Beliefs about Language Learning: A Study of International University Students Learning Turkish as a Second Language

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate university students’ beliefs about learning Turkish as a second language. Horwitz’s (1987) Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory was used as the primary measure of the study. International students studying at Eastern Mediterranean University participated in the study. The country origins of the students include Nigeria, Iraq, Pakistan, and Cambodia. Findings of this study indicated that Turkish as a second language (TSL) learners’ beliefs about language learning differed from those of ESL students in the United States (Horwitz, 1987), EFL students in Korea (Truitt, 1995), EFL and French students in Lebanon, and Turkish EFL students in North Cyprus. In addition, international TSL students had high levels of integrative motivation regarding Turkish culture.

Keywords

• Turkish as a second language learners
• Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory
• BALLI
• Teaching Turkish as a second language
• Nigerian language learners
• Iranian language learners
• Jordanian language learners
• Pakistani