The effects of teacher’s differentiated instructions based on students’ learning styles on their motivation

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY,HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES DEPARTMENT OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ------ NGUYỄN THỊ THỊNH THE EFFECTS OF TEACHER’S DIFFERENTIATED

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY,HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

DEPARTMENT OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

- -

NGUYỄN THỊ THỊNH

THE EFFECTS OF TEACHER’S DIFFERENTIATED

INSTRUCTIONS BASED ON STUDENTS’

LEARNING STYLES ON THEIR MOTIVATION

Ảnh hưởng của việc đa dạng hóa phương pháp giảng dạy dựa trên phong cách học cá nhân đối với động lực học

của sinh viên

M.A.Combined Program Thesis

Major: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60.140.111

HANOI - 2013

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY,HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

DEPARTMENT OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

- -

NGUYỄN THỊ THỊNH

THE EFFECTS OF TEACHER’S DIFFERENTIATED

INSTRUCTIONS BASED ON STUDENTS’

LEARNING STYLES ON THEIR MOTIVATION

Ảnh hưởng của việc đa dạng hóa phương pháp giảng dạy dựa trên phong cách học cá nhân đối với động lực học

của sinh viên

M.A.Combined Program Thesis

Major: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60.140.111

Supervisor: Dr Lê Văn Canh

HANOI - 2013

DECLARATION

I hereby certify that this research entitled “The effects of teacher’s

differentiated instructions based on students’ learning styles on their motivation”

was conducted and then submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (M.A) This paper was original and has not been submitted for any degrees at any other universities or institutions

Hanoi, October the 11 2013

Signature

Nguyen Thi Thinh

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First of all, I would like to express my deepest appreciation to Dr Le Van Canh for his expert guidance and priceless encouragement during my completion of this MA thesis Reviewing the first manuscript in spite of his hectic schedule, he made some important suggestions which greatly contributed to the final improvements

Special thanks should also be sent to my students at University of Languages and International Studies, without whom the data procedures could not have ever been completed

Finally, I take this opportunity to record my sincere gratitude to my family, for their patience, support and encouragement I am also profoundly indebted to my fiancé, Dang Tuan Thanh, for his remarkable tolerance and unshakeable faith which motivated me enough to accomplish this paper on schedule

ABSTRACT

Motivation which has a profound impact on students‟ academic achievement

at university is determined by a lot of factors Among them, students‟ learning style

is one of the most important one The correlation between motivation and learning styles has been documented in a lot of research

This paper reports an action research undertaken in a reading course for second-year English majors in a university in Hanoi, Vietnam Involving a group of twenty-six sophomores from the same class, this study aims to 1) identify the given class‟s learning styles and current level of academic motivation; 2) project and implement some instructional differentiations upon the students‟ different learning modalities aiming to improve their academic motivation; and 3) evaluate the impact

of the psycho-pedagogical intervention on the students‟ motivation level Using two questionnaires, interviews with students, and researcher‟s self-observation and reflection as the main research instruments, the study shows that these students had low current level of motivation which was probably caused by different learning preferences Basing on the insight into the students‟ learning styles, differentiated instructions were employed in hope to raise their motivation

LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES AND ABBREVIATIONS

List of tables

Table 1 Kolb‟s model of learning styles 12

Table 2 Dunn and Dunn‟s learning style theory (VAKT) 15

Table 3 Two out of six learning styles in Reid‟s model 17

Table 4 Three classroom elements for differentiation 21

List of figures Figure 1 Kolb‟s model of learning styles 13

Figure 2 Learning cycle and decision factors used in planning and implementing differentiated instruction 20

Figure 3 The flow of instruction in a differentiated classroom 23

Figure 4 Low prep vs high prep differentiation 26

Figure 5 Components of foreign language learning motivation 32

Figure 6 The rationale behind differentiated classes 35

Figure 7 Range of activities in a differentiated classroom 39

Figure 8 The proportions of the students by their study record in the first year 45

Figure 9 Equivalent scales of 12 mini-AMTB items 51

Figure 10 AMTB questionnaire keys 53

Figure 11 The research first cycle 56

Figure 12 Students‟ perceptual learning style preferences 59

Figure 13 The participants‟ level of motivation before the intervention 62 Figure 14 Motivational intensity over a six-week period (Sept to Oct 2012) 70 Figure 15 English teacher evaluation over a six-week period (Sept to Oct 2012) 72 Figure 16 Desire to learning English over a six-week period (Sept to Oct 2012) 75

List of abbreviations

AMTB: Attitude motivation battery test

PLSPQ: Perceptual learning style preference questionnaire

LS: Learning style(s)

LSI: Learning style inventory

ESL: English as a second language

EFL: English as a foreign language

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT iii

LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES AND ABBREVIATIONS iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS vi

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1 Statement of the problem 1

