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Persian Gulf University
Faculty of Literature and Humanities
ELT Department
M.A. Thesis in
English Language Teaching
The Correlation of Learners’ Attitudes towards their Teachers and their
Beliefs about Language Learning
By
Fatemeh Ashayeri
Supervisor Dr. Mohammadreza Shamsaddini
Advisor Dr. Nasim Ghanbari
March, 2017
III
Declaration
The undersigned Fatemeh Ashayerithe M.A. student at Persian Gulf University, holding student
number 6808282229, hereby declares that this thesis is the result of my own research, and
wherever in this thesis, other sources have been used, the exact references or specifications are
provided. I also assert that my research and its topic are not the repetition of others’ works. In
addition, I commit myself:
1. Not to publish all or parts of the findings of my thesis in scientific periodicals or academic
congregations such as national or international conferences or journals without the prior
permission of Persian Gulf University and my supervisor(s).
2. Not to add the name(s) of any other author(s) not included in the thesis committee to the
article(s) extracted from the thesis without the prior permission of my supervisor(s).
3. Not to add the affiliation of the co-author(s) from the organizations or institutions other
than Persian Gulf University to the article(s) extracted from the thesis without the prior
permission of my supervisor.
Following the code of practice for intellectual property rights, all the material and intellectual
rights of the present work are reserved for Persian Gulf University. If it gets clear that the
conditions of the declaration are breached, Persian Gulf University is fully entitled to take legal
action in order to secure its rights at any time and in due order.
Fatemeh Ashayeri
March, 2017
Persian Gulf University
Faculty of Literature and Humanities
English language and literature Department
The Correlation of Learners’ Attitudes towards their Teachers and their
Beliefs about Language Learning
By
Fatemeh Ashayeri
Thesis
Submitted to Persian Gulf University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of
Master of Arts (M.A.) in English Language Teaching
Evaluated and Approved by the Thesis Committee as:
Excellent Very good
March, 2017
Mohammad Reza Shamsaddini (Supervisor), Asst. Prof of
English language teaching, Department of English language
and literature Nasim Ghanbari (Advisor), Asst. Prof of English language
teaching, Department of English language and literature
Abbas Abbasi ( (Referee), Asst. Prof of English language
teaching, Department of English language and literature
Fatemeh Nemati (Referee), Asst. Prof of General linguistics,
Department of English language and literature
III
Acknowledgments
I should express my deepest gratitude to Dr. Shamsaddini my honorable supervisor and
Dr.Ghanbari my dear advisor, for their meticulous attention and informative comments during the
writing process. This study would not have been possible without their directions and comments.
In addition, I should thank Ms. Nouroozi for her precious helps and advice in helping me
administering the questionnaires. My sincere thanks also go to my family, for their constant
support and encouragement through this research, especially my sister at Azad University of
Bushehr.
Fatemeh Ashayeri
Boushehr
March, 2017
IV
Dedicated to
My Dear Parents
Abstract
Learning a language appropriately has been the concern of almost all learners and teachers from
the beginning of the process of language learning, and teachers and students are the most effective
members in the process of learning. There are studies that have considered the influence of factors
that are important in second and foreign language learning. Among these factors, learners’ attitudes
towards their teachers and their beliefs about learning a language are important. This research was
going to examine if there was any correlation between different components of learners’ beliefs
about language learning and their attitudes towards their teachers in a particular EFL context in
Iran. A qualitative design was used to achieve the objectives of this study. Thirty-five university
students from Persian Gulf University and Forty-eight university students from Azad University
of Bushehr took part in this study. Findings of the study showed that there was no correlation
between the learners' beliefs about language learning and their attitudes towards their teachers.
Regarding the components of their beliefs, it was shown that there was only a low, positive and
significant correlation between the motivation and expectation of the learners and their attitudes
towards their teachers.
Keywords: Beliefs, Attitudes, Learners, Perceptions, Motivation, Correlation
Table of contents
Contents page
Abstract…………………………………….……………............……...…...…...........…..…….. VI Table of contents………………………………………………………………..………………. VII List of tables…………………………………………...………………………..………….……. X Chapter One ............................................................................................................................................... X
1.1. Overview ............................................................................................................................................... 2
1.2. Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 2
1.3. Statement of the Problem .................................................................................................................... 4
1.4. Objectives of the Study ........................................................................................................................ 5
1.5. Significance of the Study ..................................................................................................................... 6
1.6. Research Question ............................................................................................................................... 7
1.7. Research hypothesis ............................................................................................................................. 7
1.8. Definition of Key Terms ...................................................................................................................... 7
1.8.1 Attitude ............................................................................................................................................ 7
1.8.2. Language learning ........................................................................................................................... 9
1.8.3 Language learners' beliefs ............................................................................................................... 9
1.9. Summary ............................................................................................................................................. 10
Chapter two ............................................................................................................................................... 11
2.1. Overview ............................................................................................................................................. 12
2.2. Theoretical Background .................................................................................................................... 12
2.2.1 Attitudes......................................................................................................................................... 13
2.2.1.1.Behavioral Aspect of Attitude ..................................................................................................... 17
2.2.1.2.Cognitive Aspect of Attitude ....................................................................................................... 17
2.2.1.3.Emotional Aspect of Attitude ..................................................................................................... 17
2.2.1.4. Attitude and Language Learning ................................................................................................ 17
2.2.1.5.Attitude towards Self .................................................................................................................. 18
2.2.1.6.Attitude towards Teacher ........................................................................................................... 18
2.2.1.7.Institutions and Student Study Attitudes ................................................................................... 19
2.3.Perception and Belief .......................................................................................................................... 20
2.3.1. Studies on Beliefs about Language Learning ................................................................................ 20
2.3.2. Teacher Beliefs and Student Beliefs.............................................................................................. 22
2.4. Practical Background ........................................................................................................................ 22
2.4.1 Attitudes......................................................................................................................................... 22
2.4.2 Perception and belief ..................................................................................................................... 23
2.5. Related studies .................................................................................................................................... 25
2.6. Summary ............................................................................................................................................. 27
Chapter Three ........................................................................................................................................... 28
3.1. Overview ............................................................................................................................................. 29
3.2. Design .................................................................................................................................................. 29
3.3. Participants ......................................................................................................................................... 29
3.4. Instrumentation .................................................................................................................................. 30
3.4.1 Student's Attitude Questionnaire .................................................................................................. 30
3.4.2 Beliefs about Foreign Language Learning Questionnaire .............................................................. 30
3.5. Pilot Testing ........................................................................................................................................ 31
3.6. Data Collection Procedure ................................................................................................................ 32
3.7. Data Analysis ...................................................................................................................................... 32
3.8. Summary ............................................................................................................................................. 33
Chapter Four ............................................................................................................................................. 34
4.1. Overview ............................................................................................................................................. 35
4.2. Restatement of the Research Question ............................................................................................. 35
4.3. Results ................................................................................................................................................. 35
4.4. Discussion............................................................................................................................................ 38
4.5. Summary ............................................................................................................................................. 42
Chapter Five .............................................................................................................................................. 43
5.1. Overview ............................................................................................................................................. 44
5.2. Summary ............................................................................................................................................. 44
5.3. Conclusions ......................................................................................................................................... 45
5.4. Pedagogical Implications ................................................................................................................... 47
5.5. Limitations of the Study .................................................................................................................... 47
5.6. Suggestions for further research ...................................................................................................... 48
5.7 Summary .............................................................................................................................................. 48
References .................................................................................................................................................. 50
Appendix .................................................................................................................................................... 62
List of Tables
Lists
Page
Table 3.1 Item Types and Related Questions in the BALLI Questionnaire ............ 31
Table 3.2 Reliability Statistics of the Student's Attitude Questionnaire ................. 32
Table 3.3 Reliability Statistics of the Beliefs about Foreign Language Learning
Questionnaire (BALLI) ............................................................................................ 32
Table 4.1 Correlation between the Participants’ Beliefs about Language Learning
and their Attitudes towards their Teachers .............................................................. 36
Table 4.2 Correlation between Components of Participants’ Beliefs about
Language Learning and their Attitudes towards their
Teachers...................................................................................................................36
Chapter One
2
Chapter One
Introduction
1.1. Overview
Among variables influencing foreign language learning, this research discusses
the learners' beliefs about language learning and learners' attitudes towards their
teachers and the possible correlation between these two. This chapter will discuss
the related studies and models used in this area of research. Next, it presents the
objectives of the study, research questions, research hypotheses and significance of
the study. Finally, upon defining the key terms in this study, the chapter ends with a
summary section.
