Attitudes toward learning basic English as a foreign language and linguistic competence in university students

The primary objective of this study was to analyze the relationship between university students’ attitudes toward learning Basic English as a foreign language (FL) and their corresponding level of linguistic competence at the Universidad Peruana Los Andes, Lima campus. The research followed a quantitative applied approach and adopted a nonexperimental, cross-sectional, descriptive, and correlational design. The sample consisted of 76 undergraduate students who completed a structured questionnaire serving as the main data collection instrument. This instrument had previously undergone expert validation, demonstrating sound content adequacy, and its internal consistency was confirmed through a satisfactory Cronbach’s Alpha coefficient. Descriptive results indicated a balanced distribution in students’ perceptions: 50% of participants expressed positive attitudes toward learning Basic English as an FL, while the remaining 50% reported negative or unfavorable attitudes. Concerning linguistic competence, the findings revealed notable variability among respondents. Specifically, 14.5% were categorized at a poor level, 46.1% at a fair level, 14.5% at a good level, and 25% achieved an excellent level of performance, reflecting heterogeneous proficiency within the sample. To examine the association between attitudes and linguistic competence, a Chi-square test was applied. The inferential results yielded significance values below the 0.05 threshold, which justified rejecting the null hypothesis and accepting the alternative hypothesis. Consequently, the study provides empirical evidence that students’ attitudes toward learning Basic English as an FL are statistically and meaningfully associated with their level of linguistic competence. These findings highlight the relevance of affective factors in second-language learning and underscore the need for instructional strategies that foster positive attitudes, motivation, and engagement, as these elements may contribute to improved learning outcomes and enhanced language proficiency among university learners.