What Makes an Effective Language Learner? Translation and Interpreting Department Students’ Changing Perceptions over a 3-year Period

Abstract

This study aims to investigate perceptions of the students enrolled in the Department of Translation and Interpreting in relation to what makes an effective foreign language learner and explore the changes in these perceptions, if any, over a 3-year period. The participants were enrolled in prep year, first-year, and second-year at a state university located in southern Turkey. Data were collected from 12 students in the first year, 37 students in the second year, and 26 students in the third year of the study. The Repertory Grid Technique and interviews were utilized as data collection tools, which were administered on yearly basis over three years with a view to exploring the changes in students’ perceptions about what makes an effective foreign language learner during their education. Data were analyzed using Repertory Grid and content analysis methods. The results showed that students’ perceptions went through changes that indicated the washback effects of the exams as well as of the education in an English-major department.