非英語(yǔ)專(zhuān)業(yè)學(xué)生英語(yǔ)學(xué)習(xí)觀念、學(xué)習(xí)策略與動(dòng)機(jī)調(diào)查

摘要

自20世紀(jì)70年代始，第二語(yǔ)言習(xí)得的研究開(kāi)始從教學(xué)方

法研究的層次轉(zhuǎn)向?qū)W習(xí)者個(gè)體差異方面，而學(xué)習(xí)者個(gè)體差異涉

及心理年齡、語(yǔ)言學(xué)能、學(xué)習(xí)動(dòng)機(jī)、認(rèn)知風(fēng)格、學(xué)習(xí)策略和性

格特征等諸多因素，其中學(xué)習(xí)策略是學(xué)習(xí)者個(gè)體差異研究的關(guān)

鍵。對(duì)學(xué)習(xí)策略和影響學(xué)習(xí)策略使用的因素進(jìn)行研究，對(duì)外語(yǔ)

教學(xué)具有積極的指導(dǎo)意義。只有了解和指導(dǎo)學(xué)生如何學(xué)，幫助

他們建立正確的語(yǔ)言學(xué)習(xí)觀和采取有效的學(xué)習(xí)策略，才能提高

教學(xué)效果和減輕學(xué)生的學(xué)習(xí)負(fù)擔(dān)。止匕外，對(duì)學(xué)生的學(xué)習(xí)策略開(kāi)

展研究有助于教師科學(xué)地設(shè)計(jì)和有效地進(jìn)行教學(xué)活動(dòng)。

國(guó)內(nèi)外對(duì)學(xué)習(xí)策略的研究經(jīng)歷了三個(gè)階段：第一階段主要

針對(duì)第二語(yǔ)言學(xué)習(xí)者所采用的策略進(jìn)行區(qū)分和歸納；第二階段

主要針對(duì)學(xué)習(xí)策略的定義和分類(lèi)；第三階段主要研究策略的有

效性。我國(guó)從20世紀(jì)80年代開(kāi)始對(duì)學(xué)習(xí)策略進(jìn)行研究，并取

得了很大的進(jìn)展。所有研究極大豐富和擴(kuò)展了學(xué)習(xí)策略的內(nèi)涵。

然而，由于教育背景、學(xué)習(xí)目標(biāo)、教學(xué)方法、任務(wù)要求和學(xué)習(xí)

對(duì)象不同，并非所有的結(jié)論都一致。此外，中國(guó)對(duì)學(xué)習(xí)策略的

研究大部分都集中在學(xué)生達(dá)到某一項(xiàng)語(yǔ)言技能所使用的策略

上，很少涉及到影響學(xué)習(xí)策略使用的因素。因此，從這一方面

對(duì)學(xué)習(xí)策略進(jìn)行研究有其必要性。

本研究旨在調(diào)查普通高校學(xué)生的英語(yǔ)學(xué)習(xí)觀念、學(xué)習(xí)策略

和學(xué)習(xí)動(dòng)機(jī)，以及學(xué)習(xí)策略受觀念和動(dòng)機(jī)影響的情況。調(diào)查設(shè)

計(jì)的問(wèn)題如下：（1）非英語(yǔ)專(zhuān)業(yè)學(xué)生有怎樣的英語(yǔ)學(xué)習(xí)觀念、

學(xué)習(xí)策略和動(dòng)機(jī)；（2）學(xué)生的觀念、學(xué)習(xí)策略和動(dòng)機(jī)經(jīng)過(guò)三年

