Comparative Usefulness of Online and Traditional Vocabulary Learning

Acquiring vocabulary in L2 is rather a difficult and demanding process and most of the language learners wish to know which vocabulary learning method and/or activity is more beneficial or even the best one; however, the responses to this question vary and there is no clear-cut answer though there are some various suggestions and conclusions drawn from the studies related to vocabulary acquisition such as keeping a notebook, regularly reviewing and using vocabulary items in context. This study compares the usefulness of online vocabulary teaching and the traditional methods used in upper-intermediate Academic English class. The control group students practiced vocabulary items in ten reading passages through vocabulary notebooks and cards. The learners in the experimental group practiced the same vocabulary items in the passages through WordChamp. Furthermore, with both groups, the vocabulary items were regularly reviewed. The usefulness of the two methods was evaluated via the post-test. The study showed that the learners in the experimental group outperformed the learners in the control group and that the experimental group students better remember the words studied online, evidenced by a follow-up post-test given 3 months later. INTRODUCTION “I do not fear computers. I fear the lack of them.” Isaac Asimov Vocabulary teaching and learning is a very challenging and demanding process while learning any foreign language. As such, learners try to find out which vocabulary learning method is more beneficial or even the best one. However, not surprisingly, their first approach is to try to memorize every word that they do not know. According to the studies, beginners prefer learning words separately, that is, using a list of words to memorize, whereas advanced students, although there are some exceptions, try to learn words in context (Ellis, 1994, p. 553). Likewise, vocabulary teaching is generally restricted on presenting new items as they appear in any activity without preparing the learners through activation of prior knowledge or helping them regularly revise the previously learned vocabulary items until they are thoroughly learnt. In order to overcome this restriction and provide learners and teachers with better opportunities and a variety of activities, computers and the Internet have been put into use in the foreign language instruction and the positive effect of computer-assisted instruction on developing reading comprehension skills and vocabulary acquisition has been reported in numerous studies. Computer-assisted vocabulary acquisition can have its different instantiations, ranging from Web-based reading tasks with glossing support, through dedicated vocabulary learning software to online personal vocabulary learning systems like WordChamp. Due to the fact that computer-assisted vocabulary instruction undertaken in the present study had a wide range of components, various approaches to vocabulary learning with computers need to be reviewed at this point.