On The Relationship Between Language Proficiency, Communication Strategies Employment, And Communication Strategies Correction

In the past two decades, China has witnessed abundant findings in the research on communication strategies employment as well as on the effect on communicative competence imposed by communication strategies. However, the relationship between language proficiency, communication strategies employment and communication strategies correction in EFL/ESL classroom activities has long been left untouched, which gives birth to the present study.This thesis implements a study probing into the influence imposed on communication strategies employment by learners' language proficiency. There are six types of communication strategies involved in the questionnaires. The communication strategies employment is hypothesized as (1) Learners with higher language proficiency employ less L1-based strategies, appeal for help strategies, and nonverbal strategies than learners with lower language proficiency do, (2) Learners with higher language proficiency employ more L2-based communication strategies, reduction strategies, and stalling strategies than learners with lower language proficiency do, (3) All learners suffer from communication pressure exerted by inadequacies in target language resources, and (4) All learners prefer to be corrected when they fail to communicate effectively but diversify in when and how to be corrected. 161 subjects including 81 freshmen and 80 juniors divided into Group One with higher language proficiency and Group Two with lower language proficiency according to their grades fill out the questionnaires voluntarily. Data collected and then processed by SPSS 14.0 are compared.Outcomes demonstrate that learners with higher language proficiency are prone to employ less L1-based strategies, appeal for help strategies, and nonverbal strategies than learners with lower language proficiency do. In terms of achievement strategies such as L2-based strategies and stalling strategies, the group with higher language proficiency has a tendency to employ more than the group with lower language proficiency does. The findings indicate that language proficiency plays a crucial role in the development of learners' communicative competence. The interview centers around two issues. One is the factors affecting learners' communication strategies employment, and the other is when and how learners would like to be corrected.Pedagogical implications of the study are elucidated. It is advised that language proficiency be promoted and communication strategies be corrected in order to improve learners' communicative competence. The issue of communication strategies correction is further addressed in this paper. On the basis of previous research in relative fields, the author implies that communication strategies correction is conducive to the development of learners' communicative competence, and at the end of the thesis the overall development of interlanguage is highlighted.