Abstract
This chapter focuses on second and foreign language (L2) learning strategy research and its applications, reflecting on the past, describing its current state, and determining the implications for future studies. First, a brief outline of the field is provided with emphasis on major topics such as taxonomies of strategies, variations in strategy use, strategy clusters, and the effectiveness of strategy instruction. The importance of the person-task-context configuration is identified herein, and, in this relation, a sociocultural perspective is also touched on. Second, major areas of controversies in L2 strategy research are summarized. Subsequently, the possibility of replacing the concept of strategies with that of self-regulation is discussed, and its merits and problems are compared, referring to related theoretical and empirical studies. Based on this discussion, the chapter then argues that discarding the concept of learning strategies altogether is not advisable and that the concepts of strategies and self-regulation in fact complement one another. Consequently, to understand a fuller picture of L2 learning processes, a theoretical framework encompassing both strategies and self-regulation is called for. Finally, future research directions and pedagogical applications are suggested, thereby paving the ways for a better understanding of L2 learning strategies and L2 learning processes.
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Takeuchi, O. (2019). Language Learning Strategies: Insights from the Past and Directions for the Future. In: Gao, X. (eds) Second Handbook of English Language Teaching. Springer International Handbooks of Education. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-58542-0_37-1
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