The past three decades have witnessed a proliferation of research on Chinese English as a foreign language （EFL） learners＇ use of learning strategies, but little has been examined about the potential influence of l...The past three decades have witnessed a proliferation of research on Chinese English as a foreign language （EFL） learners＇ use of learning strategies, but little has been examined about the potential influence of learning contexts upon their strategic engagement. This paper reports on the findings of an investigation of the impact of learning contexts upon the use of learning strategies of two cohorts of EFL learners in China. Both cohorts were non-English majors, one from a university where English is the medium of instruction （EMI） and the other from an EFL university. The data were collected using questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Results reveal that learners from the EMI university demonstrated a higher level in their overall use of learning strategies over their counterparts from the EFL university. Independent T-test shows that the two cohorts were significantly different in their use of cognitive, meta-cognitive, affective and social strategies. These findings were discussed from a socio-cultural perspective. Implications are presented for the reform of English language education in China and beyond.展开更多
基金supported by a research grant of the Project of Foreign Language Education under the National Education Science Plan 2010 (GPA105613)a grant of the 2011-2012 Teaching and Research Fund for the Teaching of English Majors,Association of National Normal Universities (NNETRP2011009)a project of the National Social Science Research Fund (12CYY025)
文摘The past three decades have witnessed a proliferation of research on Chinese English as a foreign language （EFL） learners＇ use of learning strategies, but little has been examined about the potential influence of learning contexts upon their strategic engagement. This paper reports on the findings of an investigation of the impact of learning contexts upon the use of learning strategies of two cohorts of EFL learners in China. Both cohorts were non-English majors, one from a university where English is the medium of instruction （EMI） and the other from an EFL university. The data were collected using questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Results reveal that learners from the EMI university demonstrated a higher level in their overall use of learning strategies over their counterparts from the EFL university. Independent T-test shows that the two cohorts were significantly different in their use of cognitive, meta-cognitive, affective and social strategies. These findings were discussed from a socio-cultural perspective. Implications are presented for the reform of English language education in China and beyond.