1.2. Introduction
In recent decades, different researchers in the field of language learning and
acquisition have attended to the subject of beliefs and attitudes of learners and
teachers. They have studied beliefs of the learners about language learning and their
attitudes towards learning a language and towards their own teachers. They also have
studied the factors that are important about beliefs and attitudes of the learners and
can influence them positively or negatively, because these individual characteristics
of the learners are proved to be important and affective in the process of learning,
especially language learning. Researchers believe that second language learners
come to the language class holding preconceived notions or beliefs about language
and language learning and that these beliefs may represent what expectations the
learners have and what actions in their language learning they will take (Holec, 1987;
Abraham & Vann, 1987; Wenden, 1986 Horwitz, 1987;). So, it is important for
researchers and specialists of the field to study and consider these beliefs and
3
attitudes and also the factors that influence these two.
There are studies which claim that belief is a central construct in every discipline
that concerns human behavior and learning (Ajzen, 1988; Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975).
Studies show that learners’ beliefs and attitudes can affect the learners’ performance
and their language learning in general. Different researchers have been studying the
teachers' belief development through teacher education programs by considering the
possible effects of teachers’ instructional practices influenced by their beliefs and
and find out that it can affect learners’ learning experiences. There are some ideas
that the teacher’s beliefs may inhibit their learning of new techniques and approaches
in the teacher education programs (Dole & Sinatra, 1994; Horwitz, 1986) which
might restrict their instructional practice choices.
There are a great number of studies that investigate teachers’ beliefs about
teaching and learning within their teacher education programs, but a few studies
have been conducted over beliefs of ESL/EFL teachers. Only a few researchers
(Almarza, 1996; Brown & McGannon, 1998; Cabaroglu & Roberts, 2000; Johnson,
1997; Peacock, 2001) focused on ESL/EFL teachers’ belief development during
their teacher education programs. Peacock was interested in the development of EFL
teachers’ beliefs over the course of TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language)
methodology courses, and did his study in an EFL context.
Breen (2001) states some significant contributory factors of the students that
they bring to the classroom context, and these factors play an important role in the
learning process and their ultimate success. These factors are beliefs, perceptions,
metacognitive knowledge and attitudes.
4
1.3. Statement of the Problem
We use language to express ourselves, communicate with people, plan our lives,
share our ideas, etc. The ability to do and use all these functions with another
language makes it more useful and more widespread, and gives more people the
chance to experience all these uses and even master them as well as advance their
job chances. Learning a language like other learnings is the process of absorbing
new information in a meaningful way and putting it in to use. There are many factors
making foreign language learners different from one another namely, attitudes,
motivation, learning style, age, gender, and aptitude. (Victori & Lockhart, 1995, p.
224)
Most of the psycholinguists in a second language learning context claim that the
learners’ attitudes and beliefs are among the most important factors affecting
language learning. Here we have a glimpse at the major theories of language
acquisition to prove our claim.
Most of the learners have definite beliefs about learning a foreign language.
When people want to talk about learning foreign languages, a great deal of them
seems eager to share their opinions about language learning. Omaggio (1978) in his
study referring to the beliefs about language learning claims that good students have
"insight into the nature of the task."
Students’ beliefs about learning a language can affect their performances in
class. For example, if a student has this belief in mind that he/she is not qualified or
talented enough to learn a language, he/she is not eager to do his/her own best to be
successful in learning that language. In order to know whether students have positive
or negative attitudes about learning a language, a teacher should pay close attention
to them to see what is going on with them in class or even out. If students have
5
unrealistic beliefs about learning a language, it can be a destructive and negative
point in the process of learning. For example, if a student thinks to himself that he
must learn a language in less than two years, he may concentrate on one aspect of
language learning, for example focusing on grammar or vocabulary alone, and this
is a negative point in the process of learning appropriately (Hosenfeld, 1978;
Wenden, 1986).
The impact of students’ beliefs about learning a language is something
undeniable. Teachers as significant parts of any language learning process definitely
affect the way learners view language learning. In addition, English is the medium
of instruction in most of the universities, and students have to learn and use it for
their success. Recent studies show that learners’ interest, aptitude and motivation for
learning English and their success in foreign language policy depend to a large extent
on their attitudes towards their teachers. Also, an extensive literature survey suggests
that beliefs of undergraduate students about learning English have not been studied
before in Iran. Therefore, this study aimed to find if there was any correlation
between these beliefs and learners’ attitudes towards their teachers
1.4. Objectives of the Study
The objective of this study was to see the possible correlation between the
learners’ beliefs about learning a language and their attitudes towards their teacher
among some university students of Iran. Also, finding the possible correlation
among components of learners' beliefs about learning a language and their attitudes
towards their teachers was the secondary aim of the present study; detecting those
6
facilitative and debilitative attitudes and beliefs provide a more useful and helpful
situations for learners to learn a language more adequately.
1.5. Significance of the Study
As we know, English has been taught for many years in institutes, universities,
schools and private schools as a foreign language. Studies show that to make
students motivated for learning a language was an important problem for most
teachers, institutes, and even parents.
Most teachers and researchers would like to learn more about the factors which
may improve or facilitate students’ deep involvement in learning. This study intends
to pave the way for families to ease learning and help teachers to come up with a
high appreciation of students' achievements and attitudes. This research also intends
to help teachers have a better understanding of themselves and their abilities in
increasing students’ enthusiasm and also be able to understand learners with
different learning styles.
So far, students' beliefs, to a large extent, have not been considered seriously in
teaching English as a second language; thus, no serious examination has been done
of the students’ beliefs in detail. This thesis may end up with a change of negative
attitude towards learning in the classroom. Having studied this research, a teacher
will pay more attention to his students' attitudes for improving his performance in
the class. No identical or similar research conducted in Iran was found by this
researcher. Only few researches were related to the effects of the learners' beliefs
and teachers' behaviors on learners' attitudes.
