Vernacular literacy practice by freshmen: Motivation and demotivation

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31391/S2007-7033(2021)0056-008

Keywords:

vernacular literacy practice, literacy, university students, motivation, demotivation

Abstract

In this study, we analyzed the vernacular literacy practice of 32 freshmen students from a public university in southern Mexico using a mixed method approach, with narratives or biographical experiences, and a sociocultural theoretical perspective. The results show a limited vernacular literacy practice in as much as quantity, types, genres, and modalities of texts.  Six dimensions of motivation were examined: family and family context, teachers and school context, friends, interest in writing, movies, and other media, learning and personal and cultural growth. The external motivations seem to exert great influence as they, additionally, favor the development of the internal motivations. We also found that these motivations are dynamic and can change according to age or the interaction with other sources of motivation. As sources of demotivation, we identified:  family and family context, teachers and school context, distractors, and personal problems, and reading comprehension problems. The first two have the capacity to motivate or demotivate the vernacular literacy practice and have a determining role in it. The second two sources belong to the personal sphere and have a great impact on the literacy experience.

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Author Biography

  • Edith Hernández Méndez, University of Quintana Roo

    Doctora en Lingüística Hispánica por la Ohio State University. Profesora-investigadora en la Universidad de Quintana Roo. Miembro del Sistema Nacional de Investigadores. Líneas de investigación: adquisición de lenguas, la sociolingüística y la didáctica de la lengua española

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Published

2021-02-23

Issue

No. 56 (2021): Literacy experiences in a complex world: from theory to practice, from practice to theory

Section

Research articles (open section)

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