Understanding a network of attributionsEdward Russell - the University of Manchester

Puzzle - Why? Why? Why?

Why is there so little overt focus on form occurring when learners are given their annotated written work back and why do I have to hassle them to deal with their mechanics, that have been highlighted by me?

Causal attributions for student achievement

Effort Aptitude Mood

Teacher Task Luck

Are the attributions for failure of success -

controllable? (can we change them?)

stable / global? (same in all situations all the time?)

internal/external?

Assumptions are that behaviour is observable and intentional

‘Insights’ and implications

•Acquisition v learning

•Teacher / Student Observations

•Motivation vastly complex

•Mind over matter

• Reading I+1

• Explicit or implicit teaching lang / AT

• Complex network of attributions

• Cultural appropriateness

Acquired Language

Evidence / insight

•Communicative competence

•Learners’ former schooling

•Fossilized error

•New context for me

Implications

•Role of input in classroom – reading

•Explain my own rationale

•Use the monitor at a summative not formative stage

Observing

Insight

•My group problem, dealing with them as a group – problematic

•Student observation and bias at work

•Most behaviors unobservable

Implications

•Communicate and act rather than observe and guess

Dorneyi & Otto's (1998) Process model

of motivation – post-actional phase Illustration from Dorneyi 2000

‘Baggage’ carried forward into pre-actional phase.

Complexity of Motivation

Mind over matter

Insight

•Effort is critical, the key

•Hard-work pays off

•Socio-biology

•Eradicate error!

Implication

• Aptitude

• Cognitive Behavioural Treatment

• Darwinism

• Control Freakishness

• EIL/ELF NS target?

References

Allport, G. (1954) The Nature of Prejudice, Reading: Addison-Wesley

Barkhuizen,G.P (1998) Discovering Learner Perceptions of ESL Classroom Teaching/Learning Activities in a South African Context TESOL Quarterly 32(1)

Dornyei, Z. (2005) The Psychology of the Language Learner: Individual Differences in Second Language Acquisition New Jersey: LEA

Dornyei, Z. (2000). Motivation in action: Towards a process-oriented conceptualisation of student motivation British Journal of Educational Psychology, 70, 519-538

Glover, C Brown, E (2006) Written Feedback for students: too much, too detaile ot too incomprehensible to be effective? BEE-j Volume 7: May 2006 http://www.bioscience.heacademy.ac.uk/journal/vol7/beej-7-3.aspx

Hawkey, R Teacher and learner perceptions of language learning activity

ELT Journal 60(3) 242:252

Krashen, S (1984). Writing Research and Applications Torrane: Laredo

Lamb (2004) Integrative Motivation in a globalizing world

Weiner, B. (1985). An Attribution Theory of Achievement Motivation and Emotion Psychological Review 92(4) 540-573

Weiner, B (1972). Theories of Motivation: from Mechanism to Cognition Chicago: Markham

Wolters, C (2003(Regulation of Motivation: Evaluating an

Underemphasized Aspect of Self-Regulated Learning , Educational Psychologist 38(4), 189–205