The Role Of Learning Strategies For Chinese Adult EFL Learners On Classroom Setting

In China, much attention has been paid to language pedagogy in order to improve English learners?English level. However, English learners, especially EFL learners in universities and colleges, are still struggling helplessly in their process of English learning. They encounter various difficulties in listening, speaking, reading, writing and translating. For example, many university and college students depend too much on their English teachers because they think that it is sufficient for them to listen attentively to what their English teachers say and write down the major points since their English teachers will teach them all that they will learn in their English classes. Sometimes they even blame their teachers for their failure in English study, for they think that it is because their English teacher has not done a good job that they have failed in their English examinations. They seldom attempt to find out the reason why they fail in their English studies from the part of themselves, such as their motivations, their attitudes towards English learning and the appropriateness of their learning methods or learning strategies. That is the reason why the writer of this thesis wants to make a study of the role of learning strategies for Chinese adult EFL learners in classroom setting. In 1 970s, western researchers began the study of learning strategies focusing on the following aspects: (1) strategies used by good language learners; (2) the difference between good language learners and poor language learners in strategy using; (3) the relationship between the use of strategies and second language proficiency; (4) factors affecting the use of strategies; (5) ways of strategy training and their effect. In China, some researchers have also begun to pay attention to this field since 1980s. They have probed the relationship between language learning strategies and vocabulary learning, reading comprehension, listening comprehension and writing skills, and the relationship between strategies and learners?beliefs about language learning as well. As a college English teacher, the writer of this thesis wants to probe the role of learning strategies for adult EFL learners in classroom setting, hoping that his research may shed some light on English language teaching and learning in colleges and universities in the future. After the introduction, the writer of this thesis first of nil tries~ to summarize the definitions of learning strategies given by some influential western II .~7:7 ff7 75 researchers, the characteristics of learning strategies and the different ways to classify learning strategies used by some influential Chinese and western researchers. Secondly, he briefly analyzes the characteristics of Chinese adult EFL learners and the characteristics of the classroom setting. Thirdly, he introduces the methods used in investigating learning strategies and the learning strategies used widely and frequently by Chinese adult EFL learners. Fourthly, he tries to analyze some important variables affecting Chinese adult EFL learners?choice of learning strategies. Finally, the writer of this thesis tries to probe the role of learning strategies in four aspects respectively. And he also analyzes briefly the relationship between language learning strategies and language learning. Based on his research, he draws a conclusion that the instructions in English class should be student-centred and strategy-based in the future. Although some Ch...