2 Aims, objectives and research questions of the research 3

3 Significance of the research 4

4 Scope of the research 5

5 Organization of the research 6

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW8 1 Key concepts 8

1.1 Learning styles 8

1.2 Differentiated instruction 19

1.3 Learning motivation in ESL/EFL context 28

2 Related studies 32

2.1 Evidence of effectiveness of differentiated instruction 32

2.2 Differentiated instruction and learning style 36

2.3 Differentiated instruction and ESL/EFL motivation 39

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 41

1 Participants 41

2 Class problem from the teacher‟s perspective 44

3 Action research 46

4 Research instruments 48

5 Procedure of data collection 54

6 Procedure of data analysis 57

CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 58

1 Research question 1 58

2 Research question 2 63

3 Research question 3 69

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS 77

1 Summary of the major findings of the research 77

2 The teacher-researcher‟s reflection on the project, limitations and suggestions for next cycle 78

REFERENCES 82 APPENDICES I

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

This chapter containing the rationale, general objectives (guided by research questions) and organization of the study is expected to provide readers background materials and a map of the research paper

1 Statement of the problem

As a lecturer in an English-major university, the researcher of this study has been teaching several courses of English skills (listening, reading, speaking and writing) so far Therefore, she has had to deal with different teaching situations as well as various kinds of English major students Through her continuous classroom self-observation, informal interviews with students and evaluation of students‟ lesson journals (a learning dairy which students were personally asked to keep writing from the beginning of each course to reflect their perspectives and feelings

of the lessons and teachers), the researcher has recently identified some questionable problems in her reading class: 1) the students were not motivated enough to actively join in class activities; 2) some students were somehow more involved in certain activities while sometimes the others even showed no interest in these ones at all Different activities may evoke different reactions and feelings from different students These concerned the researcher so seriously that she decided to investigate the situation to look for the answers in a structured manner, rather than in an informal one like before

Reviewing the body of knowledge which is expected to probably result in the current problem, the researcher has found some factors having a considerable influence on students‟ motivation such as their beliefs, affective state, aptitude, personality, age, and learning styles (To and Nguyen, 2009) Although these elements all affect students, and thereby worth studying, the researcher intend to keep focus only on learning style factor in relation to motivation due to her interest and the obvious disadvantages of researching many conditions at the same time

Owing to the development of brain and psychology research into individual differences, the field of learning style theory has drawn much attention from educational researchers since the 1970s However, it was not until the 1980s with the decline of behaviorism (stimulus/ response model), the concept of individual learning preferences was taken into serious consideration in some studies as a basic influential factor to students‟ learning Some studies at that time could be mentioned, for example, Cafferty‟s study of the match in teacher‟s and student‟s cognitive style (1980), Dunn‟s work on students‟ identifying their own learning style (1983), or learning strategies developed from learning styles differences (Willing, 1984, 1985, 1989, 1988) These studies have come to some important findings 1) learners have different preferred learning styles which determine their reactions and attitudes towards particular types of in-class activities and 2) teachers‟ accommodation to different learning styles can have impact on students‟ motivation (Hunt, 1979, quoted in Willing, 1988, 1988, p.57)

Because learning style is an influential factor on motivation, teacher‟s accommodation to students‟ different learning mode appears to probably raise the level of motivation Many researchers have been arguing about matching/mismatching theories which suggest teachers should either try to match their teaching styles to students‟ learning styles or try to expand their comfort zone

by forcing them to study with different learning styles Acknowledging almost all the existing theories, differentiated instruction approach recently has gained much attention in educational settings According to Tomlinson (2001), the goal of the approach is to encourage teachers to proactively prepare and offer a wide range of activities which can cater for students‟ differences (including learning styles) Despite a lack of numerous empirical studies over the effectiveness of differentiated instructions, positive feedbacks from teachers during the application of the approach

in a variety of school settings have been reported worldwide

For the aforementioned reasons, the researcher decided to start an action

research project named “The effects of teacher’s differentiated instructions

based on students’ learning styles on their motivation: An action research” to

find the solutions to the classroom problem Though solutions suggested by other researchers‟ studies may have been proved to be effective, they may never work for her generally unique circumstance Action research has been employed for its practical goal of solving problem, rather than other kind of research for theory construction or testing This study, after finished, is supposed to contribute to a relatively neglected area of research in Vietnam or may be implemented by other practitioners for their shared classroom problem

2 Aims, objectives and research questions of the research

a Aims and objectives of the research

This study is supposed to examine the relationship among three concepts

learning styles, differentiated instructions and academic motivation in higher

education classroom setting This action research project was conducted to aim at solving the problem of low motivation level which possibly caused students‟ low achievement at university

In the light of that general aim, some specific objectives are drawn up to outline the actual directions of the study as follows:

1) To identify the given class‟s learning styles and current level of academic motivation;

2) To project and implement some instructional differentiations upon the students‟ different learning modalities aiming to improve their academic motivation;

3) To evaluate the impact of the psycho-pedagogical intervention on the students‟ motivation level

