Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Volume 13. Number2.  June 2022                                             Pp. 297-311
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol13no2.20

Full Paper PDF

Exploring Kurdish EFL University Students’ Beliefs about Language Learning

Omar Fouad Ghafor^{1, 4,}
Corresponding Author: omar.ghafor@uoh.edu.iq

Hedayat Muhammad Ahmad^{1, 2}

Goran Omar Mustafa^{1, 3} 

¹Department of English Language, College of Basic Education, University of Halabja, Halabja,
Kurdistan, IRAQ

²Department of International Commerce, College of Commerce, University of Sulaimani,
Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan, IRAQ

³Department of ELT, Faculty of Education, Tishk International University, Sulaymaniyah,
Kurdistan,  IRAQ

⁴Department of English, College of Languages, University of Human Development, Sulaimani,
Kurdistan Region, Iraq

Received:  3/28/2022                         Accepted: 5/31/2022                  Published: 6/24/2022

Abstract:
This paper is an attempt to deal with language learners’ beliefs. Researchers used Elaine Kolker Horwitz’s model (1988), Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory, and they applied it to explore the views of Kurdish EFL university students concerning language learning. The study aims to investigate and expose their opinions regarding language learning generally, then English language more precisely. Its significance lies in exploring the beliefs of Kurdish EFL university students about language learning. It mainly answers the question, “what are the beliefs of Kurdish EFL university students about learning English?”. The researchers administered a   Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) questionnaire to seven universities to achieve this aim. The questionnaire includes several viewpoints regarding the difficulty of language learning, foreign language aptitude, the nature of language learning, learning and communication strategies, and motivation and expectations. They collected and analyzed the questionnaire results and found out that the first category, the difficulty of language learning, has the lowest mean score among the five categories. In contrast, the fifth category, motivation and expectations, has the highest mean score. They ended the study with suitable beneficiary recommendations.
Keywords: BALLI, beliefs, Kurdish EFL university students, language learning difficulties, language learning strategies

Cite as:  Ghafor, O.F., Ahmad, H.M., & Mustafa, G.O. (2022). Exploring Kurdish EFL University Students’ Beliefs about
Language Learning. Arab World English Journal, 13 (2) 297-311.
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol13no2.20

References

Abdi, H., & Asadi, B. (2015). A Synopsis of Researches on Teachers’ and Students’ Beliefs about Language Learning.
International Journal on Studies in English Language and Literature (IJSELL), 3 (4), 104-114.

Abedini, A., Rahimi, A.,&Zare-eec, A. (2011). Relationship Between Iranian EFL Learners’ Beliefs about Language Learning, their
Language Learning Strategy Use, and their Language Proficiency. Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 28, 1029–1033.

Altan, M. Z. (2006). Beliefs about Language Learning of Foreign Language-major University Students. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 31, 45-52.

Ariogul, S., Unal, D., & Onursal, I. (2009). Foreign Language Learners’ Beliefs about Language Learning: A Study on Turkish University Students. Procedia Social and Behavior Sciences, 1(1), 1500-1506.

Azar, F. K., & Saeidi, M. (2013). The Relationship between Iranian EFL Learners’ Beliefs about Language Learning and
Their Use of Learning Strategies. English Language Teaching, 6 (11), 167-174.

Bacon, S. M., & Finnemann, M. D. (1990). A Study of Attitudes, Motives, and Strategies of University Foreign Language Students
and their Disposition to Authentic Oral and Written Input. Modern Language Journal, 74 (4), 459–473.

Bernat, E. (2004). Investigating Vietnamese ESL Learners’ Beliefs about Language Learning. English Australia Journal, 21 (2), 40-54.

Bernat, E., & Lloyd, R. (2007). Exploring the Gender Effect on EFL Learners’ Beliefs about Language Learning. Australian Journal of Educational & Developmental Psychology, 7, 79-91.

Bidari, S. (2021). Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory: A Brief Review. International Journal of Linguistics, Literature, and Translation, 4 (7), 221-224.

Cephe, P. T., & Yalcin, C. G. (2015). Beliefs about Foreign Language Learning: The Effects of Teacher Beliefs on Learner Beliefs. The Anthropologist, 19 (1), 167-173.

Diab, R. L. (2000). Lebanese Students’ Beliefs about Learning English and French: A Study of University Students in a Multilingual Context, (Unpublished Ph.D. Dissertation). Austin, Texas, USA: The University of Texas at Austin.

Diab, R. L. (2006). University Students’ Beliefs about Learning English and French in Lebanon. System, 34, 80–96.

Fujiwara, T. (2011). Language Learning Beliefs of Thai EFL University Students: Dimensional Structure and Cultural Variations.
Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching, 8 (1), 87-107.

Hayati, N. (2015). A Study of English Language Learning Beliefs, Strategies, and English Academic Achievement of the ESP Students of STIENAS Samarinda. Dinamika Ilmu, 15 (2), 297-323.

Hong, K. (2006). Beliefs about Language Learning and Language Learning Strategy Use in an EFL Context: A Comparison Study of Monolingual Korean and Bilingual Korean-Chinese University Students,  (Unpublished Doctoral dissertation). Denton,
Texas, USA: University of North Texas.

Horwitz, E. K. (1987). Surveying Student Beliefs about Language Learning. In A. Wenden, & J. Rubin (eds.),  Learner Strategies in Language Learning (pp. 119-129). Hemel Hempstead: Prentice-Hall.

