An Investigation of Undergraduates’ Language Learning Strategies

Available online at www.sciencedirect.com

ScienceDirect Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 197 (2015) 1348 – 1354

7th World Conference on Educational Sciences, (WCES-2015), 05-07 February 2015, Novotel Athens Convention Center, Athens, Greece

An Investigation Of Undergraduates’ Language Learning Strategies Karatas Hakana, Balyer Aydina*, Alci Bulenta a

Yildiz Technical University Besiktas, 34349, Istanbul, Turkey

Abstract Learning strategies are steps taken by students to enhance their own learning. Strategies are especially important for language learning because they are tools for active, self-directed involvement, which is essential for developing communicative competence (Oxford, 1990). Language learning strategies also enable students to gain a large measure of responsibility for their own progress. This study aims to determine undergraduates’ language learning strategies and relationship with gender. The participants of the study were composed of 120 undergraduates from different departments and attending in English preparation class. To determine undergraduates’ language learning strategies, the data were collected using “Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL)”, originally developed by Oxford (1990) and Turkish bilingual equivalence, validity and reliability of which carried out by Cesur and Fer (2007), was used. The analysis of independent samples of t-test was conducted to clarify the language learning strategies of undergraduates in terms of gender. The results reveal that significant differences were found in undergraduates’ language learning strategies relating to gender. These findings and implications for educational researchers and the significance of such individual differences in language learning strategies were discussed © 2015Published The Authors. Published Elsevier Ltd.access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license © 2015 by Elsevier Ltd. by This is an open Peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Education and Research Center. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Education and Research Center. Keywords: Language learning strategies, undergraduates, language proficiency, gender

1. Introduction There has been a prominent shift within the field of language learning and teaching over the last twenty years with greater emphasis being put on learners and learning rather than on teachers and teaching. In parallel to this new shift of interest, how learners process new information and what kinds of strategies they employ to understand, learn or remember the information has been the primary concern of the researchers dealing with the area of foreign language learning. Therefore, providing the background of language learning strategies and taxonomies of language

* Balyer Aydin Tel.: +902123833145, fax:+902123833149 E-mail address: [email protected]

1877-0428 © 2015 Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Education and Research Center. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.07.388

