Abstract

This mixed-method study aims to investigate Thai EFL undergraduate students’ attitudes toward general education English courses (i.e., curriculum, instruction, assessment, materials, and teachers), English language learning motivation, and the effects of attitudes on English language learning motivation. The participants were 199 non-majored students enrolling in compulsory English courses at a public Thai university. All were required to complete Likert-scale questionnaires, followed by focus group interviews with ten participants. Descriptive statistics showed that participants had highly positive attitudes toward general education English courses (M = 4.67, S.D. = .75) and high English language learning motivation (M = 4.41, S.D. = .59). This is in line with the qualitative data analysis that emphasized participants’ positive attitudes toward teachers and instruction. Teachers had a significant role in enhancing integrative motivation, apart from external factors such as university requirement or job opportunities. Multiple regression can be reported as F(5, 193) = 28.94, p = .000, with an R2 of .428. This means that five attitude subscales were able to explain 42.8 percent of the variability of English language learning motivation. Hence, it is possible to conclude that attitudes toward general education English courses have a significant moderate impact on English language learning motivation of Thai EFL undergraduate students.