Language Learning Strategies and Multilingualism

Title: Language Learning Strategies and Multilingualism

Author: Lydia Mitits

ISBN: 978-618-5147-26-6

Contributors

Cover: Christopher Foridis
Page layout: Iraklis Lampadariou

Description

Greek secondary education has witnessed some important changes in the last couple of decades with a significant influx of immigrants whose children attend Greek mainstream education. Moreover, there are the Muslim minority students in

Thrace

, many of whom also attend public junior high schools. However, the number of bilingual/multilingual students in secondary education is unidentified. While the situation is clearer with the Muslim minority students whose cultural and linguistic identity is known, those students who come from versatile cultural backgrounds and have a strong need to assimilate are very often reluctant to reveal their knowledge of other languages. Moreover, teachers in junior high schools are generally unaware of the presence of such bilingual/multilingual learners and are not trained to take advantage of this asset in the learning/teaching process.

Language learning strategies have been recognized as having the potential to enhance the process of learning a second/foreign language. Prior language learning and metacognitive linguistic awareness based on the experience of learning languages have shown to produce a positive change in quality and quantity of the strategies multilinguals use when learning a language. As a result, investigation of multilingual language learning strategies is of prime interest in our world of growing multilingualism.

This book adds to the delineation of the strategic profiles of monolingual and multilingual EFL learners, especially in relation to their gender, age, language proficiency level and motivation to learn English while, at the same time, it searches to find any possible differences between the two groups of learners. It also aims at discovering a possible variation within the multilingual group when they learn Greek and English. By discovering what paths learners take towards achieving proficiency in a language, we can enhance their awareness of how to be more successful language learners as well as provide strategic instruction in teaching materials in order to raise teachers’ awareness of issues related to multilingualism and language learning strategies in Greek schools.