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learning strategies, stressing the importance of language learning strategies for foreign language learning and the teacher's role in strategy training have been the main concern for researchers for the last few decades. Particularly, developments in cognitive psychology influenced much of the research done on language learning strategies (Wiliams and Burden 1997:149). In most of the research on language learning strategies, the primary concern has been on "identifying what good language learners report they do to learn a second or foreign language, or, in some cases, are observed doing while learning a second or foreign language" (Rubin and Wenden, 1987). Second or foreign language learning are one of the most important education matters in most of school in throughout the world. There has been a prominent shift within the field of language education over the last twenty years with greater emphasis being put on learners and learning rather than on teachers and teaching. Extensive investigation has shown the importance of language learning strategies in making language learning more efficient and in producing a positive effect on learners language use. Learning a second or foreign language is a challenging task. Over the past three decades, there has been an increasing interest about finding the nature of learning strategies and identifying those strategies that are most commonly used by different types of learners. Language learning strategies help learners retrieve and store materials and facilitate and even accelerate their learning. Language learning strategies are the conscious steps or behaviors used by language learners to enhance the acquisition, storage, retention, recall, and use of new information (Oxford, 2011). It is apparent that language learning strategies play very significant roles in facilitating understanding of language learning processes as well as the skills that learners develop in learning a foreign or second language. Language learning strategies have been found to be critical in determining academic achievement. Language learning strategies are seen as a shift from focusing on teachers and teaching to learners and learning. 1.1. Language Learning Strategies Since the amount of information to be processed by language learners is high in language classroom, learners use different language learning strategies in performing the tasks and processing the new input they face. Language learning strategies are good indicators of how learners approach tasks or problems encountered during the process of language learning. In other words, language learning strategies give language teachers valuable clues about how their students assess the situation, plan, select appropriate skills so as to understand, learn, or remember new input presented in the language classroom. Language learning strategies are specific actions, behaviors, steps, or techniques students use -- often consciously -- to improve their progress in apprehending, internalizing, and using the second language (Oxford, 1990b). Findings of the researches supporting the effectiveness of using language learning strategies for successful language learners include that use of appropriate language learning strategies often results in improved proficiency or achievement overall or in specific skill areas (Oxford et al., 1993; Thompson & Rubin, 1993); successful language learners tend to select strategies that work well together in a highly orchestrated way, tailored to the requirements of the language task (Chamot & Kupper, 1989); these learners can easily explain the strategies they use and why they employ them (O'Malley & Chamot, 1990); cognitive (e.g., translating, analyzing) and metacognitive (e.g., planning, organizing) strategies are often used together, supporting each other (O'Malley & Chamot, 1990). Learning strategies can foster learners’ autonomy in language learning and assist learners in promoting their own achievement in language proficiency (Green & Oxford, 1995; Griffiths, 2003). Learning strategies, therefore, help learners become efficient in learning and using a language. Oxford (1990) is of the opinion learning strategies are specific actions taken to ensure that learning is made simpler, faster, more enjoyable, more self-directed, more effective, which can even be transferable to new situations. Oxford (2003) believes that “ language learning styles and strategies are among the main factors that help determine how - and how well -our students learn a second or foreign language”. When chosen consciously, language learning strategies can act as a key to active, conscious, and purposeful self-regulation learning. Accordingly, one way to accelerate the academic language learning is to teach learners how to learn more effectively and efficiently. Cohen (2003) describes language learning strategies (LLS) as learning procedures used consciously by learners. Oxford (1999) defines LLS as certain activities, behaviors or techniques used by students to develop their skills in language learning. Wienstein, Husman and Dierking (2000) describe LLS as thoughts, behaviors, beliefs or feelings that help learners transfer new information to other environments. Thus, LLS are methods, techniques, behaviors and thoughts used by language learners to facilitate learning. These techniques facilitate the target language to be internalized, stored, recalled and used by the learners. Learning strategies are defined as techniques for understanding, remembering, and using information that are intentionally used and consciously controlled by the

