In search of new insights: A study of first year college students' beliefs about the English language, their learning experiences, and the pragmatic purposes assigned by them to the language

The purpose of this study was to search for new insights into the teaching and learning of English in Puerto Rico. The study pretended to explore Puerto Rican English language learners' beliefs about this language, their beliefs about their learning experiences, and the beliefs about the pragmatic purposes assigned by them to this language. Beliefs about a given language are the constructs that the learner builds as a result of his/her experiences with the language in question and its learning experiences. It is understood that beliefs are dynamic and that they change as a consequence of new experiences.; Education practitioner research has emerged as a powerful tool for improving practice as a personal means of professional development. The methodology of this study was qualitative. The study was conducted as a classroom action research project, using ethnographic data collection and analysis techniques. The participants of the study were first year English learners from the University of Puerto Rico at Utuado.; The findings of this study suggest that bilingualism is highly valued as an educational goal by the participants. The participants believe that there is a great need to learn English in Puerto Rico; however, this need is assigned to specific purposes. It seems that the majority of these particular learners of English as a Second Language in Puerto Rico were not well motivated to learn the target language. The findings related to this study suggest that the learners tend to manifest an instrumental orientation for learning English. Related to the classroom action research theory, it seems to be that classroom action research does provide for the English language teachers' professional development.; A language planning procedure could involve English as Second Language teachers and other language specialists in creating viable language policies. Second language teachers should be encouraged to explore and examine the beliefs of the learners in their classrooms. This research area requires further immediate attention on the part of the parties concerned with the English language planning and teaching in Puerto Rico in the search for possible solutions to the language situation described in this study.