University students’ beliefs about learning English and French in Lebanon

Abstract

This study explored the beliefs about language learning of Lebanese English as a Foreign Language university students, compared their beliefs about learning different target languages, namely, English and French, and investigated within-group variation in these students’ beliefs. A modified version of Horwitz’s “Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory” was administered to 284 students in three universities in Lebanon. Findings revealed that the students hold a variety of beliefs about learning English and French, many of which seem to be related to the political and socio-cultural context of foreign language education in Lebanon. Notably, the students’ beliefs about the difficulty of language learning and their motivations for learning English and French seem to be especially contextualized in the Lebanese language learning situation. The students viewed English as an easy language and French as a difficult one and, consistent with a popular belief held in Lebanon, agreed that it is “easier” to learn French before learning English. In addition, most students revealed strong instrumental motivations for learning English and agreed that it is more important to learn English than French. Finally, statistically significant differences in the students’ beliefs were found related to variables such as language-medium educational background and gender.