A Survey Study Of Correlation Between Family SES And English Learning Motivation Of Undergraduates

It has been an indisputable fact that difference in Socioeconomic status (SES) does exist in China.The influence of this difference on personal progress, academic achievement or other aspects isbecoming a growing concern both at home and abroad. While English learning motivation has been amajor research focus for a couple of decades in the field of English teaching and second languageacquisition. However, Family SES belongs to the social environmental factor that influences Englishlearning motivation, the research into its influence on English learning motivation nonetheless isrelatively rare.Based on the statistics from a survey, this thesis tries to analyze the correlation between familySES and English learning motivation, and then provide pedagogic suggestions on improvingundergraduates’ English learning motivation. The literature review aims to classify the types, internalstructure and influencing factors of English learning motivation, and connotation and statisticalmethods of family SES. A questionnaire survey, designed, tested and modified, is conducted among802undergraduates of five universities in Jiangning District, Nanjing. The collected statistics areanalyzed to find out the influence of family SES on English learning motivation in an objective andcomprehensive way. The thesis probes into the influence that the difference among high, medium andlow-leveled family SES exerts on English learning motivation and its internal structure. Moreover, itexplores different influence of the social, economic and cultural resources in family SES on the typesof English learning motivation and its internal structure. Finally, some constructive suggestions onhow to improve English learning motivation are presented on the base of statistics analysis andmotivation theories.The findings are as follows:1) English learning motivation types of the subjects, according to theintensity, are individual development, immediate achievement, information medium, going abroadand intrinsic interest; and principal components of their English learning motivation are learningpurposes, interest, achievement motivation, anxiety, self-efficacy, causal attribution and valence.2)Family SES has a great influence on English learning motivation types. The higher the family SES is,the more likely the undergraduates have “integrative” motivation; in contrast, if family SES is low,undergraduates tend to have “instrumental” motivation.3) Family SES also influences internalstructure variables (except casual attribution) of English learning motivation greatly. Undergraduatesin medium and low-leveled family SES are sensitive to learning purposes and anxiety but short of self-efficacy and achievement motivation; while with medium and high-leveled family SES, theystand out in self-efficacy and achievement motivation but lack learning purposes and valence.4)Medium and low-leveled SES families and lack social resource, has a significant influence on anxiety.5) Cultural resource in a family SES influences undergraduates’ English self-efficacy obviously.Based on the previous research results, some pedagogic suggestions on improvingundergraduates’ English learning motivation are presented as follows:1) Strengthen English valenceof undergraduates from families with high-leveled SES, and help them make clear of their learninggoals.2) Meet the deficiency needs of undergraduates in families with medium and low-leveled SES,and arouse their intrinsic interest.3) Reduce anxiety of undergraduates from families in medium andlow-leveled SES, and control arousal level of motivation.4) Improve achievement motivation andenforce self-efficacy of undergraduates from families with medium and low-leveled SES.