The Motivational Effects of Scaffolding Instruction in an ESP Context

The Motivational Effects of Scaffolding Instruction in an ESP Context

This study aimed at investigating the motivational effects of Scaffolding approach applied in the instruction of college ESP writing. The data were quantitatively measured by the ARCS motivation scale, and divided into four categories of motivation model (Attitude, Relevance, Confidence, and Satisfaction). With respect to the current college ESP learning in Taiwan, many empirical studies have examined the applicability of learning motivation in the context of ESP learning. Accordingly, this study focused on a novel way of enabling ESP students to experience a resume and cover letter writing under Scaffolding instruction, and explored multiplicative relationship with students' motivation development in an ESP context. The subjects were in two sophomore English classes. The instruction of Scaffolding ESP writing was adopted in the experimental class of 32 subjects; whereas the control group of 30 subjects received teacher-centered, template mode of writing instruction. ANCOVA and Pair t-test were used to analyze students' motivation scale and the writing performance between two classes. The finding showed that the Scaffolding approach significantly influenced the experimental group's L2 learning motivation. The results also revealed that the experimental group significantly outperformed the control group on three measures: the motivation development, the writing products, and problem-solving skills for target needs.