SPACED VOCABULARY ACQUISITION WHILE INCIDENTAL LISTENING BY ESL UNIVERSITY STUDENTS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.20535/2410-8286.250501Keywords:
vocabulary acquisition, spaced learning, incidental listening, audio dictionary, ESL university studentsAbstract
Based on a prior study by Zubenko and Shwedel (2019), the present study investigated the possible effects of repetition (repeated exposure) on the incidental acquisition and retention of 120 English target words by 51 Ukrainian-speaking ESL learners at a Ukrainian university. The hypothesis was that regular repetition of vocabulary while incidental listening would have a significant and positive effect on students’ vocabulary acquisition and performance. The paper examines the results of the implementation of spaced repetition of L2 vocabulary strategy of the second-year students who were covering the same vocabulary they learned during the experiment in the previous year. 7 audio lessons were created for increasing the long-term retention of target vocabulary in the students’ memory. Participants (N=51) were second-year Ukrainian university students majoring in English as a second language (ESL) at the age of 17-19. They were assigned to three groups, one experimental and two comparison. The optimal result based on the interval of repetitions influences the vocabulary recall and retention. Students who used the spaced L2 vocabulary acquisition strategy (SVAS) outperformed on the End-of-Experiment test 84,1 versus 80,6 for the Comparison group. The results prove that spaced L2 vocabulary acquisition strategy is an efficient part of enriching new vocabulary. The findings indicate that implications of this research are connected with the spaced vocabulary acquisition strategy as an effective tool for learning new lexical units by ESL learners while incidental listening to the audio dictionary lessons. Thus, the study results open up new possibilities for the teachers and learners to consider implementing audio dictionaries and similar tools as assets for efficient vocabulary learning.
References
Bahrick, H. P., Bahrick L. E., Bahrick, A. S., & Bahrick, P. E. (1993). Maintenance of foreign language vocabulary and the spacing effect. Psychological Science, 4(5), 316-321. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.1993.tb00571.x
Bransford, J. D, & Schwartz, D. L. (1999). Rethinking transfer: A simple proposal with multiple implications. Review of Research in Education, 24(3), 61–101. https://doi.org/10.2307/1167267
Brown, R., Waring, R., & Donkaewbua, S. (2008). Incidental vocabulary acquisition from reading, reading-whilst-listening, and listening to stories. Reading in a Foreign Language, 20, 136–163. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ815119.pdf
Casebourne, I. (2015). Spaced Learning: An Approach to Minimize the Forgetting Curve. https://www.td.org/insights/spaced-learning-an-approach-to-minimize-the-forgetting-curve
Cepeda, N. J., Pashler, H., Vul, E., Wixted, J. T., & Rohrer, D. (2006). Distributed practice in verbal recall tasks: A review and quantitative synthesis. Psychological Bulletin, 132, 354- 380. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.132.3.354
Cepeda, N. J., Vul, E., Rohrer, D., Wixted, J. T., & Pashler, H. (2008). Spacing effects in learning: A temporal ridgeline of optimal retention. Psychological Science, 19(11), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02209.x
Chen, C., & Truscott, J. (2010). The effects of repetition and L1 lexicalization on incidental vocabulary acquisition. Applied Linguistics, 31, 693-713. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amq031
Ebbinghaus, H. (1885/1964). Memory: A contribution to experimental psychology. New York: Dover Publications.
Heidari-Shahreza, M. A., & Tavakoli, M. (2016). The effects of repetition and L1 lexicalization on incidental vocabulary acquisition by Iranian EFL Learners. Language Learning Journal, 44, 17-32. https://doi.org/10.1080/09571736.2012.708051
Liu, Y.-T., & Todd, A. G. (2016). Implementation of assisted repeated reading techniques for the incidental acquisition of novel foreign vocabulary. Language Teaching Research, 20(1), 53–74. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168814559802
Montero Perez, M., Peters, E., Clarebout, G., & Desmet, P. (2014). Effects of captioning on video comprehension and incidental vocabulary learning. Language Learning and Technology, 18(1), 118-141. http://dx.doi.org/10125/44357
Nakata, T. (2008). English vocabulary learning with word lists, word cards and computers: implications from cognitive psychology research for optimal spaced learning. ReCALL, 20(1), 3-20. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0958344008000219
Nakata, T. (2015). Effects of expanding and equal spacing on second language vocabulary learning: Does gradually increasing spacing increase vocabulary learning? Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 37, 677–711. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263114000825
Nakata, T., & Elgort, I. (2021). Effects of spacing on contextual vocabulary learning: Spacing facilitates the acquisition of explicit, but not tacit, vocabulary knowledge. Second Language Research, 37(2), 233–260. https://doi.org/10.1177/0267658320927764
Namaziandos, E., Sawalmeh, M. H. M., & Soltanabadi, M. I. (2020) The effects of spaced versus massed distribution instruction on EFL learners’ vocabulary recall and retention. Cogent Education, 7(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2020.1792261
Newton, J. (2013). Incidental vocabulary learning in classroom communication tasks. Language Teaching Research, 17, 164–187. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168812460814
Peters, E., & Webb, S. (2018). Incidental vocabulary acquisition through watching a single episode of L2 television. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 40(3), 551-557. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263117000407
Rogers, J. (2017). The spacing effect and its relevance to second language acquisition. Applied Linguistics, 38, 906-911. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/amw052
Rogers, J., & Cheung, A. (2020). Input spacing and the learning of L2 vocabulary in a classroom context. Language Teaching Research, 24(5), 616–641. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168818805251
Rott, S. (1999). The effect of exposure frequency on intermediate language learners’ incidental vocabulary acquisition through reading. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 21, 589–619. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0272263199004039
Sobel, H. S., Cepeda, N. J., & Kapler, I. V. (2011). Spacing effects in real-world classroom vocabulary learning. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 25, 763-767. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.1747
Toppino, T. C., & Cohen, M. S. (2010). Metacognitive control and spaced practice: clarifying what people do and why. Journal of Experimental Psychology. Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 36, 1480–1491. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0020949
van Zeeland, H. & Schmitt, N. (2013). Incidental vocabulary acquisition through L2 listening: A dimensions approach. System, 41, 609–624. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2013.07.012.
Vidal, K. (2003). Academic listening: A source of vocabulary acquisition? Applied Linguistics, 24(1), 56–89. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/24.1.56.
Webb, S. (2007). The effects of repetition on vocabulary knowledge. Applied Linguistics, 28(1), 46–65. https://doi.org/10.1093/applin/aml048
Webb, S. (2008). The effects of context on incidental vocabulary learning. Reading in Foreign Language, 20(2), 232-245. Retrieved 15 November 2021 from http://www2.hawaii.edu/~readfl/rfl/October2008/webb/webb.pdf
Webb, S., & Chang, A. C.-S. (2015). Second language vocabulary learning through extensive reading with audio support: How do frequency and distribution of occurrence affect learning? Language Teaching Research, 19(6), 667-686. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168814559800
Webb, S., & Piasecki, A. (2018). Re-examining the effects of word writing on vocabulary learning. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 169(1), 72-94. https://doi.org/10.1075/itl.00007.web
Weinstein,Y & Smith, M (2016). Learn How to Study Using Spaced Practice. http://www.learningscientists.org/blog/2016/7/21-1
Zubenko, T., & Shwedel, A. (2019). Integrating mobile listening and physical activity to facilitate intentional and incidental vocabulary acquisition. Advanced Education, 11, 84-92. https://doi: 10.20535/2410-8286.165717
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Tetiana Zubenko, Anastasiia Gavrylenko, Tetyana Zhyvotovska, Nadiia Vasylieva
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
