Asian Journal of English Language Studies (AJELS) (Dec 2015)
The role of attitude, motivation, and language learning strategies in learning English as a Foreign Language among Vietnamese college students in Ho Chi Minh City
Abstract
This paper investigates the role of attitudes (positive and negative attitude), motivation (instrumental and integrative motivation), and language learning strategies (direct and indirect strategies) in learning English as a Foreign Language (EFL) among Vietnamese college students. The study involved 193 male and female freshman and sophomore college students majoring in English, Psychology, and Sociology in a university in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The study employed a mixed-method research design, namely quantitative and qualitative. The former consists of a survey design, which involved administering two different survey questionnaires: Attitude/Motivation Test Battery (AMTB) developed by Gardner (1995) to measure the attitudes and motivations toward EFL, and the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) developed by Oxford (1990) to measure language learning strategies. A semi-structured interview with 45 participants was also conducted to verify the veracity of the responses to the questionnaires. The results of the study revealed that Vietnamese EFL college students tend to have significant positive attitudes toward English, and they appear to be instrumentally and integratively motivated to learn the said language. Interestingly, the findings showed that there is a significant difference between males’ and females’ attitudes toward EFL; however, there is no significant difference found in motivation and language learning strategies between male and female students. Furthermore, the results revealed that at the p¬<.01 alpha level, there is a significant and positive correlation between language learning strategies and attitudes, and language learning strategies and motivation. By and large, the findings suggest that attitudes, motivation, and language learning strategies play an important role for Vietnamese EFL college students. This implies that the more positive attitude and the more positive motivation students have, the better language learning strategies they use in their own language learning.
