PART I : INTRODUCTION

1. Rationale

Our students are often frustrated with trying to learn new words. We cannot count how

many times the students have come up to us to express their frustration with vocabulary

when they say things like, “I have such a high level of vocabulary in my language, so it is

very frustrating that I can’t express myself as well in English. What can I do? How can I

increase my vocabulary?” or “Why is my use of this word awkward? How can I use new

words that I learn?” or “I need to use my dictionary. How can I read without using my

dictionary? - It’s too hard!” We hope by teaching them the strategies of elaboration it will

help them with learning vocabulary and minimize some of their frustrations.

Vocabulary is an essential constituent of second language acquisition and is of great

significance to language learners. Without words that are the building blocks of a

language, a speaker cannot convey the intended meaning. "Learning the most frequent 2 -

3,000 words in a language provides a firm basis of about 80 percent of the words likely to

be encountered” (Carter, 1988, p.166). Learning vocabulary is the important basis to gain

all other skills. Vocabulary deficiency leads to poor reading comprehension, poor listening

comprehension, poor writing performance, poor conversational competence and poor

grammatical knowledge. Thus, vocabulary learning is one of the major challenges foreign

language learners face during the process of learning a language. One way to alley the

burden is to assist students in becoming independent learners during the process of L2

vocabulary learning. To do this task, we have to know the strategies that the learners are

using as well as the effectiveness to teach suitable vocabulary learning strategies (VLS)

because learning strategies instruction can help “EFL learners become better learners. In

addition, skill in using learning strategies assists students in becoming independent,

confident learners” (Chamot, 1999, p.1).

Psychologists, linguists, and language teachers have been interested in VLS for a long

time. Numerous studies have been conducted comparing the retention effects of different

vocabulary presentation strategies. In fact, the vocabulary field has been especially

productive in the last two decades. We have seen a number of classic volumes on theories

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(e.g., Carter, 1987; Carter & McCarthy, 1988; Mc Carthy, 1990; Nation, 1990), researches

(e.g., Arnaud & Bejoint, 1992; Gass, 1987; Meara, 1989; Nation & Carter, 1989), and

practical tips (e.g., Gairns & Redman, 1986; McCarthy & O'Dell, 1994). Recent volumes

shed significant light upon different aspects of vocabulary acquisition include Huckin,

Haynes, and Coady (1993), Harley (1995), Hatch and Brown (1995), Coady and Huckin

(1997), Schmitt and Mc Carthy (1997), Atkins (1998), Wesche and Paribakht (1999), Read

(2000), Schmitt (2000), and Nation (2001). These researches solved the present problems.

Hence, based on the significance attributed to VLS in the process of vocabulary learning

and enhancement, this research aims at studying on the effectiveness of Cognitive

Strategies (CS) in learning vocabulary.

2. Aims of the study

The aim of this study is to introduce CS into vocabulary learning syllabus at Nghe An

Continuing Education Center (NACEC) so that we can examine the effectiveness of those

strategies and to elicit students' opinions about the application of CS. From these aims, this

study was an attempt to meet the need of the students at NACEC for an alternative way to

improve their vocabulary learning ability. It was expected that the results of this study

would serve as a useful source of reference for the teachers and administrators at NACEC.

To gain the aims which are mentioned above, this study was designed to test the following hypothesis:

H1: Students who take part in the application of CS in learning vocabulary will make more improvement in vocabulary ability than those who do not participate in such a program.

The acceptance of this hypothesis would result in the rejection to the following null hypothesis or vice versa:

H0: There is no difference in vocabulary proficiency as measured by a proficiency test between students who take part in the experiment program and those who do not.

In order to draw the conclusion on which hypothesis would be accepted, the answers to the research questions presented below would be found:

Is there a significant difference in using CS to learn vocabulary between the control group (students who do not participate in applying program of CS) and the experimental group (students who participate in the program)?

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Do CS make the students' vocabulary learning ability improved?

What are the students' opinions about CS and their suggestions for future programs?

The first and the second questions are the focal points. The answer to them would yield empirical evidence for the effectiveness of CS in learning vocabulary. The answer to the last question would provide invaluable information about students' evaluation of CS necessary for further application.

3. Scope of the study

Given the time constraint, the study was conducted on the 1st non-English students at

NACEC only. The thesis limited itself to the experimental research of CS in learning

vocabulary to find out their effectiveness. This means the study was not extended to

measure students' common VLS. Therefore, data for analysis were collected from those

students in the researcher's hope of gaining a better understanding of the issue in

consideration.

4. Method of the study

The main research method employed in this study to find out the answers to the proposed

research questions within the scope of the study is a quasi-experimental design which

involves the three basic components of experiments as presented by Selinger and

Shohamy, that is, the population (1st students at NACEC), the treatment (CS) and the

measurement of the treatment (t-test) (1989, p.136).

Beside this main method, a questionnaire was also delivered to the students taking part in

applying program of CS as a complementary tool to obtain their feedback on the program

and their suggestions for future programs.

5. Design of the study

The study comprises three main parts:

Part I: Introduction

This part discusses the rationale, aims, scope, an overview of the research method and the

design of the study.

Part II: Development

This part is divided into four chapters:

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Chapter 1: presents a brief theoretical background for the thesis

Chapter 2: presents a detailed discussion of the method used in the study with all of its

components encompassing the justification for using the quasi-experimental design, the

participants, the design of the pretest and posttest.

Chapter 3: is the most important part of the study presenting significant findings and

discussions of the study.

Chapter 4: presents some pedagogical implications derived from the main findings and

some suggested vocabulary practicing activities.

Part III: Conclusion

This part summaries the main findings and points out some limitations of the study that

serve as the basis for the researcher’s suggestions for further study.

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PART II: DEVELOPMENTCHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW

1. Language Learning Strategies

1.1. Background of Language Learning Strategies

There has been a prominent shift within the field of language learning and teaching over

the last twenty years with greater emphasis being put on learners and learning rather than

on teachers and teaching. In parallel to this new shift of interest, how learners process new

information and what kinds of strategies they employ to understand, learn or remember the

information has been the primary concern of the researchers dealing with the area of

foreign language learning. So, language learning strategies (LLS) for foreign language

learning and the teacher's role in strategy training is very important.

Research into LLS began in the 1960s. Particularly, developments in cognitive psychology

influenced much of the research done on LLS. In most of the research on LLS, the primary

concern has been on “identifying what good language learners report they do to learn a

second or foreign language, or, in some cases, are observed doing while learning a second

or foreign language.” (Rubin and Wenden 1987:19). In 1966, Aaron Carton published his

study entitled “The Method of Inference in Foreign Language Study”, which was the first

attempt on learner strategies. After Carton, in 1971, Rubin started doing research focusing

on the strategies of successful learners and stated that, once identified, such strategies

could be made available to less successful learners. Rubin classified strategies in terms of

processes contributing directly or indirectly to language learning. Wong-Fillmore (1976),

Tarone (1977), Naiman et al. (1978), Bialystok (1979), Cohen and Aphek (1981), Wenden

(1982), Chamot and O'Malley (1987), Politzer and Mc Groarty (1985), Conti and Kolsody

(1997), and many others studied strategies used by language learners during the process of

foreign language learning.

1.2. Definition of Language Learning Strategies

The term strategies, in the second-language-learning sense, has come to be applied to the

conscious moves made by second-language speakers intended to be useful in either

learning or using the L2. Strategies can be very different in nature, ranging from planning

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the organization of one's learning (a metacognitive learning strategy) through using

mnemonic devices to learn vocabulary (cognitive learning strategies) and rehearsing what

one expects to say (a performance strategy) to bolstering one's self-confidence for a

language task by means of “self-talk” (an affective strategy).