的英語(yǔ)學(xué)習(xí)是否發(fā)生變化；6）觀念、學(xué)習(xí)策略和動(dòng)機(jī)之間是

否存在相關(guān)性，觀念和動(dòng)機(jī)在多大程度上影響學(xué)習(xí)策略的選擇

4

和使用。調(diào)查的對(duì)象涉及到同一專(zhuān)業(yè)的一年級(jí)、二年級(jí)和三年

級(jí)的129名非英語(yǔ)專(zhuān)業(yè)學(xué)生。所采用的工具為調(diào)查表，訪談

和觀察，并利用SPSS對(duì)所收集的數(shù)據(jù)進(jìn)行分析。研究結(jié)果表

明：學(xué)生有清楚的英語(yǔ)學(xué)習(xí)觀念，但很少把自己所想付諸實(shí)施,

因而盡可能未在英語(yǔ)學(xué)習(xí)中采用學(xué)習(xí)策略，其學(xué)習(xí)動(dòng)機(jī)不強(qiáng)。

隨著英語(yǔ)水平的提高，他們的觀念、學(xué)習(xí)策略和動(dòng)機(jī)逐漸發(fā)生

變化：管理觀念、關(guān)注意義觀念、關(guān)注準(zhǔn)確觀念和關(guān)注流暢的

觀念越來(lái)越強(qiáng)，而關(guān)注形式觀念和依賴(lài)母語(yǔ)的觀念越來(lái)越弱；

他們逐漸采用管理策略、關(guān)注意義策略和關(guān)注流暢的策略，而

較少采納關(guān)注形式策略和依賴(lài)母語(yǔ)的策略；他們的表層動(dòng)機(jī)沒(méi)

有變化，而深層動(dòng)機(jī)逐漸加強(qiáng)。統(tǒng)計(jì)結(jié)果表明：觀念和學(xué)習(xí)策

略密切相關(guān)，動(dòng)機(jī)和學(xué)習(xí)策略為其次，觀念和動(dòng)機(jī)的相關(guān)性最

小。觀念和動(dòng)機(jī)在一定程度上影響學(xué)習(xí)策略的選擇和使用。本

研究強(qiáng)調(diào)加強(qiáng)學(xué)生觀念、動(dòng)機(jī)和學(xué)習(xí)策略的培養(yǎng)，并將學(xué)習(xí)策

略的培訓(xùn)融入到教學(xué)中，使其成為英語(yǔ)教學(xué)的一部分。

關(guān)鍵詞：非英語(yǔ)專(zhuān)業(yè)學(xué)生；英語(yǔ)學(xué)習(xí)；觀念；動(dòng)機(jī)；學(xué)習(xí)策略

5

Abstract

Sincetheearly1970s,researchinthefieldofsecond

languageacquisitionhasshiftedfromteachingmethodsto

individuallearnerdifferences.Individuallearnerdifferences

involvemanyfactorssuchasage,languageaptitude,motivation,

cognitivestyleandlearningstrategies,amongwhichlearning

strategiesbecomeoneofthemajorconcernsinlanguagelearning.

Researchonlearningstrategiesandthefactorsthataffectthe

choiceanduseoflearningstrategyshowsgreatpotentialbecause

understandinghowthestudentslearnaforeignlanguageisthe

criticalpreconditionofdetermininghowthelanguageteachers

teach.Moreover,understandingstudents9learningprocessis

helpfultolanguageteachersinthedesignandimplementationof

effectivelanguageinstruction.

Uptonow,agreatdealofresearchhasbeendoneonlearning

strategiesathomeandabroad.Researchonlearningstrategieshas

experiencedthreestagessince1970s:thefirststageconcernswith

identifyingandlistingallthestrategiesthatsecondlanguage

learnersusedintheirlearning;thesecondstagefocuseson

classifyingandgivingdefinitionstolearningstrategiesandthe

thirdstagedealswiththeeffectivenessoflearningstrategieswith

theirresultsreportedandcompared.Researchresultshaveproved

thatlearningstrategiesarebeneficialtoimprovingthelearning

efficiency.InChina,researchonlearningstrategieshasbeen

increasingsince1980s.Mostoftheseresearchfocusesonone

aspectoflanguagelearningskillsfrommicropointofviewand

someconvincingresultshavebeenacquired.

6

However,duetodifferenteducationalsettings,learninggoals,

teachingmethods,taskrequirementsandsubjects,thefindingsare

notcompletelyconsistentandfurtherinvestigationsneedtobe

conducted.Moreover,therelationshipbetweenlearningstrategies

andotherfactorsaffectinglearningstrategychoiceanduseis

seldomstudied.

