Semantic Mapping Vocabulary Learning Strategy Instruction In Senior Middle School

In the educational process, the researcher found that vocabulary learning is still a difficult problem among the students in Hua De No.2 senior middle school. The students have a variety of problems when memorizing vocabulary. The researcher tried to relate several theories such as learning strategies, schema theory, semantics and cognitive theories to the problems, and found that semantic mapping vocabulary strategy training may answer the following these questions:1. Whether the mean score between the control group and the experimental group of the test of memorizing target words are significantly different?2. Whether the experimental group more actively participated in learning words?3. Whether the independent and autonomous ability of learning vocabulary for the experimental group improves more than the control group?The current research was conducted through the following procedures. Before receiving instruction for the experiment, students in both the experimental group and control group were tested on the amount of vocabulary they knew. The researcher found that they grasped only 1,400 words of the 2,000 words that were required by the New Standard of National curriculum. Then a questionnaire was issued to the two classes. Based on the five points scale, the results revealed that students seldom used vocabulary-learning strategy in learning vocabulary, which revealed that students needed some vocabulary-learning strategy training.The semantic mapping strategy was instructed in the initial pre-reading period in the experimental group English class and the instruction lasted 16 weeks. The researcher carefully observed the training process, kept some of the lessons recorded, and interviewed some students on this strategy. Students in both groups took two examinations on vocabulary learning in the mid-term and at the end of the term.Finally, based on data from the observations, the analysis between the mid-term test, final test and the interview, the researcher arrived at the following conclusion:1. The mean score of memorizing target words test of the experiment class was significantly higher than that of the control class.2. The word-learning activity of the students in experimental class was reinforced.3. The independent and autonomous ability of learning vocabulary for the experimental group improves more than that of the control group.