3 Significance of the research

Once having been finished, this action research is expected to find the solutions to the problem of the researcher‟s own class; otherwise, its findings would shed light on necessary further studies in order to solve the issue of students‟ lack of motivation in learning English as a foreign language In case the intervention of differentiated instructions works for this class, it may suggest a good potential treatment to the problem of students‟ low motivation It does not only help the researcher herself to overcome the difficulty in teaching but it can also be regarded

as a possible suggestion to other teachers who encounter classes of demotivated students In addition, this research with its thorough literature review and reliable research instruments could function as a basic reference on the subject matter Therefore, it may benefit other researchers or teacher practitioners on their way to gain a deep insight into the issue of learning styles, differentiated instructions and motivation

Besides, another simultaneous consequence of this action research is to raise students‟ awareness of their learning style differences Many students hardly

understand their learning styles In fact, students are likely to admire advanced classmates, so they tend to imitate their learning styles or methods in the hope that they can improve their study results This impulsive thought might then result in the students‟ failure because of the incompatibility of applied learning styles and their major ones Consequently, this unsuccessful attempt usually leads to their lack of confidence and motivation In this study, after learning style and motivation surveys were administered and analyzed, the results would be delivered to the students for their own sake Furthermore, if the researcher‟s hypothesis about differentiated instructions by learning styles was right, students‟ motivation would be increased significantly

Last but not least, due to the limitation of a single action research of the generalization to the whole population, this paper might not add much value to the body of the existing literature as well as not persuasive enough for policy makers and school administrators to change the methodology or syllabus However, if more action research like this one was conducted and the findings were confirmed, everything would change for good

4 Scope of the research

Action research can be done by a teacher trying to solve a single problem in his/her classroom Individual action research may search for solutions to the problems of “classroom management, instructional strategies, use of materials, or student learning” (Ferrance, 2000, p 3) Besides, as few as two or a group of teachers can work collaboratively on the same subject matter that is shared among classrooms, without or with the support from principals or educational authorities

In addition, to increase the scope of possible impacts, the other two are school-wide and district-wide action research All four types are likely to be differentiated in terms of focus, possible support, potential impact and side effects

According to Elliott (1991, cited in Water-Adams, 2006), the “best” (the most emancipatory) action research is collaborative in the nature of practice, involving a few practitioners “exploring and challenging the constraints of their professional lives” Meanwhile, individual one is usually criticized for lacking validity, generalization and replication

However, Ferrance in her booklet of the Brown university series “Themes in Education” claimed that each type of action research has its own possible impacts and side effects In order to avoid disagreements on process which may cause the delay or even failure of the research and due to the piloting nature of this study, the

researcher of this study decided to carry out an individual action research to deal

with the problems of her own classroom before suggesting it to other teachers who share the same problem (collaborative) and then proposing it to the faculty administrators (school-wide)

In addition, because this is an individual action research and the researcher also would like to undertake a rigorous and thorough study, she only invited her own reading class of second-year students to participate in the study As a result, the data collection and analysis could be done, and considered more carefully and thereby producing more accurate findings

5 Organization of the research

The study and findings are intended to be shown and discussed in the following chapters:

Chapter 1: Introduction, which provides a broad view of the whole research by

presenting the current problem, mentioning aims and objectives of the paper, and indicating the significance as well as the scope of the study

Chapter 2: Literature Review, which is supposed to provide theoretical background

on the issue of foreign language learning styles and motivation, discuss

the key concepts, identify the research gap and review the related studies

in the history both in Vietnam and in the world

Chapter 3: Methodology, which informs readers of the participants, the chosen

instruments, procedures of data collection and analysis

Chapter 4: Results and Discussion, which presents the description an interpretation

of the collected data in light of research questions

Chapter 5: Conclusion which summarizes the major findings discovered by the

research and written up in the previous chapter (chap 4) Moreover, it suggests some pedagogical implication for teachers who share the same problem as the researcher The limitations and suggestions for future studies are also discussed in this last chapter

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter was the review of the existing literature relevant to the subject matter which was under the researcher‟s investigation In this chapter, some key concepts would be explained clearly and thoroughly In addition, related research works in both international and Vietnam context would be analyzed and synthesized to supply readers with a broad view of the topic in the scholarly world

1 Key Concepts

1.1 Learning styles

a Definition of learning styles

Individual difference is not a new field of study Before the 1970s, this term was considered somehow synonymous with ability difference measured by standard intelligence tests However, owing to the achievements in psychology in the 1970s, researchers soon realized the narrowness of this assumption Therefore, the concept

of individual difference henceforth was changed into the differences in many aspects such as learning styles, interests, motivations, genders or ages Among them, “learning styles” may have been one of the most popular parts which have been studied since it was first used in the 1970s The studies on learning styles have been continuing for roughly five decades

Although it would be not conclusive enough to prove the emergence, recent years witnessed the dramatically increasing records of the researcher numbers working in this area Apart from psychological field, research into learning styles has also been conducted in a vast variety of domains, including management, vocational training and especially education in different settings and levels

