Language Learning Strategy Use and Instruction for the Iranian Junior High School EFL Learners: A Mixed Methods Approach

In order to confirm the effectiveness of language learning strategies in theIranian context in junior high schools, this study was designed to examine thepatterns of strategy use, the effects of strategy instruction on the students’ strategyuse, and the relationship between the participants’ strategy use and their Englishachievement. To achieve this objective, 57 junior high school participants studyingin 2 intact classes of the same school took part in the study. Each class wasrandomly assigned to either the control or experimental groups. The experimentalgroup received instruction on using strategies which were related to vocabulary andgrammar and were considered to be appropriate for their level. Due to practicalityreasons only 6 strategies were selected form Oxford’s taxonomy (1990). Gunning’sChildren’s SILL (1997, adapted from Oxford, 1990) was applied before and afterstrategy instruction. An EFL teacher-made achievement test was also conductedafter the treatment. The results revealed that affective category was the most usedcategory by the learners, followed by metacognitive, compensatory, memory, andsocial categories. Also, the cognitive category was the least used category. Thedifference between the control and experimental groups in terms of strategy useappeared to be significant, indicating the effectiveness of strategy instruction. Theresults also showed a significant positive relationship between the participants’strategy use and achievement.