Horwitz, E. K. (1988). The Beliefs about Language Learning of Beginning University Foreign Language Students.
The Modern Language Journal, 72(3), 283-294.

Horwitz, E. K. (1999). Cultural and Situational Influences on Foreign Language Learners’ Beliefs about Language Learning:
A Review of BALLI Studies. System 27, 557-576.

Horwitz, E. K. (2008). Why Student Beliefs about Language Learning Matter: Issues in the Development and Implementation
of the Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory. In H. J. Siskin, (ed.), From Thought to Action: Exploring
Beliefs and Outcomes in the Foreign Language Program (pp. 2-8). Boston: Thomson Heinle.

Jafari, S. M., & Shokrpour, N. (2012). The Beliefs of Iranian ESP Students about Language Learning. Journal of
Educational and Social Research, 2(3), 157-163.

Jee, M. J. (2014). Affective Factors in Korean as a Foreign Language: Anxiety and Beliefs. Language, Culture and Curriculum,
27(2), 182–195.

Kalaja, P., Barcelos, A., Aro, M.,& Ruohotie-Lyhty, M. (2015). Beliefs, Agency and Identity in Foreign Language Learning and Teaching. New York: Springer.

Kern, R. G. (1995). Students’ and Teachers’ Beliefs about Language Learning. Foreign Language Annals, 28 (1), 71–92.

Kuntz, P. S. (1996). Students of “Easy” Languages: Their Beliefs about Language Learning. ERIC Document Reproduction Service.

Likert, R. (1932). A Technique for the Measurement of Attitudes. New York: Archives of Psychology.

McLeod, S. A. (2019, August 03). Likert Scale. Retrieved from Simply Psychology. Available at
https://www.simplypsychology.org/likert-scale.html

Meshkat, M., & Saeb, F. (2014). High-school Students’ Beliefs about Learning English and Arabic. International Journal of Applied Linguistics & English Literature, 3(3), 211-216.

Mohebi, S. G., & Khodadady, E. (2011). Investigating University Students’ Beliefs about Language Learning. RELC Journal,
42(3), 291–304.

Mori, Y. (1999). Epistemological Beliefs and Language Learning Beliefs: What do Language Learners Believe about their Learning? Language Learning, 49(3), 377–415.

Nikitina, L., & Furuoka, F. (2006). Re-examining Horwitz’s Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) in the
Malaysian Context. Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching, 3(2), 209-219.

Oh, M. J. (1996). Beliefs about Language Learning and Foreign Language Anxiety: A Study of American University Students Learning Japanese. Dissertation Abstracts International, 57 (09), 3858.

Park, G.-P. (1995). Language Learning Strategies and Beliefs about Language Learning of University Students Learning
English in Korea, (Unpublished Doctoral dissertation). Austin, Texas, USA: University of Texas.

Parsi, G. (2017). Beliefs on Learning and Teaching Language Components: The Case of Iranian EAP and EFL Learners. Advances in Language and Literary Studies, 8(3), 5-11.

Peacock, M. (2001). Pre-service ESL Teachers’ Beliefs about Second Language Learning: A Longitudinal Study. System, 29(2), 177-195.

Rieger, B. (2009). Hungarian University Students’ Beliefs about Language Learning: A Questionnaire Study. WoPaLP, 3, 97-113.

Riley, P. A. (2006). The Beliefs of First-Year Japanese University Students towards the Learning of English, (Unpublished Doctoral dissertation). Australia: Faculty of Education, The University of Southern Queensland.

Rokeach, M. (1968). Beliefs, Attitudes, and Values: A Theory of Organization and Change. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Saeb, F., & Zamani, E. (2013). Language Learning Strategies and Beliefs about Language Learning in High-School Students and
Students Attending English Institutes: Are They Different? English Language Teaching, 6 (12), 79-86.

Sakui, K., & Gaies, S. (1999). Investigating Japanese Learners’ Beliefs about Language Learning. System, 27 (4), 473-492.

Smith, S. H. (1989). Preliminary Statistics of the BALLI with Students Learning Russian, (Unpublished Manuscript). Austin,
Texas, USA: University of Texas.

Tercanlioglu, L. (2004). Exploring Gender Effect on Adult Foreign Language Learning Strategies. Issues in Educational Research,
14, 181-193.

Truitt, S. (1995). Anxiety and Beliefs about Language Learning: a Study of Korean University Students Learning English,
(Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation). Austin, Texas, USA: University of Texas.

Tumposky, N. (1991). Student Beliefs about Language Learning: A Cross-Cultural Study. Carleton Papers in Applied Language
Studies, 8, 50–65.

Victori, M., & Lockhart, W. (1995). Enhancing Metacognition in Self-directed Language Learning. System, 23, 223-234.

Wenden, A. (1986). What Do Second Language Learners Know about their Language Learning? A Second Look at Retrospective Accounts. Applied Linguistics, 7, 186-205.

Yang, N. D. (1992). Second Language Learners’ Beliefs about Language Learning and their Use of Learning Strategies: A Study of College Students of English in Taiwan, (Unpublished Doctoral Dissertation). Austin, Texas, USA: University of Texas.

Yang, N. D. (1999). The Relationship Between EFL Learners’ Beliefs and Learning Strategy Use. System, 27, 515-535.

Young, D. J. (1991). Creating a Low-anxiety Classroom Environment: What Does Language Anxiety Research Suggest? Modern Language Journal, 75(4), 426–439.

Zhang, X., & Cui, G. (2010). Learning Beliefs of Distance Foreign Language Learners in China: A