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Psycho-pedagogical factors of creating motivation for foreign language communicative academic and professional activities in a technical Institution of higher education

Over the last decade due to Bologna process, expansion of professional contacts, free flow of information, and spread of scientific and training technical literature published abroad, it became possible for specialists from different countries to enrich their experience mutually and to communicate diversely and systematically on the international level. In spite of the necessity for specialists in different spheres to have good working knowledge of german and to understand its importance, the graduates of non-language institutions of higher education lack this knowledge. There are many reasons explaining this phenomenon, but among the most important ones is the low motivation for learning this subject. The analysis of motivation research allows us to divide it into two groups: research of various groups of motives, their dynamics in the process of academic and professional activities, psycho-pedagogical factors of creating positive motivation for learning a foreign language at school and institutions of higher education (L.I. Bozhovich, A.K. Markova, P.M. Yakobson and others); research of the sphere of motivation and needs of foreign language activity, the means of stimulating verbal cognitive activity in a foreign language, the factors influencing verbal cognitive activity in the process of learning a foreign language. The above mentioned problems concerning the motivation of foreign language speech were dealt with by such scholars as A.A. Alhazishvili (verbal activity in a foreign language), N.V. Vitt (emotional regulation of verbal behavior), E.I. Passov (communicative motivation), R.P. Milrud (motivation of verbal cognitive activity), N.M. Simonova, E.N. Savonko (motives for learning a foreign language), R.T. Fulga (verbal cognitive activity, self-esteem and anxiety), D.h. hasanbayeva (cognitive mechanisms of creating motivation for verbal acts). Motivation is studied in various aspects, so this notion is interpreted in different ways. Thus, researchers define motivation either as one specific motive, or a unified system of motives, or as a special sphere including needs, aims, motives, interests in their complicated intertwinement and interaction. Motivation is also defined as impulses causing an organism's activity and determining the focus of this activity [3]. however the problem of creating a motivation sphere for foreign language speaking has not been studied sufficiently, which is revealed in the absence of a clear idea about the factors of motivation for speaking a foreign language. In connection with this the purpose of our research is to reveal the psycho-pedagogical factors of creating motivation for foreign language communicative academic and professional activities on the level of Bachelor's Programme in a technical Institution of higher education and to specify the most favourable conditions for three categories of students. The classification of students into three groups was done on the basis of the approach developed in «The Motivation for Studying in Institutions of higher Education» (T.I. Ilyina) [4]. There are three scales in it: «acquisition of knowledge» (aspiration for acquiring knowledge, curiosity), «mastering profession» (aspiration for acquiring professional knowledge and forming important professional qualities); «getting a diploma» (intention to get a degree by a formal acquisition of knowledge, intention to search a bypass when taking one's exams or getting credits). The students who received the highest scores according to the first scale belong to the first category, which we conventionally called «workaholics». correspondently, the students of the second category, whom we call «professionally oriented», received the highest points according to the scale «acquisition of knowledge». The third category of students - «idlers» - study in a technical college only for the sake of getting a diploma. The participants of the experiment were the third - and fourth-year students of Taganrog Institute of Technology of the Southern Federal University; the sample group included 75 people, 25 people in each category.

We worked out a questionnaire «Diagnostics of the motives of learning a foreign language in a technical institution», on the basis of which we attempted to estimate the level of development of extrinsic and intrinsic motives which the three above mentioned categories of students possess. The test-retest reliability of the questionnaire «Diagnostics of the motives of learning a foreign language in a technical institution» was estimated by us with the help of Pearson's moment correlation coefficient, and a group of independent experts estimated the content validity [1]. The obtained results allow us to conclude that the «workaholics» have a fairly high level of development of intrinsic motives (M25 = 14 scores (Maximum = 15 scores)). The «professionally oriented» students' level of development of intrinsic motives can be characterized as average (M25 = 12 scores (Maximum = 15 scores)). As for the «idlers», their level of development of intrinsic motives is rather low (M25 = 5 scores (Maximum = 15 scores)). As regards the level of development of extrinsic motives, the group with the highest level are «the idlers» (M25 = 13 scores (Maximum = 15 scores)). In the group of «workaholics» (M25 = 5 scores (Maximum = 15 scores)) and «professionally oriented» (M25 = 14 scores (Maximum = 15 scores)) the level of development of extrinsic motives is rather low, with the general domination of wide social motives.

Considering the peculiarities of motives for learning a foreign language in a technical college and the key principles of differentiated learning within a group [5], we believe that for the «workaholics» it is necessary to create such psycho-pedagogical conditions which could keep the development of intrinsic motives at a high level. This includes communicatively oriented tasks, tasks of advanced level, providing professionally-oriented subject of foreign language speaking, organizing cooperative foreign language communicative academic and professional activities, preparation of creative tasks and projects [2, 5]. As for the «professionally oriented», in order to keep the average level of development of intrinsic motives, it is necessary to provide the following psycho-pedagogical conditions: creating of natural communicative situations at the lessons of foreign language, stimulating of students' exploration activities in the language material, connection between the contents of the studied language material and special problems, preparation of research papers, reports, presentations [2, 5]. As regards the «idlers», it is rather difficult to raise their level of intrinsic motives and wide social motives for foreign language communicative academic and professional activities. however, it is possible if we create the following psycho-pedagogical conditions: introducing lesson goals to the students and accepting them, coordination between the contents of education, the methods of presentation, and the students' real abilities and interests, development of the students' cognitive interest which is revealed in the interest in procedural and content sides of activity [2, 5].

References

learning engineer motivation language

1. Burlachuk L.F. Psychodiagnostics: Textbook for institutions of higher education. - St. Petersburg: Piter, 2005. - 351 p.

2. Vorobieva S.V. Individual's motivational strategies of behavior in foreign language learning: Synopsis of a thesis for the candidate of Science Degree (Psychology). - Moscow, 2004. - 20 p.

3. Zimnyaya I.A. Educational psychology: Study guide. - Rostov-on-Don: Publishing house «Fenix», 1997. - 480 p.

4. Ilyin E.P. Motivation and motives. - St. Petersburg: Piter, 2008. - 512 p.

5. Yakushina L. Learner-differentiated approach. // higher education in Russia. - # 12, 2006. - P. 131-132.

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