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learner (Pressley & McCormick, 1995; Bialystok, 1990; Oxford, 1990, 1996). Classification of language learner strategies varies somewhat, depending on the definition of the researchers in question. Many researchers generated taxonomies of LLS (e.g. Nisbet & Shucksmith, 1986; O’Malley & Chamot, 1990; O’Malley, Chamot, Stewner-Manzanares, Russo & Kupper, 1985; Oxford, 1990; Stern, 1992; Wenden & Rubin, 1987). When compared, it can be seen that these taxonomies have many similarities. The most well-known is Oxford’s taxonomy (1990). It is made up of six strategy classes: memory (employed for storing and retrieving new information); cognitive (manipulating or transforming the target language); compensation (use the new language for comprehension and production); metacognitive (going beyond purely cognitive devices and providing a way for learners to coordinate their own learning process); affective (referring to learners emotional, attitudes, motivation and values) and social strategies (referring to learner’s communication with people who use the target language). Research indicates that language learners at all level use strategies but that some or most learners are not fully aware of the strategies they use or the strategies that might be most beneficial to employ (Oxford, 1989). Research has shown that language learners can learn more effectively when teaching them some of the learning strategies that have been identified as one of the defining characteristics of a good language learner in the literature (Rubin, 1975, 1981; Stern, 1975). In the literature there are many studies showing the relation between LLS use and language achievement (El-Dip, 2004; Gan, Humpreys & Hamp-Lyons, 2004; Ian & Oxford, 2003; Oxford, Cho, Leung & Kim, 2004; Hong-Nam & Leavell, 2007; Mori, 2007; Riazi & Rahimi, 2003; Yalcin, 2006; Yang, 2003). Research both outside the language field (McDonough, 1995; Nunan, 2010) and investigations with language learners (Oxford, 2011) frequently show that the most successful learners tend to use learning strategies that are appropriate to the material, to the task, and to their own goals, needs, and stage of learning. Research in the field of second and foreign language education indicates that the use of appropriate language learning strategies leads to improved proficiency and achievement in overall and specific skills (Chamot & Kupper, 1989; O’Malley & Chamot, 1990; Wenden & Rubin, 1987) and successful language learners use more learning strategies and more facilitating ones than poor learners (Chamot & Kupper, 1989; Oxford, 1990). The purpose of this research was to define undergraduates’ language learning strategies, so research questions are as the followings: 1. What are the undergraduates’ language learning strategies? 2. Is there a significant difference in undergraduates’ language learning strategies regarding gender? 2. Methods 2.1. Participants In this research, the study group was composed of 120 undergraduates studying in English Preparation Year at School of Foreign Languages, Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul, Turkey. The participants, whose language proficiency were at different levels, included 67 female (%55.8) and 53 male (%44.2) undergraduates. 2.2. Data Collecting Instrument To determine undergraduates’ language learning strategies, the data were collected using “Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL)” including 50 items in the form of five point likert, originally developed by Oxford (1990) and Turkish bilingual equivalence, validity and reliability of which carried out by Cesur and Fer (2007). The original inventory was composed of six components including “memory” (9 items), “cognitive” (14 items), “compensation” (5 items), “metacognitive” (8 items), “affective” (5 items) and “social” (6 items). As a result of the study of Turkish bilingual equivalence, validity and reliability, 3 items whose item loadings were lower than expected, were extracted from the original inventory and the study went on with 47 items. 2.3. Analysis of Data At this stage, descriptive statistics methods were applied, while determining the language learning strategies of undergraduates. For the analysis of the data obtained from SILL, the means, frequency and standard deviation were used to analyze the data. It was analyzed whether there was a significant difference in undergraduates’ language

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learning strategies in terms of gender. Statistical analysis was carried out using t-test analysis for independent groups since test of normality was ensured. The statistics obtained were transferred into the tables by grouping and then interpreted. 3. Findings In this chapter, we allow for the analyses, carried out with the aim of determining the language learning strategies of undergraduates. Table 1 indicates the minimum and maximum scores, means and standard deviations for undergraduates’ language learning strategies. Table 1: Descriptive statistics for undergraduates’ language learning strategies

Scale LLIS

Factor Memory Cognitive Compensation Metacognitive Affective Social Total

Min. 18.00 6.00 7.00 4.00 9.00 6.00 47.00

Max. 46.00 28.00 32.00 18.00 41.00 26.00 177.00

M 22.20 17.37 18.55 11.46 27.56 17.39 133.47

sd 5.29 4.12 4.79 3.24 6.48 3.82 22.37

As a result of the findings obtained from undergraduates regarding the component named “Memory”, it was seen that the scores changed ranging from 18.00 to 46.00. The mean relating to this component was 22.20. The score on the component, named “Cognitive”, changed ranging from 6.00 to 28.00. The mean of undergraduates’ scores relating to this component was 17.37. The scores regarding the component, named “Compensation”, changed ranging from 7.00 to 32.00 and the mean of undergraduates’ scores on this component was 18.55. The score relating to “Metacognitive” component ranged from 4.00 to 18.00 and the mean of undergraduates’ scores was 11.46. The mean of the component “Affective”, the score of which ranged from 9.00 to 41.00, was 27.56. The score of the component “social” ranged from 6.00 to 26.00 and the mean of undergraduates’ scores was 17.39. The total score changed ranging from 47.00 to 177.00 and the mean of undergraduates’ scores on total scale was 133.47. Taking the scores relating to these six components into consideration, it was seen that except for “memory” component the score of undergraduates’ language learning strategies from the other components and total scale was quite high. In Table 2, the findings regarding the correlation analysis among undergraduates’ language learning strategies are shown. LLS Memory

