Abstract
Despite all the progress that has been made in research on language learning strategies since the publication of Rubin’s (1975) seminal paper on good language learners, there are areas that have been neglected by strategy experts. Perhaps the most blatant manifestation of this neglect is the paucity of research into grammar learning strategies (GLS). The main premise of this paper is that for such research to gain momentum, it is to necessary to create valid and reliable data collection instruments that would enable tapping the use of different types of GLS. In line with this reasoning, the article reports a study that aimed to determine the psychometric properties of the Grammar Learning Strategy Inventory (GLSI), a tool constructed by Pawlak (2009b, 2013) on the basis of his classification of strategies for learning grammar in a second or foreign language. Exploratory factor analysis was also employed with the purpose of uncovering the underlying structure of strategic learning of grammar. The analysis provided evidence for largely satisfactory validity and reliability of the GLSI, indicating at the same time there is room for improvement, with concrete changes being possible after the instrument has been tested with a much larger sample.
Highlights
Research on language learning strategies (LLS) has witnessed major advances over the last several decades, both with respect to the conceptualization of the construct, the main foci of empirical investigations and the methodology used
Of particular interest here is the fact that the Grammar Learning Strategy Inventory (GLSI) and the SILL in their entirety were highly positively correlated (r = .80), explaining 64% of the variance in each other, which strongly indicates that they measure a similar construct, that is the application of language learning strategies
The results of the analyses presented in the previous sections seem to indicate that the GLSI is to a large extent a valid and reliable tool for collecting data on the use of strategies for learning and gaining greater control over target language (TL) grammar
Summary
Research on language learning strategies (LLS) has witnessed major advances over the last several decades, both with respect to the conceptualization of the construct, the main foci of empirical investigations and the methodology used (see e.g., Amerstorfer & Oxford, 2018; Cohen, 2012, 2014; Cohen & Griffiths, 2015; Cohen & Macaro, 2007; Grenfell & Harris, 2017; Griffiths, 2013, 2018; Griffiths & Oxford, 2014; Oxford, 2011, 2017; Oxford & Amerstorfer, 2018; Pawlak, 2011a). In the light of these developments, it must surely come as a surprise that some important areas of strategy use have barely been recognized by specialists as worthy of empirical investigation, let alone having been an object of thorough examination One such domain are strategies that second or foreign learners (L2) draw on when learning and using grammar structures in the target language (TL), or grammar learning strategies (GLS). 117) called GLS the “Second Cinderella” of LLS research, attributing this lack of focus to the predominance of the communicative approach when the study of strategies entered its heyday In her most recent monograph, Oxford (2017) points out that “grammar learning strategies have garnered the least interest and concern of any area of L2 learning strategies” In her most recent monograph, Oxford (2017) points out that “grammar learning strategies have garnered the least interest and concern of any area of L2 learning strategies” (p. 246). Pawlak (2009a), in turn, comments that specialists have yet to “identify, describe and account for all the various strategic behaviors that learners fall back on when studying target language grammar, not to mention appraise their effectiveness, determine the effects of training or describe the factors impacting their use” (p. 45)
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