A Study on Chinese Learning Strategies of International School Students in China

Abstract

In this study, the empirical quantitative questionnaire method was adopted to study the use of Chinese learning strategies of 76 students from Kunming International School, Yunnan, China. This survey adopts the Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL) designed by Oxford (1990), which is a 5-point Likert Scale from 1 totally disagree to 5 totally agree, and the frequency of use of learning strategies was determined based on the 7 factors’ scores. SPSS descriptive analysis shows that the use frequency of overall strategies is ranked from high to low: compensation strategies, social strategies, metacognitive strategies, cognitive strategies, memory strategies and emotion sense of strategies. Correlation analysis suggests that there is a significant and positive correlation between age and Chinese learning strategies. Suggestions are offered for teachers to cultivate and form students’ learning strategies, i.e., adjusting and controlling of the learning process, giving full play to students’ cognitive ability, imparting effective methods of memory, regulating learning emotions, attaching importance to the stage of learning and development, and paying attention to the impact of individual differences. To sum up, teachers should emphasize the development stage of Chinese learning and the full play of the students’ cognitive ability. On this basis, students can be helped to cultivate and improve their ability to use Chinese learning strategies.