iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Candidate’s statement i
Acknowledgements ii
Abstract iii
Table of contents iv
List of abbreviations vi
List of tables vii
Part one: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale 1
2. The aim of the study 1
3. Scope and Significance of the study 2
4. Methods of the study 2
5. Organization of the study 2
Part two: DEVELOPMENT
Chapter 1: Literature Review
1.1. Concepts of Beliefs 4
1.1.1. The origin of Beliefs 4
1.1.2. Beliefs in Language Learning Study 5
1.1.3. Beliefs about Language Learning 6
1.2. Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) by Horwitz 7
1.3. Speaking Skill Assessment Criteria 11
1.4. Review of Previous Studies 12
Chapter 2: The Study
2.1. Research Questions 14
2.2. Subjects 14

v
2.3. Data Collection Instruments 14

vii

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Descriptive Statistics of Inventory Questionnaire.
Table 2: Descriptive Statistics of Theme A.
Table 3: Descriptive Statistics of Theme B
Table 4: Descriptive Statistics of Theme C
Table 5: Descriptive Statistics of Theme D
Table 6: Descriptive Statistics of Theme E
Table 7: Descriptive Statistics of Beliefs by Students’ Grades
Table 8: The Learning Records of Excellent and Average Students
Table 9: Comparison of Learning Records and Presentation Assessments
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performance. Moreover, the study recommends some implications for teaching English
speaking skill.
3. Scope and Significance of the study
This paper concentrates on finding beliefs of students in language learning,
especially in learning English speaking. Hence, it examines how students‟ beliefs affected
their speaking performance.
Furthermore, the research may be potential in equipping for modifying speaking
activities in the course book in a more flexible and creative way. By doing survey of
students‟ beliefs, the study might give teachers a profound insight into how to help
students studying English speaking skill effectively.
4. Methods of the study:
The present study was designed to use both quantitative and qualitative research
methods for the analysis. According to Patton (2002), each method has different
advantages and disadvantages. A quantitative research method can obtain broad,
generalizable findings while a qualitative research method can yield in-depth, detailed
information.
Two major complementary sources of data were used in the current study. The
distributions of a questionnaire of Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI)
(Horwitz, 1988) provided quantitative data. The presentations of the students about given
topic were used to elicit the qualitative data.
After collecting the distributions, the questionnaire data will be analyzed in order of
five themes of BALLI (Horwitz, 1988) so as to find out the beliefs of the students in
achieving a good speaking skill. The influence of students‟ beliefs on speaking
performance was examined via students‟ academic marks and their presentations.
5. Organization of the study
The study is organized as follows:
Part one: Introduction presents the rationale, the aim, the scope and significance, the
method and organization of the study.
3

superstitions as they were revealed by the persons' thoughts and feelings about their
learning" (Thomas & Harri-Augustein, 1983, p. 338). They concluded that beliefs about
learner capacity and personal models of their own processes were more central to
understanding the individuals' learning performances than universally accepted theories of
learning; these personal "myths" explained more about individual differences in learning
than such psychometric measures as intelligence or aptitude (Thomas & Harri-Augustein,
1983).
In cognitive psychology, learner beliefs about the nature of knowledge and
learning, or epistemological beliefs, have been investigated with the idea that they are part
of the underlying mechanisms of metacognition (Flavell, 1987; Ryan, 1984), form the
building blocks of epistemology (Goldman, 1986), and are a driving force in intellectual
performance. Psychologists have begun to acknowledge the pervasive influence of
personal and social epistemologies on academic learning, thinking, reasoning, and problem
solving (Schommer, 1993), persistence (Dweck & Leggett, 1988), and interpretation of
information (Ryan, 1984; Schommer, 1990).
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From this perspective, beliefs about language learning are viewed as a component
of metacognitive knowledge (Flavell, 1987), which include all that individuals understand
about themselves as learners and thinkers, including their goals and needs. Flavell (1979,
1981) emphasizes the study of meta-cognitive knowledge in second language learning and
focuses on the person. He calls this "person knowledge." Person knowledge is knowledge
learners have acquired about how cognitive and affective factors such as learner aptitude,
personality, and motivation may influence learning. In addition, it includes specific
knowledge about how the above factors apply in their experience.
1.1.2. Beliefs in language learning study
In a number of studies, the definition of beliefs is provided. Elaine Horwitz (1985),
one of the pioneer researchers of the studies on beliefs about language learning, refers to
“beliefs” using the terms such as preconceptions (1985), preconceived ideas (1987), and
preconceived notions (1988) without giving specific descriptions about the construct. In

