L2 vocabulary

This experimental study attempts to see whether incorporating supplemental podcasts into the blended module of second language (L2) vocabulary teaching and learning leads to better learning outcomes in comparison with other common teaching and learning methods as self-study and conventional. To that end, undergraduate students from Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences were summoned up via an announcement to take part in the study. Volunteers were homogenized via Vocabulary Levels Test (VLT) and were then randomly divided into three groups to learn English vocabulary items via three different scenarios during 32 sessions. The collected data from the participants’ answers to the attitude questionnaire and interview as well as the data from assessing their performance throughout the course were analyzed both descriptively and inferentially. The analysis of the data revealed that the podcast-mediated blended L2 learning scenario appeared as the most successful scenario in L2 vocabulary learning. Consequently, it could be concluded that providing miscellaneous practicing opportunities for students would facilitate learning process and contribute to learning improvement.

As Schmidt (2008) states, deeper engagement with new vocabulary as induced by tasks clearly increases the chances of learning those words. This engagement is theoretically clarified by the involvement load hypothesis (ILH, Laufer and Hulstijn, 2001), based on which the involvement index of each task can be measured. The present study was designed to test ILH by evaluating the impact of 4 different reading-based tasks on vocabulary acquisition and retention. Investigating learners' beliefs about the use and effect of the tasks they performed has been another concern of this study. To this end, 120 female and male English undergraduates, attending Reading Comprehension 4 at the Islamic Azad University of Najaf Abad took part in the experiment. There were 4 intact classes that received 4 different tasks randomly. The first class completed an input-oriented task (multiple-choice questions or MCQ) with an ILI of 2. The second class completed an output-oriented task (sentence making or SM) with an ILI of 3. The third class completed an input-oriented task (multiple choice cloze test or MCT) with an ILI of 2, and the fourth group completed an output-oriented task (blank-filling or BF) with the same involvement load as that of the second class. The results showed that all tasks were conductive in vocabulary learning and retention. However the SM task was found to be the most effective of all. The task effectiveness which was asked through an interview with some of the participants, chosen randomly from each group, was in line with the above mentioned results. In other words, participants agreed that reading-related tasks could facilitate L2 vocabulary acquisition and retention. Concerning their opinions about task type, they found SM easier and more conductive to vocabulary learning and retention. The findings of this research could attract EFL and ESL teachers' attention to utilize the same task types in their classes in the form of class activities and could provide EFL and ESL students with an effective way of vocabulary learning and retention.                                         

This study was carried out to explore the effects of a mobile application on the learning of L2 grammar and vocabulary among Iranian intermediate EFL learners. In this research study, the target population comprised 30 male and female EFL learners who were identified at the intermediate level of language proficiency based on their performance scores on a sample copy of the Oxford Solutions Placement Test (OSPT). The participants were selected from among 40 learners who were studying EFL at Talk English Institute in Rasht, Iran. Using a digital randomizer called Super Cool Random Number Generator, the final pool of qualified participants was randomly assigned into two groups of experimental and control, each consisting of 15 learners. Next, the experimental group received treatment on their English vocabulary and grammar during a four-week period where they were assigned to learn 20 grammar and 20 vocabulary items by playing games through a mobile educational game called Elevate. The control group, on the other hand, received treatment on the same L2 grammar and vocabulary items through a conventional method (i.e., teacher-fronted instruction). Analysis of the scores obtained on a post-intervention measure of L2 grammar and vocabulary knowledge revealed that both groups made significant progress over the course of the experiment; however, the experimental group performed significantly better than those who were trained using the conventional method. The results carry the implications that mobile applications provide a more felicitous condition for expanding learners’ L2 grammar and vocabulary repertoire.