5 FACTORS AFFECTING LLS USAGE

NORA EZZATI BINTI AZMIP83215

MOTIVATION

LEARNING STYLE

GENDERLANGUAGE

PROFICIENCY LEVEL

SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS

MOTIVATIONAccording to Gardner (1985), motivation and attitudes are the primary sources contributing to individual language learning. Gardner has described the phenomenon of motivation as consisting of four components: a goal, effort, want, and attitudes toward the learning activity.

Dörnyei (2001), one of the well-known leaders within the field of motivation also states, generally, motivation can be a matter explaining why people decide to do something, how long they are willing to sustain the activity, and how hard they are going to pursue it. Similarly, Oxford and Nyikos (1989) indicate that the learners with high motivation to learn a language will likely use a variety of strategies.

LEARNING STYLEStudies in this area point to the fact that an individual’s learning style preferences influence the type of LLSs they use (Ehrman and Oxford, 1990; Rossi-Le, 1995; among others).

Extroverts, for example, show a strong preference for social strategies, while introverts use metacognitive strategies more frequently (Ehrman and Oxford, 1990); learners who favour group study are shown to use social and interactive strategies, such as working with peers or requesting clarification (Rossi-Le, 1995).

GENDERA number of studies reported significantly more use of learning strategies than their male counterparts (e.g. Goh & Kwah, 1997; Factors Affecting Language Learning Strategy Reported Usage 71 Green & Oxford, 1995; Gu 2002). These studies postulated that female students used Compensation and Affective strategies more frequently than male ones

males used learning strategies more than females when learning a language (Tran, 1988; Wharton, 2000).

LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY LEVELPrevious studies have also pointed out that a high level of proficiency is associated with an increased use of both direct and indirect strategies (Green & Oxford 1995; Kato 2005; among others)

The higher their overall English proficiency, the more frequently they used these strategies.

SOCIOECONOMIC STATUSLanguage learning is closely related to the social environment of learners. Since students from different socioeconomic statuses have different resources to facilitate their language learning, the language-learning environment of students with different social backgrounds should be different.

Students with higher socioeconomic status generally perform better than their poorer counterparts due to their richer economic capital and linguistic capital (Bourdieu 1973; Flowerdew & Miller 2008).

It is assumed that the socioeconomic status of subjects can be reflected by their family income since the income of local workforce is generally in direct proportion to their educational level.

REFERENCES1. Kevin Chi-Him Tam. 2013. A Study On Language Learning Strategies (LLSs) Of

University Students In Hong Kong. Taiwan Journal of Linguistics. Vol. 11.2, 1-42, 2013.http://tjl.nccu.edu.tw/volume11-2/11.2.1.pdf

2. Mohammad Rahimi, Abdolmehdi Riazi , Shahrzad Saif. An Investigation Into The Factors Affecting The Use Of Language Learning Strategies By Persian EFL Learners. RCLA • CJAL http://www.aclacaal.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/4-vol-11-no2-art-rahimi-riazi-saif.pdf

3. Attapol Khamkhien. 2010. Factors Affecting Language Learning Strategy Reported Usage by Thai and Vietnamese EFL Learners. Electronic Journal of Foreign Language Teaching. Centre for Language Studies. National University of Singapore. Vol. 7, No. 1, pp. 66–85.

http://e-flt.nus.edu.sg/v7n12010/khamkhien.pdf