Open-book quiz items on the unit Affective Factors

ASSIGNMENT 1

1. When students start to panic and even “freeze up” when they have to speak without preparation in a
language class, they have the first type of anxiety: Communication inhibition.

Adequate anxiety reducers:

In this case teacher can create a pleasant, supportive environment. This kind of environment helps
students feel safe when making mistakes. Positive feedback and humor can also ease tension.

Another reduce is encouraging students to take risks (for example, paraphrasing, using gestures,
guessing meanings). It helps reduce the fear of making mistakes and boosts their confidence in
communicating in a foreign language. This approach develops flexible thinking and adaptability, which
enhances language acquisition in real-life situations.

When students almost faint when they hear the word “test” they have the second type of anxiety: Test
anxiety.

Adequate anxiety reducers:

Have music playing during a written test. Playing music during a written test can help create a calming
atmosphere and reduce anxiety among students. Soft, non-distracting background music can improve
focus, making the testing environment less stressful and promoting better concentration.

Let your students chew gum or doodle during hard exams. It helps them stay focused by relieving stress
and nervous energy. These small, repetitive actions can improve concentration and create a sense of
comfort, making it easier for students to engage with challenging tasks.

When students never volunteer answers because they are afraid that the other students will laugh at
them when they speak a foreign language, they have the third type of anxiety: Fear of negative
evaluation or being less competent than other students.

Adequate anxiety reducers:

Teacher must make it clear from the beginning that the classroom is a safe space where everyone’s
efforts are valued. Establish ground rules that discourage negative comments or laughter at others'
mistakes.

Teacher should not be impatient with nervous students who seem unwilling or unable to participate
freely. Patience and understanding create a supportive environment where anxious students feel safe to
gradually build their confidence and engage more comfortably over time.

In addition, the teacher should praise students for attempting to answer or participate, regardless of
whether their response is correct. This helps shift the focus from being “right” to being engaged,
encouraging more students to speak up.

2. Judging by the reason why these students learn English, I may say that they have dominant items of
extrinsic motivation.

Extrinsic motivation can be a strong motivation for language learning, especially when students are
focused on rewards like good grades, job opportunities, or praise from others. However, it might not last
long if these rewards disappear. For better success, it’s important to combine extrinsic motivation with a
personal interest in learning the language.
To encourage successful learning and a higher level of FL mastery a teacher can use motivational
strategies such as:

Creating a pleasant and supportive learning environment both inside and outside of the classroom to
motivate students. Teacher’s attitude and enthusiasm is a very important factor that will create a better
environment for students’ motivation in their learning.

Teachers can maintain motivation to make the learning experience enjoyable and stimulating. This can
occur in various ways. For instance, teachers can make teaching more interesting by varying their
teaching styles, presentations, different materials, and learning task. In addition, teacher can establish
interesting classes by creating learning materials that are relevant to the students’ interests.

Other strategies may be: to set clear goals; to connect learning to real-life experiences; encouraging
autonomy; monitor progress carefully.

3.

Learner type Activities

1. Formal learner Provide structured grammar lessons followed by

drills.
Regular vocabulary tests and written quizzes to
reinforce learning.
2. Informal learner Organize casual conversation circles where
students discuss everyday topics.
Use media such as movies, songs, or podcasts.
Engage students in language-learning apps or
games.
3. Intuitive learner Provide language puzzles or open-ended tasks
that encourage exploration.
Encourage students to engage in free writing or
speaking tasks, like storytelling or sharing
personal thoughts.
Use materials such as videos, films, songs and
students should fill words into the gaps, judging
by the context.
4. Deliberate learner Assign tasks like translations or sentence
structure analysis, where students must think
carefully about each word and grammar point.
Use spaced repetition flashcards.
Give them exercises, where they must identify
and fix mistakes in written or spoken language
samples.
5. Imaginative learner Incorporate creative tasks like drawing
vocabulary maps, writing short poems or stories,
or imagining and describing fictional scenarios.
They could also create visual presentations to
explain grammar rules.
6. Active learner Use interactive games, role-play, or group
activities that involve physical movement or
immediate feedback.
Engage learners in group activities or debates,
where they actively participate by presenting
 their ideas or arguing their viewpoints
7. Self-aware learner Provide self-assessment tools like learning
journals, reflective writing tasks, or progress
trackers. Ask them to set personal language goals
and regularly review their progress toward those
goals.
Encourage students to explain newly learned
concepts to a peer.
Give them tasks where they explore different
study techniques (e.g., flashcards, spaced
repetition) and reflect on which methods work
best for their language retention.

4. The learner types that are dominative in my learning style are imaginative and active.

As an imaginative learner, I love using creativity when studying English, such as making up stories to help
me understand grammar or imagining scenarios to practice speaking. In addition, I like to learn grammar
and vocabulary by making charts. Also, I often use such a strategy as communication with myself. These
methods allow me to explore the language in a fun way.

At the same time, I am an active learner who prefers learning by doing. For instance, I like role-playing
or using English in real-life conversations, which gives me the chance to immediately apply what I’ve
learned. Combining these two approaches makes learning both engaging and effective for me.

5. Howard Gardner's “Multiple Intelligences Theory” suggests people have various types of intelligence,
not just one measurable by IQ. Recognizing dominant intelligences can improve learning, but all
intelligences work together. I suppose that I have two dominative multiple intelligences: visual spatial
and intrapersonal.

I’m good at imagining things in my mind, remembering visuals, and organizing ideas creatively. I learn
best when I can visualize concepts, like using diagrams, mind maps, or videos to understand new
information. Since I’m also self-aware, I benefit from setting personal learning goals and reflecting on my
progress. In English language learning, activities like creating visual aids, using flashcards, and keeping a
reflective journal work well for me.

ASSIGNMENT 2

Learning English has been both a challenging and rewarding experience for me, influenced by various
factors like anxiety, motivation, and self-esteem. Anxiety haunts me all my studies. Although it has
decreased quite a bit since the beginning of learning, it is still present. At the very beginning, I was
constantly afraid to speak, answer during the lessons, because I was afraid of mistakes and judgments.
Over time, I realized that this fear was a normal part of language learning and began focusing on
motivation. My motivation also changed over time, because my values in life changed. At the moment,
what is important for me is the language itself and its history. My future profession is also a significant
factor in my studies. Therefore, two types of motivation dominate me now: integrative and extrinsic
motivation.

My self-esteem gradually improved as I became more confident in my abilities. Positive feedback from
teachers and small successes helped build my confidence. During my learning, I tried to learn as
different learners, but in the result I came to the conclusion that I am an imaginative and an active
learner, so mostly I prefer strategies like making up stories, making charts, role-playing or using English
in real-life conversations.

In my interlanguage development stages, I went through common stages: at first, I depended on directly
translating from my native language and made a lot of grammar mistakes. Over time, I became more
fluent. I picked up a lot of my English by watching movies, listening to music, and talking with people,
while school lessons helped me learn grammar and vocabulary. This mix of learning and practice helped
me become a better English speaker.