Second Language Learning and Language Teaching

Good language learner strategies
People who are good at languages might tackle L2 learning in different ways 
from those who are less good, or they might behave in the same way but 
more efficiently. One interesting theme is the good language learner (GLL) strate-
gies. Naiman et al. (1978/1995) tried to see what people who were known to be

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good at learning languages had in common. They found six broad strategies
shared by GLLs.
GLL strategy 1: find a learning style that suits you
Good language learners become aware of the type of L2 learning that suits them
best. Though they conform to the teaching situation to start with, they soon find
ways of adapting or modifying it to suit themselves. Thus some GLLs supplement
audio-lingual or communicative language teaching by reading grammar books at
home, if that is their preference. Others seek out communicative encounters to
help them compensate for a classroom with an academic emphasis.
GLL strategy 2: involve yourself in the language 
learning process
GLLs do not passively accept what is presented to them, but go out to meet it. They
participate more in the classroom, whether visibly or not. They take the initiative
and devise situations and language learning techniques for themselves. Some listen
to the news in the second language on the radio; others go to see L2 films.
GLL strategy 3: develop an awareness of language both as
system and as communication
GLLs are conscious not only that language is a complex system of rules, but also
that it is used for a purpose; they combine grammatical and pragmatic compe-
tence. In other words, GLLs do not treat language solely as communication or as
academic knowledge, but as both. While many learn lists of vocabulary con-
sciously, many also seek out opportunities to take part in conversations in the sec-
ond language – one Canadian even driving a lorry for the L2 opportunities it
yielded.