Since a vast quantity of research and practitioner-based studies have

deliberately targeted at learning style, there are now a wide range of definitions,

theoretical positions, models, interpretations and measures of the construct in the

area (Cassidy, 2004) On the one hand, this can be convincing proof of the prevalence of this theory in education and it provides the interested investigators with useful extensive literature for gaining thorough understanding of the issue On the other hand, this fact also causes the researchers such a lot of trouble when it comes to the matter of ambiguity, conflicting outcomes or measuring instrument selection

For those who are novices at the subject matter, it is quite confusing when

they encounter the terms “learning styles”, “cognitive styles” and “learning

strategies” To some extent, these concepts are usually used interchangeably in the

learning style-related research with little difference in meaning However, in some cases (for some special purposes), these terms need to be clearly distinguished According to Allport (1937, in Cassidy, 2004) and Riding & Cheema (1991, in Cassidy, 2004), an individual‟s learning style is the application of his cognitive style into learning situation In other words, in education cognitive style is an important component of learning style Meanwhile, “learning strategy” and

“learning style” share a lot in common, except that the latter is adapted more automatically to handle different learning tasks

When it comes to the idea of learning styles, people must bear in mind a simple but reasonable assumption put forward by Dunn and Dunn (1983) “everyone has strengths, but different people have very different strengths”

Since the term “learning style” was first in use in the 1970s, there have been tireless efforts among scholars and researchers to define it Therefore, it is not a great surprise to find numerous definitions of learning styles

Among these countless trees, there is one oak which should not and cannot

be ignored The definition by Keefe (1979) has been mentioned in lots of learning style research (Reid, 1987; Willing, 1988; Coffield, 2004)

Learning styles are characteristic cognitive, affective, and physiological behaviors that serve as relatively stable indicators of how learners perceive, interact with, and respond to the learning environment … learning style is a consistent way of functioning, that reflects the underlying causes of learning behaviors (p 40)

Three components of learning styles referred to in the definition could be presented as follows:

Perceptual

The sensory channels (one or more senses) individuals rely on

to perceive, understand, organize and retain knowledge (Dunn and Dunn, 1979; R Dunn, 1983; Reid, 1987)

Physiology

Primary importance in shaping the way information is sought,

and the way it is processed (Swassing, 1979)

Determine the state of the entire organism, the senses and the

nervous system (Dunn and Dunn, 1979a)

For the consistency of the study, whenever the term learning style is mentioned, it refers to the notion by Keefe (1979) Moreover, it is worth noting clearly at this point that this study just focus on sensory channels or perceptual learning preferences as a primary part of learning style differences

b Learning style theories, models and measures

As mentioned earlier, this study field of learning style has drawn much attention from plenty of researchers around the world Consequently, this following review of learning style models and instruments would be impossible to be all-inclusive Rather, it is going to refer to the most reviewed constructs in significant review papers and excludes the minor models that are only the adaptation of the critical models to small-scale samples or just the new labels of the existing constructs

In the review entitled “Learning Styles and Pedagogy in Post-16 learning” by Coffield et al (2004), 71 learning models which had been developed for the last 40-

50 years were listed Among them, the reviewers identified 13 major models mostly basing on their popularity

Therefore, in this paper the researcher would not mention these minor ones Out of the 13 leading models, David Kolb‟s Learning Style Inventory (LSI) and Dunn, Dunn and Price‟s LSI are the most well-known and widely used in the UK and US respectively Moreover, Joy Reid‟s (1987) model was also reviewed on this part because of the researcher‟s later use of his self-report questionnaire

David Kolb’s learning styles model

David Kolb (1984) defined learning style as “individual orientations that gave differential emphasis to the four basic learning theory: Concrete Experience (CE), Reflective Observation (RO), Abstract Conceptualization (AC) and Active Experimentation (AE)” These four were grouped into two categories: experience-grasping approach with CE and AC; and experience-transforming approach with

RO and AE Depending on the dominance of one experience-grasping and one experience-transforming among four factors inside an individual, there were four basic types of learning styles as follows:

Learning style Dominant factors Characteristic features

Converger AC (thinking) and AE

Imaginative and good at coming up with ideas

Seeing things from different perspectives

Assimilator AC (thinking) and RO

(watching)

Capable of creating theoretical model with inductive reasoning

Accommodator CE (feeling) and AE

(doing)

Actively engaging with the world and actually doing things instead of merely reading about or studying them

Table 1 Kolb’s model of learning styles

Figure 1 Kolb’s model of learning styles

Dunn and Dunn’s VAK/ VAKT models

Rita Dunn and Kenneth Dunn have spent more than 35 years devoting on the studies concerning the learning styles (identification, instruments and assessment of learning styles, etc.)

