Beliefs about Language Learning of Foreign Language- Major University Students

Abstract

Beliefs are a central construct in every discipline which deals with human behavior and learning. Teachers’ beliefs influence their consciousness, teaching attitude, teaching methods and teaching policies. Teachers’ beliefs also strongly influence teaching behavior and, finally, learners’ development. The formation of teachers’ educational beliefs in language teaching/learning process will exert an indiscernible effect on forming effective teaching methods and will bring about the improvement of learners’ language learning abilities (Horwitz, 1985). The Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) was administered to a total of 248 foreign language- major university students at five universities. The participants were in the departments of English, German, French, Japanese and Arabic and they were all going to be the teachers of the language they were learning. Although most of the item alternatives drew slightly different percentages of responses, the overall pattern of responses remained strikingly consistent across language groups. The present findings indicate that students hold a range of beliefs with varying degrees of validity; in some cases, the term “myth” might be a more accurate characterization. Some results reported here may surprise language teaching educators and teacher trainers; others probably confirm their experiences and intuitions. INTRODUCTION