| Popis: |
The present study employed an experimental/control group, pretest-posttest design to investigate the effects of vocabulary instruction using graphic organizers on Taiwanese junior high school students’ vocabulary learning. The subjects were 63 ninth graders from two classes in a public junior high school in central Taiwan. One was randomly assigned as the experimental group (N=32), and the other as the control group (N=31). The experimental group received graphic organizer instruction, while the control group received traditional vocabulary instruction once a week. Vocabulary pre-and post-tests and a vocabulary learning attitude questionnaire were administered before and after the 8-week treatment to examine students’ knowledge of the target words and their attitudes toward vocabulary learning. In addition, their perceptions of the graphic organizer instruction were also explored. The results revealed that graphic organizer instruction could significantly improve students’ vocabulary learning more than traditional vocabulary instruction, and it was effective in improving learners’ knowledge of word form, meaning, and use. Although students in the experimental group did not develop significantly more positive attitudes toward vocabulary learning than their counterparts in the control group, they significantly changed their cognitive attitudes after the treatment. Besides, they generally perceived that graphic organizer instruction could effectively help them remember English words and they were willing to use the word map in their future learning. The findings of this study suggest that the graphic organizer can be used as an alternative instructional tool to facilitate junior high school students’ vocabulary learning. |
