Finding from previous literature in the field of learning strategies has shown that there had not been much a consensus on the factors affecting students’ of strategy. Oxford (1990) suggested that there are a number of factors affect learners’ choice of learning strategies such as
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students’ level of awareness, learning stages, tasks, expectations from teachers, age, genders, learning style, personal traits, motivations, and learning purposes.
However, data from empirical research yielded divergent results on this theme.
The studies in good language learners have built up their profiles so as to help poor learners. One of the distinctive characteristics of the profile is that good students tend to make good use of language strategy compared with the low-performance students. One can draw the conclusion that students’ level of intellectuality is connected to the use of strategy. Chamot (2004) suggested that the relationship between language learning strategies and students’ level of proficiency is much more transparent. Finding from Lai’s (2009) study in Taiwan revealed that students’ level is related to their choice of the kinds of strategy. In addition, Lai (2009) concluded that high proficiency students show a high frequency of using cognitive and metacognitive strategies while low proficiency students use more social and memory strategies.
Meanwhile, Ghafounia (2014) investigated the relationship between students’ reading ability and students’ choice and frequency of strategy in Iran. Conclusion drawn from his study is that as students’ reading ability is enhanced, they show a higher preference of using strategy. Liu and Chen (2014) indicated that students’ choice of strategy is related with their level of anxiety.
Students with moderate level of anxiety show a higher frequency of using metacognitive strategies while high-anxiety students tend to employ affective strategy.
Another factor which is worth paying attention to is the genders of strategy users. Zare-ee (2007) in his study conducted in Iran which aims to investigate the relationship between students’ use of metacognitive and cognitive strategy and their reading achievement concludes that gender does not play a pivotal role in students’ strategy use. Thus, it could be tentatively concluded that differences in gender are not considered a variable that can affect students’ use of strategies.
Wong and Nunan (2011) pointed out several factors that can leave great impact on students use of strategies such as students’ educational level, their background and mother tongue, learning styles, strategy preferences, the ways of receiving strategy instruction (both explicit and implicit), learners’ attitude towards strategy, and strategy practice.
Apart from the factors mentioned above, the context of strategy use does affect students’
use of strategy. Liyanaga (2012) drew from her study that students have a higher frequency of strategy used in out-of-class than in-class context. Possible reasons account for this issue.
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Perhaps, it can be explained through the fact that students have more time to revise their strategies outside classroom contexts and the chance for this is quite high. Chamot (2008) listed several factors that can affect students’ choice of strategy such as the goals of learning and cultural values. In fact, culture can play an important role in the choice and acceptability of learning strategies. For instance, students in Vietnam tend to compete against others, so they have a tendency to choose strategies that help them work at their best independently such as metacognitive and cognitive strategies. Social and affective strategies perhaps are not what they wish to use in this case. As students in this study need to take the final exam at the end of the course, they need specific strategies to help them overcome the challenge (p. 272).
In short, the section briefly reviewed the factors that affect students’ choice of strategy use. These factors should be paid great attention during the strategy training course so that highest results can be obtained from the course.
2.12.1 Stages of training
Oxford (1990) suggested two stages of training course:
Stage 1: diagnosing students’ use of strategies
Stage 2: conducting strategies
The author suggested that teachers can observe and decide the strategies that would boost up students’ performance, and then put these strategies into the training course.
Commenting on the types of strategies training, Oxford (1990) suggested three kinds of strategy training as mentioned below:
awareness training
one-time strategy training
long-term strategy training
The current study used the mixture of the three kinds of strategy training. First, students’
awareness of strategy is raised through the example of strategy used in reading contexts. Then they are trained to use specific strategies in reading tasks. This is the kind of one-time strategy training. This process does not end here. Students then use the strategies they have just practiced in new reading tasks. The recursive process share similar features as long-term training strategies.
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