LESSON 44

LEARNING STRATEGY
INSTRUCTION:
ACQUIRING SELF-HELP
SKILLS

THIS STRATEGY ADDRESSES THE FF. TESOL STANDARDS:

Goal 1. To use English to Communicate in social settings
STANDARD 3: Students will use learning strategies to extend their communicative
competence.
GOAL 2. To use English to achieve academically in all content areas
STANDARD 1: Students will use English to interact in the classroom.
STANDARD 2: Students will use English to obtain, process, construct, and provide
subject matter
information in spoken and written form.
STANDARD 3: Students will use appropriate learning strategies to construct and
apply academic
knowledge.
GOAL 3. To use English in socially and culturally appropriate ways
STANDARD 3: Students will use appropriate learning strategies to extend their
sociolinguistic and
cultural
competence.

LEARNING STRATEGY INSTRUCTION

(Gagne, 1985) is based on supporting the students in understanding their
own learning and in monitoring the methods and results of strategies they
use in reading, writing, discussion and research.
Helps support English language learners in employing self-monitoring and
self-help approaches to succeed in school (Chamot & Omalley, 1994).
Three areas of instruction are addressed in learning strategy instruction;
All three areas are self-related. The learners focus on strategies they can
use to improve their own success in school. The three areas of learning
strategy instruction are (a) metacognitive strategies, (b) cognitive
strategies and (c) social or affective strategies.

CONTD..

Metacognitive Strategies include having a plan for learning,

monitoring the learning that is taking place and evaluating how well
content has been learned.
Cognitive Strategies include how to manipulate material mentally or
physically to facilitate learning.
Social / Affective Strategies including ways to interact with others or
control your own emotions in ways that support your learning.
Figure 44.2 for descriptions of some of the strategies included in each
category.

ACTIVITY
Brainstorming

Partner interviews

Questionnaires

Task think-aloud

Strategy list think

DESCRIPTION
Students suggest ways they have used in studying material. No judgement
is made. The list is made and then students can use the list to suggest
learning tasks that would match well with the strategies suggested. The
benefit of this activity is to introduce the idea that there are many learning
strategies and students have choices in approaches.
Students pair up and interview each other about the strategies they use for
studying, after the interviews, each student describes one strategy by the
partner.
Teacher prepares a questionnaire about strategy usage, which the students
fill out, the results are tabulated and used as a basis for a group discussion.
Students demonstrate a task, such as tying shoes, and think-aloud to
demonstrate the strategies they use. After one student demonstrate the task
think-aloud, a student who has a different approach is given an opportunity
to demonstrate it.
A list of strategies such as note cards, diagrams, webs and oral review are
listed on the board and students give suggestions as to the learning tasks
that they would be appropriate for their use. Example: Note cards dont work
for studying for a spelling test but do work for preparing an oral
presentation.

STEP BY STEP

The steps in teaching learning

Matching strategies
strategiesare:
and curriculum --- Select the strategy to be taught by
thinking about the curriculum to be studied and the demands it will make on the
learner. Plan to teach only a few strategies at first, giving the students
opportunities to practice the strategies well before introducing new ones.
Reflecting on learning task approaches --- Develop students self-awareness
by having them reflect on how they approach a learning task. Remind them of
the cooperative learning activities they have been involved with and what they
have learned about their approaches to learning during the debriefing sessions.
See Figure 44.2 for suggestions of additional introductory activities.
Modelling strategy use --- Model the strategy you are teaching. Call the
strategy by its name each time you model it. Explain how the strategy works to
support the students learning. Give examples of instances in which strategy will
be helpful.

Strategy Use Rubric

Students Name
Learning Strategy
Each time you use a learning strategy place an X on the continuum to show how well you think you
used it.

Poorly
Effectiveness
I did not follow the
steps and was
steps well
Successful.

Strategies use this week

Effectiveness

OK
I did follow the steps.

I follow the

I didnt give in my full attention.

Subject area
12

345
12345

 Discussing strategy use --- Hold on evaluation discussion. Ask the students
to demonstrate how they used the strategies and what was difficult for them.
Provide self-evaluation tool, or scoring rubric, for them to use in evaluating
their strategy use. See Figure 44.3 for strategy self-evaluation tools.
Making visuals for self-help --- Have the students make strategy posters to
display in the classroom, which explains the steps in the strategy use. Refer to
those posters frequently when making assignments. Help the students see that
they have choices in strategies to use and the strategies can be used in many
different context and learning tasks.
Assessing student growth and understanding--- As strategies are taught,
make a checklist with the strategy names and students names to use as you
observe them completing assignments. Which for strategy use and ask
students to explain their strategy use. Notes on the checklist can be
transferred to anecdotal records documenting student growth in strategy usage
over time.

APPLICATIONS AND EXAMPLES

Some of Ms. Hernandezs second graders consistently fail there
weekly spelling tests. Ms. Hernandez realizes that some of the students
dont have strategies to use in studying their words. She begins the
learning strategy instruction by initiating a conversation with the students
on Monday morning as she is getting ready to list the new words for the
week.
How are you studying the words for your spelling test? Ms.
Hernandez asks the class.
I write the words on a big piece of paper and hang it on my
bulletin board at home, Amanda replies
I look at the words everyday and spell them to myself.
I make flash cards and use them to practice writing the words,
carlo says.

THANK YOU
FOR LISTENING