An Analysis of Teacher Motivational Changes from the Perspective of Activity Theory: The Cases of Indonesian English Teachers in Thailand

Authors

  • Maria Dewi Rosari Sekolah Tinggi Bahasa Asing JIU
  • Concilianus Laos Mbato Sanata Dharma University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.26486/jele.v6i1.1187

Keywords:

Teacher Motivation, Motivation Changes, Activity Theory

Abstract

In this research, the researchers explore the motivational fluctuation of Indonesian teachers teaching in Thailand from the perspective of Activity Theory. The researchers chose participants teaching in different provinces in Thailand and spending different length of teaching there in order to provide more representative picture of the motivational fluctuation. The findings of the research indicated that the presence of teacher fellows and local community and students’ behavior functioned as the most significant elements for their teaching motivation. The teachers’ motivation levels fluctuated most significantly when they were exposed to those elements, which in AT Theory are called subject and community. The other four AT Theory elements, namely object, mediational tools, rules, and division of labor, although gave influences to the teachers’ motivation, were the least likely to be as crucial as the previous two. School administrators and or academic supervisors could benefit from the findings of this study by making sure that the crucial elements of teacher motivation are well and positively maintained in the environment of their institutions; so that teachers could perform their jobs effectively and thus the school’s performances gradually increases.

Author Biographies

Maria Dewi Rosari, Sekolah Tinggi Bahasa Asing JIU

English Education Master's Program

Concilianus Laos Mbato, Sanata Dharma University

English Education Master's Program

References

Aloe, Ariel M., et al. “A Multivariate Meta-Analysis of Student Misbehavior and Teacher Burnout.†Educational Research Review, vol. 12, Elsevier Ltd, 2014, pp. 30–44, doi:10.1016/j.edurev.2014.05.003.

Barratt-Pugh, Llandis, et al. “Exploring Current Chinese Higher Education Pedagogic Tensions through an Activity Theory Lens.†Higher Education, vol. 77, no. 5, Higher Education, 2019, pp. 831–52, doi:10.1007/s10734-018-0304-8.

Bennell, Paul. “Teacher Motivation and Incentives in Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.†Knowledge and Skills for Development, no. July, 2004, p. 60, http://eldis.org/fulltext/dfidtea.pdf.

Charmaz, K. “International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences.†International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences, 2001, pp. 6396–99, doi:10.1016/B0-08-043076-7/00775-0.

Dörnyei, Zoltan, and Ema Ushioda. Teaching and Researching Motivation. Harlow, England. New York, Longman, 2011.

Engeström, Yrjö. Introduction. Y. Engeström, R. Miettinen,. & RL. Punamäki. 1999.

Gitonga, Dinah Wanja. “Performance in Kenya Certificate of Secondary.†Influence of Teachers’ Motivation on Students’ Performance in Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education in Public Secondary Schools in Imenti South District Kenya, 2012.

Gubrium, Jaber F., and James A. Holstein. Handbook of Interview Research: Context and Method. Sage Publications, 2001.

Habibi, Akhmad, and Muhammad Sofwan. “English Teaching Implementation in Indonesian Pesantrens: Teachers’ Demotivation Factors.†IJET (Indonesian Journal of English Teaching), vol. 5, no. 2, 2016, p. 199, doi:10.15642/ijet.2016.5.2.199-213.

Igawa, Koji. “Initial Career Motivation of English Teachers: Why Did They Choose to Teach English?†Shitennoji University Bulletin, vol. 48, no. 9, 2009, pp. 201–26.

Kim, Tae-Young, and Qian-Mei Zhang. Research on Second Language Teacher Motivation: From a Vygotskian Activity Theory Perspective. Center for Educational Research, Seoul National University, 2013.

Kim, Tae Young, and Yoon Kyoung Kim. “Initial Career Motives and Demotivation in Teaching English as a Foreign Language: Cases of Korean EFL Teachers.†Porta Linguarum, no. 24, 2015, pp. 77–92.

Kyriacou, Chris. “Teacher Stress: From Prevalence to Resilience.†Handbook of Stress in the Occupations, Edward Elgar Publishing, Inc. Cheltenham, UK, 2011, pp. 161–73.

Kzltepe, Zeynep. “Motivation and Demotivation of University Teachers.†Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, vol. 14, no. 5–6, 2008, pp. 515–30, doi:10.1080/13540600802571361.

Sargut, A. SELAMİ. “Lider Yöneticinin Benliğine Yolculuk.†İstanbul: Beta, 2015.

Shoaib, Amel. “3 Affect in Lifelong Learning: Exploring L2 Motivation as a Dynamic Process Amel Shoaib and Zoltan Dornyei.†Learners’ Stories: Difference and Diversity in Language Learning, Ernst Klett Sprachen, 2005, p. 22.

Song, Bongsun, and Tae Young Kim. “Teacher (de)Motivation from an Activity Theory Perspective: Cases of Two Experienced EFL Teachers in South Korea.†System, vol. 57, Elsevier Ltd, 2016, pp. 134–45, doi:10.1016/j.system.2016.02.006.

Sugino, Toshiko. Teacher Demotivational Factors in the Japanese Language Teaching Context. Vol. 3, 2010, pp. 216–26, doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2010.07.036.

Thoonen, Erik E. J., et al. “How to Improve Teaching Practices: The Role of Teacher Motivation, Organizational Factors, and Leadership Practices.†Educational Administration Quarterly, vol. 47, no. 3, Sage Publications Sage CA: Los Angeles, CA, 2011, pp. 496–536.

Ushioda, Ema. “A Person-in-Context Relational View of Emergent Motivation, Self and Identity.†Motivation, Language Identity and the L2 Self, vol. 215228, 2009.

Van der Veer, René, and Jaan Valsiner. Understanding Vygotsky: A Quest for Synthesis. Blackwell Publishing, 1991.

Vygotsky, Lev Semenovich. Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes. Harvard university press, 1980.

Wertsch, James V. The Concept of Activity in Soviet Psychology. ME Sharpe Armonk, NY, 1981.

Zhao, Hongqin. Why Did People Become Secondary-School English as a Foreign Language Teachers in China ? An Examination of the Pathways , Motivations and Policy through a Life-History Narrative Approach. 2008, pp. 183–95, doi:10.1007/s10671-008-9051-4.

Published

2021-03-30

Issue

Section

(JELE) Journal Of English Language and Education