Parental Beliefs Regarding Children’s Native and English Language Acquisition: The Case of Northern Nigeria as a Multilingual Context

The research attempted to investigate the parental beliefs regarding their children’s native and English language acquisition in the context of multilingual Northern Nigeria. The study was conducted in Northern Nigeria involving 104 participants from Nasarawa State Polytechnic, Lafia Nasarawa State, Nigeria. The study used the mixed methods research where both quantitative and qualitative data were gathered through the use of Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI) questionnaire and semi-structured interview. Out of the total sample, 18 participants were randomly selected for the interview. Findings of this present study reveal that parental beliefs on their education and attitudes enhance their children’s English language acquisition. This research acquaints parents with information to adjust to their children’s native and English language acquisition and, would provide government with relevant knowledge to be used in adopting and implementing useful educational policies on children’s native and English language acquisition in the context of multilingual Northern Nigeria. Considering the coverage of this study conducted within just an institution, similar studies could be replicated in other parts of Northern Nigeria with more number of institutions at having greater number of participants. Keywords: English and indigenous language acquisition, Attitudes, Multilingualism, Bilingualism.