Difficulties Jordanian Non-English Major University Students Face while Learning English as a Foreign Language: A Student Perspective

This study aimed at investigating the difficulties that Jordanian non-English major university students face while learning English as a foreign language. The sample of the study was consisted of (119) female and male students .It was chosen randomly from all the students of LC 111 at Yarmouk University in the first semester of the academic year 2011/2012.To answer the questions of the study, the researcher designed a questionnaire which consisted of 27 items related to three domains (content, instructor and student). The findings revealed that non-English major students face some difficulties. First, difficulties related to the instructors since they don’t follow the modern instructional methods while teaching English. Then, they face difficulties related to the course content since the focus is on grammar and vocabulary and not on the four skills of language. Besides, the subjects of the content of the course are not related to students' real-life situations. Finally, students face difficulties related to them since they are generally weak in English. Furthermore, the findings revealed that there are statistically significant differences in the difficulties that Jordanian University non - English language major students face while learning English due to the interaction between gender and college variables in favor to the students of the college of science.