Factors Demotivating ESP Classrooms at the Preparatory School of Sciences and Techniques, Tlemcen, Algeria

Abstract

The present research tries to provide a clear idea about factors affecting student " s motivation in the teaching of English in ESP institutions and universities. This study took place at the Preparatory School of Sciences and Techniques, Tlemcen, Algeria. The aim of this research is to highlight the nature of " demotivation " and identify the causes of this lack of interest to the English module. The data are collected from the students of the first-year under the form of questionnaires and classroom observation. Two steps are followed during this research; the first one is to gather information from a sample unit composed of twenty students and the second one is to analyse the results collected. The findings indicate that despite the importance of the English language, there are many students who remain demotivated to learn it mainly because of their low level and the syllabus which remain for them inappropriate. 1. Introduction Motivation has been widely accepted by both teachers and researchers as one of the key factors that influence the rate and success of second/foreign language learning. The original impetus in second/foreign motivation research comes from the social psychology since learning the language of another community simply cannot be separated from the learners " social dispositions towards the speech community in question. The present paper intends to consider the failure in learning English as a foreign language at ESP schools. Therefore, the aim of this research is to understand the demotivating factors that those students encounter during the learning of the English language. Theories of motivation generally seek to explain why and how students are not motivated to learn English and which reasons make students lose their motivation. Indeed, teachers are interested in finding-out what they can do to overcome weaknesses in students " motivation. More specifically, teachers are eager to find ways of increasing students " engagements in learning activities since students " active participation in class helps a lot in learning efficiently and makes teaching more pleasant in the classroom.