A learning strategy is a series of actions a learner takes to facilitate the completion of a

learning task. A strategy starts when the learner analyzes the task, the situation, and what is

available in his/her own repertoire. The learner then goes on to select, deploy, monitor, and

evaluate the effectiveness of this action, and decides if he needs to revise the plan and

action.

Ever since Naiman et al. (1976) noted that “good” language learners appeared to use a

larger number and range of strategies than “poor” language learners, the implications of

understanding strategy use have seemed increasingly important. However, there are still

many questions to resolve. Does strategy use actually aid language learning, or is it just

something that good learners do? Are some strategies better than others, or is it the number

and range of strategies used that counts? Are there “bad” strategies that actually making

learning or performance worse? Can “poor” language learners benefit from being taught

the strategies that “good” learners use, or do you need to be a good learner already to use

some of the strategies? Does strategy training affect language learning, and if so is the

effect direct, or does such training serve mainly to raise motivation and awareness? If

learners are encouraged to use strategies to organize their own learning, for example, what

are the implications for the role of the classroom teacher? Such issues have already

prompted a considerable volume of research and writing, and directly or indirectly made a

significant impact on language learning, at least in some places. For example, the

establishment of self-access centers and the encouragement of learner independence are

essentially based on the assumption that students will be able to use viable metacognitive

learning strategies. Ellis (1994) writes: "The study of learning strategies holds

considerable promise, both for language pedagogy and for explaining individual

differences in second language learning. It is probably true to say, however, that it is still

in its infancy. For this reason, perhaps, discussions of learning strategies typically

conclude with the problems that have surfaced and that need to be addressed before

progress can be made” (p. 558).

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So far, the term LLS has been defined by many researchers. But few seem to agree on what

a language strategy actually is (Bialystok, 1983) because each researcher has defined

strategy within the context of his or her own study. Learning strategies are defined by

O'Malley and Chamot (1990) as “special thoughts or behaviors that individuals use to

comprehend, learn, or retain new information” (p.1) while Oxford (1994) defines

strategies as “actions, behaviors, steps, or techniques students use, often unconsciously, to

improve their progress in apprehending, internalizing, and using the L2” (p.1). Rubin' s

(1987) view of strategies relates more to how they might contribute directly to L2

development, while Stern (1983), concerned more with the observability of strategies,

describes a strategy as a general approach to learning by the individual learner and

“techniques” as “particular forms of observable learning behaviors”. Richards and Platt

(1992:209) stated that learning strategies are “intentional behavior and thoughts used by

learners during learning so as to better help them understand, learn, or remember new

information”. Faerch Claus and Casper (1983:67) stress that a learning strategy is “an

attempt to develop linguistic and sociolinguistic competence in the target language”.

All language learners use LLS either consciously or unconsciously when processing new

information and performing tasks in the language classroom. Since language classroom is

like a problem-solving environment in which language learners are likely to face new input

and difficult tasks given by their instructors, learners' attempts to find the quickest or

easiest way to do what is required, that is, using LLS is inescapable.

1.3. Classification of Learning Strategies

In the 1980s and early 90s, research mainly focused on categorizing the strategies found in

the studies of the previous decade. As a result, several taxonomies were proposed to

classify them, including classifications of LLS in general and language sub-skills strategies

in particular.

One of the most famous to date that proposed by O'Malley and Chamot (1990). Their

hierarchical framework of strategies distinguishes three major strategy types:

Metacognitive Strategies

Cognitive Strategies

Socio-affective Strategies

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O'Malley and Chamot's framework of strategies has considerable intuitive appeal and

many practitioners have used this taxonomy in planning their teaching. However, O'Malley

and Chamot have never examined the construct validity of their taxonomy. As a result, it is

unclear enough to teach students and to train them to use these three separate strategies.

According to Rubin, there are three types of strategies used by learners that contribute

directly or indirectly to language learning. These are:

Learning Strategies

Communication Strategies

Social Strategies

According to Stern (1992:262-266), there are five main LLS. These are as follows:

Management and Planning Strategies

Cognitive Strategies

Communicative - Experiential Strategies

Interpersonal Strategies

Affective Strategies

It seems that among numbers of classifications of learning strategies given by

researchers, Oxford’s scheme is the most comprehensive detailed system of six strategies,

classified as direct and indirect. Oxford's (1990:17) taxonomy of LLS is shown as

following:

Direct strategies

Memory strategies

Cognitive strategies

Compensation strategies

Indirect strategies

Metacognitive Strategies   

Affective Strategies   

Social Strategies   

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It can be seen that much of the recent work in this area has been underpinned by a broad

concept of LLS that goes beyond cognitive processes to include social and communicative

strategies.

1.4. The importance of Language Learning Strategies in Language Learning and

Teaching

Bridging the gap between students’ learning styles and teachers’ teaching styles will be a

powerful means to guide students towards successful learning. Thus, teaching students

learning strategies should not be neglected. Oxford (1990) describes learning strategies as

“specific actions taken by the learners to make learning easier, faster, more enjoyable,

more self-directed, more effective, and more transferable to new situations” (p.8).

Learning strategies will compensate for the weakness of a learning style and maximize the

strengths of a learning style powerfully.

To emphasize the importance of LLS, Chamot et al. (1999) stated, “Differences between

more effective learners and less effective learners were found in the number and range of

strategies used, in how the strategies were applied to the task, and in whether they were

appropriate for the task” (p.166). Therefore, teaching learning strategies is especially

useful for the latter learners. If they can find effective strategies, they will be able to

successfully, through effective strategy teaching, students will acquire not only vocabulary

but also the way for studying.

The language learner capable of using a wide variety of LLS appropriately can improve his

language skills in a better way. According to Oxford (1990), memory strategies “help

students store and retrieve new information”, cognitive strategies “enable learners to

understand and produce new language by many different means”, compensation strategies

“allow learners to use the language despite their often large gaps in knowledge” (p.37),

metacognitive strategies “allow learners to control their own cognition - that is, to

coordinate the learning process by using functions such as centering, arranging, planning,

and evaluating”, affective strategies “help to regulate emotions, motivations, and

attitudes” and social “help students learn through interaction with other” (p.135).

Developing skills in three areas, such as metacognitive, cognitive, and socio-affective can

help the language learner build up learner independence and autonomy whereby he can

take control of his own learning. Lessard-Clouston (1997:3) states that LLS contribute to

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the development of the communicative competence of the students. Being a broad concept,

LLS are used to refer to all strategies foreign language learners use in learning the target

language and communication strategies are one type of LLS. As Oxford (1990:1) stated,

LLS “... are especially important for language learning because they are tools for active,

self-directed movement, which is essential for developing communicative competence”.

Besides developing the communicative competence of the students, teachers who train

students to use LLS can help them become better language learners. Helping students

understand good LLS and training them to develop and use such good LLS can be

considered to be the appreciated characteristics of a good language teacher. Research into

the good LLS revealed a number of positive strategies so that such strategies could also be

used by bad language learners trying to become more successful in language learning.

However, there is always the possibility that bad language learners can also use the same

good LLS while becoming unsuccessful owing to some other reasons. At this point, it

should be strongly stressed that using the same good LLS does not guarantee that bad

learners will also become successful in language learning since other factors may also play

role in success.

1.5. The factors influencing the choice of L2 learning strategies

When a person approaches a relatively challenging task, he adopts certain strategies to

solve the problem. This problem-solving process is constrained by the learning context

where the problem is being tackled. Language learning in general and vocabulary

acquisition in particular are such problem-solving tasks at different levels of complexity.

