Styles and Strategies-Based Language Instruction: Selected Bibliography
Compiled by Andrew D. Cohen
NOTE: Click the word "Annotation" for a pop-open annotation.
Abbot, M. L. (2006). ESL reading strategies: Differences in Arabic and Mandarin speaker test performance. Language Learning, 56(4), 633-670. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9922.2006.00391.x Annotation
This study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that reading comprehension items, which elicit specific bottom-up and top-down strategies, favor certain linguistic/cultural groups. Verbal report data were collected from Arabic- and Mandarin-speaking English as a second language (ESL) learners to identify the reading strategies involved in caing out 32 reading questions. Then a confirmatory approach to differential item functioning was used to determine whether bottom-up and top-down items functioned differentially for equal-ability Arabic and Mandarin ESL learners. Results revealed systematic group performance differences in four bottom-up and three top-down strategy categories. Items involving breaking a word into smaller parts, scanning, paraphrasing, and matching were found to favor Mandarin speakers, whereas items involving skimming, connecting, and inferring were found to favor Arabic speakers./j.1467-9922.2006.00391.x
Abraham, R. G., & Vann, R. J. (1996). Using task products to assess second language learning processes. Applied Language Learning, 7(1-2), 61-89.
Aebersold, J. A., & Field, M. L. (1997). From reader to reading teacher: Issues and strategies for second language classrooms. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Annotation
This text is a self-contained, student-centered methods text that connects reading theory to practical classroom activities. The paperback edition, ideal for introductory courses on the teaching of second language reading, connects reading theory to practical classroom activities. Teachers begin by exploring their beliefs and assumptions about reading and analyzing their own reading strategies. This leads to a critical examination of the pedagogical issues central to the reading classroom, including selecting appropriate activities and effective lesson planning.
Akbari, R., & Hosseini, K. (2008). Multiple intelligences and language learning strategies: Investigating possible relations. System, 36(2), 141-155. Annotation
The present study was conducted to investigate the existence of any possible relationship between the use of language learning strategies and multiple intelligences’ scores of foreign language learners of English. Ninety subjects participated in the study. To measure the participants’ multiple intelligence scores, MIDAS, a commercially designed instrument, was used. Learners’ strategy use was checked through SILL, Strategy use Inventory for Language Learning. The correlational analysis of the results indicated significant relations between the use of language learning strategies and IQ scores of the learners. Musical intelligence, however, did not correlate with any aspect of strategy use, and kinesthetic intelligence correlated only with memory learning strategies.
Akyel, A., & Ercetin, G. (2009). Hypermedia reading strategies employed by advanced learners of English. System, 37, 136-152. Annotation
This study investigated the strategies used by advanced learners of English while reading a hypermedia document in order to determine whether they are essentially different from those reading strategies reported in the literature for printed texts. Moreover, the role of prior knowledge about the topic was explored in relation to strategy use. Data were collected from 10 advanced learners of English through think-aloud protocols. The strategies that emerged from the data were compared with those reported by Anderson [Anderson, N.J., 1991. Individual differences in strategy use in second language reading and testing. The Modern Language Journal 75, 460–472] for reading printed texts. Moreover, the strategies used by high prior knowledge and low prior knowledge participants were compared. Results indicate that processing strategies used by advanced learners of English in hypermedia reading are not essentially different from those reported for printed texts. However, certain processing strategies are not used in hypermedia reading. Moreover, strategies used in utilizing annotations and navigating through the text were identified. Finally, readers with high prior knowledge used certain cognitive and metacognitive strategies more frequently. However, low prior knowledge readers were able to compensate for their lack of prior knowledge by using annotations that provided background information about the topic and by navigating through the text in a coherent manner.
Alhaqbani, A., & Riazi, M. (2012). Metacognitive awareness of reading strategy use in Arabic as a second language. Reading in a Foreign Language, 24(2), 231-255. Retrieved from http://nflrc.hawaii.edu/rfl/October2012/articles/alhaqbani.pdf Annotation
This paper reports a study that investigated university students’ awareness of their reading strategy use when they read Arabic academic texts. One hundred and twenty-two undergraduate L2 Arabic students mostly from Africa and Asia completed a 30-item survey of reading strategies. Results indicated that these students perceived problem-solving reading strategies to be more useful than global and support strategies. Moreover, a statistically significant relationship was found between participants’ self- rated Arabic reading ability and their overall strategy use (r = 0.233), problem-solving strategies (r = 0.236), and global strategies (r = 0.239). Finally, it was found that African background students reported more global strategy use than Asian background students, and junior and senior students reported consistently higher strategy use in all the three strategy categories compared to the first and second year students. Findings are discussed in light of the reading strategy knowledge base as well as the theoretical and practical implications.
Allen, S. (2003). An analytic comparison of three models of reading strategy instruction. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 41(4), 319-338. Annotation
This article compares three models or approaches for reading strategy instruction: The reciprocal teaching approach, transactional strategy instruction, and the cognitive academic language learning approach. These models have been used with many different age groups and with native language (L1) and/or second and foreign language (L2) learners. The comparison is based on the types of individuals who designed the approach, their primary theoretical orientation, major purpose of the approach, the research hypothesis underlying the approach, typical research designs and strategy instruction practices, and variables of greatest interest. The article includes crucial definitions of learning strategies and reading strategies and an extensive bibliography of sources.
Alnufaire, M., & Grenfell, M. (2012). EFL students’ writing strategies in Saudi Arabian ESP writing classes: Perspectives on learning strategies in self-access language learning. Studies in Self-access Learning Journal, 3, 407-422. Retrieved from http://sisaljournal.files.wordpress.com/2009/12/alnufaie_grenfell.pdf Annotation
This study was part of a PhD research to explore the writing strategies of 121 second-year undergraduate Saudi student writers who are studying English as a foreign language and for specific purposes in one of the Saudi industrial colleges: Jubail Industrial College (JIC). The writing strategies under investigation had been classified into two categories (process-oriented writing strategies and product-oriented writing strategies) based on their instructional philosophies. A strategy questionnaire was designed to collect data. Although JIC writing classes were assumed to be product-oriented as reported by the majority of the participants’ description of their teachers’ writing approach, the results showed that almost all of the participants (95.9%) were mixing the two kinds of strategies. More surprisingly, the top five writing strategies used by the participants were process-oriented.
Anderson, N.J. (1989). Reading comprehension tests versus academic reading: What are second language readers doing? (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX.
Anderson, N.J. (1999). Exploring second language reading: Issues and strategies. Boston: Heinle & Heinle.
Anderson, N. J. (1991). Individual differences in strategy use in second language reading and testing. Modern Language Journal, 75(4), 460-472.
Anderson, N.J. (2005). L2 learning strategies. In Hinkel, E. (Ed.). Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning, 1 (pp.757-776).Mahwah, N.J. L. Erlbaum Associates. Annotation
This landmark volume provides a broad-based, state-of-the-art overview of current knowledge and research into second language teaching and learning. Fifty-seven chapters are organized in eight thematic sections:
- social contexts of second language learning;
- research methodologies in second-language learning, acquisition, and teaching;
- contributions of applied linguistics to the teaching and learning of second language skills;
- second language processes and development;
- teaching methods and curricula;
- issues in second or foreign language testing and assessment;
- identity, culture, and critical pedagogy in second language teaching and learning; and
- important considerations in language planning and policies.
Anderson, N.J. (2008). Metacognition and good language learners. In. C. Griffiths (ed.) Lessons from good language learners (pp. 99-109). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Annotation
This edited collection provides a comprehensive overview of the area of successful language learning strategies and reviews the literature and research on this subject to date. The book provides a reference base, addresses theoretical issues and considers pedagogical implications. It identifies gaps in our current understanding and suggests useful research initiatives and it considers how all of this relates to successful language learning by unique individuals in a variety of situations. The book is divided into 2 sections: the first deals with learner variables and has chapters on such topics as age, culture, motivation, personality and aptitude. The second covers learning variables such as vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, reading and listening. The writers include many well-established names such as Anna Chamot, Paul Nation and Andrew Cohen as well as some of the best representatives of the new generation of applied linguists.
Anderson, N. J. (2008). Practical English language teaching: Reading. New York: McGraw-Hill. Annotation
The book is intended to assist beginning teachers in the teaching of L2 reading. It starts out by looking at what reading is and what it means for learners to be strategic readers. Then it focuses on what beginning-level reading (in and outside the classroom) entails. Chs. 3 and 4 respectively look at intermediate- and advanced-level learners. Ch. 5 is on key issues in teaching reading (p. 131 ff). He provides Bamford’s, Erler’s, Grabe’s, and Stoller’s list of priorities for teaching reading -- an interesting approach. The appendices (p. 157 ff) provide copies of the Mokhtari & Sheorey (2002) and its online adaptation by Anderson. It then provides the set of questionnaires for managing one’s own learning (developed at the University of Hawai’i by Riley & Harsch, 2007).
Anderson, N. J., & Vandergrift, L. (1996). Increasing metacognitive awareness in the L2 classroom by using think-aloud protocols and other verbal report formats. In R.L. Oxford (Ed.), Language learning strategies around the world: Cross-cultural perspectives (pp. 3-18). (Technical Report #13). Honolulu: Second language Teaching and Curriculum Center, University of Hawaii Press.
Auerbach, E. R., & Paxton, D. (1997). "It’s not the English thing": Bringing reading research into the ESL classroom. TESOL Quarterly, 31(2), 237-261.
Bailey, K. M. (1991). Diary studies of classroom language learning: The doubting game and the believing game. In E. Sadtono (ed.), Language acquisition and the second/foreign language classroom (pp. 60-102). Singapore: SEAMEO Regional Language Center.
Bailey, K. M., & Ochsner, R. (1983). A methodological review of the diary studies: Windmill tilting or social science? In K. M. Bailey, M. H. Long, and S. Peck (Eds.), Second language acquisition studies (pp. 188-198). Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Barcroft, J. (2009). Strategies and performance in intentional L2 vocabulary learning. Language awareness, 18(1), 74-89. doi:10.1080/09658410802557535 Annotation
This study was designed to identify strategies used during intentional vocabulary learning and to assess the relationship between strategy use and vocabulary learning performance. English-speaking students of Spanish studied new Spanish words while viewing word-picture pairs. The participants then completed posttests and answered questions about their strategy use. Their responses were coded to identify each participant's most frequently used strategy (MFS). Frequency of use of each MFS was determined. A subset of posttest scores were submitted to an analysis of variance with MFS as a between-subjects independent variable, recall type as a within-subjects independent variable, and score as the dependent variable. The results indicated significantly better scores for mnemonic technique and L2-picture association over L2-L1 translation and repetition. A significant positive correlation was also observed between the number of strategies used and vocabulary recall. Theoretical and pedagogical implications of the study are discussed. Sample activities for raising awareness about L2 vocabulary learning strategies and effective strategy use are also provided in the Appendix.
Bedell, D. A., & Oxford, R. (1996). Cross-cultural comparisons of language learning strategies in the People's Republic of China and other countries. In Oxford, R. (Ed), Language learning strategies around the world: Cross-cultural perspectives, 13. Honolulu: SLTCC, University of Hawai'i.
Bedell, D. A., & Oxford, R. L. (1996). Cross-cultural comparisons of language learning strategies in the People's Republic of China and other countries. In R.L. Oxford (Ed.), Language learner strategies around the world: Cross cultural perspectives (pp. 47-60). Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, Second Language Teaching & Curriculum Center.
Blanco, M., & Guisado, J. J. (2012). Exploring the listening process to inform the development of strategy awareness-raising materials. The Language Learning Journal, 40(2), 223-236. Annotation
This article reports on a small-scale qualitative study aimed at exploring the listening process in a group of Spanish beginners in a UK higher education context. The specific aim of the study was to inform the development of materials for listening strategy awareness-raising activities. The exploration was focused on identifying (a) strategies used by the students in listening coursework tasks, (b) easy and difficult aspects of the tasks, and (c) affective responses to the tasks. The participants in the study were students whose overall course performance was judged to be excellent. Data were collected through one-to-one stimulated recalls, and transcripts were coded mainly using taxonomies found in the literature. The findings revealed a good number of strategies, self-management processes and additional factors influencing the students’ listening process. In addition, the findings provided insights into the enjoyment and frustration experienced by students when working on listening tasks. Pedagogical applications of the findings are discussed.
Blanco, M., Pino, M., & Rodriguez, B. (2010). Implementing a strategy awareness raising programme: strategy changes and feedback. The Language Learning Journal, 38, 51-65. Annotation
This article reports on a collaborative action research study carried out on three groups of Spanish beginners during the implementation of a strategy awareness raising programme (SAR). The objective was to analyse the impact of the SAR programme on the students' learning process in three main areas: strategy awareness, strategy use in learning Spanish, and transfer of strategies from Spanish to other subjects. In addition, feedback on the programme was sought from the students. The study involved the use of mixed methods combining self-report and observational data. The triangulated data were collected through a semi-structured questionnaire, interviews and the lecturer's observation journal. Findings revealed significant changes in strategy awareness, strategy use and strategy transfer reported by students, and positive feedback on the programme given by students and lecturer. It is, therefore, argued that these findings illustrate some of the potential benefits of strategy awareness raising programmes, and further development, implementation and research into similar programmes are recommended.
Block, D. (1997). Learning by listening to language learners. System, 25(3), 347-360. Annotation
I begin this paper by describing my personal version of the action research begin this paper by describing my personal version of the action research cycle. I then describe two of my own research experiences to make the point that when we carry out research which involves listening to language learners, we can learn in two very different but equally important ways. First we learn something about the research question we are exploring. Second, we learn something about how to better carry out research.
Block, E. (1986). The comprehension strategies of second language readers. TESOL Quarterly, 20(3), 463-494.
Breen, M. P. (2001). Learner contributions to language learning: New directions in research. Harlow, England: Longman.
Brown, H. D. (1989). A practical guide to language learning: A fifteen-week program of strategies for success. New York: McGraw-Hill. Annotation
Based on empirical research, each chapter highlights strategies that students need to pay attention to while they are studying a foreign language and contains a series of practical activities. The strategies include: goal-setting, developing self-confidence,
calculated risk-taking,
cooperative learning, and resisting direct translation to L1. The book can be used to supplement a language course. (75 pp.)
Brown, H. D. (1991). Breaking the language barrier: Creating your own pathway to success. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press, Inc. Annotation
Using a series of short assessment tools, learners can begin to self-diagnose their learning style preferences, language learning attitudes, and language processing skills. The book provides real-world examples to describe the language learning process in an informal way and can be an excellent introduction to learning strategies. (184 pp.)
Brown, H. D. (2002). Strategies for success. White Plains, NY: Longman/Pearson Education. Annotation
This book is for ESL learners covering the following in short chapters: learning-style preferences, right and left brain, motivation, self-confidence and lowering anxiety, taking risks, language-learning IQ, first language influence, learning a second culture, learning strategies, group strategies, and test-taking strategies. Every chapter has a questionnaire to help learners get into the issues. Exercises are included for practicing language skills.
Bruen, J. (2001). Strategies for success: Profiling the effective learner of German. Foreign Language Annals, 34(3), 216-225. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2001.tb02403.x Annotation
Teachers and learners are often uncertain about the processes at work when students attempt to acquire oral skills in a foreign language. The primary objective of this study is to identify the language-learning strategies associated with the achievement of higher levels of oral proficiency in German for 100 Irish students about to complete their second year at Dublin City University. It also investigates the way in which these strategies are used by those with higher and lower levels of proficiency. The methodology combines quantitative assessment (using questionnaires)with in-depth, qualitative interviews. The article begins by explaining key concepts in the field of language learning strategy research and then reviews a selection of relevant studies. An experiment designed to achieve the above objectives is then described. The results indicate that more-proficient students use more language-learning strategies, in particular more cognitive and metacognitive strategies. Furthermore, ten. strategies correlate with higher levels of oral proficiency at a significant level. These provide a tentative strategic profile of the more effective learner of German. Finally, the qualitative findings suggest that more-proficient students use language-learning strategies in a more structured and purposeful manner and apply them to a wider range of situations and tasks. Finally, implications for future research and for the language classroom are discussed.
Bull, S. (1997). Promoting effective learning strategy use in CALL. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 10(1), 3-39. doi:10.1080/0958822970100102 Annotation
This paper presents research in the area of language learning strategies, focusing on both general research and the treatment of learning strategies in CALL. Despite a recent interest in the subject of learning strategies in language learning, few CALL programs include a treatment of this issue. A small number which do consider this aspect are described, and although some are useful in this regard, most include only a limited view of learning strategies. The learning strategies component of Mr. Collins, a system aimed at promoting learners' awareness of their knowledge and approaches to learning, is presented. Research on language learning strategies demonstrates that this is an important issue; the implementation of Mr. Collins shows that detailed consideration of learning strategies in CALL is feasible.
Carrier, K. A. (2010). Improving high school English language learners’ second language listening through strategy instruction. Bilingual Research Journal, 27(3), 383–408. doi:10.1080/15235882.2003.10162600 Annotation
High school English language learners need strong oral comprehension skills for access to oral content in their academic classes. Unfortunately, instruction in effective listening strategies is often not part of their English as a Second Language (ESL) curriculum. This study tested the hypothesis that targeted listening strategy instruction in the ESL classroom results in improved listening comprehension that can be useful in English language learners' academic content classes. After receiving 15 listening strategy training sessions, participants showed a statistically significant improvement in discrete and video listening ability, as well as note-taking ability. This study suggests that targeted listening strategy instruction should be part of the ESL curriculum. Sources for designing and implementing effective listening strategy instruction are provided, and research needs and designs are suggested.
Carson, J.G., & Longhini, A. (2002). Focusing on learning styles and strategies: A diary study in an immersion setting. Language Learning, 52(2), 401-438. doi:10.1111/0023-8333.00188 Annotation
This diary study focuses on the second language learning styles and strategies of the diarist/researcher in a naturalistic setting, utilizing categories from Oxford's (1990) Strategy Inventory for Language Learning and the Style Analysis Survey. The analysis of diary entries indicates that the learner's learning style remained relatively constant throughout her time in the language immersion situation, but her strategies, while consistent with her learning style, were more variable over time. The total of indirect strategies used (58%) was higher than the total of direct strategies (42%), with the most frequently used strategies being those in the metacognitive group. The diarist's learning style appeared to influence her use of learning strategies.
Catalan, R.M.J. (2003). Sex differences in L2 vocabulary learning strategies. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 13(1), 54-77. doi:10.1111/1473-4192.00037 Annotation
This article reports the results of a descriptive study on sex differences in the use of a second language. A questionnaire was administered to 581 Spanish-speaking students learning Basque and English as L2 (279 males and 302 females) in order to answer these questions: Do male and female second language learners differ in (1) the number and (2) the range of vocabulary strategies they use? The results show that they differ significantly in the number of strategies used. Regarding the range of vocabulary strategies, 8 out of the 10 most frequent strategies are shared by males and females. However, a close analysis of the data also reveals differences, such as females’ greater use of formal rule strategies, input elicitation strategies, rehearsal strategies and planning strategies, and males’ greater use of image vocabulary learning strategies. In addition, the females’ total strategy usage percentages are higher than the males’, which points to either different perceptions of vocabulary learning behaviors or different patterns of vocabulary strategy usage for males and females.
Chamot, A. U. (1987). The learning strategies of ESL students. In A. Wenden & J. Rubin (Eds.), Learner strategies in language learning (pp. 71-83). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice/Hall International.
Chamot, A. U. (2001). The role of learning strategies in second language acquisition. In M. P. Breen (Ed.), Learner contributions to language learning: New directions in research (pp. 25-43). London: Longman.
Chamot, A.U. (2004). Issues in language learning strategy research and teaching. Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching, 1, 14-26. Retrieved from http://e-flt.nus.edu.sg/v1n12004/chamot.pdf Annotation
Learning strategies are the thoughts and actions that individuals use to accomplish a learning goal. Extensive research has identified the learning strategies used by students of a variety of second and foreign languages and a somewhat smaller body of research has documented the effectiveness of helping less successful language students improve their performance through learning strategy instruction. This article discusses current issues in language learning strategy research that affect teachers and learners of foreign languages. These issues include: identification procedures of learning strategies, terminology and classification of strategies, the effects of learner characteristics on strategy use, the effects of culture and context on strategy use, explicit and integrated strategy instruction, language of instruction, transfer of strategies to new tasks, and models for language learning strategy instruction. These eight issues are explored through a discussion of existing research that illumines the issues. Suggestions are presented for future research on issues that have not yet been thoroughly explored.
Chamot, A. U. (2008). Strategy instruction and good language learners. In C. Griffiths (Ed.), Lessons from good language learners (pp. 266-281). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Annotation
The author starts by describing language learning strategies. She then presents a helpful summary of models for strategy instruction. She then gives the implications for the teaching and learning situation with regard to the influence of culture and context, explicit vs. implicit and integrated vs. discrete strategy instruction, language of instruction, and transfer of strategies to new tasks. She ends with questions for ongoing research.
Chamot, A. U. (2009). The CALLA handbook: Implementing the cognitive academic language learning approach. Second Edition. New York: Pearson Longman. Annotation
This popular and accessible handbook provides practical, research-based instructional guidelines for implementing CALLA (Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach), for elementary and secondary teachers of English language learners. The book includes descriptions and examples for each component of CALLA: Using content area standards, Developing academic language and Teaching learning strategies. There are four separate chapters with ideas for teaching literacy, mathematics, science and history using this approach. Reproducible lesson plans and activities for using the model are included as well. The second edition features an updated theoretical framework of CALLA and a more comprehensive analysis of the CALLA instructional sequence to help teachers plan and differentiate instruction.
Chamot, A. U. (2011). Preparing language teachers to teach learning strategies. In W. M. Chan, K. N. Chin, & T. Suthiwan (Eds.), Foreign language teaching in Asia and beyond: Current perspectives and future directions (pp. 29-44). Boston: De Gruyter Mouton.
Chamot, A. U., Anstrom, K., Bartoshesky, A., Belanger, A., Delett, J., Karwan, V., Meloni, C., & Keatley, C. (2003). The elementary immersion learning strategies resource guide. Washington, D.C.: National Capital Language Resource Center. Available from CARLA website: https://carla.umn.edu/immersion/documents/eils-guide.pdf Annotation
Ch. 1: "Language Learning Strategies," defines and describes learning strategies. It includes a chart of twenty learning strategies and their definitions that is followed by more detailed descriptions and examples of the strategies.
Ch. 2: "Teaching Students to Think about Learning," explains Strategic Thinking. It also describes how to use strategic thinking to organize strategies and presents ways to introduce it to elementary-school students.
Ch. 3: "Teaching Learning Strategies," presents the principal elements and theoretical organization of learning strategies instruction using the teaching sequence identified in the Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (CALLA) framework (Chamot & O’Malley, 1994). It also shows teachers how to write a learning strategies lesson based on the CALLA model. This model is a language and content learning approach that incorporates learning strategies instruction.
Ch. 4: "The Scope and Sequence for Learning Strategies Instruction," outlines the purpose and development of the scope and sequence for learning strategies instruction in the elementary immersion setting. It then suggests ways to use the scope and sequence as a guide for selecting and sequencing strategies to introduce to students at each grade level, and how they can be used to enhance learning in the different content areas.
Ch. 5: "Sample Learning Strategies Lessons," contains lesson plans that can be adapted to fit individual classroom needs. Designed jointly by elementary immersion teachers and NCLRC staff, the lessons illustrate learning strategies instruction for a wide variety of grade levels, languages, and subject areas.
Ch. 6: "A Review of the Literature on Language Learning Strategies Instruction," includes a short review of the literature on language learning strategies.
Ch. 2: "Teaching Students to Think about Learning," explains Strategic Thinking. It also describes how to use strategic thinking to organize strategies and presents ways to introduce it to elementary-school students.
Ch. 3: "Teaching Learning Strategies," presents the principal elements and theoretical organization of learning strategies instruction using the teaching sequence identified in the Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (CALLA) framework (Chamot & O’Malley, 1994). It also shows teachers how to write a learning strategies lesson based on the CALLA model. This model is a language and content learning approach that incorporates learning strategies instruction.
Ch. 4: "The Scope and Sequence for Learning Strategies Instruction," outlines the purpose and development of the scope and sequence for learning strategies instruction in the elementary immersion setting. It then suggests ways to use the scope and sequence as a guide for selecting and sequencing strategies to introduce to students at each grade level, and how they can be used to enhance learning in the different content areas.
Ch. 5: "Sample Learning Strategies Lessons," contains lesson plans that can be adapted to fit individual classroom needs. Designed jointly by elementary immersion teachers and NCLRC staff, the lessons illustrate learning strategies instruction for a wide variety of grade levels, languages, and subject areas.
