Study Of Different Learning Strategies Of Learners With Balanced And Imbalanced Productive Abilities

This research is a case study in nature, which made a comparison between two English learners with balanced and imbalanced productive abilities in terms of differences in strategy use and meanwhile, three major factors influencing learning strategies, namely, learning beliefs, cognitive styles and learning styles were also further analyzed. This case study was conducted in Tianjin University of Science and Technology (TUST), where two English major sophomores were chosen as subjects:B, the balanced learner and I, the imbalanced learner. With the help of some questionnaires and a cognitive test, data about the two subjects’ learning strategies, learning beliefs, learning styles and cognitive styles were collected and analyzed in detail. An interview was also conducted to be used as a subsidiary research tool aiming to testify the results obtained in questionnaires and the test. The following are the major findings in this research.(1) The two subjects do have considerable differences in their use of EFL learning strategies related to both output and input.I tends to use learning strategies, such as body language, avoidance of communication and translation, which are not very desirable for English learning in the long run. Furthermore, B uses learning strategies more frequently than I does, which have a positive effect on her English learning, especially her productive abilities in English.(2) Learning beliefs are among important reasons why they differ in the use of EFL learning strategies. Due to intrinsic motivation, B makes more efforts in her English learning. Different beliefs about the difficulty and the nature of English learning help to explain why they concentrate their strategic efforts on different aspects.(3) Cognitive styles are closely related to the subjects’ use of learning strategies.I, of field dependent style, prefers to use social strategies. As a field independent learner, B establishes her own goal and thus tries to use English as much as possible.(4) Learning styles also influence the subjects’ strategy use. Both B and I are not at the same level of auditory and haptic types, which also affect their choice of strategies.Based on the findings of this research, learners should enhance the frequency of strategy use, especially those strategies positive to long-term English learning, and learning strategies related to input should draw learners’ attention as well. Furthermore, they should be aware of their own learning beliefs, cognitive styles and learning styles, which are of great significance in choosing learning strategies.