The strategies a learner uses and the effectiveness of these strategies very much depend on

the learner him/herself (e.g., attitudes, motivation, prior knowledge), the learning task at

hand (e.g., type, complexity, difficulty, and generality), and the learning environment (e.g.,

the learning culture, the richness of input and output opportunities).

Oxford (1990) synthesized existing research on how the following factors influence the

choice of strategies used among students learning a second language:

Motivation: More motivated students tended to use more strategies than less motivated

students, and the particular reason for studying the language (motivational orientation,

especially as related to career field) was important in the choice of strategies.

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Gender: Females reported greater overall strategy use than males in many studies

(although sometimes males surpassed females in the use of a particular strategy).

Cultural background: Rote memorization and other forms of memorization were more

prevalent among some Asian students than among students from other cultural

backgrounds. Certain other cultures also appeared to encourage this strategy among

learners.

Attitudes and beliefs: These were reported to have a profound effect on the strategies

learners choose, with negative attitudes and beliefs often causing poor strategy use or lack

of orchestration of strategies.

Type of task: The nature of the task helped determine the strategies naturally employed

to carry out the task.

Age and L2 stage: Students of different ages and stages of L2 learning used different

strategies, with certain strategies often employed by older or more advanced students.

Learning style: Learning style (general approach to language learning) often determined

the choice of L2 learning strategies. For example, analytic-style students preferred

strategies such as contrastive analysis, rule-learning, and dissecting words and phrases,

while global students used strategies to find meaning (guessing, scanning, predicting) and

to converse without knowing all the words (paraphrasing, gesturing).

Tolerance of ambiguity: Students who were more tolerant of ambiguity used

significantly different learning strategies in some instances than did students who were less

tolerant of ambiguity.

2. Vocabulary and Vocabulary Learning Strategies

2.1. Definition of Vocabulary

Since we all know what the words mean, why spend time defining them? Every word

refers to a concept, which exists in the memory of the listener's mind. Some concepts are

the product of nonverbal experiences. For instance, when we were very young, we saw

several kinds of animals, which other people called dogs; this formed our concept of

“dog”. Since the particular animals we saw differed from those seen by other people, our

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concept is slightly different from the concepts that other people have. On the other hand,

certain concepts are the result of verbal or written explanations by other people. Here the

explanations differed, so again our concept is not identical to that of other people. Any

concept that we have, therefore, consists of other, previously learned, concepts and these

concepts differ from person to person. So you see, no two people can have exactly the

same concept, as related to a given word.

Thus, so far there have been different definitions of vocabulary. Each linguist gives his

own definition. According to Michael Lewis (1993:89), Vocabulary "...may be individual

words, or full sentences - institutionalized utterances - that convey fixed social or

pragmatic meaning within a given community”. Peny Ur, in her book: “A course in

language teaching” defined vocabulary roughly "as the words we teach in the foreign

language. However, a new item of vocabulary may be more than a single word: a

compound of two or three words or multi-word idioms” (1996, p.60). Pyles and Algeo also

give their idea about vocabulary. They said “when most of us think about language we

think first about words. It is true that the vocabulary is the focus of language. It is in words

that we arrange together to make sentences, conversation and discourse of all kinds”

(1970, p.96).

In short, vocabulary is an essential part of language, as Wilkins emphasized this with his

saying: "without grammar, very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be

conveyed” (cited in Hoang Tat Truong 1985:1).

2.2. Vocabulary Learning Strategies

In the literature on LLS, there is no official definition for VLS. Because VLS are

considered as one part of LLS which in turn are part of general learning strategies. LLS

encourage greater overall self-direction for learners. Self-directed learners are independent

learners who are capable of assuming responsibility for their own learning and gradually

gaining confidence, involvement and proficiency. So is the case with VLS.

Oxford (1990:8) gave the working definition of VLS as “...specific behavioural or mental

actions taken by learners to make their vocabulary learning easier, faster, more enjoyable,

more self-directed, more effective, and more transferable to new situations”.

It is believed that the characteristics of learning strategies introduced by Oxford are also

true to VLS.

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2.3. Classification of Vocabulary Learning Strategies

Word knowledge is an essential component of communicative competence, and it is important for both production and comprehension in a foreign language. Knowing a word involves knowing:

A great deal about its general frequency of use, syntactic and situational limitations on its use,

Its underlying form and the forms that can be derived from it,

The network of its semantic features and,

The various meanings associated with the item.

Knowing a word is also defined as knowing its spelling, pronunciation, collocations (i.e.

words it co-occurs with), and appropriateness. Therefore, lexical competence is far more

than the ability to define a given number of words and covers a wide range of knowledge

which in turn requires a variety of strategies to gain the knowledge. Foreign language

learners may then use various strategies to acquire the target language word knowledge.

Taking this into consideration, second and foreign language researchers have made various

attempts to classify VLS employed by foreign and L2 learners. In this thesis, we used the

classification of Oxford as the main theoretical background to study:

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STRATEGIES GROUP SUB-STRATEGIES GROUP SPECIFIC STRATEGIES

Mem

ory

stra

tegi

es 1. Creating mental linkagea. Groupingb. Associating/ Elaboratingc. Placing new words into a context

2. Applying images and sounds

a. Using imageryb. Semantic mappingc. Using keywordsd. Representing sounds in memory

3. Reviewing well a. Structured reviewing

4. Employing actiona. Using physical response or sensationb. Using mechanical techniques

Cog

nitiv

e st

rate

gies

1. Practicing

a. Repeatingb. Formally practicing with sounds and writing systemsc. Recognizing and using formulas and patternsd. Recombininge. Practicing naturalistically

2. Receiving and sending messages

a. Getting the idea quicklyb. Using resources for receiving and sending messages

3. Analyzing and reasoning

a. Reasoning deductivelyb. Analyzing expressionsc. Analyzing contrastive across languagesd. Translatinge. Transferring

4. Creating structure for input and output

a. Notes-takingb. Summarizingc. Highlighting

Com

pens

atio

n st

rate

gies 1. Guessing intelligently

a. Using linguistic cluesb. Using other clues

2. Overcoming limitations in speaking and writing

a. Switching to the mother tongueb. Getting helpc. using mine or gestured. Avoiding communication partially or totallye. Selecting the topicf. Adjusting or approximating the messageg. Coining wordsh. Using a circumlocution or synonym

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Met

acog

nitiv

e st

rate

gies

1. Centering your learning

a. Over viewing and linking with already known material

b. Paying attention

c. Delaying speech

2. Arranging and planning your learning

a. Finding out about language learning

b. Organizing

c. Setting goals and objectives

d. Identifying the purpose of a language task

e. Planning for your task

f. Seeking practice opportunities

3. Evaluating your learninga. Self-monitoring

b. Self-evaluating

Aff

ectiv

e st

rate

gies

1. Lowering your anxiety

a. Using progressive relaxation, deep breathing, or meditation

b. Using music

c. Using laughter

2. Encouraging yourselfa. Making positive statementsb. Taking risks wiselyc. Rewarding yourself

3. Taking your emotional temperature

a. Listening to your bodyb. Using checklistc. Writing a language learning diaryd. Discussing your feelings with someone else

Soci

al st

rate

gies

1. Asking questionsa. Asking for clarification or verificationb. Asking for correction

2. Cooperating with others

a. cooperating with peersb. Cooperating with proficient users of the new language

3. Empathizing with others

a. Developing cultural understandingb. Becoming aware of the others' thoughts and feelings

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Table 1: Direct and Indirect learning strategies

(Adapted from Oxford 1990:18-20)

We can see the details of learning strategies from the above table. In this study, we only

chose five specific strategies of CS to apply in the experiment including Formally

practicing with sounds and writing systems; Notes-taking; Analyzing expressions;

Highlighting and Practicing naturalistically. CS belong to the direct strategies. As the

word “direct” conveys, these strategies are directly involved in learning the target

language. Oxford defines CS as “enabling learners to understand and produce new

language by many different means”. The first letters of these strategies sets create the

acronym “PRAC” as a memory aid of the essence of these strategies “CS are PRACtical

for language learning”. (Oxford, 1990:43).

3. Cognitive Strategies

3.1. Definition of Cognitive Strategies

It has long been recognized that the CS that students use when tackling learning task are a

major influence on the quality of the learning outcome. As Paris stated “People rely on CS

to promote learning, remembering and problem solving” (1998, p.299).

According to Kirby and Lavoson (1983), CS are beneficial to learning, they can be

identified and they can be developed. Indeed, CS development has provided positive

results to students of all ages and abilities (Mayo, 1993) regardless of material format and

whether strategies are used publicly or privately (Patterson, Dansereau and Newbern, 1992).

Bouffard and Dunn (1993) claimed that when an appropriate CS is shown to pupils and

they are requested to use it, motor performance usually improves.

So far, many researchers have given the definitions of CS. However, there are difficulties

in defining because there seem to be concerns for how general and incorporating the term

should be.

Some definitions argued that CS must be conscious, planned processes whilst other

definitions related to any activities that streamlined cognitive performance.

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According to Perry and Murphy (1986), Lipson and Wixon (1983), CS signify the

collection of mental tactics selected, employed and controlled by an individual in a

particular learning situation to facilitate their acquisition of knowledge or skill, and to

achieve their desired objectives. It has been further claimed that CS can be defined as

being deliberate, learner-initiated and learner-controlled (Palmer and Goetz, 1988). Thus, it

is implied that CS will not be utilized unless a pupil is motivated and deliberately attempts

to initiate and control them.

Derry and Murphy (1986) supposed that CS may be viewed as a continuum from

generality to specificity, from cognitive style and the most generalized of CS to the most

task-specific cognitive tactics.

To sum up, CS are very important to improve students’ ability. Specially, these strategies

are crucial for academic skills.

3.2. Clarifying Oxford's Cognitive Strategies

Repeating: This strategy is most often employed by most students. Students read

or write or both read and write a new word over and over again.

Formally practicing with sounds and writing systems: Students practice sounds

(pronunciation, intonation, etc) in a variety of ways but not yet in naturalistic

communication practice. Practicing the writing system of English is not a problem

for Vietnamese students because they use Roman scrip as English.

Recognizing and using formulas and patterns: Being aware of and/ or using routine

formulas (single, unanalyzed units).

Recombining: Students combine known words in new ways to produce a longer

sequence. For instance, they link one phrase with another in a whole sentence.

Practicing naturalistically: Students practice using new words in natural realistic

settings, as in participating in a conversation, reading a book, writing diary, etc.

Reasoning deductively: Students use general rules and apply them to specific

cases. For example, students can use general rules of English affixes to guess the

meaning of new English words or to facilitate their learning new words.

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Analyzing expressions: students determine the meaning of a new expression by

breaking it down into parts and using the meanings of the parts to understand the

meaning of the whole expression.

Analyzing contrastively: Students compare elements (sounds, vocabulary, etc) of

English words with those of Vietnamese to determine the similarities and

differences between them.

Translating: Students convert an English expression into Vietnamese (or the other

way round), using one language as the basis for understanding and producing

another.

Transferring: Students directly apply knowledge of words from one language to

another in order to understand or produce an expression in the new language.

Taking notes: Students take notes of specific points about a word they want to

learn.

Highlighting: Students use many techniques (underlining, circling, color-coding,

etc) to highlight the words they want to learn.

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CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY

1. Rationale for using Experimental method

As mentioned in the preceding chapter, the purpose of this study was to investigate the

effect of CS in learning vocabulary and discover students' attitudes towards the application

of CS in learning vocabulary, therefore, the best method chosen for this study was the

experimental research. The fact that this method offers the luxury that others cannot. As

Hopkins & Antes (1990, p.307) said in the strictest sense "An experiment can take place

only on a laboratory setting with the greatest possible control to study the effects of

manipulation”. And in the broadest sense "any interjection of something different into a

natural setting could be considered an experiment” (cited in Vu Thi Thanh Nha, 2006,

p.38-39).

An experimental research is an attempt by the researcher to maintain control over all factors that may affect the result of an experiment. In doing this, the researcher attempts to determine or predict what may occur. Experimental design enables the researcher to test his hypothesis by reaching valid conclusions about relationships between independent and dependent variables. It refers to the conceptual framework within which the experiment is conducted. To put it in other words, an experiment method, when done correctly, can provide a tremendous amount of power and control over the understanding of the causal relationship between variables.

According to Nunan (1992), there are three types of experiments: pre-experiment, quasi-

experiment and true-experiment. They are different from one another in terms of the

degree to which they impose control over the variables being studied and the degree of

randomness that enters into the design (Salkind, 2006, p.218).

Basing on the characteristics of different experiments in language research in combination

with the present conditions in which the study would be carried out, we decided to choose

the quasi-experiment design. A quasi-experimenter treats a given situation as an

experiment even though it is not wholly by design. The independent variable may not be

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manipulated by the researcher, treatment and control groups may not be randomized or

matched. The researcher is limited in what he or she can say conclusively. Quasi-

experimentation in educational research is widespread because not only are many

researchers also teachers, but many subjects are also students.

Moreover, the quasi-experimental design has greater external validity (more like real world

conditions) and much more feasible given time and logistical constraints. And since this

design is less intrusive and disruptive than the true-experiment design, it is easier to gain

access to the subject population and that easier to conduct such a research.

In short, the quasi-experimental design is the most practical and feasible for the researcher,

all above factors considered.

2. Participants

2.1. The students

In this study we chose the participants in the two classes in which there are 40 non-English

major students at the age of 19-22 from NACEC, including 12 males and 28 females. They

were divided into 2 groups: experimental group and control group with 20 each. These

participants were not randomly assigned because of the time limitation, expense and

accessibility. We know that it is not always feasible to carry out the study with all the

students in the population individually. Thus, we chose basing on the basis of cluster

sampling that is proved to be convenient, inexpensive and time-saving (Salkind, 2006, p. 92).

The forty students participating in this study are the first year students. Their English level

was Elementary. The most serious difficulties for them are the lack of self-learning

method, LLS and motivation. Most importantly, they emphasized the need for instructions

on how to learn better and to clear away all these problems. Before the experiment they

had finished one term of English. In the first term, the material they used was Lifelines-

Elementary (from Unit 1 to Unit 7) which is an integrated course book intended to develop

four basic language skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing and especially learning

vocabulary according to topics (For example, food and drinks, daily activities, clothes, etc).

The two groups that we chose in this study were arranged in accordance with their level of

English based on the results of their placement test.

- 20 -

To sum up, we tried to select two compatible groups for the experiment. Twenty students

in each group officially became the subjects of the research and all information about them

was gathered and analyzed in the next chapter. Despite the fact that there might be some

inevitable variables such as intelligence and characteristics which vary from person to

person, the differences between two groups were limited to minimum.

2.2. The teachers

The two instructors were the researcher herself and another teacher at NACEC. They both

have been teaching at NACEC for nearly five years. Before the experiment period, they

were arranged to meet and discuss the methods, contents, outcomes and time allocation for

the experiment.

3. Materials and Data Collection Instruments

3.1. Materials

Course book: The participants taking part in this study used Lifelines-Elementary as the

main course book. This course book is divided into fourteen topic-based units presenting

and practicing vocabulary and grammar, as well as developing the four language skills

(Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking). After every two units, there is an extension to

check the learnt knowledge.

