Review of the Literature Ada Bier Abstract In order to offer a picture of the construct of language teacher motivation, this paper is

Bier. The Motivation of Second/Foreign Language Teachers 
509
EL.LE, 3, 3, 2014, pp. 505-522
ISSN 2280-6792
3 The ‘hidden side’ of teaching
The scaffolding for the description of the «unobservable dimension» (Borg 
2003) of teachers is provided by the triadic distinction through which psy-
chologists characterize the human mind: cognition (i.e. what one knows 
and thinks), affect (i.e. what one feels) and conation (i.e. what one wants 
or desires) (Snow, Corno, Jackson 1996, in Dörnyei 2001). Conation, here 
referred to as motivation, represents «one of the most basic aspects of 
the human mind» (Dörnyei 2001, p. 2). In the light of complexity theory 
(cfr. § 1), it is assumed that the three aspects interact with each other and 
therefore cognition and affect have an impact on the motivation of the 
language teacher.
3
The three dimensions will now be examined in detail. 
3.1 Teacher Cognition
Borg defines teacher cognition as «the unobservable dimension of teach-
ing – what teachers know, believe, and think» (Borg 2003, italics in the 
original, p. 81).
4
In agreement with this definition, it is possible to affirm 
that cognition comprehends both an ‘explicit’ knowledge and an ‘implicit’ 
knowledge. 
’Explicit’ knowledge is represented by what teachers have learnt dur-
ing their years of training and it largely consists of «theories of practice» 
(Burns 1996, emphasis added), namely the theoretical knowledge acquired 
during teacher education. Shulman calls this type of knowledge «pedagogi-
cal content knowledge» (PCK) and defines it as «that special amalgam of 
content and pedagogy that is uniquely the province of teachers, their own 
special form of professional understanding» (Shulman 1987, in Zemby-
las 2007, p. 355). The language through which teachers organize their 
conceptual world is a «professional language» (Freeman 1996), a sort of 
‘discourse’ that has both a cognitive function – i.e. organizing the teachers’ 
professional world «according to the values and meanings of their group» 
(Gee 1989, in Freeman 1996, p. 235) – and a referential function because, 
through it, teachers become recognized members of a definite group. 
’Implicit’ knowledge is the «hidden side of the work» (Freeman 2002), 
3 
We are well aware that these three psychological dimensions are not discrete entities and 
therefore they do not have definite boundaries. It is thus difficult – if not impossible – to say 
exactly where one ends and the other begins: they are deeply interrelated with each other. 
4 
In a recent article, however, Borg claims that «The study of teacher cognition, given its 
concern for understanding the unobservable dimension of teachers’ lives, in no way excludes 
attention to emotions» (Borg 2012, p. 12, emphasis added). We would also suggest attention 
to motivation as well, given that it also represents a ‘portion’ – with blurred boundaries – of 
the unobservable dimension of teachers’ lives. 

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