Thisstudyisundertakentofindoutthestudents'learning

strategiesatgeneralhigherinstitutesandhowtheirlearning

strategiesareaffectedbybeliefsandmotivations.Thesubjects

involvedare129non-Englishmajorstudentsfromfreshmen,

sophomoreandjuniorofthesamemajor.Theinstrumentsusedto

collectthedataarequestionnaire,interviewandobservation.The

SPSSisusedtoanalyzethedata.Theresearchresultsindicatethat

studentshaveclearbeliefsaboutEnglishlearning,buttheycannot

putwhattheybelieveinintopracticecompletelyandadoptall

kindslearningstrategiesintheirEnglishlearning.Theirmotivation

oflearningEnglishisnotstrong.Withtheimprovementoftheir

English,students5beliefs,motivationandlearningstrategies

changegraduallyduringthethreeyears'collegeEnglishlearning:

theirmanagementbeliefs,meaning-focusedbeliefs,

accuracy-focusedbeliefsandfluency-focusedbeliefsarebecoming

strongerandstrongerwhereastheirform-focusedbeliefsand

mother-tongue-reliancebeliefsaregettingweakerandweaker;they

graduallymoreadoptmanagementstrategies,meaning-focused

strategiesandfluency-focusedstrategiesandlessadopt

form-focusedstrategies,accuracy-focusedstrategiesand

mother-tongue-reliancestrategies;theirsurfacemotivationalmost

hasnochanges,whiletheirdeepmotivationisgettingstrongerand

7

stronger.Statisticalresultsalsoshowthatthereisaclose

relationshipbetweenthebeliefs,motivationandlearningstrategies,

buttherelationshipsbetweenbeliefsandmotivationareweaker.It

isalsofoundthatbeliefsandmotivationaffectthechoiceanduse

oflearningstrategiestosomedegree.Finally,thenecessityof

cultivatingstudents9beliefs,learningstrategiesandmotivationis

putforwardandconductionofthelearningstrategyteachingand

trainingisrecommended.

Keywords:non-Englishmajorstudent;Englishlearning;belief;

learningstrategy;motivation

8

Introduction

0.1SignificanceofResearch

Inthepasttwentyyears'collegeEnglishteaching,great

attentionhasalwaysbeenpaidtotheimprovementofteaching

materialsandtheexplorationofteachingmethodsandteaching

models,andgreatsuccesshasbeenachieved.Butstudents9learning

processandindividualdifferencesareignoredtogreatextent.

However,inrecentyears,researchersandlanguageteachersbegin

torealizetheimportanceofstudyingstudents9learningprocessand

givingmoreconcernfortheirindividualdifferences.That'swhy

moreandmoreempiricalresultsappearinbooksandjournals,

whichgreatlyinspiresinterestsinstudyingstudentsthemselves.

Studyonstudents9learningprocessandindividualdifferencescan

helplanguageteacherstoimprovetheirteachingandgivebetter

guidancetostudents9learning.

Nowadaysweoftenhearofthestudents5complaint.Theysay

thattheyhavespentalotoftimeandenergylearningEnglish,but

madelittleprogress;theyhavegreattroublesinlearningsomany

newwordsandphrasesbyheart;eveniftheycanmemorizethe

newwordsandphrases,butsometimelatertheyforgetagainand

stilldonotknowhowtousethem.Somestudentsevencomplain

thattheirEnglishlevelisnotimprovedatallduringthecollege

Englishlearning.It?struethatteachersshouldtrytheirbestto

11

improvetheirteachinglevelandteachingmethods.Butonthe

otherhand,thestudentsmaylackcorrectbeliefs,appropriate

learningstrategiesandstrongmotivation,whichresultsinthe

undesirableeffects.Insuchasituation,it'sveryimportantto

understandhowthestudentslearnEnglish,whichisthecritical

preconditionofdetermininghowteachersteach.Onlybyteaching

studentshowtolearnandcultivatingtheireffectivelearning

strategiescanteachersimprovetheirteachingandlearningeffects

andrelievethestudents'learningburdensothatteachingquality

canbegreatlyimproved.

