Measuring attitude toward learning english as a second language: Design and validation of a scale
Measuring attitude toward learning english as a second language: Design and validation of a scale

Summary/Abstract: English is becoming increasingly important as a means of communication in universities around the world. More and more universities in non-English speaking countries are requiring that their students prove their level of English, either upon entering the university, or for graduation. This is the case in most private institutions of higher education in Mexico. Public universities in the country are also beginning to require English. Thus, many learners have an extrinsic, but not necessarily intrinsic, motivation to learn. That is, they decide to learn the language because they must, not because they want to. Considering that attitude and motivation have an important impact on language learning, the objective of this study was to develop an instrument to measure these two constructs. A scale was designed and validated to measure the following elements which make up attitude related to English language learning: self-confidence, motivation, commitment, importance, sense of belonging, and need for the language. To this end, surveys were applied to postgraduate students of the Universidad Cristóbal Colón Campus Calasanz. The study found that motivation to learn the language was an important factor, whereas self-confidence in one’s abilities was not.

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