The Influence of Gender and Interest on the Use of Learning Strategies in Biology Lessons

<p style="text-align: justify;">For biology students, the diversity, complexity, and abundance of content in this field yield a heavy study load. Hence, appropriate learning strategies are key in supporting learners’ academic success. In biology, the factors gender and interest hold a unique position within the natural sciences, as there is an academic imbalance to the disadvantage of male students. In the present study, we examined the influence of gender and interest as well as its interdependences on the students’ use of learning strategies for biology learning. A total of 180 seventh through tenth grade students (Mage=14.47; SD=1.35; 60% female) from four general-track secondary schools located in Germany participated in this study. Data on the students’ level of interest and the use of learning strategies in biology lessons were collected. We used multivariate analysis of covariance with the students’ age as the covariate to analyse our data. Results revealed a significant effect of gender on the students’ use of the learning strategies rehearsal, organisation, effort, and time management. With regard to elaboration and effort, the effects of interest were found to be significant. The gender gap regarding learning strategy use was narrower for students with high levels of interest. These findings might have implications for beneficial teacher behaviour in biology.</p>

The vocabulary learning strategy use of Iranian elementary EFL learners

In order to learn vocabulary efficiently, the utilisation of learning strategies is very important and surely it depends on learners’ attempts. The current study aimed at examining the strategies that Iranian elementary English as a foreign language (EFL) learners adopt for learning English vocabulary. To this end, based on the performance of the participants on the Quick Placement Test, the researcher recruited 100 participants through availability sampling. To determine the strategies that the participants employ for learning English vocabulary, Schmitt’s taxonomy of vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs) questionnaire was administered. The findings of the current study indicated that Iranian elementary EFL students were medium VLS users. The social strategy was found as the most frequently used category of strategies, followed by memory, determination, cognitive and metacognitive strategy. Keywords: Language, learning strategies, vocabulary, Iranian, elementary.

Learning Strategies as Moderators Between Motivation and Mathematics Performance in East Asian Students: Latent Class Analysis

This study applied a three-step latent class analysis (LCA) approach to explore latent classes of learning strategy use and their moderation effects on the relationships between motivation and mathematics performance. The data of 15-year-old students from five East Asian educational systems related to Chinese culture in the Programme of International Student Assessment (PISA) in 2012 were analyzed. The findings indicated that Shanghai, Singapore, Taiwan, and Macau showed three latent classes of learning strategies, whereas Hong Kong had two latent classes. Most students in the five educational systems reported to use the control strategy, some students reported the use of combined learning strategies, and few students reported the use of memorization except for students in Shanghai. Furthermore, we found the moderation effects of learning strategy use on mathematics performance depended on the types of motivation and educational systems. This study provides insights into the advantages of a three-step LCA approach in educational research.

Study Buddy Teams: First-Year Cooperative Learning Inspired by Hevruta

This report examines a learning method that fosters engagement and cooperation between 1st-year university students in an academic writing and English proficiency test preparation course. The class was taught online in the spring semester. The students worked in long-term fixed study buddy teams of three or four both during and outside class time. Student teams regularly met online to practice English, share and reflect on their learning strategy use, and prepare for upcoming class sessions. Furthermore, during the summer break, the teams continued to meet weekly online to speak English and share what they were practicing individually, which they later reported kept them motivated. This report describes how the study buddy teams were utilized and how the students reacted. Student feedback about the course and teamwork throughout the semester was positive, the rate of active participation and attendance was high, indicating that the approach was successful. 本研究では、大学1年生のアカデミックライティングと英語能力テスト対策の授業において、学生同士の協力関係を育む学習方法を検討した。学生たちはstudy buddiesと呼ばれる少人数の長期固定チームで、授業の内外で活動した。春学期の授業はオンラインで行われたが、チームは授業内外で定期的にオンラインで会い、英語の練習、学習ストラテジーの使い方の共有と振り返り、次回の授業の準備などを行った。さらに夏休み中もオンラインで集まり、英語を話したり、個人的に練習していることを共有したりして、モチベーションを維持した。本研究では、チームがどのように活用され、学生がどのように反応したかを紹介する。学期を通してstudy buddiesシステムに関する学生の評価はポジティブなものであった。また学生の各セッションへの参加は積極的であり、授業の出席率も高かったことが、このアプローチの成功を示している。

Grammar Learning Strategy Use by English-Major University Students: An Investigation with Grammar Learning Strategy Inventory (GLSI)

