ENLS 116: ELT METHODS AND APPROACHES

CHAPTER III:

ELT LEARNERS
AND THEIR
NEEDS
Lerry Anne A. Virtuso
Instructor, Department of Humanities
Cavite State University
 POINTS OF
DISCUSSION

Learning Styles Learning Strategies Implications for

ELT
 INTRODUCTION

Language learning styles and strategies are among the main factors
that help determine how – and how well – our students learn a second or
foreign language.
In this chapter, we will focus on different needs of learners and the
learning strategies they use inside the language classroom.
 01

LEARNING
STYLES
 LEARNING STYLES

Ehrman and Oxford (1990) cited four major dimensions of learning styles relevant to
language learning: sensory preferences, personality types, desired degree of
generality, and biological differences.
1
LEARNING STYLE: SENSORY PREFERENCES

Sensory preferences refer to the physical, perceptual learning

channels with which learners are most comfortable with. It is divided
into four main areas: visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and tactile.
 LEARNING STYLE: SENSORY PREFERENCES
▪ VISUAL – visual learners obtain a great deal of knowledge from visual
stimulation. For them, lectures without any visual backup can be very confusing.
▪ AUDITORY – auditory learners profit from lectures, conversations, and oral
instructions. They enjoy class activities like role plays and group works.
▪ KINESTHETIC (Movement-Oriented) & TACTILE (Touch-Oriented) –
kinesthetic and tactile learners like to incorporate a lot of movements in learning.
They enjoy working with tangible objects such as flash cards, coloring materials,
and others.
2
LEARNING STYLE: PERSONALITY TYPE

Personality type (often called psychological tvpe) is a construct based

on the work of psychologist Carl Jung. Elirman and Oxford (1989)
found significant relationships between personality type and
proficiency in learning a second or foreign language.
▪ EXTROVERTED vs INTROVERTED – by definition, extroverts gain their greatest energy from
the external world. They want interaction with people and have friendships, some deep and some not. In
LEARNING
contrast, STYLE:
introverts derive their energy from thePERSONALITY TYPES
internal world, seeking solitude and tending to have just a
few friendships, which are often very deep.
▪ INTUITIVE-RANDOM vs SENSING-SEQUENTIAL – intuitive-random students think in
abstract, futuristic. large-scale, and nonsequential ways. They like to create theories and new possibilities,
often have sudden insights, and prefer to guide their own learning. In contrast, sensing-sequential
learners are grounded in the here and now. They like facts rather than theories, want guidance and
specific instruction from the teacher, and look for consistency.
▪ THINKING vs FEELING – thinking learners arc oriented toward the stark truth, even if it hurts
some people's feelings. They want to be viewed as competent and do not tend to offer praise easily. In
comparison, feeling learners value other people in very personal wavs. They show empathy and
compassion through words, not just behaviors, and say whatever is needed to smooth over difficult
situations.
3
LEARNING STYLE: DEGREE OF GENERALITY

Learners differ in the way they generalize things: some concentrate on

the bigger picture (holistic) while others focus on the details
(analytic).
 LEARNING STYLE: DEGREE OF GENERALITY

▪ HOLISTIC – global or holistic learners like socially interactive, communicative events in

which they can emphasize the main idea and avoid analysis of grammatical minutiae. They are
comfortable even when not having all the information, and they feel free to guess from the
context.
▪ ANALYTIC – analytic students tend to concentrate on grammatical details and often avoid
more free-flowing communicative activities. Because of their concern for precision, analytic
learners topically do not take the risks necessary for guessing from the context unless they are
fairly sure of the accuracy of their guesses.
4
LEARNING STYLE: BIOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES

Differences in language learning style can also be related to biological

factors such as biorhythms, sustenance. and location.
 LEARNING STYLE: DEGREE OF GENERALITY