7
1.6. Research Question
As referred to earlier, this study intended to discover the possible relationship
between learners’ beliefs about learning a language and their attitudes towards their
teachers in Iran. Therefore, the present study would seek to answer the following
research question.
RQ1: Is there any correlation between learners’ attitudes towards their teachers and
their beliefs about language learning in Iran?
1.7. Research hypothesis
With regard to the raised research question as well as the problem of the study it
is hypothesized that:
H01: There is no correlation between learners’ attitudes towards their teachers and
their beliefs about learning a language in Iran.
1.8. Definition of Key Terms
Attitude, language learning, language learners' beliefs, and learners' attitudes
constitute the key terms of this study, which are defined in the following sections.
1.8.1 Attitude
Psychological theories on attitudes refer to an evaluative, emotional reaction (i.e.
the degree of dislike or like connected with attitudinal object) comprising three
components: affection, cognition, and behavior (Zimbardo & Lieppe, 1991). These
components demonstrate change if there is a disagreement between them (Mantle-
Bromley, 1995, p. 372-386). Beliefs have been defined as "mental constructions
experience" (Sigel, 1985, p. 351) which are thought to be true and control behavior
8
(White, 1999, p. 443). Beliefs about language learning consist of "general
assumptions that students hold about themselves as learners, about factors
influencing language learning and about the nature of language learning and
teaching" (Victori & Lockhart, 1995, p. 224). In spite of being a controversial
definition, the consideration on these beliefs has been named metacognition.
Having affective and cognitive elements, attitude includes emotional reactions,
beliefs and behavioral tendencies related to the object of the attitudes (McGroarly,
1996). It has an evaluative aspect, the way someone thinks or behaves. Attitudes,
nevertheless, being dynamic are likely to change through identifying the sources of
negative attitudes and correcting them.
According to Brown (2007) it is a large proportion of emotional involvement
such as feelings and relationships in community that makes up attitude. Kirimsoy
emphasizes "the power of culture thereby shaping our life and feeling" and therefore
our attitudes towards external world” (1997).
Gardner (1985) claims that attitude is an evaluative reaction to some attitude
object( attitude objects are what you make judgement about and/or what you have
feelings toward; attitude objects could be places, food, ideas, oor virtually anything
you could feel good or bad about) based on the individual' s beliefs about the object.
Based on the most accepted definitions of her scholars, Eveyik (1999) in her MA
thesis points out to attitude as the condition in which one is ready to respond to a
situation and behave in a stable manner towards an object.
Briefly, attitude is considered as our shapes and feelings of our behaviors
towards anything including learning and specifically language learning.
9
1.8.2. Language learning
Schumann (2009) believes that childeren are born with a natural tendency to
attach, bond and affiliate with caregivers to learn their primary language through
their innate interactional instict. He believes that childeren essentially have a drive
to become like members of the same species. And so he published this as a theory
called 'the interactional instict'. But later on he claims that this theory works only for
first language acquisition and for foreign languages it is different. He then says that
the motivation for second language acquisition varies across individuals'
aptitude,talent and the opportunity for learning it. And threfore we don' t have the
same results or the same success in second language acquisition like that primary
language acquisition.
There are studies that show the classification of motivation. For more than 50
years ago specialists have classified motivation into the terms integrative and
instrumental. And we should consider the fact that these types of motivation are
closely connected to each other.
Studies show that learners of English have more motivation than other languages
because there are more materials for them in English to learn, and these materials
make them motivated for learning English.
1.8.3 Language learners' beliefs
We can generally say that language learners have beliefs about their language
learning, but as Horwitz (1987) says, these beliefs are considered not to be always
clear. Such beliefs about language learning have sometimes been called mini
theories of second language acquisition (Hosenfeld, 1978; Wenden, 1986). They are
10
sometimes defined as "psychologically held understandings, premises or
propositions about the world that are felt to be true" (Richardson, 1996: 103) and
"general assumptions that students hold about themselves as learners, about factors
influencing learning and about the nature of language learning" (Victori & Lockhart,
1995).
The role of learners’ beliefs in language learners’ experience and their success or
failure is something undeniable. By considering the importance of beliefs in this
way, learners show higher degrees of enthusiasm and perseverance in their learning
tasks, and several researchers have noticed that (see, e.g., Pintrich & De Groot, 1990;
Cotterall, 1999). In this way, knowledge of their learners’ beliefs about language
learning may help language teachers come to a better understanding of their
students’ success in, commitment to, expectations of and satisfaction with their
English classes (Horwitz, 1988). Taking these considerations into account makes
educators able to make clearer choices about teaching and take a more perceptive
approach to the learning opportunities in their lessons (Cotterall, 1999; Bernat &
Gvozdenko, 2005)
1.9. Summary
This introductory chapter provided an overview of this research to give readers
directions about what they expect to read in the following chapters. It introduced a
research background and the value of the research, and then aims and research
questions were outlined. Also, the key terms are defined to help the readers to
understand the thesis better while they are going forward in reading such as the
definition and characteristics and principles of communicative language teaching.
11
Chapter two
12
Chapter Two
Review of Literature
2.1. Overview
This chapter includes theoretical background and empirical studies. Firstly there
are some concepts and definitions about attitudes and achievements; then
perceptions, beliefs and behavior will be reviewed comprehensively.
2.2. Theoretical Background
There are some studies that have been conducted in past decades to examine
beliefs about language learning of different groups of second language learners who
are native English speakers studying foreign languages (Horwitz, 1988; Kern, 1995;
Mori,1999), ESP learners (Cotterall, 1995; Horwitz, 1987; Wenden, 1986), and EFL
learners (Peacock, 1999; Sakui and Truitt 1995 Gaies, 1999; Wen and Johnson,
1997;Yang, 1999). In some other studies, the relationships between learners’ beliefs
about learning a language and factors that can affect language learning success were
investigated. Some of these factors are motivation, attitude, aptitude, anxiety and so
on. Also, some beliefs about language learning have been found to correlate with
English proficiency.
Most of these researches suggest that second language teachers, by knowing
learners’ beliefs about language learning, can help to enhance their learners’ success
in language learning in two ways: by promoting their students’ beliefs which are
facilitative to language learning and by removing those that are debilitative. As
experts hope to find ways to adjust learners’ beliefs, the studies about teachers’
beliefs have become another interest of researchers and are the focus of some studies.
13
The studies are based on the hypothesis that learners expand their beliefs about
language learning from their experiences (Horwitz, 1987; Mori, 1999) and that
teacher beliefs influence their classroom practices which can in turn influence their
students’ learning (Johnson, 1992; Richards & Lockhart, 1996). The investigations
of teachers’ beliefs about learning a language aim to examine 1) the relationships
between teacher beliefs and student beliefs (Kern, 1995; Peacock, 1999; Samimy
and Lee, 1997) and 2) the effects of teacher beliefs on their classroom practices
(Burns, 1996; Johnson, 1992, 1994; Smith, 1996). The information gained from
these studies help us to understand how learner beliefs are developed.
