As teachers, if we are able to see and better understand that moment, surely we will gain another clue to the often puzzling topic of learner motivation. The term learner motivation is sometimes defined as the reasons behind the learner's decision to pursue educational goals. Motivation can also be defined as the extent to which a learner is engaged in learning while in class. My interests involved both of these aspects of the experience. In thinking about how this question might be addressed, I considered the obvious and strong connection between motivation and emotions.
Modern trends dictate the practical necessity of emotional awareness.
We are encouraged constantly to share our feelings and be enlightened as a consequence. Most would agree that emotions play important roles in all aspects of life. I developed a non-threatening tool using pictures of faces and other illustrations to encourage student awareness of emotions, motivation, and the process of learning, and to introduce the concept of goals. In order to assess any changes in learner motivation, individual interviews were conducted with each student first when the course was starting and again after the course had been terminated. I was able to work with both the 4 women in the ESL class which I taught and also with 4 students from the pre-GED class, taught by a fellow instructor.