scholarly journals The Use and Evaluation of Vocabulary Learning Strategies among Sudanese EFL Learners

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arab World English Journal ◽  
Fatima Salaheldeen Ahmed Hamza ◽  
Mohamad Subakir Mohd Yasin ◽  
Ashinida Aladdin
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Depth Of Processing ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
New Words ◽  
Processing Theory ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies

The learning of new vocabulary as a part of English for Foreign Language (EFL) teaching and learning has not been investigated thoroughly because its effectiveness has been questioned by various researchers in the past. However, in recent years, various studies have shown that proper strategies in acquiring new words could be one of the keys to effective language learning among EFL learners. This study investigates how Sudanese EFL learners at Khartoum University, Sudan use and evaluate vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs). The three selected categories of vocabulary learning strategies - metacognitive, discovery, and consolidation - were chosen according to taxonomies proposed by Al-Fuhaid (2004), Schmitt (1997) and Nation (2001). These VLSs were then evaluated using Han’s Information Processing Theory and Craik and Lockhart’s Depth of Processing Theory (1972) to meet the two objectives of this study. The first objective was to examine the most frequently used VLSs employing a set questionnaire designed to elicit the necessary data. The second objective was to evaluate the usefulness of each of these VLSs by conducting in-depth interviews with the respondents. The results showed that metacognitive strategies were the most frequently used VLS among the three. In-depth interview data revealed that respondents evaluated all three VLS positively and considered them very useful in acquiring as well as understanding words. These findings suggest that language learners in Sudan should be taught vocabulary enhancing techniques while language instructors should use and teach these VLS to learners explicitly.

Examining the Use of Vocabulary Learning Strategies among EFL Learners in Baghlan University of Afghanistan

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-10
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
English Language ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Social Strategies ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
New Words ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies

Vocabulary learning is one of the problems in language learning skills. Tackling such problems is to provide useful and effective strategies for enhancing students’ VLSs. Therefore, this study aims to survey vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs) utilized among English as a Foreign Language learners (EFL) in Baghlan University of Afghanistan, and to study the high and least frequently used VLSs that contributes to the learners’ vocabulary knowledge. This study utilizes a descriptive quantitative research method with 67 EFL learners who participated in the survey questionnaire adopted from Oxford (1990) taxonomy of VLS from different faculties of Baghlan University. The findings indicated that EFL learners preferably utilize VLSs at a medium level, and the highly used vocabulary learning strategies are the social strategies through which they ask the native speakers, teachers, and classmates for the meanings of new words in English language conversation. Determination, cognitive, and memory strategies are respectively followed by the learners. Whereas, metacognitive strategies are the least used strategies among EFL learners, the reason is that they only focus on the materials related to examination; explore anything about the new words for learning, and rarely think of their improvement in vocabulary learning.

scholarly journals INVESTIGATING EXPERIENCED AND NOVICE ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS` PERCEPTIONS of MOST USEFUL VOCABULARY LEARNING STRATEGIES (VLS)

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 288-295
Author(s):  
Elnaz Zariholhosseini ◽  
Ehsan Namaziandost ◽  
Mehdi Nasri
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
English Language ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
New Words ◽  
Novice Learners ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies ◽  
Personal Use

Purpose of the study: This article report’s findings from a study on the differences and similarities between experienced and novice English language learners with regards to their personal use of VLS. Methodology: Closed questionnaire and semi-structure interviews were applied to collect the data. The questionnaire was distributed among 60 (30 experienced learners and 30 novice learners). In addition, 20 learners (10 experienced learners and 10 novice learners) were asked to answer the questions in the interview. Therefore, descriptive statistics, U Mann Whitney test, and independent-sample t-test were run to compare and analyzed the data. Main Findings: The finding showed that there were significant differences between experienced and novice learners’ thoughts towards vocabulary learning strategies and experienced learners used vocabulary learning strategies while learning new words in English language learning. Applications of this study: If the learners are taught how to use each strategy correctly, their understanding of the language can naturally be improved. Moreover, VLS is beneficial throughout the process of vocabulary learning which makes learners more independent and allows teachers to focus on other things as well. Novelty/Originality of this study: To the best of researchers’ knowledge, no study has been done on investigating Iranian experienced and novice English language learners` perceptions towards most useful vocabulary learning strategies (VLS).

Examining the Use of Vocabulary Learning Strategies among EFL Learners in Baghlan University of Afghanistan

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-10
Author(s):  
Hamza Atifnigar Editor ◽  
Zia Ur Rahman Zaheer ◽  
Wahidullah Alokozay
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
English Language ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Social Strategies ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
New Words ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies

Vocabulary learning is one of the problems in language learning skills. Tackling such problems is to provide useful and effective strategies for enhancing students’ VLSs. Therefore, this study aims to survey vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs) utilized among English as a Foreign Language learners (EFL) in Baghlan University of Afghanistan, and to study the high and least frequently used VLSs that contributes to the learners’ vocabulary knowledge. This study utilizes a descriptive quantitative research method with 67 EFL learners who participated in the survey questionnaire adopted from Oxford (1990) taxonomy of VLS from different faculties of Baghlan University. The findings indicated that EFL learners preferably utilize VLSs at a medium level, and the highly used vocabulary learning strategies are the social strategies through which they ask the native speakers, teachers, and classmates for the meanings of new words in English language conversation. Determination, cognitive, and memory strategies are respectively followed by the learners. Whereas, metacognitive strategies are the least used strategies among EFL learners, the reason is that they only focus on the materials related to examination; explore anything about the new words for learning, and rarely think of their improvement in vocabulary learning.

scholarly journals Teaching and Learning Vocabulary: What English Language Learners Perceive to Be Effective and Ineffective Strategies

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 139
Author(s):  
Seyyed Hatam Tamimi Sa’d ◽  
Fereshte Rajabi
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Strategy Training ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
English Language Teachers

Vocabulary constitutes an essential part of every language-learning endeavour and deserves scholarly attention. The objective of the present study was three-fold: 1) exploring Iranian English language learners’Vocabulary Learning Strategies (VLSs), 2) examining language learners’ perceptions of vocabulary learning, and 3) exploring Iranian English language teachers’ Vocabulary Teaching Strategies (VTSs). In total, 145  intermediate learners of English as a foreign language, consisting of 114 males and 31 females aged 15 to 27, participated in the study. The triangulated data were collected using three tools: questionnaires, interviews, and class observations. Sixty-seven learners (31 females and 36 males) filled out a 56-statement questionnaire, adopted and adapted from Takač (2008) and translated into Persian. The questionnaire comprised two parts, enquiring as to the learners’ VLSs and the teachers’ VTSs. The findings indicated that females and males differed significantly in their reported VLSs and their teachers’ use of various VTSs. Additionally, 78 learners were interviewed as to their perceptions of effective and ineffective VLSs as well as VTSs. The findings revealed that the most effective VLSs were reported to be: a) reciting, repeating and listening to words, b) using words, and c) memorising words while the most effective VTSs revolved around: a) explanation, b) repetition, and c) dictation. The observations also confirmed the findings obtained via the questionnaire and interviews. In general, the findings are indicative of the limited repertoire of vocabulary acquisition techniques employed by Iranian EFL learners, hence the need for strategy training in how to acquire vocabulary. 

scholarly journals A pathological analysis of barriers to vocabulary learning and teaching

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 350-354
Author(s):  
Fahimeh Farjami
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Long Term Memory ◽  
Teaching Techniques ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
New Words ◽  
Mnemonic Devices

Learning a foreign or second language at different levels of proficiency involves the acquisition of a great number of words. Language learners look for effective ways to increase opportunities for retaining new words in long-term memory, but forgetting is a common problem. Language learners often complain that they forget new words soon after learning them. The importance of vocabulary learning also poses some challenges for teachers. They like to know in what ways instructional programs might foster the acquisition of so many words. Students face some obstacles when they try to assign the vocabularies to their long term memories. They also confront insumountable hurdles in the cognitive process of retrieval and recall. In this discussion, learners’ problems in vocabulary leaning are elaborated on and some guidelines are offered to ameliorate or even to remove them. It introduces language learning strategies that make vocabulary learning interesting and easy for learners. It also familiarizes teachers with useful techniques and activities for presentation. Ideas and viewpoints put forward by distinguished scholars such as Baker,Nation, Ausuble, Uberman, Thompson, Carter, Moras, Schmitt, Richards,Celce-Murcia, Chastain are utilized to substantiate the arguments. The purpose of this study is to present practical vocabulary learning strategies that can help learners and to offer influential teaching techniques and activities, which are of help to the teachers. A misconception analysis of teachers’ and students’ attitudes to vocabulary learning is carried out in terms of learning strategies, dictionary use, input, intake, output, affective variables, mnemonic devices, declarative and procedural memories. The relevant instructional points will be given to EFL teachers to enormously increase the efficiency of their teaching techniques and strategies in terms of students’ vocabulary learning and vocabulary expansion.   Keywords: vocabulary learning, forgetting, memory, mnemonic devices, input, intake, output

scholarly journals Vocabulary Learning Strategies and their Relation to Vocabulary Size in Saudi Female Undergraduate EFL Learners

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (6) ◽  
pp. 218-223
Author(s):  
Ghada Alahmad
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Learning Process ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Cognitive Strategies ◽  
Foreign Language Learning ◽  
Female Undergraduate ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies

It is generally agreed in the field of Foreign Language Learning (FLL) that Vocabulary Learning Strategies (VLSs) are a subcategory of the more general Language Learning Strategies (LLSs). Research into LLSs began based on the belief that language aptitude was not the only determinant factor of language achievement, and that the learners’ own learning effort and the way they approach language learning also played a major role. The purpose of this study is to investigate VLS use of Saudi female undergraduate EFL learners in each stage of the Vocabulary Learning Process (VLP) and its relation to their vocabulary size. The study population consisted of female students enrolled in the final year of the undergraduate English language program in an English department in a Saudi university. Forty-one students participated in this study, and two data collection instruments were used. The first instrument was a frequency of use questionnaire designed based on the learning process-oriented taxonomy of VLSs. The second was a Vocabulary Size Test. The analyses show that the participants used 17 strategies with a high frequency in all the stages of the VLP except for Stages Four and Six. The analyses also show that the most frequently used strategies were mainly cognitive strategies (nine strategies) and metacognitive strategies (five strategies). In terms of the relationship between the use of VLSs and vocabulary size, two strategies were found to be positively correlated with the participants’ vocabulary size. Interestingly, other strategies that are known to be effective in vocabulary learning were found to have a negative correlation with the participants’ vocabulary size.

