Learning Strategies and Good Language Learners

This writing was my assignment from my school. In my opinion this topic is quite interest to be discussed and some of us could take several positive things from my article. This article has been summarized from a book which was written by Carol Griffiths in 2008. Specifically, I did my summary in one chapter, it was in sixth chapter entitled: "Strategies and Good Language Learners"

In this chapter, I focused on learning strategies and why learners called as good language learners. This writing consisted of several learning strategies which can be used by the language learners to learn foreign language, hence also about the frequency of use strategies which decide someone as good language learners.
I wish through my writing, it helpful to be used.
Enjoy my writing..

Teaching and learning English consists of some elements, such as methodology, strategies, regulation, and concept. In specific field, such as students need, there are some other elements related to the students’ learning process. From Carol’s book, he mentioned that to become a good language learner, we have to have a “strategy” to find the way. Rubin (1975) defined the term “language learning strategy” is the technique or ways used by the students to gain the language (Griffiths, 2010).
Strategy is not used only by the teachers, but strategy is also useful for language learners. The issues of definition of strategies are being discussed for several years by some experts. Based on (Griffiths, 2008) mentioned that learning strategies as a powerful and influencing tools to help students achieved their learning goals. In his book, has some experts discussed about the definition and the effect of “learning strategy” for language learners.

The current definition of “language learning strategies” (Rigney, 1978, O’Malley, and his colleagues) defined as “a set of steps used by the pupils that will help them to get acquisition, understanding, and re-set of information”. Rubin divided strategies into two groups, as direct and indirect, whereas O’Malley et.al defined into 26 characteristics that narrowed into three groups, metacognitive, cognitive, and social.

Hence, O’Malley said, one of good way for realizing the meaningful learning strategies is applied through communicative approach to language learning and teaching which is accepted in a classroom (Littlewood, 198; Widdowson, 1978), as cited from (Griffiths, 2008).

The alternative meaning about language learning strategy has been explained by the O’Malley and Chamot (1990) as special thoughts or behavior which are someone (learner) use to help them understand, retain, learn, and explore their knowledge. And the concept of it obviously cannot be separated from cognitive aspect, cited from (Dörnëy, 2008).
On the other sources, language learning strategies were explained in Oxford (1990; P.8) as “a specific step taken by the students in order to create a good circumstances which help them to get the knowledge easily, quickly, enjoyable, effective –to himself-, and flexible” (Griffiths, 2008).

From Griffith’s book, “Good Lessons from Good Language Learners”, there are so many definitions about learning strategy used by the students to help them. Oxford, after doing a research about language learning strategy by conducting questionnaire known as SILL (Strategy of Inventory Language Learning), found that strategy was defined into six categories: memory, cognitive, compensation, metacognitive, affective, and social (See. Oxford, 1990).
strategies.
There are some learning strategies stated in this book are, (see Griffiths’s book, 2008), p. 90 for more strategies)):

1. Doing homework
2. Learning from teacher
3. Learning in a native-speaking environment
4. Reading English book
5. Listening to English songs
6. Using computer
7. Watching TV in English
8. Talking with another students
9. Studying English Grammar
10. Using dictionary
11. Learning from mistakes
12. Learning vocabulary consciously
13. Listening to native speaker in English
14. Spending a lot time to study English
15. etc
    The research found that, there two kinds of learner, is high lever and lower level. High lever learners are the learners who use their own language learning strategy
    independently and regularly. Meanwhile, lower lever learners are learners who do not frequently use the strategies. There are several possible reasons why the students are in lower class, such as their length of learning language and influencing of mother tongue. The most strategy used by them are belong to the purpose of managing students’ own language learning strategies, such as
    a. strategies to manage their own learning (metacognitive)
    b. strategies to enhance their vocabulary
    c. strategies to improve their mastering in grammar
    d. strategies to add some learning sources
    e. strategies of learning integrated (involve four skills)
    From this research, we found that students will find their own ways and own style for stimulating their learning curiosity. Students will create their own condition appropriately to increase their knowledge and enhance their language learning output. They can find the various styles and increase their motivation in learning. Form the data stated in the book, we could say that the learners are creative to find the sources or the tools to help them in learning language.

And about good language learners.
Becoming a good language learner is suggested to find own strategy or the personal learning style to gain the learning targets (Griffiths, 2008). After finding their own style for learning, they will be responsible to the learning process and at the end, they will accustom with the regulation.

The good language learners take charge, do what they think is the best, take responsibility for their own learning targets, in the other word, good language learners don’t wait to be taught (Harmer, 2001). From Harmer (2001), found that the good of language learners are the students who are able to listen, ask questions, find and do experiments, and think about how to get the knowledge.

Good language learners, actually, is the one who are capable to follow the regulation of learning process without a teacher. But, if the teachers are available to teach, the learner will follow as a guidance and additional sources. So, the students will not waste their time and still find the material by themselves (Thompson, 2005).
On another perspective, Davies also stated the definition of language learners from another perspective. He disagreed that “good language learners” have the specific definition. To him, this term is only a relative concept. In his statement, he said that, if there is a definition of language learners, it should be a term for “a bad language learner”, meanwhile. Therefore, he said that the definition of this “language learner” term is indefinable (Davies, 2011).

According to Rubin and Thompson (1983), cited from (Nunan, 2001) decided 13 characteristics about the good language learners, as follows “good learners are”:

1. Find their own way
2. Organize information about language
3. Creative and experiment in language
4. Make own opportunities and strategies
5. Learn to live with uncertainty things and develop strategies to use sense for language
6. Use mnemonics (word, rhyme, etc)
7. Make errors
8. Use linguistics knowledge
9. Allow the context help them to understand
10. Guesses intelligently
11. Learn chunks of knowledge
12. Learn production techniques
13. Learn different style for speech and writing based on the situation
    Moreover, according to Lightbown and Spada (2006) narrowed some characteristics of good language learners. They pointed out that students have their own way to learn, there are some students learn quickly than other students. There are several characteristics for good language learner mentioned in his book as research guidance, as follows:
14. Is a willing and accurate guesser
15. Tries to get message even the knowledge is not specific
16. Is willing to make mistake
17. Look to the language patterns
18. Practice always
19. Analyses of someone’s or friends’ speech
20. Attends to the performance
21. Enjoys grammar exercises
22. Begins learning in childhood
23. Has an above-average IQ
24. Has good academic skills
25. Lots of confidence and good self-image

For instance, the characteristics of good language learners, Brown (2007), adapted from (Davies, 2011), are:

1. Do not mind if people laugh at them when you speak
2. Like to try to produce a new word that are not sure anyway
3. Own self-confident
4. Intrinsic motivation (learn because of the needs)
5. Enjoy working in group
6. Right-brain processes
7. Try to take one things in one time
8. Are not overly conscious of themselves when they speak
9. Use mistake to learn something
10. Decide ways to learn after class continuously

In addition, I do hope, you can adapt this article in your real life as solution toward your problems faced in learning other language, especially English as a foreign language.