The interesting feature of this course book is that Vocabulary is learnt according to topics.

It means that there are 14 topics corresponding with 14 units:

- Unit 1: Numbers - Unit 8: Giving dates

- Unit 2: Classroom language - Unit 9: Verbs

- Unit 3: Describing people - Unit 10: Travel

- Unit 4: Time - Unit 11: Clothes

- Unit 5: Food and drinks - Unit 12: Parts of the body

- Unit 6: Daily activities - Unit 13: Phrasal verbs

- Unit 7: Parts of a house - Unit 14: The world

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Because of the time limitation, the researcher only chose two units (Unit 11 and Unit 12)

to do the experiment for this study. Each unit was taught within nine periods.

Handouts: In the experiment group, handouts were designed by the researcher herself and

delivered to the students as student-training worksheets. Each of the worksheets provided

the students what it meant by the term "Cognitive Strategies”.

Projector: This is a supplementary tool in teaching and learning which help teachers to

teach more successfully. In this study, the researcher used activities on web-sites. So,

projector is really useful and create positive atmosphere and motivation in learning

classroom.

3.2. Data Collection Instruments

This study employed both quantitative and qualitative methods including pre-test (at the

beginning of the experiment), post-test (at the end of the experiment) and questionnaire to

collect data with the aims of investigating the effect of CS in learning vocabulary.

3.2.1. Tests

In the researches and in language acquisition, tests are used to check students' vocabulary

ability and knowledge. Thus, in order to know students' results exactly, teachers must

design good tests. The question is: What is a good test? It should have five main

characteristics: validity, reliability, discrimination, practicality and backwash.

To ensure those characteristics of the test, both pre-test and post-test in this study were

taken from Building skills for the TOEFL IBT Beginning by Adam Worcester - Lark

Bowereman - Eric Williamson and English pronunciation in use by Mark Hancock. This is

because these two books are considered a standardized source. So, they are widely

accepted to be highly valid and reliable in measuring one's language proficiency.

The pre-test and post-test used in this study were in fact two versions of the same test. The

use of the same test before and after the experiment treatment was to measure exactly the

difference that may have been caused by that treatment. However, to minimize the possible

effect of the test familiarity on the students' gains between the two test administrations,

some items of the first version of the pre-test were reordered for the second use (post-test).

3.2.2. Questionnaire

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Questionnaires are also the effective instrument for collecting data in this study. According

to Brown (2000) “Questionnaires are any written instruments that present respondents

with a series of questions or statements to which they are to react either by writing out

their answers of selecting from among existing answers”. This makes questionnaire data

particularly suited for quantitative, statistical analysis. With questionnaires, the

experimenter can employ categories, viewpoints and models that have been precisely

defined in advance then determine the relationship between these categories and to test the

research hypotheses from numerical or directly quantifiable data. However, the data from

questionnaires are ideal because the participants can have some time to think about the

answers, which may reflect reliable facts.

The questionnaire in this study was used at the end of the experiment (post-program

questionnaire). This questionnaire aimed at investigating students' attitudes and comments

towards the application of CS in learning vocabulary. The questionnaire took 15 minutes to

complete. It focused on three parts: (1) the students' opinions about the application of CS

in learning vocabulary including 10 statements in which each statement students could

choose one of the two cases: Y = Yes; N = No; (2) the students' preference towards five

specific strategies (arranged in the order of the level of the students' preference); and (3)

the students' ideas and suggestions to make the application of CS in learning vocabulary

more enjoyable and useful in the next school year (five suggestions were given so that

students could choose Agree or Disagree). The information and results collected from this

questionnaire were valuable. As a result, the researcher had a reliable basis to decide

whether or not to go on applying CS in the future.

3.3. Data collection procedures

The experiment was conducted for eight weeks. During the experiment, the researcher

herself directly taught the experimental group and another teacher taught the control group

(under the researcher’s observation). In order to collect sufficient information about the

students' VLS or techniques through the application of CS as well as their attitudes towards

this, the researcher exploited a pre-test, a post-test and a questionnaire. Here below is the

procedure of the study:

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At the beginning of the experiment, a pre-test was given to both groups. The primary

goal of the pre-test was to measure and compare the two groups in term of the students’

English vocabulary stock. This pre-test was administered on the same day with the

researcher and another teacher and scored by the teacher-researcher.

During the experiment, the experimental group was introduced and explained about CS,

they were also taught the main five specific strategies. In addition, designed activities were

provided in order to help students understand and use the five specific strategies in CS.

They are:

Formally practicing with sounds and writing systems

Analyzing expressions

Practicing naturalistically

Notes-taking

Highlighting

Whereas students from the control group received traditional teaching methods. The

traditional method aims at teaching English by giving word-for-word, phrase-for-phrase or

sentence-for-sentence equivalents in the mother tongue for English words, phrases or

sentences and vice versa. This has been the most popular method with the language teacher

as well as with the learners. But the main objection to this method is that it ignores the

activeness of the learners.

At the end of the experiment period, both of the groups underwent a post-test. This post-

test was also administered under the supervision of the two teachers and scored by the

teacher-researcher. After that, the test results were compared to identify the improvement

in students' proficiency of vocabulary.

Finally, the post-program questionnaire on students' attitudes was distributed to show the

effectiveness and usefulness of the application of CS in learning vocabulary through the

experiment.

3.4. Data analysis

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3.4.1. Tests analysis

All test papers after that were collected and marked, the scores from the pre-test and post-

test were calculated to compare and find out Means (M), standard deviation (SD), Degree

of Freedom (df), Statistic value (tstat), Probability (P), Critical Value (tCrit) using the

Independent t-test which is a commonly used of significance. The t-test is used for

differences between means of two groups to determine whether the treatment caused the

experimental group to score higher than the control. The Independent t-test was done on a

computer using the Excel Spreadsheet Program. This is probably the most widely used

statistical test of all time, and certainly the most widely known. It is simple,

straightforward, easy to use, and adaptable to a broad range of situations. No statistical

toolbox should ever be without it.

3.4.2. Questionnaire survey analysis

Questionnaire at the post-experiment stage were calculated and analyzed in order to

identify differences in the students' opinions about the application of CS in learning

vocabulary. In part 1 and part 3, we calculated by percentage (%) and part 2 was calculated

to find out and compare M and SD.

3.5. Summary

This chapter has presented the methodological framework of the study including the

justification for the use of quasi-experimental design in this study, the discussion of all the

participants, materials (pre-test, post-test and questionnaire) used as tools of collecting

data.

The next two chapters, which are the most important in this study, will be exhibiting the

findings of the study as well as the pedagogical implications and suggestions for further

studies as the result of the discussion of those findings.

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CHAPTER 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS

1. The results of the tests on Vocabulary - A contrast between the

experimental group and control group.

To research the effectiveness of CS in learning vocabulary between the experimental group

and control group, a pre-test and a post-test were used to measure students' vocabulary

proficiency before and after the experiment. Thus, the results of these tests were analyzes

using the Excel Spread Program to calculate the Independent t-test.

1.1. The results and discussion of the pre-test scores of the two groups.

The pre-test results of all the students’ test papers were divided into four levels: weak (1 -

4 scores); medium (5 - 6 scores); good (7 - 8 scores); and the best excellent (9 - 10 scores)

as can be seen from table 2 below:

Table 2: The pre-test scores of the two groups

The Experimental Group The Control Group

1. Weak students 2 10% 3 15%

2. Medium students 9 45% 7 35%

3. Good students 9 45% 10 50%

4. Best students 0 0% 0 0%

TOTAL 20 100% 20 100%

Table 3 and 4 show some descriptive statistics of the results gained by both groups in the

pre-test. The means, modes and medians for the pre-test scores in both groups are quite

close to one another. The scores ranged from 3 to 8 in both groups. And both had no best

students due to the fact that no students in each group reached a score > = 9.