scholarly journals A Meta-Analysis of Vocabulary Learning Strategies of EFL Learners

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Batoul Nematollahi ◽  
Fatemeh Behjat ◽  
Ali Asghar Kargar
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Learning Strategy ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Social Strategies ◽  
Lexical Knowledge ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies ◽  
Successful Students

Vocabulary learning is one of the crucial matters in second language learning. There is a vast body of research in this field which has been done by famous researchers around the world, but still there is no specific solution for extending lexical knowledge in the best way. Therefore, we have conducted a meta-analysis on a body of 30 research projects to investigate the usefulness of different strategies of vocabulary learning. The results showed that the strategies which are used by students are as follows in order: determination, cognitive, memory, meta-cognitive, and social strategies. Besides, it seems that guessing from context and using the dictionary are among the strategies which are most favored by successful students. In addition, the relationship between context, treatment, and methodology by vocabulary learning strategy were studied. It was clear that learners of different contexts would prefer different strategies, and teachers used specific strategies according to their syllabus. For further research, it is suggested to select a larger body of studies. It is advised to make teachers aware of the importance of choosing an appropriate strategy of vocabulary learning for language learners to pave the way of improving lexical knowledge for them.

The Relationship between Willingness to Communicate and Vocabulary Learning Strategies among Iranian EFL Learners

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (11) ◽  
pp. 1119
Author(s):  
Amir Marzban ◽  
Mojgan Firoozjahantigh
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Willingness To Communicate ◽  
Language Teachers ◽  
Review Of Literature ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies ◽  
The Relationship

Two of the variables apparently contributing to the processes of EFL achievement are Willingness to Communicate (WTC) and Vocabulary Learning Strategies (VLS). They seem to be fundamental among Iranian EFL learners due to the fact that semantics and its backbone—vocabulary—as well as the incentive or motivation, Willingness to Communicate (WTC)—influence the progress and improvement of the proficiency of Iranian EFL learners. Moreover, the review of literature clarifies the fact that few studies have tried to open up the relationship between these two variables, i.e. WTC and VLS. Hence, the present study explored the relationship between the WTC and VLS among Iranian EFL learners. Based on this, 137 intermediate Iranian EFL learners who were studying in a language institute in Tehran were selected as the participants of the study. They were asked to fill out two questionnaires including WTC and VLS. The finding indicated that there is a significant correlation between the two variables. The study provided some pedagogical implications for those who are concerned with language learning and teaching including language teachers, teacher trainers, syllabus designers, and EFL learners.

scholarly journals Understanding the Selection of Vocabulary Learning Strategies: The Impact of the Language Teaching Approach

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 ◽  
pp. 75
Author(s):  
Irene Castellano Risco
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Language ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Foreign Language Learners ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Instructional Programme ◽  
Selection Of

This paper presents a study on how the selection of vocabulary learning strategies is affected by the kind of instructional programme followed. A total of one hundred thirty-eight secondary-school learners – seventy-two CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) and fifty-six mainstream EFL (English as a Foreign Language) learners – took part in the study. They were asked to respond a vocabulary learning strategies questionnaire. The data were examined looking into how the use of strategies differed when comparing CLIL and EFL learners. Results permitted to develop two clear learner profiles that were compared. These findings will be discussed in relation to their possible implications for vocabulary development.

scholarly journals Exploring the Effects of Self-efficacy on Vocabulary Learning strategies

2012 ◽  
pp. 423-437 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atsushi Mizumoto
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Learning Strategies ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Vocabulary Learning ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Language Learning Strategies ◽  
Vocabulary Size ◽  
Efl Learners ◽  
Vocabulary Learning Strategies ◽  
Low Efficiency

This study examined the effects of self-efficacy on language learning strategies by focusing on vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs). A group of 281 EFL learners from two universities participated in the study. They completed the Vocabulary Size Test (Nation & Beglar, 2007), questionnaires on self-efficacy, and an open-ended question about their use of VLSs. The learners were divided into three groups based on their responses to the self-efficacy questionnaire. The effect of self-efficacy was then examined by utilizing text mining. The results show that the effects of self-efficacy were observed in the participants’ open-ended responses. It also became clear that those with high self-efficacy were active users of VLSs, they employed deep strategies, and they were metacognitively superior to participants with medium and low efficiency. Those with medium self-efficacy were also active users of VLSs, but they used shallow strategies compared with the high self-efficiency group. Those with low self-efficacy tended to be passive users of VLSs. The pedagogical implications of the current study are discussed mainly in terms of incorporating self-efficacy and self-regulation enhancing instructions into vocabulary teaching.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document