GENDER DIFFERENCES IN
LANGUAGE LEARNING
STRATEGY USE
Presenter: Nguyen Thu Hien
Cao Thuy Hong
VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
ENGLISH DEPARTMENT
OUTLINE
Introduction
Literature Review
Research Methodology
Data Analysis and Discussion
Conclusion
INTRODUCTION
Statement of the problem and rationale for the study
Cognitive view of learning:
Language learning = a dynamic and creative process
Language learners = active strategy users and
knowledge constructors
Chamot & O’Malley (1994)
LearnersTeaching methods
How learners approach learning
The kinds of strategies and cognitive processing they use
Statement of the problem and rationale for the study
Learning strategies:
“Learning strategies are optimal means for exploiting
available information to improve competence in a second
language”
(Bialystock 1987: 71)
Learning strategies = “one of the most important
variables influencing performance in a second language”
(Oxford, 1989: 238)
Statement of the problem and rationale for the study
•Target language
•Setting
•Task performed
•Gender
Gender = “a profound” choice on strategy choice
(Oxford & Nyiko, 1989: 545)
•Belief
•Affective states
•Learner factors
•Learning experiences
Individual learner differences
Situational and social factorsLearner’s
choice of
learning
strategies
Research questions
What are EFL learning strategies employed by
the students?
Is there a significant difference in the frequency
of EFL learning strategy used by the male and
female students?
LITERATURE REVIEW
Gender differences in second language learning strategies
There are significant differences between male and female students’
use of LLS with females using those more frequently.
Green & Oxford (1995), Lan & Oxford (2003), Chang, Liu & Lee (2007), etc.
Young and Oxford’s (1997) study on the strategies used by native English-
speaking learners of Spanish found no significant differences between
males and females in their use of LLS.
Tercanlioglu (2004) in a quantitative data analysis on gender differences
in language learning strategies used by foreign language learners in a
Turkish University, report significant gender differences, favouring
males in students’ strategy use.
RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
Research approachQuantitative approach
… a methodology that aims to determine the relationship between one thing (an
independent variable) and another (a dependent variable) in a population.
Hopkins (2000)
…“a formal, objective, systematic process ..."
(Burns and Grove cited in Cormack, 1991:140).
“…far more manageable and easier to analyze” (O’Malley & Chamot, 1995: 94).
Qualitative approach “provide the depth of information” (O’Malley & Chamot, 1995: 94)
Participants
72 second- year students at a public university
in Hanoi, Viet Nam.
Gender: 27 males + 45 females.
Major: finance and banking
Age: 19- 21 years old
Characteristics: confident, self- motivated, lively
Proficiency level: Intermediate
Methods of data collection
Advantages
Afford good deal of
precision and clarity
Data can be gathered in
different time slots, but the
data is comparable
Simplify data manipulation
Disadvantages
Sometimes, unreliable because the
informants are careless in responding.
Informants may not understand the
strategy descriptions in the
questionnaires.
It is often hard to elaborate on
informants’ answers.
Low rate of return
QUESTIONNAIRES
Methods of data collection
Oxford’s Strategy Inventory for Language
Learning (SILL)- version 7.0
Translate the questionnaires into Vietnamese
Pilot the questionnaires
Revise the questionnaires
Deliver the questionnaires
Steps of constructing the questionnaires
Methods of data collection
Students are “more motivated to response in a interview because they
are pleased to have someone take personal interest in their learning
processes” (O’ Malley & Chamot, 1995: 94)
INFORMAL INTERVIEW
• Participants: 8 students (4 males + 4 females)
• Language of the interview: Vietnamese
• Audio- taping the interview
Emerging themes from the questionnaires
Methods of data analysis• Mean scores for each question item
• Average mean scores of the six categories of LLS
SPSS
version 16.0
Frequencies (Means, SD) of LLS used by students
Significant relationships?
Gender and LLS use in general?
Gender and specific strategies in the categories?
T- test Spearman’s rho two- tailed test
Used for data analysis
Data from the questionnaires
Data from interview
Coded
Partly translated
into English
Steps of the research Identifying the sample, accessed the prospective informants
to invite them to participate.
Constructing, piloting and revising the questionnaires
Distributing and collecting questionnaires
Analyzing data from questionnaires
Indentifying emerging themes in the questionnaires
Formulating and revising the interview questions
Interviewing a group of informants
DATA ANALYSIS
AND
DISCUSSION
Data analysis and discussionResearch question 1:
What are the EFL learning strategies employed by the students?
N Mean Std. Deviation Frequency Ranking
A- Memory 72 2.58 (Medium use .50492 2
B- Cognitive 72 2.87 (Medium use) .46744 4
C- Compensation 72 3.35 (Medium use) .62123 6
D- Metacognitive 72 3.02 (Medium use) .61988 5
E- Affective 72 2.24 .29539 1
F- Social 72 2.61 (Medium use) .34364 3
Overall strategy use72 2.78 (Medium use) .37833
Note: Scores were rounded to 2 decimal places. 6 = most frequently used; 1= least frequently used
Data analysis and discussion
“I see no point in writing a diary. I think it’s a girly thing” (M1, 4)
“At home, I usually revise the lesson in class, note down the new words and
structures and look up the new words in the dictionary” (M2, 3; F 1, 4)
“In class, I underline the new words in the reading text or write down the new
words in a notebook. Then I ask the teacher for the meaning and write down
the meaning; sometimes look up the meaning of the new words at home
using a dictionary, write the meaning in the notebook and try to learn the new
words. ” (F3)
Research question 1:
What are the EFL learning strategies employed by the students?
