A study of motivation to learn Swedish in higher education students

Importance. The problem of modern students’ motivation to study Swedish in the conditions caused by a sharp reorientation of the country’s course is analyzed. Understanding motivation, especially the characteristics of learning motivation, is one of the issues that has remained relevant in pedagogy and foreign language teaching methodology for decades. The aim of the study is to analyse students’ learning motivation and determine the correlation of the initial and current motivation to study Swedish due to the sharp change in the country’s geopolitical course.

Materials and Methods. The research is conducted on the basis of Petrozavodsk State University (PetrSU), the respondents are students of the Institute of Philology, Department of German Philology, and Scandinavian Studies, studying Swedish as a main language from the 1st to the 4th year of undergraduate studies. The number of respondents is 34. Sociological and statistical methods of research are used to collect materials, for processing and analysis; theoretical and descriptive methods are used. Studies of E.N. Deulina, T.A. Deulina, M.V. Spirina, N.V. Lobastova, G.N. Arutyunyan, I.B. Vorozhtsova, etc., which are considered with the methodology of foreign language teaching and the problem of learning motivation, as well as students’ answers received during the research, are used as research materials.

Results and Discussion. Based on received data, the methodology of Swedish language teaching has been improved. The dependence of motivation for learning foreign languages on external and internal factors has been established on the basis of students’ answers. The answers received in the research help to correct and adjust the learning process in rapidly changing conditions, to organise the work with the team correctly, to increase the learning motivation, and to keep the contingent of students.

Conclusion. The study has practical relevance and research perspectives: no significant decrease in motivation to learn Swedish has been revealed, however, there is a consistent, logical, and wellexplained change in motivation throughout the learning process caused by external factors such as the “plateau effect”, a specific response to the teaching efforts of the instructor, changes in the types and forms of work, technologies, methods, and teaching techniques. Despite the fluctuating nature of motivation, students remain persistent and determined in learning the foreign language. The decrease in motivation to learn a foreign language is caused by too much academic workload and/or personal problems; while the increase in motivation is related to the variety of tasks and forms used, including the inspiring activities of the teacher.

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