IF- Assignment

SUBJECT ASSIGNMENT:
INDIVIDUAL FACTORS

Name and surname(s): Aníbal Nhalíngue

Group: 2014-10

Subject: Individual Factors in the Learner’s Development

Date: 11th July 2015

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 IF- Assignment

Assignment:
The following are taken from learner self-reports. Read, determine and explain
what aspects of their learning the learners attend to and assess.

1. I think one problem for me and perhaps everyone else learning a language is you
have to be stimulated to learn.

The student shows lack of inclination towards a language. Many times students reach
a point of giving up and not taking any attitude towards their language learning
because of lack of success which may eventually cause the lack of persistence. If
students do not experience reward in their learning they will get discouraged to try
harder, will get demotivated to learn a language, this attitude will create a kind of
hindrance thus not allowing them to discover their own ability and aptitude in language
learning. Students need additional motivation from external sources.

1 P
2. I'm only interested in grammar. I don't like pair and
group work activities. It's just a waste of time. Reading short novels helped me get real
daily life in English.

The student’s interest in grammar and the negative feeling that he/she has about pair
and group work represents a social characteristic of the field independent under the
category of Analytic learning. Skehan (1989:111) defines field independent learners as
those who “are more impersonal and detached, less sensitive and more aloof; they are
cerebral and object oriented.” The student seems not to be Socially Sensitive,
appearing not to be a fairly balanced because he/she shows traits of being an analytic
learner, evident in the grammar interest. His/her motivation can cause him/her to be
very successful in formal learning due to his/her analytic learning style.

2 P
3. Reading short novels helped me get real daily life in
English.

The student is employing functional practice strategies for learning English language
successfully enabling him/her to increase his/her opportunity to use the language for
communication and exposure to meaningful language. This strategy is linked to an
attempt to become integrated in the culture of the target language because he/she
reads it for pleasure something directly linked to the age and maturity of the student.

4. ...there are some words that appear again and again in the reading passage. I
generally take them down and try to remember them.

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 IF- Assignment

The student uses a strategy to learn English by employing what Willing (1988) in IF
reading material considers as a word strategy to aid the acquisition, storage and
retrieval of information. The student has a maturity is motivated to learn. The student is
conscious about his difficulties in reading thus he/she identifies the words that are most
frequent in the reading passage to connect the overall idea. The student takes attitude
and makes use of cognitive strategy to learn English.

5. I want to learn English because I want to know more about the English-speaking
world.

The student's motivation for learning English derives from the basic desire to know
more about the English-speaking World. The student seems to have an integrative
motivation because of the interest he/she shows and the effect of the positive input
about the English-speaking world, language and its people. This feeling can be an
incentive for the student to take an attitude to learn the target language and thus
employ strategies in accordance to what to his/her language need.

5 P
6. In that class we laughed and joked in English. We
made friends. They didn't care about the mistakes I made.

The student is reporting about the power of affective factor in language learning caused
by a friendly atmosphere, personal-social-emotional behaviours of teachers and
learners. By providing an environment that helps lower learners’ affective filter,
students become less anxious about their performance and by not worrying much
about mistakes they become more likely to communicate more and more
spontaneously. Affective strategies according to IF reading materials are techniques
which help learners achieve better control over their emotions and attitudes towards
the language learning process.

6 P
7. I felt I was losing my English. I found I could only use
simple words.

This statement suggests the need to keep a permanent contact with English because
otherwise the active vocabulary can become the passive. The student’s awareness is
very important for him/her to take an attitude of much exposure to language making
use of both classroom activities and out-of-class strategies. So, we as teachers should
encourage our students, motivate them, create learning strategies and out-of-class

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 IF- Assignment

activities could help those who consider themselves as a failure to become successful
in the language learning.

7 P
8. I don't believe anyone can learn English just from
studying here in our country. That's why I say we have to live the language... the best
way to learn English is to go somewhere where I don't know anyone who speaks any
language but English.

The student poses an issue that has to do with socio and cultural context of the
language proposed by Gardner in IF reading materials added to the fact his/her
learning of English being limited to kinaesthetic and auditory learning styles. Being in a
place where he/she will only be exposed to English will be good because of his/her
belief and otherwise his attitude will not help.

8 P
9. If I have a good level of written and spoken English
when I finish C.O.U., I may be offered a good job in the future.

The student shows to have an instrumental motivation proposed by Gardner in IF

reading materials. The student does the best to obtain a good level of written and
spoken English targeting at getting good job opportunity. The student discovered the
importance and the advantage of learning English as crucial for getting a good job.

9 P
10. I don't like exams at all. Written exams are OK but
when I have to do oral exams in English I get really nervous.