2.2.1 Attitudes
In general, attitudes are what we think and what we feel. In other words, attitudes
are the product of the related beliefs and values. If a person believes that his teacher
is consultative, and he values consultation, he/she might have a favorable attitude
towards the teacher. On the other hand, if he/she thinks that his/her teacher has no
control over the class and he values that control, his/her attitude towards the teacher
would be unfavorable.
Today, we know that not only the authorities but parents, media, peers and
students themselves play an important role in the development of attitudes. we
should consider that parents’ attitudes can play a much more important role in the
study of their children.
Attitude can be positive (value) or negative (prejudice). Kreitner and Kinicki
(2007) believe that components of attitude are affective, cognitive and behavioral.
The affective component is an emotion or a feeling one has about an object. The
cognitive component is the beliefs or ideas one has about an object or situation, while
14
the behavioral component of attitude reflects how one intends to act or behave
towards someone or something (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2007).
Ellis (2008) claims that affecting learners' attitudes is a way that social settings
can influence L2 acquisition. The target language, the target language culture, target-
language speakers, the value of learning the L2, particular uses of the target language
can make different attitudes in learners. Ellis also believes that the attitude of
learners , their L2 proficiency and their success have influence on each other.
Brown (2007) believes that in early childhood the attitudes of childeren
develope and are the result of peers' and parent's attitudes, of relationship with people
who are different in any number of ways, and of interacting different factors in the
human experience. He points out to Gardner and Lambert’s (1972) extensive studies
on the effect of attitudes on language learning and that they believe that motivationis
a factor made up of certain attitudes.
Wenden (1985, cited in Al-Tamimi & Shuib, 2009) presented a definition of the
term ‘attitudes’. According to his definition, ‘attitudes’ have three components:
affective, behavioral, and cognitive.
Regarding Wenden’s theory of attitudes, Van Ellis et al. (1984, cited in Al-
Tamimi & Shuib, 2009, p. 33) claims that "it does not really matter whether all or
only one of the three components are measured; the relationship between these
components is so close that sufficient information on an attitude can be acquired by
measuring only one component, no matter which".
Kumaravadivelu (2006) claims that social psychologists believe that attitudes
are a matter of individual differences. It means that different individuals have
different attitudes towards “the same stimuli” (Eiser, 1987 cited in Kumaravadivelu,
15
2006, p. 39). And that attitudes are considered to be a social factor which are
influenced by the events in the external world.Lightbown and Spada (2006) have a
definition of motivation as “a concept that explains how and why people behave as
they do” (Csizer & Dornyei, 2005, p. 20).
Chowdhri and Ansari (1990) in their study claim that attitudes of learners and
their habits are important factors, and have a close relationship with the success of
students in their academic work.
Attitude is one of the most important factors that has played an important role in
the description of social behavior. A general definition of attitude is a desire and
inclination to respond favorably or unfavorably to an object, institution, event, or
person.
Allport (1960)' definition of attitude is a mental state of readiness, organized
through experience, exerting a directive effect on the individual’s responses to all
objects and situations with which it is related.
According to some other studies, attitude can be defined as an enduring
categorization of perceptional, emotional, and motivational cognitive processor with
respect to individual’s world. For example, someone who has an anti-American
attitude perceives the American as bad while a pro-American will not perceive him
as bad.
Choudhri (1995) claims that attitude is a state of readiness that arises from
motives. Attitude is identified as an implicit response that changes in intensity and
tends to lead an individual’s responses to issues. Individuals have attitudes towards
everything and in varying intensity, which may be positive or negative. Attitude is
considered as organization of related beliefs around a common object. Bem (1970)
defines attitudes as simply likes and dislikes. Oskamp (1977) has a general definition
16
of attitudes as disposition to respond in a favorable or unfavorable manners to
objects.
Attitude based on Eiser (1987) is a subjective experience involving an evaluation
of something or somebody. Something or somebody here is represented within the
experiences. Direct and indirect experiences can guide us to have particular attitudes
towards an attitudinal object. Learning appropriate attitudes and behavior can be
achieved throogh attitudinal experiences, and relatives, peers, media and teachers
all can provide these attitudinal experiences.
Kaballa & Crowley (1985) as cited in Weinburg (1998) believe that attitude
towards language learning and teachers are important and influence behaviors such
as reading books and speaking in a foreign language. Riley (1986) as cited in
Weinburg (1998) reported that there is support for the proposition that attitudes have
effects on achievement rather than achievement influencing attitudes.So there is a
relationship between attitudes and achievment
There are studies that shows both negative and positive attitudes have a strong
effect on the success of language learning. Almost all studies prove that affective
variables have significant impacts on language learning, (Eveyik, 1999; Gardner,
1985; Skehan, 1989; Spolsky, 1989). Knowing students' attitudes about language
will help both students and teachers in the teaching-learning process. Therefore, we
should consider the important role of affective domain.
Values, interest and tendency are the features of affective domain and most of
these features shape our attitude. Saracaloğlu (2000) refers to valuing, belief, interest
and expectation as affective characteristics. He then claims that students’ attitudes
are generally restricted, but in fact measuring attitude is achieved more successfully
than defining it as a term. Bloom (1973) points out that the affective features have
a very noticeable impact on learning as well.
17
2.2.1.1.Behavioral Aspect of Attitude
Shaffer, D (2000) claims that the behavioral aspects of attitude deal with the
behavior and reactions of a person in particular situations. In fact, the successful
language learning helps the learners to identify themselves with the native speakers
of that language and acquire various aspects of behavior which belongs to the
members of the target language community.
2.2.1.2.Cognitive Aspect of Attitude
This aspect engages the beliefs of the language learners about the knowledge that
they receive and their comprehension in the process of learning a language. McGilly
(1996) claims that the cognitive aspect of attitude can be classified into four steps of
connecting the former knowledge and the current one, creating new knowledge,
checking new knowledge, and applying the new knowledge in many situations.
2.2.1.3.Emotional Aspect of Attitude
Feng and Chen (2009) believed that language learning is an emotional process,
and different emotional factors can affect it. Attitudes help the learners to show
whether they have feelings towards the objects or surrounding situations or not.
Choy & Troudi (2006) state that the inner feelings of learners affect their attitudes
and their perspectives towards the target language.
2.2.1.4. Attitude and Language Learning
Some studies have shown that people’s aims can powerfully influence how they
react to a task (Lamb, 2004). So finishing a task can be related to the aim of the
participants in that matter. Oxford & Shearing (1994) say that the reactions and
18
attitudes towards a task can also be influenced by the degree of the participants'
motivation.
Holmes (1992) claims that in learning a foreign language, learners can be
motivated by the people who speak the language or the context in which the language
is spoken.
Brown (2007) believes that second language learners benefit from positive
attitudes, and negative attitudes may decrease their motivation. But, he states that
negative attitudes can be changed, for example, by speaking or meeting people from
other cultures.
Truitt (1995) claimes that cultural backgrounds and former experiences can
change students' beliefs and attitudes towards learning. So, we can say that there are
some reasons behind the emergence of positive or negative attitudes, and they are
not accidental.
2.2.1.5.Attitude towards Self
Gutkin (1990) believes that in the field of social psychology, attitude has taken
a major position, and remains a famous topic of study. McGuire (1985) found that
studies of attitude change have been accumulating at the rate of over 13200 per year,
with over 7000 publications appearing in the applied literature in the decade
preceding his review.
