In the field of second and foreign language learning, beliefs, as one of the affective factors, remain relatively unexplored. Failure to address unrealistic student beliefs and expectations may increase student anxiety (Truitt, 1995; Young, 1991), hinder progress, and ultimately lead to a breakdown in learning (Ellis, 1996; Horwitz, 1985, 1987, 1988; Mantle-Bromley, 1995; Peacock, 1999). This study investigates the beliefs about language learning of first year university students in Japan, employing the Japanese language questionnaire developed by Sakui and Gaies (1999). Two student discussion groups were also formed to provide further data. In addition to describing student beliefs, the study explores differences between student beliefs and teacher beliefs, change in student beliefs during a course of study, and relationships between student beliefs and second language proficiency. A total of 661 first year students, and 34 of their class teachers, participated in this study, at a private Japanese university, between April 2002 and January 2003. Data were analysed using Pearson correlation, Cronbach’s alpha, t-tests, and a principal components factor analysis. The students in the study appear to hold a variety of beliefs, to varying degrees. Significant differences were found between student responses and teacher responses for more than half of the questionnaire items, with the four main areas of difference relating to translation, error correction, the difficulty of language learning, and motivation. In terms of belief change, significant differences were found in student responses to almost a quarter of the questionnaire items between two administrations in April and December, 2002. Some differences were also identified between the beliefs of students based on their proficiency scores, but the results here are inconclusive. This study contributes to the growing understanding of the role of beliefs in language learning. Further studies of other student groups, at other institutions in Japan, will enable a comparison of results to help produce a clearer picture of the beliefs and expectations about language learning of students at Japanese universities.

Chronic stress can result in elevated circulating levels of glucocorticoid hormones in vertebrates, which can affect their stress response, their immune function, and eventually their fitness. I tested the effect of chronic corticosterone (CORT) elevation on the acute stress responsiveness, immune function, and body condition of free-living painted turtles (Chrysemys picta) in Gatineau Park, using slow-release exogenous CORT administration. While Silastic implants did not predictably elevate circulating CORT concentrations in painted turtles, injections of CORT-laden cocoa butter kept circulating levels elevated for up to 3 weeks, to concentrations likely physiologically and ecologically relevant for the species. I measured the acute CORT stress response, parasitaemia, heterophil-to-lymphocyte ratios, and total leukocyte counts after 1 week and 3 weeks, and determined body condition after 1 week, 3 weeks, and 1 year. Compared to sham and control turtles, I observed no effect of treatment on these hormonal, immune, and body condition metrics of stress, possibly because CORT mediates resource allocation only in the presence of additional immune or energy challenges, because of the masking effect of extrinsic factors, or because free, not total, CORT appears to be biologically active.

The aim of this study was to investigate the role that humanistic techniques play in reducing feelings of language anxiety associated with oral communication in the TESOL classroom. Students in the experimental group attended classes which incorporated humanistic techniques such as journal writing and group work and where the affective needs of the students were taken into account. Students in the control group were provided with the normal course content along more traditional lines and their affective needs were not taken into account. Language anxiety was measured by means of questionnaires, journals and interviews. The results revealed that general feelings of anxiety about oral communication decreased in the experimental group. The experimental group achieved higher scores in the final written examination although there was no significant difference in the oral examination results between the two groups. The drop-out rate in the experimental group was lower than that of the control group. / English Studies / M.A.

The aim of this study was to investigate the role that humanistic techniques play in reducing feelings of language anxiety associated with oral communication in the TESOL classroom. Students in the experimental group attended classes which incorporated humanistic techniques such as journal writing and group work and where the affective needs of the students were taken into account. Students in the control group were provided with the normal course content along more traditional lines and their affective needs were not taken into account. Language anxiety was measured by means of questionnaires, journals and interviews. The results revealed that general feelings of anxiety about oral communication decreased in the experimental group. The experimental group achieved higher scores in the final written examination although there was no significant difference in the oral examination results between the two groups. The drop-out rate in the experimental group was lower than that of the control group. / English Studies / M.A.

Learner beliefs, which contribute to attitude and motivation, may affect language learning. It is therefore valuable to investigate the malleability of learner beliefs, and to determine whether potentially detrimental beliefs can be ameliorated. This study examines how instruction of the principles of Second Language Acquisition (SLA) affects students' beliefs about classroom activities and their beliefs about language learning in general. The 68 first-year German students at Brigham Young University who participated in this study were asked to rate the effectiveness of three activities typical of communicative language teaching: Dialogue activities, Peer Interview activities, and Information-gap activities. They were also asked to respond to 11 statements about language learning, seven of which were taken from the Beliefs About Language Learning Inventory(Horwitz, 1988). Students responded to the survey three times: once during the first week of the semester, again during the fourth week, and again during the eighth week. During the four weeks between the second and third surveys, students in the experimental group received seven treatment lessons based on some of the basic principles of SLA. A Repeated Measures ANCOVA and a Logistical Regression were used to determine the effects of the treatment, time, and a number of demographic variables. Results of this study show that the treatment did not have a significant effect on any of the beliefs that were measured. However, one language learning belief was significantly affected by time. A majority of the students who participated in this study agreed with the statement, “The instructor should teach the class in German.” After three weeks of class instruction, however, they agreed with this statement significantly stronger. The results of this study also show that many of the demographic variables, such as gender and previous language learning experience, had a significant effect on a number of the students' beliefs.