This study investigated the effects of output stimulus tasks and glosses on L2 incidental vocabulary learning. Two meta-analytic studies were conducted. The first was intended to provide a systematic statistical synthesis of the effects of output stimulus tasks on L2 incidental vocabulary learning. A total of 12 studies were included in this meta-analysis. Results showed that language learners gained more benefit from using output stimulus tasks to learn vocabulary than those who only read a text. Results also supported the involvement load hypothesis that language learners who perform a task with a higher extent of involvement load gain more L2 vocabulary. As opposed to studies with the low level of design quality, studies with high and medium levels of design quality were more likely to detect statistically significant differences among groups with different output stimulus tasks. Moreover, results suggested that time on task had a positive impact on L2 vocabulary learning. Learners who read a combination of expository and narrative texts outperformed those who only read either an expository or a narrative text in the vocabulary posttest. Learners who read a text with text-target word ratios of less than or equal to 2 percent did not learn significantly more vocabulary than those who read a text with a ratio of 2 percent to 5 percent. The second meta-analysis study used meta-analytic techniques to explore the effects of L1 textual and image-based glosses on second language (L2) incidental vocabulary learning while reading. Results revealed that language learners who were provided with textual glosses gained more vocabulary than those who had no access to glosses. Results suggested that text-target word ratios played an important role in second language vocabulary learning. Language learners who read a passage with a text-target word ratio of ≤2 percent outperformed those who read a passage with a text-target word ratio between 2 percent and 5 percent. No statistically significant difference was found between the groups that were provided with multiple-choice and single glosses. Compared to paper-and-pencil environments, computer-assisted settings did not significantly enhance L2 vocabulary learning. Language learners who read narrative reading materials did not significantly outperform those who were exposed to expository texts with regard to incidental vocabulary learning. No significant difference in L2 vocabulary learning was observed between groups who were given L1 textual glosses and those who had access to L1 textual image-based glosses.

The purpose of this qualitative study is to compare five teachers’ beliefs about their students’ learning of vocabulary and compare that with current theories and recommended practices in the field. The method for collecting data was semi-structured interviews with teachers who teach English in both lower secondary and upper secondary schools in Sweden. The data from these interviews were then analyzed by way of thematic analysis. The results were then compared with previous research in the field of vocabulary learning drawing on studies and works of researchers such as Stuart Webb and Paul Nation among others. The results reveal a lot of similarities with the latest research on vocabulary learning. The findings of this study also indicate some differences between teacher beliefs and research. Apart from research done in the field of vocabulary learning this study has also taken the proven experience of the teachers into account. Since this study is of a qualitative kind, these results cannot be generalized in regard to Swedish teachers of English as a group but rather what some of them portray when talking on the topic of vocabulary.

The primary purpose of the present study is to compare the effectiveness of the jigsaw task and information gap tasks in understanding new words and retaining them. Sixteen pupils aged between eleven and twelve were involved in the study and divided into two groups. They were allocated either a jigsaw task or an information gap task. This study consists of a pre-test, immediate post-test, delayed post-test as well as a questionnaire. The pupils were required to carry out the chosen tasks, tested immediately and then one week later. The results of the questionnaire are also discussed in order to establish the pupils’ attitudes towards their allotted tasks.   The results revealed marginally higher scores in the immediate post-test for pupils performing the information gap task in terms of recognizing the meaning of words. However, this advantage disappeared when it came to the depth of vocabulary knowledge and word meaning retention. Pupils performing jigsaw task outperformed group B in productive vocabulary knowledge and their retention. The gain in vocabulary among pupils who performed the jigsaw task is most evident in the delayed post-test. This result is consistent with the pupils’ assertion that they enjoyed doing the jigsaw task more than the information gap task. To sum up, the jigsaw task best promotes pupils understanding of words and their retention.

Denna studie hade till syfte att undersöka vilka metoder för ordinlärning med fokus på betydelse som förekom i textböcker för SFI kurs B och C. Frågeställninggen förankrades teoretiskt i tidigare språkvetenskaplig och psykologisk forskning om ordinlärningsmetoder. Fyra textböcker granskades för att identifiera och kategorisera ordinlärningsmetoder med fokus på betydelse enligt Nations (2011) kategorisering av betydelserelaterade aspekter av ordkunskap (associationer, begrepp och referens, form-betydelsekoppling). Därefter analyserades fynden enligt Cummins fyrfältsmodell (2017). Resultatet visade att en typ av aktivitet inom aspekten begrepp och referens (svara på frågor som innehåller målorden) dominerade och utgjorde över 50% av de betydelserelaterade ordinlärningsaktiviteterna i textböckerna. Det var också den enda typen av aktivitet inom begrepp och referens. För aspekterna associationer och form-betydelsekoppling förekom varierande aktiviteter. Därmed erbjuder böckerna en variation av metoder för inlärning av ordbetydelser inom två aspekter men endast en metod inom en aspekt. Detta begränsar vägarna till att främja inlärarens lärandeprocess då fler metoder kan erbjuda olika positiva effekter på ordinlärning.

This study investigates the Involvement Load Hypothesis proposed by Laufer and Hulstijn (2001). The involvement load hypothesis posits that vocabulary learning is determined by involvement load or mental effort. Involvement load has three components, need, search, and evaluation and each component is scored for three levels: index 2 for the strongest, index 1 for a moderate degree, and index 0 for none. Each participant learned six words with graphic organizers at the high involvement load (need index 1, search index 1, evaluation index 2, total index 4) and six at the low involvement load (need index 1, search index 1, and evaluation index 0, total index 2). Immediately and one week after completing the graphic organizer task, vocabulary knowledge was measured using three vocabulary tests that tested different levels of vocabulary knowledge: a translation test, a difficult multiple-choice test, and an easy multiple-choice test. Quantitative analyses of data from 291 university and college students in Japan were conducted, and audio-recordings from five pairs were analyzed to examine learning processes. Repeated measures MANOVA and ANOVAs revealed significant differences between the conditions of the two involvement loads in the translation test and the easy multiple-choice test, but not in the difficult multiple-choice test. The effects of Task and Time were statistically significant, but there was no interaction. There were significant differences between the immediate test and delayed test observed in the translation test and the easy multiple-choice test, but not with the difficult multiple-choice test. The current study supports the involvement load hypothesis, but caution is advised. Even though the high involvement load graphic organizers yielded more vocabulary retention than those with less involvement load in two out of the three vocabulary tests, the differences in mean scores were small and extensive differences were not observed in the participants' discussions. Additional statistical analysis indicated that the three vocabulary tests measured three levels of vocabulary knowledge. Determining the effectiveness of graphic organizers for vocabulary learning was only mildly successful as forcing greater involvement load proved to be challenging. / CITE/Language Arts