1 MJAL 11:1 Winter 2019 ISSN 0974-8741 English Language Lecturers’ Beliefs about Teaching English Language Reading: The Case of Libyan Universities by 1. Ahmad Nazari and 2. Ahmed Zraga English Language Lecturers’ Beliefs about Teaching English Language Reading: The Case of Libyan Universities Ahmad Nazari Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Doha, Qatar (anazari@hbku.edu.qa ) Ahmed Zraga Al-zintan University, Al-zintan, Libya (ahmad.libya98@yahoo.co.uk ) Abstract Although the influence of teachers’ beliefs on their practices in the classroom has been well documented (Gilakjani & Sabouri, 2017), not much is known about teachers’ beliefs about EFL reading instructional techniques (Borg, 2015). Furthermore, no comprehensive studies have been carried out in the context of Libyan universities, where lecturers in English are non-native speakers of the language. The present study aims to fill this gap in the literature through an analysis of the beliefs that Libyan EFL lecturers hold. The results of a quantitative questionnaire completed by 273 lecturers revealed that the lecturers, who conceded that their approaches to teaching reading had not changed over the years, believed a bottom-up approach was the optimal way to teach this skill. The lecturers also stated that they depended on their own experience of learning reading and engaged in certain social activities as well to prepare themselves for teaching reading. Additionally, underlining the importance of teaching this skill to students at all university levels, they believed that a significant part of TEFL training courses should focus on how to teach reading. The findings of the study could be of benefit to both current and future EFL lecturers of reading and should also provide directions for further research in this field. Key words: university lecturers’ beliefs; teaching English language reading comprehension; approaches to teaching the reading skills; the role of experience in teaching reading; social construction of knowledge in teaching reading.