Heritage and non-heritage Chinese students' perceptions of language learning strategy use

Abstract

Evidence has accumulated that learningChinese as a Foreign/Second Language (CFL/CSL) andas a Heritage Language (CHL) are not the same–it has been proposed, therefore, that different learning strategies and different pedagogy are needed for these two groups of learners. However, knowledge of CHL-specific learning strategies is incomplete, andTCHL-specific pedagogy is under development (Lynch, 2003a). The current comparative study investigates heritage and non-heritage Chinese students’ perceptions of language learning strategy use. It also explores correlations among learners’ individual variables, for example: their language proficiency level, motivations on learning Chinese, and language learning beliefs, together with other variables suchas gender, age, mother tongue, andtheir perceptions of learning strategy use. The study was conducted using both quantitative and qualitative methods. In the quantitative part, the variables of Chinese language learners and language learning strategy use were examined to explore the statistical relationship between the heritage and non-heritage Chinese language learners. Afterinformal pre-interviews and a pilot study, a sample of 278 Chinese language students (142 non-heritages students, 117 heritage students) from eighteen mainstream British universities, colleges, andsenior high schools weresurveyed. The survey was carried out through three structured pencil-and-paper questionnaires, including: a background questionnaire, Horwitz’s Beliefs about Language Learning Inventory (BALLI), and Oxford’s Strategy Inventory for Language Learning (SILL). Statistical analyses wereperformed using SPSS version 17 for Windows, such as Descriptive Analyses, Independent T-Tests, Pearson Product-moment Correlations, Factor Analyses, ANOVAs, Post-hoc Multiple Comparisons,ANCOVA, and Multiple Regressions. In the qualitative phase, the variableswere examined further within a semi-structured interview paradigm. The study addresses questions of both theoreticaland pedagogical significance, and makes specific proposals regarding ways to improve pedagogy forUK heritage and non-heritage Chinesestudents.