Inaddition,havingafullunderstandingofthestudents5

beliefs,motivationandlearningstrategiesishelpfultolanguage

teachersinthedesignandimplementationofeffectivelanguage

instruction.Byinvestigatingtherelationshipsbetweenbeliefs,

learningstrategiesandmotivation,languageteacherscandesigna

betterteachingmodelandcarryoutstrategytraininginstructionto

helpstudentstoachievetheirlearninggoals.Finally,byconducting

theempiricalresearch,thetheoryofthelanguageacquisitioncan

begreatlyenrichedandperfected.Therefore,thestudyonbeliefs,

learningstrategiesandmotivationissignificant.

0.2ObjectivesofResearch

Inthisthesis,theauthorattemptstofindthenon-English

majorstudents5beliefs,learningstrategiesandmotivation,how

theirbeliefsandmotivationaffectthelearningstrategies,andwhat

relationshipexistsbetweenbeliefs,learningstrategiesand

motivationbyinvestigation,interviewsandobservation.The

researchquestionstobeaddressedinthestudyarethefollowing:(1)

investigatethebeliefs,learningstrategiesandmotivationof

12

non-EnglishmajorstudentsaboutEnglishlearning;(2)discoverif

beliefs,learningstrategiesandmotivationoffreshmen,sophomores

andjuniorshavechangedovertime;(3)determineiftherearesome

correlationsbetweenbeliefs,learningstrategiesandmotivation,

andexploretheextenttowhichbeliefsandmotivationaffectthe

choiceanduseoflearningstrategies.

0.3StructureofThesis

Thisthesisconsistsofthefollowingfiveparts:(1)relevant

studies.Inthispart,abriefdescriptionofwhathasbeendonein

beliefs,learningstrategiesandmotivationathomeandabroadis

given.(2)Interpretationofthekeyterms.Thispartmainlydeals

withtheconceptualdefinitionsandclassificationsinthestudy.(3)

Researchmethodology.Thispartinvolvesthedescriptionofthe

subjects,instrumentsusedtomeasurethevariables,processof

data-collectionandtheprocedureofthedata-analysis.(4)Results

anddiscussion.Thispartmainlydiscussesandanalyzestheresults

thathavebeenobtained,andanswersthequestionsthatareput

forwardatthebeginningofthethesis.Meanwhile,thepossible

reasonsforthespecificfindingsandsignificanceofthefindingsare

explained.(5)Conclusionandimplication.Thispartprovidesthe

majorfindings,theimplicationsofthefindingsand

recommendationsforthefutureresearch.

1.RelevantStudiesonBeliefs,LearningStrategiesand

Motivation

Inthispart,relevantstudiesonbeliefs,learningstrategiesand

motivationaredescribedandevaluatedindetail.

13

1.1Belief

Infact,therehasbeenlittleresearchaboutbeliefsandhow

learners'beliefsaffectlanguagelearning,tosaynothingofthe

relationshipbetweenbeliefsandlearningstrategies.ButWenden,

HorwitzandAbraham&Vann'sresearchresultsaresuggestive.

Wenden(1986a;1987a),onthebasisofhisstudy,summarized

threegeneralcategoriesofbeliefs(Ellis1994:447):(1)useof

language.Itincludesbeliefsrelatedtotheimportanceof"learning

inanaturalway,----practicing,tryingtothinkintheL2,and

livingandstudyinginanenvironmentwheretheL2isspoken;(2)

learningaboutthelanguage.Learnerswithbeliefsinthiscategory

emphasizedlearninggrammarandvocabulary,enrollingina

languageclass,receivingfeedbackonerrorstheymade,andbeing

mentallyactive;(3)importanceofpersonalfactors.Itincludes

beliefsaboutfeelingsthatfacilitateorinhibitlearning,self-concept

andaptitudeforlearning.Healsofoundthatlearnerswho

emphasizedtheimportanceoflearningtendedtousecognitive

strategiesthathelpedthemtounderstandandrememberspecific

itemsoflanguage,whilelearnerswhoemphasizedtheimportance

ofusinglanguageemployedfewlearningstrategies,relyinginstead

oncommunicationstrategies(Ellis1994:541).

