The Difficulties and Strategies of Asian EFL Learners in Studying Abroad Context
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.57008/jjp.v1i04.59Keywords:
Affordances, Learning Difficulties, Learning Strategies, Study Abroad ContextAbstract
This article reports on the language learning of Asian English learners in Australia as a target language community. This study's research topic is the difficulties or challenges, and strategies used by the Asian students. Five international Master of Applied Linguistics and TESOL students from China, Japan, Myanmar, and Vietnam are the participants of this study. The data were collected through observation, interview and documentation. The findings of this qualitative study demonstrate that the participants faced some level of difficulty or struggle in all macro skills for a variety of reasons. Surprisingly, the majority of the individuals struggled in speaking skill in the target language community. In terms of learning strategies, the participants used a variety of strategies and made use of their social relationships to aid their learning. Their second preferred strategy is cognitive, followed by metacognitive, which is only used by two participants in dealing with their learning problems.
References
Baker‐Smemoe, W., Dewey, D., Bown, J., & Martinsen, R. (2014). Variables Affecting L2 Gains During Study Abroad. Foreign Language Annals, 47(3), 464-486.
Briggs, J. (2015). A context‐specific research tool to probe the out‐of‐class vocabulary‐related strategies of study‐abroad learners. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 25(3), 291-314.
Dewey, D. P., Bown, J., & Eggett, D. (2012). Japanese language proficiency, social networking, and language use during study abroad: Learners' Perspectives. Canadian Modern Language Review, 68(2), 111-137.
Hummel, K. (2013). Target-language community involvement: second-language linguistic self- confidence and other perceived benefits. The Canadian Modern Language Review / La Revue Canadienne Des Langues Vivantes, 69(1), 65-90.
Isabelli-Garcia, C. (2017). Key concepts in applied linguistics: Second language acquisition and study abroad learning environments. Estudios de lingüística inglesa aplicada, 17, 273- 283
Kashiwa, Mayumi, & Benson, P. (2018). A road and a forest: conceptions of in-class and out- of-class learning in the transition to study abroad. TESOL Quarterly, 52(4), 725-747.
Kurata, N. (2010). Opportunities for foreign language learning and use within a learner's informal social networks. Mind, Culture, and Activity, 17 (4), 382-396.
Li, L. (2014). Language Proficiency, Reading Development, and Learning Context. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, 24, 73-92.
Montero, L. (2017). Developing effective L2 communication strategies abroad and at home. The Language Learning Journal,1-11.
Montaño, G.J.X. (2017). Learning strategies in second language Acquisition. US-China Foreign Language, 15 (8), 479-492
Nguyen, C. T. (2011). Challenges of learning English in Australia towards students coming from selected Southeast Asian countries: Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia. International Education Studies, 4(1), 13-20.
Palfreyman, D. (2014). The ecology of learner autonomy. In G. Murray (ed.), Social dimensions of autonomy in language learning. (pp. 175-191). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
Saud, W. F. (2019). A contrastive analysis of ESL and EFL learning strategies. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 10(2), 311-321.
Tsai, Y. (2012). The effects of intercultural learning on English learning motivation among students studying abroad. New Horizons in Education, 60(1), 23-34.
Yanagi, M., & Baker, A. (2016). Challenges experienced by Japanese students with oral communication skills in Australian universities. TESOL Journal, 7(3), 621-644.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2021 JURNAL JENDELA PENDIDIKAN
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
