USING AUTHENTIC

MATERIALS TO

INCREASE STUDENTS’

MOTIVATION IN THE

CLASSROOM

Laura ChampiGraduate Teaching Assistant- NAU

The Problem

When it comes time for listening or reading

comprehension activities in the language

classroom...

Research & Investigation

Authentic Materials & Motivation

Berardo (2006) Use of authentic texts to increase

motivation

Natural changes in language

Hwang (2005) Materials that cater to interests

and linguistic needs of students

Hynes (2002) Motivation depends on the student

but authentic materials can help

Research & Investigation

Authentic Materials & “Real” use of language

Berardo (2006) The use of authentic texts gives students access to “real”

language use in a real-world context

Gilmore (2004)

Changes to language in simplified material do not help in the language acquisition process

Según Cubillo, Keith & Salas (2011) Authentic materials help students make connections

between classroom practice and the outside world

Wallermire (2008) Without authentic input, students will develop an artificial

production of the language

Topic of Investigation

What are students’ perceptions in

regards to the use of authentic

materials vs. simplified materials in

the classroom?

Participants in the Study

Students of two Spanish 102

classes at Northern Arizona

University

Instruments & Procedure

To investigate the students’ perceptions of authentic

materials versus simplified materials, two reading

comprehension and two listening comprehension

activities were completed in class over the course of

two days.

Students shared their perceptions in a survey at the end

of the second day

Day 1: Reading Comprehension

Activity 1: Textbook Reading (Simplified)

Reading about Peru with comprehension questions

and follow-up discussion question

(Panorama Perú – Vistas)

Activity 2: Tourism Website (Authentic)

Touristic reading about Peru with

comprehension questions and follow-up

discussion question

Day 2: Listening

Comprehension

Activity 1: Textbook Video (Simplified)

Video about Easter Island with comprehension

questions and follow-up discussion question

Activity 2: CNN Chile Video (Authentic)

News clip about tourism on Easter Island

with comprehension questions and follow-up

discussion question

Why the same country &

activities?

The same country was chosen for both the simplified and authentic materials in each activity to avoid cultural bias

Both reading and listening activities followed up with comprehension questions to avoid interference of perceptions (activity vs. the material itself)

Conclusions

The majority of students stated that:

the authentic materials stimulated their interest

more than the book materials

they understood more from the authentic

materials than they thought they would

they learned new vocabulary from the authentic

materials

they found the language in the authentic materials

more “real”

Conclusions

The majority of students stated that:

even though they found the authentic materials

more interesting, they did not find the book

materials “boring”

they did not necessarily find the authentic

materials to be more motivating, even though

they were more interesting

Recommendations & Future

Directions

The use of authentic materials

More interesting material does not mean more motivating

Motivation depends on the accompanying activities as well as the material

Experts’ studies have shown the

potential for authentic material

motivation

Use of authentic materials to teach

new vocabulary in a real-world context

Standard Cloze Activity

Activity

Students listen to the song and fill in the

missing words. Teacher goes over the answers

after.

Is the song interesting? Yes

Is the song motivating? Not yet

More Meaningful Activity

Step 1: Students listen to the song and fill in the

missing words. Students compare answers in

partners and then go over as a class

Step 2: Teacher brings students’ attention to key

new vocabulary words and/or phrases, discussing

their meaning.

Step 3: Students answer comprehension

questions based on the key words and/or phrases.

Step 4: Extension-Students look up

historical/cultural relevance in groups and present

to class

Comprehension Questions

Are helpful to make sure that students understood basicinformation, BUT

Extension activities promote deeper, more meaningful learning

Example: Students investigate theories on Moái on Easter Island & create their own

Meaningful Reading

Comprehension

Pre-reading to make

connections

Basic reading

comprehension

questions

Theatrical

interpretation and

presentations of the

story

Una carta a Dios-Gregorio Lopez-

References

Berardo, S. A. (2006). The use of authentic materials in the teaching of reading. The reading matrix, 6(2).

Cubillo, P. C., Keith, R. C., & Salas, M. R. (2011). La comprensiónauditiva: definición, importancia, características, procesos, materiales y actividades. Actualidades Investigativas en Educación.

Gilmore, A. (2004). A comparison of textbook and authentic interactions. ELT journal, 58(4), 363-374.

Hwang, C. C. (2005). Effective EFL education through popular authentic materials. Asian EFL Journal, 7(1), 90-101.

Hynes, M. K. (2002). Motivation in the Japanese L2 classroom. Academic Reports, Faculty of Engineering, Tokyo Institute Polytech, 25(2), 41-48.

Wallermire, M. (2008). Using Authentic Audio in DictoglossActivities. Dialogue on Language Instruction, 19(1), 1-10.

QUESTIONS?

Thank you for your attention