Using the Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy Plus to Develop University EFL Students’ Vocabulary Learning

Manal Mohamed Khodary

doi:10.5539/elt.v10n8p135

Abstract

This study was carried out to examine the effectiveness of using the Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy Plus (VSSPlus) on developing university EFL students’ vocabulary learning. It adopted the quasi experimental design which included two groups design. The participants were first level students at Languages and Translation Department, Arar Faculty of Education and Arts, Northern Border University, KSA. They formed two groups: an experimental group (n = 40) and a control one (n = 40). Both groups were pre-tested by using the pre Vocabulary Achievement Test (VAT) for equivalence in vocabulary prior to the treatment. The researcher taught the experimental group throughout the sessions that based on using the VSSPlus in vocabulary learning and she taught vocabulary to the control group by using the Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy (VSS). Then, the researcher post tested the two groups by using the post VAT and she used the t-test to calculate the differences between the mean scores of the pre and post VAT. The results revealed that a statistically significant difference was found between the mean scores of the experimental group and the control group on the post VAT in favor of the experimental group. The results also showed that a statistically significant difference was found in the mean scores of the experimental group between the pre and post VAT in favor of the post VAT. Therefore, it was concluded that the experimental group outperformed the control group on the post VAT as a result of receiving training on the VSSPlus. It was also concluded that the experimental group performed better on the post VAT than the pre VAT because the VSSPlus helped them develop vocabulary. Some recommendations and suggestions for further research were provided.

Highlights

1.1 Background to the StudyVocabulary is regarded as an important aspect in language learning
The result showed that the mean score of the experimental group on the post Vocabulary Achievement Test (VAT) was 37.92 with a standard deviation of 2.38, whereas the mean score of the control group on the post VAT was 23.53 with a standard deviation of 2.64 This result indicated that the difference in the mean scores between the experimental group and the control group on the post VAT was statistically significant (t = 25.62, p < 0.05)
The results indicated that the experimental group developed vocabulary on the post VAT and performed better than they did on the pre VAT as a consequence of being exposed to the training sessions which based on the use of the Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy Plus (VSSPlus) in vocabulary learning.They revealed that the VSSPlus proved to be an appropriate and effective strategy used for vocabulary development

Summary

Introduction

1.1 Background to the StudyVocabulary is regarded as an important aspect in language learning. It is a unique constituent that connects the four language skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing together It has an essential role in learning a Foreign Language (FL) (Kabiri & Ghafoori, 2014). The possessing of a good amount and right knowledge of vocabulary achieves a significant role in people's lives and future potentials (Godwin, 2010). It is important for learners of a FL to attain a rich amount of comprehensible vocabulary in order to be able to communicate well using the target language (Dolati & Mikaili, 2011). The Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy Plus (VSSPlus) is an after reading strategy and a variant of the Vocabulary Self-Collection Strategy (VSS) with the addition of various technological tools to cope with the requirements of learning in our recent digital era and to enable students to achieve deep comprehension of the terms provided in the selected text (Wolsey, Smetana, & Grisham, 2015)

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion