Learning Learning 『学習の学習』21 (2): Featured Article

Featured Article
特集
Self-access and Motivation
Jo Mynard
Kanda University of International Studies<jomynard@gmail.com>

Summary要約
本文は、自律学習施設の学習環境において、学習意欲を高める12の方法について説明しています。
うち１１の方法は、授業以外で語学学習に対する内なる(本質的)興味を育てることに着目しています。１１の方法として、(1)社会的交流の促進、(2)学習を更に促進するようなフィードバックの提供、(3)個々の学習者の好みや学習活動に応じた魅力的かつ快適な学習施設の提供、(4)学習者が目標設定し目標達成の成功体験を得られるようにするための支援、(5)学習者が自分で学習意欲を維持できるようになるためのトレーニングの提供、(6)学習者が自分の学習を管理できるようになるための自律言語学習の促進、(7) 自律学習施設の運営への学習者の関与、(8)魅力的な学習教材やアクティビティの提供、(9)スタッフと学生の良好な関係の構築、(10)学習言語とその言語圏の文化を施設の装飾や教材、言語交換（Language Exchange）や人との交流により提供すること、そして、(11)コミュニティの発展を促進し、学習者の想像力を高めること、を挙げています。12番目の方法
は、外からの動機付けに関するものです。 外からの動機付けは多岐に渡りますが、多くは各種試
験や将来の仕事、勉学に関係しています。 しかし、もし学生に極めてやる気がなく、上記のどの方法も効果的でない場合は、良い学習習慣を形成させる為に必要最低限のSALC時間を組み入れることを検討するのも良いでしょう。その他、ポイントカードや報賞のような動機付けは、注意して行われるべきです。なぜなら、学習者が既にやる気を持って行っている活動に対して報賞を付随させることは、それが廃止された際、学習者のやる気を阻害してしまう影響があると数十年に渡る研究が示しているからです(Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 1999)。
Self-access and Motivation
Jo Mynard
A number of authors have examined factors that contribute to an engaging language classroom
environment and ways in which teachers can develop learners' motivation in class. These papers
have drawn upon years of research in educational psychology and second language motivation.
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Learning Learning 『学習の学習』21 (2): Featured Article
However, few articles have focussed on how to develop motivation in an outside class self-accesscentre environment and in this short article I will examine, in general (i.e. not overly academic)
terms, ways in which institutions can promote foreign language motivation outside of class via aself-access centre. I define a self-access centre to be a place which provides outside support for
language learners and promotes learner autonomy and language development.
1. Social interaction
Language learning is a social process and a self-access centre should provide opportunities forlanguage learners to interact easily. Learners need to practice the languages they are learningand also discuss their learning with others (either in the target language or other languages).
Language learners frequently report that interacting with others in the target language is themost motivating aspect of language learning. One practical way to provide opportunities forsocial interaction is by providing a conversation lounge. To increase opportunities for interaction
further, the lounge could be staffed by teachers or students throughout the day.
2. Feedback and encouragement
In order to be able to sustain motivation to continue to work at a foreign language, learners
need feedback and encouragement. In class, this feedback and encouragement comes fromteachers and classmates. In a self-access learning environment, feedback and encouragement
are probably more important and can be provided by either learning advisors or teachers taking
on an advising role. Analysis of advising dialogue shows that in addition to facilitating reflection
and promoting learner autonomy, learning advisors regularly encourage learners. Follow up
research involving interviews with learners revealed that the encouraging comments wereparticularly valued by learners (Mynard, 2012). Students hired as peer mentors can be trained toprovide users with encouragement for their self-access work.
3. Inviting environment
A Self-Access Language Centre (SALC) needs to be inviting and non-threatening. An environmentthat makes a learner anxious or feel that he or she does not belong does not contribute to alearner's motivation for sustained language learning. When designing a centre, care must be
taken to include spaces that appeal to different kinds of learners and different kinds of learning
activities. For example, the arrangement of the furniture could suggest how the space could be
used: soft sofas for a conversation area; comfortable chairs for a reading lounge; and separated
desks for individual study areas. Even in the smallest of spaces, the use of colour and soft
furnishings can make a big difference. In addition, a centre must make it clear through its
branding and marketing that it welcomes all learners - not just those good at a language, or
those who need extra support. The institution must make a decision as to whether signage andmaterials using the students’ L1 should be included in a centre.