Ch. 6: "A Review of the Literature on Language Learning Strategies Instruction," includes a short review of the literature on language learning strategies.
Chamot, A. U., Barnhardt, S., El-Dinary, P. B., & Robbins, J. (1999). The learning strategies handbook. White Plains, NY: Addison-Wesley Longman.
Chamot, A. U., & O'Malley, J. M. (1994). The CALLA handbook: Implementing the cognitive academic language learning approach. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley. Annotation
The primary scope of this book is the incorporation of learning strategies into content-based language curricula, based on theories and research from the field of educational psychology. By providing numerous examples of lesson plans and activities across many subject areas, it provides a clear and practical approach to strategies instruction and assessment. (340 pp.)
Chang, A. C.-S. (2007). The impact of vocabulary preparation on L2 listening comprehension, confidence and strategy use. System, 35(4), 534-550. Annotation
Building on previous studies of the effects of planning on second language learners’ (L2) oral narratives and writing, this research reports an investigation of the effects of vocabulary preparation prior to a listening comprehension test on L2 learners’ vocabulary performance, listening comprehension, confidence levels and strategy use. The participants were given three different lengths of preparation time to study new vocabulary that would be heard in a listening text. The instruments involved a vocabulary test, a listening comprehension test, and a questionnaire to elicit their confidence levels and strategy use. A semi-structured interview was conducted immediately after the test. The results show that though a consistent pattern was found for the tests of vocabulary and listening comprehension (the more preparation time they had, the higher score they achieved) significant differences between groups were detected only in the vocabulary test but not in the listening comprehension test. In relation to the level of confidence and strategy use, the group with 30-min preparation showed the highest levels of confidence and more strategy use, followed by the group given 1-week preparation. It is concluded that allowing students to study vocabulary before a test could improve their vocabulary knowledge and confidence but not their listening comprehension. In the light of students’ responses in the questionnaire and reports in their interviews, the paper discusses a few problems participants had studying the vocabulary and suggestions are made for the teaching of listening.
Chang, M.-M. (2005). Applying self-regulated learning strategies in a web-based instruction: An investigation of motivation perception. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 18(3), 217-230. doi:10.1080/09588220500178939 Annotation
The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of self-regulated learning strategies on learners' perception of motivation within web-based instruction. In this study, self-regulated learning strategies, which were intended to assist students to self-observe and self-evaluate their effectiveness, were incorporated into a one-semester web-based course to help students improve their learning motivation. Research results revealed that students' motivation perception benefited from the web-based instruction with self-regulated learning strategies. Students learning within a web-based environment with self-regulated learning strategies became more responsible for their own learning, more intrinsically orientated and more challengeable. They tended to value the learning material more and became more confident in course understanding and class performance.
Chen, Y. (2007). Learning to learn: The impact of strategy training. ELT Journal, 61(1), 20-29. doi:10.1093/elt/ccl041 Annotation
Most studies evaluating the effectiveness of strategy training for L2/FL learners have been product-oriented, i.e. they have quantitatively measured improvements in learners' test scores following the completion of a strategy training programme. However, such evaluation methods are only partial, and they must be supplemented by a qualitative analysis of the impact that strategy training has on the learning process. The aim of this study is to discover potential criteria for such qualitative evaluation. This study suggests four dimensions which may be included in these criteria: (1) externally observable changes in learners' behaviour (for example, learners' choice of higher level materials), (2) changes in learners' internal learning processes, (3) strategy-specific changes in learners' approach to FL study (for example, the development of individualized strategy repertoire), and (4) general changes in attitudes towards FL learning. Following a discussion of these four dimensions, a model is proposed to illustrate the relationship among them.
Chern, C.-L. (1993). Chinese students' word-solving strategies in reading in English. In Huckin, T., Haynes, M., & Coady, J. (Eds.), Second language reading and vocabulary learning (pp. 67-85). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
Clément, R., Dörnyei, Z., & Noels, K. (1994). Motivation, self-confidence and group cohesion in the foreign language classroom. Language Learning, 44(3), 417-448.
Cohen, A. D. (2003). The learner’s side of foreign language learning: Where do styles, strategies, and tasks meet? International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching 41(4), 279-291. doi:10.1515/iral.2003.013 Annotation
This article focuses on the links between general style preferences and specific strategy choices, and then relates these two variables to tasks, in the sense that different tasks may evoke the use of different strategies. The article starts by defining learning style preferences, language learning and use strategies, and language tasks. Then the intersection of styles, strategies, and tasks is considered from a theoretical perspective. After a brief review of research literature linking styles, strategies, and tasks, a series of four hypothetical task situations are described, suggesting ways that learners with different style and strategy preferences might respond. The purpose of the article is to suggest ways in which teachers can support learners in their efforts to be more effective at language learning and language use.
Cohen, A. D. (1990). Language learning: Insights for learners, teachers, and researchers. New York: Newbury House/Harper and Row. Annotation
Each of the first six chapters provides numerous examples for the reader to practice the strategies presented (for vocabulary, speaking, reading, and writing) and the rest of the book consists of a survey of the language learning strategy research. The book contains many practical suggestions for enhancing the learning process. (217 pp.)
Cohen, A. D. (1996). Second language use and strategies: Clarifying the issues. (CARLA Working Paper Series #3). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition. Retrieved from /about/profiles/CohenPapers/SBIimpact.pdf Annotation
This paper considers five problematic issues that have arisen in dealing with language learning strategy terminology: the distinction between the term strategy and other terms, the issue of whether learning strategies need to be conscious in order to be referred to as strategies, criteria for classifying language learning and use strategies, a broadening of the concept of strategic competence, and the linking of learning strategies.
Cohen, A. D. (1997). Developing pragmatic ability: Insights from the accelerated study of Japanese. In H. M. Cook, K. Hijirida, & M. Tahara (Eds.), New trends and issues in teaching Japanese language and culture (pp. 137-163). (Technical Report #15). Honolulu: University of Hawai'i, Second Language Teaching and Curriculum Center.
Cohen, A. D. (1998). Strategies in learning and using a second language. Harlow, England: Longman. Annotation
This volume distinguishes language learning from language use strategies, describes research methods for investigating these strategies, and then presents ground-breaking research which links the use of strategies on specific tasks with language performance on those tasks. The book then considers the language of thought chosen by multilingual learners, and introduces cutting-edge studies investigating the languages used for performing cognitive operations. In addition, the volume deals with strategies that learners select for coping with language tests, quizzes, and other measures of their language ability, and provides empirical research probing the use of test-taking strategies. (295 pp.)
Cohen, A. D. (2002). Assessing and enhancing language learners’ strategies. Hebrew Higher Education, 10, 1-11.
Cohen, A. D. (2002). Mental and written translation strategies in ESL. MinneTESOL/WITESOL Journal, 19, 1-14.
Cohen, A. D. (2006). The coming of age of research on test-taking strategies. Language Assessment Quarterly, 3(4), 307-331. doi:10.1080/15434300701333129 Annotation
In this selective look at research on test-taking strategies over the last 25 years, brief mention is made of the beginnings of test-taker strategy research, and then important developments in its evolution to the present are discussed, focusing on conceptual frameworks for classifying strategies, first and second language–related strategies, proficiency level, test-taking strategies, strategies as a function of testing method, and the appropriateness of the research methods. The review notes the valuable role that verbal report methods have played in the process of understanding what tests actually measure. The conclusion is that while test-taking strategy research has come of age over the last 25 years, there still remain numerous challenges ahead, such as arriving at a more unified theory for test-taking strategies. Another challenge is to continue to find ways to make the research effort as unobtrusive as possible, while at the same time tapping the test-taking processes.
Cohen, A. D. (2007). Coming to terms with language learner strategies: Surveying the experts. In A. D. Cohen & E. Macaro (Eds.), Language learner strategies: 30 years of research and practice (pp. 29-45). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Cohen, A. D. (2008). Prologue. In C. Griffiths (Ed.), Lessons from good language learners (pp. 7-9). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
Cohen, A. D. (2008). Speaking strategies for independent learning: A focus on pragmatic performance. In S. Hurd & T. Lewis (Eds.), Language learning strategies in independent settings (pp. 119-140). Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters.
Cohen, A. D. (2008). Strategy instruction for learners of Japanese: How do you do it and what's in it for them? In Y. A. Hatasa (Ed.), Gaikokugo to shite no nhongo kyooiku: Takakutei shiya ni motozuku kokoromi ‘Japanese as a foreign language education: Multiple perspectives’ (pp. 45-60). Tokyo: Kurosio Shuppan.
Cohen, A. D. (2010). Focus on the language learner: Styles, strategies and motivation. In N. Schmitt (Ed.), An introduction to applied linguistics (2nd ed., pp. 161-178). London: Hodder Education.
Cohen, A. D. (2011). L2 learner strategies. In E. Hinkel (Ed.), Handbook of research in second language teaching and learning, Vol. II - Part V. Methods and instruction in second language teaching (pp. 681-698). Abingdon, England: Routledge.
Cohen, A. D. (2011). Strategies in learning and using a second language. London: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315833200 Annotation
Strategies in Learning and Using a Second Language examines what it takes to achieve long-term success in languages beyond the first language. Distinguishing language learning from language-use strategies, Andrew D. Cohen disentangles a morass of terminology to help the reader see what language strategies are and how they can enhance performance. Particular areas of research examined in the book include:
1) links between the use of task-specific strategies and language performance; 2) how multilinguals verbalise their thoughts during language learning and use; and 3) strategies that learners use in test-taking contexts.
In this fully revised and substantially rewritten second edition, every chapter has been reworked, with material either updated or replaced. Entirely new material has also been developed based on examples of specific strategies supplied by actual learners, mostly drawn from a website featuring these strategies in the learning of Spanish grammar.
Cohen, A. D. (2012). Comprehensible pragmatics: Where input and output come together. In M. Pawlak (Ed.), New perspectives on individual differences in language learning and teaching (pp.249-261). NY, NY: Springer.
Cohen, A. D. (2012). Strategies: The interface of styles, strategies, and motivation on tasks. In S. Mercer, S. Ryan, & M. Williams (Eds.), Language learning psychology: Research, theory, and pedagogy. Basingstoke, England: Palgrave Macmillan.
Cohen, A. D., & Aphek, E. (1981). Easifying second language learning. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 3(2), 221-235.
Cohen, A. D., & Brooks-Carson, A. (2001). Research on direct vs. translated writing: Students’ strategies and their results. Modern Language Journal, 85(2), 169-188.
Cohen, A. D., & Cavalcanti, M. C. (1987). Giving and getting feedback on compositions: A comparison of teacher and student verbal report. Evaluation and Research in Education, 1(2), 63-73.
Cohen, A.D., & Cavalcanti, M. C. (1990). Feedback on compositions: Teacher and student verbal reports. In B. Kroll (Ed.), Second language writing: Research insights for the classroom (pp. 155-177). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Cohen, A. D., & Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Taking my Motivational Temperature on a Language Task. In R. M. Paige, A. D. Cohen, B. Kappler, J. C. Chi, & J. P. Lassegard. (2006). Maximizing study abroad (2nd Ed., pp. 170-171). Minneapolis: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition, University of Minnesota.
Cohen, A. D., & Dörnyei, Z. (2002). Focus on the language learner: Motivation, styles, and strategies. In N. Schmitt (Ed.), An introduction to applied linguistics (pp. 170-190). London: Arnold. Annotation
The chapter considers the role of motivation, learning style preference, and language learning strategies in language learning. The chapter briefly looks at three learner characteristics which are largely beyond the teacher's control (age, gender, and language aptitude), and then concentrates on three factors that teachers can actively address to increase the effectiveness of instruction: motivation, learning styles, and learner strategies. The chapter concludes by giving the pedagogical implications of looking at learners' performance on language tasks as being at the intersection of learning style preferences, language learner strategies, and motivation.
Cohen, A. D., & Gómez, T. (2008). Towards enhancing academic language proficiency in a fifth-grade Spanish immersion classroom. In D. M. Brinton & O. Kagan (Eds.), Heritage language acquisition: A new field emerging (pp. 289-300). NY, NY: Routledge.
Cohen, A. D., & Macaro, E. (2007). Language learner strategies: 30 years of research and practice. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Annotation
Research into language learner strategies has the fundamental goal of improving the teaching and learning of second languages. This book explores the notion that the reason some learners of second languages excel and others struggle lies in what the learners themselves do-the strategies they bring to language learning and to language use.
- Provides a unique and timely re-examination of key issues such as strategies in context, strategy instruction, and strategy research methods by numerous experts in the field.
- Offers an invaluable overview of what is known from empirical research about listening, reading, speaking, writing, vocabulary, and grammar strategies.
- Proposes a clear and focused research agenda for the next decades.
Cohen, A. D., & Oxford, R. L. (2002). Young Learners' Language Strategy Use Survey. Minneapolis, MN: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition, University of Minnesota. [In Cohen & Weaver, (2006), pp. 75-78].
Cohen, A. D., Oxford, R. L., & Chi, J. C. (2002). Learning Style Survey: Assessing Your Own Learning Styles. In Cohen, A.D. & Weaver, S.J., Styles and strategies-based instruction: A teachers’ guide (pp. 15-21). Minneapolis, MN: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition, University of Minnesota.
Cohen, A. D., Paige, R. M., Kappler, B., Demmessie, M., Weaver, S. J., Chi, J. C., & Lassegard, J. P. (2003). Maximizing study abroad: A language instructors’ guide to strategies for language and culture learning and use. Minneapolis, MN: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition.
Cohen, A. D., Paige, R. M., Shively, R. L., Emert, H., & Hoff, J. (2005). Maximizing study abroad through language and culture strategies: Research on students, study abroad program professionals, and language instructors. Final Report to the International Research and Studies Program, Office of International Education, DOE. Minneapolis, MN: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition, University of Minnesota.
Cohen, A. D., & Pinilla-Herrera, A. (2010). Communicating grammatically: Constructing a learner strategies website for Spanish. In T. Kao & Y. Lin (Eds.), A new look at language teaching and testing: English as subject and vehicle (pp. 63-83). Taipei, Taiwan: The Language Training and Testing Center.
Cohen, A. D., Pinilla-Herrera, A., Thompson, J. R., & Witzig, L. E. (2011). Communicating grammatically: Evaluating a learner strategy website for Spanish grammar. CALICO Journal (Journal of the Computer Assisted Language Instruction Consortium), 29(1), 145-172.
Cohen, A. D., & Scott, K. (1996). A synthesis of approaches to assessing language learning strategies. In R.L. Oxford (Ed.), Language learning strategies around the world: Cross-cultural perspectives (pp. 89-106). (Technical Report #13.) Honolulu, HI: Second language Teaching and Curriculum Center, University of Hawaii Press.
Cohen, A. D., & Weaver, S. J. (1998). Strategies-based instruction for second language learners. In W.A. Renandya & G.M. Jacobs (Eds.), Learners and language learning (pp. 1-25). Anthology Series 39. Singapore: SEAMEO Regional Language Centre.
Cohen, A. D., & Weaver, S. J. (2006). Styles and strategies-based instruction: A teachers’ guide. Minneapolis, MN: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition, University of Minnesota. Annotation
Styles- and strategies-based instruction helps students become more aware of their learning style preferences and gives them a set of strategies to maximize their language learning ability. This guide helps teachers to identify the individual needs of their students and incorporate opportunities for students to practice a wide range of strategies for both language learning and language use. Each chapter in this guide begins with background material on topics related to styles- and strategies-based instruction and provides a bridge from theory to practice by including fun, hands-on activities for teachers to use in their own classrooms. This guide is a complete revision of Strategies-Based Instruction: A Teacher-Training Manual (1997). While it is now more explicitly targeted at the classroom teacher, it also includes important information for professionals engaged in research and teacher development.
Cohen, A. D., Weaver, S., & Li, T-Y. (1996). The impact of strategies-based instruction on speaking a foreign language (CARLA Working Paper Series #4). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition. Retrieved from /about/profiles/CohenPapers/SBIimpact.pdf Annotation
This research report outlines the methodology and results of a study done at the University of Minnesota on the benefits of providing second language learners with formal training in the application of strategies across skills, with an emphasis on speaking.
Cohen, A. D., & White, C. (2008). Language learners as informed consumers of language instruction. In A. Stavans & I. Kupferberg (Eds.), Studies in language and language education: Essays in honor of Elite Olshtain (pp. 185-205). Jerusalem: The Hebrew University Magnes Press. Annotation
Faced with an array of potential learning opportunities and ways of learning, how can learners make wise choices about what will work best for them, and how can they then make best use of those elected ways of learning? In other words, how might we characterize truly informed consumers when it comes to learning a second language (L2)? One approach to addressing these questions is discussed in this chapter, based on an analysis of an undergraduate freshman seminar entitled “Alternatives in Becoming Comfortably Multilingual.” The themes explored are grounded in a view of language learners as individuals who need to be able to exercise choice in order to find and make use of an optimal combination of language learning opportunities which suit their needs. One direction for language learning considered in the chapter are online, distributed, and distance learning environments, where students are able to select, manage, coordinate and work within a range of learning opportunities.
Coyle, D. (2007). Strategic classrooms: Learning communities which nurture the development of learner strategies. The Language Learning Journal, 35(1), 65-79. doi:10.1080/09571730701315774 Annotation
This article explores the role which the social context of learning plays in the development of learner strategies. It is based on longitudinal foreign language classroom research in state comprehensive schools in the UK. It is built on the premise that the development of learner strategies is linked to the type of learning context in which they are situated. If one accepts that learning contexts are co-constructed by students and teachers themselves, then ‘classroom culture’ can be seen as pivotal in determining the effectiveness of learner strategies. This study highlights three components of classrooms where the context for learning impacts on the development of learner strategies: classroom culture, scaffolded learning, and the creation of learning opportunities. In this study, it is the collaborative action research process itself, mediated by technology, which contributes to the classroom becoming a learning community. It encourages the teacher to develop and articulate her own theory of practice, which in turn helps to clarify strategic development in learners. The findings suggest that an alternative starting point for exploring learner strategy development is to focus on the macro-level: a learning environment which enables teachers and learners to be more aware of the context-embedded strategies that will inform and support individual learner strategies. Evidence is presented which suggests that learner strategies can be conceptualized as ‘by-products’ of mediation and social activity in a learning community. The conclusion drawn is not one of ‘cause and effect’ but rather that a combined approach to learner strategies at both macro- (learning context) and micro- (individual) levels has powerful potential which merits further research.
Crookall, D., & Oxford, R. (1991). Dealing with anxiety: Some practical activities for language learners and teacher trainees. In Horwitz, E. and D. Young (Eds.), Language anxiety: From theory and research to classroom implications. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall.
Cross, J. (2009). Effects of listening strategy instruction on news videotext comprehension. Language Teaching Research, 13(2), 151-176. doi:10.1177/1362168809103446 Annotation
Developments in broadcast and multimedia technology have generated a readily available and vast supply of videotexts for use in second and foreign language learning contexts. However, without pedagogical direction learners are unlikely to be able to deal with the complexities of this authentic listening resource, and strategy instruction may be one route to augmenting comprehension. This quasi-experimental, classroom-based study investigated the impact of listening strategy instruction on advanced-level, adult, Japanese, EFL (English as a foreign language) learners' comprehension of BBC news videotexts. An experimental group received 12 hours of listening strategy instruction consisting of the presentation, practice, and review of listening strategies, while a comparison group did not receive any explicit strategy instruction. Results indicated a significant improvement for the experimental group, although a significant effect in favour of the experimental group with respect to the comparison group was not evident as the comparison group also made significant gains. Possible reasons for findings are outlined and recommendations for future research presented.
Cross, J. (2010). Raising L2 listeners’ metacognitive awareness: a sociocultural theory perspective. Language Awareness, 19(4), 281-297. doi:10.1080/09658416.2010.519033 Annotation
Grounded in sociocultural theory, this article outlines a small-scale study exploring metacognitive awareness of second language (L2) listening. In each of five lessons, six pairs of advanced-level, adult, Japanese, EFL learners participated in a sequence of tasks involving the explicit verbalisation of strategies as part of a pedagogical cycle designed to stimulate their metacognitive awareness of the processes underlying L2 listening. Peer-peer dialogue was the central mechanism mediating the construction and co-construction of metacognitive awareness, and it also acted as the primary unit of analysis. The qualitative and quantitative analysis of the pairs' dialogue and corresponding diary entries illustrated that through, and in, dialogue as part of a structured pedagogical cycle, learners were afforded, and exploited, opportunities to enhance their metacognitive awareness of L2 listening.
Cross, J. (2011). Utilizing dialogic recalls to determine L2 listeners' strategy use. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 5(1), 81-100. doi:10.1080/17501229.2010.533776 Annotation
This article examines the viability and practicality of dialogic recalls as a tool for researching listening strategy use in classroom settings. To investigate this, a small-scale study over five lessons involving six pairs of Japanese English as a foreign language (EFL) learners was conducted. The pairs completed dialogic recalls pertaining to their use of strategies to comprehend news videotexts. The learners' dialogic recalls were audio recorded and analyzed in terms of the quantity, type, and quality of elaboration of strategy use. Findings are presented, supported by representative examples of verbal protocols, which indicate a number of strengths and some weaknesses of dialogic recalls as a tool for classroom-based listening strategies research. Several other general aspects related to the application of dialogic recalls, such as the use of the L2 for reporting, are discussed and inform recommendations for future research.
Cyr, P. (1996). Le point sur les stratégies d'apprentissage d'une langue seconde. Anjou (Québec), Canada: Les Éditions CEC.
Dickinson, L. (1992). Learner training for language learning. Dublin: Authentik Language Learning Resources, Ltd. Annotation
Intended primarily for language teachers, this volume condenses several years of strategy research by reviewing the background to learner training and examining the key ideas involved. It provides excellent summaries of awareness training theory and technique, as well as suggestions for classroom activities. It is an excellent resource for the strategies teacher-trainer. (67 pp.)
Djiwandono, P. (2006). Cooperative listening as a means to promote strategic listening comprehension. English Teaching Forum, 44(3), 32–37. Retrieved from http://americanenglish.state.gov/files/ae/resource_files/06-44-3-e.pdf Annotation
This article argues for the use of a cooperative listening technique and describes the steps involved in using this approach. The author describes a five-step procedure for teaching listening strategies, and then uses his own experience to show how this approach can help learners develop listening comprehension. The author also discusses his perspectives on potential issues of this cooperative listening approach.
Donato, RT., & McCormick, D. (1994). A sociocultural perspective on language learning strategies: The role of mediation. Modern Language Journal, 78(4), 453-464.
Dong, Y., & Gai, F. (2010). Chinese learners’ communication strategies research: A case study at Shandong Jiaotong University. Cross-cultural Communication, 6(1), 56. Annotation
To some extent, what Chinese learners need is communication strategies, which can help them solve problems they may encounter in actual communication. The paper sets out to investigate 89 Chinese learners’ communication strategies at Shandong Jiaotong University and the roles it plays in second language acquisition. Annotation
After a review of current literature on communication strategies, the author conducts investigation on communication strategies of Chinese learners of English, analyzes the results of the investigation and summarizes major points of communication strategies and proposes suggestions for language learning and teaching.
Dörnyei, Z (1990). Conceptualizing motivation in foreign-language learning. Language Learning, 40(1), 45-78.
Dörnyei, Z. (1994). Motivation and motivating in the foreign language classroom. Modern Language Journal, 78(3), 273-284.
Dörnyei, Z. (1994). Understanding L2 motivation: On with the challenge. Modern Language Journal, 78(4), 515-523.
Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Motivational strategies in the language classroom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Annotation
This book looks at the basic motivational conditions, generating initial motivation, maintaining and protecting motivation, and encouraging positive self-evaluation. It provides a practical approach to teaching motivational strategies in the language classroom with more of an emphasis on what teachers need to do to motivate students than on what students themselves can do to become better motivated.
Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Teaching and researching motivation. Harlow, Essex, UK: Longman/Pearson Education.
Dörnyei, Z. (2003). Attitudes, orientations, and motivations in language learning: Advances in theory, research, and applications. Language Learning, 53(S1), 3-32.
Dörnyei, Z., & Ottó, I. (1998). Motivation in action: A process model of L2 motivation. Working Papers in Applied Linguistics, 49, 43-69.
Dornyei, Z. & Skehan, P. (2003). Individual differences in second language learning. In C. Doughty & M. Long (Eds.), Handbook of Second Language Acquisition (pp. 589–630). Oxford: Blackwell.
