Premium
Learning Strategies and Achievement in the Spanish Writing Classroom: A Case Study
Author(s) -
OlivaresCuhat Gabriela
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
foreign language annals
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.258
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1944-9720
pISSN - 0015-718X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1944-9720.2002.tb02724.x
Subject(s) - mathematics education , psychology , foreign language , class (philosophy) , academic achievement , composition (language) , language learning strategies , pedagogy , metacognition , cognition , linguistics , computer science , philosophy , artificial intelligence , neuroscience
This article investigates the effect of learning strategies on writing achievement in an intermediate‐advanced college‐level Spanish writing course, and examines the influence of the students native language and textbook on these strategies. The study was conducted with a class of 20 students that comprised nine first (L1) and eleven second/foreign (L2/FL) language speakers. The Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) provided an estimate of learning strategy use and two composition grades were used as a measure of the students' success. Additionally, the class was divided into two groups, each instructed to work with a different textbook. The following results were found: (1) on average, L1 students obtained higher grades than L2/FL students, (2) L1 students were more inclined to use affective and memory strategies than L2/FL students, and (3) use of memory strategies and writing achievement were significantly correlated, explaining 40% of the overall variability in grades. It was not possible to link the use of a specific textbook to the composition grades. Several classroom implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.