University Students' Beliefs and Attitudes Regarding Foreign Language Learning in France

Authors

  • Nathalie Piquemal
  • Robert Renaud

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18806/tesl.v24i1.31

Keywords:

Language education

Abstract

This study is based on a survey of 1,305 university students enrolled in English and other foreign-language classes across year levels in four major universities in France. It explores the factors that promote or hinder multilingualism, with special attention to the following questions: What are the beliefs and attitudes of students enrolled in various postsecondary institutions across France toward learning a foreign language? How do these beliefs and attitudes change as students progress from beginning first-year students to upper years? The results suggest that the reasons first-year students typically have for studying a foreign language have more to do with internal factors (e.g., personal attitude) than with external factoars (e.g., social value). Moreover, this trend becomes more pronounced with upper-year students whose motivation to learn a foreign language compared with that of first-year students is influenced less by perceived societal beliefs and more by intrinsic reasons.

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Published

2006-10-01

How to Cite

Piquemal, N., & Renaud, R. (2006). University Students’ Beliefs and Attitudes Regarding Foreign Language Learning in France. TESL Canada Journal, 24(1), 113–133. https://doi.org/10.18806/tesl.v24i1.31

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Section

Articles