Dreyer, C., & Nel, C. (2003). Teaching reading strategies and reading comprehension within a technology-enhanced learning environment. System, 31(3), 349-365. Annotation
Research conducted in South Africa indicates that many South African students who register for undergraduate study each year are under-prepared for university education and that many of these students also have low levels of reading ability. This has an adverse effect on their chances of academic success. In order to meet the reading needs of students in the 21st century, educators are pressed to develop effective instructional means for teaching reading comprehension and reading strategy use. This paper outlines the format and structure of a strategic reading instruction component of an English for Professional Purposes course offered within a technology-enhanced environment. The results indicated that students who received strategic reading instruction in this environment received both statistically and practically significantly higher marks on three reading comprehension measures than did the students in the control group. This was true for successful students, as well as for those considered to be at risk.
Dreyer, C., & Oxford, R. L. (1996). Learning strategies and other predictors of ESL proficiency among Afrikaans speakers in South Africa. In R. L. Oxford (Ed.), Language learning strategies around the world: Cross-cultural perspectives (pp. 61-74). (Technical Report #13). Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, Second Language Teaching & Curriculum Center.
Drozdzial-Szelest, K. (1997). Language learning strategies in the process of acquiring a foreign language. Poznan, Poland: Motivex. Annotation
This monograph mostly discusses theoretical issues concerning learning strategies. The monograph first focuses on the origins of language learning strategy research. Next, definitions of language learning strategies are presented along with the theoretical frameworks that have emerged. Then factors influencing strategy use and choice are identified and discussed, followed by a discussion of strategy training. Subsequently, the author looks at the various approaches to research on language learning strategies. Finally, there is a brief report of research on strategies used by 157 Polish secondary-school learners of English whose proficiency levels ranged from lower intermediate to intermediate. In addition, nine of their teachers also participated in the study. Both groups received questionnaires; the students with regard to their strategies and the teachers with regard to their perceptions of the students' strategies. The findings for the student population showed two-thirds of reported strategies used to be cognitive, with metacognitive and socio-affective accounting for approximately 17% each. The teacher group were able to identify 13 types of strategies used by their students -- 10 referred to as cognitive, 1 metacognitive, and 2 socio-affective. The study also reported on students' beliefs about language and about their specific language learning experiences --their perception of themselves as language learners, their views about learning English, their perception of teaching/learning activities, their approach to the learning task, their perception of the role of the teacher, and their beliefs about how to learn a second language.
Ehrman, M. (1996). Understanding second language learning difficulties. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Ehrman, M. E. (1996). Understanding second language learning difficulties. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Annotation
This book is directed at classroom teachers, and primarily at those who have students who are not doing that well. The emphasis is on diagnosing their students' learning patterns and determining the sources of difficulties in learning an L2. She focuses on learning styles, affective factors, and learning strategies. Her case studies are of late teenagers and adults. There are about 35 cases mentioned, most working on FLs but some on ESL. She discusses how to do observations (Ch. 2) and interviews (Ch. 3). She then deals with cognitive learning styles (Ch. 4), field independence and field sensitivity (Ch. 5), personality models (Ch. 6), the affective dimension: motivation, self-efficacy, anxiety (Ch. 7), and background factors and learning strategies (Ch. 8). Ch. 9 is about putting together the info from questionnaires, tests, and language aptitude instruments. Ch. 10 is about looking at students in context, Ch. 11 about when outside help is needed, and it ends with teachers helping students on their own (Ch. 12).
Ehrman, M., & Leaver, B. L. (2003). Cognitive styles in the service of language learning. System, 31(3), 313-330. Annotation
In the paper, the authors first flesh out their "Ehrman-Leaver Cognitive Styles Construct (E&L). In doing so, they discuss the constructs of field independent and field sensitive (pointing out that it is possible to have skills associated with both), random (non-linear)-sequential (linear), global-particular, inductive-deductive, synthetic-analytic, analogue-digital, concrete-abstract, leveling-sharpening (pointing out that it deals with attention, perception, and storage in memory, while global-particular deals with top-down and bottom-up), impulsive-reflective. The article then gives the results for two learners and discusses how to interpret them.
Ehrman, M., Leaver, B.L., & Oxford, R. (2003). A brief overview of individual differences in second language learning. System, 31(3), 313-330. Annotation
This special issue addresses the subject of individual differences in language learning, a topic whose complexity has meant little conclusive knowledge and thus need for continuing investigation. This paper offers a brief but broad overview of the field of individual differences in language learning, especially as they are reflected in learning styles, learning strategies, and affective variables, and touches on some areas for further research.
Ehrman, M., & Oxford, R. (1990). Adult language learning styles and strategies in an intensive training setting. The Modern Language Journal, 74(3), 311-327.
Ehrman, M., & Oxford, R. (1995). Cognition plus: Correlates of language learning success. Modern Language Journal, 79(1), 67-89. Annotation
This article examines the relationships of a variety of individual difference variables to end-of-training proficiency ratings in speaking and reading for a large sample of adults in intensive training in a wide range of languages at the U.S. Department of State. Variables included tested cognitive aptitude, learning strategies, learning styles, personality, motivation, and anxiety. Although tested cognitive aptitude showed the strongest correlations with proficiency test results in both skills, the other variables also correlated in ways that show how rich and complex the individual learner's role in language is. Results may contribute to increasingly sophisticated student counseling and to efforts to enhance student autonomy by tailoring treatments to student characteristics. They also increase knowledge of attributes that may affect language training to the upper proficiency levels.
Ellis, G., & Sinclair, B. (1989). Learning to learn English: A course in learner training. Glasgow: Cambridge University Press. Annotation
Designed for classroom use to supplement existing course materials, this book is written for learners of British English. Learners have opportunities to reflect on their current strategies, develop new strategies, assess short-term learning goals, organize their learning, and self-evaluate the language learning process for each of the four skills (reading, writing, speaking, and listening), as well as for grammar and vocabulary. The book provides authentic examples of student responses to the exercises. (Teacher's book: 154 pp., learner's book 118 pp.)
Ewald, J. D. (2007). Foreign language learning anxiety in upper-level classes: Involving students as researchers. Foreign Language Annals, 40(1), 122-142. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2007.tb02857.x Annotation
While both the causes and effects of students' language learning anxiety have been a frequent focus of many investigations, few have explored anxiety in the context of upper-level language classrooms. Through a qualitative analysis of questionnaire data obtained from 21 advanced students of Spanish, this study found that, indeed, many of these students did report experiencing anxiety in upper-level courses, perhaps an unanticipated setting given students' relatively higher levels of proficiency. Students highlighted many issues related to their anxiety and confirmed findings of previous investigations; specifically, they pointed to the key role of the teacher in producing and relieving anxiety. In addition to considering anxiety in an unexplored context, this study serves as a model for involving students in research related to language learning.
Fan, M. Y. (2003). Frequency of use, perceived usefulness, and actual usefulness of second language vocabulary strategies: A study of Hong Kong learners. The Modern Language Journal, 87(2), 222-241. Annotation
This study is the largest scale project ever conducted in Hong Kong concerning the learning of English vocabulary by Cantonese speakers. The aims of the project were threefold: (a) to find out the vocabulary size of the tertiary students and whether they need help with academic vocabulary, (b) to identify the strategies that are conducive to learning vocabulary in general and the strategies that are especially useful for learning high- and low-frequency words in particular, and (c) to look at the discrepancies among the frequency of use, the perceived usefulness, and the actual usefulness of vocabulary strategies. The participants in the study included 1,067 students who had recently been offered places by the 7 local institutions of higher education. A vocabulary test and a vocabulary learning strategy questionnaire were used for data collection. Whereas in an earlier work (Fan, 2001) the author reported the findings in relation to the first aim, this article focuses on the findings for the second and third aims. ANOVA and Multiple Regression were employed for data analysis. The results of the study shed light not only on the strategy profile of the Hong Kong learners in general but also on the complexity involved in strategy use. Strategies relevant to the learning of L2 vocabulary as well as high- and low-frequency words are identified, and their implications are thoroughly discussed.
Farrell, T.C., & Mallard, C. (2006). The use of reception strategies by learners of French as a foreign language. The Modern Language Journal, 90(3), 338-352. Annotation
Listening in a second or foreign language is a very demanding task because it involves both correctly interpreting incoming speech and responding appropriately to the speaker. This qualitative classroom-based investigation describes the types and frequency of reception strategies used by learners at three different proficiency levels in French while engaged in a two-way information-gap task. Results indicate that the learners used various strategies in order to achieve understanding while interacting with one another. These strategies were used either to obtain new information from interlocutors, to confirm information, or to repair comprehension problems. The results also suggest that learners at all proficiency levels were able to use these strategies when needed and evidently without prior training in strategy use.
Figura, K., & Jarvis, H. (2007). Computer-based materials: A study of learner autonomy and strategies. System, 35(4), 448-468. Annotation
This paper reports on a study which examines the extent to which specified cognitive, social, and metacognitive strategies, are used by language students when working with computer-based materials (CBMs), in self-study contexts outside of the language classroom; particularly in a self-access centre (SAC). Data were collected using questionnaires, interviews and snap-shot observations from English as a Foreign Language (EFL) students enrolled on a summer course at a British Higher Education Institution (HEI). The data identify the frequency with which students use a SAC and the value they attach to computers for language learning. The data then examine the types of strategies students use and the extent to which learner autonomy is being fostered. The vast majority of participants were found to have positive attitudes towards computer-based material (CBMs) and language learning despite frequent use of L1, furthermore they were found to use cognitive strategies and to apply metacognitive awareness in their use of such CBMs. Students believed CBMs assisted with learning and demonstrated conscious applications of a range of strategies while learning in an electronic environment. However, the study also found that less than half the students used social strategies in the target language and this raises a number of issues.
Finkbeiner, C., Knierim, M., Smasal, M., & Ludwig, P. H. (2012). Self-regulated cooperative EFL reading tasks: students’ strategy use and teachers’ support. Language Awareness, 21(1/2), 57-83. doi:10.1080/09658416.2011.639892 Annotation
The ADEQUA research project has gained empirical evidence on how the situationally adequate use of learning strategies can be facilitated during cooperative reading tasks in the EFL (English as a foreign language) classroom. Two video studies were conducted with ninth-grade EFL learners in German schools: the first (laboratory) study investigated the students’ use of strategies while working in dyads and without teacher support on a given task. The second study, a field study, focused on teachers’ actions to support their students while working on a series of tasks in their regular classrooms. In this paper, we present the findings from a specific subsample of students (n = 30 from the first study and n = 228 from the second one), focusing on (1) the extent to which the students employed specific strategies adequately and successfully, and (2) the types of support actions taken by the teachers and to what extent these actions facilitated the students’ strategy use. The microanalytic approach adopted here allows us to identify those strategies which especially appear to require a teacher's support in order to be employed more adequately and successfully. Furthermore, by distinguishing between teachers’ support actions which are more versus less conducive to self-regulation and facilitating students’ strategy use, we are able to provide recommendations on how to fine-tune teachers’ assistance.
Flowerdew, J. & Miller, L. (2005). Second language listening: Theory and practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Annotation
This book combines up-to-date listening theory with case studies of actual pedagogical practice. The paperback edition combines up-to-date listening theory with case studies of actual pedagogical practice. As an essential part of communicative competence, listening is a skill, which deserves equal treatment with the other basic skills of speaking, reading, and writing. The authors describe current models of listening theory and exemplify each with a textbook task. They address the role of technology in teaching listening, questioning techniques, and testing. This text is designed for use with both pre-service and in-service teachers who are involved in the teaching of listening or the design of pedagogic materials for listening.
Gallagher-Brett, A. (2007). What do learners' beliefs about speaking reveal about their awareness of learning strategies? The Language Learning Journal, 35(1), 37-49. doi:10.1080/09571730701315675 Annotation
This paper describes a pilot questionnaire study conducted with a class of Year 9 beginners in German in a comprehensive school, which set out to elicit information on learners' beliefs about speaking a foreign language, including their awareness of strategies. Findings revealed that most pupils showed knowledge of a range of cognitive, social and learning strategies and associated their use with achieving success in speaking. Pupils were found to place particularly strong emphasis on the importance of practice and revision. It will be suggested that, although these strategies should facilitate pupils' learning, they may not always be the most the most appropriate for coping with the demands of speaking. Responses from many learners also highlighted the importance for speaking of affective factors such as confidence, mood and anxiety. It will be argued that these issues may be inhibiting pupils from making the most of opportunities for practice in the classroom and from adopting the strategies needed to progress. It will therefore be recommended that learners should be made more explicitly aware of a variety of affective and communication strategies, which could help them to feel more comfortable and should encourage participation in classroom speaking activities.
Gan, Z. (2004). Attitudes and strategies as predictors of self-directed language learning in an EFL context. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 14(3), 390-411. doi:10.1111/j.1473-4192.2004.00071.x Annotation
The article reports on a study that examined self-directed language learning (SDLL) attitudes and strategies that may be characteristic of Chinese EFL students. A description of the development of the instrument used to measure these attitudes and strategies in an EFL context is provided, the results of which showed that SDLL strategies seem to be directly implicated in language proficiency. Attitudes to SDLL do not seem to have a strong direct effect on proficiency, but major attitude components are closely associated with all SDLL strategy components, possibly exerting their effect mainly through the mediation of strategies. The data suggest that students’ SDLL attitudes and strategies were apparently determined by the constraints of the specific contexts of teaching and learning. In addition, the data seem to cast doubt on the stereotypic notions of passive and dependent Asian learners. Implications of the results for instructional interventions and institutional support are discussed.
Gan, Z., Humphreys, G., & Hamp-Lyons, L. (2004). Understanding successful and unsuccessful EFL students in Chinese universities. The Modern Language Journal. 88(2). 229–244. doi:10.1111/j.0026-7902.2004.00227.x Annotation
Unlike success in first language acquisition, success in learning a second or foreign language is considerably more variable. Recently, second language acquisition researchers have called for more integrative research on individual difference factors. With this goal in mind, this study followed a larger, quantitative study of the links between self-directedness for language learning and English language learning attainment among university students on the Chinese mainland and in Hong Kong. Drawing on the findings of that study (Gan, 2003), this 1-semester study looked closely at 2 small groups of tertiary-level English as a foreign language (EFL) learners in China in order to document how they carried out their out-of-class (self-directed) English learning, as well as to elaborate issues that may be critical to understanding the variability that had already been observed in their English learning outcomes. Annotation
The data were gathered through interviews, diaries, and follow-up email correspondence with 9 successful and 9 unsuccessful second-year EFL students at 2 Chinese mainland universities. Using grounded theory methodology (Strauss & Corbin, 1994, 1998), 6 categories of qualitative data were constructed: conceptualizing English language learning; perceptions of the College English Course; learning and practising strategies; self-management; internal drive; and English proficiency tests. The study findings suggest that different levels of success may be explained by a complex and dynamic interplay of internal cognition and emotion, external incentives, and social context. The findings imply the need to take a holistic view of variation in language learning outcomes and to broaden the scope of the current practice in learner strategy training.
Gao, X. (2006). Understanding changes in Chinese students' uses of learning strategies in China and Britain: A socio-cultural re-interpretation. System, 34(1), 55-67. Annotation
This paper reports a re-interpretation of the data from an inquiry exploring changes in 14 Chinese learners’ uses of language learning strategies after they moved from mainland China to Britain. Using a socio-cultural theoretical framework, the analysis of the learners’ experiential narratives lends tentative support to the postulation that the popular language learning discourses, assessment methods, and influential agents had been influencing the learners’ frequency and choices of strategy use in China but their mobilizing forces disappeared or were undermined in Britain and hence lost their past mediation effects on the learners’ strategy use. While the current inquiry recommends more language learning support to these learners at their receiving institutions, it also shows that the socio-cultural approach can help to develop a deeper understanding of language learners and their strategy use. More learning strategy research grounded in this approach should be done to provide insights into the influences of learning environment on strategy use over time.
Gao, X. (2007). Has language learning strategy research come to an end? A response to Tseng et al. (2006) Applied Linguistics, 28(4), 615-620. doi:10.1093/applin/amm034 Annotation
Tseng et al. (2006) critically examine language learning strategy (LLS) research and propose to assess language learners’ strategic learning in terms of their self-regulatory capacity. In this response, I discuss whether the proposed advance of self-regulation means the marginalization of LLS research. While recognizing the merits of the proposal, I argue that the proposal needs to consider other competing constructs with similar connotations in research on learners’ strategic language learning. The response also reports on recent developments in LLS research, contending that such developments could complement the advance of a broad perspective on learners’ strategic learning in research.
Gao, X. (2007). Language learning experiences and learning strategy research: Voices of a Mainland Chinese student in Hong Kong. Innovation in Language Learning and Teaching, 1(2), 193-207. doi:10.2167/illt011.0 Annotation
The two-year longitudinal case study reported in this paper documents a Putonghua speaking mainland Chinese undergraduate student's language learning experiences and strategy use in an English-medium university in Hong Kong. Using a sociocultural approach, this paper focuses on three biographical episodes, which recount how the student attempted to create alternative ways of learning and seek new learning opportunities within the learning context, how she came to realise the limitations of her efforts and withdrew from her early active pursuits, and how she followed other mainland Chinese students in memorising words and attached her own meanings to her memorisation efforts. The paper highlights the social, cultural and political aspects of her strategy use and argues that learners' biographical experiences are an important avenue for us to understand learners' strategy use as a complicated phenomenon revealing the interplay between learners' agency and context.
Gao, X. (2010). Autonomous language learning against all odds. System, 38(4), 580-590. Annotation
Conceptualizing learners’ individuality as dynamic and contextually situated, this paper reports on an inquiry that examined the genesis of a disabled learner’s success in learning foreign languages on the Chinese mainland. Using source texts such as the learner’s published diaries, letters and her autobiography, the inquiry revealed that language learning success could be explained by her unwavering will, unyielding beliefs and tenacious efforts in learning languages. Her narratives further unveiled the role that contextual conditions and the learner’s agency played in shaping and reshaping her motivational discourses, learning beliefs and strategic efforts. These findings help illustrate how these crucial individual difference factors interact with each other in the language learning process. They also provide further food for thought for language learners and teachers in their efforts to identify means that sustain autonomous language learning efforts in difficult conditions.
Gao, X. (2010). Strategic language learning: Three roles of agency and context. Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Gardner, R. C., & McIntyre, P. D. (1993). A student's contribution to second-language learning. Part II: Affective variables. Language Teaching, 26, 1-11.
Gardner, R. C., & Tremblay, P. F. (1994). On motivation, research agendas, and theoretical frameworks. Modern Language Journal, 78(3), 359-368.
Gardner, R. C., & Tremblay, P. F. (1994). On motivation: Measurement and conceptual considerations. Modern Language Journal, 78(4), 524-527.
Goh, C. (1998). How ESL learners with different listening abilities use comprehension strategies and tactics. Language Teaching Research, 2(2), 124-147. Annotation
This article presents findings from research into listening strategies and tactics of ESL learners from the People‘s Republic of China studying on an intensive English language and academic skills programme in a university in Singapore. This research makes a distinction between strategies and tactics, with the term ‘strategy’ referring to a general approach and ‘tactic’ meaning a specific action or step. In this article I identify the cognitive and metacognitive strategies and tactics used by 16 ESL learners, and compare the way high- and low-ability listeners applied them. I specifically examine the frequency and the types of strategies and tactics used. To find evidence of these cognitive processes, retrospective verbal reports were analysed. The study showed that the high-ability listeners used more strategies and tactics than the low-ability ones. They were also able to vary their application of tactics within each strategy. Both groups used more cognitive strategies and tactics than metacognitive ones, but the low-ability listeners were particularly poor at it. In addition to reporting the results from the study, the article also discusses issues related to using verbal reports as data and training learners to use listening strategies.
Goh, C. (2008). Metacognitive instruction for second language listening development: Theory, practice and research implications. RELC Journal, 39(2), 188-213. doi:10.1177/0033688208092184 Annotation
There has been a growing interest in and concern for the teaching of listening in the last 40 years. Looking back over the years, we can see how the emphases on teaching listening and the focus of listening instruction have changed. Although instructional practices were initially heavily influenced by models of the written language and a behaviourist approach, the focus has since moved to developing listening as a skill needed for constructing and communicating meaning. More recently, discussions about listening instruction have emphasized the role of strategy training and learner metacognition in facilitating comprehension. In this paper I discuss a metacognitive approach, drawing on understandings from educational research as well as second language listening studies. I explain its theoretical rationale and identify principles for carrying out metacognitive instruction, as well as outline general instructional objectives and learning activities for this purpose. Finally, I suggest possible research directions for examining the role of metacognition in second language listening and the relevance of metacognitive instruction to listening development.
Goh, C., & Taib, Y. (2006). Metacognitive instruction in listening for young learners. ELT Journal, 60(3), 222-232. Annotation
This article outlines a small-scale study of metacognitive instruction for young second language listeners and discusses the value of lessons that highlight the listening process. Ten primary school pupils participated in eight specially designed listening lessons that included traditional listening exercises, individual post-listening reflections on their listening experience, and teacher-facilitated discussions that focused on specific aspects of metacognitive knowledge about listening. During the eight lessons, the learners demonstrated some knowledge about factors that influenced their listening and strategy use. After the eight lessons, all the students reported a deeper understanding of the nature and the demands of listening, increased confidence in completing listening tasks, and better strategic knowledge for coping with comprehension difficulties. On the whole, the weaker learners have benefited the most from such a process-based approach to listening instruction.
Graham, S. (2006). A study of students' metacognitive beliefs about foreign language study and their impact on learning. Foreign Language Annals, 39(2), 296-309. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2006.tb02267.x Annotation
This article reports on an investigation into the language learning beliefs of students of French in England, aged 16 to 18. It focuses on qualitative data from two groups of learners (10 in total). While both groups had broadly similar levels of achievement in French in terns of examination success, they differed greatly in the self-image they had of themselves as language learners, with one group displaying low levels of self-efficacy beliefs regarding the possibility of future success. The implications of such beliefs for students' levels of motivation and persistence are discussed, together with their possible causes. The article concludes by suggesting changes in classroom practice that might help students develop a more positive image of them selves as language learners.
Graham, S. (2007). Learner strategies and self-efficacy: Making the connection. The Language Learning Journal, 35, 81-93. doi:10.1080/09571730701315832 Annotation
This article reports on part of a larger study of the impact of strategy training in listening on learners of French, aged 16 to 17. One aim of the project was to investigate whether such training might have a positive effect on the self-efficacy of learners, by helping them see the relationship between the strategies they employed and what they achieved. One group of learners, as well as receiving strategy training, also received detailed feedback on their listening strategy use and on the reflective diaries they were asked to keep, in order to draw their attention to the relationship between strategies and learning outcomes. Another group received strategy training without feedback or reflective diaries, while a comparison group received neither strategy training nor feedback. As a result of the training, there was some evidence that students who had received feedback had made the biggest gains in certain aspects of self-efficacy for listening; although their gains as compared to the non-feedback group were not as great as had been anticipated. Reasons for this are discussed. The article concludes by suggesting changes in how teachers approach listening comprehension that may improve learners' view of themselves as listeners.
Graham, S., & Macaro, E. (2007). Designing year 12 strategy training in listening and writing: From theory to practice. The Language Learning Journal, 35(2), 153-173. doi:10.1080/09571730701599203 Annotation
This article outlines some of the key issues involved in developing a programme of strategy training for learners of French, in listening and in writing. It highlights the theoretical perspectives and research findings on listening and writing that informed the selection of strategies to teach learners and thence the development of appropriate materials. Examples of these materials are given as well as advice regarding their use. The article concludes with suggestions for how strategy training might be incorporated into teachers' own work with learners.
Graham, S., & Macaro, E. (2008). Strategy instruction in listening for lower-intermediate learners of French. Language Learning, 58(4), 747–783. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9922.2008.00478.x Annotation
Second language listening has historically proved to be a difficult skill. Strategy instruction studies have sought to bring about improvements in subjects' listening but with mixed results. This lack of success might be due to the nature of listening strategy theory and its influence on conceptualizations of listening strategy instruction. The current study, based on an initial descriptive investigation of a specific population of learners, measured the effects of strategy instruction on both the listening performance and self-efficacy of 68 lower-intermediate learners of French in England, against a comparison group. Moreover, the effects of high- and low-scaffolded interventions were compared. Results suggest that the program improved listening proficiency and learners' confidence about listening. Implications for pedagogy and strategy theory are discussed.