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Learning Learning 『学習の学習』21 (2): Featured Article
4. Goal setting
Research shows that having a goal motivates learners to continue studying a language. Goal
setting can be a daunting and difficult process for some learners, particularly those who havenever had the opportunity to develop learner autonomy. One important role of a learning
advisor (or a teacher working with learners in this way) is to help learners to analyse their needs
and set achievable goals. The goals should be specific and guide the self-directed learning(Morrison & Navarro, 2014). Ideally, a learner can then create a learning plan and implement it
outside of class, drawing on the available facilities and resources - including other learners.
Learners should have the chance to discuss their goals and plans frequently with learning
advisors or teachers. Having a specific goal and achieving is very satisfying for learners andoften prompts further self-directed study.
5. Motivation strategy training
In order to be able to sustain motivation, learners should be able to draw upon a range ofstrategies themselves. Learners may already be aware of some of these strategies, but sharing
and explicit teaching of other strategies could be highly beneficial. The strategies might include
the following: goal-setting, rewards, making a task more fun, future L2 self visualization (seeHadfield & Dörnyei, 2013), and positive self-talk (Oxford, 2011). This kind of training can bedone in class, offered as stand-alone workshops in a self-access centre, or introduced indifferent ways, for example, through advising, via social networks, on posters, or as activity
sheets available in the self-access centre.
6. Learner autonomy
Although one of the main purposes of a self-access centre is to promote language learnerautonomy, this also has a positive effect on motivation. Being in charge of one's learning meansa high degree of investment and motivation on the part of the learner. Actively choosing to go toa self-access centre will empower a learner. The extent to which learners are able to direct
their own learning will vary significantly and this does not necessarily correlate with language
proficiency level. Learning advisors and teachers can work with learners in ways appropriate to
the amount of metacognitive awareness that they have. Helping learners to reflect and develop
an awareness of how to plan, implement, monitor and evaluate learning will help them todevelop a sense of awareness and control of the language learning process (Benson, 2011). Thiskind of awareness-raising is ideally done in a one-to-one situation, but some activities can beincorporated into class. One practical way to provide individualised attention is through awritten exchange between the learner and the teacher or learning advisor on written reflectionsof the learner’s self-directed work.
7. Learner involvement
Learners should be involved in running a self-access centre for several reasons. Firstly, this will
ensure that the services are meeting the needs of the student body. Secondly, it will ensure that

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Learning Learning 『学習の学習』21 (2): Featured Article
there are always learners in the centre which encourages others learners also to come in. Thisin turn will create a sense of community (see #11). Taking a leading role in managing an aspectof a self-access centre will also be an opportunity to exercise control - a real example ofautonomy in action. Finally, learners running a self-access centre are realistic role models forother learners (Yamaguchi, 2011). Learners might participate as administrative staff, peer
mentors, materials writers, conversation leaders, materials reviewers, events coordinators,presenters, authors, or take other roles (see Navarro, 2014).
8. Engaging activities
One motivational strategy that learners and teachers often draw upon is to make learning funand engaging. A self-access centre should include a range of enjoyable resources and activities
in the target languages (Cooker, 2010). Examples of resources are movies, dramas, music andgames. Activities could include parties, competitions and gamification.
9. Rapport with staff
Another motivating factor is for learners to feel a sense of rapport with staff working in a selfaccess centre, so staff training should ensure that casual, friendly interactions with visitors to
the centre are a normal part of the job. These short, but vital interactions have been referred toas micro-counselling (Shibata, 2012) and may also result in small shifts in thinking.
10. Connection with target language culture
It is important to connect learners with the target language community through resources,activities, and (if possible) international people. This will help learners to see the broader
purposes of language learning which in turn contributes to their motivation. This connection
could be made through decor, posters, furnishings, language use and staffing. Activities could
include conversation circles, cultural performances, language exchanges and international
collaboration initiatives.
11. Communities and imagination
Being part of a community is one of the factors that ensures engagement and sustained
motivation for self-directed learning (Hughes, Vye, & Krug, 2012). Successful self-access centres
often look and feel very different from other learning environments and provide opportunities
for learners to engage with ‘imagined communities’. Such communities are people we connect
with through the power of imagination (Kanno & Norton, 2003; Murray, 2011). Imagination also
allows people to conceive of their ‘possible L2 selves’ such as an ‘ideal self’ and ‘ought to self’
and a ‘possible future self’ (Dörnyei, 2005; 2009) which can be powerful motivators. Imaginationneeds “freedom, energy, and time to expose ourselves to the exotic, move around, try new
identities, and explore new relations” (Wenger, 1998, p. 185). In practical terms, a self-accesscentre which provides opportunities and freedom for learners to try out resources related topopular culture through movies, television and magazines helps learners to expand their
imagination and identities (Murray, 2011).
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Learning Learning 『学習の学習』21 (2): Featured Article
12. Extrinsic motivesThe previous 11 points mainly promote a sense of internal (or intrinsic) motivation. What about
learners who are just not that motivated to learn a language? Perhaps they are forced to take alanguage class but have no real interest? Some of the above points might help, but sometimes anexternal motive could be more effective. An example of external motives are learning in order topass an exam, or doing well on a job application. Self-access centre staff could find out whatsome of these external motives are and provide materials and support for them. Materials might
include exam practice tests, diagnostic activities, and job information. Support could take theform of advising services, workshops, and awareness-raising of techniques for rewarding one’sown effort. An institution might consider building in minimal required SALC time in order to help
good study habits to form. Some self-access centres allow learners to collect points or stamps as
an incentive to visit. I would suggest that these kinds of incentives should be used with caution.
One compelling reason to avoid rewarding self-access attendance is that it might reduce existing
intrinsic motivation. Decades of research shows that rewarding an activity that is alreadymotivating has a negative impact on a person’s willingness to continue the activity once thereward is removed (Deci, Koestner, & Ryan, 1999).
To summarize, there are several factors that developers could consider in order to ensure that aself-access centre is a motivating space. Simply providing a room stocked with language support
materials is unlikely to motivate learners to engage in self-access learning. Using this shortarticle as a checklist may be a good place to start if you want to ensure that your centre attracts
and motivates learners.
About the author
Dr. Jo Mynard is an Associate Professor and the Director of the Self-Access Learning Centre atKanda University of International Studies. She has an M.Phil in Applied Linguistics from Trinity
College Dublin, Ireland and an Ed.D. in TEFL from the University of Exeter, UK. Her researchinterests are learner autonomy, self-access, motivation, affect, self-directed learning, andadvising. She is the founding editor of Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal and the co-editorof four recently published books on advising and learner autonomy.
References
Benson, P. (2011). Teaching and researching autonomy. Harlow, UK: Pearson.

