Exploring the relationship between linguistic knowledge and strategy use in listening comprehension

The language learner strategies research field has often tried to identify the good language learner (GLL) by distinguishing more proficient from less proficient learners. However the notion of ‘good’ may be problematic without taking into account an individual’s linguistic knowledge (LK). This article foregrounds LK in relation to strategy use in the context of ‘listening to the teacher’: a language use task relatively under-researched. Secondary school students in Hong Kong ( n = 646) completed a questionnaire and tests of LK including vocabulary and grammar. Lower LK learners reported using more translation strategies, whereas those with higher LK reported using a range of additional strategies. A further cluster analysis, however, indicated that a sub-group of lower LK learners were comparably strategic with the higher LK group perhaps compensating for low LK via strategy deployment. This article provides evidence that strategy deployment when listening to the teacher is not wholly constrained by levels of LK. Pedagogical implications are suggested.

Strategies and interlanguage pragmatics: Explicit and comprehensive

Explicit instruction in strategies for interlanguage pragmatic learning is fundamental to the development of a comprehensive set of pragmatic abilities in the target language. In this article, we begin by providing an overview of previous work in the area of language learner strategies directed at the teaching and learning of pragmatics. We then offer an extension of Cohen’s (2005, 2014) framework of strategies for learning, using, and evaluating the use of interlanguage pragmatics in four domains: knowledge, analysis, subjectivity, and awareness (Sykes, Malone, Forrest, & Sadgic, forthcoming). Examples from current projects are provided to exemplify the critical importance of a strategies-based approach to the teaching and learning of interlanguage pragmatics. The article concludes with ideas for future research and implementation.