing strong agreement Considering the three remaining levels (agree, disagree and strongly disagree)

of two factors, there was a minimal change in results: The number of students choosing “agree” stopped at the degree of over 20% (22.9% (19/83) for factor 7 and 26.5% (22/83) for factor 8) The remaining including option “disagree” and

“strongly disagree” accounted for a small amount In view of factor 7, 8.4% of students (7/83) objected to the opinion that the ability to balance own study time could contribute to online learning motivation and 6% (5/83) showed strong disagreement Arriving at factor 8, there were 7.2% of participants (6/83) expressing disagreement, followed by 4.8% (4/83) with strong objection

To sum up, from the data extracted from 8 factors, it could be inferred that most

of the students had motivation for learning English online affected by intrinsic factors They embraced the interests, purpose to strengthen English language level, traveling abroad, dream jobs requiring good English competence and the importance of English to contribute to future long-term goals

However, the ability to balance their own study time and control how they learn, which were the features of learner autonomy, received more than 1/3 of neutrality

4.1.2 Discussion

To start with, it was a positive sign towards participants when their online English learning motivation was influenced by intrinsic factors More explicitly, they expressed their high agreement when emphasizing that the effect of indulgence in English could affect learners’ motivation in studying language online progressively They also approved that traveling as well as realizing the importance of English for long-term goals, namely job opportunities was the reason for them Almost of the respondents wanted to upgrade their English

level for achieving higher performance The results were similar to the study of

intrinsic factors by Ronnie H Shroff & Douglas R Vogel (2009)

Besides, a factor being attached to online learning and making students hesitate

to choose whether to influence their motivation: learner’s autonomy in learning

online This result of neutrality was also similar to the research of Alexander

Ramírez when he conducted a survey on freshmen at Universidad del Valle

about their learner autonomy and gave a fact that they had a blurred

understanding in the concept of autonomy Moreover, this character is critical

for online study (Helen Spencer-Oatey, 2007) and the relationship between

learner autonomy and students’ motivation was proved in the research by

Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

disagree

9 I can get access to

course materials easily

11 I can interact with

peers and teachers

easily in an online

learning environment

Table 3 including 3 statements carried out going into detail about students' dynamic factors in online learning environment

Starting with statement 9, 27 out of 84 students (32.5%) strongly approved and

24 others (28.9%) agreed with the idea that getting access to course materials easily made them feel motivated in an online English class The remainder consisted of 30.1% (25/83) uncertainties, while particular 3 respondents showed disagreement (3.6%) and 4 expressed strong objection to the opinion

Moving on to statement 10 and 11, there was a coincidence when the percentage

of students 28.9% (24/83) in these two sentences showed their agreement In statement 10, there were 4 participants (4.8%) and 1 individual (1.2%) disagreeing and strongly disagreeing with the assumption that “I am free to express my ideas in an online learning environment”, respectively Nevertheless, 43.4% (36/83) strongly agreed with this statement, while 18 respondents (21.7%) showed hesitation Down to statement 11, the number of respondents who dissented and strongly dissented was slightly higher than in statement 13, which was 6 (7.2%) and 8 (10.8%), successively At the same time, 25.3% of students (21/83) showed a positive attitude towards the idea “I can interact with peers and teachers easily in an online learning environment”, whereas 27.7% of freshmen (23/83) gave no comments

As a result, it could be concluded that students felt more motivated in a

learning environment where they could get access to online materials, have chance to interact with friends and teachers as well as be free to express their ideas

4.2.1.2 Discussion

Regarding the online learning environment factor, most students felt more motivated when studying in an atmosphere where they can easily interact with peers and teachers The finding was in line with the study of Marina Nehme (2010) The study examined that interaction was one of the factors that could motivate learners in e-learning

Another important finding was that many people seemed to be demotivated when the learning environment did not allow them to get access to online

materials In addition, freshmen would be motivated to learn if they had a right

to be free to express their ideas The result was similar to Ayla Cetin-Dindar

(2015) and the study showed that being free to express their ideas was one of

the features of the constructivist learning environment which can make students

Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

A glance at the above table revealed that teachers could affect students’ motivation in online learning in many-sided ways