2.2.1.6.Attitude towards Teacher
Hamachek (1998) claims that the students’ feeling about themselves and their
performance can powerfully be influenced by teacher's anticipation of any student's
19
academic performance. Teachers like to interact with the students that they think are
brighter or have more academic performance, and this attitude of teachers can affect
students' attitudes towards themselves and so have positive effect on brighter
students' performance and negative effect on less brighter students.
Borich (1977) states that teachers should consider this fact that students have
many instuctors.Their parents, their peers, institutions' teachers and others that have
always been training them to react to things for a long time. These other people may
have shown them a lot of times that they could break out with anything just by giving
lip service to what the teacher says. So they keep on doing what they like. If that is
the case, you should try hard to build up new different experiences with these
students. You should show them that their old attitude won’t be a good one in their
relationship with you.
2.2.1.7.Institutions and Student Study Attitudes
Stockard and Mayberry (1992) claimed that the quality of a physical
environment is related to attitude towards school. These results may eventually relate
to higher academic achievement. Christopher (1995) concluded that human nature
makes people feel better about themselves when their surrounding environments are
desirable. Students who have better attitudes towards their surroundings usually
work harder and learn more. He also found that students in good and beautiful classes
of institutions have more energy and expressed feelings of engoiment, comfort,
importance, pleasure, energy, and a desire to continue their activities. So, if a child
has positive attitudes towards his institution and looks forward to attend there, it
means that he will do better in the class.
20
2.3.Perception and Belief
Schommer (1990) claims that based on a growing body of evidence the role of
learners’ beliefs in different disciplines play an important role in learning experience
and achievements and have a powerful impact on the outcomes and learning
behavior.
Schoenfeld (1983) shows that belief systems, social cognitions and
metacognitions are a great force in rational performance, and that students may be
directly influenced by their perception of success in learning and levels of
expectancy. High expectations helping to build confidence, and low expectations
leading to de-motivation and disappointment (Puchta, 1999). Puchta found that
positive beliefs help to solve the problems and so increase the motivation, and on
the other hand negative beliefs can decrease motivation.
Pintrich (2003) states that as students go to higher levels of education, their
motivation in study decreases. Wigfield, Eccles, and Rodriguez (1998) found that as
students go to higher level, they feel that ability and intelligence are unchangeable,
ans so their motivation for more efforts decreases.
2.3.1. Studies on Beliefs about Language Learning
According to the assumptions about possible effects of beliefs, researchers have
made various claims about how studies on beliefs about language learning may
contribute to the second language acquisition field. Understanding about learners'
beliefs can help adjusting learners' attitudes and behavior. As Horwitz (1987) and
Holec (1987) suggest, teachers, by knowing the beliefs of students about language
learning and giving new ideas and informations to them can cause resistance to
some instructional approaches or activities.
21
Horwitz (1987) claimed that learners may lose confidence in the instructional
approach and their ultimate achievement can be limited when there is a contradiction
between learners’ preconceived ideas about learning and teachers’ teaching
approaches and/or instructional activities. Furthermore, learners may be less
receptive to new information if their previous beliefs are in disagreement with the
new information received from school and that this conflict can prevent learners
from learning the new information (Cotterall, 1995; Dole & Sinatra, 1994).
Therefore, by refining learners’ beliefs, it is hoped that teachers can promote
learners’ confidence in their teaching approaches and activities and will enhance
learners’ motivation and attempts in learning (Horwitz, 1987).
As Wenden (1986) and Rubin (1987) claim, insights about learners’ beliefs may
help promote the use of effective language learning strategies
An investigation of learners’ beliefs about language learning may help teachers
design and prepare a course or program for particular purposes. For example,
Cotterall (1995) says that an understanding about beliefs can help develop a
language program that enhances learners’ autonomy.
A great number of studies on beliefs about language learning have been
conducted involving various groups of foreign and second language learners and
teachers. American students learning foreign languages (Horwitz, 1988; Kern, 1995;
Mori, 1999; Samimy and Lee, 1997), ESL learners from different backgrounds
(Abraham and Vann, 1987; Cotterall, 1995; Horwitz, 1987; Wenden, 1986), and
EFL students in various countries (Huang, 1997; Kunt, 1997; Peacock, 1999, 2001;
Sakui and Gaies, 1999; Truitt, 1995; Wended and Johnson, 1997; Yang, 1999), and
in-service and pre-service second and foreign language instructors (Horwitz, 1988;
Kern, 1995; Peacock, 1999, 2001). These researchers concluded that an investigation
of beliefs about language learning of foreign and second language learners is
22
worthwhile and the insights gained from such study can help foreign and second
language teachers enhance their students’ capability in language learning. Some
researchers claim that teachers can help refine students’ beliefs but the others say
that teachers raise students’ awareness about their beliefs.
2.3.2. Teacher Beliefs and Student Beliefs
Based on almost all studies, we can say that, in general, there is a relationship
between students’ beliefs and teachers’ beliefs about language learning (Kern, 1995;
Samimy and Lee, 1997; Peacock, 1999). And this relationship is almost
contradictory. In almost all of these studies we see that the students tended to speak
with excellent pronunciation, and cared about vocabulary and grammar more than
the teachers.
2.4. Practical Background
2.4.1 Attitudes
Ngidi (2007) found that educators of English in selected schools in South Africa
have a negative attitude towards English language in schools but their parents have
a positive attitude towards the use of English as a language of learning and teaching
in schools.
In a project done by Peacock (1998), the impact of authentic materials on the
attitudes of EFL learners were studied and showed that authentic materials were less
absorbing than artificial materials to the learners. Soleimani (2010) investigated a
group of Iranian medical students' attitudes towards foreign language learning and
found that Iranian medical students have highly positive attitudes towards English
23
language. It is suggested that teachers should pay attention to learners’ attitudes
because it can affect their success in foreign language learning.
Buschenhofen (1998) found that the attitudes of 12 year learners and final-year
university students towards English language were positive, and there were some
significant attitudinal differences in relation to specific English language contexts.
Chalak et al. (2010) investigated the different socio-psychological orientations
of Iranian undergraduates towards learning English language. Its focus was on the
motivation of the students and their attitudes towards the target language and its
community. The results revealed a highly positive attitudes towards learning English
language and that the Iranian speakers of English learn the language for both
instrumental and integrative reasons.
Alzwari (2001) found that secondary school students have negative attitudes
towards learning English, and also there were significant attitudinal differences
regarding gender and field of study.
2.4.2 Perception and belief
Yang (1999) investigated the relationship between EFL college students’ beliefs
about language learning and their use of learning strategies. The study revealed a
relationship between learners’ self-efficacy beliefs about learning English and all
types of learning strategies, especially functional practice strategies. Also, learners’
beliefs about nature of learning and the value of spoken English were closely linked
to their use of formal oral-practice strategies. The results showed that there are
cyclical relationships between students’ beliefs and strategy use and their
achievement in learning English.
24
Horwitz (1988) claimed that the differences between teacher and learner beliefs
probably result in negative outcomes for students. Horwitz also said that a gap
between teacher and learner beliefs can reduce students’ confidence and make them
unsatisfied with the class and unwillingly to participate in communicative activities.
