Motivation and Academic Performance on the English Language in students of the third year of high school from the Unidad Educativa Fiscomisional “La Salle”, Tulcán 2023-2024

Abstract

The goal of the study was to analyze the relation between motivation and academic performance in students of the third year of high school in the Unidad Educativa Fiscomisional Hermano Miguel “La Salle” in Tulcán City, 2023-2024. The sample of the study took into account 117 students and three teachers belonging to the English Language Area. It is fundamentally based on the motivational socio-educational theory by Robert Gardner and Wallace Lambert, and on methodological quantitative approach, on the descriptive correlational kind, in order to stablish the correlation between two variables of study. Two instruments were applied: a questionnaire made up by 47 items to the students and interviews consisting of 27 questions to the teachers. The results, by means of the Rho statistical coefficient by Spearman (ρ = 0.826), have showed a positive and highly significant relation between motivation and school performance, that implies, the higher the motivation is, the higher the school performance will be. In addition, the interviews done to the teachers evidenced influential factors in the motivation, learning methodologies and academic performance. To begin with these findings, strategies focused on the four dimensions of the motivation: intrinsic, extrinsic, integrative and instrumental were applied; the same that can be used as a guide to improve the English Language teaching-learning process significantly.