A study on the influence of motivation on students' results for the reading comprehension in the upper cycle

Details

Supervisors

Meunier, Fanny

Faculty

Faculté de philosophie, arts et lettres

Degree label

Master [120] en langues et lettres modernes, orientation germaniques, à finalité didactique

Abstract

This research project is part of the field of educational science and focuses on the use of differentiated instruction through the means of motivation in the French-speaking part of Belgium, specifically in Barvaux-sur-Ourthe. This thematic was approached with the purpose of answering the following research question: “how does motivation influence students’ reading skills in the learning of English as a first foreign language in fourth, fifth and sixth grades?” Previous studies have shown that motivation could enhance the students’ performances in the learning of foreign languages. However, due to the large nature of motivation, these statements do not pinpoint any methods, useful for future teachers. This study, on the other hand, narrows the focus to one specific practice: interest-based motivation. For this research, 124 students were asked to participate in two reading tests, one covering the theme students deemed interesting for the English class, and one they judged uninteresting. Results at both reading tests were then compared with regard to students’ marks. Chi square tests were further carried out to determine the significance of the influence between the variables corresponding to students’ interest and results. This method allowed us to assert that a positive relationship between interest and better results at the reading comprehension test is to be found. This result aligns thus with previous research and affirms the efficiency of one particular method: interested-based motivation, motivation through the covered theme for reading comprehensions.