▪ BIORYTHMS – involves the times of day when learners feel good and perform their best.
Some language learners are morning people, others do not want to start learning until the
afternoon, and some prefer studying at night.
▪ SUSTENANCE – refers to the need for food or drink while learning. Quite a number of
learners feel very comfortable learning with a candy bar, a cup of coffee, or a biscuit in hand,
but others are distracted from studying while eating.
▪ LOCATION – involves the nature of the learning environment: lighting, sound, and even
the quality of the chair or desk used while learning.
 LEARNING STYLES

In summary, language learners need to make the most of their preferences. However,
occasionally they must also extend themselves beyond these preferences. Inside the
language classroom, teachers may provide a wide range of learning activities that
cater to different learning styles. Also, teachers may help students develop beyond
their comfort zones and their natural learning preferences.
 02

LEARNING
STRATEGIES
 LEARNING STRATEGIES

Language learning strategies are specific behaviors or thought processes that

learners use to enhance their own learning. Learning strategies also enable students to
become more independent lifelong learners (Allwright, 1990).
There are six categories of language learning strategies adopted from the
taxonomy of Oxford (1990): cognitive, metacognitive, memory-related, compensatory,
affective, and social.
 Cognitive Strategies
❖ enable the learners to manipulate language
materials in direct ways – reasoning, analyzing,
notetaking, summarizing, outlining information
to develop stronger schemas
Metacognitive Strategies
❖ “thinking about thinking”

❖ enable learners to think of how they think and

learn

❖ one example is asking oneself self-reflective

questions, how they learn, and where they want
to be
Memory-Related Strategies
❖ help learners link one language item or concept
with another

❖ some memory-related strategies are: the use of

acronyms, sounds (rhyming), images, body
movement (Total Physical Response), mechanical
means (flashcards) and location (on a page or
board)
Compensatory Strategies
❖ help learners make up for missing knowledge
(e.g., guessing from context while listening or
reading, using gestures or empty words)

❖ modifications to learners’ behavior or

environment that are used to compensate for a
deficit, weakness, or perceived inadequacy in a
specific area or skills
 Social Strategies
❖ help learners work with others and understand
the target language as well as the culture (asking
for clarification, requesting help, interacting with
native speakers, exploring cultural and social
norms)
 LEARNER DIFFERENCES

Aside from the use of different strategies, learners may also differ according to
their: motivation, self-confidence, aptitude, previous learning experiences,
topics they find interesting, degree of focus, beliefs, personality, and
intelligence.
 03

IMPLICATIONS
FOR ENGLISH
LANGUAGE
TEACHING
 IMPLICATIONS FOR ELT

Synthesizing all the learning styles and strategies presented, we can come up
with three implications for classroom practice in ELT: assessing styles and
strategies, attuning instruction to learners’ style preference, and remembering
that no single instructional methodology fits all students.
 Assessing Styles and Strategies in the classroom

ELT teachers could benefit by assessing the

learning styles and the strategy use of their
students, because such assessment leads to
greater understanding of styles and strategies.
Teachers also need to assess their own styles and
strategies, so that then will be aware of their
preferences and of possible biases.
Attuning Instruction to Learners’ Style Preference

The more that teachers know about their

students' style preferences, the more
effectively they can orient their instruction,
matched to those style preferences. Without
adequate knowledge about their individual
students’ style preferences, teachers cannot
systematically provide the needed
instructional variety.
Remembering that No Single Methodology Fits All Students

It is wrong to think that a single instructional

methodology could fit an entire class filled
with students who have different stylistic and
strategic preferences. Instead of choosing a
specific methodology, teachers would do
better to employ a broad instructional
approach.
MIDTERM EXAM
April 8, 2022
DATES TO REMEMBER:
REFERENCES
 Questions? Clarifications?
You can find me at
lerryanne.virtuso@cvsu.edu.ph /
facebook.com/lerryvirtuso
 This instructional material is a property of Ms. Lerry Anne A.
Virtuso, Instructor, Cavite State University Main Campus, and is
created for the course ENLS 116 (ELT Methods and Approaches).

NO PART OF THIS PRESENTATION SHALL BE

REPRODUCED NOR REDISTRIBUTED IN ANY FORM,
ESPECIALLY FOR PERSONAL USE.