- 26 -

Table 3: Descriptive statistics for the pre-test scores of the two groups

Descriptive statistics Experimental group Control group

M 6.2 6

Mode 6 7

Median 6 6.5

Low 3 3

High 8 8

Range 5 5

SD 1.32 1.34

On the whole, it can be said that there was almost no significant difference between the

two groups' pre-test scores. This was confirmed when looking at table 4 in detail. The pre-

test scores of the experimental group and control group were analyzed using Independent t-

test calculated by Excel Spreadsheet Program.

Table 4: Comparison of t-value in the pre-test within groups

  Experimental Control

M 6.2 6

Variance 1.75 1.79

N 20 20

Hypothesized Mean Difference 0

df 38

tstat 0.48

P(T<=t) two-tail 0.64

t Critical two-tail 2.02

- 27 -

From the table 4, the mean scores of the experimental group and the control group were

6.2 and 6.0 respectively. Although the mean scores in the pre-test of the experimental

group were a little higher than those of the control group and p value > 0.05 (p = 0.64),

then the difference was not significant (tstat = 0.48 < tcrit = 2.02, df = 38). This confirms the

conclusion that no significant difference existed between the two groups at the beginning

of the experiment. In other words, the two groups participating in the study had almost the

same level of vocabulary ability at the onset of the experiment.

1.2. The results and discussion of the post-test scores of the two groups.

After 8 weeks of the experiment, both groups were given a post-test which was the same as

the pre-test. However, to minimize the possible effect of the test familiarity on the students'

gains between the two test administrations, some items of the first version of the pre-test

were reordered for the second use. The scores of the two groups are presented in Table 5

below:

Table 5: The post-test scores of the two groups

The Experimental Group The Control Group1. Weak students 0 0% 1 5%2. Medium students 4 20% 7 35%3. Good students 9 45% 11 55%4. Best students 7 35% 1 5%TOTAL 20 100% 20 100%

According to Table 5, the results of the post-test of the two groups were higher than those

of the pre-test. There was no weak student in the experimental group and only one in the

control group had weak score. The percentage of medium and good students in the control

group was higher than in the experimental group. However, the best students in the

experimental group increased significantly (seven students) whereas only one student in

the control group.

The descriptive statistics (Table 6) indicates that there was a difference from the two

groups. After the experiment, M, Modes and Medians of the two groups increased. M of

the experimental group was 7.75 while the control group had a mean of 6.65. Modes and

- 28 -

Medians of the experimental group were higher than those of the control group. Thus, it

was found that both groups generally made certain improvements after the experiment as

indicated by the higher M, Modes, and Medians for the post-test scores than their pre-test.

Table 6: Descriptive statistics for the post-test scores of the two groups

Descriptive statistics Experimental group Control group

M 7.75 6.65

Mode 9 7

Median 8 7

Low 6 4

High 10 9

Range 4 5

SD 1.25 1.09

At a glance of these tables, it could be assumed that the experimental group made greater

improvements than the control group. However, such assumption needs to be validated

with further statistical calculations, which are presented in table 7 below:

Table7: Comparison of t-value in the post-test within groups

Experimental Control

M 7.75 6.65

Variance 1.57 1.19

N 20 20

Hypothesized Mean Difference 0

df 38

ttat 2.97

P(T<=t) two-tail 0.005

t Critical two-tail 2.02

- 29 -

As we have said, it is revealed in Table 7 that the mean gain of the experimental group was

higher than that of the control group (7.75 compared to 6.65). Although the gains made by

the experimental group seemed to be more heterogeneous than those of the control group

as its standard deviation value is shown in the table to be higher (1.25 compared to 1.09),

the difference between the mean gains made by the two groups proved to be significant

(tstat = 2.97 > tcrit = 2.02, df = 38, p < 0.05).

In sum, this study has provided a strong case for the conclusion that CS had positive effect

on the students’ vocabulary proficiency. In other words what can be inferred from those

findings above at the end of the experiment is that both the experimental group and control

group showed certain progress in their vocabulary ability. However, the improvements

made by the experimental students who took part in the application of CS in learning

vocabulary were significantly greater than those made by the control group. And this

difference, as we had expected, answered the first two research questions stated in 2 (part I).

2. The results and discussion of questionnaire.

A post-program questionnaire was administered to the experimental subjects in order to

gather their opinions and suggestions of CS. There are three categories: their attitudes

towards the program as a whole, their preference of the five specific strategies and their

suggestions for the future program which may help to give further explanation for the

vocabulary tests obtained by the experimental group. The findings are presented in the

following subsections.

2.1. Subjects' attitudes towards Cognitive Strategies

As can be seen in the following Table, ten items were involved in investigating the

experimental subjects' attitudes towards CS. To achieve the validity and reliability of

participants' responses, both positive and negative statements were used. Among the

statements, the five ones were to examine subjects' motivation and interest, and the rest on

the effect of vocabulary acquisition.

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Table 8: Experimental subjects' attitudes towards Cognitive Strategies

No STATEMENTS Y N1. Cognitive Strategies didn't give me more pleasure in learning English

Vocabulary.4

20%16

80%2. I wish I had been encouraged to use Cognitive Strategies before. 15

75%5

25%3. If I had been given a choice, I wouldn't have participated in this

experiment.5

25%15

75%4. If this program does not continue in the following school-year, I will

keep on applying Cognitive Strategies.17

85%3

15%5. I like the vocabulary practicing activities that the teacher gave in order

to help students to use Cognitive Strategies well.19

95%1

5%6. My background knowledge has been widened due to Cognitive

Strategies.16

80%4

20%7. Cognitive Strategies didn't help to expand my English vocabulary. 2

10%18

90%8. Cognitive Strategies helped me to learn vocabulary faster and more

effectively.14

70%6

30%9. The application of Cognitive Strategies in learning vocabulary

improved the other language skills.16

80%4

20%10. I was confident saying that I now have better knowledge of words. 15

75%5

25%

Based on the result shown in the table, the majority of the subjects indicated that CS

promoted their pleasure in learning vocabulary. Most of them also expressed their

enjoyment of having taken part in the program as well as applying CS in the future.

Specially, it was surprising to find that most of them (95%) liked the vocabulary practicing

activities that the teacher gave.

As for the subjects' evaluation of the program in relation with their vocabulary knowledge.

The table also shown that 80% of them confirmed CS helped to widen their background

- 31 -

knowledge and improve the other language skills. And the majority of the subjects (75%)

indicated their confidence in gaining knowledge of words better. Most of them supposed

that they learnt vocabulary faster and more effectively than before because of CS.

In sum, the result of the first part of the questionnaire has revealed that almost all the

experimental subjects seemed to have good attitudes towards CS. It can be inferred that

this program, despite its first implementation, was welcome by the students that lays the

foundation of the future program.

The next sub-section will be investigating their preference of the five specific strategies of

CS.

