Motivation and attitudes
There has been a great deal of research on the role of attitudes and motivation in second language learning. The overall findings show that positive attitudes and motivation are related to success in second language learning (Gardner 1985). Unfortunately, the research cannot indicate precisely how motivation affects learning. That is, we do not know whether it is the motivation that produces successful learning or successful learning that enhances motivation. Are learners more highly motivated because they are successful, or are they successful because they are highly motivated? (Skehan 1989)

Motivation in second language learning is a complex phenomenon which can be defined in terms of two factors: learners' communicative needs, and their attitudes towards the second language community. If learners need to speak the second language in a wide range of social situations or to fulfil professional ambitions, they will perceive the communicative value of the second language and will therefore be motivated to acquire proficiency in it. Likewise, if learners have favourable attitudes towards the speakers of the language, they will desire more contact with them. On the other hand, we should keep in mind that an individual's identity is closely linked with the way he or she speaks. It follows that when speaking a new language, one is adopting some of the identity markers of another cultural group. Depending on the learner's attitudes, learning a second language can be a source of enrichment or a source of resentment. If the speaker's only reason for learning the second language is external pressure, internal motivation may be minimal and general attitudes towards learning may be negative.
One factor which often affects motivation is the social dynamic or power relationship between the languages. That is, members of a minority group may have different attitudes and motivation when learning the language of a majority group than those of majority group members learning a minority language. Even though it is impossible to predict the exact effect of such societal factors on second language learning, the fact that languages exist in social contexts cannot be overlooked when we seek to understand the variables which affect success in learning. Even children are sensitive to social dynamics and power relationships.

Learning styles
An area of research which has received a lot of attention in many areas of education is the issue of learning styles. This research suggests that different learners approach a task with a different set of skills and preferred strategies. We have all heard people say that they cannot learn something until they have seen it. Such learners would fall into the group called `visual' learners. Other people, who may be called `aural' learners, seem to need only to hear something once or twice before they know it. Some learners feel compelled to memorize and will practise and practise until they have committed new information to memory, before they feel comfortable that they have a grasp of it. For still others, there is a need to add physical action to the learning process. It is not enough to see, hear, or practise for these learners. They need to live the new knowledge in ways that involve them more completely.
Of course, all of us learn in all these ways. We can all benefit from a variety of learning experiences. However, there is clearly some truth to the intuition that certain ways of approaching a task are more successful for one person than for another, and that when learners are given some freedom to choose their preferred way of learning, they will do better than those who find themselves forced to learn in environments where a learning style which does not suit them is imposed as the only way to learn.