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Description
This study examines the relationship between tertiary EFL students’ knowledge of L2 aural high-frequency vocabulary and their written receptive mastery of targeted words in an L2 course focusing on liberal arts topics. The participants (n = 37) were A2-level freshmen at a university in Tokyo who attended the course for a year. The findings revealed that learners who scored 50% or higher on the aural test acquired the targeted words more effectively.
Abstract section 3: Content/method
The participants (n = 37) were freshmen at a university in Tokyo attending an EFL course covering liberal arts topics for a year. At the onset of the academic year, their TOEFL score was at A2. Using pre- and post-test design, an aural receptive vocabulary knowledge test containing 60 high frequency English words (Stoeckel & Bennett, 2015) and five written receptive vocabulary tests assessing learners’ understanding of target terms covered in the course were given.
Abstract section 2: Contribution/research questions
In the present study, the following research questions will be addressed: do learners with higher L2 aural receptive vocabulary knowledge of high frequency English words retain academic L2 words targeted in their L2 course which focused on liberal arts topics?
Abstract section 4: Outcomes/results
The findings showed that learners who scored approximately 50 percent or higher on an aural vocabulary pre-test also scored higher on the L2 written vocabulary tests. These learners with higher listening skills acquired more academic words targeted in the course and scored higher on the end-of-the year TOEFL than the others. The rest also improved their listening skills and test scores; however, only a few reached the high aural test scorers. These results imply that possessing L2 aural vocabulary knowledge is essential for EFL learners in Japan, and that more training on phonological aspects of L2 terms should be provided.
Abstract section 1: Relevance
This study examines the relationship between tertiary-level students’ knowledge of L2 aural vocabulary of high frequency English words and L2 written receptive vocabulary targeted in their L2 course focusing on liberal arts topics. Previous studies have reported that participants scored higher on vocabulary recall tests when they had undergone deep cognitive semantic processing compared to intermediate phonemic and/or shallow structural ones when focusing on the target items (Craik & Lockhart, 1972). There are however numerous students who can connect a word’s written form to its meaning but unable to pronounce and/or recognize its spoken form, hence leading to shallow processing.
Abstract section 5: References
Craik, F. I. M., & Lockhart, R. S. (1972). Levels of processing: A framework for memory research. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 11(6), 671-684.
Stoeckel, T., & Bennett, P. (2015). A test of the New General Service List. Vocabulary Learning and Instruction, 4(1), 1-8. http://dx.doi.org/10.7820/vli.v04.1.stoeckel.bennett
| Title | L2 Aural Vocabulary Knowledge and EFL Academic Performances |
|---|---|
| Teaching Context | College and university education |