2.2. Subjects' preference of Cognitive Strategies

There were five specific strategies included in CS that we used to train and help students in

learning vocabulary in the experiment program. In fact, CS have a lot of specific strategies,

however, eight weeks were too short to conduct all the strategies that are expected to have

positive effects on the students' learning attitudes and proficiency. This, as a result,

requires careful consideration and selection of strategies of students' interest. The second

section of the questionnaire was designed to find out which strategies were interesting and

motivating to the students. The result is presented in Table 9 below:

Table 9: Experimental subjects' preference of Cognitive Strategies

ACTIVITIES 1 2 3 4 5 M SD

1. Analyzing expressions 1 3 5 5 6 3.60 1.23

2. Formally practicing with sounds and writing systems

2 2 1 6 9 3.90 1.37

3. Highlighting 8 6 3 3 0 2.05 1.10

4. Practicing naturalistically 2 2 11 3 2 3.05 1.05

5. Notes-taking 7 7 0 3 3 2.40 1.50

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The five specific strategies of CS involved different skills in order to motivate students

during the program, were supposed to attract the subjects of different interests.

During the experiment program, we recognized that the two strategies Highlighting and

Notes-taking made students more interested and pay much attention. So, it is not too

surprising that the result indicated Highlighting (M = 2.05) and Notes-taking (M = 2.40)

were chosen with the majority of the students. With M = 3.60 and M = 3.90, Analyzing

expressions and Formally practicing with sounds and writing systems were ranked the

forth and fifth positions on the scale of preference. Taking the middle point on the scale

was Practicing naturalistically.

2.3. Subjects' suggestions for future program

The last section of the questionnaire was aimed at exploiting suggestions and

recommendations for applying CS in the future from the subjects who had had some first-

hand experiences of such a program.

Table 10: Experimental subjects' suggestions for future program

No SUGGESTIONS A D

1. Students should be encouraged to use Cognitive Strategies more frequently.

15

75%

5

25%

2. The teacher should give more activities to help students practice these Cognitive Strategies.

4

20%

16

80%

3. Instructions to Cognitive Strategies should be explained more clearly and understandable.

3

15%

17

85%

4. Cognitive Strategies should be combined with other Vocabulary Learning Strategies to bring more effectiveness.

9

45%

11

55%

5. Cognitive Strategies should be applied to teaching and learning the other language skills.

18

90%

2

10%

Like any other experiment programs, this one is sure to exist the negative ideas from the

participants. However, the result indicated that most of the subjects were interested and

- 33 -

satisfied with vocabulary practicing activities provided by the teacher (80%) as well as the

clear explanation of CS (85%). Moreover, they found more motivated due to more

encouragement they received. Thus, the majority of the subjects (75%) hoped to be

encouraged to use CS more frequently in next school years. And, although CS are highly

evaluated, however, it suggested that they should be combined with other VLS to bring

about more effectiveness.

It’s surprising that 90% of the subjects wished to apply CS not only in learning vocabulary

but also in learning the other language skills. This is an interesting and valuable

suggestion. Because this affirmed that students understood and used CS successfully and

effectively.

In short, all the main findings of the study that have been discussed in detail in this section

answered to the last research question.

3. Summary

In short, this chapter has presented the major findings of the study based on the data

gathered during the program. These include the results of comparing vocabulary learning

proficiency through CS in the pre-test and post-test between the experimental group and

control group, of investigating the subjects' attitudes towards CS as well as their

suggestions for the future program. On the whole, the students in the experimental group

were found to outperform those in the control group in vocabulary test with a higher mean

score. Last but not least, almost all the experiment subjects had positive attitudes towards

CS although some suggestions were made on some aspects of the program. These findings

are valuable to the pedagogical implications displayed in the last chapter of this study.

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CHAPTER 4: IMPLICATIONS

In the present paper, it was argued that vocabulary is an important ingredient of language

and vocabulary learning is an essential part of second or foreign language learning.

Language learners need a wide array of target language words to be able to tackle

successfully both production and comprehension activities in the second or foreign

language. One way to help learners to enhance their knowledge of L2 vocabulary is

equipping learners with a variety of vocabulary learning strategies. Different taxonomies

have thus been proposed, and some of which were discussed in the previous paper. The

significance attributed to vocabulary learning strategies and to training students in the

strategies they lack may have the following implications for EFL teachers:

First of all, teachers should think of ways to provide less successful learners with

vocabulary learning strategies. This should be done by making them aware of the need to

become independent learners by recognizing the strategies they possess and those they

lack. Secondly, learner’s attention should also be directed toward the strategies successful

learners benefit from. Besides, EFL teachers should make learners practice a wide range of

vocabulary learning strategies ranging from decontextualized and mechanical strategies to

contextualized ones. This enables learners to deal with any unknown vocabulary they may

encounter both in and out of class context. Teachers need to bear in mind that individual

learners may vary on the basis of which strategies they consider more useful and they

apply more frequently. Thus, teachers may first need to have an appraisal of learner’s

belief regarding VLS and then try to help them gradually realize the value of other types of

strategies.

1. Suggested effective vocabulary learning strategies

In this part, we want to introduce two specific strategies that we applied to help students to

learn English vocabulary (these two strategies were used with the most reference):

- 35 -

1.1. Highlighting strategy

The Highlighting strategy is a strategy in which many techniques (underlining, circling,

color-coding, etc) are used to highlight the words they want to learn.

There are three steps to train the Highlighting strategy:

Step 1: Introducing of the Highlighting Strategy

Step 2: Modeling the Highlighting strategy

Step 3: Scaffolding the Highlighting Strategy

There are numerous ways to use this strategy to enhance learning of all students - not just

those with “problems learning”. Here are some suggestions for using highlighting:

Word finds are more “fun” when students are encouraged to use highlighters. Bonus

----

Highlight the directions of any written assignment in a workbook or on a worksheet. 

Bonus - ensures the students had to at least “look at the directions”.  We also use this as a

check when a student claims “I don't know what to do”. We ask them to highlight the

directions and then see us.  Most of the time, students are able to figure out the directions. 

We then give praise for following directions.

Students highlight words they are unsure of in their textbooks.  Later they meet with a

study-buddy to figure out the word's meaning. (Note - there are highlighters you can

purchase that “rub off”).

Encourage students to highlight difficult (or easy) parts of spelling words. Highlighting

draws a person's attention - thus can be very useful when studying spelling words - i.e.

highlight all irregular vowel patterns, digraphs, or whatever the lesson is accentuating.

Young readers delight in finding all the silence's on a worksheet.

Good readers have stated that they make “mental notes” as they read unknown words.  

Poor readers probably need highlighters to accentuate such unknown words for further

study.  Even good readers do not like to stop reading to look up the meaning of a word.

Efficient readers will “make a note” to find out what that word means later.  Highlighting

- 36 -

encourages poor readers to expand their vocabulary just like the efficient reader does

without being told.

For math computation, highlighters are GREAT to help students pay attention to

computation signs, steps to follow to solve problems, key words that might indicate the

operation to use for word problems, etc.

Generally speaking, when emerging readers read, they skip over or ignore words they don't

know or don't understand.  Highlighting such words as they read cues them to go back later

and decipher the meaning of the selection if they are unable to use context clues to figure

out the word as they read past the unknown word.

This is a powerful strategy. Students can complete the reading selection and hopefully

decipher the gist of the selection and then reread specific selections they misunderstood.

When you explain the WHY of using highlighting, it encourages students to use this

method more willingly.

1.2. Notes-taking strategies

Notes are a brief record of important information, facts, or thoughts written to help you

remember what you have read or heard. In the classroom setting, students may be asked to

write notes on what they learn in a lecture or presentation, what they read in a portion of

text, or what they observe in an audio-visual presentation. Notes-taking as an important

skill that is often considered critical for academic success.

Although notes-taking is a common strategy in the classroom, it should not be assumed

that students are familiar with various notes-taking. Teachers should ensure that students

are exposed to note-taking strategies and should provide modeling to help students develop

their own skills. Successful notes-taking involves attentiveness, listening skill,

concentration, writing skills, and general motivation to learn. In other words, notes-taking

may be hard word, but the efforts result in better recall and improve academic success.

