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Article published In:
Australian Review of Applied Linguistics
Vol. 44:3 (2021) ► pp.265–288

Identities and beliefs across time and space

A case study of a university student’s second language learning trajectory

ORCID logo | City University of Hong Kong

This paper presents a case study of a Hong Kong university student’s experiences of learning English as a second language (L2) over a four-year period, with particular attention to the changes in her identities and beliefs across time and space. Drawing on a narrative inquiry approach, the study revealed that the student’s L2 identities appeared to be shaped by specific contextual conditions and agentic choices made by the student in response to different contexts, including consultation sessions with native English-speaking tutors, study abroad in the U.S., interactions with non-native English-speaking peers, and classroom interactions. It was also found that her L2 identities and beliefs not only varied over time in a complex and dynamic manner, but also appeared to be closely interconnected and interacted with each other in a reciprocal and bi-directional manner. The case study points to the need to pay more attention to the complex and dynamic interrelationship between identity and belief in L2 learning trajectories.

Keywords: identity, belief, agency, second language learning, Hong Kong
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Theoretical background
    • 2.1Identity and L2 learning
    • 2.2Belief and L2 learning
    • 2.3Identity, belief, and L2 learning
  • 3.Methodology
    • 3.1Setting
    • 3.2Participant
    • 3.3Data collection
    • 3.4Data analysis
  • 4.Findings
    • 4.1Difficulties in constructing a positive L2 identity in interactions with visiting English tutors (Year 1)
    • 4.2Negotiating a shared non-native identity during volunteer service program (Year 2)
    • 4.3Negotiating an identity as a legitimate L2 speaker of English in an exchange program (Year 3)
    • 4.4Difficulties in constructing a desirable L2 identity upon return to Hong Kong from the exchange program (Year 4)
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusion
  • References
Published online: 31 July 2020
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/aral.19004.sun
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