She then concluded that teachers have both enabling and detrimental beliefs to
language learning, and by ignoring those negative beliefs, they can expect their
students to be open to particular teaching methos and to recieve the maximum benefit
from them.
Mantle-Bromley (1995) found a number of her students’ beliefs concerning
learning differed from teacher beliefs. Within the study, learners believed within the
existence of foreign language aptitude.
Mori (1999) found that there are differences in beliefs between beginners and
advanced language learners of Japanese in two aspects of beliefs, belief about the
simplicity of knowledge structure, and beliefs about the difficulty of one linguistic
system of Japanese. He found that advanced learners of Japanese in this study
believe that the knowledge structure was not simple, and that Japanese was not
easy,unlike the beginners that like to think differently. Mori then suggested that this
changeability could have resulted from the different amounts of instruction the
learners have received. And that the advanced learners which have recieved more
amount of complex instruction, their beliefs about it cannot be simple, and beginners
which had a simple instruction cannot think of that as something difficult.
Kern (1995) found that there is no relationship between learners’ belief about
language learning and teachers’ beliefs. Therefore, he wanted to check out the
beliefs of the learners with their own language teacher, and in the end he concluded
that learners’ beliefs can be changed by the beliefs of their teachers but advanced
25
learners’ beliefs, who had more learning experience, may be more resistant.
Truitt (1995) studied the beliefs of university students learning English as a
foreign language in Korea, and found that the Korean learners have some different
beliefs about language learning from American learners (Horwitz, 1988), EFL
students in Taiwan (Yang, 1999), and a group of ESL students (Park, 1995). In this
study, we can also see that some other factors such as living in an English –speaking
country or the major of the learners can have an influence on the learners’ beliefs
about learning a language.These findings reveal the fact that learners’ beliefs about
learn studeing a language can be changed by factors such as their previous
experiences and cultural backgrounds (Horwitz, 1987).
Suwanarak (1999) investigated the perceptions about English language learning
of 200 Thai graduate students, and found that a lot of students rated themselves to
be unsuccessful English language learners whereas only a few students, with better
use of learning strategies, rated themselves as high achievers. Significant
correlations between students’ use of beliefs about English language learning and
their learning strategies indicate that the beliefs are related to strategy use. This
results can be considered as suitable ways of using learners’ perceptions to develop
English teaching and learning practice.
2.5. Related studies
There are a lot of studies related to the learners’ attitudes towards language
learning all over the world. For example, Shams (2008) investigated the attitudes of
students towards English learning, and found that students’ attitudes towards foreign
language learning were mostly positive. Another study by Momani (2009) indicated
nearly the same positive results. Chalak and Kassaian (2010) in their study
26
investigated the attitude of Iranian EFL learners towards learning a foreign language
and the target language community, and found that their attitude towards the foreign
language community was highly positive. Dehbozorgi (2012), on the other hand
investigated the effects of attitude towards language learning on Iranian EFL
students’ proficiency. He showed that there were no significant correlation between
attitude of learners towards English language learning and their proficiency in
language. Al-tamimi and Shuib (2009) also claimed that EFL students’ motivation
in language learning is affected by their attitudes towards language learning.
Latif, Fadzil, Bahroom and San (2011) found that there is a correlation between
variables such as anxiety, motivation, instrumental orientation and attitude of the
learners, and their performance in the class, and attitude has a positive impact on
that.t Shokrpour (2010) investigated the Iranian students’ attitudes towards learning
English and found the mostly positive attitudes of the learners towards learning
English.
Al-Tamimi and Shuib (2010) in Kenya showed that the most affective and
psychological factor in learners’ performance is the attitudes of learners towards
English language learning.
In general, we can say that all these studies show the importance of students
'attitudes and beliefs about their teachers and the language learning. And indicating
the elements that can have an influence on these attitudes are important and can pave
the way for other language learning strategies.
The subject of attitude is not studied and investigated specifically and sufficiently
in Iranian students, and there is a gap about the issue of attitude of language learners
especially undergraduate students about their instructors and their teachers in Iran.
27
And this study would help to understand this important issue in Iran. The next part
presents how the current study was carried out.
2.6. Summary
The role of belief not only in English language learning but also in other
languages learning is very significant and crucial. The majority of studies which
was mentioned and indicated in this study revealed that the learners have positive
beliefs about the language, but they are not successful in their classrooms. The
causes for unsuccessfulness are psychological elements such as anxiety, self-esteem,
motivation, etc. According to Ellis (1994) attitudes of learners have been known as
important variable. The attitudes are shaped by the social factors which influence
learner outcome. Therefore, more researches are needed to be conducted in this area.
The next chapter sketches out the methodology which was used to conduct this
study.
28
Chapter Three
29
Chapter Three
Methodology
3.1. Overview
This chapter consists of four sections. The first section provides information
about the design, participants of the study and the instruments used to collect data
and answer the research question. In the second section, data collection
procedures followed in the study are explained step by step. Also, the related data
analyses will be discussed.
3.2. Design
The design of the study is a qualitative correlational design. It follows the data
collection procedures and analysis of quantitative method. The data collection
method for the quantitative mode was questionnaires. The correlation between the
participants’ beliefs about language learning and their attitudes towards their
teachers was investigated.
3.3. Participants
The participants of this study were chosen randomly from Persian Gulf
University and Azad University of Bushehr. All of the candidates were native
speakers of Persian. They were students of B.A (Bachelor of Arts) in English
Literature. Most of them were in upper intermediate level. Their age ranged from
20 to 29 years old. The sample of the study was made up of 35 university students
30
from Persian Gulf University and 48 students from Azad University of Bushehr.
There were both male and female students in the sample.
3.4. Instrumentation
Two instruments were utilized in this study. The first one was the Attitude
Questionnaire developed by Clement and Kruidenier (1985). The second one was
the Belief Questionnaire developed by Horwitz (1987). For gaining more accurate
responses, the Persian translation of the questionnaires was given to the students.
3.4.1 Student's Attitude Questionnaire
Student's attitude questionnaire contains some questions demonstrating the
students' attitude towards their educators. The Student's attitude questionnaire was
developed by Clement and Kruidenier (1985) (See Appendix 1) include 35 items,
which are rated on a 5-point scale ranging from “never =1” to “always =5”.
3.4.2 Beliefs about Foreign Language Learning Questionnaire
To examine the participants' beliefs about English language learning, this study
utilized Horwitz's (1987) Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) as
an instrument (See Appendix 2). The BALLI questionnaire is used to evaluate
beliefs about five language learning areas, namely (1) Foreign language aptitude, (2)
learning and communication strategies, (3) the difficulty of language learning, (4)
the nature of language learning and (5) motivations and expectations. The BALLI
has 34 items 32 of which offer 5-point Likert-type responses. These thirty two items
range from "strongly agree =5" to "strongly disagree =1". The other two items; 4
and 14, are related to the learners' rating of the difficulty level of English. These two
31
range from very difficult to difficult, medium, easy, and very easy, and the amount
of time needed to learn English very well. As an example, five language learning
areas along with their related numbers presented in BALLI have been presented in
the Table below:
Table 3. 1
The item types and related questions in the BALLI questionnaire
Language Learning Areas Item numbers Number
of items
Foreign language aptitude 1 – 2 – 5 – 10 – 29 – 15 – 22 – 32 – 34 9
Difficulty of language learning 3 – 4 – 6 – 14 – 24 - 28 6
Nature of language learning 8 – 11 – 16 – 20 – 25 - 26 6
learning and communication strategies 7 – 9 – 12 – 13 – 17 – 18 – 19_21 8
Motivations and expectations 23 – 27 – 30 – 31 – 33 5
3.5. Pilot Testing
A small group of English university students (N=10) were selected randomly for
the pilot testing, in order to make certain that the questionnaires work properly. For
gaining more accurate results, the translated version was used for pilot testing.