Horwitz(1987a)usedaquestionnairetoinvestigatethebelief

of32intermediatelevelstudentsofdifferentethnicbackgrounds.

Hediscussedtheresultintermsoffivegeneralareas:(1)beliefs

aboutaptitude;(2)beliefsaboutthewaytolearnEnglish;(3)

beliefsaboutEnglish-speakingcultures;(4)beliefaboutlearning

andcommunicationstrategies;(5)beliefaboutavoidingerrors.

AbrahamandVann(1987)foundsomeevidencethatbeliefs

mightaffectlearningoutcomesinacasestudyoftwolearners.

14

Bothlearnersbelievedthatitwasimportanttocreatesituationsfor

usingEnglishoutsidetheclassroom,topracticeasmuchas

possible,andtohaveerrorcorrected.Bothofthemalsobelievedit

importanttoparticipateactivelyinclass.Abraham&Vann's

investigationalsoshowsthatdifferentviewsaboutlanguage

learningmayresultindifferentkindsofsuccess.

Therefore,beliefscannotbeseparatedfromindividuallearner

differencesinforeignlanguagelearningandlearningstrategies

becausethestudyonbelief'(constitutesanimportantareaof

enquiry,asitisreasonabletoassumethattheir"philosophy5

dictatestheirapproachtolearningandchoiceofspecificlearning

strategies(Ellis1994:479).Dr.WenQiufang'sresearchresult

(1996,2001)alsoshowsthatbeliefsaffectlearningstrategiesand

RodEllis(1994:540-541)believesthatlearners,beliefsabout

languagelearningmayalsoaffecttheirstrategychoiceanduse.

1.2LearningStrategy

Sincetheearly1970s,researchinthefieldofsecondlanguage

acquisitionhasshiftedfromteachingmethodstoindividuallearner

differences.Individuallearnerdifferencesinvolvethemanyfactors

suchasage,languageaptitude,motivation,cognitivestyleand

learningstrategies,amongwhichlearningstrategybecomesoneof

themajorconcernsandresearchonthemshowsgreatpotential.A

greatdealofresearchhasbeendoneonlearningstrategiesathome

andabroad.Mostoftheresearchresultsrevealthatlearning

strategiesarebeneficialtolanguagelearners.

Thestudyonlearningstrategieshasseenan“explosionof

activity”(Skehen1991:285)(citedinRodEllis1994:529)in

recentyearsandattractedmoreandmorelanguageresearchers5

15

attention.Inthissection,themajorresearchfindingsathomeand

abroadinthisfieldaredescribed.First,abriefintroductionofthe

backgroundanddevelopmentoflearningstrategiesisgiven,and

thenthedefinitionsandclassificationsoflearningstrategiesare

described.

1.2.1BackgroundandDevelopmentofLearningStrategies

Thestudyonlearningstrategiesbeganin1970sandgrewout

ofattemptstocharacterizegoodlanguagelearners(Rubin1975;

Stern1975;Naimanetal1975).Intheearlystudies,somedistinct

featuresofgoodlanguagelearnerswereidentified:(1)

preparednesstoguess;(2)attempttocommunicate;(3)willingness

toappearfoolish;(4)attentiontoform;(5)practicing;(6)

monitoringownandothers'speech;and(7)attendingtomeaning

(Ellis1994:547).Afterthat,manyresearchersfurtherdiscussedthe

featuresofgoodlanguagelearners,includingtheconcept,

definitionandclassificationoflearningstrategies.

