THE EFFECTS OF WEB 2.0 TOOLS ON EFL STUDENTS’ VOCABULARY KNOWLEDGE AND RETENTION

As students’ ability to recognize vocabulary is a determinant factor in ensuring effective English learning, vocabulary teaching methods are important in an EFL context. This experimental study investigates the effects of a Web 2.0 tool -Smart Draw- on the recognition and retention of L2 vocabulary by drawing a comparison between paper-based methods (activities on a sheet of paper or course book) and web-based language learning. Two intact classes (a total of 28 Students) from a state university in Turkey participated in this study. The experimental group was instructed the words with a Web 2.0 tool, Smart Draw, while the control group was taught the target words on a sheet of paper. In order to investigate the effectiveness of instruction, a word familiarity test was administered prior to the treatment (pre-test) and after the treatment (post-test). Three weeks after the application of post-test, the same word familiarity test was implemented to measure the retention level of students. Results reveal that there was a significant improvement over time for the experimental group when compared with the control group. Additionally, semi-structured interviews with 5 students from the experimental group, revealed that students favour the use of interactive web-based technologies in L2 classes.

Keywords:

Vocabulary knowledge, retention, semantic mapping Web 2.0 tools,

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