Graham, S., Santos, E., & Vanderplank, R. (2007). Listening comprehension and strategy use: A longitudinal exploration. System, 36(1), 52-68. Annotation
This paper examines the development of strategy use over 6 months in two lower-intermediate learners of L2 French in secondary schools in England. These learners were selected from a larger sample on the basis of their scores on a recall protocol completed after listening to short passages at two time points: one was consistently a high scorer; the other one, a low scorer. Qualitative data on these two learners’ strategic behaviour were gathered at the two time points from verbal reports made by learners while they were completing a multiple-choice listening task. Our results show a high degree of stability of strategy use over the time period, with pre-existing differences between the high and low scorer persisting. The theoretical and pedagogical implications of these findings are discussed.
Grainger, P. R. (1997). Language-learning strategies for learners of Japanese: Investigating ethnicity. Foreign Language Annals, 30(3), 378-385. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.1997.tb02360.x Annotation
Despite the proliferation of research articles in recent years dealing with language-learning strategies, ethnicity is one variable that has not received a great deal of attention in the literature. Japanese is a language that has not been targeted much in any investigation of language-learning strategies. This paper seeks to remedy these deficiencies by presenting the results of an exploratory study seeking to identify the language-learning strategies of learners of Japanese as a foreign language at a tertiary institution. It also seeks to identify the most- and least-favored strategies of a variety of ethnic groups and to investigate the relationship between ethnicity and language-learning strategy preferences.
Grainger, P. R. (2005). Second language learning strategies and Japanese: Does orthography make a difference? System, 33(2), 327-339. Annotation
Orthographic languages have not been a major focus for second language learning strategy researchers. Much of the strategy research has focused on English as a second language or English as a foreign language. This is despite the many structural differences, particularly in relation to reading and writing, which might significantly influence patterns of strategy use. Japanese is one orthographic language, which has gained significant popularity as a course of study amongst both university students and high school students, particularly in Australia. Reliable strategy measurement surveys like the Strategy Inventory For Language Learning (SILL, Oxford, S.L. 1990. Language Learning Strategies: What Every teacher Should Know. Newbury House, Harper and Row, New York) have been used extensively throughout the world for over a decade. However, published studies involving the SILL and learners of Japanese are relatively scarce, and many have involved adaptations to the SILL, to account for structural differences. As a result, a gap exists because of the lack of studies regarding the viability of SILL and orthographic languages. A major aim of this study is to test the relevance of the SILL with a small group of undergraduate learners of English speaking background, learning Japanese in a foreign language learning environment. Utilizing the SILL as a basis, it identifies strategy items related to reading and writing, and analyses the mean scores for these literacy related strategies. The result reveals how these beginning learners of Japanese scored highly on most literacy related strategy items contained in the SILL.
Green, J. M. & Oxford, R. (1995). A closer look at learning strategies, L2 proficiency, and gender. TESOL Quarterly, 29, 261-297.
Grenfell, M. (2007). Language learner strategy research and modern foreign language teaching and learning. The Language Learning Journal, 35(1), 9-22. doi:10.1080/09571730701315576 Annotation
This article addresses language learner strategy research in the context of second language learning and teaching in the UK. It arises from two sources: firstly, a personal background in research and writing about language learner strategy research in the context of modern foreign language learning and teaching in England and Wales; secondly, a newly constituted British-based interest group dedicated to this area of applied linguistics—UK Project on Language Learner Strategies (UKPOLLS). The article begins by sketching out the international background of language learner strategy research in terms of its relevance to modern foreign language learning and teaching in the UK. I shall refer to concerns with language teaching methodology and why language learner strategy research has been of particular interest to UK-based researchers. Various empirical studies will be referred to, with the aim of setting an agenda of issues, practical implications and current research preoccupations. In considering the work of UKPOLLS and others, the article also considers the place of language learning strategy research in second language policy in England and Wales, and, in particular, the case of the MFLs Key Stage 3 strategy for secondary schools, its theoretical rationale and its place in a broader language curriculum.
Grenfell, M., & V. Harris (1999). Modern languages and learning strategies: In theory and practice. London: Routledge.
Griffiths, C. (2003). Patterns of language learning strategy use. System, 31(3), 367-383. Annotation
This study, conducted in a private language school in Auckland, New Zealand, investigated the relationship between course level and reported frequency of language learning strategy use by speakers of other languages. Employing the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL), the investigator found a significant relationship between strategy use and course level with additional significant differences in strategy use and course level according to nationality. Strategies used highly frequently by higher level students in addition to the strategies reportedly used highly frequently across all students were deemed “plus” strategies. These strategies were then grouped into several strategy types, which were: strategies relating to interaction with others, to vocabulary, to reading, to the tolerance of ambiguity, to language systems, to the management of feelings, to the management of learning, and to the utilisation of available resources. Issues of strategy teachability are addressed with implications for the teaching/learning context.
Griffiths, C. (2007). Language learning strategies: Students 'and teachers' perception. ELT Journal, 61(2) 91-99. doi:10.1093/elt/ccm001 Annotation
Although issues related to learner variables have received considerable attention over the years, issues related to teachers have not been researched as thoroughly. This study aimed to investigate the point of intersection of teachers' and learners' perceptions regarding language learning strategies. Using an original questionnaire developed in a classroom situation and based on student input, this study examined reported frequency of strategy use by international students and teacher perceptions regarding the importance of strategy use. Although students' and teachers' perceptions were not perfectly matched, results indicated that teachers regard strategy use as highly important, and there was a high level of accord (71 per cent) between strategies which students reported using highly frequently and those which teachers reported regarding as highly important, an encouraging finding somewhat at variance with the results of some previous studies. Implications of these results for the teaching/learning situation are discussed.
Griffiths, C. (2008). Strategies and good language learners. In C. Griffiths (Ed.), Lessons from Good Language Learners (pp. 83–98). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Griffiths, C. (Ed.). (2008). Lessons from good language learners. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Griffiths, C. (2013). The strategy factor in successful language learning. Bristol, UK: Multilingual Matters.
Gu, P. Y. (2003). Learning strategies: Prototypical core dimensions of variation. Unpublished manuscript. Singapore: National Institute of Education.
Gu, Y. (1994). Vocabulary learning strategies of good and poor Chinese EFL learners. In N. Bird, P. Falvey, A. Tsui, D. Allison, & A. McNeill (Eds.), Language learning. Hong Kong: Government Printers. ERIC ED 370411.
Gu, Y. (2004). Vocabulary learning strategies in the Chinese EFL context. Singapore: Times Academic Press, Marshall Cavendish.
Gu, Y. (2012). Learning strategies: Prototypical core and dimensions of variation. Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal, 3, 330-356.
Gu, Y. (2012). Vocabulary Learning Strategies. In. C. A. Chapelle (Ed.) The Encyclopedia of Applied Linguistics. Oxford: Blackwell. doi:10.1002/9781405198431.wbeal1329 Annotation
Vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) are intuitively appealing to teachers and learners. This is partly due to the difficulty and conspicuousness associated with vocabulary in language learning. Learners of a foreign language are confronted with vocabulary learning right from the very beginning; and it is a never-ending task. It is, therefore, practically useful and theoretically interesting to study the ways students go about learning vocabulary and to find out the effectiveness of various strategies.
Halbach, A. (2000). Finding out about students' learning strategies by looking at their diaries: A case study. System, 28(1), 85-96. Annotation
The concept of learning strategies has become quite familiar to most professionals in teaching English as a foreign language. However, one of the main difficulties of working with strategies is related to the lack of appropriate tools to measure strategy use by language students. In this study a checklist is presented and tested to see whether it can help to shed some light on students' use of strategies as reflected in their diaries. Some interesting differences between successful and less successful students appear which, in their turn, open up questions about strategy training in general.
Harris, V. (2007). Exploring progression: Reading and listening strategy instruction with near-beginner learners of French. The Language Learning Journal, 35(2), 189-204. doi:10.1080/09571730701599229 Annotation
Cross-study comparison of the impact of strategy instruction (SI) is problematic because of differences in learning settings, the periods of time over which it is undertaken and the nature of the SI itself. Few studies indicate how the choice of skill areas and strategies has been tailored to meet the learners' age, stage and proficiency level, and few explicitly invite learners' views of the effectiveness of the SI. This exploratory article reports on initial findings of a research project funded by the Denis Lawton Award, Society for Educational Studies, to implement strategy instruction with secondary school pupils learning French. A sample of 60 pupils aged 12 to 13 underwent a programme of reading and listening strategy instruction over a nine-month period. Measures were taken of reading and listening comprehension and attitudes to French before and after the intervention, and results compared to a group of students not receiving the intervention. The strategy intervention pupils were also invited through questionnaires and interviews to comment on the SI. Whilst the findings suggest that the strategy intervention significantly improved pupils' comprehension and motivation, pupils' views of the SI indicate issues to be addressed in the design of SI to meet the needs of this level of learner.
Harris, V., & Grenfell, M. (2004). Language-learning strategies: A case for cross-curricular collaboration. Language Awareness, 13(2), 116-130. Annotation
This paper addresses the case for collaboration between English and modern languages teachers and researchers in teaching and learning languages. The British context is set out against a background of government initiatives to raise secondary pupils' literacy skills. Salient trends in the teaching approach of English (LI) and modern language (ML) teachers are compared and contrasted in order to identify pedagogic concerns. To date, these concerns tend to focus on the teaching of grammar. Teachers' divergent views on the issue is one factor impeding greater collaboration between them. The learning strategy research field is presented as an alternative area of commonality. This research stresses developing ‘how to learn’ skills with pupils. Memorisation and reading strategies are compared across LI and ML to illustrate the potential for collaboration in making explicit links between the two areas of language learning. A strategy research agenda is identified with a view to establishing how recent policy changes offer the potential to explore more effective ways to impact on language teaching and learning.
Hauck, M. (2005). Metacognitive knowledge, metacognitive strategies, and CALL (pp. 65-86). In J.L. Egbert, & G.M. Petrie (Eds.), CALL research perspectives. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Helgesen, M., & Brown, S. (2007). Practical English language teaching: Listening. New York: McGraw Hill.
Hong-Nam, K., & Leavell, A.G. (2006). Language learning strategy use of ESL students in an intensive English learning context. System, 34(3), 399-415. Annotation
This study investigated the language learning strategy use of 55 ESL students with differing cultural and linguistic backgrounds enrolled in a college Intensive English Program (IEP). The IEP is a language learning institute for pre-admissions university ESL students, and is an important step in developing not only students’ basic Interpersonal Communications Skills (BICS), but more importantly their Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP). Proficiency with academic English is a key contributor to students’ success in learning in their second language. Using the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL), the study examines the relationship between language learning strategy use and second language proficiency, focusing on differences in strategy use across gender and nationality. The study found a curvilinear relationship between strategy use and English proficiency, revealing that students in the intermediate level reported more use of learning strategies than beginning and advanced levels. More strategic language learners advance along the proficiency continuum faster than less strategic ones. The study found that the students preferred to use metacognitive strategies most, whereas they showed the least use of affective and memory strategies. Females tended to use affective and social strategies more frequently than males. Conclusions and pedagogical implications of the findings are discussed.
Hosenfeld, C. (1984). Case studies of ninth grade readers. In J.C. Alderson & A.H. Urquhart (Eds.), Reading in a Foreign Language (pp. 231-249). London: Longman.
Hsiao, T.-Y., & Oxford, R. (2002). Comparing theories of language learning strategies: A confirmatory factor analysis. The Modern Language Journal, 86(2), 368-383. Annotation
This study compared classification theories of language learning strategies. Results from confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of the data measured by the ESL/EFL version of the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning and collected from 517 college EFL learners indicated that of the strategy theories examined, Oxford's 6-factor strategy taxonomy is the most consistent with learners' strategy use, although this model did not produce a fully adequate fit to the data. The findings suggest that other possible approaches to strategy classification should be considered. These approaches include (a) differentiating strategies for using a language ("language use strategies") from strategies for learning it ("language learning strategies"), (b) recognizing the importance of the learning environment, (c) slightly modifying the prevalent strategy classification theories by reclassifying particular strategies, (d) ensuring that the language skills are obvious in each strategy item, and (e) creating a task-based strategy inventory. This study also illustrates how CFA can be applied to the comparison of current strategy theories.
Huang, J., & Andrews, S. (2010). Situated development and use of language learner strategies: Voices from EFL students. The Language Learning Journal, 38(1), 19-35. doi:10.1080/09571730902717430 Annotation
Language learner strategies (LLS) have long been viewed as a variable of individual differences, or as cognitive skills. This study, focusing as it does on the data taken from a series of focus groups with 47 senior secondary students in mainland China, seeks a new interpretation of strategy development and use from a sociocultural perspective. Evidence provided from the focus-group discussions shows that in the mainstream exam-orientated culture in mainland China, the grade-getting goal was likely to determine the general orientation of strategies for a variety of classroom learning tasks and shape the changes in strategy use over time which emerge at different learning stages. The results also indicate that the processes of strategy development and use were mediated by learners' personal discourse patterns embedded in their situated learning experience; by cultural artifacts (tasks); and by interpersonal interactions with their teachers, peers and family members; and situated in their communities of language learning practices and social cultures. In addition, the study underlines the need to take into account learning goals and the nature of learning tasks in LLS research, and to create a situated strategy development community as part of strategy instruction or training programs.
Huang, L.-S. (2010). Do different modalities of reflection matter? An exploration of adult second-language learners' reported strategy use and oral language production. System, 38(2), 245-261. Annotation
This paper reports on a small-scale study that was the first to explore raising second-language (L2) learners' awareness of speaking strategies as mediated by three modalities of task-specific reflection—individual written reflection, individual spoken reflection, and group spoken reflection. Though research in such areas as L2 writing, teacher's development, and distance learning has supported the value of reflection, especially in the form of individual writing, no research has explored L2 learning through different types of reflection. The study examined 20 intermediate L2 learners' reported strategic behaviours, how the strategic behaviours differed depending on the particular modality of reflection they used, and the relationship between participants' reported strategic behaviours and their oral language production. From a pedagogical perspective, the findings offer instructors information about learners' strategic behaviours and about how various types of language-learning classrooms can incorporate different modalities of reflective practice that enable learners to develop a metacognitive awareness of their ongoing learning.
Huckin, T., & Bloch, J. (1993). Strategies for inferring word-meanings in context: A cognitive model. In T. Huckin, M. Haynes, & J. Coady (Eds.), Second language reading and vocabulary learning (pp. 153-178). Norwood, NJ: Ablex.
Ikeda, M., & Takeuchi, O. (2006). Clarifying the differences in learning EFL reading strategies: An analysis of portfolios. System, 34(3), 384-398. Annotation
The aim of this study is to reveal the differences in the process of learning reading strategies by EFL learners whose English proficiency levels differ. For this purpose, portfolios made by 10 Japanese female college students learning English (five in the higher proficiency group and the other five in the lower) were analyzed. The results found six prominent differences between the two groups. The first difference is the amount of description recorded in each portfolio. The second, third, and fourth differences concern the understanding of the purpose and the merit of each strategy use, of the conditions in which each strategy is used effectively, and of the combined use of strategies. Also, the timing for and the method for evaluating efficacy of strategy use are different between the two groups. After the full descriptions of these six differences with samples from portfolios, some pedagogical and research implications for strategy instruction are made.
Jiang, X., & Cohen, A. D. (2012). A Critical review of research on strategies in learning Chineseas both a second and foreign language. Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, 2(1), 9-43.
Jiang, X., & Smith, R. (2009). Chinese learners' strategy use in historical perspective: A cross-generational interview-based study. System, 37(2), 286-299. Annotation
Understanding language learners’ strategy use from their own perspectives rather than according to researchers’ preconceptions is essential for appropriate research and pedagogy. However, the literature on Chinese learners has tended to rely on anecdotal descriptions or Western constructs to portray Chinese learners’ strategy use, and this results in an apparently self-contradictory picture. In this paper we argue that a better understanding of Chinese learners’ strategy use can be gained by accessing their own voices, and by analysing findings in relation to context, in this case historical context. We report on an interview-based study which investigated the strategy use of 13 English language learners from three ‘generations’ of learning experience between 1979 and the present day. Data analysis confirms that memorization is a popular learning strategy for these learners. However, its application is complex and diverse, while change as well as continuity emerges from an overall comparison of different generations’ learning strategy use. We argue on this basis that language policy and related pedagogy may be important influences.
Kern, R. G. (1994). The role of mental translation in second language reading. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 16(4), 441-461.
Khaldieh, S. A. (2000). Learning strategies and writing process of proficient vs. less-proficient learners of Arabic. Foreign Language Annals, 33(5), 522-534. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2000.tb01996.x Annotation
Previous research in second language (L2) learning indicates that successful learners seem to use a wider variety of learning strategies than unsuccessful learners. This article reports the author's findings on the learning strategies used by 43 American learners of Arabic as a foreign language (AFL) in their writing tasks. The learning strategies were assessed through a process of introspection. While composing, students wrote down all techniques and procedures used to perform the writing task. The learners' strategies were tallied, classified, and analyzed.
Analysis of the data shows that all learners — proficient and less-proficient — were active users of different learning strategies to varying degrees. The findings demonstrate that the less-proficient writers experienced a high level of anxiety and frustration, adopted a negative attitude toward writing, and did not show complete control and mastery of the language structures of AFL. As a result, their writing samples exhibit a low level of writing proficiency. That is, their writing skill was developing at a slow pace. In contrast, the proficient writers appeared to have controlled their anxiety level, were sure of their linguistic ability, and performed to their potential — as shown in their essays. Furthermore, a closer examination of the linguistic system used in the writing task showed that the linguistic system and rhetoric of the first language (L1) prevailed. Translation of L1 structures was evident in the learners' writing samples. However, proficiency in writing seemed to be evolving; the attempt to create with and imitate L2 linguistic structures was obvious in the learners' essays.
This study identifies the writing techniques and procedures used by learners of AFL, as indicated by the learners' introspection. Implications for classroom instruction are discussed in the final section of the article.
Analysis of the data shows that all learners — proficient and less-proficient — were active users of different learning strategies to varying degrees. The findings demonstrate that the less-proficient writers experienced a high level of anxiety and frustration, adopted a negative attitude toward writing, and did not show complete control and mastery of the language structures of AFL. As a result, their writing samples exhibit a low level of writing proficiency. That is, their writing skill was developing at a slow pace. In contrast, the proficient writers appeared to have controlled their anxiety level, were sure of their linguistic ability, and performed to their potential — as shown in their essays. Furthermore, a closer examination of the linguistic system used in the writing task showed that the linguistic system and rhetoric of the first language (L1) prevailed. Translation of L1 structures was evident in the learners' writing samples. However, proficiency in writing seemed to be evolving; the attempt to create with and imitate L2 linguistic structures was obvious in the learners' essays.
This study identifies the writing techniques and procedures used by learners of AFL, as indicated by the learners' introspection. Implications for classroom instruction are discussed in the final section of the article.
Khalil, A. (2005). Assessment of language learning strategies used by Palestinian EFL learners. Foreign Language Annals, 38(1), 108-119. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2005.tb02458.x4 Annotation
This article assesses the language learning strategies (LLSs) used by 194 high school and 184 university English-as-a-foreign-language (EFL) learners in Palestine, using Oxford's (1990) Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL). It also explores the effect of language proficiency and gender on frequency of strategy use. The findings show that proficiency level and gender have a main effect on overall strategy use, but their effects on the use of each of the six categories of strategies and individual strategies are variable. The findings have significant implications for research on LLSs, classroom instruction, materials design, and teacher preparation.
Knouzi, I., Swain, M., Lapkin, S., & Brooks, L. (2010). Self-scaffolding mediated by languaging: Microgenetic analysis of high and low performers. International Journal of Applied Linguistics. 20(1). 23–49. doi:10.1111/j.1473-4192.2009.00227.x Annotation
The growing literature about the positive effect of languaging or self-explaining has so far failed to determine why some learners benefit from languaging more than others. We attempt to address this gap through a microgenetic analysis of the languaging behaviour of two university students learning French as a second language, whom we identify as a high and a low languager. We trace the development of their understanding of the grammatical concept of voice in French. Our findings suggest that languaging is a self-scaffolding tool that our high languager used efficiently to solve cognitive conflicts, mediate mental processes, and construct meaning in general. On the basis of our results, we call for a change in educational practices that would allow for more learner agency through self-scaffolding mediated by languaging.
Lam, W. Y. K. (2008). Metacognitive strategy use: Accessing ESL Learners' inner voices via stimulated recall. Innovation in Language Teaching and Learning, 2(3), 207-223. doi:10.1080/17501220802158917 Annotation
This article reports on findings from a study that employed stimulated recall (SR) to tap English as second language (ESL) learners’ metacognitive strategy use and thought processes. Two groups of four students in each were asked to engage in an English group discussion task. Prior to the task, the groups were given time to discuss how they might prepare for the upcoming task. Immediately after the task, each of the eight students was asked to participate in a SR interview to recall the thought processes that had taken place during the group preparation. A fine-grained qualitative analysis of the thought processes of the students indicated that they reported using different types of metacognitive strategies to do local and global planning prior to the task proper. The results also showed that students were planning to use strategies to monitor the turn-taking pattern or contribution of group members while the English task was in action. This paper proposes that SR interviews may usefully be incorporated into the teaching plan as post-task activities. This way, the teacher may be able to access the inner voices of ESL learners about metacognitive strategy, thereby gaining insight into effective teaching of ESL oral skills.
Lam, W. Y. K. (2009). Examining the effects of metacognitive strategy instruction on ESL group discussions: A synthesis of approaches. Language Teaching Research, 13, 129-150. doi:10.1177/1362168809103445 Annotation
This article presents the findings of an intervention study designed to examine the effects of metacognitive strategy instruction (MCSI) on learners' performance and on strategy use. Two classes in the secondary English oral classroom in Hong Kong participated in the study; one class received eight sessions of MCSI and the other served as a comparison group. In weeks 1, 10 and 20, data were collected from the learners' performance in group-work discussions, from the self-report questionnaires, from the observations of learners' strategy use, and from the stimulated recall interviews. The findings indicated that the treatment class generally outperformed the comparison class in the group discussion task. In addition, there was corroborating evidence from the multi-method approach to support the view that the learners tended to deploy `problem identification' as a global planning strategy to cope with an upcoming prioritization group discussion task. The findings are discussed with respect to awareness-raising value of the MCSI, the interaction effect between strategy instruction and research method, explicit and implicit learning, and a match of task type and strategy choice. Finally, the distinct advantages of using a multi-method approach to gauging the effects of MCSI are appraised.
Lan, R., & Oxford, R.L. (2003). Language learning strategy profiles of elementary school students in Taiwan. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 41(4), 339-380. Annotation
Recent research on language learning strategies has witnessed prolific and vigorous growth in both second and foreign language contexts. Numerous studies around the globe, including significant efforts by prominent researchers, have heightened the world's awareness of language learning strategy use and of factors affecting learners' strategy choice. Most studies have focused on adolescent and adult learners, but some research has extended to elementary school levels. However, the voice of young learners of English in Asia has not yet been heard. This research therefore provides learning strategy profiles of students learning English in elementary schools in Taiwan, shows strong relationships between strategy use and proficiency, and presents significant gender and motivational differences in strategy use among young Taiwanese learners of English.
Lawes, S., & Santos, D. (2007). Teaching learning strategies: What do teachers learn? The Language Learning Journal, 35(2), 221-237. doi:0.1080/09571730701628101 Annotation
This article reports on a distinctive form of continuing professional development that emerged from a classroom-based collaborative research project between university researchers and teachers of French. We shall argue that one of the outcomes of this particular form of collaboration is a relatively unexplored, yet potentially important, approach to foreign language teacher development in general and to research into learning strategies in particular. Specifically, we will consider the extent to which a group of Y12 French teachers, who contributed to the implementation of a two-year long investigation into listening and writing strategies with their students, developed professional knowledge and skills as a by-product of their participation in the university-led project.
Lehtonen, T. (2000). Awareness of strategies is not enough: How learners can give each other the confidence to use them. Language Awareness, 9(2), 64-77. Annotation
This paper reports on a study that started out as an investigation into learner training, but evolved into a more holistic study on consciousness raising. The context is a university-level English reading course which incorporates learner training sessions and plenty of group work. This report focuses, on the one hand, on the change in perceptions of a mature language learner and, on the other hand, on the possible powers of group interaction. The findings indicate that the case study student perceived a change in her approaches to reading and vocabulary. This perceived change is likely to be connected to the personal relevance the student was able to create on the course. The findings also suggest that group interactions as a follow-up to teacher-initiated sessions may serve at least two reflective functions. First, they may offer alternatives to the perceptions a student has and, second, they may reinforce those perceptions. The implications of the findings for both the practice of teaching and for further research are considerable.
