Robyn L. Najar
Sichuan University
This study examines the generalizability of research in the areas of instruction; learning; and transfer of learning to the role these play in the area of the use of strategic competencies in foreign language contexts (FLC). While previous studies have tended towards a focus on learner variables, this study includes the conditions of applicability with a task that can impact learning and transfer as well. The contributions of both variables, learner and task, were investigated through note-taking strategy instruction and transfer, to ascertain the effect on reading comprehension of textual materials in the English as a foreign language (EFL) classroom. Learning was measured as a precursor to transfer. In order to investigate the role of instruction and transfer in the transfer of strategy use, a mixed design using both qualitative and quantitative approaches for design and analysis was used. Findings suggest that the relationship between instruction and transfer as represented by strategy use and task performance is a multidimensional one, and that there are implications for language learning instruction in the foreign language classroom.
Bjork DF and Jacobs JW III (1985) Associative and categorical processes in children’s memory: The role of automaticity in the development of organization in free recall. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology 39: 599–617.
Brown AL (1984) The advancement of learning. Educational Researcher 23(8): 4–12.
Chamot AU and El-Dinary PB (1999) Children’s learning strategies in immersion classrooms. The Modern Language Journal 83(3): 319–314.
Chamot AU (2004) Issues in language learning strategy research and teaching. Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching 1(1): 14–26.
Cohen AD (1998) Strategies in Learning and Using a Second Language. NY: Longman, pp.5–20.
Gagne ED, Yekovich CW and Yekovich FR (1993) The Cognitive Psychology of School Learning (2nd ed.). NY: Harper Collins, pp.101–106.
Griffiths C (2007) Language learning strategies: Students’ and teachers’ perceptions. ELT Journal 6(2): 91–99.
Kuhl J (1985) Volitional mediators of cognition-behaviour consistency: Self-regulatory processes and action control versus state orientation. In: Kuhl J and Beckmann J (eds) Action Control: From Cognition to Behaviour. NY: Springer-Verlag, pp.101–128.
Nyikos M (1996) The conceptual shift to learner-centred classrooms: Increasing teacher and students strategic awareness. In: Oxford RL (ed) Language Learning Strategies Around the World: Cross-Cultural Perspectives. HI: University of Hawai’i Press, pp.109–117.
O’Malley JM and Chamot AU (1990) Learning Strategies in Second Language Acquisition. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, pp.34–61.
Oxford RL and Nyikos M (1989) Variables affecting choice of language learning strategies by university students. The Modern Language Journal 73(3): 291–300.
Oxford RL and Leaver BL (1996) A synthesis of strategy instruction for language learners. In: Oxford RL (ed) Language Learning Strategies Around the World: Cross-Cultural Perspectives. HI: University of Hawai’i Press, pp.227–246.
Qingquan N, Chatupote M and 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.
Rivera-Mills SV and Plonsky L (2007) Empowering students with language learning strategies: A critical review of current issues. Foreign Language Annals 40(3): 535–548.
Ross BH (1984) Remindings and their effects in learning a cognitive skill. Cognitive Psychology 16: 371–416.
Salataci R and Aykel A (2002) Possible effects of strategy instruction on L1 and L2 reading. Reading in a Foreign Language 14(1): 1–17.
Salomon DN and Perkins G (1989) Transfer: Rethinking mechanisms. Educational Psychologist 24(2): 113–142.
Spörer N, Brunstein JC and Kieschke U (2009) Improving students’ reading comprehension skills: Effects of strategy instruction and reciprocal teaching. Learning and Instruction 19: 272–286.
Copyright © 2019 Robyn L. Najar
This is an open access article under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