The student’s reaction of getting nervous during the oral exams is a clear example of a
situation-specific anxiety. According to IF reading materials situation-specific anxiety is
“that aroused by a specific situational context such as speaking in front of other people,
taking an exam, participating in class”. So, affective strategies should be employed to
help the student achieve better control over his/her emotions and attitudes in English
oral exams.

11. English pronunciation is so difficult for me. I try to imitate the tapes and the teacher,
but I always get it wrong.

Despite the fact of the student being motivated to learn English pronunciation, and
therefore taking an attitude thus using class and out-of-class learning strategies it
seems that he/she might have ability and aptitude problem. The age can be another
challenge taking in consideration that young learners are more predisposed to acquire

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 IF- Assignment

better pronunciation skills than those learners who start to learn a foreign language at a
later age. Carroll and Sapon (1959), in IF reading materials identified the phonemic or
phonetic coding ability as part of components referring to language aptitude.

11 P
12. I have two pen friends in England and I often write
letters to them in English. It's fun.

By writing to pen friends in English, the student is employing functional practice

strategies for learning English successfully enabling him/her to increase his/her
opportunity to use the language for communication and exposure to meaningful
language. The student also uses cognitive strategies because of the need of using for
example a dictionary and grammar book. He/she is happy with this strategy and
experiences reward in his/her learning and this motivates him/her to try harder. This
attitude allows the student to discover his/her ability and aptitude in language learning.

12 P
13. I don't know what the whole thing is about. What's the
use of learning English? I don't think I will ever use English in my future life.

The student shows to have no motivation at all. To learn a language demands from the
learner attitude and motivation. When learners are not aware of the importance of
English, they will not see the advantage of learning it as crucial aspect for getting a
good job, communicating with people of other countries just to mention. Not being open
to the demands of a different culture and language and the lack of motivation can
cause learners to be unsuccessful.

14. Antonio is very good at English. He remembers things quickly and he doesn't mind
speaking English in front of the other students.

Antonio is a very extroverted and communicative person and this gives him an
advantage to be successful in his personal language development. He also makes
good use of functional practice strategies and maximises the opportunity that he has to
speak English thus becoming a successful user of English. He takes an advantage of
having a higher self-esteem and according to Richard-Amato (2003) in IF reading
materials “successful language learners appear to have higher self-esteem than those
who are unsuccessful.”

14 P
15. I always fear I'm going to say things wrong and so I
speak very little in class.

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 IF- Assignment

Emotional states such as anxiety and fear can obstruct the language learning process.
To face this problem the student can use the self-encouragement strategy which
involves positive self-talk. The main reason for learning a language is to be able to
communicate with others. Fear of mistakes makes learners not to maximise
opportunities to practise communicating in English. Lozanov in MA reading materials
believed that fear of incompetence or mistakes, and apprehension regarding the new
and unfamiliar, are the factors that constrain learning rather than one's native
intelligence.

15 P
16. I enjoy doing projects but I'm not sure whether I'm
really learning much with them.

By enjoying doing projects the student shows that he/she is extrinsically motivated,
however, the lack of experiencing reward and the uncertainty in his/her learning can
demotivate him/her to try harder. Using a methodology or combination of
methodologies that agree with the learner’s learning style and individual needs
employing different learning strategies and making sure that the learner is a part of the
learning process could help. According to Corder (1981) in IF reading materials
motivation is a key to a successful learning.

16 P
17. In the last exam I got a "B+”, now I want to be given
an "A", and I'm going to work for it.

Skehan (1989: 49) considers that “those learners who do well experience reward, and
are encouraged to try harder”. The student’s motivation in wanting to get an “A” is a
consequence of getting a “B+” in the last exam. So, rewards for the learner in the
classroom can reflect in the learner’s extrinsic motivation and cause him/her to use
different learning strategies to achieve the learning objective.

18. Whenever we do listening exercises in the English class, I always try to concentrate
on the most important words and then I do a lot of guessing. It sometimes works!

The student, according to IF reading materials is using Metacognitive strategies

whereby he/she concentrates on key words in a listening exercise. The results are
motivating according to the report. The manner in which the student perceives,
monitors, conceptualises and recalls linguistic information shows that he/she is under
cognitive style.

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 IF- Assignment

18 P
19. I always try to imitate the teacher's pronunciation and
I even write in Spanish how the word sounds in English.

By practising pronunciation of a particular sound the student employs cognitive

strategies. He/she also shows a tendency to be an auditory learner because according
to Reid (1987) in IF reading materials auditory learning is basically learning by hearing
words spoken and from oral explanations as well as by listening to tapes or to lectures.

Bibliography

Arzamendi, J et all. Methodological Approaches, FUNIBER reading materials

Baker, C. (1993). Gardner Socio-Education Model, FUNIBER reading materials

Palacios, I et all. Individual Factors in the Learner’s Development, FUNIBER reading

materials

Skehan, P. (1989). Individual Differences in Second Language Learning. London:

Edward Arnold