مجال التميز

تميز دراسي وبحثي

البحوث المنشورة

البحث (1):

عنوان البحث:

Investigating the Most and the Least used Vocabulary Learning Strategies among Saudi Undergraduate Learners

رابط إلى البحث:

NYA

تاريخ النشر:

23/06/2016

موجز عن البحث:

This paper investigates the most and the least frequently used vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs) among Saudi undergraduate learners, in Najran University, Saudi Arabia. It forms part of a larger study investigating the different uses of VLSs and how they are perceived by Saudi learners studying a range of different majors. The sample consisted of 158 male and female students, who were asked to report their uses of the seventy-five VLSs (which were divided into 12 dimensions) using a five-point Likert scale in which 1 represents “never”, 2 represents “rarely”, 3 represents “sometimes”, 4 represents “often”, and 5 represents “always”. A questionnaire was used for the purpose of collecting the data, which were subsequently computed and analysed using descriptive statistics. This involved calculating the overall means of all dimensions and ranking them in order, as well as giving the mean values for the most and least used VLSs in order. The results indicated that, in certain situations, learners tend to focus more on the meaning of words in L1 than in L2. This is the case, for example, when students use a dictionary to look up the meaning of a new word, when they ask teachers or classmates about the L1 equivalent of an English word, and when they are writing down new L2 words with their L1 translations. The least frequently used strategies were those that require higher order thinking skills, such as “organizing words by meaning group”. Moreover, the most frequently used dimension was “reasons for note taking strategies”, while the least frequently used dimension was “ways of organizing notes taken”.

المؤتمرات العلمية:

المؤتمر (1):

عنوان المؤتمر:

17^th Warwick International Postgraduate Conference in Applied Linguistics

تاريخ الإنعقاد:

24/06/2014

مكان الإنعقاد:

Coventry, UK

طبيعة المشاركة:

Poster presentation

عنوان المشاركة:

Vocabulary Learning Strategies used by Undergraduate L2 Learners

ملخص المشاركة:

Wilkins (1972, p.111) said “without grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed.” Lexical competence is now seen to be at the heart of communicative competence. One of the most important aspects that L2 learners will face during the process of second language learning is learning lexical items. Vocabulary has been recognized as crucial to language use in which insufficient vocabulary knowledge of the learners led to difficulties in second language learning. Thus, in the case of learning the vocabulary in second language, students need to be educated with vocabulary learning strategies. The research investigates the different types and taxonomies of vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) to discover how often these are used by undergraduate students taking both English and non-English majors. This research will investigate the relationship between, the academic field of study, and the use of vocabulary learning strategies. It will also investigate the effectiveness of VLS, according to learners’ perceptions. One of the aims of the research is also looking at the strategic behaviour of the participants after one-year gap. A sample of 200 male and female students will participate in the study. The data collection will be carried out through a questionnaire, and interview. The collected data will be computed and analysed via SPSS program.

المؤتمر (2):

عنوان المؤتمر:

3^rd  International Postgraduate Conference on Modern Foreign Languages, Literature and Linguistics

تاريخ الإنعقاد:

20/06/2016

مكان الإنعقاد:

Preston, UK

طبيعة المشاركة:

Poster presentation

عنوان المشاركة:

Vocabulary Learning Strategies among Saudi Undergraduate Learners

ملخص المشاركة:

Numerous scholars have argued that vocabulary is more important than other aspects of language knowledge (e.g., Bowen et al., 1985; Folse, 2004; McCarthy, 1990; Nation, 1990; Schmitt, 2010). McCarthy (2001) (cited in Fan, 2003: 221) noted that vocabulary constitutes the meaning of any language and is also the biggest problem for most learners. Wilkins (1972) observed that without grammar, you can say little, and without lexis, you can say nothing. Due to the importance of vocabulary, researchers have proposed a number of classifications for vocabulary learning strategies (VLSs) to facilitate the learning of L2 vocabulary and help students develop their repository of L2 vocabulary. Therefore, research on VLSs has emerged in recent years as a new line of enquiry within the body of L2 vocabulary research.

However, there is a lack of research that investigates the effectiveness of these strategies or examines uses of various VLSs among students majoring in English and non-English subjects in Saudi Arabia. This research is therefore an attempt to answer the following question for the pilot study

RQP1: Which are the most and least frequently reported VLSs?