Tesol 13 presentation

PREFERRED VOCABULARY SELF-

COLLECTION STRATEGIES OF EAP

READING STUDENTS

Randall Rebman

[email protected]

TESOL 2013

OVERVIEW

•General Approach to Action Research

•Action Research on Vocabulary Self-

Collection Techniques

•Challenges & Concluding Remarks

GENERAL APPROACH TO ACTION RESEARCH

•Rationale

– Action research (AR) is empowering for graduate teaching-assistants’

PD (McDonough, 2006)

– AR helps explore puzzling classroom issues and dilemmas (Burns,

2010)

•AR Models

– Kemmis and McTaggart’s AR model (1988 as cited in Burns, 2009)

• Plan, Action, Observe, and Reflect

• Criticized for being rigid and fixed (Burns, 2009)

– Grabe & Stoller’s (2011) 12-step AR model is more cyclical and flexible

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GENERAL APPROACH TO ACTION RESEARCH

Grabe & Stoller’s Action Research Cycle

1: Establish

a purpose

and select

topic

2: Pose a

specific

question

3:Anticipate

outcomes

4:Specify the

types of data to

collect

5: Determine

ethical ways to

collect data 6: Consider

issues related

to time

8: examine and

analyze data

9: reflect on

results

10: generate

practical

solutions

11: experiment

and monitor

solutions

12: share insights

with colleagues

Adapted from Grabe & Stoller, 2011, p. 167

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4

7: collect data

systematically

SELF-COLLECTION TECHNIQUES AR

Step1: Establish a purpose and select topic– EAP readers need a lot of vocabulary!

• EAP reading students need 8,000-9,000 word families for

98% text coverage (Nation, 2006)

• Both vocabulary depth and size are important for reading

advanced texts (Schmitt, Jiang, & Grabe, 2011)

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Step1: Establish a purpose and select topic– How can I help give my L2 reading students the vocabulary

the need?

• According to Grabe (2009), L2 readers need a combination of:

– direct vocabulary instruction

– vocabulary-learning strategies

– extensive reading and word learning from context

– heightened student awareness of new words

– motivation to use and collect words

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Step2: Pose a specific question(s)

– If students are introduced to different word

collection techniques, which ones do they prefer

the most?

– What aspects of word knowledge will students

find most beneficial for independent vocabulary

learning while using different word collection

devices?

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• Step 3: Anticipated Outcomes

– Discovering students responses to different

techniques

– Informing vocabulary instruction in course and

program-wide curriculum

– Finding out self-collection techniques already

used by students

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Step 4&5: Collecting Data Ethically

– Qualitative

• Semi-structured interviews

• Teaching log

– Quantitative

• Questionnaire

• Ranking form

– IRB approval

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Steps 6&7: Collect data systematically and

Timeline for Data Collection– Semester 1-Fall 2012

• 2 weeks using vocabulary lists

• 2 weeks using vocabulary flashcards

– Semi-structured interview

• 2 weeks using vocabulary notebooks

– Semi-structured interview

– Ranking form

– Self-collection technique questionnaire

– Semester 2-Spring 2012

• 3 weeks using Quizlet

– Complications=no data could be collected

• returned to using flashcards

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Steps 6: Collect data systematically

Participants:

• 1 semester: 18 students in advanced level reading and

vocabulary course in a university intensive English

program

• 2nd semester: 13 students in an intermediate level

reading and writing course in an intensive English

program

• Arabic and Chinese are dominant demographic

background of students (18-25 years old)

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Step 7: Collect data systematically: Vocabulary

Notebook (Folse, 2004)

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Step 7: Collect data systematically: Vocabulary

Flashcard/Wordcard (Nation, 2001; Schmitt &

Schmitt, 2011)

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Step 8: Examine and analyze data

InterviewsQ: Collection technique used outside of class assignments?

Sam: “Uh I didn’t use [vocabulary flashcards] for my own, only for

homework. But that is problem for me because uh I forget a lot of

words sometimes…but I didn’t use it in my home because I have a

lot of things to do.”

