Compensatory Strategies in the Group Conversations of Grade 8 Students

Clarence Nilo C. Serquenia Jr.

INTRODUCTION
Describe
and
Move 1a The ability to carry out a conversation in the second language (L2) has become a long- explain the
problem.
standing challenge to many English teachers, and a difficult skill to master among the

majority of English learners. Speaking, after all, is a complex skill that requires from learners a

wide range of sub-skills: oral production, idea generation, meaning making, among others.

Consequently, many researchers have turned to topics on speaking such as identifying factors that

affect oral production, assessing oral fluency, providing task-based approaches, rethinking

language curriculum, and integrating culture, which altogether sparks a wide interest in language

research, particularly on L2 teaching and learning strategies.

Among these research interests is a growing body of studies on compensatory strategies.

These strategies are altogether a mechanism used by an L2 learner to cope with his limitations in

Discuss the the target language caused by the interference of the interlanguage phase (IL). Selinker (1972, as
cause and
effect of cited in Taron, 2006 p. 748) defined IL as the “separate linguistic system evidenced when second-
the
problem. language learners attempt to express meaning in a language they are in the process of learning.”

As a result of this interference, learners are faced with the need “to express things for which

they do not have the means in the second language” (Cook, 1996, as cited in Asuncion, 2010
Prove that
p. 3). When occurring negatively, interlanguage results in the delay, if not total
the
problem
needs
abandonment, of communication. Bialystok (1990, as cited in Zhang, 2007 p. 43) puts it: “the
attention.
familiar ease and fluency with which we sail from one idea to the next in our first language is

constantly shattered by some gap in our knowledge of a second language.”

 Discuss
what we
To define more formally, compensatory strategies comprise “a systematic technique
already
observe,
know, or
employed by a speaker to express his meaning when faced with some difficulty” (Corder, 1983
believe in.
as cited in Curkovic, 2007 p. 269). They are “used to bridge the gap between communicative need

and a learner’s linguistic resource” (Ljunberg, 2011 p. 5). It is altogether “a spare tire for

emergencies” (Cook, 1993 as cited in Curkovic, 2007).

Explain Many new theories and approaches in language teaching have emerged. The decades
what has
been done of the 60’s and 70’s saw a revolution in the notion of communicative competence which, according
or
practiced to Ljunberg (2011, p. 2) is a result of a “shift in focus from teaching to learning.” Yang (2003)
so far.
asserts that communicative competence is best understood in the context of L2 learning. According

to Canale and Swain (1980), communicative competence is the synergy of four competencies.

Grammatical Competence refers to knowledge of basic grammatical principles such as correctness

of structures. Sociolinguistic Competence refers to knowledge of language use in social settings

to perform communicative functions. Discourse Competence refers to knowledge of how

utterances stretch to longer and meaningful spoken or written discourse. Lastly, Strategic

Competence refers to the ability to use knowledge of verbal and non-verbal language to start,

continue, divert or abort a communication.

Present Central to this paper is the notion on strategic competence which, according to Canale
implication
for the and Swain (1980, as cited in Ljunberg, 2011) is “the verbal and nonverbal communication
study.
strategies that may be called into action to compensate for breakdowns in communication due to

performance variables or due to insufficient competence.” This is supported by Yang (2003) in

some strategy examples such as self-correction, recognizing structure of discourse, activating

background knowledge, contextual guessing and tolerating ambiguity.

 With the conceptualization of communicative competence, particularly on the notion of

strategic competence, the interest on strategies grew rapidly as marked by studies on taxonomies.

One such taxonomy is Oxford’s (2003) overview of Language Learning Styles and Strategies.

According to Oxford, learning strategies are defined as “specific actions, behaviors, steps or

techniques used by students to enhance their own learning” (Scarcella and Oxford, 1992 as cited

in Oxford, 2003). Oxford asserts that these strategies become relevant and functional when a

learner consciously uses them to fit his or her learning style. In her taxonomy, learning strategies

are categorized into six groups: cognitive, metacognitive, memory-related, compensatory,

affective and social.

