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Attitudes of Students of French Toward Required Language Study 1
Author(s) -
Morello Joseph
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
foreign language annals
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.258
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1944-9720
pISSN - 0015-718X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1944-9720.1988.tb01092.x
Subject(s) - foreign language , perception , curriculum , conviction , psychology , mathematics education , language assessment , positive attitude , language education , comprehension approach , attitude change , order (exchange) , pedagogy , social psychology , neuroscience , political science , law , finance , economics
The goal of this study is to examine the attitude of students who were about to complete the final course of their language requirement in order to determine their perception of the total requirement experience. The investigation focused on three areas: 1) whether or not students considered the language requirement a worthwhile experience, 2) whether or not their attitude toward the language requirement had improved during the time they spent in required courses, and 3) their attitude toward foreign language study as a part of a university curriculum. The results revealed that students have a much more positive attitude toward required language study than is generally believed and that a critical factor in this determination is their perception of their own progress toward mastery of the language. The majority of students also reported that their attitude toward the language requirement had improved during the time they had spent in required courses. Finally, students expressed a surprisingly strong conviction that the study of a foreign language should be a required part of a university education.