Since1980's,mostofresearchmainlyconcentratesonthe

followingaspects:(1)essenceoflearning(Stern1983;Rubin1987;

Oxford1989andetc.);(2)classificationofstrategy(Oxford1990;

O,Malley&Chamot1990;Wenden1991;A.Cohen1998andetc.);

(3)factorsaffectingstrategyuse(O'Malley&Chamot1990;

Oxford1989;Nation&MachLaughlin1986andetc.)(4)strategies

usedbygoodlanguagelearners(Ellis1999;Huang&Naerssen

1985;O'Malley&Chamot1990andetc.);(5)relationshipbetween

learningstrategyuseandL2proficiency(Mamgubhai1991;Ellis

1999andetc.);(6)strategytrainingforlearners(Wenden1983;

Brown1989;Oxford1990andetc.)Theresearchdoneby

O'MalleyandChamotisthemostinfluential.Theirresearchwas

16

basedontheinformationprocessingtheoryandguidedby

cognitivetheory.Onthebasisofresearchoninformation

comprehension,processingandstoring,theyobtainedaseriesof

theorizedlanguagelearningstrategies,classifiedthesestrategies

andgaveadetaileddescription.Thentheyputthesestrategiesinto

practiceandtestedthem.Theirextensivestudiesonthelanguage

learningstrategiesfromtheaspectsoftheoryandpractice,andthe

researchresultsgreatlyenrichedthelanguagelearningstrategies.

Severalnewtrendsappearedafter1990's.First,researchers

begantocombinetheresearchoflanguagelearningstrategieswith

theresearchonautonomylearningbecausetheultimategoalof

educationistohelpstudentsbecomeindependent,autonomousand

effectivelearners.Thatistosay,studyingonlearningstrategiesis

helpfultoexplorehowtofosterstudentstobecomeindependent,

autonomousandeffectivelearners.Thecombinationoflearning

strategiesandautonomylearningmakesthegoalofresearchon

learningstrategiesclearer,moreprofoundandmoremeaningful.

Second,learningstrategiesinstructionbecamethemajorconcern.

In1998,Cohenpublishedhisimportantworks-----Strategiesin

LearningandUsingaSecondLanguage,inwhichheparticularly

dealswiththeinfluencethatlanguageteachingmodelbasedon

learningstrategieshaveonforeignlanguagelearning,especially

theinfluenceonoralcompetence.Third,researchersonlanguage

learningstrategiesbegantoshowconcernfortherelationship

betweenlearningstrategiesandculture.Researchershavefound

thatlearningstrategyuseisnotonlyrelatedtolearners9age,

aptitude,intelligence,learningstyle,attitudeandmotivation,but

alsorelatedtotheculturalsettingstheyareinandtheculturethey

received.Undertheguidanceofsuchrealization,researchersbegan

17

tostudythecharacteristicsoflearningstrategyuseunderdifferent

culturalbackgrounds.In1996,Oxfordpublishedher

book-----LanguageLearningStrategiesAroundtheWorld:

Cross-culturalPerspectives.

InChina,researchonlearningstrategieshasbeenincreasing

recentlyandhasmadegreatprogress.Mostoftheresearchfocuses

ononeaspectoflanguageskills:HuangXiaohua(1985)andGao

Haihong(2000)investigatedcommunicativestrategies;YuLu

(2003)andWuWeiying(2000)didsomeresearchonChinese

students9listeningstrategies;WangWenyu(1998),WuXia(1998),

WuLilin(2001),ZhangPing(2001),ChenHui(2001),LinMing

(2002)andZhangYe(2003)investigatedvocabularylearning

strategiesandtheirconsistentresultsshowthatvocabularylearning

strategieshavegreateffectonforeignlanguagelearning;Zhou

Xiaorong(2000)investigatedlearningstrategiesandtheir

relationshiptolearningachievementinreadingcomprehension.Dr.