and knowledge is that knowledge must actually be true in some external sense.” In relation
to behaviour “most definitions of belief propose that beliefs dispose or guide people‟s
thinking and action.”
Personally, beliefs are preconceptions which people have and believe in to study or
work better. To learn a language, students also have their own beliefs which are formed
differently. Some beliefs are influenced by students‟ previous (positive or negative)
experiences as language learners (Gaoyin & Alvermann, 1995), while other beliefs are
shaped by students‟ cultural background (Alexander & Dochy, 1995), family/home
background (Dias, 2001), and individual differences such as personality (Langston &
Sykes, 1997; Abraham & Vann, 1987; Furnham, Johnson & Rawles, 2002). Regardless of
their origin, attitudes to learning and the perceptions and beliefs which determine them
may have a profound influence on learning behavior (Cotterall, 1995), and may directly
influence or even determine a learner‟s attitude and motivation when learning the
language in (Riley 1996).
1.1.3. Beliefs about language learning
Some researchers viewed beliefs about language learning as a part of metacognitive
knowledge; however, Wenden (1998) claimed that in second and foreign language
literature, these two terms are used interchangeably to refer to the same construct. The
term, beliefs about language learning, were not clearly defined by researchers in previous
studies. It seems either that the researchers assumed that the term can be understood
intuitively or that the construct is too complex to be operationalized. In most studies, the
term, beliefs about language learning, is used as a known construct without providing
further explanation.
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Second language researchers believed that EFL/ESL learners bring their norms,
attitudes, perception and experiences into the learning task process and learning strategies
(Sakui, & Gaies, 1999). Language experts identified that during the process of learning
English as a second/ foreign language, students bring complex issues such as beliefs,
attitudes, norms and expectation into the course syllabus. Based on the related research,

gather the opinions of students learning French, German and Spanish at the University of
Texas at Austin. All the different versions of BALLIs employed a 5-point Likert scale
ranging from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”.
Questions in the BALLI were divided into groups according to their theme or topic.
Initially, Horwitz‟s BALLIs (1981, cited in Kuntz 1996a) comprised four themes, i.e. (1)
foreign language aptitude, (2) difficulty of language learning, (3) nature of language
learning, and (4) language learning strategies. Then Horwitz (1987) modified the fourth
theme to “learning and communication strategies” and added “motivation and expectation”
to her instrument. The final BALLI (1988) to assess beliefs about foreign language
learning had this structure. The first category of the BALLI „Foreign Language Aptitude‟
concerns the general existence of special ability for language learning. The second
category „Difficulty of language learning‟ concerns the general difficulty of learning a
foreign language. The third one „Nature of language learning‟ refers to relevant issues
related to the nature of language learning process. The forth theme of BALLI „Learning
and Communication Strategies‟ refers to various strategies learners use to master a foreign
language. The last category „Motivation and Expectation‟ concerns the desire and
expectation for language learning opportunities.
The concepts of the five themes of BALLI (Horwitz, 1988) were given generally in
the above paragraph since Horwitz did not develop the inventory to be used for EFL
students in particular. Most studies that were conducted in an EFL context, then, used the
ESL version of the inventory and modified it for their particular group of students. The
concepts of these themes could be elaborated more in some previous studies which also
presented the influences of these beliefs on language learning.
(A) Beliefs about Foreign Language Aptitude
The belief that some people have a special ability to learn foreign languages has
been discussed in a few studies as possibly having negative effects on learners‟ language
learning. However, little empirical evidence has been revealed. For instance, Horwitz
constantly discussed the negative effects of beliefs about foreign language aptitude in her
three studies (1985, 1987, and 1988). She argued that learners who believe in the existence
of foreign language aptitude but do not think that they themselves have it risk negative