There are a number of notes-taking strategies that can be used, depending on the nature of

individual student preferences. Whatever method is used, a systematic and organized

- 37 -

approach is critical. Note pages should have a title and should include a page number and

date for easy reference. Notes should be kept in a notebook or a binder section designated

for specific subject. Since the purpose of notes-taking is to aid memory, students should

prepare for class by reviewing the previous day’s notes and should look over new notes

immediately after class to fill in any gaps and identify any questions that may arise.

1.2.1. The importance of notes-taking

Notes-taking develops a sense of listening, allowing the reader to recognize main words

and ideas and to understand the organization of the material.

Not only does the student record significant facts but the lecturer's emphases and

perspectives are recorded as well.

Lecture notes provide the clearest and best indication of what the student should

encounter on the exam.

Taking lecture notes in class keeps the student's attention focused on the lecture, thereby

increasing concentration, retention and understanding.

Notes-taking in class makes the student an active participant in the learning process

rather than a passive listener or daydreamer.

Notes-taking in class means, most significantly, that you are present in class, a most

honorable action to take as a serious student.

Taking notes helps the student sort out important information - by synthesizing and

beginning the actual learning process the student is actually making the material his own.

The notes taken will become a study aid, an external memory device, and an instrument

to aid in review and recitation. This process leads to long-term learning.

1.2.2. Tips when taking notes

Five Important Reasons to Take Notes:

It triggers basic lecturing processes and helps you to remember information.

It helps you to concentrate in class.

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It helps you prepare for tests.

Your notes are often a source of valuable clues for what information the instructor thinks

most important (i.e., what will show up on the next test).

Your notes often contain information that cannot be found elsewhere (i.e., in your

textbook).

1.2.3. Helpful techniques for notes-taking

Try to take notes in lists of one line.

Use margins to keep a key to important names, dates, etc on one side and the outline on

the other.

Use abbreviations and symbols wisely for commonly occurring words and names. It will

increase your notes-taking speed.

Use diagrams, pictures or web where necessary.

Listen for cues such as transitional words, repetition of certain phrases, etc.

Create topic headings and indent subtopics.

Develop your own system and own abbreviations. You can even create abbreviations

with your native language if it is more effective.

One of the best note taking systems is called the Cornell system. This system consists of 5

steps:

Step 1: Record - During the lecture, record in the main column as many meaningful facts

and ideas as you can. Write legibly.

Step 2: Reduce - As soon after as possible, summarize these facts and ideas concisely in

the Cue Column. Summarizing clarifies meanings and relationships, reinforces continuity,

and strengthens memory.

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Step 3: Recite - Cover the Notes-Taking area, using only your jottings in the Cue Column,

say over the facts and ideas of the lecture as fully as you can, not mechanically, but in your

own words. Then, verify what you have said.

Step 4: Reflect - Draw out opinions from your notes and use them as a starting point for

your own reflections on the course and how it relates to your other courses. Reflection will

help prevent ideas from being inert and soon forgotten.

Step 5: Review - Spend 10 minutes every week in quick review of your notes, and you will

retain most of what you have learned.

To sum up, learning new vocabulary is a challenge to foreign language students but they

can overcome by having access to a variety of VLS. Learners should then be trained in

strategies they lack. To this end, teachers should consider the learners’ willingness and

readiness to receive trainings and think of the most appropriate way to introduce the

strategies.

2. Suggested Vocabulary Practicing Activities

In this part, we would like to introduce some vocabulary practicing activities used to teach

Unit 11 and Unit 12 in the experiment with the topics: Parts of the body and Clothes (see

the appendix 1).

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PART III: CONCLUSION

1. Summary of the main findings

This study investigated the effectiveness of CS in learning vocabulary. The experiment

was conducted at Nghe An Continuing Education Center on a group of 20 second-year

students who were learning English as a second foreign language. As stated in 2 (Part I),

the study was conducted with a view to testing empirically the research hypothesis that are

repeated herein for convenience.

H1: Students who take part in the application of CS in learning vocabulary will make more

improvement in vocabulary ability than those who do not participate in such a program.

H0: There is no difference in vocabulary proficiency as measured by a proficiency test

between students who take part in the experiment program and those who do not.

The acceptation of either hypothesis will lead to the rejection to the other. To reach the

final decision, a vocabulary proficiency test was administered before and after the

experiment. The analysis of the test results gained by both experimental and control groups

has revealed significant and meaningful findings related to the research questions. Firstly,

it has been proved empirically that the mean score gained by the experimental group in the

vocabulary proficiency test was significantly higher than that gained by the control group.

Secondly, the application of CS in learning vocabulary proved to have positive effect on

the students’ attitudes. All of these answers to the research questions enable us to reject the

null hypothesis.

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It means that there exits a significant improvement in vocabulary proficiency through CS

as measured by a proficiency test between students who took part in the experiment and

those who follow the traditional method. Besides, a questionnaire was used at the end of

the experiment with the aim of investigating students' attitudes and comments towards the

application of CS in learning vocabulary. The results of this questionnaire support the

conclusion that CS encouraged the students’ interest and motivation and they had positive

effect on students’ vocabulary proficiency.

The results of the study pointed to some implications and suggestions for English

vocabulary teaching and learning. Possibly they do not bring the effectiveness in all cases

(because of students’ level, motivation, age, gender, etc), but it is the researcher’s firm

belief that this study will make some positive changes to improve students’ vocabulary

proficiency.

2. The limitations and suggestions for further study

In spite of the significant findings that validated the acceptance of the tested hypothesis of

the effect of CS in learning vocabulary, it should be admitted that in this study also exists

the unavoidable limitations.

The first limitation is attributed to the sample size of the study. As presented in chapter 2,

the study involved two groups of 40 students in total. Hence, the number of subjects who

received the experimental treatment was only 20. Although their scores that were used for

analysis proved to be approximately normally distributed, this narrow range of students

prevent us, to some extent, from getting a full idea of the effect of CS in learning

vocabulary at varying levels of proficiency. Therefore, we do not know yet whether

students at high levels than those in this study would make any progress if they take part in

such a program.

Another limitation of the study may arise due to the time constraint as can be seen in

several experimental studies. The experiment program for this study only lasted within 8

weeks, although the findings pointed out that the students who take part in the experiment

program made more improvement in learning vocabulary as measured by a proficiency test

than those who did not participate in such a program. However, this time limitation made it

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impossible for the research to conduct a pilot study on the participants’ background such as

their personality characteristics, motivation, learning preferences and beliefs. All of these

factors, which are put under the umbrella term of affective filter by Krashen (1982), have

been widely assumed to affect learners’ language learning and acquisition.

Also because of the time limitation, although CS have a lot of sub-strategies as well as

specific strategies, the researcher only introduced five specific strategies that were suitable

with the researcher’s study purpose as well as the students’ level and learning program.

Therefore, for further study, the researcher will make the experiment with a large number

of CS.

Given the limitations of this study, further research is needed to gain a better understanding

of the issue related to CS. Future studies can be conducted on students at all levels to look

for a better way of teaching and learning English vocabulary. It is suggested that a true

experimental study should be undertaken on a large sample size involving the whole

spectrum of language ability from new beginners to those with the highest levels of

proficiency. Such a study would help us to get a full idea of the impact of CS in learning

vocabulary.

The results of the questionnaire used as a supplementary tool for the main research method

of the study showed that CS was found to have certain effects in learning vocabulary.

Although this finding is just the students’ subjective opinion, it may intrigue future study

into the effect of CS in learning other skills than vocabulary.

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http://iteslj.org/Articles/Hismanoglu-Strategies.html

http://www.britishcouncil.org/kids-songs.htm

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