GGGE6533 Sem 2 (2013/2014) Language Learning Strategies

Factors that affect language learning

strategiesBy Nor Dalila Ismail

#P69236

Gender

Environment

Career orientation

Learning styles Course

gradesCultural

background

Motivation

Teacher’s mediating

role

Proficiency level

Personality Age

Language exposure

1. Teacher’s mediating

role.

2. Personality trait

3. Proficiency level

4. Levels of language exposure

5. Cultural background

5 factors affecting

LLS

(1) Teacher’s mediating role• The high percentage of learner’s knowledge comes from the teacher (Marttinen, 2008).

• From sociocultural perspective: The relationship between language learning strategies and teacher’s mediating role (Behroozizad et al., 2012)

• Gao (2010): Theoretical basis of language learning strategies have turned to the sociolcultural context of language learning, which proven more effective.

• The shift from learner-centered “learner-in-the-context” (Gao, 2010).

• In terms of learning, achieving “higher forms of human mental activity” requires mediation (Lantolf, 2000).

• Findings from Gibbons (2003): In a science classroom; the impact of teacher-student talk on learners’ language development. The teacher’s mediation took place via their interaction with learners. The result of the study showed that both teachers and learners were active constructors in language development.

• Behroozizad et al. (2012) revealed how teacher’s mediation is highly relates to ELF learners’ language learning strategies within a socio-cultural setting.

• In their study, it has been found that the teacher’s scaffolding mediated the EFL learners’ language learning strategy development. The findings on scaffolding techniques are parallel with Walqui’s (2006) instructional scaffolding types.

• The teacher had succeeded in creating a sociocultural setting in the classroom & encouraged active participation among the learners.

• Stimulated by teacher’s mediation, the EFL learners successfully shown that they could develop a variety of strategies to improve their knowledge in many aspects of language including speaking, vocabulary and pronunciation.

(2) Personality trait• In language strategy performance, individual differences are being stressed in

current studies (Toyoda, 1998).

• Oxford & Nyikos (1989) claimed that language learners who are successful choose the right strategies that best suit their personalities. Brown (2001) argued that different characterization of individuals adopt different language learning strategies.

• “Language learners are individuals approaching language learning in their own unique way” (Horwitz, 1999).

• Similarly, personality factors are crucial in the development of linguistic abilities (Ellis, 1985).

(2) Personality traits

• Fazeli (2012) did a study to see the effect of personality traits on use of cognitive English Language learning strategies. In his study, 213 Iranian female university learners of English as Foreign Language (EFL) were involved.

• The result of the study showed that there is a significant relationship between the traits of personality and use of cognitive English Language learning strategies. However, Fazeli (2012) concluded that individual learner’s personality traits cannot be a strong element in influencing learner’s language learning strategies as there are many other factors contributing as well.

• In studies involving language learning strategies, language proficiency has been studies using various methods:

(3) Proficiency

1. Through language proficiency and achievement tests

(Wen & Johnson, 1997).

2. Teacher’s judgements about their students’ language levels

(Magogwe & Oliver, 2007).

4. Self-assessment scores (Oxford &

Nyikos, 1989).

5. Hours of instruction (Victori & Tragant, 2003).

3. Self-descriptions

(Takeuchi, 2003).

6. Placement tests (Griffiths, 2003).

Findings (LLS & Proficiency levels)

High-proficiency learners:

• Using language strategies that involve interaction (Bremmer, 1999)

• Contextual guessing and encoding (Gu & Johnson, 1996).

• Compensation strategies (Green & Oxford, 1995).

• First language (L1) avoidance (Wen & Johnson, 1997).

• Paraphrasing (Phillips, 1990).• Word analysis & note-taking

(Takeuchi, 2003).

Lower-proficiency learners:• Memorization and vocabulary

learning (Griffiths, 2003).• More relying on external sources

(dictionaries) or overreliance on help from others like their teachers, parents or friends (Magogwe & Oliver, 2007).

• Magno et al. (2009) defined “language exposure” as the total amount of time of an individual learner is engaged with the language. It can be exposure from written sources, interaction with others, multimedia resources or even by passively listening where the language is being spoken.

• In a study done by Lessaux and Siegel (2003), the participants (who were from non-English speaking backgrounds) had successfully acquired adequate English proficiency levels after 2 years of being exposed to reading, spelling, and phonological processes of English language.

• Thus, an individual learner needs sufficient amount of time to acquire a new language, depending on the degree of exposure they have to the language (Victori & Lockhart, 1995).

(4) Levels of language exposure

• However, it’s been argued that some studies revealed how Chinese people who immigrated to the English-speaking countries and have high exposure of the language, were still found to low proficiency levels in communicating using the language (Flege et al., 1999).

• In relation to language learning strategies, the levels of language exposure will determine learner’s motivation to learn the particular language (Magno et al., 2009).

• For example, Kim and Margolis (2000) found that there is positive correlation between motivation to learn English when the learners watched a greater amount of English-speaking television shows. Thus, the high exposure to the language have encouraged learners to enhance their methods and strategies. in acquiring the language.

• There has been very little research into cultural background issues and language learning strategies. As such, even defining ‘cultural background’ is a difficult task because of the complexities in identifying cultural groups as ‘singular collective’ that can be compared among one another (Grainger, 2012).

• It has been found that European learners used language strategies more frequently than learners from other nationalities because of their cultural ideals and backgrounds (Griffiths, 2003).

• Asian background learners had been found to use more conservative strategies, for example, repetition and rule-oriented strategies (Politzer & McGoarty, 1985).

• Similarly, Asian background learners had also been reported to prefer their own rote learning strategies when learning a particular language (O’Malley & Chamot, 1990).

(5) Cultural backgrounds

• The choice of language learning strategies also differ from certain nationalities as some prefer to work independently as opposed to involving in group work (Reid, 1987).

• Grainger (1997) studies 101 females and 33 males from different ethnic backgrounds. Using questionnaire as the research instrument, he discovered that there were significant differences in terms of language strategy used according to the various cultural backgrounds.

Thank you

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