The beliefs of first year Japanese university students towards the learning of English

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THE BELIEFS OF FIRST YEAR JAPANESE UNIVERSITY

STUDENTS TOWARDS THE LEARNING OF ENGLISH

A Dissertation submitted by

Paul A. Riley, H.N.D., Cert. Ed., M.Ed.

In partial fulfilment of the award of

Doctor of Education

Faculty of Education

The University of Southern Queensland, Australia

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CERTIFICATION OF DISSERTATION

I certify that the ideas, results, analyses, and conclusions reported in this

dissertation are entirely my own effort, except where otherwise acknowledged. I

also certify that the work is original and has not been previously submitted for any

other award, except where otherwise acknowledged.

____________________________ __________________

Signature of Candidate Date

ENDORSEMENT

________________________ _______________

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ABSTRACT

In the field of second and foreign language learning, beliefs, as one of the

affective factors, remain relatively unexplored. Failure to address unrealistic

student beliefs and expectations may increase student anxiety (Truitt, 1995;

Young, 1991), hinder progress, and ultimately lead to a breakdown in learning

(Ellis, 1996; Horwitz, 1985, 1987, 1988; Mantle-Bromley, 1995; Peacock, 1999).

This study investigates the beliefs about language learning of first year

university students in Japan, employing the Japanese language questionnaire

developed by Sakui and Gaies (1999). Two student discussion groups were also

formed to provide further data. In addition to describing student beliefs, the study

explores differences between student beliefs and teacher beliefs, change in student

beliefs during a course of study, and relationships between student beliefs and

second language proficiency.

A total of 661 first year students, and 34 of their class teachers, participated

in this study, at a private Japanese university, between April 2002 and January

2003. Data were analysed using Pearson correlation, Cronbach’s alpha, t-tests, and

a principal components factor analysis.

The students in the study appear to hold a variety of beliefs, to varying

degrees. Significant differences were found between student responses and teacher

responses for more than half of the questionnaire items, with the four main areas of

difference relating to translation, error correction, the difficulty of language

learning, and motivation. In terms of belief change, significant differences were

found in student responses to almost a quarter of the questionnaire items between

two administrations in April and December, 2002. Some differences were also

identified between the beliefs of students based on their proficiency scores, but the

results here are inconclusive.

This study contributes to the growing understanding of the role of beliefs in

language learning. Further studies of other student groups, at other institutions in

Japan, will enable a comparison of results to help produce a clearer picture of the

beliefs and expectations about language learning of students at Japanese

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PREFACE

The Doctoral Dissertation is the product of a journey. It may also be

considered a starting point, as it opens more doors, poses further questions, and

invites further investigation. Between 1998 and 1999 I attended three international

conferences in the Tokyo area. Presentations I attended at these conferences

opened my eyes to the field of beliefs about the nature of language learning, and

provided the inspiration for this research. The presenters who particularly stick in

mind are Stephen Gaies, Anita Wenden, and Mathew Peacock.

Reading in the area of language learning beliefs revealed the influential

work of Elaine Horwitz at the University of Texas in the mid-1980s. I also

discovered that very little research in this area had been carried out in Japan. A

research project by Sakui and Gaies, presented in 1998 and subsequently published

in 1999, was the first large scale study into the field of language learner beliefs in

Japan. The Sakui and Gaies study proved to be the starting point for this project. I

was interested to see how their Japanese language survey instrument could be used

in a single Japanese university to try to describe the language learning beliefs of

the students and investigate any differences between student beliefs and teacher

beliefs. At the same time, I was also exploring the area of communicative language

teaching, and its application in the Japanese setting. The traditional methods of

language teaching in Japan rely on analytical and receptive skills, as opposed to

active use of the second language for meaningful communication.

All this coincided with my entering the Doctor of Education program in the

Faculty of Education at the University of Southern Queensland in July 1999, and

the commencement of this journey. Participation in a doctoral program has

presented many challenges, particularly in terms of time management, and

communication with other researchers and supervisors, whilst continuing full-time

teaching in Japan. This journey could not have been completed without the

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My sincere gratitude goes to my supervisor, Dr. Francis Mangubhai, for his

advice and patience, and for guiding me through the development and writing of

this dissertation. I am also grateful to my fellow students in the Doctor of

Education program at the University of Southern Queensland, and other faculty

and staff in the Faculty of Education and the Centre for Language Learning and

Teaching, for their assistance, advice, and opportunities for professional

discussion. I would like to acknowledge the encouragement and inspiration offered

by Professor Frank Crowther, particularly during the development stages of this

doctoral journey.

I am also grateful to Dr. Stephen Gaies of the University of Northern Iowa,

for kindly providing a copy of the Sakui and Gaies instrument, which helped to

initiate this research.

I thank the faculty and students of Obirin University, Japan, for their time

and effort in participating in this study. It is my hope that the analyses offered here

may help to influence and improve the teaching and learning of English at this and

all other institutions in Japan.

The faculty and fellow students of Temple University Japan were a great

support to me during my Master of Education program, and the teachings and

spirit of two professors in particular have guided my academic efforts since: Dr.

Kenneth Schaefer and Mr. Paul Nation.

Without the understanding and patience of my family, this academic

journey would not have been possible. Thank you to my wife, Rieko, and

daughters, Anna and Amy, for the times we haven’t been able to share. Finally, in

loving memory of my late parents, who always believed in trying one’s best, and

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LIST OF TABLES

Table Page

1 BALLI items significantly related to proficiency scores 17

(Peacock, 1999) (p<.05).

2 Strongest learner beliefs in Sakui and Gaies (1999). 23

3 Factor Analysis Solution, Sakui and Gaies (1999). 24

4 The questionnaire instrument. 36

5 Items omitted for the questionnaire - teacher version. 37

6 Items re-written for the questionnaire - teacher version. 37

7 Number of classes and students at each level. 39

8 Description of participating teachers. 40

9 Consistency definitions for test-retest. 44

10 Items with statistically significant differences in Test-Retest 45

(p<.01).

11 Student questionnaire responses, Time 1, frequency of choices, 46

mean scores on individual items, and number of responses

(n= 661).

12 Mean and standard deviation for student questionnaire responses 48

at Time 1 (n=661) and for Sakui and Gaies (1999) (n=1296).

13 Items of strongest agreement for student questionnaire, Time 1. 50

Highest mean scores and percentage agreement.

14 Items of strongest disagreement for student questionnaire, 51

Time 1. Highest mean scores and percentage disagreement.

15 Items reworded for comparison. 51

16 The 20 strongest student beliefs, Time 1, mean scores and 52

percentages.

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Table Page

18 Teacher questionnaire responses, showing the number and 56

percentage response for each item, and the mean score.

19 Items with significant difference between teacher and student 58

responses at Time 1, in order of mean difference of response

score (p<.001).

20 Items with significantly different student responses between 60

Time 1 and Time 2, in order of mean diff. (n=504) (p<.01).

21 A sample of discussion group students’ comments. 62

22 Descriptions of TOEFL groups: size, range of score, mean, 64

and factor score for Factor 1.

23 Items of significant difference between Group A and Group B 64

mean response scores, and difference in group means (p<.01).

24 Comparison of 10 strongest reported beliefs at Time 1 with 69

Sakui & Gaies (1999).

25 A comparison of teacher scores with student scores for items 77

The beliefs of first year Japanese university students towards the learning of English