Cronbach's Alpha analysis was used to find the reliability of the questionnaires.
Before piloting the questionnaires, there were some clarifications about the main
reason of the study. Tables 3.2 and 3.3 show the related results.
32
Table 3. 2
Reliability statistics of the student's attitude questionnaire
Cronbach's Alpha N of Items
.916 35
The reliability coefficient of the student's attitude questionnaire (translated
version), in line with Table 3.2, was found to be .916 which is a high level of
reliability.
Table 3.3
Reliability statistics of the beliefs about foreign language learning questionnaire (BALLI)
Cronbach's Alpha N of Items
.910 34
As shown in Table 3.3, it can be inferred that the BALLI questionnaire ( translated
version) is highly reliable (reliability coefficient = .910).
3.6. Data Collection Procedure
The data was collected through two questionnaires. The questionnaires were
translated in to Persian. Then, the learners were clarified about the main purpose of
the study. First, the translated copy of the attitude questionnaire about their teacher
and then the translated copy of BALLI questionnaire were given to them to be
answered. There was no time limit for answering the questionnaires.
3.7. Data Analysis
The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used for the statistical
analyses of the data. To find the correlation between the participants’ beliefs about
33
language learning and their attitude towards their teachers, the researcher used the
Pearson product moment correlation coefficient to find the correlation between the
five components of the participants’ beliefs about language learning and their
attitudes towards their teachers.
3.8. Summary
This chapter explained the methodology pursued in this study. First, there was an
overall explanation about the chapter. Then, the design and method which was used
in the study was discussed . Afterward, the exact details about the participants were
revealed . Next, the instruments which were utilized in the study and, consequently,
the procedures of data collection were discussed. At last, how the data was analyzed
to find out the final results were mentioned.
34
Chapter Four
35
Chapter Four
Results and Discussions
4.1. Overview
This chapter provided the study results obtained from the statistical analysis of
the collected data. The aim of this study, as previously stated, was to examine the
relationship between beliefs of students about language learning and their attitudes
towards their teachers.
4.2. Restatement of the Research Question
As mentioned before, the present study aimed to answer the following research
question:
RQ1: Is there any relationship between learners’ attitudes towards their teachers and
their beliefs about language learning in Iran?
The next section presents the related results of this question.
4.3. Results
According to the obtained results which are shown in Table 4.1, there was no
relationship between learners’ beliefs about language learning and their attitudes
towards their teachers.
The researcher applied a thirty five Likert items to find the attitudes of participants
towards their teachers. The responses were coded as “Never =1”, to “Always =5”.
36
Table 4.1
Correlation between Participants’ Beliefs about Language Learning and their Attitudes towards their
Teachers
The researcher applied the correlation analysis in order to answer the research
question. The results obtained from correlation between the five components of the
beliefs of participants about language learning and their attitudes towards their
teachers are demonstrated in Table 4.2.According to the obtained results which are
shown in Table 4.2, there was only a low, positive and significant relationship (r
=.17, sig. =.02, p
37
Learning and Communication
Strategies
Sig. (2-tailed) .759
N 83
Motivation and Expectations Pearson Correlation *.171
Sig. (2-tailed) .029
N 83
* Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).
The results of a study by Soleimani (2010) revealed that Iranian medical students
have highly positive attitudes towards English language,and recommended that
teachers should pay attention to learners' attitudes and beliefs because it can affect
their success in foriegn language learning.
There are alot of studies investigated the relationship between the learners' beliefs
about language learning and some other factors related to language learning such as
proficiency level, beliefs of the teachers about language learning, the environment
of the learning and so many other factors related to that.
There are alot of reports that shows both positive and negative beliefs and
attitudes towards language learning and their high or low relationship with other
factors.
This study was going to find if there were any correlation between the learners'
beliefs about language learning and their attitudes towards their teachers, and as we
saw there was a low, positive and significant relationship between motivation and
expectations of the learners and their attitudes towards their teachers.
The same results is reported by Lan (2010) who have studied Taiwanese 7th
grades foreign language learners, and found that the motivation and expectations of
the learners was the strongest of the five factors concerning language learning
beliefs.
38
4.4. Discussion
In this part, the research question and all discussions related to that will be
presented.
Concerning the correlation of learners’ beliefs about learning a language and
their attitudes towards their teachers, the findings generally showed that there is no
relation between learners’ beliefs about learning a language and their attitudes
towards their teachers. However there is a low significant relation between one
component of belief and attitude. There is a low and positive relationship (r =.17)
between the students’ motivation and expectations and their attitudes towards their
teachers.
There are some other studies that inestigated these components of beliefs of the
language learners and its relation to some other factors such as proficiency level of
the learners and some other related factors. The results of most of these
investigations showed that the component of motivation and expectations had the
most positive and significant results. In this study we saw that there is a low and
positive relationship between the students' motivation and expectations and their
attitudes towards their teachers.
Five questions of the BALLI questionnaire ( 23, 27, 30, 31, 33) are related to
learners' motivation and expectations. Item number 23 says that I want to speak
English well. As there is a low and significant correlation between these items and
their attitudes towards their teachers, we can say that the learners' motivation and
expectations to become fluent in English and speak it well, have a positive
relationship with their attitudes towards their teachers, and the higher motivation and
expectations they have for speaking it well can lead to more positive attitudes of
them towards their teachers and vice versa.
39
The next question says that if I learn to speak English very well, I will have better
opportunities for a good job. Barron and Harackiewicz (1984) suggested that
students who like to take proficiency exams for finding a job or living in a foreign
language country ( with performance goals), do their best in learning a language and
gain more short-term results, but those who want to learn a language with mastery
goals, are likely to love a task and have more positive beliefs about it. But as Barron
& Harackiewicz (2001) found, in some situations, performance goals can lead to
more interest than mastery goals. Oxford & Shearing (1994) suggested that the
reactions and attitudes towards a task can be influenced by the degree of the
participants' motivation. And here in this study we found that there is a low and
positive correlation between this beliefs of learners that if they learn to speak English
very well, they will have better oppotunities for a good job, and their attitudes
towards their teachers. So, if they have positive attitudes towards their teachers, they
will have positive beliefs about reaching proficiency levels in speaking and finding
better oppotunities for a good job. Also, if the learners have good and positive
attitudes towards their teachers, their motivation and expectations for learning
English increases and they will have more positive beliefs for learning to speak
English in order to have better opportunities for a good job.
Based on the data gathered in this study, the learners believe that people in their
country feel that it is important to speak English and this belief have a low, positive
and significant relationship with their attitudes towards their teachers.