In statement 12, over 60% of participants (27.7% (23/83) “strongly agree” and 32.5% (27/83) “agree” combined) addressed that the friendly manner of the teacher's presentation could give students more motivation However, 23 respondents (30.1%) remained neutral, and there were 3 students, equivalent to 3.6%, disagreeing with the statement while the rest which accounted for 6% (5/83) showed strong opposition

For statement 13’s result, there were 4 students (4.8%) dissenting and 5 out of

83 participants chose strong objection, while 33.7% (28/83) stayed in the middle In contrast, 26 students, accounted for 31.3% and the remaining which included 24.1% (20/83) strongly assented and assented to this statement, respectively Therefore, the conclusion could be reached that the proficiency in using online teaching tools was imperative to attract students’ attention, as well

as motivation, because using virtual devices fluently not only made the lecture become engaging but also was a necessary quality for the learning trend nowadays

About statement 14, findings also showed a similarity in the number of participants strongly agreeing and agreeing, 29 equivalent to 34.9% With the

“neutral” section, there were a number of students choosing it, making up 24.1% (20/83) Conversely, only 1 student (1.2%) disagreed and 4.8% of respondents (4/83) showed strong objection

More than half of the participants picking “strongly agree” (26.5%, 22/83) and

“agree” (31.3%, 26/83) became motivated because the teacher created more interactive online activities in statement 15 There were 27 students (32.5%) hesitating to give answers, while 1.2% (1/83) and 8.4% (7/83) of the respondents in turn disapproved and strongly disapproved with this statement

Going on with the last two statements, namely statement 16 and 17 In the prior, the percentage of students selecting “strongly agree” was 39.8% (33/83) and 27.7% was the proportion of ones showing positive attitudes towards statement

19 Along with them, 28.9% (equal to 24/83) of participants showed their

indifference, and there were 2 respondents expressing strong disapprovement Besides, only 1 individual dissented from this statement Coming to the latter, it could be inferred that over 50% of freshmen (32.5% (27/83) strongly agree and 20.5% (17/83) agree) proved that they had more power in motivation due to teachers’ timely feedback In addition, there were 41% of students (34/83) ticking on the “neutral” section, 2.4% (2/83) showing disagreement and 3

remainders (3.6%) conveying opposition in a strong way As a result, it was

obvious that teachers’ personalities and timely feedback played an important role in promoting students’ motivation

In conclusion, in order to enhance motivation, a teacher when teaching online

should meet these requirements: friendly manner along with dedication towards students’ problems, proficiency in using online teaching tools, provision of necessary and useful materials, interactive activities building and timely feedback

4.2.2.2 Discussion

For the teacher’s factors, more than half of participating students confirmed that they experienced more feeling of motivation when teachers provided necessary and useful online materials as well as had attractive and creative teaching methods related to building online activities with timely feedback on students’ performance that increased interaction These findings were in line with the study conducted by Esra Meşe & Çiğdem Sevilen in 2021 and the study showed that the inadequacy of teaching methods along with feedbacks can lead to lower motivation

Besides, teachers’ friendly manner during lectures was one of the most important strategies to boost students’ motivation Moreover, the enthusiasm and dedication towards freshmen’s problems when studying online was critical for students to gain motivation at high levels The finding of the study by Mamona Yasmin Khan and et al also confirmed that teachers’ attitude was the cause of students’ motivation in the pandemic

Additionally, proficiency in using online teaching tools also played an important

role to influence the motivation

Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

Table 4: Parental issues

Going on elaborating students’ motivation, table 5 embraced 2 statements

First of all, in statement 18, having 14 participants (16.9%) disagreed and 23 out

of 83 ones (27.7%) extremely objected revealed the fact that the supervision of

parents during the time of online studying could affect their children’s

motivation negatively The rest consisted of 20.5% (17/83) having no

comments, while the number of “strongly agree” and “agree” selectors was 16

(19.3%) and 13 (15.7%), respectively

Now, turning to the next, also the last statement, the result showed that the

strong approval and approval were responded by nearly half of students

Specifically, 28.9% (24/84) chose strong agreement and 14.5% (12/83)

expressed assent As opposed, 21 freshmen, in parallel with 25.3%, remained in

the middle The remainder of disagreement and strong disagreement provided

the successive results which were 18.1% (15/83) and 13.3% (11/83) Based on

the findings of statement 19, it came to the conclusion that the support of