Though there are many studies on reading and writing skills focusing on different dimensions, the relationship between the learning context and the development of reading and writing is an area needing further attention. This comparative case study was purposed to investigate the attitudes of two groups of language learners towards reading and writing based on their understandings of the relationship between the learning context and their reading and writing development. Selected by purposeful sampling, one group consisted of students learning English as a foreign language in Turkey, representing the foreign context group; and the other involved international students from different countries learning Turkish in Turkey, representing the target context group. The data were collected through open-ended questions and semi-structured interviews. The results obtained through content analysis revealed that while the foreign context group held positive views towards reading, they had almost-negative attitudes towards writing. The target context group, on the other hand, had positive attitudes towards both reading and writing. The results also pointed at some contextual factors influencing the attitudes of the participants towards these skills. Setting out from the results of this study, some practical suggestions are provided with an aim to promote effectiveness of reading and writing classes.