Li, D. (2007). Coping with linguistic challenges in UK higher education: The use of strategies by Chinese research students. The Language Learning Journal, 35(2), 205-219. doi:10.1080/09571730701599237 Annotation
The present study sets out to examine the strategies used by Chinese learners in a predominantly naturalistic environment and how such learner strategy use relates to their proficiency in the second language. Data were collected from four Chinese research students in the UK using semi-structured interviews. Their proficiency in English was assessed with an oral interview and a listening test. The main findings from this study are that the learners used a wide range of strategies overall, including metacognitive, cognitive, social/affective and compensation strategies. The majority of the commonly reported strategies were metacognitive strategies, suggesting that the learners were self-directed and attempting to manage their own learning in an informal context. They also showed idiosyncrasies in their use of learner strategies. Attempts to explain the learners' strategy use in relation to their levels of proficiency in English and contextual factors, as well as several other factors, are offered. Implications for target-country institutions in terms of the provision of support to Chinese students are discussed.
Li, J., & Qin, X. (2006). Language learning styles and learning strategies of tertiary-level English learners in China. RELC Journal, 37(1), 67-90. doi:10.1177/0033688206063475 Annotation
This study focuses on the relationship between learning styles and language learning strategies in the EFL context in China. The study presents two kinds of data: quantitative and qualitative. In the quantitative study, the subjects consisted of 187 second-year undergraduates. Two self-reported inventories, the Chinese version of MBTI-G and a questionnaire on the use of learning strategies adapted from O’Malley and Chamot’s classification system, were used to examine the students’ learning styles and learning strategies respectively. Structured interviews have been performed among the six high and low achievers in the qualitative aspect of the study.
The analyses show that learning styles have a significant influence on learners’ learning strategy choices. There is evidence that the Judging scale correlates positively with seven sets of learning strategies. Thus it turns out to be the most influential learning style variable affecting learners’ learning strategy choices. Compared with low achievers, high achievers are more capable of exercising strategies that are associated with their non-preferred styles.
Based on the available research results, it is proposed that learning styles may influence learners’ language learning outcomes through their relationship with learning strategies. The pedagogical implications of these findings are discussed, as are suggestions for future research.
The analyses show that learning styles have a significant influence on learners’ learning strategy choices. There is evidence that the Judging scale correlates positively with seven sets of learning strategies. Thus it turns out to be the most influential learning style variable affecting learners’ learning strategy choices. Compared with low achievers, high achievers are more capable of exercising strategies that are associated with their non-preferred styles.
Based on the available research results, it is proposed that learning styles may influence learners’ language learning outcomes through their relationship with learning strategies. The pedagogical implications of these findings are discussed, as are suggestions for future research.
Liao, P. (2006). EFL learners' beliefs about and strategy use of translation in English learning. RELC Journal, 37(2), 191-215.doi:10.1177/0033688206067428 Annotation
Athough the use of translation in learning a foreign language is much maligned by language teachers, translation is widely used in learners’ foreign language learning process. It appears that learners often use translation as a learning strategy to comprehend, remember, and produce a foreign language. However, relatively little research attention so far seems to have been devoted to a consideration of the use of translation in language learning. Thus, this study aims to explore the role of translation in Taiwanese college students’ English learning, particularly in terms of their learning beliefs and learning strategies about using translation to learn English. The data from survey questionnaires and qualitative interviews will address the following research questions: (1) What are students’ beliefs about using translation to learn English? (2) What learning strategies employing translation do students report using? (3) What are the relationships among learners’ beliefs about and use of translation? (4) To what extent do learners’ background variables relate to their beliefs about and use of translation? Pedagogical implications are also discussed. The results of the study hope to sensitize EFL teachers to various learning strategies involving translation and to the possible benefits of using translation for English learning reported by the students.
Macaro, E. (2001). Learning strategies in foreign and second language classrooms. London: Continuum. Annotation
This book highlights empirical work on language-learning and -use strategies. Macaro offers the reader a series of continua for classifying strategies and discusses research methods and what is known about successful language students. He goes on to review descriptive studies of language strategy use, a discussion of literature on listening strategies, the language of thought, intervention studies, and learner training in language classrooms. Macaro concludes with ten recommendations for teachers to use in the second language classroom.
Macaro, E. (2006). Strategies for language learning and for language use: Revising the theoretical framework. The Modern Language Journal, 90(3), 320-337. Annotation
Since the late 1970s, there has been widespread research interest in the strategies that learners use in learning and using second languages. This interest has generated a parallel research effort in language learner strategy instruction. The body of work to date suggests a possible relationship between strategy use and second language learning success. It also provides some evidence that learners can be helped to use strategies more effectively. Several criticisms, however, have been made of this field of research, particularly pertaining to a lack of theoretical rigour. This article reviews the problems related to strategy research and proposes a revised theoretical framework in which strategies are differentiated from skills, processes, and styles. Rather than offering an all-encompassing definition of a strategy, the article proposes a series of features essential to describing a strategy. The framework aims to enhance current theory.
Macaro, E. (2007). Do near-beginner learners of French have any writing strategies? The Language Learning Journal, 35(1), 23-35. doi:10.1080/09571730701315600 Annotation
This article reports on a descriptive and exploratory study of near-beginner learners of French in English secondary schools, their cognitive and metacognitive strategies, and their general approaches to writing. There is virtually no research on foreign language writing at this level, conceived in this study as including the copying of words and sentences, as well as free-writing. 16 students took part in task-based interviews designed to elicit their writing strategies at two time points some seven months apart. An analysis of their writing behaviours shows that being able to write was associated with being able to read, that there was some variation in the extent to which students were concerned with meaning whilst copying, that in both copy-writing and free-writing students attempted to use grapheme – phoneme correspondences (GPC) but with little success, and that few students developed a capacity to write freely on a topic.
Macaro, E. (2007). Language learner strategies: Adhering to a theoretical framework. The Language Learning Journal, 35(2), 239-243. doi:10.1080/09571730701599245 Annotation
The editors and guest editors of Volume 35 have very kindly asked me to write an end-piece to this special issue of The Language Learning Journal that has focused on language learner strategies (LLS). Particularly they have asked me to evaluate the extent to which the papers presented in this volume adhere to some sort of theoretical consensus. I am most honoured to be able to accept their invitation. In so doing I am conscious of two pitfalls: that I should end up sounding as if I were passing judgment on other people's work, which I really have no intention of doing, and certainly not without acknowledging deficiencies in my own work; and that I should single out individual authors for praise or criticism, which again I have no intention of doing.
In a number of my contributions to the research area (Macaro, 2001, 2006; Macaro et al., 2005; Macaro et al., 2007; Cohen & Macaro, 2007) I have raised a series of concerns about the theoretical basis of LLS research and, particularly in Macaro (2006), I have proposed a theoretical framework which attempts to address those concerns. Space does not allow me to give anything more than an overview of the framework.
I will take each of those concerns and, in turn, evaluate whether the papers (as a whole) in this volume have gone some way towards addressing them.
In a number of my contributions to the research area (Macaro, 2001, 2006; Macaro et al., 2005; Macaro et al., 2007; Cohen & Macaro, 2007) I have raised a series of concerns about the theoretical basis of LLS research and, particularly in Macaro (2006), I have proposed a theoretical framework which attempts to address those concerns. Space does not allow me to give anything more than an overview of the framework.
I will take each of those concerns and, in turn, evaluate whether the papers (as a whole) in this volume have gone some way towards addressing them.
Macaro, E., & Erler, L. (2008). Raising the achievement of young-beginner readers of French through strategy instruction. Applied Linguistics, 29(1), 90-119.doi:10.1093/applin/amm023 Annotation
This article reports on an intervention study of reading comprehension among young-beginner learners of French as a foreign language (L2) in England. A number of factors are currently contributing to low achievement in reading among this population of learners. Although research into reading strategies is extensive, and there is some evidence of success in reading strategy instruction, very few studies have focused on beginner readers and there are no examples of longitudinal interventions such as this one. A sample of 62, 11–12 year olds underwent a programme of reading strategy instruction lasting 14 months. Measures were taken of French reading comprehension, reading strategy use and attitudes towards French before and after the intervention and findings compared with a group of 54 students not receiving the intervention. Results suggest that strategy instruction improved comprehension of both simple and more elaborate texts, brought about changes in strategy use, and improved attitudes towards reading.
Macaro, E., & Mutton, T. (2009). Developing reading achievement in primary learners of French: Inferencing strategies versus exposure to 'graded readers' The Language Learning Journal, 37(2), 165-182. doi:10.1080/09571730902928045 Annotation
All primary school children in England are to be entitled to learn a foreign language by 2010, based on the belief that an early start is beneficial for language learning in the long run. However, the evidence of the benefits of an early start is inconclusive, and it is also unclear what type of curriculum and pedagogy would be most appropriate for these young-beginner learners. This pilot study of Year 6 (ages 10–11) children learning French aimed to provide some initial evidence that a literacy-based component has a place in a primary language learning curriculum. A group of learners were given an intervention comprising some special materials designed to develop their ‘inferencing strategies’ when confronted with new or unfamiliar French words in short texts. This group was compared with a group of learners who were simply exposed to a diet of ‘graded French readers’ without any strategy instruction. Both groups were, in turn, compared with a control group which continued with their normal learning experience. Both the inferencing strategies group and the graded readers group made significant advances in their reading comprehension, but, further, the inferencing strategies group outperformed the graded readers group in inferencing ability and in the learning of function words. The findings suggest a need to pursue this area of enquiry further with a larger and more controlled study.
Magogwe, J.M., & Oliver, R. (2007). The relationship between language learning strategies, proficiency, age and self-efficacy beliefs: A study of language learners in Botswana. System, 35(3), 338-352. Annotation
This research seeks to extend our current knowledge by exploring the relationship between preferred language strategies, age, proficiency, and self-efficacy beliefs. Responding to the call for more replication of strategy research and for research in different cultural contexts, this research was undertaken in Botswana between 2002 and 2005. The adapted versions of the Oxford [Oxford, R., 1990. Language learning strategies: what every teacher should know. Newbury House, New York] Strategies Inventory for Language Learning (strategies) and the Morgan-Jinks Student Efficacy Scale [Jinks, J.L., Morgan, V.L., 1999. Children’s perceived academic self-efficacy: an inventory. Retrieved 13/9/2004, from ] (self-efficacy) instruments were used to gather this data.
The results indicate that Botswana students do use a number of language learning strategies, but that they show distinct preferences for particular types of strategies. The findings also reveal a dynamic relationship between use of language learning strategies and proficiency, level of schooling (representing age differences) and self-efficacy beliefs. These results may be used in the future to inform pedagogy and as such the outcomes from this research are important for a country where the learning of English is an important educational requirement.
The results indicate that Botswana students do use a number of language learning strategies, but that they show distinct preferences for particular types of strategies. The findings also reveal a dynamic relationship between use of language learning strategies and proficiency, level of schooling (representing age differences) and self-efficacy beliefs. These results may be used in the future to inform pedagogy and as such the outcomes from this research are important for a country where the learning of English is an important educational requirement.
Malcolm, D. (2009). Reading strategy awareness of Arabic-speaking medical students studying in English. System, 37(4), 640-651. Annotation
Skilled readers are often characterized as more metacognitively aware than less skilled readers. This questionnaire study of 160 students at a medical university in Bahrain compared reported academic reading strategy use of readers at varying initial English proficiency level and year of study. While all students reported high use of strategies overall, significant differences were found in reported use of metacognitive strategies in general and specific strategies related to translating from English to Arabic. Students of low initial English proficiency and those in their first year reported translating more, while upper year students translated less and used more metacognitive strategies. Compared to findings in previous studies using the same self-report questionnaire, reported reading strategy use was generally higher and more similar to other academic readers in an EFL setting than L1 and L2 readers in a US college. Differences in strategies related to translating suggest an area for further investigation.
Maleki, A. (2007). Teachability of communication strategies: An Iranian experience. System, 35(4), 583-594. Annotation
The possibility of teaching communication strategies and the feasibility of incorporating them into school syllabi have been a controversial issue. In the current study, 60 Iranian students were divided into two thirty-member classes; then two different textbooks, one with specific CS and the other without them, were chosen to be taught in the classes. At the end of a four-month teaching period, oral and written examinations were held for both classes and the results were compared. The study’s findings confirmed that teaching communication strategies is pedagogically effective, that interactional strategies are more effectively and extensively used, that communication strategies are conducive to language learning, and that language teaching materials with communication strategies are more effective than those without them.
Manchon, R. M. (2008). Taking strategies to the foreign language classroom: Where are we now in theory and research? International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 46(3), 221-234. doi:10.1515/IRAL.2008.010 Annotation
One of the main claims of the research on language learner strategies is that the ultimate aim of the empirical work conducted in this area is to develop knowledge that can be useful in improving language learning and teaching in second and foreign language classrooms. Yet, attempts at making strategy instruction a central component of instructed language learning remain at the level of isolated initiatives rather than being part of mainstream pedagogical recommendations and practices. The central question that this paper addresses is why, despite the growth over the years in scholarly concern with strategies, advances in the field have not made their way into mainstream foreign language pedagogical thinking. In order to answer this question, I first account for the rationale behind strategy instruction as an approach to language teaching. I then review some of the main concerns that were raised up to the end of the 90's regarding the extrapolation of strategy research findings to the language classroom. This takes me to an analysis of some current developments in strategy theory and research with a view to ascertain their pedagogical relevance. My conclusion is that some headway has been made in the conceptualization of strategies and also in the manner in which the purported benefits of strategy instruction have been put to empirical test. It is also my view that future progress is dependent upon grounding theoretical and empirical work in the field more firmly in current developments in second language acquisition research.
Matsumoto, K. (1996). Helping L2 learners reflect on classroom learning. ELT Journal, 50(2), 143-149. doi:10.1093/elt/50.2.143 Annotation
A total of 108 Japanese college students were assigned retrospective self-reporting tasks in which they were led to reflect upon their classroom L2 learning through self-analysis by reference to diaries, and by structured questionnaires and interviews on learning strategies, learner beliefs, and attitudes; these were followed by class or group discussions. The students were then given questionnaires on the role of retrospective self-reporting activities in the processes of their classroom L2 learning. They reported that retrospective diary-keeping and analysis helped raise their awareness of their own L2 learning, whereas the questionnaires and interviews in concert with class or group discussions helped them become alert to their own and other students' learning strategies, beliefs, and attitudes. Expanding their repertoire of tactics in this way enabled them to approach language learning more efficiently and flexibly. Overall, the retrospective reporting activities, both ‘personal’ and ‘public’, were viewed as effective in leading students to assume full responsibility for the leadership of their L2 learning process.
McDonough, S. H. (1995). Strategy and skill in learning a foreign language. London: Edward Arnold. Annotation
The book reviews much of the classic work on communication and learning strategies, and includes implications for classroom management, materials and syllabus design, and evaluation. It is an excellent resource for strategy researchers and classroom teachers.
McDonough, S. H. (1999). Learner strategies. Language Teaching, 32(1), 1-18. Annotation
The article starts by reviewing various definitions of strategies. McDonough points out that the term learner strategy is a way of broadening the concept so as not to view the learner just as a performer, but also as a problem-solver and reflective organizer of knowledge and skills. The first section ends with categories for assessing strategies and an endorsement of verbal report. He notes issues like self-disclosure in certain cultures and the matter of consciousness. He then reviews a theoretical foundations section, the literature on strategic performance in skills areas (reading -- featuring Sarig's taxonomy, writing -- with a lot of space devoted to this, talking -- featuring the Cohen & Olshtain study, listening -- featuring Vandergrift's work, vocabulary, test taking, strategies in the classroom, the language of thought). The third section is on strategy instruction, which briefly reviews various efforts to assess strategy training.
Mendelsohn, D. J. (1994). Learning to listen. San Diego: Dominie Press. Annotation
This book starts by discussing the theoretical assumptions concerning the learning process, listening process, and listening strategies. The author then makes the case for a strategies-based approach, discusses the essential features and design of a strategies-based course, deals with the linguistic proficiency required to be a competent listener, and give examples of the strategies-based approach.
Mercer, S. (2011). The beliefs of two expert EFL learners. The Language Learning Journal, 39(1), 57-74. doi:10.1080/09571736.2010.521571 Annotation
Much of the research into ‘expert’ language learners has focused largely on their learning strategies or styles. Less attention has been paid to other expert learner characteristics, such as learner beliefs. However, the importance of learners' beliefs in guiding their behaviours and how they interpret their experiences is widely recognised. This article examines the situated belief systems of two expert, tertiary-level EFL learners. Qualitative data were generated with the students in a set of two extended interviews and were analysed employing a grounded theory approach. Based on the findings, the article attempts to indicate some of the complexity and interrelatedness of learners’ beliefs, as well as the close connection between a learner's beliefs and their personal language learning history. It concludes by raising questions about understandings of beliefs which categorise them as being fundamentally ‘positive’ or ‘negative’. It suggests that it may be more appropriate for researchers and educators to consider learner beliefs in terms of their appropriacy for a particular individual in their unique sociocultural, educational and personal contexts.
Mikk, B. K., Cohen, A. D. & Paige, R.M. with Chi, J. C., Lassegard, J. P., Meagher, M. & Weaver, S. J. (2009). Maximizing study abroad: An instructional guide to strategies for language and culture learning and use. (CARLA Working Paper Series). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition. Retrieved from /maxsa/guides.html Annotation
This guides language teachers and study abroad professionals with both a solid understanding of language and culture learning theory and concrete ways to use this knowledge to support students in their skill development. The guide is written with the busy professional in mind and features a "tool kit" of more than 100 hands-on activities that are ready for use in pre-departure, in-country, and re-entry initiatives for study abroad programs, as well as in language classrooms at home and abroad. With its creative activities, practitioner-friendly theory sections, teacher-tested tools, and professional advice, this user-friendly guide will allow you to quickly and easily integrate or adapt these new ideas to meet the unique needs of your classroom or study abroad program.
Mizohata, Y. (2003). Listening strategy training for EFL learners with different learning styles. Language Education & Technology, 40, 35-60. Retrieved Online Annotation
Learning strategies have been widely investigated, however, there have been few detailed investigations of the listening strategies employed by Japanese EFL learners, The main purpose of this study is to investigate the listening strategies used by Japanese senior high school students, analyze their learning styles, design a listening strategy training program for them and confirm the effects of the training. The experimental procedure is pre and post self report questionnaires and pre and post tests design after three months strategy training implemented by the present writer. The subjects were high school students and their proficiency level is rather low, with less motivation to learn English. The results indicate an increase in frequency of strategy use in general, a significant difference in the gains of mean scores in the post listening test, and different effects of the training on different learner types in the use of some strategies. Some educational implications from this study are also presented.
Mizumoto, A. (2012). Exploring the effects of self-efficacy on vocabulary learning strategies. Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal, 3(4), 423-437. Annotation
This study examined the effects of self-efficacy on language learning strategies by focusing on vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs). A group of 281 EFL learners from two universities participated in the study. They completed the Vocabulary Size Test (Nation & Beglar, 2007), questionnaires on self-efficacy, and an open-ended question about their use of VLSs. The learners were divided into three groups based on their responses to the self-efficacy questionnaire. The effect of self-efficacy was then examined by utilizing text mining. The results show that the effects of self-efficacy were observed in the participants’ open-ended responses. It also became clear that those with high self-efficacy were active users of VLSs, they employed deep strategies, and they were metacognitively superior to participants with medium and low efficiency. Those with medium self-efficacy were also active users of VLSs, but they used shallow strategies compared with the high self-efficiency group. Those with low self-efficacy tended to be passive users of VLSs. The pedagogical implications of the current study are discussed mainly in terms of incorporating self-efficacy and self-regulation enhancing instructions into vocabulary teaching.
Mizumoto, A., & Takeuchi, O. (2009). Examining the effectiveness of explicit instruction of vocabulary learning strategies with Japanese EFL university students. Language Teaching Research, 13(4), 425-449. doi:10.1177/1362168809341511 Annotation
This study examined the effectiveness of explicit instruction of vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs) over a ten-week semester with a group of 146 female EFL learners from two Japanese universities. A vocabulary test and questionnaires on VSLs and motivation were administered at the beginning of the course. The learners were divided into two groups based on the vocabulary test results: an experimental group and a control group. Only the experimental group received explicit instruction on VLSs in combination with their regular language lessons. The same instruments were readministered at the end of the course to examine the changes in both the questionnaire responses and test scores. Qualitative analyses were also conducted to explore the findings in detail. The results show that the experimental group outperformed the control group in the vocabulary test. It was also found that (a)strategy training was effective for both changing the repertoire of strategies used and improving their frequency of use, (b) the training increased the use of certain strategies more than it did for other strategies, and (c) different types of learners exhibited different responses to the strategy instruction. This study’s findings contribute to a better understanding of strategy instruction in general and VLSs in particular.
Murphy, J. M. (1987). The listening strategies of English as a second language college students. Research and Teaching in Developmental Education, 4(1), 27-46.
Murray, B. (2010). Students' language learning strategy use and achievement in the Korean as a foreign language classroom. Foreign Language Annals, 43(4), 624-634. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2010.01105.x Annotation
This study examined the relationship between student strategy use and the development of proficiency in a Korean as a Foreign Language classroom. A total of 66 English native speakers learning Korean as a Foreign Language were administered the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL), Version 5.1. Findings indicated a low positive correlation between each of the six subscales of the SILL with one exception, a somewhat higher correlation between the subscales and the total SILL score; and again a generally low positive correlation between SILL scores, total SILL, and classroom achievement. Correlations on an overall basis were therefore not so well defined, nor were they of sufficient strength to be used as predictors for achievement. Classroom indications would indicate that an overemphasis on language learning strategies may not be appropriate, and they should be treated as only one among many variables in the language learning process.
Naiman, N., Fröhlich, M., Stern, H., & Todesco, A. (1978). The good language learner. Research in Education Series No. 7. Toronto: Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.
Nakatani, Y. (2005). The effects of awareness-raising on oral communication strategy use. The Modern Language Journal, 89(1), 76-91. Annotation
This study examines current patterns of oral communication strategy (OCS) use, to what degree these strategies can be explicitly taught, and the extent to which strategy use can lead to improvements in oral communication ability. In a 12-week English as a Foreign Language (EFL) course based on a communicative approach, 62 female learners were divided into 2 groups. The strategy training group (n = 28) received metacognitive training, focusing on OCS use, whereas the control group (n = 34) received only the normal communicative course, with no explicit focus on OCSs. The effects of the training were assessed by 3 types of data collection: the participants' pre- and postcourse oral communication test scores, transcription data from the tests, and retrospective protocol data for their task performance. The findings revealed that participants in the strategy training group significantly improved their oral proficiency test scores, whereas improvements in the control group were not significant. The results of the transcription and retrospective protocol data analyses confirmed that the participants' success was partly due to an increased general awareness of OCSs and to the use of specific OCSs, such as maintenance of fluency and negotiation of meaning to solve interactional difficulties.
Nakatani, Y. (2006). Developing an oral communication strategy inventory. The Modern Language Journal, 90(2), 151-168. Annotation
This study focuses on how valid information about learner perception of strategy use during communicative tasks can be gathered systematically from English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. First, the study attempted to develop a questionnaire for statistical analysis, named the Oral Communication Strategy Inventory (OCSI). The research project consisted of 3 stages: an open-ended questionnaire to identify learners' general perceptions of strategies for oral interaction (N = 80); a pilot factor analysis for selecting test items (N = 400); and a final factor analysis to obtain a stable self-reported instrument (N = 400). The resulting OCSI includes 8 categories of strategies for coping with speaking problems and 7 categories for coping with listening problems during communication. The applicability of the survey instrument was subsequently examined in a simulated communicative test for EFL students (N = 62). To validate the use of the instrument, participant reports on the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) were compared with the result of the OCSI. When combined with the oral test scores, it was revealed that students with high oral proficiency tended to use specific strategies, such as social affective strategies, fluency-oriented strategies, and negotiation of meaning.
Nakatani, Y. (2010). Identifying strategies that facilitate EFL learners' oral communication: A classroom study using multiple data collection procedures. The Modern Language Journal, 94(1), 116-136. Annotation
This article considers whether the use of specific communication strategies can improve learners' English proficiency in communicative tasks. Japanese college students (n = 62) participated in a 12-week course of English lessons using a communicative approach with strategy training. To investigate the influence of specific strategy use, their performance on a posttraining conversation test was analyzed through multiple data collection procedures. Transcripts of the test were made and then analyzed in terms of production rate, the number of errors, and actual strategy use. An Oral Communication Strategy Inventory was introduced to elicit participants' communication strategy use for a self-report questionnaire procedure. These results were compared with participants' retrospective protocol data regarding their oral test performance. The findings confirmed that strategies for maintaining discourse and negotiation of meaning could enhance learners' communicative ability. Yet the students used a relatively small number of examples of modified output, which indicated that they might not have enough opportunities to improve the form of their utterances.
