A study on English learning strategies of university students in Hong Kong

Figures & data

Figure 1. Interrelationships between direct and indirect strategies and among the six types of strategies (Oxford, 1990).

Table 1. Learning strategies.

Items	Strategies
1–9	Memory strategies	Direct strategies	Enable learners to store verbal material and then retrieve it when needed for communication
10–23	Cognitive strategies		Enable learners to understand and produce new language in many different ways
24–29	Compensation strategies		Allow learners to use the language despite their large gaps in knowledge
30–38	Metacognitive strategies	Indirect strategies	Provide a way for learners to coordinate their own learning process
39–44	Affective strategies		Help to regulate emotions, motivations, and attitudes
45–50	Social strategies		Help learners to learn through interaction with others

Table 2. Participants.

Classification		Total number
Gender	Male	31
	Female	70
Grade level	Year 1	20
	Year 2	14
	Year 3	45
	Year 4	9
	Year 5	13

Table 3. Overall English learning strategies.

Strategies	Mean value	Standard deviation
Memory strategies	2.8272	1.003
Cognitive strategies	3.2298	1.0066
Compensation strategies	3.3151	0.9591
Metacognitive strategies	3.077	0.9294
Affective strategies	2.9653	0.9901
Social strategies	3.0297	1.0633

Table 4. Gender and learning strategies.

	Female		Male
Strategies	Standard deviation	Mean value	Standard deviation	Mean value
Memory strategies	0.6389	2.8551	0.7165	2.7634
Cognitive strategies	0.6457	3.2286	0.8453	3.2327
Compensation strategies	0.6461	3.2643	0.5786	3.4301
Metacognitive strategies	0.6604	3.1016	0.84	3.0215
Affective strategies	0.6509	2.9619	0.7877	2.9731
Social strategies	0.7374	2.9762	0.9333	3.1505

Table 5. Grade level.

Grade level	Memory strategies	Cognitive strategies	Compensation strategies	Metacognitive strategies	Affective strategies	Social strategies
Y1 (N = 20)	2.93 (0.52)	3.15 (0.61)	3.19 (0.53)	3.05 (0.6)	2.97 (0.66)	3.07 (0.61)
Y2 (N = 14)	2.82 (0.72)	3.49 (0.64)	3.36 (0.55)	3.34 (0.64)	2.9 (0.57)	3.11 (0.81)
Y3 (N = 45)	2.79 (0.63)	3.17 (0.67)	3.3 (0.74)	3.07 (0.65)	3.02 (0.66)	3.01 (0.82)
Y4 (N = 9)	3.12 (0.73)	3.81 (0.31)	3.69 (0.24)	3.38 (0.77)	3.2 (0.59)	3.37 (0.85)
Y5 (N = 13)	2.58 (0.86)	2.89 (1.2)	3.23 (1.08)	3.63 (1.08)	2.65 (1.13)	2.71 (1.17)

Note: Standard deviation in parentheses. N = number.

Figure 2. Grade level.

Table 6. Daily study time.

Daily study time	Memory strategies	Cognitive strategies	Compensation strategies	Metacognitive strategies	Affective strategies	Social strategies
T ≤ 0.5 (N = 57)	2.65 (0.74)	3.02 (0.77)	3.28 (0.66)	3.02 (0.79)	2.91 (0.73)	3.02 (0.83)
0.5 < T ≤ 1 (N = 29)	2.74 (0.75)	3.41 (0.61)	3.49 (0.87)	3.09 (0.59)	2.95 (0.7)	3 (0.83)
1 < T ≤ 1.5 (N = 3)	3.48 (0.56)	3.52 (0.65)	3.33 (0.58)	3.22 (0.5)	3.33 (0.93)	3.22 (0.62)
T > 1.5 (N = 12)	3.13 (0.76)	3.74 (0.82)	3.39 (0.83)	3.5 (0.7)	3.29 (0.84)	3.03 (1.06)

Note: Standard deviation in parentheses. N = number.

Oxford, R. L. (1990). Language learning strategies: What every teacher should know. Heinle & Heinle Publishers.

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