Second Language Learning and Language Teaching

Direct
1 Memory strategies, that is, remembering more effectively, say by visualizing the
spelling of a new word in your mind.
2 Cognitive strategies, that is, using all your mental processes, for instance by look-
ing for patterns in the new language.
3 Compensation strategies, that is, compensating for missing knowledge, for exam-
ple by trying to anticipate what the other person is going to say next.
Indirect
1 Metacognitive strategies, that is, organizing and evaluating your knowledge, for
example, by preparing in advance what is going to come up in the next class.
2 Affective strategies, that is, managing your emotions, say, by trying to relax
when speaking.
3 Social strategies, that is, learning with others, for instance, by asking the other
person to slow down.
Oxford originally used SILL mostly as an aid to teachers in evaluating what their
students were actually doing, and in developing teaching methods. Since then,
SILL has been used to study students in a variety of situations in different parts of
the world. The research has been assessed by Ernesto Macaro (2006); his summary
is displayed in Box 6.5. This makes it apparent that we have to exercise caution in
applying strategies research: it can show some benefits, but there is great variation
between learners in the strategies they use and in the extent to which teaching
them is of benefit.
Strategies for communicating and learning
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Learning strategies and language teaching
How can teachers make use of learning strategies? The chief moral is that the stu-
dents often know best. It is the learners’ involvement, the learners’ strategies and
the learners’ ability to go their own ways that count, regardless of what the
teacher is trying to do. Poor students are those who depend most on the teacher
and are least able to fend for themselves. The students must be encouraged to
develop independence inside and outside the classroom. Partly this can be
Learning strategies 117