As mentioned before, Dunn, Dunn and Price (1978, cited in Willing, 1988) included perceptual strengths in the 18 distinguishable learning style elements The perceptual strength element consisted of three types of learning preferences in receiving the knowledge inputs: visual (prefer viewing pictures, maps, diagrams, etc.), auditory (favor listening to tapes, lectures or music), and kinesthetic (involve more in doing, touching and moving) Thus, the Dunns‟ learning style model is frequently used in American school system known as VAK or sometimes VAKT with tactile (prefer hands-on involvement, note taking, model building, etc.) included (Coffield et al., 2004)

According to the Dunns‟ theory, each individual have one or two dominant styles (among those basics) which will role as the filter to favorably receive the information delivered in the individual‟s best way of learning

Dominant

learning style Description/ characteristics

V: visual

- Mind sometimes strays during verbal activities

- Observes, rather than talks or acts; may be quiet by nature

- Organized in approach to tasks

- Likes to read

- Usually a good speller

- Memorizes by creating mental images

- Thinks in pictures

- Easily put off by visual distractions

- May focus on the „big picture‟ and use advanced planning

- Finds verbal instructions difficult

- Remember faces

- Strong on first impressions

- May have good handwriting

- Enjoys using color

- May be particular about the exact choice of words

- Memorizes by steps in a sequence

- Very aware of rhythm

- Easily distracted by noises

- May have difficulty with written instructions

- Remember names

- May assess people by the sound of their voice

- Enjoys music and the sounds of words

- Enjoys talking and listening

- Can remember – and often mimic – speech by picking up rhythm

of the sentence

- May need time to think (i.e discuss it with myself)

- May assess a situation on „how it sounds‟ to them

K:

kinesthetic

- In motion most of the time/ fidgety

- Outgoing by nature; expresses emotions by physical means

- Reading is not a priority

- May find spelling difficult

- Likes to solve problems by physically working through them

- Very good body control, good timing and reflexes

- May need time to think (i.e process the actions involved)

- Will try new things – likes to get involved

- Like physical rewards

- Remembers what they have done rather than seen/ heard

- May assess people and situation by what “feels right”

- Enjoys doing activities

- Plays games, simulations and role-playing

- Makes diagrams, mind maps, webs

- Taps pencil or foot/ fiddles with objects while studying

Table 2 Dunn and Dunn’s learning style theory (VAKT)

(Source: Authors; Adapted from Coffield et al., 2004; Dunn & Griggs, 2003; Dunn,

2001; Dunn, 2003, cited in Penger & Tekavcic, 2009, p 6)

Joy Reid’s VAKT model

Joy Reid was one of the well-known researchers who had spent quite a lot of time and effort studying learning styles, especially perceptual strengths

Once realizing that no research had been published on the perceptual learning styles of non-native speakers (NNSs) of English before and then claiming that failure may rest not only on material but teachers‟ unawareness of learning styles as well, Reid (1987) on TESOL Quarterly reported his study which provided the insights into NNSs‟ perceptual modalities in their classroom

Like Dunn and Dunn, Reid also followed VAK/VAKT model which was added two more components named group and individual learning styles Hence, Reid‟s consisted of 6 learning styles instead of 3 or 4 constructs as usual

Referring back to Dunn and Dunn‟s definition of learning style, these two constructs could somehow be found in the sociological element (working alone, in pair, with peers, in team, with adults, or varied) Meanwhile, they were included in

perceptual channels by Reid (1987) This was the different point between Dunn and Dunn‟s and Reid‟s VAKT model

The typical characteristics of 4 learning styles (visual, auditory, kinesthetic and tactile) coincided with those detailed in Dunn and Dunn‟s For the two added learning styles, the author had also given the explanation for those who had these preferences

Group

learning

style

- Learn more easily with at least one another student

- Be more successful completing work well when working with others

- Value group interaction and class work with other students

- Remember information better when studying with two or three classmates

- Learn and understand new information better with the stimulation from group work

Individual

learning

style

- Learn best when working alone

- Think better alone

- Remember information one learns by oneself

- Understand new material best when learning it alone

- Make better progress in learning by oneself

Table 3 Two out of six learning styles in Reid’s model

Six learning preferences were grouped into three ranges: major, minor and negative learning style preferences It was advisable that students learnt in their major learning styles in which they could function well and learn best Minor preferences contained those learning styles in which students could still function well whereas students‟ negative one showed the difficulty learning in these ways

David Kolb‟s and Dunn and Dunn‟s learning style inventory were thought to

be one of the leading models in the field from which many other models have been developed or adapted (Coffield, 2004) However, Smith (2001) has figured out 6 weaknesses of David Kolb‟s LSI: 1) the process of reflection is mostly ignored (Boud et al., 1983) 2) four constructs in the model do not apply to every situation (Jarvis, 1987; Tennant, 1997) 3) it shows the lack of attention to cultural differences (Anderson, 1988) 4) the idea of stages or steps does not reflect the reality of thinking 5) the empirical weakness cannot back the theory and 6) the problematic relationship of knowledge and learning (Jarvis, 1987) As a result of these problems, the application of Kolb‟s model needs a great caution though this model is appreciated to provide “an excellent framework” to plan teaching and learning