WenQiufang(1995,1996a,1997,2001,)hasdonemoresystematic

researchonlearningstrategiesandtherelationshipbetween

learningstrategiesandlearningachievement.Theirresearchresults

indicatethatdifferentlearningmethodsarethemajorcausesthat

resultindifferencesinEnglishgrades;mother-tonguestrategies

andform-focusedstrategiescanclearlypredicttheresultofthe

CETofBandFourandthosewhohavepassedtheCETofBand

Fourmorefrequentlyusememorystrategies,cognitivestrategies,

metacognitivestrategiesandaffectivestrategies.

Inaddition,somebooksonlearningstrategiesarealso

publishedinChina.Thefirstworksonlanguagelearningstrategies

writtenbyWenQiufang:OnEnglishLearningStrategies-for

Englishlearners,waspublishedin1996.ThenKuaiChaoying

18

publishedhisbook:LearningStrategyin1999andChenXiaotang

&ZhenMing'sEnglishLearningStrategywaspublishedin2003.

Thesebooksnotonlysummarizethetheoreticalframeoflearning

strategies,butalsointroducemanyapproachestolearningstrategy

instruction.Theirbooksshowgreatsignificanceintheoretical

researchandarehelpfultolearnersinpractice.

1.2.2DefinitionofLearningStrategy

Inthepast30years,languageresearchersdidn'treachthe

agreementaboutdefinitionoflanguagelearningstrategies.Thisis

becausedifferentlanguageresearchershavedifferent

understandingoflanguagelearningstrategies.Sothedefinitionof

languagelearningstrategiesisstillcontroversial.RodEllis(1994:

531)listedfivedifferentdefinitionsoflanguagelearningstrategies:

(1)Stern(1983):“Inourviewstrategyisbestreservedforgeneral

tendenciesoroverallcharacteristicsoftheapproachemployedby

thelanguagelearner,leavingtechniquesasthetermtoreferto

particularformsofobservablelearningbehavior^^;(2)Weinstein

andMayer(1986):"Learningstrategiesarethebehaviorsand

thoughtsthatalearnerengagesinduringlearningthatareintended

toinfluencethelearner'sencodingprocess”;(3)Chamot(1987):

""Learningstrategiesaretechniques,approachesordeliberate

actionsthatstudentstakeinordertofacilitatethelearning,recallof

bothlinguisticandcontentareainformation^^;(4)Rubin(1987):

"Learningstrategiesarestrategieswhichcontributetothe

developmentofthelanguagesystemwhichthelearnerconstructs

andaffectlearningdirectly”;and(5)Oxford(1987):"Language

learningstrategiesarebehaviorsoractionswhichlearnersuseto

makelanguagelearningmoresuccessful,self-directedand

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enjoyable”.

Allthesedefinitions,however,revealanumberofproblems.

First,itisnotclearwhethertheyaretobeperceivedofas

behavioral(and,therefore,observable)orasmental,orasboth.

Oxford(1987)appearstoseethemasessentiallybehavioral,

whereasWeinstainandMayer(1986)seethemasbothbehavioral

andmental.Asecondproblemconcernstheprecisenatureofthe

behaviorsthataretocountaslearningstrategies.Thereis

considerableuncertainty.Stern(1983)distinguishes“strategies”

and"techniques”.Theformeraredefinedasgeneralandmoreor

lessdeliberate"approaches9tolearning,whereasthelatter

constituteobservableformsoflanguagelearningbehaviorthatis

evidentinparticularareasoflanguagelearningsuchasgrammar

andvocabulary.Otherresearchers,however,haveusedtheterm

"strategy9torefertothekindofbehaviorsSterncallstechniques.A

thirdproblemiswhetherlearningstrategiesaretobeseenas

consciousandintentionalorassubconscious.Thisissueisavoided

addressinginthesedefinitions,butonlyChamot(1987)refersto

themas"deliberateactions9.Afourthproblemconcernswhether

learningstrategiesareseenashavingadirectoranindirecteffect

oninterlanguagedevelopment.Rubin(1987),somewhat

controversially,assertsthattheeffectisadirectone.Butother

researchers,suchasSelinger,considerittobemoreindirect-----

strategyuseprovideslearnerswithdata,uponwhichthe'deep'

subconsciousprocessescanwork.Finally,therearedifferencesin

opinionsaboutwhatmotivatestheuseoflearningstrategies.All

thesedefinitionsonlyrecognizethattheyareusedinaneffortto

learnsomethingaboutthesecondlanguage,butOxford(1989)also

suggeststhattheirusecanhaveaneffectivepurpose(i.e.to

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increaseenjoyment).