Nam, C., & Oxford, R. (1998). Portrait of a future teacher: Case study of learning styles, strategies, and language disabilities. System, 26(1), 51-63. Annotation
Many individuals persevere through their school and university years with undiagnosed, language-related learning disabilities. This article describes a future teacher who is partially bilingual. Her problems with auditory memory and auditory processing speed were severe, and as a result her performance in reading and writing suffered. Because of her concerns for people such as herself who must deal with language-related learning disabilities, she is now becoming a teacher. This is a portrait of her educational progress.
Naughton, D. (2006). Cooperative strategy training and oral interaction: Enhancing small group communication in the language classroom. The Modern Language Journal, 90(2), 169-184. Annotation
This study focused on the effect of a cooperative strategy training program on the patterns of interaction that arose as small groups of students participated in an oral discussion task. The underlying assumption was that students could be taught to engage with each other and with the task in a way that would foster the creation and exploitation of learning opportunities. Intact classes were randomly assigned to the experimental or control condition, and triads from within each group were videotaped at the beginning and end of the experimental intervention. Data taken from the videotapes were analyzed in order to measure changes in overall participation, strategic participation, and the use of the individual strategies included in the program. The pretest showed that prior to strategy training, interaction patterns frequently did not reflect those interactions deemed important for language acquisition as identified within both traditional second language acquisition (SLA) and sociocultural research. The posttest revealed, however, that the strategy training program was largely successful in encouraging students to engage in these types of interactional sequences.
Neubach, A., & Cohen, A. D. (1988). Processing strategies and problems encountered in the use of dictionaries. Dictionaries: Journal of the Dictionary Society of North America, 10, 1-19.
Nevo, N. (1989). Test-taking strategies on a multiple-choice test of reading comprehension. Language Testing, 6(2), 199-215.
Nguyen, L. T. C., & Gu, P. (2013). Strategy-based instruction: A learner-focused approach to developing learner autonomy. Language Teaching Research, 17(1), 9-30. doi:10.1177/1362168812457528 Annotation
This study investigates the effects of strategy-based instruction (SBI) on the promotion of learner autonomy (LA). LA was conceptualized and operationally defined as learner self-initiation and learner self-regulation. An intervention study was conducted with the participation of 37 students in an experimental group, and 54 students in two control groups at a Vietnamese university. An eight-week metacognition training package was incorporated into the academic writing programme of the experimental group. Students in the experimental group improved their ability to plan, monitor and evaluate a writing task more than students in the two control groups. Planning became the most often exercised skill, followed by evaluating and monitoring. Improvements in writing were maintained on a delayed test. Overall, the study suggests that strategy-based instruction in the form of training learners in task-specific metacognitive self-regulation improved learners’ autonomy in both learning and their writing ability.
Nikolov, M. (2006). A study of unsucessful language learners. In Z. Dornyei, and R. Schimidt (Eds.), Motivation and second language acquisition. Manoa: University of Hawai'i, SLTCC.
Nisbet, D., Tindall, E. R., & Arroyo, A. A. (2005). Language learning strategies and English proficiency of Chinese University Students. Foreign Language Annals, 38, 100-107.
Norton, B. & Toohey, K. (2001). Changing perspectives on good language learners. TESOL Quarterly, 35, 307-322.
Olivares-Cuhat, G. (2002). Learning strategies and achievement in the Spanish writing classroom: A case study. Foreign Language Annals, 35(5), 561-570. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2002.tb02724.x Annotation
This article investigates the effect of learning strategies on writing achievement in an intermediate-advanced college-level Spanish writing course, and examines the influence of the students ‘native language and textbook on these strategies. The study was conducted with a class of 20 students that comprised nine first (L1) and eleven second/foreign (L2/FL) language speakers. The Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) provided an estimate of learning strategy use and two composition grades were used as a measure of the students' success. Additionally, the class was divided into two groups, each instructed to work with a different textbook. The following results were found: (1) on average, L1 students obtained higher grades than L2/FL students, (2) L1 students were more inclined to use affective and memory strategies than L2/FL students, and (3) use of memory strategies and writing achievement were significantly correlated, explaining 40% of the overall variability in grades. It was not possible to link the use of a specific textbook to the composition grades. Several classroom implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.
O'Malley, J. M., & Chamot, A. U. (1990). Learning strategies in second language acquisition. New York: Cambridge University Press. Annotation
A thorough review of the literature is provided, and the authors describe, classify, and explain the rationale behind systematic strategy applications. Various instructional models are presented, providing numerous examples of how learning strategy instruction is being conducted at the national and international levels. This book is especially useful for learning strategy researchers. (340 pp.)
O'Malley, J. M., Chamot, A. U., Stewner-Manzanares, G., Kupper, L., & Russo, R. (1985). Learning strategies used by beginning and intermediate ESL students. Language Learning, 35(1), 21-46.
Otwinowska-Kasztelanic, A. (2011). Awareness of cognate vocabulary and vocabulary learning strategies of Polish multilingual and bilingual advanced learners of English. In J. Arabski & A. Wojtaszek (Eds.). Individual learner differences in SLA (pp.110-126). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Oxford, R. L. (1990). Language learning strategies: What every teacher should know. Boston: Heinle & Heinle. Annotation
The most famous of the strategy books, Oxford’s text contains two versions of the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL), which has been translated into several languages and provides learners with a hands-on method to self-diagnose their language-learning strategies. The book contains extensive examples of how different strategies can be applied across language skills and tasks. This is a very practical resource for language teachers and strategy teacher-trainers.
Oxford, R. L. (1990). Language learning strategies. NY: Newbury House/Harper and Row. Annotation
Ch. 1 introduces terminology and provides numerous activities that teachers can use to help learners become acquainted with strategies. Ch. 2 deals with direct strategies -- memory, cognitive, and compensation strategies (e.g., guessing intelligently), and the following chapter applies these direct strategies to the four language skills. Ch. 3 demonstrates how to apply the direct strategies to the language skills. Ch. 4 deals with indirect strategies for general management of learning (metacognitive, affective, social), and the following chapter applies these to the skills. Ch. 6 concerns language learning strategy assessment and training -- with presentation of different means of data collection and then approaches to strategy training. Ch. 7 describes programs around the world dealing which include learner training.
Oxford, R. L. (1995). Style Analysis Survey. In J. Reid (Ed.), Learning styles in the ESL/EFL classroom (pp. 208-215). Boston: Heinle & Heinle/ Thomson International.
Oxford, R. L. (1996). Employing a questionnaire to assess the use of language learning strategies. Applied Language Learning, 7(1-2), 25-45.
Oxford, R. L. (2001). Language learning styles and strategies. In M. Celce-Murcia (Ed.), Teaching English as a second or foreign language (3rd ed., pp. 359-366). Boston: Heinle & Heinle/Thompson International.
Oxford, R. L. (2003). Language learning styles and strategies: Concepts and relationships. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 41(4), 271-278. Annotation
This article explains key concepts found in the articles in this special issue, such as second and foreign languages, learning styles, learning strategies, and motivation. In addition, this article introduces the other articles in the issue and explains how they relate to each other, to the concepts, and to psychological and sociocultural research traditions in applied linguistics.
Oxford, R. L. (2011). Research Timeline: Strategies for learning a second or foreign language. Language Teaching, 44(2), 167-180. doi: 10.1017/S0261444810000492.
Oxford, R. L. (2011). Teaching and researching language learning strategies. New York/London: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group. Annotation
This book analyzes multiple views of L2 learning strategies under the main theme of learner autonomy and self-regulated learning. It looks at learning strategies through sociocultural, critical-political, social cognitive, cognitive, and affective lenses; critically reviews L2 learning strategy research from its inception to the current day, presented first by decade and then by language skill area. The volume presents innovative ways to assess, teach, and research learning strategies. In addition, it discusses strategies used by L2 learners at different proficiency levels, with and without assistance from technology. Also, the book offers contributions by L2 learning strategy experts. Finally, it situates L2 learning strategy research and practice within applied linguistics, educational psychology, cognitive psychology, and related fields. The intention of the volume is to provide new material that is beneficial to experienced researchers, novice researchers, teachers, and graduate students alike.
Oxford, R. L. (Ed.) (1996). Language learning strategies around the world: Crosscultural perspectives. (Technical Report #13). Honolulu, HI: Second Language Teaching & Curriculum Center, University of Hawaii. Annotation
This book incorporates the works of several of the most prominent strategy researchers and teachers. The eighteen chapters and references section address the following questions: What does strategy assessment tell us in various cultures and languages? How can we improve strategy use around the world? What have we learned about language learning strategies around the world? The book combines both research- and teaching-oriented perspectives.
Oxford, R. L. (Ed.). (1996). Language learning motivation: Pathways to the new century (Technical Report #11). Honolulu: Second Language Teaching and Curriculum Center, University of Hawai'i. Annotation
This 6-chapter volume provides theoretical perspectives and empirical research on the motivational factors influencing language learners, both from psychological and sociological perspective.
Oxford, R. L., & Burry-Stock, J. A. (1995). Assessing the use of language learning strategies worldwide with the ESL/EFL version of the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning. System, 23(2), 1-23.
Oxford, R. L., Crookall, D., Cohen, A. D., Lavine, R., Nyikos, M., & Sutter, W. (1990). Strategy training for language learners: Six situational case studies and a training model. Foreign Language Annals, 23(3), 197-216. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.1990.tb00360.x Annotation
As teachers, we all want to help learners discover how to learn languages more effectively and more easily. One way of doing this is strategy training, which has recently caught the imagination of researchers and teachers in many parts of the globe. The article's four purposes are: a) to summarize existing research on use of learning strategies and on conducting strategy training; b) to present six situational case studies of strategy training, with affective aspects interwoven as part of the training; c) to offer a possible strategy training model based on research and personal experience; and d) to make other instructional suggestions for strategy training in the language classroom.
Oxford, R. L., & Green, J. (1996). Language learning histories: Learners and teachers helping each other understand learning styles and strategies. TESOL Journal, Autumn, 20-23.
Oxford, R. L., & Lavine, R. Z. (1992). Teacher-student style wars in the language classroom: Research insights and suggestions. ADFL Bulletin, 23(2), 38-45. Annotation
Excellent article identifying four major language learning styles and then reporting on a study with 60 learners of French and Spanish to collect descriptions of learner-teacher style difference. The four styles are analytic vs. global (not concerned about grammatical minutiae, willing to paraphrase), sensory preference (visual, auditory, hands-on), intuitive-random (thinking in abstract, non-sequential ways) vs. sensory-sequential (concrete facts in step-by-step sequence), tolerance of openness (reaching decisions or clarity). Seven instances of style conflict are given: (1) the teacher is analytic-reflective-auditory and the learner is global-impulsive-visual, (2) the teacher is intuitive-perceiving (open) and the learner is intuitive-judging (closure-oriented), (3) the teacher is analytic-sequential and the learner is global-intuitive, (4) the teacher is intuitive-perceiving (open) and the learner is intuitive-open also but needing a more sensing-sequential teacher to provide a sense of balance, (5) the teacher is analytic-sequential and the learner is global-intuitive (who later compensated on her own), (6) the teacher is an analytic-sequential-visual-reflective teacher of Latin, the other teacher is an analytic-sequential-auditory-reflective teacher of Spanish and the learner is global-intuitive-auditory-impulsive, (7) the teacher is extroverted-hands-on and the learner is introverted-visual, with cultural conflict added. Suggestions for dealing with style conflicts: 1/ assess students' and teachers' styles and use this information in understanding classroom dynamics, 2/ change the teacher's behavior, 3/ change students' behavior, 4/ change the way group work is done in the classroom, 5/ change the curriculum, 6/ change the way style conflicts are viewed.
Oxford, R. L., & Lee, K. R. (2008). The learners’ landscape and journey: A summary. In C. Griffiths (Ed.), Lessons from good language learners (pp. 306-317). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Annotation
The chapter starts by discussing learner identity and notes how different chapters in the book relate to this concept. Then it looks at learner self-regulation, the learning situation, and the learning destination also in terms of the book chapters. It gives implications for teaching and learning, and questions for future research.
Oxford, R. L., & Nyikos, M. (1989). Variables affecting choice of language learning strategies by university students. Modern Language Journal, 73(3), 291-300.
Oxford, R. L., & Shearin, J. (1995). Language learning motivation: Expanding the theoretical framework. Modern Language Journal, 78, 12-28.
Paige, R. M., Cohen, A. D., Kappler, B., Chi, J. C., & Lassegard, J. P. (2002). Maximizing study abroad: A students’ guide to strategies for language and culture learning and use. Minneapolis, MN: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition.
Pani, S. (2004). Reading strategy instruction through mental modelling. ELT Journal, 58(4), 355-362. Retrieved from http://203.72.145.166/ELT/files/58-4-5.pdf Annotation
Focus in recent times on realistic pedagogy implies that we can no longer depend on a transmission model of training, either for teachers or learners. We need to develop strategies that will help teachers and learners to be co-participators in the learning process. Mental modelling is one technique suggested in this article. It is a technique through which the teacher demonstrates the mental processes of a ‘superior’ reader while s/he makes sense of the text. Since this makes the process of reading ‘visible’ it is easy for the learners to imitate the steps. This article records the process and findings of a study with this technique in a teacher education course. The trainees tried to guess the meanings of unknown words in texts and then listened to their tutor’s mental modelling while doing the same task. Data was collected through transcripts of group discussions, mental modelling of the tutor, and retrospective notes of the tutor. Findings from the study showed that mental modelling can be an effective pedagogic strategy in Indian classrooms in terms of motivating the learners to develop improved reading strategies.
Park, G.P. (1997). Language learning strategies and English proficiency in Korean University students. Foreign Language Annals, 30(2), 211-221. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.1997.tb02343.x Annotation
This paper investigates the relationship between language learning strategies and L2 proficiency. Language learning strategies were measured by the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL, ESL/EFL Student Version), and L2 proficiency was determined by the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) for 332 university students learning English in Korea. The findings of this study are: (1) the relationship between language learning strategies and L2 proficiency was linear; (2) all six categories of language learning strategies as well as total language learning strategies were significantly correlated with the TOEFL scores; and (3) cognitive and social strategies were more predictive of the TOEFL scores than the other four strategy categories, jointly accounting for 13 percent of the total variation in the TOEFL scores. These findings provide evidence that L2 learners need language learning strategies, specifically cognitive and social strategies in the Korean context, to facilitate L2 acquisition and suggest that language learning strategies be taught in classrooms, focusing on effective strategies that may improve the results of strategy training.
Parks, S., & Raymond, P.M. (2004). Strategy use by non-native English-speaking students in an MBA program: Not business as usual! The Modern Language Journal, 88(3), 374-389. Annotation
Despite the long-standing interest in strategy use and language learning, little attention has been given to how social context may constrain or facilitate this use or the development of new strategies. Drawing on data from a longitudinal qualitative study, we discuss this issue in relation to the experiences of Chinese students from the People's Republic of China, who, following study in English for Academic Purposes courses, registered in a Master's in Business Administration program in a Canadian university. Specifically, we focus on how the contact with the native-English-speaking Canadian students mediated the Chinese students' strategy use in 3 domains: reading, class lectures, and team work. In contrast to the rather simplistic notion evoked in certain portrayals of the good language learner, strategy use as reported herein emerges as a complex, socially situated phenomenon, bound up with issues related to personal identity (Leki, 2001; Norton, 1997, 2000; Spack, 1997).
Pauwels, P. (2012). Vocabulary materials and study strategies at advanced level. The Language Learning Journal, 40(1), 47-63. doi:10.1080/09571736.2011.639899 Annotation
This paper reports on a quasi-experimental study of the effect of different vocabulary study materials and strategies used by upper-intermediate English as a foreign language students in higher education. Students were assigned a selection of 163 words from the Academic Word List and were provided with different types of study materials. They were informed that they would be tested on the vocabulary five weeks later. The vocabulary assignment was embedded in theircoursework, and the tests – translation of passages of academic writing into L2 – were similar to the end-of-year tests for this course. Students kept logbooks detailing their study efforts (type of activity, duration and timing) and were post-tested twice. Post-tests show better results for two types of materials – thematically organized lists with L1 glosses, and similar lists with example sentences instead of glosses – but the differences were significant only on the immediate post-test. Time spent studying did not significantly affect the results. Amore fine-grained analysis of the qualitative data showed that students, given time, tailor the study materials to fit their ingrained study habits, and that amajority prefer shallow strategies. Overall, gains were modest at around sevenwords/hour on average, which is much less than reported elsewhere, but thisis clearly a factor of the challenging nature of the productive task in this experiment.
Pawlak, M. (2011). Research into language learning strategies: Taking stock and looking ahead. In J. Arabski & A. Wojtaszek (Eds.). Individual learner differences in SLA (pp.17-37). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
Peacock, M., & Ho, B. (2003). Student language learning strategies across eight disciplines. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 13(2), 179-200. doi:10.1111/1473-4192.00043 Annotation
The research on which this article reports investigated the use of 50 common second language learning strategies by 1,006 EAP (English for Academic Purposes) students across eight disciplines – building, business, computing, engineering, English, maths, primary education, and science – in a university in Hong Kong. The study compared and contrasted strategy use across disciplines and also examined the relationships among strategy use, L2 proficiency, age, and gender. Initial data were collected through a standard questionnaire, Oxford's Strategy Inventory for Language Learning. In-depth interviews were also conducted with 48 students to explore why they did or did not use certain strategies. A positive association was found between 27 strategies and proficiency. English students used the most strategies, and computing the fewest. Different deficiencies in strategy use were found in different disciplines, for example the very low use of metacognitive strategies by computing students. Differences were also found by age and by gender: older students were strong in affective and social areas, and females in the use of memory and metacognitive strategies. Conclusions are that EAP teachers need to be aware of possibly sharp disciplinary differences in strategy use and to apply discipline-specific strategy training where appropriate.
Pearson, P. D., & Dole, J. A. (1987). Explicit comprehension instruction: A review of research and a new conceptualization of learning. Elementary School Journal, 88, 151-165.
Peterson, M. (2010). Learner participation patterns and strategy use in Second Life: an exploratory case study. ReCALL, 22(3), 273-292. Annotation
This paper reports on an exploratory case study that investigates the synchronous interaction of intermediate level EFL learners in the 3D virtual world Second Life. The subjects took part in three seventy-minute chat sessions that involved the use of affordances provided by a purpose-built world within this environment. Analysis of the data revealed that the context and tasks appeared to elicit a high degree of participation. The interaction was highly learner–centered, with the majority of messages exchanged between students. The analysis further indicated that the subjects overcame initial difficulties to produce coherent target language output focused on the tasks through collaborative interaction involving the use of five transactional and two interactional discourse management strategies. Transactional strategies identified in the data were the use of split turns, time saving devices, addressivity, upper case and quotation marks. Interactional strategies were the use of politeness and keyboard symbols. The majority of these represented transfers from strategies used in non-computer-based forms of communication. The others were adaptive behaviours appropriate to the online medium. The consistent use of these strategies enabled the subjects to manage their interaction in an effective manner. Learner feedback was largely positive, and indicted that participation appeared to engender high levels of motivation and interest. This paper concludes by identifying areas of potential in future research on the use of 3D virtual worlds in CALL.
Pinter, A. (2006). Verbal evidence of task related strategies: Child versus adult interactions. System, 34(4), 615-630. Annotation
Tasks with adult learners have been discussed extensively in the language learning literature whilst studies about children using tasks are less widespread. Children’s ability to interact on tasks with each other grows steadily with age. This paper reports on the differences observed in the interactions of 10-year-old children and adult learners. The paper explores the task-related strategy use of both adults and children who interacted in pairs using a classic Spot the differences task in English at a low level of competence in an EFL setting. The evidence from the data suggests that adults have controlled the task in a different way and handled the demands of the task at hand more effectively. Implications are drawn about the specific needs of 10-year-old children in relation to working with referential tasks and about using observation and recording task performances as an initial tool in classrooms to explore learner strategy use on tasks.
Poole, A. (2012). The metacognitive strategic knowledge of seven successful Chinese L1 readers at a North American University: A qualitative study. Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal, 3, 392-406. Retrieved from http://sisaljournal.org/archives/dec12/poole/ Annotation
This study examined the metacognitive strategic knowledge possessed by Chinese and Taiwanese ESL learners (N=7) studying at a North American university. Specifically, it sought to discover the factors that influence their decisions about whether or not to use reading strategies. However, instead of analyzing participants’ use of individual strategies, it looked at the common themes which influenced their overall strategy use. In order to do so, participants first filled out a 30-item quantitative survey called the Survey of Reading Strategies (SORS) (Mokhtari & Sheorey, 2002). They then wrote justifications for their responses to each item. The results showed that time, memory, and text comprehension influenced participants’ strategy selection. In addition, the content of the text and its length and difficulty also influenced strategy use. Finally, learners avoided certain strategies because they simply did not like them. Pedagogical implications for Chinese L1 students planning to study at the university level in the United States or other majority English-speaking countries are discussed, as are areas for future research.
Porte, G. K. (2002). Appraising research in second language learning: A practical approach to critical analysis of quantitative research. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
Poulisse, N. (1989). The use of compensatory strategies by Dutch learners of English. Leuven: Katholieke Universiteit.
Poulisse, N., Bongaerts, T., & Kellerman, E. (1986). The use of retrospective verbal reports in the analysis of compensatory strategies. In C. Faerch & G. Kasper (eds.), Introspection in second language research (pp. 213-229). Clevedon, England: Multilingual Matters.
Qingquan, N., Chatupote, M., & Teo, A. (2008). A deep look into learning strategy use by successful and unsuccessful students in the Chinese EFL learning context. RELC Journal, 39(3), 338-358. doi:10.1177/0033688208096845 Annotation
This article focused on the investigation of the differences in the frequency of language learning strategy use by successful and unsuccessful first-year students of a Chinese university.. The study found that successful sudents used a wider range of learning strategies for EFL learning significantly more frequently than unsuccessful students. It was also found that the strategies often employed by the successful students are different from those often preferred by their unsuccessful peers. The former often used deep, L2-based, association, active participation, language use, positive-attitude taking and learning-process monitoring strategies that are likely to make more contributions to successful L2 learning while the latter tended to use surface, L1-based, word-level, rote memory and gesture strategies.
Raimes, A. (1987). Language proficiency, writing ability, and composing strategies: A study of ESL college student writers. Language Learning, 37(3), 439‑467. doi:10.1111/j.1467-1770.1987.tb00579.x Annotation
This study was designed to examine ESL student writers at different levels of instruction, to describe their writing strategies as shown in think-aloud protocols, and to compare their composing behaviors with what we know about native speaker student writers. Eight ESL students, four in remedial ESL writing courses and four in college-level writing courses, were given two different writing tasks for think-aloud composing. The resulting protocols were coded and analyzed. The data were examined in relation to course placement, holistic evaluation of the students' writing, and scores on a language proficiency test. The study showed that: (1) L1 basic writers and L2 writers had many strategies in common, the main difference being that the L2 writers did not appear to be inhibited by attempts to correct their work; (2) the students in nonremedial courses consistently engaged in more interaction with the emerging texts; (3) there was little correspondence demonstrated among proficiency, writing ability, and the students' composing strategies; and (4) a specified purpose and audience had almost no observable effect on composing strategies.
Ramírez, A. G. (1986). Language learning strategies used by adolescents studying French in New York schools. Foreign Language Annals, 19(2), 131-141.
Ranalli, J. (2012). Alternative models of self-regulation and implications for L2 strategy research. Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal, 3, 357-376. Annotation
In this paper I discuss the proposal of Dörnyei and colleagues (Dörnyei, 2005; Tseng, Dörnyei, & Schmitt, 2006) to replace the construct of learning strategy with that of self-regulation and thus shift the research focus from specific strategic behaviors to a trait that is seen to underlie them. I argue that before doing so, we need a fuller understanding of what self-regulation entails and how it might intersect with traditional concerns of second language strategy research. To contribute to this understanding, I highlight alternative conceptualizations of self-regulation and then use data from my doctoral research to illustrate one in particular, the COPES model of self-regulated learning (Winne & Hadwin, 1998). This model’s explanatory power is contrasted with that of Dörnyei and colleagues’ conceptualization to show that, depending on the model one adopts, self-regulation is not only compatible with the study of specific strategies but useful for shedding new light on strategy research and integrating it with research in other related areas, such as L2 motivation.
