Search

Language learning beliefs are considered to be an important factor influencing student learning outcomes. This mixed-methods research investigated English language learning beliefs of Iranian English language learners. Data were collected from 226 junior and senior male and female high school students using the Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) and semi-structured interviews. Participants reported strong beliefs in terms of 'motivation and expectation' and 'foreign language aptitude'. First and third graders' mean belief scores were statistically different across their 'overall beliefs', 'foreign language aptitude', and 'motivation and expectations'. Moreover, although the overall gender differences were not statistically meaningful, significant differences were noticed with regards to beliefs about 'difficulty of language learning' and 'foreign language aptitude'. The results underscore the hypothesis that changes in language learning beliefs happen due to learners' stage of development, i.e. their grade. Further, certain misconceptions among high school learners were noticed about the role of aptitude and intelligence, error correction, and supremacy of learning certain forms of language. The implications are discussed with reference to language education and policy development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development of the BALLI scale and the five-factor model by Horwtiz has led to a surge in research on language learning beliefs. The present research explored the language learning beliefs of 300 junior high school students from three schools located in the Bangna region of Bangkok as they learned Chinese, utilizing the BALLI scale. Using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), the researchers attempted to fit Horwtiz's five-factor model to the data, but this model did not receive sufficient support. Therefore, exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was employed to analyze the factor structure, resulting in the identification of five dimensions. However, the items included in these dimensions were considerably different from those in Horwtiz's five-factor model. As a result, a new measurement model was proposed for this study. Following this, the researcher conducted a CFA to assess the appropriateness of the newly proposed measurement model, and the findings suggested that the data matched the model effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the beliefs about English language learning demonstrated by Korean-speaking college students while sojourning in the United States. Adopting a contextual approach to learner beliefs, the study further examined the nature of changes in sojourners' beliefs and what aspects of study abroad were related to such changes. To this end, the study drew on the participants' accounts of their second language (L2) experiences in connection with different aspects of study abroad through episodic narrative interviews. A thematic analysis of the interview data suggests that sojourners' beliefs about language learning are reminiscent of societal ideological structures and school or familial influences. During the sojourn, learner beliefs about L2 learning were reshaped by interactions with co-nationals and members of the host community as micro-level resources situated in the meso-level host program. Sojourners further demonstrated changes in their broad perspectives on what constitutes an in situ form of bilingualism in the sending and host countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]