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InterviewsQ: Any other collection techniques before the class?

Jill: “My teacher told me one way. Everyday, every time you

spend..every time five minutes. In these five minutes you look at two

hundred words. And every day you look at these 200 words

several times. Maybe seven, seven times once is five minutes. So

you can remember it half. Maybe everyday you can look seven to

ten times. Then you can remember it.”

Michael: “When I was in the last school there was a way like to.. uh

notebook. Especially for the new words. But they didn’t tell us to use

synonym, just definition in our native language and the word.

And if you want you can provide an example.”

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Interviews Q: Use of techniques in the future?

Michael: “If I am studying civil engineering and I have words … I

think I will probably use [flashcards], but it is hard to remember all

the synonyms or to match between the synonyms and the word. I

think it is difficult.”

Dora: “Maybe I will not write all of the words to make

flashcards…just uh make some very difficult words, hard to

pronounce, hard to remember…”

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Step 8: Examine and analyze data:

Interviews Q: What parts (aspects of word knowledge) of the

flashcard/notebooks were most/least helpful?

Melody: “I think it is depend. Some words I think I must use my

native language and uh some…and another I think examples, I

think.”

Jill: English definition... Because some words they translate to

Chinese hey a little difficult, a little different like the hurt. The

Chinese translation is a species, a kind of animal…this word is

different so I think the English definition…Collocations, even though

the word in here, I don’t use it many times.

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Step 8: Examine and analyze data:

• 14 responses to 7-pt likert scale questionnaire &

ranking form

Questionnaire

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Negative Preference Neutral

Positive Preference

Flashcards 3 3 9

Notebooks 4 3 6

Alternate Technique

-- -- 4


Step 8: Examine and analyze data: Ranking form

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

English Example

2 2 2 1 4 4 2 3 3 4 1 3 5 2

Synonyms 3 2 3 2 2 5 1 1 4 3 3 4 3 3

English Definition

2 4 1 1 1 2 5 2 2 2 2 2 2 1

L1 translation 1 1 4 3 1 1 3 5 1 1 1 1 1 1

Collocation 6 2 5 4 3 3 4 4 5 5 3 5 4 3


Step 8: Examine and analyze data: Teaching Log/Journal

• Activities

– Vocabulary speed-dating

– Pronunciation

– Partner quizzing

– Speed writing

– Categorizing activities

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Step 9:Reflect on results

Setbacks:

• The use of Quizlet as a CALL tool for word-collection was

abandoned because of complications

• The 7-pt likert scale produced unreliable results

• Students did not apply the self-collection techniques beyond

classroom assignments

• Many students found collocations to be unhelpful, which reflected

the lack of effective collocation tasks used in the classroom

• Similar vocabulary self-collection tasks in other classes made the

collection techniques seem redundant

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Step 9:Reflect on resultsSuccesses:

• Students reported:

– choosing new collection techniques over old ones

• mostly because of convenience

– discovering new aspects of word knowledge

– possibly using word collection techniques for test preparation

and disciplinary specific vocabulary words

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Step 10: Generate practical solutions

•Coordinate with teachers on a program-wide scale to adapt a more

comprehensive approach to word collection techniques (both CALL

and non-CALL materials)

– Some courses may have more of a place in the curriculum for

deliberate vocabulary learning than others

•Integrate training in using online dictionaries and/or corpus sites to

include frequency information and word lists (AWL and GSL)

– Help students become “word detectives” for words they encounter

(Nation, 2008)

•Create an activity bank for different types of vocabulary exercises

that integrate the word collection techniques students are using

•Better design scaffolded activities to build autonomy in word

collection technique use

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•Step 12 Share insights with colleagues (and elicit ideas and

feedback)

Questions or comments?

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PREFERRED VOCABULARY SELF-

COLLECTION STRATEGIES OF EAP

READING STUDENTS

Randall Rebman

[email protected]

Documents

Tesol 13 presentation