(1999) found supporting evidence for Horwitz‟ claims about the effect of beliefs about
grammar instruction and vocabulary learning. Learners who agreed that learning a foreign
language is a matter of learning grammar rules were found to be less proficient in English
than those who believed otherwise. In another study (Peacock, 2001), he found significant
10

negative relationships between not only beliefs about learning grammar rules but also
beliefs about learning vocabulary and English proficiency.
(D) Beliefs about Learning and Communication Strategies
In this fourth category of the BALLI, several beliefs were found to be associated
with the use of several learning and communication strategies (Huang, 1997; Yang, 1999).
However, some beliefs have been discussed in terms of their negative influence on
learner‟s learning. These beliefs include beliefs about correct pronunciation and beliefs
about one‟s own self-confidence in speaking English. For beliefs about correct
pronunciation, Horwitz (1987) claimed that learners who reported these beliefs may not be
receptive to concepts of communicative approaches to language learning. However, no
empirical study has been conducted to explore the effect of these beliefs. In another study
(Horwitz, 1989) asserted that learners who are concerned about correctness in their
performance in language learning but do not have an ability to meet their own expectation
are likely to experience anxiety. Oh (1996) and Truitt (1995) did not find any significant
relationship.
Beliefs about self confidence in speaking, on the contrary, have been found to have
negative effects on learners‟ language learning. Horwitz and Cope (1986) found that
anxious foreign language students were not confident enough to speak the target language.
Similarly, Oh (1996) found a significant relationship between these beliefs and anxiety in
her study of Japanese learners. Kunt (1997) and Truitt (1995) also found similar
relationships in their EFL students. In these studies, the learners who reported lacking
confidence in speaking the target language tended to have high foreign language anxiety,
suggesting that these learners may not want to engage in practice activities because of their
high anxiety level and would not be able to develop their language skills fully.

sentences together in a connected way. Finally, the criteria suggested by the Royal Society
of Art (RSA) (Hughes A., 1989) include:

 Accuracy: Pronunciation still obviously influenced by L1 though clearly
intelligible. Grammatical/lexical accuracy is general high, though some errors
which do not destroy communication are acceptable.
 Appropriacy: Use of language generally appropriate to function. The overall
intention of the speaker is always clear.
 Range: A fair range of language is available to the candidate. He is able to express
himself without overtly having to search words.
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 Flexibility: Is able to take the initiative in a conversation and to adapt to new topics
or changes of direction – though neither of these may be consistently manifested.
 Size: Most contributions may be short, but some evidence of ability to produce
more complex utterances and to develop these into discourse should be manifested.
1.4. Review of Previous Studies
Research on the beliefs about language learning since Horwitz‟s pioneering study
in 1985 has shown that some of these beliefs held by learners have damaging effects on
their learning. Empirical evidence has been found in support of the assumptions about the
effects of beliefs about language learning on language learning success discussed earlier.
Low proficient and high proficient second and foreign language learners were found to
possess different beliefs about language learning in some aspects. To begin with, in her
study of American college students studying Japanese, Mori (1999) found significant
correlations between three beliefs and achievement (indicated by daily quizzes,
achievement exams, proficiency test, and course achievement). The findings reveal that
learners who performed well in the learning of Japanese are likely to 1) consider that
Japanese is not a difficult language 2) tolerate multiple, ambiguous answers and 3) believe
that learning ability is not innately fixed, but can be improved.
Similarly, Samimy and Lee (1997) found a relationship between some beliefs about

used to collect the students‟ beliefs with description of the questionnaire and the students‟
presentations. The last part of the chapter deals with the findings of the students‟ beliefs
and the influence of their beliefs on their speaking performance.
2.1. Research Questions:
This study was set up to answer the following questions:
1. What are the students‟ beliefs in speaking English?
2. How do their beliefs affect their speaking performance?
2.2. Subjects
The study involved in 40 English – major students of DHAV5 from Faculty of
Foreign Language at Ho Chi Minh University of Industry (HUI). Of the 40 students, 5 are
male and 35 are female aged from twenty to twenty - three. They all have finished their
second academic year and have been in the third year at university. Their English
proficiency was considered to be qualified as intermediate.
2.3 Data Collection Instruments
2.3.1. Questionnaire
The Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) to assess beliefs of
students learning foreign language (Horwitz, 1988) was adopted to collect student‟s beliefs
in speaking. However, the questionnaire included only 20 statements extracted from 34
statements of BALLI (Horwitz, 1988) (Appendix B) including item 2, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12,
13, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20, 23, 24, 26, 27, 31 and 34. These statements were selected due to its
involvement to speaking skill. Moreover, only 20 items extracted from 34 ones was to
create a simpler questionnaire to collect data and not too long for the forty – page thesis.
These 20 statements are grouped in five categories:
(A) The Foreign Language Aptitude (item 1, 6, 10 and 20)
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(B) The Difficulty of Language Learning (item 2, 16)
(C) The Nature of Language Learning (item 4, 7, 11, 14 and 17)
(D) Learning and Communication Strategies (item 3, 5, 8, 9, 12, and 13)
(E) Motivation and Expectation (item 15, 18, and19) 2. I believe that I will ultimately learn to speak this language very well. 3. It is important to speak a foreign language with an excellent accent.
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2.3.2. Observation and Note Taking
Observation and note taking were also applied in this study. Students were asked to
talk about a topic titled “Advantages and Disadvantages of Mobile Phone”. Their
presentations were taken notes for further assessment based on the criteria set of RSA
(Authur Hughes, 1989).
2.4. Data collection procedure
2.4.1. Questionnaire
The survey extracted from BALLI (Horwitz, 1988) was distributed to 98 subjects
of DHAV5 (including DHAV5A, DHAV5B, and DHAV5C) at the beginning of the
classes and with the author‟s attendance so that their needs for clarification of some words
as self-conscious or ultimately or accent could be met. It was carried in the mid of