Cooker, L. (2010). Some self-access principles. Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal, 1(1), 5-9.
Retrieved from http://sisaljournal.org/archives/jun10/cooker/
Deci, E. L., Koestner, R., & Ryan, R. M. (1999). A meta-analytic review of experiments
examining the effects of extrinsic rewards on intrinsic motivation. Psychological
Bulletin, 125, 627-668.

Dörnyei, Z. (2005). The psychology of the language learner. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence
Erlbaum Associates.
Dörnyei, Z. (2009). The L2 motivational self system. In Z. Dörnyei & E. Ushioda(Eds.), Motivation, language identity and the L2 self (pp. 9-42). Bristol, UK: MultilingualMatters.
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Hadfield, J., & Dörnyei, Z. (2013). Motivating learning. Harlow, UK: Longman.
Hughes, L. S., Krug, N. P., & Vye, S. L. (2012). Advising practices: A survey of self-access learnermotivations and preferences. Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal, 3(2), 163-181.
Retrieved from http://sisaljournal.org/archives/jun12/hughes_krug_vye/
Kanno, Y., & Norton, B. (2003). Imagined communities and educational possibilities:Introduction. Journal of Language, Identity and Education, 2(4), 241-249
Morrison, B., & Navarro, D. (2014). The autonomy approach: Language learning in the classroom
and beyond. Peaslake, UK: Delta Publishing.
Navarro, D. (2014). Framing the picture: A preliminary investigation into experts’ beliefs about
the roles and purposes of self-access centres. Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal,5(1), (8-28). Retrieved from http://sisaljournal.org/archives/mar14/navarro/
Murray, G. (2011). Metacognition and imagination in self-access language learning. In D. Gardner(Ed.), Fostering autonomy in language learning (pp. 5-16). Gaziantep, Turkey: Zirve
University. Retrieved from http://ilac2010.zirve.edu.tr
Mynard, J. (2012). An analysis of written advice on self-directed learning modules and the effecton learning. Studies in Linguistics and Language Teaching, 23, 125-150.
Oxford, R. L. (2011). Teaching and researching language learning strategies. Harlow, UK:Pearson.
Shibata, S. (2012). The macro-and micro-language learning counseling: An autoethnographicaccount. Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal, 3(1), 108-121.
Retrieved from http://sisaljournal.org/archives/march12/shibata/Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge, UK:Cambridge University Press.
Yamaguchi, A. (2011). Fostering learner autonomy as agency: An analysis of narratives of a
student staff
member working at a self-access learning centre. Studies in SelfAccess Learning Journal, 2(4), 268-280. Retrieved from http://sisaljournal.org/
archives/dec11/yamaguchi/

Library and Self-Access Learning Centre(SALC) at Kanda University ofInternational Studies
Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Kanda_University_of_International
Studies#mediaviewer/
File:Kanda_University%27s_
SALC_and_Library,_Spring_2010.jpg

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