Asuncion (2010) cites Oxford’s sub-classifications of compensatory strategies as: (1)

switching to the mother tongue, or the use of L1 term for an L2 term; (2) getting help, or the appeal

for assistance; (3) using mime, the use of body and face gesture; (4) avoiding communication

partially or totally, or the L2 learner’s refrain or total abandonment of a communication situation;

(5) selecting the topic, or the L2 learner’s choice of a suitable or comfortable topic; (6) adjusting

the message, or the L2 learner’s attempt to express a message using and alternative construction

that is not yet know or is still unstable; (7) coining words, or the construction of a new word or

term; and (8) using circumlocution or synonym, or the use of another word or phrase which has

similar meaning to the appropriate word or phrase. RRL 1

Move 1b There are a good number of studies about compensatory strategies. Asuncion (2010)

studied the frequency of these strategies in a picture-cued narration task. Results show that

switching to mother tongue is the most common compensatory strategy used. There was also a

negative relationship between the use of compensatory strategy and English grade. The paper

Follow the arrows in this part. They point at the different

RRLs. Notice that each RRL here is discussed in each
paragraph.
 recommends the explicit teaching of these strategies to students to help them cope with difficult

oral communication. RRL 2

In another study, Ljunberg (2011) studied compensatory through a question-cued

elicitation task among learners who exclusively study English and learners who study at least

another modern language. Results show that learners who exclusively study English used sound

image and guessing, while learners who study another language use linguistic rules and context.

The study yielded two classification of compensatory strategies – achievement strategies and

avoidance strategies. Achievement strategies refer to those strategies that help L2 learners carry

out a communicative task. However, avoidance strategies are those that allow learner to divert

from the communicative task, and therefore reduce participation.

Tse (2011) studied the language learning strategies used by Malaysian university students,
RRL 3
and some variables affecting their choice of strategy. Aided by a Language Learning Strategy

Inventory, the study reveals a moderate use of compensatory strategies. Tse recommends that

learners be conscious of these strategies through provision of real-life activities in the class.

Curkovic (2007) examined the characteristics of compensatory strategies in IL classroom

RRL 4
discourse of Croatian students. Through a teacher-learner verbal interaction, the study reveals that

the kinds of compensatory strategies are unequally distributed in the IL discourses. Furthermore,

code switching, paraphrasing and literal translation were seen to occur most frequently among all

other strategies. The study also concluded that the L2 learner’s proficiency might be a factor on

the choice of compensatory strategy.

Flyman (1997) found out that the use of compensatory strategies depends on the kind of
RRL 5
task that L2 learners are prompted with. The study used three speaking tasks administered among

French mid-teenage learners: translation, picture-cued narration, and pair discussion. It was found
 out that the strategies work best in pair discussion, and work least in translation. With this, Flyman

asserts that “a lot is to be gained, in communication as well as in acquisition, by making learners

work together in pairs.” The study contends that the direct relationship between strategy and

acquisition would require more pair exercises in the classroom, and that these exercises be more

communicative than traditional.

Move 2 To sum up, these studies have dealt with identifying compensatory strategies through

learner's interaction with a material – a picture, a question, or a translation. At least two studies

have dealt with compensatory strategies in human interaction – teacher-student and pair
Turquoise
discussion. However, what remains unexplored is the use of compensatory strategies in the context
highlight
for the
of a group conversation.
research
gap.
In the social-interactionalist viewpoint by Vygotsky (1978 as cited in Menezes, 2013 p.

406), conversations are seen as socially mediated interactions where language may be learned.

Such interaction bridges the learner through the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). This is

supported by Mitchell and Myles (2004, as cited in Menezes, 2013 p. 406) who said: “from a

social-cultural perspective, children’s [early] language learning arises from processes of meaning-

making in collaborative activity with other members of a given culture”.

The processes of meaning-making are best understood in Krashen’s (1985) hypotheses on

Comprehensible Input Hypothesis, Affective Filter and Monitor. Comprehensible input refers to

language items that learners readily understand. Krashen believes that learners inevitably acquire

a second language through input provided by a low-filter environment such as the context of peer

conversation. Simultaneously, learners engaged in a conversation monitor their own use of the

language. They plan, edit and correct themselves while participating in a conversation which

consequently leads to the use of compensatory strategies.
The last two paragraphs here explain the research
gap. It’s like: Why is the research gap important?
You may do this too, not necessarily in two
paragraphs, but in the manner you think is best to
explain it.
Move 3 Motivated by the limitations of these researches, this paper intends to study compensatory
Yellow
strategies in student conversations. Conversations are rich communicative ventures because highlight
for the
learners use compensatory strategies to either achieve or avoid a communicative goal with peers. thesis
statement.
Specifically, it aims to (a) determine the most common compensatory strategies in the English

conversations of Grade 8 high school students as identified by Asuncion (2010), (b) classify the

strategies used as achievement strategies or avoidance strategies use by Ljunberg (2011) , and (c)

acquire feedback from the students on their conversation and use of compensatory strategies.