Cognitive

Compensation

Metacognitive

Affective

Table 2: Correlation analysis among the components of undergraduates’ language learning strategies Memory Cognitive Compensation Metacognitive Affective r Sig. (2-tailed) N r Sig. (2-tailed) N r Sig. (2-tailed) N r Sig. (2-tailed) N r Sig. (2-tailed)

1 120 .29 .00** 120 .40 .00** 120 .38 .00** 120 .27 .00**

.29 .00** 120 1 120 .47 .00** 120 .36 .00** 120 .38 .00**

.40 .00** 120 .47 .00** 120 1 120 .48 .00** 120 .48 .00**

.38 .00** 120 .36 .00** 120 .48 .00** 120 1 120 .34 .00**

.27 .00** 120 .38 .00** 120 .48 .00** 120 .34 .00** 120 1

Social .27 .00** 120 .32 .00** 120 .39 .00** 120 .32 .00** 120 .62 .00**

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Karatas Hakan et al. / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 197 (2015) 1348 – 1354 N 120 r .27 Sig. (2-tailed) .00** N 119 ** Correlation is significant at the .01 level (2-tailed) Social

120 .32 .00** 120

120 .39 .00** 120

120 .32 .00** 120

120 .62 .00** 120

120

120

As can be seen in Table 2, as a result of correlation analysis there have been found significant positive correlations among the components of language learning strategies. It was found significant positive correlations between memory and time cognitive (r=.29, p<.01); between memory and compensation (r=.40, p<.01); between memory and metacognitive (r=-.38, p<.01); between memory and affective (r=-.27, p<.01) and between memory and social (r=-.27, p<.01). It can be said that all the components of language learning strategies are related to each other and total score of studying skills. Table 3: T-test results of undergraduates language learning strategies with respect to gender Factor

Gender

N

M

Memory

Female

67

21.60

Male

53

22.94

Female

67

16.74

Male

53

18.16

Female

67

18.08

Male

53

19.13

Female

67

11.19

Male

53

11.81

Female

67

26.71

Male

53

28.64

Female

67

16.61

Male

53

18.37

Female

67

Male

53

129.3 1 138.7 3

Cognitive

Compensation

Metacognitive

Affective

Social

Total

sd

5.3 8 5.1 2 4.4 3 3.5 7 5.3 8 3.9 0 3.2 3 3.2 4 6.9 7 5.7 0 3.9 5 3.4 5 24. 28 18. 61

t-test t 1.37

df 11 3.62

p .58

1.89

11 7.94

.15

1.18

11 7.17

.03*

1.03

11 1.61

.94

1.62

11 7.85

.14

2.56

11 6.79

.59

2.33

11 7.90

.15

* Correlation is significant at the .05 level (2-tailed)

Based on t-test results in Table 3, it was seen that undergraduates’ gender indicated a significant difference in only “compensation” component. It was found that in terms of compensation strategies, female and male undergraduates differed significantly, and this difference was in favour of male undergraduates [t (120)=-1.18 p<.05]. The mean score of male undergraduates’ compensation strategies (19.13) was higher than that of female undergraduates (18.08). For the other components and total score of undergraduates’ language learning strategies significant differences were not found. 4. Results Language learning strategies appear to be among the most important variables influencing performance in a second language. Hence, learning strategies play a crucial role in facilitating the independence of English second language (ESL) students. Consequently, ESL and English as a foreign language (EFL) studies have also moved

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towards establishing how employing learning strategies influences, facilitates and enhances the whole L2 learning process. In this study, as a result of the findings obtained from the correlation analysis there have been found significant positive correlations among all the components of language learning strategies. It can be said that all the components of language learning strategies are related to each other. It was also seen that undergraduates’ gender indicated a significant difference in only “compensation” component in favour of male undergraduates. The result of this research is parallel with the previous researches (Oxford & Burry, 1995; Oxford & Ehrman, 1995; Yang, 1999; Wang et al., 2009; Chen, 2009; Chang, 2009). Much more investigation is necessary to determine the precise role of language learning strategies because teachers need to become more aware of them through appropriate teacher training. 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