A Study On The Current Status Of English Learning Motivation Of Art Students In Senior High School

Since the late 50 s,learning motivation has gained attention among experts and scholars from all over the world.In China,the study on English learning motivation started in the 1960 s,the subjects of which are mainly undergraduate students.Although studies on middle school students’ English learning motivation have got increase in recent years,only few studies have directed their attention to art students in senior middle school.While,most of the art students’ English level is very poor and their motivation in learning English is not strong enough.As a result,how to activate the art students’ English learning motivation is becoming a challenge which is faced by all the English teachers in art senior high school.In order to practically improve their teaching quality and help them increase learning efficiency,this thesis shall carry out investigation and research in the form of questionnaire and interviews to the English learning motivation of the art students in senior high school.And the subjects are 181 art students from grade two in Yinchuan Experimental Senior High School in Ningxia.The aim is to entirely master their English learning motivation in terms of learning ability,motivation and learning methods.There are several questions which need to be resolved:1.What is their English learning level?2.What are their English learning motivations?3.How does English learning motivation affect art students’ English performance?Combining the data statistics with result analysis of questionnaire survey and interviews,the conclusions are made as follows: Through a latest mid-term English examination,the average English learning level of Art students in Yinchuan Experimental Senior Middle School is rather poor with the unqualified proportion of 95.65%.Generally speaking,art students’ interests are lacking in learning English,and they are in low spirits in learning motivation.Most of them have greater external motivation than intrinsic motivation.The pure purpose for learning English is college entrance examination,that is to say,they possess fortissimo instrumental motivation.In addition,with indefinite goals,their sense of self-efficacy is pretty low and meanwhile they undertake a great deal of pressure from the outside world.For example they have to afford the stress from the art test and academic test,if they want to pass the college entrance examinations.They often ascribe their stand or fall to objective reasons,while the subjective causes are neglected.A majority of them have bad study habits and low efficiency as well as uncertain targets.Although the art students have a good attitude toward English learning,they will lose interests and produce anxiety under the huge pressure of entrance examinations.Because most art students could not catch up with the pace of the teaching or they don’t satisfy with their teachers’ classroom teaching,gradually they lose their learning interests and confidence in English.Finally,based on the findings,some suggestions on activating art students’ English learning motivation in senior middle school are proposed,such as concentrating on the cultivation of study interest,creating pleasant study environment,reforming teaching ways,for example inspiring them to learn cheerfully through importing British and American cultural knowledge as well as the comparison between both cultures;building up amicable relationship between teachers and students;helping them build the correct attribution;helping them to transform anxiety etc.