Rao, Z., & Liu, F. (2011). Effect of academic major on students ‘use of language learning strategies: A diary study in a Chinese context. The Language Learning Journal, 39(1), 43-55. doi:10.1080/09571731003653565 Annotation
The research reported here explored how students' use of language learning strategies (LLS) was affected by their academic major. The data were collected by asking students to keep a four-week diary, and then the findings were examined within the model of learning developed by Biggs. An analysis of diary entries showed that, although there were more similarities than differences in their strategy use, there did exist significant differences between social science students and science students in the use of some learning strategies. These strategic differences in language learning could be interpreted from three perspectives: (1) approaches to learning; (2) career interest; and (3) course structure. Some research implications are also discussed.
Rao, Z., Gu, P. Y., Zhang, L. J., & Hu, G. (2007). Reading strategies and approaches to learning of bilingual primary school pupils. Language Awareness, 16(4), 243-262. doi: 10.2167/la423.0 Annotation
The research reported here investigated primary school pupils' use of reading strategies. The study differed from most of the previous studies on reading strategies in that (1) the participants were young bilinguals in multicultural Singapore; (2) the data were examinedwithin the Student Approaches to Learning (SAL) framework developed by John Biggs (1993). Analyses of think-aloud data revealed that successful pupils made more frequent use of deep-level processing strategies (e.g. inferencing, prediction, reconstruction, questioning of the text) while less successful pupils more often deployed surface-level processing strategies (e.g. paraphrasing, re-reading, questioning the meaning of a word or phrase). The findings suggest that children's reading efficacy is affected by their use of learning strategies and that teachers should integrate the training of deep level reading strategies into their reading instruction. They should direct their pupils' attention towards the intentional content of the reading material (what is signified) rather than towards learning the text itself (the sign) in their actual teaching practice.
Reid, J. M. (Ed.). (1995). Learning styles in the ESL/EFL classroom. NY: Heinle & Heinle.
Riazi, A. (2007). Language learning strategy use: Perceptions of female Arab English majors. Foreign Language Annals, 40(3), 433-440. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2007.tb02868.x Annotation
This study investigated the patterns of language learning strategy use among 120 female Arabic-speaking students majoring in English at a university in Qatar. Perceptions of strategy use were measured by the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL, ESL/EFL Student Version). The study found that (1) this group of EFL learners featured medium bordering on high strategy users with an overall mean of 3A6 out of 5; (2) strategy categories were used in the order of metacognitive, cognitive, compensation, social, memory, and affective; (3) freshmen students reported the highest rate of strategy use with a mean of 3.64; and (4) except for compensation strategies, results did not show any significant difference among four educational levels regarding the use of strategy categories.
Robbins, J., & Dadour, E. S. (1996). University-level strategy instruction to improve speaking ability in Egypt and Japan. In Oxford, R.(Ed.), Language learning strategies around the World: Cross-cultural perspectives Manoa:University of Hawaii, SLTLC.
Roehr, K. (2008). Metalinguistic knowledge and language ability in university-level L2 learner. Applied Linguistics, 29(2), 173-199. doi:10.1093/applin/amm037 Annotation
Existing research indicates that instructed learners’ L2 proficiency and their metalinguistic knowledge are moderately correlated. However, the operationalization of the construct of metalinguistic knowledge has varied somewhat across studies. Metalinguistic knowledge has typically been operationalized as learners’ ability to correct, describe, and explain L2 errors. More recently, this operationalization has been extended to additionally include learners’ L1 language-analytic ability as measured by tests traditionally used to assess components of language learning aptitude. This article reports on a study which employed a narrowly focused measure of L2 proficiency and incorporated L2 language-analytic ability into a measure of metalinguistic knowledge. It was found that the linguistic and metalinguistic knowledge of advanced university-level L1 English learners of L2 German correlated strongly. Moreover, the outcome of a principal components analysis suggests that learners’ ability to correct, describe, and explain highlighted L2 errors and their L2 language-analytic ability may constitute components of the same construct. The theoretical implications of these findings for the concept of metalinguistic knowledge in L2 learning are considered.
Rose, H. (2012). Language learning strategy research: Where do we go from here? Studies in Self-Access Learning Journal, 3(2), 137-148. Annotation
Language learning strategy (LLS) research has been on the decline since the mid-1990s, when there was a boom in strategy research. This decline is, in part, due to growing criticisms of categorizations of learning strategies (Dörnyei, 2005), the data collection instruments used (Dörnyei, 2005; Woodrow, 2005), and contradictory and questionable results (Hadwin & Winne, 1996). In more recent years some research has been conducted under the umbrella of terms such as strategic learning and self-regulation, which aim to distance themselves from the past problems of LLS research. This article uses a recent study of strategic learning to illustrate how strategy research can be conducted in the current academic environment. The study shows that research frameworks need to be context-specific rather than generalized across languages and learning tasks. The study also illustrates the usefulness of qualitative data collection instruments over previously and widely applied questionnaires.
Rose, H. (2012). Reconceptualizing strategic learning in the face of self-regulation: Throwing language learning strategies out with the bathwater. Applied Linguistics 33(1),92-98. doi:10.1093/applin/amr045 Annotation
This forum article examines the conceptualization of strategic learning over the past 30 years, focusing on recent conceptualizations that shift towards the notion of self-regulation. In recent years, scholars have argued that language learning strategies are too general, undefined, and incoherent and the questionnaires designed to measure language learning strategies are inaccurate and unreliable (see, for example, Dörnyei 2005; Woodrow 2005; Tseng et al. 2006). Instead Dörnyei proposes a new theory to replace language learning strategies based on the psychological concept of self-regulation encased within his own model of motivation control. This article will argue that this reconceptualization might be a matter of throwing the baby out with the bathwater, in that it throws out a problematic taxonomy and replaces it with another one, which is also problematic—including the same ‘definitional fuzziness’ for which previous taxonomies have been criticized.
Rossiter, M. J. (2003). ‘It’s like chicken but bigger’: Effects of communication strategy in the ESL classroom. Canadian Modern Language Review, 60(2), 105–121.
Rossiter, M. J. (2003). The effects of affective strategy training in the ESL classroom. TESL-EJ, 7(2). Retrieved from http://tesl-ej.org/ej26/a2.html Annotation
This paper presents the findings of an intervention designed to examine the effects of affective strategy instruction on measures of second language proficiency and of self-efficacy. The participants in this study were 31 adult intermediate-level ESL learners registered in a full-time ESL program in a post-secondary institution in Canada. Two classes participated in this study; one received 12 hours of affective strategy training, and the second served as a comparison group. At Weeks 1, 5, 10, and 15, learners completed two sets of oral information-gap tasks: picture story narratives and object descriptions. Prior to each task, they provided scalar judgments of their ability to provide accurate descriptions. The data from the self-report questionnaires and from the transcripts of the audio-tapes were used to analyse students' perceptions of self-efficacy and their second language performance. The results are discussed with respect to the context in which the training was conducted.
Roussel, S. (2011). A computer assisted method to track listening strategies in second language learning. ReCALL, 23(2), 98-116. Retrieved from http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=8275173 Annotation
Many studies about listening strategies are based on what learners report while listening to an oral message in the second language (Vandergrift, 2003; Graham, 2006). By recording a video of the computer screen while L2 learners (L1 French) were listening to an MP3-track in German, this study uses a novel approach and recent developments in computer technology to examine objectively what learners do while listening. The videos of the participants’ screens show the movements of the mouse and its time-course, and therefore the pauses and the backward or forward movements learners do in order to master their listening task. In this study, “self-regulation” indicates the capacity of the listener to exercise physical control over the listening input by using the mouse. Our point is that the recorded physical movements of the mouse during the listening task are a good indicator of metacognitive activity. This is independent of what the learner reports. The data and the time-courses of the mouse were then analyzed, from both a psycholinguistic and a linguistic point of view. This enabled us, on the one hand, to define a typology of listening strategies depending on the initial level of the participants and to show that, on the whole, the opportunity to have personal control over information input/intake does improve all the learners’ information processing. On the other hand, tracking the movements of the mouse while a learner individually listens to an oral text on a computer also has a methodological interest and equally allowed us to verify some precise research hypotheses about the links between linguistic features, for example, place of German compounds and final position of the verb in a subordinate clause, self-regulation strategies and comprehension.
Rubin, J. (1975). What the "good language learner" can teach us. TESOL Quarterly, 9(1), 41-51.
Rubin, J., Chamot, A. U., Harris, V., & Anderson, N. J. (2007). Intervening on the use of strategies. In A. D. Cohen & E. Macaro (Eds.), Language learner strategies: 30 years of research and practice (pp. 29-45). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Annotation
This chapter summarizes current practice in implementing in language learner strategies in the form of strategy instruction. The chapter looks at the different age groups and provides recommendations for research.
Rubin, J., & Henze, R. (1981). The foreign language requirement: A suggestion to enhance its educational role in teacher training. TESOL Newsletter, 17(1), 17, 19, 24.
Rubin, J., & Thompson, I. (1994). How to be a more successful language learner (2nd ed.). Boston: Heinle & Heinle. Annotation
This popular and easy-to-read book provides numerous concrete suggestions for how learners can become more independent, effective, and successful in their attempts to learn foreign languages. Divided into two parts, the book introduces learners to the nature of the language learning process and then provides step-by-step suggestions on how to improve vocabulary, grammar, reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. (120 pp.)
Rysiewicz, J. (2008). Cognitive profiles of (Un)successful FL learners: A cluster analytical study. The Modern Language Journal, 92(1), 87-99. Annotation
This article reports a study in which ability/aptitude profiles of 13-year-old foreign language (FL) learners are identified. A multivariate statistical procedure of cluster analysis proved to be particularly useful in this respect. The aim of cluster analysis is to identify, within a sample studied, certain subgroups (clusters) of participants who share similar combinations of characteristics and who are different from other groups of participants. In the present study, the performance of 137 FL learners on 6 different ability/aptitude measures provided input data for the analysis. The data came from earlier research (Rysiewicz, 2004) in which 4 variables had been broadly analyzed as aptitude and 2 as intelligence dimensions. The results of nonhierarchical clustering (k-means clustering) revealed 3 distinct cognitive learner profiles that lent themselves best to theoretical interpretation. Additionally, an external criterion variable was used to function as an independent indicator of the differences among the clusters (Alexander & Murphy, 1999). It was found that the identified learner types performed significantly differently on a second language proficiency criterion measure, which confirmed the validity of the 3-cluster solution.
Salataci, R., & Akyel, A. (2002). Possible effects of strategy instruction on L1 and L2 reading. Reading in a Foreign Language, 14(1), 1-17. Annotation
The present study investigates the reading strategies of Turkish EFL students in Turkish and English and the possible effects of reading instruction on reading in Turkish and English. The study addresses the following questions: a) Does strategy instruction in EFL reading affect EFL reading strategies and reading comprehension in English? b) Does strategy instruction in EFL reading affect reading strategies in Turkish? The participants consisted of 8 Turkish students enrolled in a pre-intermediate level class of a one-year intensive English course offered at a Turkish-medium technical university. The data came from think-aloud protocols, observation, a background questionnaire, a semi-structured interview and the reading component of the PET (the Preliminary English Test). The results indicated that strategy instruction had a positive effect on both Turkish and English reading strategies and reading comprehension in English.
Sanchez, M. J. (2004). Effect of instruction with expert patterns on the lexical learning of English as a foreign language. System, 32(1), 89-102. Annotation
The aim of this research was to show the importance of instruction in learning a specific set of words. Two different tasks were used in the experiment: one in which subjects were required to fill in sentences and choose the appropriate answer in a multiple choice exercise (lexical test), and the other was a rating task designed to assess semantic relationships. It was hypothesized that subjects would gain a better knowledge of the vocabulary when it was taught with the experts'organization than could be acquired with the organization used by teachers and linguists which is arranged according to what they believe to be relevant parameters [Faber and Pérez, Atlantis 15 (1993), 117–134]. The analyses with the lexical task and with the relatedness ratings, carried out with the Pathfinder procedure, confirm this hypothesis.
Schmidt, R., & Watanabe, Y. (2001). Motivation, strategy use, and pedagogical preferences in foreign language learning. In Z. Dornyei, and R. Schimidt (Eds.) Motivation and second language acquisition. Manoa: University of Hawai'i, SLTCC. Retrieved Online
Schramm, K. (2008). Reading and good language learners. In C. Griffiths (Ed.), Lessons from good language learners (pp. 231-243). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Annotation
Schramm starts by describing the interactive cognitive processes involved in reading and then looks at empirical examples of EFL readers who are good language learners. She draws from her own research on German EFL readers who are successful at it. She highlights three sets of strategies of good readers: reading for the higher level goal, cooperating with the author, and securing comprehension of the text by looking for inconsistencies and your background knowledge, previous text information; ideas unrelated to others in the text; take action if bored, frustrated, or nervous.
Shen, H. H. (2005). An investigation on Chinese-character learning strategies among non-native speakers of Chinese. System, 33(1), 49-68. Annotation
This study first identifies commonly used Chinese character learning strategies employed by non-native (English-speaking) learners of Chinese and generalizes about the factors underlying these commonly used strategies. Then, it defines linear trends between learning levels and students’ perceptions of the usefulness of the commonly used strategies grouped by the factors in the learning of characters. Ninety-five non-native speakers in Chinese classes from the beginning through the advanced Chinese classes participated in the study. Based on a descriptive analysis of a survey of character-learning strategies, thirty strategies are identified as commonly used by the learners. A factor analysis revealed that among these commonly used strategies, the orthographic knowledge-based cognitive strategies are the most commonly used, while metacognitive strategies related to structured preview and review are the second most commonly used. A regression analysis showed that linear trends exist between learning levels and learners’ perceptions of the usefulness of strategies in the two groups.
Shen, M.-Y. (2010). Effects of perceptual learning style preferences on L2 lexical inferencing. System, 38(4), 539-547. Annotation
The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the effects of perceptual learning style preferences on L2 lexical inferencing and whether learners with certain perceptual learning styles benefited more from an explicitly instructional program. Joy Perceptual Learning Style Preferences (PLSP) Inventory and a lexical inferencing test were administered to 145 EFL university students learning English as a foreign language during a 15-week reading course. The results of the study showed that (1) learners with different perceptual learning style preferences demonstrated different lexical inferencing ability, and (2) learners with certain perceptual learning style preference benefited more from the explicit instruction. The findings shed a new light on SLA research concerned with individual differences in learning lexical inferencing. The pedagogical implications of these findings are discussed, as are the suggestions for future research.
Simard, D., French, L., & Fortier, V. (2007). Elicited metalinguistic reflection and second language learning: Is there a link? System, 35(4), 509-522. Annotation
This study examined the relationship between the metalinguistic reflections produced by French-speaking elementary school students and their actual learning of ESL. Using a before–after design, data was collected at the beginning (Time 1) and at the end (Time 2) of a 3-month period during which the participants kept a metalinguistic journal. Metalinguistic reflection was operationalized as the verbalized rules and generalizations about English noted by L2 learners in a journal-writing task, while L2 learning was measured by testing grammatical accuracy and receptive and productive vocabulary. The results revealed that students made significant L2 learning gains; however, there was no specific relationship between these gains and their reported metalinguistic reflections. Discussed are the potential connections among metalinguistic ability, metalinguistic tasks and specific learning contexts.
Snow, D. (2010). Autonomy and strategizing in self-directed language learning. Asian Journal of English Language Teaching, 20, 27-46. Annotation
Autonomous language learning requires not only initial planning of self-directed study efforts, but also modification and improvement of strategies after such efforts begin. As language teachers consider how best to support students in their early experiences with autonomous modes of language learning, and also how to help learners become more effective strategy users, a deeper understanding of the early phases of self-directed study efforts is valuable because it helps teachers know how best to offer support. This paper reports on a journal study that examines the experience of a group of language learners in China as they design and carry out self-directed language learning projects. The study concludes that, for a significant number of learners, the process of adapting and modifying their plans is not completed during the first few weeks, which suggests that support over longer periods may be valuable. The study also concludes that combining strategy instruction with a language learning task results in more serious attention to strategizing on the part of students.
Song, X., & Cheng, L. (2006). Language learner strategy use and test performance of Chinese learners of English. Language Assessment Quarterly, 3(3), 243-266. doi:10.1207/s15434311laq0303_2 Annotation
This article examines language learner strategy use reported by 121 Chinese learners of English through a questionnaire and the relationships between their strategy use and language performance on a national English proficiency test: College English Test–Band 4. Results showed that this group of learners reported using more metacognitive strategies than cognitive strategies in general. One subscale of cognitive strategies—inferencing—was reportedly used most frequently. Memory and retrieval strategies as a scale of cognitive strategies were the only significant predictor of the College English Test–Band 4, accounting for 8.6% of the variance in the test. A further examination of the relationship between the subscales of strategy use and the CET showed inferency and practicing naturalistically were the best predictors of the CET. The complex relationships between learner strategy use and their test performance are discussed with suggestions for further research.
Swan, M. (2008). Talking sense about learning strategies. RELC Journal, 39(2), 262-273.doi:10.1177/0033688208092188 Annotation
Judicious training in the use of learning strategies can be very valuable for language students. However, the notion of `strategy' is not always well defined in the literature. For pedagogic purposes strategies need to meet certain criteria: they should be problem-oriented, subject to choice among alternatives, under conscious control, clearly describable and plausibly effective. The teaching of reading skills, in particular, commonly involves strategies which are of doubtful value; this is especially the case for training in `guessing unknown words'. Classification of strategies is notoriously problematic: taxonomies tend to be based on questionable psycholinguistic analyses and not well targeted pedagogically. While training in strategy use can contribute usefully to learner independence, this can be taken to unconstructive extremes; and such training is no substitute for basic language teaching.
Takak, V. P. (2008). Vocabulary learning strategies and foreign language learning. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Takeuchi, O., Griffiths, C., & Coyle, D. (2007). Applying strategies to context: The role of individual, situational, and group differences. In A. Cohen & E. Macaro (Eds.) Language Learner Strategies: Thirty Years of Research and Practice (pp.69-92). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Takeuchi, O., Ikeda, M., and Mizumoto, A. (2012). The cerebral basis for language learner strategies: A near-infrared spectroscopy study. Reading in a Foreign Language, 24(2),136-157. Annotation
In this paper, we validate Macaro’s (2006) model of strategy use among language learners by assessing the amount of neural activity around the prefrontal cortex, the supposed locus of working memory (WM). We also examine whether WM activation during first language (L1) strategy deployment is lower than WM activation during second language (L2) strategy deployment, as predicted by Macaro’s model. In the analysis, we consider data obtained through an innovative neuroimaging technique (near-infrared spectroscopy) and stimulated- recall interviews. The results reveal greater brain activity during execution of the L1 and L2 tasks than in a control condition; further, use of strategies in the L2 resulted in stronger WM activation than use of strategies in the L1. These results provide partial support for the validity of Macaro’s model.
Takeuchi, O., & Wakamoto, N. (2001). Language learning strategies used by Japanese college learners of English: A synthesis of four empirical studies. Language Education & Technology, 38, 21-43. Retrieved Online Annotation
This article reports on four empirical studies concerning the use of language learning strategies conducted in the Japanese EFL environment. The purposes of the first two studies were; 1) to categorize strategies used by intermediate Japanese college learners of EFL; and 2) to ascertain which strategy group was the most often used and which was generally NOT often used. In the third study, the authors determined which strategy group was regarded as "not important" for learning by Japanese college instructors of EFL and their students. Based on the results, a hypothesis was discussed that the teacher's beliefs on the use of strategies have influence on the students' beliefs, and consequently on their actual use of strategies. In the last study, the possible effects, both short- and long-term, of training on the use of strategies were investigated. The limitations of the four studies and possible research and pedagogical implications are discussed briefly.
Tarone, E., & Yule, G. (1989). Focus on the language learner. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Thomas, J. (1992). Metalinguistic awareness in second and third language learning. In Harris, R. (ed.) Coginitive Processing in Bilinguals. Amsterdam: Elsevier.
Thompson, I., & Rubin, J. (1996). Can strategy instruction improve listening comprehension? Foreign Language Annals, 29(3), 331-342. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.1996.tb01246.x Annotation
This paper is a report of a classroom-based, longitudinal study of the effect of learner strategy instruction on listening comprehension. The subjects were students enrolled in a required third-year Russian language course at a university. The listening materials consisted of video segments from simulated authentic materials developed for learners of Russian, segments from Russian television, and movies. The hypothesis that systematic instruction in the use of strategies will result in the improvement of listening comprehension was confirmed.
Tragant, E., & Victori, M. (2006). Reported strategy use and age. In Munoz, C. (Ed.), Age and the rate of foreign language learning (pp.208-236). Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Tragant, E., & Victori, M. (2012). Language learning strategies, course grades, and age in EFL secondary school learners. Language Awareness, 21(3), 293-308. doi: 10.1080/09658416.2011.609622 Annotation
In studies dealing with language learning strategies in the school context, the variables of proficiency and age are often difficult to isolate since students accumulate more hours of foreign language instruction as they move up from grade to grade. This study aimed to deal with these two variables independently by analysing learning strategy use in three groups of bilingual (Catalan/Spanish) learners of different educational levels and by investigating its relationship with English as a foreign language (EFL) grades by age group. The sample included 402 students in Spain (Catalonia) from 18 classes, distributed as follows: 135 students from Grade 7 to Grade 8 (ages 12 and 13), 186 students from Grade 9 to Grade 10 (ages 14 and 15), and 81 students from Grade 11 to Grade 12 (ages 16 and 17). All students were further classified into four groups according to their school grades in English. Data regarding learning strategy use were elicited through a structured questionnaire specifically developed for students in secondary education and poor-input environments. The results indicated that students in lower grades showed clearer preferences for particular types of strategies than older students, and the relationship between learning strategies and EFL grades was stronger in younger students. The findings have important implications for further research on the roles played by proficiency and age in strategy use.
Tseng, W.-T., Dornyei, Z., & Schmitt, N. (2006). A new approach to assessing strategic learning: The case of self-regulation in vocabulary acquisition. Applied Linguistics, 27(1), 78-102.doi:10.1093/applin/ami046 Annotation
This article draws on work done in educational psychology to propose a new approach to generating a psychometrically-based measure of second language learners’ strategic learning, operationalized as their self-regulatory capacity, as an alternative to the scales traditionally used to quantify language learning strategy use. The self-regulation instrument was developed through a three-phase process, focusing on the realm of vocabulary learning. The first phase involved the generation of an item pool, the second a pilot study in a sizeable sample, and the third an evaluation of the psychometric properties of the revised instrument, using confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis. The results show that the proposed instrument has satisfactory psychometric characteristics and that the hypothesized theoretical model had a good fit with the data. We argue that the results provide evidence for the validity of transferring the theoretical construct of self-regulation from educational psychology to the area of second language acquisition. We also propose that instruments targeting learner self-regulation in a similar way to the questionnaire presented in this study can provide a more psychometrically sound measure of strategic learning than traditional language learning strategy scales.
Vandergrift, L. (1997). The comprehension strategies of second language (French) listeners: A descriptive study. Foreign Language Annals, 30(3), 387-409. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.1997.tb02362.x Annotation
This paper reports on a study of the relationship between the types of listening comprehension strategies reported, the frequency of their use, and the differences in reported use across four variables: level of language proficiency, gender, listening ability, and learning style. High school students of French reported on their thought processes during a think-aloud procedure. All students reported using metacognitive and cognitive strategies, with an overall increase in total number of strategies reported by proficiency level. Results indicate clear differences in reported strategy use by listening ability and proficiency level. The use of metacognitive strategies, such as comprehension monitoring, problem identification, and selective attention appeared to be the significant factor distinguishing the successful from the less successful listener. Differences for gender were minimal, and differences for learning style were inconclusive. A qualitative analysis of representative protocols also pointed to the integral role of metacognitive strategies as well as differences in the use of prior knowledge, inferencing, prediction skills, and monitoring. Results are discussed in the light of information-processing theory. Implications for pedagogy conclude the paper.
Vandergrift, L. (1999). Facilitating Second Language Listening Comprehension: Acquiring Successful Strategies. ELT Journal, 53(3), 168-76. doi:10.1093/elt/53.3.168 Annotation
This paper presents arguments for an emphasis on listening comprehension in language learning/teaching. An explanation of how listeners can use strategies to enhance the learning process is presented, with a review of the existing research base on how second language listening is taught. The major part of the paper presents and discusses pedagogical recommendations, as well as examples of performance checklists for developing metacognitive awareness.