Dunn and Dunn‟s model also had to cope with many critiques which strongly criticized the model as invalidate, unreliable and lacking an underlying theory The reality and validity of Dunn and Dunn‟s LSI have been criticized by some other reviewers However, the Dunn and Dunn‟s LSI was one of the most widely used in the American schools owing to its advantages such as positively claiming the potential learning ability of all students, respecting individual differences and showing its good effects in many practitioners‟ adaptation to their samples of students

In this research, the Dunns‟ learning style inventory would be used thoroughly and consistently as the reference of learning style models However, criticized to be difficult for students and faculties to assimilate all, the instruments with too many principles (18) would be narrowed the focus on perceptual strengths/ preferences only, namely VAK or VAKT model

Turning to this point, Reid‟s VAKT model with 6 components was taken into consideration of the researcher because of the convenient use of Perceptual Learning-style Preference Questionnaire (PLSPQ) by Reid (1987) as the style-identifying instrument (see Chapter 3_Methodology) Moreover, Reid‟s VAKT was

basically similar to that of Dunn and Dunn with more than two styles These two, group and individual were also very important in student‟s process of gaining and retaining knowledge Hence, from the researcher‟s viewpoint, Reid‟s model was more complete to some extent As a result, in the scope of this research, Reid‟s model will be used thoroughly

1.2 Differentiated instruction (Teaching style/ teaching approach)

a Definition of differentiated instruction approach

Instruction differentiation theory was established on the basis of student differences which require a variety of suitably-adapted instructional approaches Students with diverse needs should be provided not just one but multiple options to learn materials and ultimately achieve success equally in the classroom The necessity of differentiated instructions was confirmed by the significant findings in brain research which many experienced teachers have always assumed:

 No two children are alike

 No two children learn in the identical way

 An enriched environment for one student is not necessarily enriched for another

 In the classroom we should teach children to think for themselves

http://www.ascd.org According to an expert in this field Tomlinson (2000), there is not just one way to define instruction differentiation In the most fundamental way, differentiation can be understood as a teacher‟s act of “tailoring” his/ her instruction

to meet individual needs If a teacher tries to differentiate her instruction in the classroom, she varies her teaching in content, process, products, or the learning environment to proactively respond to individual variance to create the best learning experience possible and therefore, keep all students engaged The model of

differentiated instruction was aimed at maximizing learning-teaching flexibility, material access and possibilities of success for all students in diverse classroom Basically, it offers students multiple options to absorb information, make sense of ideas and express what they learn (Tomlinson, 2001)

Differentiating instruction means teachers‟ “adjusting the curriculum and presentation of information to learners rather than expecting students to modify themselves for the curriculum” (Hall, Strangman & Meyer, 2003)

To differentiate instruction is to recognize students' varying background knowledge, readiness, language, preferences in learning and interests; and to react responsively Differentiated instruction is a process to teaching and learning for students of differing abilities in the same class The intent of differentiating instruction is to maximize each student's growth and individual success by meeting each student where he or she is and assisting in the learning process.

(Hall, Strangman & Meyer, 2003)

Figure 2 Learning Cycle and Decision Factors Used in Planning and

Implementing Differentiated Instruction

b Components of differentiated instruction

Tomlinson (2000) clearly drew up a differentiation guideline indicating that there were three elements in the curriculum which could be differentiated to benefit students in diverse classroom

Teachers can differentiate at least three classroom elements based on

student readiness, interest, or learning profile:

Content

– what the student needs to learn or how the student will get access to the information

 Several elements and materials (acts, concepts, generalizations or principles, attitudes, and skills) are used to support instructional content

 Tasks and objectives to learning goals need aligning

 Instruction is concept-focused and principle-driven and should

be adjusted in complexity level to suit diverse learners

Process

– activities in which the student engages in order to make sense of or master the content

 Flexible grouping is consistently used

 Classroom management benefits students and teachers

Products

– culminating projects that ask the student to rehearse, apply, and extend what he

or she has learned in a unit

 Initial and on-going assessment of student readiness and growth are essential

 Students are active and responsible explorers

 Expectations and requirements

for student responses should be varied

Table 4 Three classroom elements for differentiation

(Tomlinson, 2000)

c Features of differentiated instruction

Tomlinson (2001) showed 7 key features of differentiated instruction as follows:

Differentiated instruction should be proactively planned by a teacher before

a class This teacher assumes the differences among his learners, thereby preparing

a range of ways to “get at” and express learning This preparation in advance will help the teacher not to passively reacting to some of the learners as other teachers in undifferentiated class usually do

“Differentiated instruction is more qualitative than quantitative” Some

people suppose that differentiating instructions means more work for advanced students and less for struggling ones in a given class However, Tomlinson (2001) claimed that adjusting the number of the work does not effectively influence students‟ learning process, but changing the nature of the assignments does