However, given that conversations are best understood in full context rather than by pair responses,

this study is also open to finding out utterances that closely function as compensatory strategies

other than the ones already identified.

This study may provide implications to language teaching and learning, with particular

attention to improving L2 learners’ communicative competence in oral discourses. Moreover, it

seeks to fill the limitations presented, and therefore provides an additional knowledge to the

growing body of literature and studies on compensatory strategies and L2 conversations. Lastly, it

seeks to spark an interest in this field of linguistic study which has received meager attention.

Now, this last paragraph isn’t really necessary at

the moment. It only makes sense if you want to
have some neat closing words to your research
intro. Of course you may do this too, if you wish.
 Know your design. Let
METHOD page 22-23 of your
textbook help you.
Research Design

This is a discourse analysis on compensatory strategies in learners' conversations. It aims

to identify and classify compensatory strategies through frequency count, mean and percentage

data. Also, it aims to analyze these data through learners' feedback on their compensatory strategies

and conversation. You may also call them “respondents,” in case you’re dealing with
surveys. Describe them: year level, age, location, manner of sampling,
Participants and your reasons for choosing them.

The study involves 40 grade 8 high school students of a private Catholic school for boys

in the Philippines. They are at the age range of 12 to 13 years old, and can converse fluently in

both English and Filipino. Currently under the K to12 Curriculum, the students comprise one

section in the year level. They are randomly grouped into eight (8), with five (5) members each.

Instruments

To obtain information for the frequency of occurrence of the compensatory strategies, a

list of topics with question-cued speaking prompts is given. The questions steer the conversation

to some points of interest. The topics are the following: In other words, “Tools.” In experiments,
you call them “Materials.” So, what are
1. K to 12 Tracks: Which track fits your best? your tools to gather data? Observation?
Interview? Questionnaire? Rating Scales?
2. The Growing Addiction towards Pokemon Go Or Documents? Corpus?

3. Culture of Helping: What have you done so far?

4. La Sallian Brotherhood: Do you want to be a Bro?

5. Tables or Worksheets: Which promotes better learning?

6. The Permission to Use Cellular Phones instead of Tables

7. The Idea of Co-educational School System for La Salle Green Hills

8. Rivalry between La Salle Green Hills and Ateneo de Manila University

 For the coding of frequency, the study is aided by a handy video camera and frequency

tally sheet for each group. A focus group discussion will also be conducted to collect students’

feedback on their conversation. The basic questions are the following:

1. How was your group conversation?

2. Was the topic easy or difficult? What makes it easy? What makes it difficult?

3. Did you have difficulty in using the English language?

4. (Some other questions come from learners' use of compensatory strategies.

Questions may vary depending on the conversation.) How exactly are you going to do your
research? State here the steps in data
Procedure gathering, and what you will do to the data.

The conversation of each group is recorded and transcribed. The conversation and

recording last for three (3) minutes. The script is read analytically to count the occurrence of

compensatory strategies using the frequency tally sheet. This yields the most common

compensatory strategy used in the conversation. Percentage of each strategy is computed based on

the frequency count.

Next, the strategies used are classified into two: achievement strategies and avoidance

strategies. In the analysis, excerpts from the conversations are presented to explain the

classification. Also, strategies that function closely as compensatory strategies other than the ones

already identified are given discussion.

A focus group discussion is facilitated to ask students for feedback on their conversation

and use of compensatory strategies. This provides information on how and what the students were

thinking during the conversation.

Data Analysis

The primary datum of this study is the frequency count (f) of each compensatory strategy

in the learners' conversation. Mean (x̅) and percentage (%) are computed to provide a view of how

each strategy relates to the whole data. Excerpts from the actual conversation and learners'

feedback give each strategy more elaboration on its use. For other strategies that may arise apart

from the ones already identified, students' feedback will be used. Supporting studies are integrated

through the discussion of each strategy.

Have you been listening attentively to Sir Jad? If so, then

this part will be easy for you. How will you deal with survey
results? What measures of central tendency will you use?
Mean? Median? Mode?
 References

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There’s an email about how to do the reference part. The

only missing here is the simulacrum. All the best!