A fruitful discussion on language learning strategies has taken place in the field of second language research. However, little is known about grammar learning strategy (GLS) use (Pawlak, 2013, 2018, 2020). The present study explores GLS utilized by 145 English-major university students with Grammar Learning Strategy Inventory (GLSI), a data-collecting instrument developed by Pawlak (2018, 2020). In addition, the current study examines TOEIC scores extracted from 27 student participants to investigate if there is any correlation between GLS use and TOEIC scores. The descriptive data analysis revealed that cognitive strategies used when coping with corrective feedback were the most commonly utilized strategies while affective strategies were the least. Furthermore, the correlational analysis demonstrated that five strategies from metacognitive, cognitive, and affective GLS showed a weak-to-moderate correlation with TOEIC scores (p < .05). The present study concludes with an emphasis on strategy instruction and the necessity of further investigation using GLSI. 第二言語研究の分野において言語学習方略については多くの議論がなされてきた。しかしながら, 文法学習方略（GLS）の利用についてはほとんど研究がされていない（Pawlak, 2013, 2018, 2020）。本研究では, Pawlak（2018, 2020）によって開発されたGrammar Learning Strategy Inventory（GLSI）を用いて日本で英語を専攻する145名の大学生によるGLSの利用について探究する。加えて, 本研究では27名の学生から得られたTOEICの得点を基に, GLSとTOEICスコアとの間に相関があるのかを考察する。記述データ分析では, 修正フィードバックの処理に関わる認知方略が最も利用されていた一方で, 情意方略が最も利用されていなかったことが明らかになった。さらに相関分析では, メタ認知方略, 認知方略, 情意方略に含まれる5つの方略とTOEICの得点との間に弱から中程度の相関（p < .05）があることが分かった。本稿では, 最後に方略指導とGLSIを用いた更なる研究の必要性について述べる。

Review of Situating language learning strategy use: Present issues and future trends; Editors: Zoe Gavriilidou, Lydia Mitits; Publisher: Multilingual Matters, 2021; ISBN: 9781788926713; Pages: 376

Despite recently going through a sort of a crisis brought about by critical remarks made by eminent scholars (e.g., Dörnyei, 2005) about the raison d’être of the whole research area, the field of language learning/learner strategies (LLSs) is still very much alive and kicking. This is manifested by constant publication of meta-analyses (e.g., Plonsky, 2011), numerous journal articles, including state-of-the-art pieces (e.g., Pawlak, 2019), special issues of journals (e.g., Pawlak & Oxford, 2018) and books (e.g., Oxford, 2017), and the organization of a conference series (Situating Strategy Use [SSU]), all devoted exclusively to LLSs. The book under review here, Situating Language Learning Strategy Use: Present Issues and Future Trends, edited by Zoe Gavriilidou and Lydia Mitits, includes chapters originating in the talks delivered at the Second International Conference on SSU (Komotini, Greece, September 2017).

Do Implicit Theories About Ability Predict Self-Reports and Behavior-Proximal Measures of Primary School Students’ In-Class Cognitive and Metacognitive Learning Strategy Use?

Although studies show relations between implicit theories about ability (ITs) and cognitive as well as metacognitive learning strategy use, existing studies suffer from an overreliance on broad-brush self-report measures of strategy use and limited ecological validity. Moreover, studies rarely examine younger students, and research on ITs and how much students benefit from interventions on learning strategies is lacking. Therefore, we investigated in ecologically valid settings (regular classroom instruction) whether primary school students’ ITs are related to their use of cognitive strategies (text reduction strategies based on identifying a text’s main ideas) and metacognitive strategies, assessed with (a) typical self-report scales and (b) more behavior-proximal measures. We also investigated whether students’ ITs predict how much they benefit from a previously evaluated 4-week intervention on cognitive and metacognitive strategies during regular classroom instruction (i.e., how much self-report scales and behavior-proximal measures for strategy use increase over the course of the intervention). Participants were 436 German primary school students (third and fourth graders). The data were analyzed using mixed linear regression analyses. Strength of students’ incremental theory was positively related to metacognitive strategy use, but not cognitive strategy use, when measured with self-report scales. For behavior-proximal measures, strength of incremental theory was positively related to the effectiveness of students’ cognitive strategy use and their extent of strategy monitoring (one of the two metacognitive strategies examined), but not to the quality of their goal setting (the second metacognitive strategy). Unexpectedly, students with a stronger incremental theory did not benefit more from the intervention.

Age, Language Difference and Proficiency as Determinant Factors in Learning Strategy Use

This study examines how language difference, age, and proficiency are related to the choice and use of learning strategies by students completing a reading comprehension task. The aim of this study is to determine the learning strategies employed by two groups of students of different ages and with different foreign language proficiency levels. Participants of the study were 94 university students and 105 secondary school students. Participants were given a reading comprehension task in their native language, Turkish, and another in English, with the learning strategies they employed in the two languages categorized according to the Learning Strategies Determining Scale. It was observed that language difference, age and proficiency were influential factors in determining which learning strategies individuals used.