Language Learning Strategies
 

Students often employ language learning strategies to improve their progress in developing L2 skills. These strategies can facilitate the internalization, storage, retrieval or use of the new language. Strategies are tools for the self-directed involvement necessary for developing communicative ability. Research suggests that effective L2 learners are aware of the strategies they use and why they employ them. Skilled learners select strategies that work well together and that are tailored to the requirements of the language task. Cognitive and metacognitive strategies often go together. Cognitive strategies involve the identification, retention, monitoring, and retrieval of language learning activities. Metacognitive strategies deal with the planning, monitoring, and evaluation of language learning activities. Some studies, however, have shown that affective and social strategies are effective ones. Affective strategies are those that regulate emotions, attitudes, and motivation, e.g. positive self-talk and self-reward. Social strategies refer to actions learners take to interact with users of the language and to cooperative learning.

Productive strategies refer to speaking and writing activities. To communicate effectively, the speaker or writer expresses his ideas in a text. This process can be interactive or not. Strategies are tools the speaker or writer uses to retrieve and exploit his linguistic resources to carry out a communicative task.

Retrieval strategies are searching techniques the learner can activate. Mnemonic strategies help the learner retrieve information, e.g. retrieval by means of sounds, mental pictures, body movement, or location. The language use strategy a learner activates is suitable for a particular situation if it meets the communicative demands (discourse competence).

Research findings on learning strategies differentiate between the following types:

· metacognitive strategies, such as planning, monitoring, and evaluating the language learning activities;

· cognitive strategies involve working out rules, considering previous knowledge, learning in a rote manner;

· social and affective strategies, such as cooperation with other students, asking for information, self-evaluation progres, self - rewarding for good performance, self-talk.

Teachers can help their students to recognize the power of intentionally using language learning strategies to make learning quicker, easier, more effective, and more fun. They can weave learning strategy training into regular classroom events in an explicit way, providing opportunity for practicing strategies and transferring them to new tasks. Cognitive strategies provide the necessary intellectual tools, affective and social strategies offer emotional and interpersonal support.

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