This case study aimed at investigating direct language learning strategies, their implementation, and the reasons beyond the uses of those strategies. Six third semester EFL students at a university in Kudus were purposively involved as the participants. Questionnaires, interviews, and observations were deployed as the techniques of data collection. The data were analyzed using an interactive model. Triangulation was undertaken to reach the data’s credibility.

The findings showed that 1) most of the students used memory, cognitive, and compensation strategies with the exception of one student using no cognitive strategy. 2) They implemented the memory strategy by using understandable English words during speaking to make their mental language more familiar with those words, using new English words into spoken utterances to drill their memories, reading English novels to mentally create associations with English words, listening to English songs to acquire and memorize English words, watching English YouTube videos to acquire and memorize natural English input, engaging friends into continuous practices, tracing back what was learned already, and tracing back the record made after independent speaking practices. They implemented the cognitive strategy by looking into dictionaries for drilling their minds to memorize English words, making use of a recorder for independent speaking practices, taking time for a few minutes to practice consistently, making use of social media to assist in building spoken interactions, taking the benefit from having foreign friends for speaking practices, making use of an android application to assist in building spoken interactions, and conditioning themselves to be sensitive to using reasoning skills to understand English linguistic components. They implemented the compensation strategy by striving to retrieve similar English words from their memories and replacing the forgotten English words with Indonesian words to maintain their speaking fluency. 3) Their reasons for the memory strategy were: a) creating mental linkage helped make it easier to memorize English words. b) Applying images and sounds by watching western movies was useful due to the provision of natural English input. Their reasons for the cognitive strategy were: a) practicing English speaking using interesting media improved their self-confidence and fluent communicative abilities. b) Receiving and sending messages in a way of holing direct English conversations with others led them to finding a condition of real and spontaneous communication. c) Analysis and reasoning led them to being more critical and detailed. They used the compensation strategy because adjusting alongside approximating messages and switching to mother tongue supported their English fluency.