If the people of your country feel the importance of speaking English, it will have
an influence on you and can change your beliefs about language learning and
increase your motivation for learning it. Consequently, when your belifs changed,
your attitudes towards your English techers will change, too.
40
Krech & Crutchfield(1948) stated that people can have different attitudes for
varying degrees of favorability towards themselves, and towards any aspect of their
environment.
If the beliefs of the learners and their feelings about learning a language is
positive and they think that it is important to learn English in order to speak it well,
it can influence their motivation and expectaations for learning it and this will have
positive impact on learners' attitudes towards their English teachers.
And finally, if the learners are highly motivated to know Americans or find
American friends, then it is significant to have positive beliefs about language
learning and also positive attitudes towards their English teachers for fulfilling their
expectations.
As Oxford & Shearing (1994) suggested, the reactions and attitudes towards a
task can be influenced by the degree of the participants' motivation. So the more
the learners are motivated for fluency in English or the people of their country have
positive feelings about learning English or they think of English as an important
factor for finding jobs or American friends, the more positive attitudes they will have
for learning English and this can change their attitudes towards their teachers.
Holmes (1992) suggested that in learning a foreign language, learners can be
motivated by the people who speak the language or the context in which the language
is spoken. So, we can say that if the learners like the Americans or like to speak their
language and be fluent in speaking in it and feel that speaking English is important,
they will have more motivation for learning it. And they will have more positive
attitudes towards their teachers.
As Truitt (1995) mentioned , positive or negative attitudes do not expand
accidentally but they have some reasons for their emergence.
Based on Malallah (2000) Arab learners of English have positive attitudes and
beliefs towards learning Engish and their proficiency in tests was positively related
41
to their attitudes towards English. Since Arab people have positive attitudes towards
learning English and English is useful for them for their job and for finding
American friends, and the good feelings that they have towards it and also the fact
that English is useful because of the attendance of tourists, Arab people have enough
motivation for learning English and so they will have positive attitudes towards their
English teachers.
There are some elements that have influence on learners' beliefs about language
learning, but only a few of them have relationship with the learners' attitudes towards
their teachers.
As the finding of this study indicated, only those beliefs that are related to
motivation and expectations of the learners have a low, positive and significant
correlation with their attitudes towards their teachers. And other components of the
learners' beliefs like foreign language aptitude, difficulty of language learning,
nature of language learning and learning and communication strategies have no
significant correlation with the learners' attitudes towards their learning teachers.
There are some beliefs about language learning that have no relationship with the
learners' attitudes towards their teachrs. If a learner have a special ability for learning
foreign languages, it has no relationship with their attitudes towards their teachers.
When a language is easier to learn than others, the belief about learning it is positive,
but based on this study, this has no relationship with the learners' attitudes towards
their teachers.
In general, we saw that the learners have both positive and negative beliefs about
language learning but only the belifs of motivation and expectations had a low,
positive and significant relationship with the learners' attitudes towards their
teachers.
42
4.5. Summary
This section discussed the results of the study. It included a descriptive
statistics of the respondents’ attitudes followed by a discussion on the beliefs about
English language of the undergraduate students. Then, empirical evidence was
mentioned in support of the hypotheses about the relationship between attitudes and
beliefs.
43
Chapter Five
44
Chapter Five
Summary, Conclusions, Pedagogical Implications, and Suggestions
5.1. Overview
This chapter will begin with a review and summary of the research question,
the procedures employed and the related findings. Then, the results obtained from
the data analysis will be compared to those of the related studies in the literature.
Later, the current study’s implications for language educators, material developers,
and syllabus designers shall be introduced. After that, the limitations of the study
will be presented. And, finally some suggestions and prospects for further research
will be offered to those taking an interest in following the same track in their
language studies.
5.2. Summary
The most important aim of this study was to discover if there were any
significant relationship between the learners’ beliefs about foreign language learning
and their attitudes towards their teachers. To this end, the researcher conducted data
analysis, including correlation analysis, to investigate the relationship between the
learners’ beliefs about foreign language learning and their attitudes towards their
teachers. Findings, for the purpose of finalizing the data analysis and interpretations
related to the study, are provided in the form of a summary and also placed with the
research question.
A qualitative correlational research design was applied to meet the study’s aim.
83 university students from Persian Gulf University and Azad University of Bushehr
made up the research participants.
Two instruments were utilized to gather the data necessary for the study. Students'
45
attitude questionnaire developed by Richard Clement and Bastin G. Kruidenier
(1985) and Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) developed by
Horwitz(1987).To gain more accurate results, a persian translation of these two
questionnaires were given to the students with no time limits for answering the
questions. To come to answers of the research question, the quantitative data analysis
was undertaken.The correlation results demonstrated a low yet positive and
significant relationship between the participants’ motivation and expectations and
their attitudes towards their teachers. And no relation was found between the
participants’beliefs about language learning and their attitudes towards their
teachers.
5.3. Conclusions
In this part, first the research question of the study will be restated. It, then,
shall be responded on the basis of conclusions drawn from the results.
1. Is there any relation between learners’ attitudes towards their teachers
and their beliefs about language learning in Iran?
The data analysis results seen in Table 4.1 shows no relationship between
learners’ beliefs about language learning and their attitudes towards their teacher.
Regarding the average of five components of beliefs about language learning, the
results revealed that the relationship between learners’ beliefs about learning a
language and their attitudes towards their teachers is not significant and
considerable. Although there was only low relation between one component and
their attitudes. The data analysis results seen in Table 4.2, show that there was a low
and positive relationship (r =.17) between the participants’ motivation and
expectations on the one side, and their attitudes towards their teachers on the other
side is significant (sig. =.02, p
46
The findings of the present study were in line with those reported by Sayadian
and Lashkarian (2012), who concluded that Iranian university learners were highly
oriented (91.86% and 89.87% respectively) with respect to their attitudes towards
English language learning. Furthermore, the results of a study by Ahmed (2010) on
Yemeni petroleum engineering students revealed that they held positive attitudes
towards the English language. These students, in addition, hold significant positive
attitudes to the academic condition of English in Yemeni schools.
Kassaian and Chalak (2010) studied one hundred and fifty three Iranian
undergraduate students studying at Malaysian universities and majoring in English
translation. In this study, these students’ beliefs about English language learning
were investigated. Findings of the study suggested that the students’ beliefs were
found to be positive. Ansari and Chowdhri (1990) studied on a representative sample
of 220 students in Malaysia revealed that they had positive attitudes to the English
language community and its members. Alongside these studies, Sarwar (2002)
reported in his study that most of the university students held positive attitudes and
found the English language for specific purposes interesting to learn. Johnson
(1997), in another study, explored the attitudes of Japanese non-English major EFL
learners. The students showed a range of attitudes to learning English. There was a
correlation between their positive attitudes and their proficiency levels, meaning
higher level students possibly with the weakest dislike for English. Quite shockingly,
the results of a study by Yang and Lau (2003) indicated that EFL major students’
attitudes towards English language learning did not significantly correlate with their
overall English language proficiency.
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5.4. Pedagogical Implications
Findings of this study will help teachers, parents, and learners to b