Data analysis and discussionComparing the current research findings with others
Study 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th Overall
This study
Compensation(M= 3.35)
Metacognitive(M= 3.02)
Cognitive(M= 2.87)
Social(M= 2.61)
Memory(M= 2.58)
Affective(M= 2.24)
M= 2.78
(1)Chinese
Metacognitive(M= 3.74)
Compensation(M= 3.30)
Affective (M= 3.22)
Cognitive(M= 3.21)
Social(M= 3.12)
Memory(M= 2.91
M= 3.25
(2) Chinese
Metacognitive(M= 3.54)
Compensation(M= 3.46)
Cognitive(M= 3.27)
Affective(M= 3.16)
Social(M= 3.07)
Memory(M= 2.88)
(3) Taiwanes
e
Compensation(M= 2.97)
Memory(M= 2.93)
Metacognitve(M= 2.91)
Social(M= 2.90)
Cognitive(M= 2.84)
Affective(M= 2.80) M= 2.89
(4)Turkish
Metacognitive(M= 3.39)
Compensation(M= 3.37)
Cognitive(M= 3.23)
Memory(M= 3.22)
Social(M= 3.14)
Affective(M= 2.28)
(5)Korean
Compensation(M= 3.14)
Social(M= 2.94)
Cognitive(M= 2.90)
Memory(M= 2.74)
Metacognitive(M= 2.74)
Affective(M= 2.43)
Most frequently used Least frequently used
Data analysis and discussionResearch question 2:
Is there a significant difference in the frequency of EFL learning strategy
used by the male and female students?
7272N
..092Sig. (2-tailed)
1.000.200Correlation CoefficientLLS total score
7272N
.092.Sig. (2-tailed)
.2001.000Correlation CoefficientgenderSpearman's rho
LLS total scoregender
Table 7: Correlations between gender and language learning strategy use
(> .05)
No association between the two variables
Data analysis and discussion
Strategies FemaleN= 45
MaleN= 27
r p Comments
M SD M SD
A. Memory 2.6051 .48705 2.5474 .54091 .060 .615 r: close to “0”p > .05
B. Cognitive 2.8529 .47414 2.9156 .46225 .001 .995
C. Compensation 3.4329 .58378 3.2222 .66958 .172 .149
D. Metacognitive 3.0491 .64011 2.9667 .59285 .075 .532
E. Affective 2.3236 .27531 2.1059 .28152 .399 .001 r=.399 (moderate)p < .05
F. Social 2.7082 .31979 2.4559 .32879 .399 .001
Correlations between gender and sub- categories of language learning strategy useN= 72
Independent variable: Gender
"When I feel stressful, not just in my study but also in my
daily life, I usually need to cry and get it all out" (F2)
"When I am stressful, I often find someone who I can
confide. We can talk over the problem. And then once I've
had a chance to talk through all the things I usually feel
better." (F3)
just “let it pass and moved on.” (M1).
CONCLUSION
Summary of the findings
Students are medium strategy users with the average mean score of
2.78.
Of the six sub-categories listed in Oxford’s (1990) SILL,
compensation and metacognitive were used most frequently.
Memory and affective strategies were the least frequently used
strategies.
The range of sub- strategies used by the students is also limited.
Summary of the findings
There were no significant differences between male and female
students’ overall use of strategies.
Differences were only reported in male and female students’ use of
social and affective strategies with females being the more frequent
users.
Recommendations
At institutional level:
Convince teachers that learning strategies can be effective for their
students (Wilson, 1988, cited in Chamot & O’Malley, 1995)
Organize workshops, collaborative planning and classroom
observation feedback with peers (Joyce & Showers, 1987)
Develop the materials and curriculum that would enable teachers to
carry out their strategy training
Emphasize strategy training
Recommendations
For teachers:
Integrate strategy trainings into the lesson through
well- organized activities.
Help students gradually reduce their anxiety by using
mental techniques
Create a positive attitude towards making error in class
Make use of diary, journal writing and informal sharing
in the classroom
Limitations of the research and suggestions for further research
Limitation Suggestions
Research tool- questionnaires:
the strategies reported are those that the subjects perceived themselves as using.
Further research to decide whether these strategies are actually used by the students or not
(immediate verbalization).
Population:
-Small (72 students)
-All at intermediate level
The research result can hardly be generalized to a bigger population
-Bigger scope
-Focus on different levels of proficiency
Limitations of the research and suggestions for further research
Other suggestions
Areas for further research:
the relationship between gender, language learning
strategies and language proficiency
Strategy training
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