Examining the effects of differential instructional methods on the model of foreign language achievement

The purpose of the present study was to examine the effects of differential instructional methods on the relationships between intrinsic and extrinsic motivations (IM and EM, respectively), self-confidence, motivation, and English as a foreign language (EFL) achievement for a sample of Korean university students and their teachers. To this end, two instructional groups, communicative and conventional, were selected based on the agreed judgment of both the teachers and their students. The study results showed that EM was related to EFL achievement through motivation regardless of the teachers' communicative orientations, whereas IM showed a relation to EFL achievement through motivation and self-confidence only in a classroom promoting communicative approach of language teaching. These results provided empirical evidence for the effects of differential instructional methods moderated on the structural relationships between SDT variables, self-confidence, motivation, and EFL achievement. The implications of these findings in relation to the EFL classroom are also presented.

Research Highlights► Intrinsic motivation showed a relation to EFL achievement through motivation and self-confidence only in a classroom promoting communicative approach of language teaching. ► Extrinsic motivation was related to EFL achievement through motivation regardless of the teachers' communicative orientations. ► Extrinsic motivation showed a significant, positive, direct association with motivation but an insignificant relation with self-confidence regardless of the teachers' communicative orientations.