Learning: (C) The Nature of Language Learning; (D) Learning and Communication
Strategies; (E) Motivation and Expectation. Section 2.5.2 discusses the relationship of the
students‟ beliefs and their speaking performances.
2.5.1. The Students’ Beliefs in Speaking Skill
The following table summarizes the results of all questionnaire items.
Table 1. Descriptive Statistics of Inventory Questionnaire
Results of questionnaire (N= 40)
Themes
Statements
5
4
3
2
1
Mean
LL Aptitude
Statement 1
15
20
2
3
0
4.1
Statement 6
0
6
20
14
0
2.8

Statement 16
4
13
15
8
0
3.32
Overall mean score

3.34
LL Nature
Statement 4
13
25
0
1
1
4.2
Statement 7
26
10
1
3
0
4.4
Statement 11
1
21
10
8

3
2
1
Mean
L & C Strategies
Statement 3
4
21
10
5
0
3.6
Statement 5
2
4
2
18
14
2.0
Statement 8
2
29
6
3
0
3.7
Statement 9
12
20
5

1
2
0
4.4
Statement 18
27
11
0
1
1
4.5
Statement 19
11
25
4
0
0
4.1
Overall mean score
4.38
5= strongly agree; 4= agree; 3= neither agree nor disagree; 2= disagree; 1= strongly disagree
(For more details see Appendix C)
As can be seen in the above table, the students scored the theme of Motivation and
Expectation to learning speaking skill with the highest mean score 4.38. This revealed that

Statements
5
4
3
2
1
Mean
Language
Learning
Aptitude
1. Some people are born with a special ability which
helps them learn a foreign language better.
15
20
2
3
0
4.1
6. It is easier for someone who already speaks a foreign
language to learn another one.
0
6
20
14
0
2.8
10. I have a foreign language aptitude.
0
5
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5
4
3
2
1
Mean
The Difficulty
of Language
Learning
2. I believe that I will ultimately learn to speak this
language very well.
3
15
15
0
7
3.35
16. It is easier to speak than understand a foreign
language.
4
13
15
8
0
3.32
5= strongly agree; 4= agree; 3= neither agree nor disagree; 2= disagree; 1= strongly disagree
(C) The Nature of Language Learning
The third category of The Nature of Language Learning includes issues related to
English learning which influence on students‟ speaking skill. Item 4 and item 7 concern the
role of cultural contact and language immersion in language achievement. Item 11, 14 and

4.2
7. It is better to learn a foreign language in the foreign
country.
26
10
1
3
0
4.4
11. Learning a foreign language mostly a matter of
learning many new vocabulary words.
1
21
10
8
0
3.3
14. Learning a foreign language is mostly a matter of
learning a many of grammar rules.
10
19
8
3
0
3.9
17. Learning a foreign language is mostly a matter of
translating from English
2
7
16

5
4
3
2
1
Mean
Learning and
Communication
Strategies
3. It is important to speak a foreign language with
an excellent accent.
4
21
10
5
0
3.6
5. You should not say anything in the foreign
language until you can say it correctly.
2
4
2
18
14
2.0
8. If I heard someone speaking language I am
trying to learn, I would go up to them so that I
could practice speaking the language.
2
29