The Influence of Metacognitive Self-Regulation on Learning Strategies in Mandarin Learning

Due to China’s rapid economic development, there has been an increased demand for Chinese language education in Malaysia. The utilization of appropriate language learning strategies plays a crucial role in ensuring successful learning outcomes. Therefore, the objective of this research is to investigate learners’ perception regarding their use of learning strategies in acquiring Mandarin as a foreign language. A quantitative survey was conducted among 148 students enrolled in an Introductory Mandarin course in a public university. The survey employed a 5 Likert-scale and consisted of four sessions which are demographic profile, cognitive components, metacognitive self-regulation and resource management. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS. The findings indicate that the resource management components “environment management” and “help-seeking” received a highest mean scores (M=4.14, 4.15), followed by the cognitive component “rehearsal” (M=4). Conversely, metacognitive self-regulation strategies had the lowest mean score (M=3.78). Furthermore, the research also reveals a strong positive correlation between metacognitive self-regulation, cognitive strategies and resource management strategies in foreign language learning. It is hoped that this study can provide insights for instructors to enhance their teaching approach to facilitate students' learning.