Inviewofalltheproblemsmentionedaboveinthese

definitions,RodEllisthinksthatoneofthebestapproachesto

defininglearningstrategiesistolisttheirmaincharacteristics.The

followingcharacteristicsarelistedbyRodEllis(1994:532):(1)

strategiesrefertobothgeneralapproachesandspecificactionsor

techniquesusedtolearnasecondlanguage;(2)strategiesare

problem-oriented-----thelearnerdeploysastrategytoovercome

someparticularlearningproblem;(3)learnersaregenerallyaware

ofthestrategiestheyuseandcanidentifywhattheyconsistofif

theyareaskedtopayattentiontowhattheyaredoing/thinking;(4)

strategiesinvolvelinguisticbehavior(suchasrequestingthename

ofanobject)andnon-linguistic(suchaspointingatanobjectsoas

tobetolditsname);(5)linguisticstrategiescanbeperformedin

thefirstlanguageandthesecondlanguage;(6)somestrategiesare

behavioralwhileothersaremental.Thussomestrategiesare

directlyobservable,whileothersarenot.(7)Inthemain,strategies

contributeindirectlytolearningbyprovidinglearnerswithdata

abouttheL2whichtheycanthenprocess.However,some

strategiesmayalsocontributedirectly(forexample,memorization

strategiesdirectedatspecificlexicalitemsorgrammaticalrules);(8)

strategyusevariesconsiderablyasaresultofboththekindoftask

thelearnerisengagedinandindividuallearnerpreferences.

TheeightcharacteristicslistedbyRodEllisgiveanswersto

thepreviousproblems.Fortheproblem(whetherlearning

strategiesarebehaviorandmental),RodEllisseesthemasboth

behaviorandmental.Forthesecondproblemabouttheprecise

natureoflearningstrategies,Ellisdoesn'tthinkitnecessaryto

distinguish“strategies"and"techniques“becauseitishardtotell

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whetherabehaviorisanapproachoratechniqueinourpractical

research.Forthethirdproblem(whetherlearningstrategiesareto

beseenasconsciousorsubconscious,behaviorsoractions),Ellis

believesthatlearningstrategiesareconsciousbehaviors.Buthe

ignoresanimportantfactthatthereareindividualdifferencesinthe

degreeofconsciousness.Inotherwords,someindividualsmaybe

awareofthelearningstrategieswhereasotherindividualsmaynot.

Forthefourthproblem(whetherlearningstrategiesareseenas

havingadirectoranindirecteffectoninterlanguagedevelopment),

Ellisbelievesthatmoststrategieshavenodirecteffectson

languagedevelopmentandonlysmallpartdo.Infact,“direct”and

“indirect“arerelativeconcepts.Itdependsonthenatureofour

research.Ifwewanttofindouttherelationshipbetweenacertain

strategyandthemasteryofcertainlanguageknowledge,maybewe

cannotfindthedirectrelationshipinmostcases;butifthe

relationshipbetweenthegeneralsituationoflanguagestrategyuse

andgeneralleveloflanguagedevelopmentiscompared,it'slikely

tofindthedirectrelationship.

Fromtheabovediscussion,wecanfinditimportanttodiscuss

thedifferencesinthedefinitionsoflanguagelearningstrategies

becausedifferentideasaboutthelanguagelearningstrategiesmay

leadtodifferentrangesofstrategyresearch.

1.2.3ClassificationofLearningStrategy

Afterascertainingthecharacteristicsofsuccessfullanguage

learnersandidentifyingthelearningstrategiestheyuse,the

classificationoflearningstrategiesgraduallybecomesthemajor