A Comparison of the Effect of Two Methods of Second-Language Vocabulary
Instruction on Vocabulary Acquisition and Retention
Wendy Snyder
July 2004
The purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of two methods of instruction,
contextualized, immersive learning and decontextualized translation, on the acquisition
and retention of new vocabulary words by high school students of French as a second
language. A quasi-experimental design was used. Each of the two methods was used for
one day with each of two lower-level French classes (contextualized instruction of one
set of words on the first day, and decontextualized instruction of another set on the
second), and the comparison of a pre and post test on each day of instruction measured
the gain in vocabulary that day. After one week, another follow-up post test was
administered to determine longer-term vocabulary retention. The 35 participants in the
study were students in French 1 and 2 at a public suburban magnet high school for art and
technology. The results of the pre test and post test each day were examined and showed
greater improvement with decontextualized instruction for both classes than with
contextualized instruction. However, the difference between the effectiveness of the
methods was less clear on the retention test. In addition, the consistency of the method of
assessment with that of instruction was not found to have any effect on retention. The
results suggest that, although both teaching methods are effective, more vocabulary was
learned through the decontextualized method.