Engineering students’ beliefs about foreign language learning and school career

Authors

  • Akihiro Saito Faculty of Education, Hakuoh University
  • Junko Maeda Center of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Hachinohe Institute of Technology

Keywords:

beliefs, preferred learning styles, Japanese English language learners, engineering majors, university English

Abstract

This mixed-methods inquiry begins with the supposition that students’ choice of tertiary subject area and their former school experience might attract those with similar individual traits, including beliefs about second language (L2) learning. This study aims to explore the latent factorial structure of language learning beliefs of 253 engineering students in Japan, using Sakui and Gaies’ “Beliefs about Language Learning Questionnaire” (Sakui & Gaies, 1999). The students’ beliefs were organized into a five-factor structure and differed according to their school career. The results were different from earlier studies that involved non-engineering undergraduates in Japan and suggest that the organization of these engineering majors’ L2 learning beliefs differs significantly from that of non-engineering majors. However, a qualitative interview revealed that two individuals from within the same university discipline can have contrasting learning beliefs. The findings suggest that it is necessary to raise foreign language teachers’ awareness of the ways in which L2 learning beliefs can influence students’ learning behaviours and preferred learning styles.

Author Biographies

  • Akihiro Saito, Faculty of Education, Hakuoh University
    Dr. Akihiro Saito is a lecturer in the Faculty of Education at Hakuoh University, Oyama, Japan. He received a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, Australia. He is currently Principal Investigator of a Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KEKENHI) project investigating the discursive framing of language policy drawing on social theories of late-modernity. His articles have appeared in the International Journal of Applied Linguistics (Wiley-Blackwell), System (Elsevier), and the International Journal of Pedagogies and Learning (Taylor & Francis). He is the recipient of the 2016 Japanese Association of Qualitative Psychology International Research and Collaboration Promotion Award.
  • Junko Maeda, Center of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Hachinohe Institute of Technology
    Ms. Junko Maeda holds a Master of Arts in Communication. She is a part-time lecturer at the Center of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Hachinohe Institute of Technology, Japan. Her research interests are intercultural communication, multicultural education, promotion of discussion within the classroom in Japan, and English education in Japan. She presented a paper at the 102nd US National Communication Association Annual Convention in Philadelphia in 2016.
The Asian Journal of Applied Linguistics. Volume 5, Issue 2.. October 2018

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Published

2018-11-06

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 2 (2018)

Section

Articles

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How to Cite

Engineering students’ beliefs about foreign language learning and school career. (2018). The Asian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 5(2), 187-202. https://caes.hku.hk/ajal/index.php/ajal/article/view/538