To Motivate World Language Students, Tap Into Their Goals

In the age of TikTok, many teachers feel as though they’re fighting a losing battle to keep students interested in what’s happening inside the classroom. But when it comes to the world language classroom, some of the best strategies involve focusing on what’s happening outside of it.

In this article, I’ll discuss how to engage language students by using social media to your advantage, incorporating enrichment from your local community, and other approaches that don’t require you to become a part-time content creator. The goal? Motivate students by helping them see themselves as future speakers of the language.

Use Social Media to Your Advantage

Many teachers consider social media to be a detriment to student success, and while I often agree with them, it can also offer benefits—namely, a repertoire of examples of native speech in various languages. There are countless short-form videos in any language being taught in classrooms today that teachers can use to enhance lessons and grab students’ attention.

As a Spanish teacher, I’ve had students come up to my desk, phones in hand, asking me to translate what a content creator was saying in their video. In the spirit of having students do the mental heavy lifting in the classroom, consider transcribing the TikTok in question and having them translate it. You can scaffold by filling in a few of the more advanced words if needed.

You can also use social and digital media to replicate community resources and real-world examples. Challenge students to find the coolest resource in the target language. There are virtual museums, walking tours of cities, online stores, and more. I’ve had students plan out entire vacations, from the hotel to the activities they prefer, using Spanish-language resources. Activities like these help students to see that everything they already do in their lives, even scrolling on social media, can be done while immersed in the language they’re learning.

Use Enrichment from Your Community

To build excitement, look to the real world. Consider assigning students to find examples of the language they’re learning somewhere in their community. Then hold a show-and-tell so students can present and compare what they found. They can look for imported products in a store, find signage in the language, or visit a local library or bookstore that has multilingual offerings. And you can encourage them to seek out restaurants where the target language is featured on menus and spoken by staff.

Of course, the results may vary depending on your community. If you struggle to think of something, let products and practices of the culture guide you. You might not live in an area with a significant population of speakers of a certain language, but cultural celebrations are common. For Japanese, seek out a cherry blossom festival. For Spanish, local organizations may put on events for occasions like the Day of the Dead. Where there’s culture, there’s language. You may also come to find that your community has more native speakers than you thought.

Plan Interactions with Native Speakers

One of the strongest ways to motivate language learners is to have them actually use the language in a successful interaction. I will never forget my first few interactions with native Spanish speakers. There was something powerful about knowing that without my Spanish, our conversation couldn’t happen. It also allows students to imagine their “possible self,” which can be a strong motivator.

This phenomenon has been described by Penn State University researchers: “When people align their actions with the image of the person they want to become in the future, they are better able to achieve their language learning goals. For example, a person who envisions themself living abroad and speaking a foreign language with friends and colleagues becomes motivated by this vision to act in ways that will help them to achieve their goals.”

My takeaway from this research is that teachers who help their students see themselves as future speakers of the language—and envision what that could mean for their lives—are more likely to awaken intrinsic motivation in their students. The article does caution that a negative experience can also impact learning, so it’s important that teachers remain positive as they help students see themselves as language learners.

Native-level communication can be challenging to simulate in the classroom. Some classroom teachers are native speakers of the language they teach, but students know that their teachers can also communicate with them in English. Bringing in a guest speaker can be more powerful, and it gives the teacher the chance to set the expectation that the interaction will happen only in the language being learned.

In my AP Spanish class, I had a friend from Peru hold a Zoom call with my class. I prepped the students for the meeting by telling them a little about her and having them come up with questions they wanted to ask. After the call, we debriefed about what they learned. For guest speakers, consider friends from another country, your former university professors, or even family members. Or ask your colleagues if they know anyone who would be appropriate as a guest speaker.

Another great way to get students communicating with native speakers is through pen pal programs, such as the one from the website ePals, which is designed for teacher-to-teacher interactions so that entire classes can exchange letters. There are many websites that offer cross-cultural connections, but be sure to do your homework and only use established websites that specialize in K–12 education. Making connections is great, but student safety is above all else.

I hope these suggestions have inspired you to switch up your routine and motivate your students to seek out the language they’re learning. While it may feel like an uphill battle, engaging students is still possible—and it can be fun for teachers, too!