Vandergrift, L. (2003). Orchestrating strategy use: Toward a model of the skilled second language listener. Language Learning, 53(3), 463-496. doi:10.1111/1467-9922.00232 Annotation
This article reports on an investigation of listening strategy applications by grade 7 students learning French (N = 36). I examine the types of strategies used and the differences in strategy use by more skilled and less skilled listeners as revealed while these students listened to authentic texts in French. Think-aloud data were coded and analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively. Significant differences were found in the use of the category of metacognitive strategies as well as in individual strategies for comprehension monitoring, questioning for elaboration, and translation. These differences were reinforced by a qualitative analysis of representative protocols. The article concludes with a discussion of both an emerging model of the skilled listener and a pedagogic program for developing listening skills.
Vandergrift, L., Goh, C. C. M., Mareschal, C. J., & Tafaghodtari, M. H. (2006). The metacognitive awareness listening questionnaire: Development and validation. Language Learning, 56(3), 431-462. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9922.2006.00373.x Annotation
This article describes the development and validation of a listening questionnaire designed to assess second language (L2) listeners' metacognitive awareness and perceived use of strategies while listening to oral texts. The process of instrument development and validation is described, along with a review of the relevant literature related to metacognition and learners' regulation of listening comprehension strategies. An exploratory factor analysis of the responses of a large sample (N= 966) of language learners and a subsequent confirmatory factor analysis with another large but different sample (N= 512) resulted in a 21-item instrument with robust psychometric properties. Five distinct factors emerged: problem-solving, planning and evaluation, mental translation, person knowledge, and directed attention. The reliability and factorial validity of the instrument are presented along with evidence for a statistically significant relationship between student response on the instrument and L2 listening comprehension success. The article concludes with a discussion of the potential uses of the Metacognitive Awareness Listening Questionnaire (MALQ).
Vandergrift, L., & Tafaghodtari, M. H. (2010). Teaching L2 learners how to listen does make a difference: An empirical study. Language Learning, 60(2), 470-497. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9922.2009.00559.x Annotation
This study investigated the effects of a metacognitive, process-based approach to teaching second language (L2) listening over a semester. Participants (N = 106) came from six intact sections of French as a second language (FSL) courses. The experimental group (n = 59) listened to texts using a methodology that led learners through the metacognitive processes (prediction/planning, monitoring, evaluating, and problem solving) underlying successful L2 listening. The control group (n = 47), taught by the same teacher, listened to the same texts the same number of times but without any guided attention to process. Development of metacognition about L2 listening, tracked using the Metacognitive Awareness Listening Questionnaire (MALQ), was measured at the beginning, middle, and end points of the study. As hypothesized, the experimental group significantly outperformed the control group on the final comprehension measure, after we controlled for initial differences. The hypothesis that the less skilled listeners in the experimental group would make greater gains than their more skilled peers was also verified. Transcript data from stimulated-recall sessions provide further evidence of a growing learner awareness of the metacognitive processes underlying successful L2 listening, as MALQ student responses changed over the duration of the study.
Vann, R. J., & Abraham, R. G. (1990). Strategies of unsuccessful language learners. TESOL Quarterly, 24(2), 177-198.
Victori, M., & Tragant, E. (2003). Learner strategies: A cross-sectional and longitudinal study of primary and high-school EFL teachers. In Garcia Mayo, M.P. and M.L. Garcia lecumberri (Eds.), Age and the acquisition of English as a foreign language. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
Vogely, A. (1995). Perceived strategy use during performance on three authentic listening comprehension tasks. The Modern Language Journal, 79(1), 41-56. Annotation
In order for learners to acquire a foreign language they must be motivated and use strategies effectively to understand "authentic" aural input. This study offers some insight into the strategies students perceive they use while performing an authentic listening comprehension task and the relationship between their strategy use and listening ability. Eighty-three university students registered for first-, second-, third-, and fourth-semester Spanish participated in two data gathering sessions. In the first session, they took the Listening Comprehension section of the Spanish Advanced Placement Exam (1984). In the second session, they executed recall tasks on three authentic video programs and then completed a strategy questionnaire. The first-semester students perceived themselves to be the most strategic listeners and outperformed the second-semester students on all three recall tasks; they were followed by the combined third- and-fourth-semester students and then by the second-semester students, who perceived themselves to be the least strategic listeners and consistently produced the lowest scores on the recall tasks.
Wakamoto, N. (2009). Extroversion /introversion in foreign language learning: Interaction with learner strategy use. Bern: Peter Lang.
Wallace, M. J. (1998). Action research for language teachers. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
Wang, J., Spencer, K., & Xing, M. (2009). Metacognitive beliefs and strategies in learning Chinese as a foreign language. System, 37(1), 46-56. Annotation
The study investigates the effects of second-year university students’ metacognitive beliefs and strategies on learning Chinese as a Foreign Language (CFL). The analysis shows that metacognitive beliefs, which identify students who are confident about their ability to learn a foreign language, are positively associated with students’ CFL achievement results. Successful students are found to have confidence in their abilities. Metacognitive strategies also influence students’ CFL achievement results. Students who show self-regulation by monitoring their progress, persevering at tasks and setting realistic goals are more successful. These are strategies that are essential for learners who wish to assume responsibility for their language learning. The study confirms Shen’s (Shen, H.H., 2005. An investigation of Chinese character learning strategies among non-native speakers of Chinese. System, 33, 49–68) conclusion that students should be encouraged to analyse their own learning processes in order to improve their metacognitive learning strategies, which will reinforce motivational aspects of self-efficacy. The pedagogical implications of the study are that teachers can help students to think about what happens during the CFL learning process and identify effective strategies, leading to improved language learning and higher levels of self-esteem and confidence.
Weaver, S. J. (1997). Examples of Strategies-Based Instruction: A Teacher-Training Video. (CARLA Working Paper Series #8). Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition. Retrieved from /strategies/video/strategies.html Annotation
This teacher-training video illustrates how strategies-based instruction has been applied at the University of Minnesota. The videotape contains seven different examples of strategies-based activities, taught by four university-level language instructors. It was originally created as a companion piece to the Strategies-Based Instruction: A Teacher-Training Manual (1997) which was revised and retitled Styles-and Strategies-Based Instruction: A Teachers' Guide (2006).
Wenden, A. (1991). Learner strategies for learner autonomy: Planning and implementing learner training for language learners. Cambridge: Prentice Hall International, Ltd. Annotation
This book provides teachers with a step-by-step approach to the systematic design of language learning curricula intended to encourage and facilitate learner autonomy. Beginning with theoretical foundations, Wenden provides the reader with practical, research-based suggestions on how to train learners to develop strategies in order to become more independent and effective learners, as well as several strategy assessment tools. (172 pp.)
Wenden, A. L. (1985). Learner strategies. TESOL Newsletter, 19(5), 1-7.
Wenden, A., & Rubin, J. (1987). Learner strategies in language learning. Cambridge: Prentice-Hall International, Ltd. Annotation
Wenden and Rubin address three main areas in their book: the conceptual frameworks of learning strategies, research-based insights into strategies and strategies instruction, and ways to promote learner autonomy. The book provides an overall perspective of the issues related to researching learning strategies in the foreign language classroom. (181 pp.)
Weyers, J. R. (2010). Speaking strategies: Meeting NCATE oral proficiency standards. Foreign Language Annals, 43(3), 384-394. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2010.01089.x Annotation
The teaming of ACTFL and the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education resulted in the requirement that teacher candidates speak at the Advanced Low (AL) or higher level on the Oral Proficiency scale. Providing the means to help candidates meet that minimum standard for certification is a fundamental consideration. This article outlines the design of a course, Speaking Strategies, that was implemented to address the specific issue of increasing students' oral proficiency. Inspired by Schmidt's (1990, 1993, 1995, 2001) noticing hypothesis, Speaking Strategies focuses students' attention on the tasks of the next proficiency level, resulting in an increase in proficiency of at least one sublevel in 71% of the cases. Most important for teacher candidates, more than one-third of those who did not reach the minimum AL rating prior to the course did so upon its completion.
Wharton, G. (2000). Language learning strategy use of bilingual foreign language learners in Singapore. Language Learning, 50(2), 203-243. doi:10.1111/0023-8333.00117 Annotation
This study, using Oxford's 80-item Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL), examines the self-reported language learning strategy use of 678 university students learning Japanese and French as foreign languages in Singapore. The study differs from previous SILL studies in that the participants were bilingual from a multicultural setting, and the use of all 80 strategies was examined. Relationships between background variables and overall strategyuse were investigated using ANOVA. Results were significant for motivation, self-rated proficiency, and language studied, with motivation significantly interacting with language studied. The use of each strategy by proficiency and also by gender was investigated using chi-square. Results showed more learning strategy use among learners with higher proficiency and, unexpectedly, more strategies used significantly more often by men.
Wolfersberger, M. (2003). L1 to L2 writing process and strategy transfer: A look at lower proficiency writers. TESL-EJ, 7:2, A-6.
Wong, L. L. C., & Nunan, D. (2011). The learning styles and strategies of effective language learners. System, 39(2), 144-163. Annotation
This paper presents the results of a comparative investigation into the learning styles and strategies of effective and ineffective language learners. Subjects for the study were one hundred and ten undergraduate university students in Hong Kong. They were categorized as ‘more effective’ or ‘less effective’ learners, on the basis of their scores on a standardized public English examination administered at the end of secondary school. Subjects completed an online questionnaire through which data were collected on their learning strategy preferences as well as patterns of language practice and use. The study revealed key differences in learning strategy preferences, learning styles and patterns of language use. Implications of the study are presented and discussed.
Woodrow, L. (2005). The challenge of measuring language learning strategies. Foreign Language Annals, 38(1), 90-99. doi:10.1111/j.1944-9720.2005.tb02456.x Annotation
This article discusses the usefulness of using generic strategy inventories to assess language learning strategies (LLSs) across contexts. A review of the LLS research is presented with a critique of extant studies in relation to classification of strategies, methodological issues, and the predictability of language performance. The present research project aimed to measure LLSs, provide evidence for a taxonomy of LLS, and investigate the relationship between LLS and English language performance. The article concludes that studies employing LLS scales that use a standard Likert-type scale are not appropriate because of the wide range of possible contextual influences, such as cultural and educational background. The article suggests a more situated approach utilizing in-depth qualitative methods would be more appropriate in assessing LLS use.
Woore, R. (2007). 'Weisse Maus in meinem Haus': Using poems and learner strategies to help learners decode the sounds of the L2. The Language Learning Journal, 35(2), 175-188. doi:10.1080/09571730701599211 Annotation
Learners' pronunciation errors when reading aloud in the L2 often suggest an inability to use the language's sound – symbol relationships, or grapheme – phoneme correspondences (GPCs). UK teaching methodology has failed to provide systematic instruction in L2 phonological decoding, and there is an absence of research on the effectiveness of teaching L2 GPCs. The present study evaluates a GPC training programme delivered to a mixed-ability Year 7 class of 28 beginner learners. The GPC training is based on the use of short poems in conjunction with a sequence of cognitive and metacognitive strategies which I have labelled ‘referring back’. Essentially, this encourages learners to derive the pronunciation of unknown words by making analogies with familiar ones. Pre- and post-test scores showed a small but significant improvement in pronunciation accuracy for the experimental group, but not the comparison group, when reading unknown L2 words aloud. Evaluation questionnaires, interviews and field-notes highlighted the popularity of the GPC training materials with pupils. However, there is also evidence that more time was needed in order for training in the ‘referring back’ strategy to be effective. Overall, the study suggests that the approach to GPC training evaluated here can be effective, but that a longer-term intervention study is desirable. The article includes a brief account of the teaching methods and a copy of the poems used, in the hope that others may wish to try them out in their own classrooms.
Woore, R. (2010). Thinking aloud about L2 decoding: An exploration of the strategies used by beginner learners when pronouncing unfamiliar French words. The Language Learning Journal, 38(1), 3-17. doi:10.1080/09571730903545210 Annotation
‘Decoding’ – converting the written symbols (or graphemes) of an alphabetical writing system into the sounds (or phonemes) they represent, using knowledge of the language's symbol/sound correspondences – has been argued to be an important but neglected skill in the teaching of second language (L2) French in English secondary schools. Several longitudinal and cross-sectional studies have highlighted poor levels of L2 decoding proficiency amongst beginner learners of French at Key Stage 3. However, there has been less investigation of these learners' strategic reasoning when attempting to decode French words. Previous exploratory research in this area found that, in the absence of adequate knowledge of French decoding conventions, participants relied on English decoding processes to deal with French words. There was also some evidence that the most successful decoders were those who were aware of this influence of English and sought to move beyond it, thinking consciously about how to pronounce words in a more ‘French’ way. The current small-scale, exploratory study set out to investigate in more detail the conscious strategies employed by participants as they tried to generate ‘French’ pronunciations of unfamiliar words. Twelve beginner learners of French of varying attainment levels were asked to read aloud unknown French words, and to describe their thought processes. Reading the words aloud proved to be an effortful, conscious process for these participants, similar to a problem-solving task and very different from their automatic L1 decoding. They used a range of conscious strategies to support their L2 decoding, and there was a high degree of consistency among the strategies employed by the various participants. However, the strategies often led to incorrect outcomes because they were not underpinned by secure knowledge of French symbol/sound correspondences.
Yabukoshi, T., & Takeuchi, O. (2006). Exploring language learning strategies used by Japanese junior high school students of EFL: A qualitative approach. Language Education & Technology, 43, 39-56. Retrieved Online Annotation
This study examined how Japanese junior high school students learn English as a foreign language (EFL) inside and outside the classroom. The participants were 347 junior high school students of EFL and twenty-three English teachers at junior high schools. Open-ended and multiple-choice questionnaires were administered to examine students 'strategy use as well as teachers' perceptions of their students' strategy use. In the open-ended questionnaire, the students described their strategies and the teachers described the strategies which they thought their students had used in terms of each skill area, e.g., vocabulary, listening, and speaking. The multiple-choice questionnaire examined students 'metacognitive strategy use. An analysis of the descriptions in the open-ended questionnaire was carried out using the KJ method. The results showed that: 1) the students seemed to rely primarily on cognitive strategies, though not in an orchestrated way, 2) the number of vocabulary-learning strategies used was the highest of all the skill-specific strategies; 3) different patterns of skill-specific strategy use were identified in relation to the different settings, i.e., inside or outside the classroom; and 4) the teachers' perceptions of their learners' strategy use were somewhat different from the students' self-reports in terms of the types and the patterns of strategy use. Finally, some implications of developing a standardized multiple-choice strategy questionnaire to investigate strategy use by Japanese junior high school students are discussed.
Yabukoshi, T., & Takeuchi, O. (2009). Language learning strategies used by Japanese lower secondary school learners in a Japanese EFL context. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 19(2), 136-172. doi:10.1111/j.1473-4192.2009.00221.x Annotation
This paper reports on a research project that was developed and used to examine the strategy use of Japanese lower secondary school learners of English. In the first part of the project, a questionnaire was constructed by (1) selecting categories of strategy based on open-ended data and, (2) applying a factor analysis to data collected from 315 learners. The factor analysis uncovered the types of strategies used by the learners inside and outside their classrooms. In the second part of the project, variables affecting learners’ strategy use were examined by employing a questionnaire developed for this purpose. The analysis indicated (1) that females reported more use of strategies than males, and (2) interestingly enough, that no positive relationship was found between English proficiency and strategy use. Interpretation of these findings and their implications are then discussed.
Yamamori, K., Isoda, T., Hiromori, T., & Oxford, R. L. (2003). Using cluster analysis to uncover L2 learner differences in strategy use, will to learn, and achievement over time. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 41(4), 381-409. Annotation
This study describes transitions over time in the learning strategies used by Japanese seventh-grade students of English as a foreign language (EFL) in relation to the wilt to learn and English achievement. Based on patterns of change, 81 students were categorized by means of statistical cluster analysis, yielding four clusters (groups) with distinct characteristics. One group frequently used a wide array of learning strategies, displayed a strong will to learn, and had high English achievement. Another group was also high in the will to learn and achievement, although frequent use occurred for only selected learning strategies. The other two groups showed lower achievement in English learning. One of these two groups, despite strong willingness and frequent use of strategies, was characterized by inefficient monitoring of learning. The last group had across-the-board, negative change patterns, including decreases in strategy use, the will to learn, and achievement.
Yang, N. D. (2003). Integrating portfolios into learning strategy-based instruction for EFL college students. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 41(4), 293-318. Annotation
What teachers can do to facilitate their students' learning and develop autonomy has been one of the major concerns in second language instruction. This article explores the use of portfolios as a tool to facilitate student learning and develop learner autonomy. A pilot study with a class of 42 college students in 2000-2001 and then a formal study with a class of 45 students in 2001-2002 were conducted. Portfolios were integrated into the framework and procedures - i.e., diagnosis, preparation, instruction, and evaluation -for strategy training in a freshman English course at a four-year public university in Taiwan. Students' English proficiency was tested via a pretest and a post-test. Information about students' beliefs and attitudes about using portfolios and their learning style preferences was collected by both open-ended and Likert-scaled questionnaires. The study found that portfolios raised students' awareness of learning strategies, facilitated their learning process, and enhanced their self-directed learning.
Zhang, B., & Li, C. (2011). Classification of L2 vocabulary learning strategies: Evidence from exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. RELC Journal, 42(2), 141-154. doi:10.1177/0033688211405180 Annotation
This research presents a classification theory for the L2 vocabulary learning strategies. Based on the exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses of strategies that adult Chinese English learners used, this theory identifies six categories, four of which are related to the cognitive process in lexical acquisition and the other two are metacognitive and affective factors. Compared to other theories on language learning strategies, the uniqueness of this theory lies in that the cognitive factors correspond to the essential steps learners take in acquiring new words. This research does not support that a memory factor or a social factor exists independently in vocabulary learning strategies.
Zhang, D., & Goh, C. C. M. (2006). Strategy knowledge and perceived strategy use: Singaporean students' awareness of listening and speaking strategies. Language Awareness, 15(3), 199-219. doi:10.2167/la342.0 Annotation
The past three decades have seen a growing body of research into language learner metacognitive knowledge, strategy use, and the relationship between them. However, the correlation between knowledge about strategies and strategy use in ESL listening and speaking has not been explored. This study investigates 278 Singaporean students' knowledge and use of 40 listening and speaking strategies, and the relationship between these two variables. Distinctions were made among use-focused and formfocused learning strategies, comprehension strategies and communication strategies. The results showed that the students tended to believe in the usefulness of all four groups of strategies but seemed more often to use use-focused ones. Of the 40 strategies, 32 were perceived as useful by half the students, whereas only 13 were reported as used frequently. The discrepancy indicates that, while the students were generally aware of the usefulness of the strategies, they were not yet conscious and confident strategy users. There seems to be a need to increase their repertoire of strategies. Correlations were found between perceptions of the usefulness and perceived use of the strategies. The paper ends by considering teaching implications and future research.
Zhang, L. J. (2008). Constructivist pedagogy in strategic reading instruction: Exploring pathways to learner development in the English as a second language (ESL) classroom. Instructional Science, 36(2), 89-116. doi:10.1007/s11251-007-9025-6 Annotation
The study explored English as a Second Language (ESL) learner development. In particular, it focused on investigating learners’ understanding of reading and their willingness to be engaged in strategic reading in participatory classroom activities. It also examined possible effects of such pedagogy on reading performance. The context was a two-month strategy-based reading instruction program, set within a constructivist framework. The program emphasized developing students’ academic reading proficiency. The study, quasi-experimental in design, involved a control group and an experimental group, both of whom were ESL students from the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The students were expected to satisfy an intensive English communication skills requirement in order to be successfully matriculated into English-medium universities in Singapore. The results showed that the teacher’s strategy-based instructional intervention evolving around participatory activities affected changes in the ESL students’ use of reading strategies and improvement in comprehension. These findings are discussed in relation to PRC students in study-abroad contexts, especially the cultures of learning that they bring along with them. Recommendations for further research are also made.
Zhang, L. J., Gu, P. Y., & Hu, G. (2008). A cognitive perspective on Singaporean primary school pupils' use of reading strategies in learning to read in English. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 78(2), 245-271. doi:10.1348/000709907X218179 Annotation
Background. This study is conducted in Singapore, where learning to read in English is regarded as essential because it is offered as a First Language (L1) subject in the curriculum and is stipulated as the medium of instruction in the education system, and the mother tongues are offered as Second Language (L2) subjects, although the majority still learn English as an L2.
Aims. The paper reports on the reading strategies used by Singaporean primary school pupils from a cognitive perspective, which is part of a larger study that aims to investigate these pupils' language learning strategies.
Sample. The participants were 18 pupils from three neighborhood primary schools, in grades Primary 4, 5 and 6.
Method. The data were collected from high- and low-proficiency pupils at each of the three grades in each school, who read two texts at each level. Grounded in an information-processing theory and based on successful experiences of scholars using think-aloud for data collection, we asked the pupils to read and report what they were thinking about while reading. The think-aloud protocols were recorded, transcribed verbatim, coded and analysed.
Results. The results suggest that participants' flexible and appropriate use of reading strategies varies according to language proficiency and grade level, with the high-proficiency group outperforming its lower-proficiency counterpart and the high-graders outnumbering the lower-graders in terms of the number of strategies that they used. These differences were also exemplified with qualitative findings from case studies.
Conclusions. The use of reading strategies differs according to proficiency levels, and the quality of pupils' strategy-use patterns has more significant implications for understanding efficient reading among primary school pupils.
Aims. The paper reports on the reading strategies used by Singaporean primary school pupils from a cognitive perspective, which is part of a larger study that aims to investigate these pupils' language learning strategies.
Sample. The participants were 18 pupils from three neighborhood primary schools, in grades Primary 4, 5 and 6.
Method. The data were collected from high- and low-proficiency pupils at each of the three grades in each school, who read two texts at each level. Grounded in an information-processing theory and based on successful experiences of scholars using think-aloud for data collection, we asked the pupils to read and report what they were thinking about while reading. The think-aloud protocols were recorded, transcribed verbatim, coded and analysed.
Results. The results suggest that participants' flexible and appropriate use of reading strategies varies according to language proficiency and grade level, with the high-proficiency group outperforming its lower-proficiency counterpart and the high-graders outnumbering the lower-graders in terms of the number of strategies that they used. These differences were also exemplified with qualitative findings from case studies.
Conclusions. The use of reading strategies differs according to proficiency levels, and the quality of pupils' strategy-use patterns has more significant implications for understanding efficient reading among primary school pupils.
Zietek, A. A., & Roehr, K. (2011). Metalinguistic knowledge and cognitive style in Polish classroom learners of English. System, 39(4), 417-426. Annotation
In this exploratory study, we investigated the relationship between level of English metalinguistic knowledge, or explicit knowledge about the English language, and cognitive style on the wholist/analytic dimension in an intact group of young adult Polish learners of English as a foreign language. Contrary to expectation, metalinguistic knowledge was found to be correlated with a wholist stylistic orientation in the participants. It is argued that there may be an association between a preference for considering information in context and for thinking inductively by moving from observation to principle, and successful performance on a range of language tasks, including metalinguistic tasks which require the correction of highlighted errors and the statement of grammar rules. The paper concludes with proposed implications for learners and teachers in the language classroom.
Web Resources:
Center for Applied Linguistics (CAL)
CAL is a private, nonprofit organization working to improve communication through better understanding of language and culture. Established in 1959, CAL has earned a national and international reputation for its contributions to the fields of bilingual, English as a second language, literacy, and foreign language education; dialect studies; language policy; refugee orientation; and the education of linguistically and culturally diverse adults and children. CAL's experienced staff of researchers and educators conduct research, design and develop instructional materials and language tests, provide technical assistance and professional development, conduct needs assessments and program evaluations, and disseminate information and resources related to language and culture.
The Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (CALLA)
The Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (CALLA) is an instructional model for second and foreign language learners based on cognitive theory and research. CALLA integrates instruction in priority topics from the content curriculum, development of the language skills needed for learning in school, and explicit instruction in using learning strategies for academic tasks. The goals of CALLA are for students to learn essential academic content and language and to become independent and self-regulated learners through their increasing command over a variety of strategies for learning in school.
National Foreign Language Resource Center (NFLRC)
In 1990, the Department of Education established the first Language Resource Centers (LRCs) at US universities in response to the growing national need for expertise and competence in foreign languages. Twenty years later, there are fifteen LRCs, supported by grants under Title VI of the Higher Education Act, creating a national network of resources to promote the teaching and learning of foreign languages. Led by nationally and internationally recognized language professionals, LRCs create language learning and teaching materials, offer professional development opportunities for teachers and instructors, and conduct research on foreign language learning.
While some centers concentrate on specific language areas and others on foreign languages in general, all share the common goal to develop resources that can be used broadly to improve foreign language education in the United States.
