The Impact Of VLST On Juniors' English Vocabulary Learning

The present study attempts to explore the impact of the vocabulary learning strategy training on vocabulary learning, based on the data obtained from a study conducted at Jinan Yanxin Junior Middle School.In western countries, teachers and researchers' interest in language learning strategies and their training has been increasing with the intent to help learners become more effective and autonomous since 1970s. In 1975, Joan Rubin was probably among the first researchers who brought up the idea of successful language learners. Researches, such as O' Malley & Chamot, Oxford, Cohen and Wenden, show that the learning strategies are the key to learner's success. Studies on strategy training also suggested that strategy training may be more effective for beginners. McDonough (1995) reviews strategy training research and concludes that improvement caused by strategy training may be better for beginning students. As a result, strategy training, aiming at teaching how to learn and promoting learner autonomy, is gaining an increasing favor both at home and abroad in recent years. Today, many language teachers have come to realize that the essence of teaching is to help learners to learn how to learn, and there exists a close link between the learning strategies and that of learner autonomy. Researches into strategy learning in China started at the beginning of 1980s. One of the most important figures in learning strategy researches is Professor Wen Qiufang. With regard to vocabulary learning strategies, Gu Yongqi has found that the vocabulary learning strategies used by learners correlated with their outcomes in learning English. Supporting Gu' findings, Wang Wenyu(1998) in his quantitative study found that there was a significant correlation between learner's vocabulary test performances and the strategies used by them. In China, the previous related study, especially vocabulary learning is limited to college students, less research has conducted about vocabulary learning by junior middle school students. Motivated by the research demand, I pursue this study, which aims to explore the results of the vocabulary learning strategy training.O'Malley and Chamot's (1990) classification of learning strategies was used in the study due to the importance of metacognitive and cognitive learning strategies. O'Malley and Chamot distinguished three major types of strategy: metacognitive strategies, cognitive strategies and social/affective strategies. Metacognitive strategies make use of knowledge about cognitive processes and constitute an attempt to regulate language learning by means of planning, monitoring, and evaluating. Cognitive strategies refer to the steps or operations used in problem solving that require directive strategies. Social / affective strategies concern the way in which learners select to interact with other learners and native speakers. Correlational research is less covered in Chinese context. Therefore, the present study mainly selected some metacognitive strategies, cognitive strategies and social/affective strategies, and focused on the impact on Chinese junior middle school students'vocabulary learning.In this study, eighty students of Jinan Yanxin Junior Middle School attend the survey of vocabulary learning strategy training. They are from two classes, one class is randomly chosen as the experimental class, and the other as the control class. The participants in the experimental group received the regular seven-week strategies-based instructional treatment, while the comparison students did not receive the training. Both groups finished a pre-test before the training, the experimental and control group students finished the post-test, and the experimental group filled out the questionnaires about the vocabulary learning strategy before and after the training. The present study aims to explore the relationship between strategy training and learners' vocabulary acquisition in the following three points:1. Whether does the strategy training affect learners' awareness and using of strategy in vocabulary learning?2. Whether does the strategy training improve the scores of learner's vocabulary tests?3. Whether does the strategy training promote learners'autonomy in vocabulary learning?Questionnaires, tests and experiment, including the analysis of the data of the questionnaires and experiment are used to prove the thesis.The experiment analyses are implemented by SPSS (Version 13.0).Data collection and the results of the research are:The main results obtained from the research are, firstly, the vocabulary performance of the experimental class, compared with the control class, is significantly improved; secondly, the experimental class exploits more metacognitive and cognitive strategies than the control class. The insights gained from this study are that, students should realize the importance of automatic learning and often use VLS in the following learning. At the same time teachers should put more emphasis on strategy training and take the responsibility for helping students build up proper vocabulary learning belief. Teachers can help learners use more vocabulary learning strategies to facilitate their vocabulary learning. In order to improve the effect of the training, it is better to train the classroom teachers before the training.However, there are some limitations of the study as following:First, the sample in this research is very small. The limited number of the subjects can't represent the actual situation about the junior middle school students' vocabulary learning in China. Secondly, there lacks an evaluation system for the implementation of the training program. It's better to develop a more effective assessment list which is integrated with the training contents well. Third, the tests materials that are used in the study may are limited in scope of content and in quality. Fourth, while questionnaire surveys as one of the methods for investigating language learning strategies are well established, the data that they yield are not necessarily very informative about learners' strategy use, so other methods such as oral interviews, are needed in. Fifth, methodologically, the potentially influential variables such as the learners' motivation, attitude, gender, learning style, and personality, which have been reported to have an impact on vocabulary performance, are not included in this study. Limitations as they are, it is thus open to any suggestions or criticisms.The study has provided positive implications for classroom teaching in vocabulary, and more attention is to be called on for further studies.