Differentiated instruction should be employed along with continual

assessments Through informal chats with individuals, class discussion, students‟

work, observation or a variety of other ways, teachers can assess their students‟ progress which can indicate what works for each learner to make the most of their potential and talents

“Differentiated instruction provides multiple approaches to content,

process and product”

“Differentiated instruction is student-centered.” In a classroom, an effective

lesson should be “engaging, relevant and interesting” However, it would not reach that goal if every student only had one avenue to find the lesson equally engaging, relevant and interesting Moreover, students do not have the same level of understanding at the beginning on which later understandings will be built Consequently, differentiated instructions which provide these students multiple paths to achieve lesson objectives really take these premises into consideration

“Differentiated instruction is a blend of whole-class, group and individual

instruction.”

“Differentiated instruction is organic.” In other words, this is a dynamic

process When differentiating the instructions, teachers try to create the best learning match to their students at that time Over time, students/learning match may become less ideal and that‟s when teachers need to make more adjustments to maintain the effective matches

(adapted from Tomlinson, 2001, p.6)

Figure 3: The Flow of Instruction in a Differentiated Classroom

d Differentiated instruction strategies

In her text, “How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms” (Chapter 6), Carol Tomlinson (2001), identifies 17 key strategies for

teachers to successfully meet the challenge of designing and managing differentiated instruction However, the author also claimed that there is no particular recipe for differentiated instruction due to its nature and ultimate goal of fitting a wide range of student variance The differentiating depends on many unique characteristics of a class such as learner‟s learning styles, personalities or learning profiles

Here are 17 “megastrategies” which can be used to successfully differentiate instructions to make learning fit students better:

 “Have a strong rationale for differentiating instruction based on student readiness, interest, and learning profile.” The rationale will be used in

communication strategy aimed at students and their parents Just like the teacher, these people need to understand the “new rules of the games”, thereby not becoming resistant but contributing to the new learning ways

 “Begin differentiating at a pace that is comfortable for you.” Moving

ahead with differentiating instructions quickly or not should vigorously rely

on teacher‟s readiness point, which is good for both students and teachers themselves Differentiating should start from the point where teachers enjoys most or feel the most comfortable and confident working with

 “Time differentiated activities to support student success.” Students‟ time

spans of attention are different Advanced students have longer time span than struggling ones One thing to bear in mind in differentiated class is to make time allotment for class activities shorter than both advanced and struggling students‟ attention time spans

 “Use an “anchor activity” to free you up to focus your attention on your students.” Advanced students are usually likely to finish the task sooner

than the others, which causes dead time in class As a result, teachers need

to prepare some anchor activities (suitable for students‟ readiness and interests), so that they can assign these activities in case some students claim “I‟m done” too soon in class These on-going activities can be done without teachers‟ assistant Therefore, teachers have more time to support those in need while the others are doing something meaningful

 “Create and deliver instructions carefully.” Multiple directions are

needed, but delivering it to the whole class at one time may cause confusion

or attention deficiency Some other options such as tape-recorded directions, task cards or assignments sheets could be employed to solve the problem of instruction delivery

 “Assign students into groups or seating areas smoothly.”

 “Have a “home base” for students.”

 “Be sure students have a plan for getting help when you are busy with another student or group.” Advanced students can work as consultants for

other students with proofreading, finding answers or details, and so on

 “Minimize noise.”

 “Make a plan for students to turn in work.”

 “Teach students to rearrange the furniture.”

 “Minimize “stray” movement.”

 “Promote on-task behavior.”

 “Have a plan for quick finisher.”

 “Make a plan for calling a halt.”

 “Give your students as much responsibility as possible.”

Figure 4: Low-prep vs high-prep differentiation

e Teacher’s role in a differentiated class

It is self-evident that the role of teachers in differentiated class is different from that of teachers in traditional class in which the content is taught in the same way in the same time span for all students

Traditional class Differentiated class

- Keeper and dispenser of knowledge - Organizer of learning opportunities

- Coach or mentor

- Director of an orchestra (metaphor)

The ability which these teachers need to develop:

 assess student readiness through a variety of means,

 “read” and interpret student clues about interests and learning preferences

(learning styles)

 create a variety of ways students can gather information and ideas,

 develop varied ways students can explore and “own” ideas,

 present varied channels through which students can express and expand understandings

What Differentiated Instruction Means for Teachers Teachers DO Teachers DON'T

 provide several learning options, or different

paths to learning, which help students take in

information and make sense of concepts and

skills

 develop a separate lesson plan for each student in a classroom

 provide appropriate levels of challenge for all

students, including those who lag behind,

those who are advanced, and those right in

 "water down" the curriculum for some

the middle students

(adapted from Willoughby published by Glencoe/McGraw-Hill)

We all know that one way of learning may interest some students, but simultaneously annoy or discourage the others Therefore, differentiating instructions is teacher‟s inevitable task However, differentiation just calls on teachers to prepare a range of ready approaches to learning much of the time which most students find learning a fit much of the time

