relationship between the use of motivational learning techniques and critical thinking among English language learners in the field of health and food technology

Subject Areas : Experimental Studies

Fariba  Rahimi ¹ (Department of English, Shahrekord branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord, Iran)
maryan  Aghayali ² (Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord Branch)
اسماعیل  حسینی ³ (Department of English, Shahrekord Branch, Islamic Azad University, Shahrekord, Iran)

Received: 2024-03-13 Accepted : 2024-06-10 Published : 2024-06-16

Keywords: ESP course, language learning strategies, reflective thinking, motivation,

Abstract :

This research aimed to unravel the type of language learning strategies used by Iranian ESP students, to uncover the relationship between the use of language learning strategies and ESP learners’reflective thinking and motivational level. For this purpose, 60 participants were selected randomly from among electrical engineering B.S. ESP students studying at Islamic Azad University, Isfahan Branch, and were made homogeneous in terms of their English proficiency through Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT). Then, a 50-item Strategy Inventory for Language Learning was administered to the participants to discover the types of learning strategies utilized by them during their ESP course. Then, the participants’ reflective thinking ability and motivation were determined through relevant questionnaires. The obtained results indicated the majority of the ESP students preferred to use cognitive strategy. Moreover, the results pointed to a significant relationship between the use of language learning strategies and the reflective thinking potential of Iranian ESP students and lack of relationship between the use of language learning strategies and motivation of ESP students. The results also provide theoretical and pedagogical implications of the findings for ESP courses.

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