1.3 Learning Motivation in ESL/ EFL context

Dörnyei (1994) referred to motivation as “one of the main determinants” in learning second/foreign language (L2) It is self-evident that those who are not motivated enough are usually struggling with school work and hardly achieve academic success The first studies over motivation were initiated by two Canadian psychologists, Robert Gardner and Wallace Lambert These researchers were also marked by introducing “scientific research procedures, standardized assessment techniques and instruments” and thereby “setting high research standards and

bringing L2 motivation research to maturity” However, Gardner‟s motivation construct was then challenged and degraded as being too “influential” or

“dominant” so that others concepts were ignored or not fully considered Moreover, Dörnyei also pointed out that the Attitude/Motivation Test Battery (AMTB) by Gardner had quite large scope of the social environment, rather than specifically focusing on academic motivation (though it does have educational dimensions with some question items asking about motivation in classroom)

Academic motivation is a student‟s desire (as reflected in approach, persistence, and level of interest) regarding academic subjects when the student‟s competence is judged against a standard of performance or excellence (DiPerna & Elliott, 1999; McClelland, 1961; Wigfield & Eccles, 2002 in McGrew, 2004)

Academic motivation is a subtype of the general construct of effectance motivation, which is defined as the “need” to be successful or effective in dealing

with one‟s environment (Gresham, 1988 in McGrew, 2004)

In this study, the definition by Wlodwoski (1985, p 2, quoted by Root, 1999) will be used thoroughly Motivation is regarded as “the processes that can (a) arouse and instigate behavior, (b) give direction or purpose to behavior, (c) continue to allow behavior to persist, and (d) lead to choosing or preferring a particular behavior.”

Gardner and Lambert (1972) mentioned the following factors which are rather related to motivation that will attempt to relate the second language ability

to these two functions

1 Integrative motivation, defined as the desire to be a part of recognized

or important members of the community or that society that speak the second language It is based on interest in learning the second language because of their need to learn about, associate or socialize with the people who use it

or because of purpose or intention to participate or integrate in the second

language using the same language in that community; but sometimes it involves emotion or affective factors a great deal (Saville-Troike, 2006, p 86)

2 Instrumental motivation involves the concepts of purely practical value in

learning the second language in order to increase learners‟ careers or business opportunities, giving them more prestige and power, accessing scientific and technical information, or just passing a course of their study in school (Saville-Troike, 2006, p 86)

Furthermore, the motivation is further classified into two main categories as the following:

1) Extrinsic motivation refers to a desire to get a reward and avoid

punishment

It emphasizes external need to persuade the learner to take part in learning activity (Arnold, 2000, p 14), such as homework, grade, or doing something to please teachers Both integrative and instrumental motivations are also grouped under the branch of the extrinsic motivation (Harmer, 1991, p 4)

As extrinsic motivation is based on external outcomes such as rewards and punishment This motivation could bring a negative impact to the students, because with extrinsic motivation, students do not learn with their strong intention

or will but they study it because they are pushed by the interest in the rewards or the punishment When a student is learning because he is promised rewards or because

he wants the rewards, he will be highly motivated to come to classes and learn and achieve the goal that is set for him But when these rewards are taken away, or sometimes even if they do not see any punishment, the student will not be interested in coming to class and learn the language any longer

2) Intrinsic motivation refers to learning itself having its own reward (Arnold,

2000, p 14) It means the learners are willingly and voluntarily (not compulsorily)

try to learn what they think it is worth or important for them When students have intrinsic motivation, they have the internal desire to learn and they do not have the need for external outcomes There are no negative impacts in having intrinsic motivation In addition, intrinsic motivation pushes the student to learn without rewards, because the need is innate or come from inside or depends on their own will Lightbown and Spada (1999, p 56-57) mentioned that teachers do not have many effects on students‟ intrinsic motivation since the students are from different backgrounds and the only way to motivate students is by making the classroom a supportive environment

b Motivation model - Components of motivation

Motivation is a “dynamic”, “eclectic and multifaceted” concept; therefore, a researcher who intends to initiate a motivation construct easily turns out to make it too restricted or static The last decades have seen a lot of efforts of researchers to establish motivation constructs For example, Gardner‟s motivation construct known as the integrative-instrumental system is popular on account of its

“simplicity and intuitively convincing character” Nevertheless, this construct is

“too static and restricted” according to Dörnyei (1994) Consequently, some other studies tried to expand the Gardner‟s construct by “adding new components, such as intrinsic/extrinsic motivation, intellectual curiosity, attribution about past successes/failure, need for achievement, self-confidence, and classroom goal structures, as well as various motives related to learning situation-specific variables such as classroom events and tasks, classroom climate and group cohesion, course content and teaching materials, teacher feedback, and grades and rewards” Based

on Gardner‟s construct and these studies, Dörnyei has integrated all the components into one construct with three components specifically as follows: