Second Language Vocabulary Learning
Wong Kwong Tat
(s04249290)
A Research Paper Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree of
Master of Arts
in
Linguistics
@The Chinese University of Hong Kong
30th June, 2006
The Chinese University of Hong Kong holds the copyright of this
research paper. Any person(s) intending to use a part or whole of the
materials in the research paper in a proposed publication must seek
copyright release from the Dean of the Graduate School.
Abstract
Abstract of thesis entitled: Second Language Vocabulary Learning
The effectiveness of word-level translation and explanations of target words were
investigated. The purpose of this study was to compare the learning outcomes of three
conditions on 60 Primary 5 students’ vocabulary acquisition: listening to stories with
explanations given for unfamiliar target words encountered in the stories, listening to
stories with explanations for target words plus target word translation, and the
control condition (that is, listening to stories with no explanation of the words and
without target word translation). All the 3 groups were given a pre-test (on
vocabulary), a post-test and a delayed post-test. Results from the pre-test showed that
there were 19 words that were unfamiliar to the students. These 19 words from two
stories were used to develop a 19-item post-test and the same 19-item delayed
post-test. The students in condition two (with explanations of target words and target
word translation) learned significantly more vocabulary than the students in the
control group. The findings support the use of target word translation in the classroom.
Further research on whether students are able to internalise the target words and use
them as part of their spoken vocabulary is recommended.
本研究目的旨在探究三組共 60 位小學五年級學生，在三種不同的學習情況下學
習第二語言(英語)詞彙，所產生的學習成效：(1)聆聽故事時有詞彙解釋；(2)聆聽
故事時有詞彙解釋及同時有翻譯解釋；(3)聆聽故事時，並沒有詞彙解釋，也沒
有翻譯解釋。三組學生會有第一次、第二次及第三次的詞彙測試，第一次測試結
果顯示，學生有 19 個英文字不熟悉。這 19 個英文字來自兩篇故事，這 19 個英
文字用作建構 19 題第二次及第三次(相同)的詞彙測試。有詞彙解釋及同時有翻
譯解釋的第二組學生，較第三組學生，更有效地學習多些英文字。此研究結果支
持在課堂運用翻譯解釋，幫助學生學習。有關學生是否能夠深化所學的英文字，
並用作口語表達，應有進一步的研究。
Submitted by Wong Kwong Tat
for the degree of Master of Arts in Linguistics
at The Chinese University of Hong Kong in June 2006.
Acknowledgement
I am grateful to Dr. Richard Wong from The Hong Kong Institute of Education for his
valuable comments on the earlier version of this research project.
Table of Contents
Chapter
Page
1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………….1
2. Literature Review………………………………………………………………4
2.1. Zone of proximal development and scaffolding………………………...4
2.2. Building background knowledge………………………………………..4
2.3. Context…………………………………………………………………..5
2.4. Learning in context……………………………………………………...5
2.4.1. What can be learned from context……………………………….6
2.4.2. Learning from context and attention-drawing activities…………6
2.5. Learning strategies………………………………………………………7
2.5.1. Bilingual dictionary.……………………………………………..7
2.5.2. Using translation in ESL teaching in Hong Kong……………….8
2.5.3. The contribution of translation learning…………………………8
2.5.4. Translation learning……………………………………………...9
2.5.5. Pictures as a complement to translation…………………………11
2.5.6. Pictures and keywords as a complement to translation………….11
2.6. Explanations of target words and target word translation………………13
2.6.1. Explaining vocabulary…………………………………………...13
2.6.2. Help learners remember what is explained………………………14
2.6.3. Quickly give the meaning………………………………………..15
2.6.4. Sun and Dong’s experiment……………………………………...15
2.7. Summary………………………………………………………………...16
2.7.1. Optimal vocabulary learning condition………………………….16
2.7.2. Difference in retention rate………………………………………16
2.7.3. Results of Sun & Dong’s (2004) experiment…………………….16
3. Methodology……………………………………………………………………17
3.1. Subjects………………………………………………………………….17
3.2. Design…………………………………………………………………....17
3.2.1. Materials………………………………………………………….17
3.2.2. Pre-test (Vocabulary)……………………………………………..17
3.2.3. Vocabulary testing………………………………………………..18
3.2.4. Post test and delayed post test……………………………………19
3.2.5. Three conditions…………………………………………………19
3.2.6. A post-test survey………………………………………………...21
3.3. Measurement…………………………………………………………….21
4. Expected Results………………………………………………………………..23
4.1. Pre-test (Vocabulary)…………………………………………………….23
4.2. Post-test and delayed post-test…………………………………………..23
5. Results…………………………………………………………………………..25
5.1. Paired Samples T-test……………………………………………………25
5.2. 60-item Pre-test………………………………………………………….26
5.3. Means and standard deviations of post-test and delayed
post-test for 3 groups……………………………………………………26
5.4. Post-test…………………………………………………………………..28
5.5. Delayed post-test…………………………………………………………29
5.6. Repeated measures ANOVA to compare within-groups means………….30
5.7. Summary…………………………………………………………………31
6. Discussion……………………………………………………………………….32
6.1. Implications for further study……………………………………………34
6.1.1. The use of L1 translation…………………………………………35
6.2. A post-test survey on learners’ perception of different vocabulary
learning strategies……..………………………………………………...35
7. Conclusion………………………………………………………………………37
8. References.............................................................................................................39
Appendix
1
Sample Questions from Pre-Test (Vocabulary)……………………………….42
2(a) Condition One: Explanations of target words ………………………………..44
2(b) Condition two: Explanations of target words and target word translation……50
3
Vocabulary Usage Test in Post-test and Delayed Post-test …………………..56
4
Reading Text One and Reading Text Two...…………………………………..57
5
Survey………………………………………………………………………...59
1. Introduction
There are opposing views concerning the role of context in vocabulary learning.
Research in the area of second language acquisition shows that learning new
vocabulary from context appears to be more effective than learning new vocabulary
out of context (also termed word lists, translation learning, or decontextualized
learning) (Krashen, 1989; Oxford & Scarcella, 1994). However, investigators such as
Seibert (1930) pointed to the opposite direction - translation learning is consistently
more effective than learning words in context (Seibert, 1930; see also Coady, 1993).
Recently, researchers have attempted to investigate the effectiveness of using two
types of learning support (sentence-level translation and target warming-up) on
Chinese children’s (7 years of age) learning of English words (Sun & Dong, 2004).
This study investigated the effectiveness of two vocabulary learning strategies
commonly used in Hong Kong classrooms: explanations of target words and target
word translation.
One of the arguments against the use of translation in classroom is that using the
L1 translation encourages “lazy minds and so inhibits the transfer of the new item to
long-term memory” (Gefen, 1987). However, other researchers have opposite results.
In a study conducted by Lotto and de Groot (1998), 64 Dutch university students were
presented Italian vocabulary accompanied by either translation or a picture of the
word. It was found that word retention scores were significantly higher for the
students who worked with translation than for those who had pictures.
Sentence-level translation is not practical in Hong Kong classrooms as the policy
of language teaching and the principals in general do not recommend the use of
sentence-level translation in the classroom. Therefore, in the present study, the
effectiveness of word-level translation (an example of decontextualized learning) and
explanations of target words (an example of contextualized learning) was investigated.
The purpose of this study was to compare the learning outcomes of three conditions
on 60 Primary 5 students’ vocabulary acquisition: listening to stories with
explanations given for unfamiliar target words encountered in the stories, listening to
stories with explanations for target words plus target word translation, and the control
condition (that is, listening to stories with no explanation of the words and without
target word translation). All the 3 groups were given a pilot vocabulary test, a
post-test and a delayed post-test. Results from the pilot vocabulary test showed that
there were 19 words that were unfamiliar to the students. These 19 words from two
stories were used to develop a 19-item post-test and the same 19-item delayed
post-test. The students in condition two (with explanations of target words and target
word translation) learned significantly more vocabulary than the students in the
control group. The findings support the use of target word translation in the classroom.
Further research on whether students are able to internalise the target words and use
them as part of their spoken vocabulary is recommended.
The significance of the study is to reveal that the provision of explanations for
the target word with the L1 translation of the word concerned will facilitate
vocabulary learning in the context of contextualized learning.
2. Literature Review
2.1. Zone of proximal development and scaffolding
The zone of proximal development is defined as the difference between a child’s
“actual developmental level as determined by independent problem solving” and the
“potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance
or in collaboration with more capable peers” (Vygotsky, 1978).
Scaffolding is an instructional process by which the teacher adjusts or modifies
the amount of and type of support offered to the child that is best suited to his/her
level of development (Seng, 1997).
In a rich language environment, teachers would be sensitive to children’s Zone of
Proximal Development, and would exhibit nurturing scaffolding behaviour (Vygotsky,
1978).
2.2. Building background knowledge
Wallace (1982) emphasized a meaningful presentation of vocabulary in situations
and contexts, the encouragement of inferencing, the use of realia (that is, classroom
activities related to the real life of students), pictures and mime in presentation, the
focusing of attention by the teacher and the activation of the learner’s background
knowledge.
According to Tierney and Cunningham (1984), building background knowledge
is the key to success in reading comprehension. They suggested using pre-reading
activities that focus on building background knowledge by previewing content and
activating existing schemata, or knowledge already stored in the memory (Tierney and
Cunningham, 1984, as cited in Ulanoff and Pucci, 1993).
2.3. Context
According to Carter and McCarthy (1988), context can be viewed as
morphological, syntactic, and discourse information in a given text which can be
classified and described in terms of general features. This is the context within the text.
But the reader also has background knowledge of the subject matter of a given text, i.e.
the general context.
2.4. Learning in context
Carter and McCarthy (1988) stated that there is a distinction between retrieving
the meaning of a word from the use of contextual clues, and the learning or retention
of this meaning.
Studies on meaning retrieval tend to examine the types of clues available in
context, learners’ success or failure in using available clues, and the effects of training
on using clues.
Studies on learning words from context focus on what has been remembered of a
word from its first encounter in context. Failure to remember information from
context can result in failure to retain the meaning.
2.4.1. What can be learned from context
According to Judd (1978), presenting vocabulary “in a natural linguistic context”
is important; words taught in isolation are generally not retained; the full meaning of
words can only come from encountering them in a rich linguistic environment.
There is experimental evidence to show that providing a sentence context, as
well as definition, helps word learning (Long and Richards, 2001). According to Gipe
and Arnold (1979), contexts and definition were superior to synonym or short
definition.
2.4.2. Learning from context and attention-drawing activities
According to Long and Richards (2001), there is some evidence that a
combination of attention-drawing activities such as presenting words to learners
before reading (Jenkins, Stein & Wysocki, 1984) and defining words as they occur in
context (Elley, 1989) increases the amount of vocabulary learning. Attention-drawing
can be done in the following ways (Long and Richards, 2001):
1.
Drawing attention to the word:
~preteaching
~seeing a list before reading
~highlighting (colour, bold, italics) in the text
2.
Providing access to the meaning:
~teacher defining through preteaching
~teacher defining while listening to the text
~hyper-text look-up
3.
Motivating attention to the word
~warning of a test
~providing follow-up exercises
The methods of “highlighting in the text”, “teacher defining while listening to the
text” and “warning of a test” were adapted in the study.
2.5. Learning strategies
2.5.1. Bilingual dictionary:
According to a case study conducted by Grabe and Stoller (1997), the use of a
bilingual dictionary in a consistent and appropriate manner would appear to have a
positive impact on vocabulary learning.
According to Arnaud and Savignon (1996), guessing in context is not without its
problems. It is a reading strategy, not primarily a vocabulary acquisition strategy,
although its use involves semantic treatment of the input and therefore may facilitate
incidental learning (Hulstijn, 1992, as cited in Arnaud and Savignon, 1996).
2.5.2. Using translation in ESL teaching in Hong Kong
According to Stibbard (1998), using translation in ESL teaching in Hong Kong is
justified, especially in the role assigned to it in “affective-humanistic” approaches in
TESL which emphasize the need to reduce anxiety in the early stages of language
learning by allowing some use of the mother tongue.
2.5.3. The contribution of translation learning
Although there have been opponents of translation in learning second language
vocabulary over the years, current studies of L2 vocabulary make use of translations
indeed. For instance, in order to test whether a learner has learned a word, translations
are certainly a feasible option. According to Folse (2004), one of the most widely used
vocabulary measures is the Vocabulary Knowledge Scale (VKS), an instrument
developed and validated by Paribakht and Wesche (1993). The VKS has five levels of
“knowing a word.” For each word tested, students self-report the extent of their
knowledge of a word through these five levels (as cited in Folse, 2004):
1.
I don’t remember having seen this word before.
2.
I have seen this word before, but I don’t know what it means.
3.
I
have
seen
this
word
before,
and
I
think
it
means
_______________________________________________________.
(provide an English synonym or an L1 translation)
4.
I
know
this
word.
It
means
_______________________________________________________.
(provide an English synonym or an L1 translation)
5.
I can use this word in sentence. Write your sentence here:
_______________________________________________________
(If you do #5, be sure to do $4 also.)
In order to receive a perfect mark of five points (Step 5), the learners not only have to
correctly use the word in a sentence but also provide an English synonym or an L1
translation (Step 4).
2.5.4. Translation learning
Research shows that learning new vocabulary with translations is in fact a good
way to learn new vocabulary.
Prince (1996) looked at weak and advanced learners learning from context. The
learning from context condition involved specially constructed sentences but did not
provide an accompanying translation or definition; learners had to use the context to
discover the meaning of the word. In the translation condition, learners saw an L1
word and its L2 translation. Learning was tested in two ways: by translation of
isolated words and by having to fill a blank in a sentence. The sentences were not
those which acted as the context during learning from context. Learning from
translations resulted in higher scores than learning from context for both weak and
advanced learners and, overall, learners found the translation test easier than the
sentence completion test. Those in the advanced group who learned through context,
however, did slightly better in the sentence completion test than in the translation test.
Prince interprets this as indicating that this group were better able to transfer their
knowledge to new applications. The weak group outperformed the advanced group
where no transfer of learning was required, that is, where learning by translation was
tested by translation.
According to Long and Richards (2001), learning from translation can be a way
of quickly raising learners’ awareness of particular words so that when they meet
these words in reading they will be noticed and more easily learned. That is,
translation learning is a very useful complement to learning from context.
Research shows (Lado, Baldwin & Lobo, 1967; Mishima, 1967; Laufer &
Shmueli, 1997) that learning is generally better if the meaning is written in the
learners’ first language. This is because the meaning can be easily understood and the
first language meaning already has many rich associations for the learner. Laufer and
Shmueli found that L1 glosses were superior to L2 glosses in both short-term and
long-term (5 weeks) retention.
2.5.5. Pictures as a complement to translation
According to Long and Richards (2001), the meaning of a word will be, in some
cases, best expressed by a diagram and or picture. Pictures and translations have
different effects and so should be regarded as complementary sources of meaning
rather than alternatives. Lado, Baldwin and Lobo (1967) found that simultaneous
presentation of both a written and spoken translation accompanied by a corresponding
picture was superior to other arrangements and alternatives.
A further argument for regarding pictures and translations as complementary is
that different learners prefer different sources of meaning. Kellogg and Howe (1971)
compared pictures and translations for learning Spanish words. They concluded that
learning was significantly faster with pictures than with written words. This, however,
did not apply to all learners. Twenty-five out of 82 learners learned faster with words
than with pictures. So, although on average picture stimuli gave better results than
words, a significantly large group within the class learned better from words. A
teacher would achieve better results for all the learners by providing both words and
pictures.
2.5.6. Pictures and keywords as a complement to translation
According to Macaro (2003), apart from pictures, research has been found that
the keyword technique is also an effective learning strategy. The keyword technique
was first suggested by Atkinson (1975), and it has been reviewed by Beaton et al.
(1995). It involves two steps after the leaner has come across a new word:
Step 1:
the leaner tries to think of an L1 word (the keyword) which
sounds like part or all of the unknown word. In the case of
advanced L2 learners, the keyword could be a familiar L2 word.
Step 2:
the learner thinks of a visual image, or a short series of images
which will link the new word and the L1 keyword. It is
additionally helpful if the images are bizarre or amusing.
The aim is to provide a link between the form of the new word and its meaning via an
easily retrievable L1 (or L2) word.
Lotto and de Groot (1998) compared the L1 Æ L2 word-learning strategy with
Picture Æ L2 word-learning strategy. The study involved Dutch university
(non-language) students being tested on Italian vocabulary, a completely new
language. The results showed:
1.
Students were able to recall the Italian words faster if they had used the
L1 Æ L2 word-learning strategy than if they had used the Picture Æ L2
word-learning strategy.
2.
The L1 Æ L2 word-learning strategy produced higher recall scores than
Picture Æ L2 learning strategy.
2.6. Explanations of target words and target word
translation
According to Snow (1998), methods providing repeated drill and practice on
word definitions resulted in significant improvement with the particular words that
had been taught but no reliable effect on reading comprehension scores. In contrast,
methods in which children were given both information about the words’ definitions
and examples of the words’ usages in a variety of contexts resulted in the largest gains
in both vocabulary and reading comprehension (Snow, 1998). Therefore learning
support of word definitions and word usages should be provided.
Learning word meanings incidentally from context has been reported in studies
in which students listened to stories instead of reading them (Elley, 1989; Leung,
1992). In his study on learning word meanings incidentally, Elley (1989) (as cited in
Brett, Rothlein, and Hurley,1996) added explanations of word meanings, which more
than doubled vocabulary gains students made in the absence of such explanations. He
observed that the number of times a word occurred in a story was positively related to
the likelihood that a student would learn that word, and that students with smaller
vocabularies prior to hearing the story learned as much as students with greater word
knowledge (Elley 1989).
2.6.1. Explaining vocabulary
According to Long and Richards (2001), in the first meetings with a word, any
explanation should not be complicated or elaborate. Learning a word is a cumulative
process, therefore teachers need not be concerned about providing lots of information
about a word when it is first met. What is important is to start the process of learning
in a clear way without confusion. There are strong arguments for using the learners’
first language if this will provide a clear, simple, and brief explanation (Lado,
Baldwin & Lobo, 1967), Mishima (1967), Laufer & Shmueli, 1997, as cited in Long
& Richards, 2001). Elley’s (1989) study of vocabulary learning from listening to
stories showed that brief definitions had a strong effect on learning.
2.6.2. Help learners remember what is explained
According to Long and Richards (2001), understanding and remembering a word
meaning are related but different processes. The way in which a teacher explains a
word can affect understanding or it can affect understanding and remembering. In
order to help learners remembering a word meaning, information needs to be
processed thoughtfully and deeply. Teachers can help remembering by helping
learners think of a mnemonic keyword that is like the form of the new word, by
putting the word in a striking visualisable context, by encouraging learners to retrieve
the word form or meaning from their memory while not looking at the text, and by
relating the word to previous knowledge such as previous experience or spelling, or
collocational patterns encountered before.
2.6.3. Quickly give the meaning
According to Long and Richards (2001), giving the meaning quickly can be done
by quickly giving a first language translation, a second language synonym or brief
definition, or quickly drawing a picture, pointing to an object or making a gesture.
This way of dealing with a word has the goal of avoiding spending time. According to
Elley (1989), quick definitions help learning.
2.6.4. Sun and Dong’s experiment
Sun and Dong (2004) tested the effectiveness of two learning strategies for
young children: sentence-level translation and target words warming-up. In this study,
67 primary one and primary two students in Beijing were presented a cartoon story
accompanied by target words warming-up with or without L1 translation. A word
pronunciation test, a word understanding test and a sentence translation test were
conducted after watching the story. Results showed that children with the help of
translation and target words warming-up had significantly higher scores on the three
tests than the other two groups.
Previous research showed that explanations of target words and target word
translation were helpful tools for learners to learn second language vocabulary.
Therefore, the null hypothesis of this study was that there would be no significant
difference in English vocabulary acquisition among three groups: explanations of
target words with reference to the linguistic context (condition one), explanations of
target words and target word translation (condition two), and control.
2.7. Summary
2.7.1. Optimal vocabulary learning condition
According to Snow (1998), methods in which children were given both
information about the words’ definitions and examples of the words’ usages in a
variety of contexts resulted in the largest gains in both vocabulary and reading
comprehension. Therefore learning support of word definitions and word usages
should be provided.
2.7.2. Difference in retention rate
Results of the Lotto and de Groot (1998) study showed that:
1. Students were able to recall the Italian words faster if they had used the
L1 Æ L2 word-learning strategy than if they had used the Picture Æ L2
word-learning strategy.
2. The L1 Æ L2 word-learning strategy produced higher recall scores than
Picture Æ L2 learning strategy.
2.7.3. Results of Sun & Dong’s (2004) experiment
Results of Sun & Dong’s (2004) experiment showed that children with the help
of translation and target words warming-up had significantly higher scores on the
three tests than the other two groups.
3. Methodology
3.1. Subjects
Three Primary 5 classes from a primary school in Yau Ma Tei were chosen for
data collection. The sample consisted of 60 students in three groups, and they were
randomly assigned in equal numbers to one of the following three conditions:
condition one (explanations of target words with reference to the linguistic context): n
(number of participants) =20; condition two (explanations of target words and words
translation): n=20; condition three (control group): n=20. All children included in the
sample were native speakers of Cantonese. The students were 10 to 13 years of age.
3.2. Design
3.2.1. Materials
The two stories (adapted from Reading & Writing Skills, New Welcome to
English, 5A, by Don Dallas and Linda Pelham, 2003) were selected for the study.
These two stories were selected because of their suitability at the Primary 5 level.
Neither of the stories had been read to students during the current academic year.
3.2.2. Pre-test (Vocabulary)
The 60 words, taken directly from the two stories, most likely to be unfamiliar to
Primary 5 students were used to develop a vocabulary test. This pre-test was
administered to the 60 participants included in the study in order to determine which
words were familiar to them. The students were required to give an equivalent
meaning in Chinese for each English word in the pre-test. For instance, for the word
“different”, the students had to write the Chinese equivalent meaning “不同的”. On
the basis of the results of the pre-test test, words that were known (that is, correct
semantic description of the words) by even one student would be deleted. Words that
were not known by all of the 60 students were used for the 19-item multiple choice
post-test that was assembled for each story (see the Appendix 2(a)). The 19 target
words from the stories were “raised, wedding, experience, sedan chair, on the way,
bottom, however, servants, bride, besides, captain, engines, broken down, immediate,
delayed, regretted, calmly, landing, and otherwise”.
3.2.3. Vocabulary testing
According to Schmitt (2000), vocabulary items set in a multiple-choice format
tended to behave consistently and predictably. However, since the 1970s, the
communicative approach to language pedagogy has affected perceptions about how
vocabulary should be tested. According to Schmitt (2000), many scholars now reject
testing vocabulary in isolation, and they believe that it is better measured in context.
So the 19-item post-test and the same 19-item delayed post-test were measured in
context.
3.2.4. Post test and delayed post test
The interventions used in this study were partly adapted but largely modified
from those described in an experiment with young children by Sun & Dong (2004).
Students were told that they would be learning the meanings of some target
words. The learners knew that they would be tested on the new vocabulary and
consciously studied it while listening to the stories.
Students in condition one listened to two stories with explanation/definitions
given for target words. Students in condition two listened to the same stories with
explanations of target words and with target word translation. Students in condition
three (a control group) listened to the same stories without any intervention. All three
groups were given a 19-item post-test of the same target words immediately after the
intervention. The same 19-item post-test would be administered one week after the
first post-test without rereading the two stories in order to examine learners’ retention
rate of word meanings. Students were not penalized for incorrect answers in the
scoring process. They were given 1 point for every correct answer and 0 point for
every incorrect answer.
3.2.5. Three conditions
In the present study, explanations of target words meant that the meanings of
target words, pictures and keywords in English and the associated linguistic contexts
were given to the students.
Condition one: As students listened to the stories which were projected on the
screen, the experimenter gave an explanation for each target word as it would be
encountered in the text. When the experimenter came to a target word in the story, he
was to stop and explained the word by reading the definition of the word in
English and providing pictorial clues (plus a keyword). For example, for the word
“raise”, the experimenter read the definition, “If a mother raises a child, she will look
after him until he is grown up.” and provided an illustration that contained a
representation of the target word. Each illustration had the target word and its
definition placed at the bottom of the screen. Students were told that in order to
remember the meaning of a word all they had to do was to recall the keyword and the
picture that went with it. Corrective feedback was provided by the experimenter when
a student responded incorrectly. The stories used in this study were not circulated to
the students. The other two groups did not have any exposure to the stories.
Condition two: As students listened to the stories which were projected on the
screen, the experimenter gave an explanation for each target word as it would be
encountered in the text. When the experimenter came to a target word in the story, he
was to stop and explained the word by reading the definition of the word in
English and providing pictorial clues (plus a keyword). For example, for the word
“raise”, the experimenter read the definition, “If a mother raises a child, she will look
after him until he is grown up.” and provided an illustration that contained a
representation of the target word. Each illustration had the target word and its
definition placed at the bottom of the screen. A Chinese translation of the target
word was provided and placed next to the target word. Students were told that in
order to remember the meaning of a word all they had to do was to recall the keyword
and the picture that went with it. Corrective feedback was provided by the
experimenter when a student responded incorrectly.
Condition three: Students in the control group listened to the stories with no
explanations of target words and no target word translation.
3.2.6. A post-test survey
A post-test survey was conducted to elicit students’ views on different
vocabulary learning strategies. The survey was a qualitative measure of students’
perception on six vocabulary learning strategies.
3.3. Measurement
Two time phases were arranged to examine how well the students were able to
infer and remember the meaning of the target words on the 19-item vocabulary usage
test. The students were required to finish a cloze passage using the target words given.
The vocabulary usage test was used in the post-test and the delayed post-test. The first
post-test immediately followed the intervention. The second (or delayed) post-test was
administered one week after the first post-test.
4. Expected Results
4.1. Pre-test (Vocabulary)
One-way ANOVA was used to compare the baseline means of the three groups in
the 60-item vocabulary test.
4.2. Post-test and delayed post-test
Data are entered into a two-intervention condition (target word explanations Vs.
target word explanations plus target word translation) by two time measure (post-test
vs. delayed post-test) analysis. A two-step analysis procedure was followed to analyse
the 2 x 2 design. The first step involved a one-way ANOVA to compare the group
means of the three groups in the post-test results. The second step used a one-way
ANOVA to compare the group means of the three groups in the delayed post-test;
repeated measures ANOVA was used to compare the within-groups means of the three
groups in both the post-test and the delayed post-test. The post hoc Tukey
comparisons were used to identify single critical differences from among the levels of
each variable, with alpha set at the 0.05 level of significance.
The hypotheses in the present student were:
(1) Explanations of target words would facilitate students’ vocabulary learning.
Therefore, the students in condition one would score higher on the post-test
and delayed post-test than their counterparts in condition three (control
group).
(2) The students in condition two (explanations of target words + target word
translation) would further facilitate students’ vocabulary learning. Therefore,
the students in condition two would have higher scores on the post-test and
delayed post-test than students in the other two groups.
Given the above hypotheses, the null hypothesis was that there would be no
significant difference in English vocabulary acquisition among three groups:
explanations of target words (condition one), explanations of target words plus target
word translation (condition two), and control (condition three).
5. Results
5.1. Paired Samples T-test
The followings represent the output of a paired samples T-test. The mean test
scores were compared between the post-test and the delayed post-test scores of the
students in condition one. It was tested to see whether the students performed above
chance level in the delayed post-test.
First, the descriptive statistics for both variables were shown in Table 1. The
delayed post-test mean scores were higher.
Table 1. Paired Samples Statistics of students in condition one
Pair 1
Mean
N
Std. Deviation Std. Error Mean
MARKS1
7.50
20
3.61
.81
MARKS2
8.45
20
4.19
.94
The correlation of the variables was shown in Table 2. There was a strong
positive correlation. Students who did well on the post-test also did well on the
delayed post-test.
Table 2. Paired Samples Correlations of students in condition one
Pair 1 MARKS1 & MARKS2
N
Correlation
Sig.
20
.692
.001
The results of the Paired Samples T-Test were shown in Table 3. The T value was
-1.369. There were 19 degrees of freedom. The significant value was 0.187 which was
greater than 0.05. It could be seen that there was no significant difference between the
post-test and the delayed post-test scores. The students performed above chance level.
Similar results were also shown in the case of the students in condition two and
condition three; they all performed above chance level in the delayed post-test.
Table 3. Paired Samples T-Test of students in condition two
Paired Differences
95% Confidence
Interval of the
Pair 1
MARKS1 –
Sig.
Std.
Std. Error
Mean
Deviation
Mean
Lower
Upper
t
df
(2-tailed)
-.95
3.10
.69
-2.40
.50
-1.369
19
.187
Difference
MARKS2
5.2. 60-item Pre-test
Table 4 showed that no significant difference (p=0.073) was found among the
three groups in the pre-test. The three groups had similar baseline characteristics.
Table 4. One-way ANOVA on pre-test of the three groups
Sum of Squares
df
Mean Square
F
Sig.
Between Groups
207.700
2
103.850
2.744
.073
Within Groups
2157.150
57
37.845
Total
2364.850
59
5.3. Means and standard deviations of post-test and delayed
post-test for 3 groups
Table 5 presents the means and standard deviations of the post-test and the
delayed post-test scores for the three groups.
The general linear model procedure for an analysis of variance (ANOVA) was
used to analyse the data. Students’ scores on the post-test and the delayed post-test
were entered into a 3 (group: target word explanations, target word explanations plus
target word translation, control) x 2 (time: post-test, delayed post-test) ANOVA with
time as the repeated measurement.
The mean scores of group one students (Mean = 7.50 and 8.45 respectively) were
higher on the post-test and delayed post-test than the mean scores of group three
students (Mean = 4.90 and 5.45 respectively) on the two tests. So the students in
condition one scored higher on the post-test and delayed post-test than their
counterparts in condition three (control group) when their means were compared.
The mean scores of group two students (Mean = 9.40 and 9.25 respectively)
were even higher on the post-test and delayed post-test than the mean scores of group
one students (Mean = 7.50 and 8.45 respectively). Therefore, the students in condition
two had higher scores on the post-test and delayed post-test than students in the other
two groups when their means were compared.
Table 5. Means and standard deviations of post-test and delayed post-test
Std.
MARKS1
MARKS2
Std. 95% Confidence Interval for Mean
N
Mean Deviation Error
1
20
7.50
3.61
2
20
9.40
3
20
Total 60
Minimum Maximum
Lower Bound
Upper Bound
.81
5.81
9.19
3
16
4.37
.98
7.35
11.45
2
18
4.90
3.55
.79
3.24
6.56
1
14
7.27
4.23
.55
6.17
8.36
1
18
1
20
8.45
4.19
.94
6.49
10.41
1
15
2
20
9.25
4.49
1.00
7.15
11.35
3
18
3
20
5.45
4.95
1.11
3.13
7.77
0
15
Total 60
7.72
4.77
.62
6.48
8.95
0
18
5.4. Post-test
Results of the analysis of the one-way ANOVA on the post-test yielded two
significant effects (see Tables 6 and 7). A significant difference was found among the
three conditions in the post-test, F=6.848, p=0.002. Tukey’s multiple comparison
revealed that the students in condition two significantly outperformed the students in
condition three. There was no significant difference between the students in condition
one and the students in condition two (p=0.273), nor between the students in
condition one and the students in condition three (p=0.093).
Table 6. One-way ANOVA comparison on the group means of the three groups in the
post-test
Sum of Squares
df
Mean Square
F
Sig.
Between Groups
204.133
2
102.067
6.848
.002
Within Groups
849.600
57
14.905
Total
1053.733
59
Table 7. Post hoc Tukey multiple comparisons on the group means of the three groups
in the post-test
95% Confidence Interval
(I) COND (J) COND Mean Difference (I-J) Std. Error
1
2
3
Sig.
Lower Bound Upper Bound
2
-1.90
1.22
.273
-4.84
1.04
3
2.60
1.22
.093
-.34
5.54
1
1.90
1.22
.273
-1.04
4.84
3
4.50*
1.22
.001
1.56
7.44
1
-2.60
1.22
.093
-5.54
.34
2
-4.50*
1.22
.001
-7.44
-1.56
* : The mean difference is significant at the .05 level.
5.5. Delayed post-test
Results of the analysis of the one-way ANOVA on the delayed post-test yielded
two significant effects (see Tables 8 and 9). A significant difference was found among
the three conditions in the delayed post-test, F=3.872, p=0.027. Tukey’s multiple
comparison revealed that the students in condition two significantly outperformed the
students in condition three. There was no significant difference between the students
in condition one and the students in condition two (p=0.844), nor between the
students in condition one and the students in condition three (p=0.102).
Table 8. One-way ANOVA comparison on the group means of the three groups in the
delayed post-test
Sum of Squares
df
Mean Square
F
Sig.
Between Groups
160.533
2
80.267
3.872
.027
Within Groups
1181.650
57
20.731
Total
1342.183
59
Table 9. Post hoc Tukey multiple comparisons on the group means of the three groups
in the delayed post-test
Mean Difference
(I) COND (J) COND
1
2
3
95% Confidence Interval
(I-J)
Std. Error
Sig.
2
-.80
1.44
.844
-4.26
2.66
3
3.00
1.44
.102
-.46
6.46
1
.80
1.44
.844
-2.66
4.26
3
3.80*
1.44
.028
.34
7.26
1
-3.00
1.44
.102
-6.46
.46
2
-3.80*
1.44
.028
-7.26
-.34
* : The mean difference is significant at the .05 level.
Lower Bound Upper Bound
5.6. Repeated measures ANOVA to compare
within-groups means
Tables 10 and 11 showed the results of the analysis of the two-way ANOVA with
repeated measures on Marks. The means of condition two in both the post-test and the
delayed post-test were the highest. The means of condition three in both the post-test
and the delayed post-test were the lowest. No significant difference was found for
within-subjects factor, with p=0.266.
Table 10. Mean and standard deviation of two-way ANOVA with repeated measures on Marks
MARKS1
MARKS2
COND
Mean
Std. Deviation
N
1
7.50
3.61
20
2
9.40
4.37
20
3
4.90
3.55
20
Total
7.27
4.23
60
1
8.45
4.19
20
2
9.25
4.49
20
3
5.45
4.95
20
Total
7.72
4.77
60
Table 11. Summary of two-way ANOVA with repeated measures on Mark
Effect
Value
F
Pillai's Trace
.022
1.263
1.000
Wilks' Lambda
.978
1.263
Hotelling's Trace
.022
Roy's Largest Root
MARK *
COND
MARK
Hypothesis df Error df
Sig.
Eta Squared
57.000
.266
.022
1.000
57.000
.266
.022
1.263
1.000
57.000
.266
.022
.022
1.263
1.000
57.000
.266
.022
Pillai's Trace
.022
.644
2.000
57.000
.529
.022
Wilks' Lambda
.978
.644
2.000
57.000
.529
.022
Hotelling's Trace
.023
.644
2.000
57.000
.529
.022
Roy's Largest Root
.023
.644
2.000
57.000
.529
.022
5.7. Summary
When the means of the post-test and the delayed post-test scores for the three
groups were compared, the students in condition two outperformed the students in
condition one and the students in condition three: students assigned to condition two
outperformed all the other conditions students across all two levels of time. Students
in condition three performed significantly lower than students from the other
conditions at the post-test and the delayed post-test. Results of the post-test and the
delayed post-test showed that the mean difference in both tests between students in
condition three and students in condition two was large, with mean difference = -4.5
and -3.8 respectively (see Tables 7 and 9).
Given that the effects of the interaction between the interventions and the tests
are significant at the 0.002 and 0.027 levels (see Tables 6 and 8), the null hypothesis
that there would be no significant difference in English vocabulary acquisition among
three groups is rejected.
Examination of the results of the ANOVAs indicates that while there is no significant
difference among the three groups on the pre-test (p=0.073). Both the post-test (p=0.002)
(see Table 6) and the delayed post-test (p=0.027) (see Table 8) reflect significant differences
for the intervention when comparing the students in condition two and condition three.
6. Discussion
The present study was undertaken to test whether the provision of explanations
for the target word with or without the L1 translation of the word concerned would
facilitate vocabulary learning in the context of contextualized learning. Results
indicate that there is a significant difference between the students in condition 2 and
the students in condition 3 in the post-test and the delayed post-test scores. The
students in condition two (explanations of target words plus target word translation)
scored significantly higher than the students in condition three (control group).
Inspection of individual data shows that the means of group one students
(condition one) are 7.50 and 8.45 in the post-test and the delayed post respectively,
higher than the means of group three students (condition three), 4.90 and 5.45. This
finding indicates that explanations of target words can facilitate L2 vocabulary
learning. The means of group two students (condition two), 9.40 and 9.25, reveal that
target words translation can further facilitate L2 vocabulary leaning.
The efficacy of the target word translation as a strategy for increasing vocabulary
learning provides us with an implication. Explanations of target words and target
word translation can boost vocabulary learning in the context of contextualized
learning. This finding supports recent research (Sun & Dong , 2004) which suggests
that translation is effective in improving L2 vocabulary learning in the context of
contextualized learning. It also supports Snow’s (1988) observation that the provision
of a word’s definition and its associated linguistic context / linguistic use can boost
vocabulary learning.
However, it could not be found in this study that the word retention rate was
higher for the students who worked with translation than for the students in the
control group. The word retention rates of the three groups were 12.6%, -1.5%, and
11.2% respectively. This finding differs from Lotto and de Groot’s (1998) study in
that the word retention scores were significantly higher for the group with L1
translation than the group with pictures only.
An important result that cannot be overlooked is that the post hoc Tukey test
indicated that there is no statistically significant difference between the students in
condition one (explanations of target words) and the students in condition three
(control) on both the post-test and the delayed post-test. Examining the means and
standard deviations (see Table 5) shows the differences of the two groups to be rather
diverse. Possible reasons for this lack of statistical significance are the large standard
deviations, specifically for the group one students who has a standard deviation of
3.61 on the post-test as compared to 3.55 for students in group three and a standard
deviation of 4.19 as compared to 4.95 on the delayed post-test. These standard
deviations indicate a large variance in scores given a range of possible scores from 0
to 16. Besides, although a sample of 60 seems adequate, the fact that this study
focused on three groups makes sample size a limitation. Replication with a larger
sample would serve to eliminate this problem.
6.1. Implications for further study
Students learned the target words when the explanations of target words and
target word translation were provided. However, additional research is needed to find
out whether students are able to internalise the target words and use them as part of
their spoken vocabulary. The vocabulary usage test used in this study measured
students’ ability to use the words in written context, not the ability to use them in oral
context.
A larger sample size should be used when replicating this study. As previously
mentioned, the sample size of 60 was inadequate to derive statistical significance
between the group one students (condition one) and the group three students
(condition three). It would seem to be appropriate to use twice as many students when
comparing the effectiveness of interventions among three groups. In addition, in order
to further examine the retention rates (Elley, 1989), it would be advantageous to look
at the effects of the intervention over a longer period of time rather than just two
weeks.
6.1.1. The use of L1 translation
Learners typically use a form of “equivalence hypothesis” when learning new L2
words, expressing a strategy which can be expressed in the following manner:
“Regard everything [words in L2 and L1] as the same unless you have a good reason
not to” (Swan, 1997, as cited in Nottingham, 2000). According to Kellerman (1986),
learners do seem to assume that the core meaning senses of translation equivalents are
the same across languages, but that more peripheral, irregular, or idiomatic uses are
not. This is generally correct, and shows that learners have intuitions about the
relationships between L2 and L1 words.
6.2. A post-test survey on learners’ perception of different
vocabulary learning strategies
A survey of students’ preference on the use of learning strategy was given to
students in the three groups. The survey was developed by the researcher (Appendix
5). The four learning strategies were: (a) explanations of words in English, (b)
keyword method, (c) pictorial clue, and (d) L1 translation. The students from the three
groups were asked to indicate their preference on the following six choices to learn
vocabulary: method (a), method (b), method (c), method (d), method (a+b+c), and
method (a+b+c+d).
Based on the information gathered from the student survey, the majority of
students from the three groups liked method (d) (that is, L1 translation) the most, and
they reported that they also liked method (a+b+c+d) (that is, a combination of L1
translation with pictorial clue, keyword and explanations of words in English) very
much. In either case, L1 translation was shown to be their favourite learning strategy
in vocabulary learning. This observations supports research findings from the
perspective of the users on the use of L1 translation as a learning strategy in second
language vocabulary learning.
Table 12. Descriptive statistics of a student survey on learning strategies
N
Minimum Maximum
Mean
Std. Deviation
M1
60
1
4
2.47
.75
M2
60
1
4
2.33
.75
M3
60
1
4
2.00
.90
M4
60
1
4
1.37
.58
M5
60
1
4
2.18
.75
M6
60
1
4
1.65
.92
Valid N (listwise)
60
Jacobs, Dufon, and Hong (1994) conducted research on 85 English-speaking
students enrolled in a fourth-semester Spanish course, and they looked at students’
ability to recall material from short passages that the students had read in Spanish.
Some students had access to L1 translations but others did not. An interesting finding
in post-study questionnaires was that 99 percent of the students want glosses in their
language materials. Slightly more than half preferred Spanish (L2) glosses but only if
the glosses were written in Spanish that they could understand, and just under half
preferred English (L1) glosses. Only an extremely small number of the students
preferred Spanish (L2) glosses (Jacobs, Dufon, & Hong, 1994, as cited in Folse, 2004).
7. Conclusion
According to Deighton (1966), vocabulary learning through context is limited by
and grows with the learner’s general experience and his experience in reading.
It could not be found in this study that the word retention rate was higher for the
students who worked with translation than for the students in the control group. This
finding differs from Lotto and de Groot’s (1998) study in that the word retention
scores were significantly higher for the group with L1 translation than the group with
pictures only. The difference lies in the difference in retention rates among the groups.
Nevertheless, the other findings of this investigation are partially in agreement
with other research, indicating that target word translation and explanations of target
words are useful for L2 vocabulary learning (Mishima, 1967; Prince, 1996; Laufer
and Shmueli, 1997). Results of this study support existing research and extend
previous findings to include a population of 10- to 13-year-old students. Students
given explanations of target words and target word translation maintained
significantly higher levels of performance in both tests across two intervals of time,
while the control group’s performance decreased slightly at the delayed post-test, with
a larger standard deviation.
Target word explanations can assist students in learning second language
vocabulary. Properly-employed strategies which use target word translation as part of
the scaffolding strategy to support students can result in substantial vocabulary
learning. Notice that in the literature Crawford (1989), for example, argued that
teachers using the translation method had little incentive to make the lesson
understandable in the second language. In principle, the class should be taught in
English with a lot of English input. In an ESL setting, however, where all of the
students speak the same L1, it can be helpful to translate some of the words (Folse,
2004). The concern expressed by Crawford deals with the overall language input in
the classroom. But this study concerns only the effective way for a student to learn as
much as L2 vocabulary as possible in the most efficient manner with an aim to
evaluate the use of target word translation.
Explanations of target words and target words translation are useful for English
language vocabulary learning in Hong Kong primary schools. This study
demonstrates that if teachers employ the two teaching strategies: target word
translation and explanation, Primary Five students in Hong Kong should be able to
learn and retain word meanings better.
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Appendix 1
Sample Questions from Pre-Test (Vocabulary)
What do the following words mean?
E.g.
boy
a child who will grow up to be a man /男孩/
1.
visit
___________________________________
2.
New Territories
___________________________________
3.
lesson
___________________________________
4.
life
___________________________________
5.
found
___________________________________
6.
hard
___________________________________
7.
fields
___________________________________
8.
grew
___________________________________
9.
spring
___________________________________
10.
different
___________________________________
11.
kinds
___________________________________
12.
raised
___________________________________
13.
sedan chair
___________________________________
14.
experience
___________________________________
15.
on the way
___________________________________
16.
wedding
___________________________________
17.
bottom
___________________________________
18.
broke
___________________________________
19.
ground
___________________________________
20.
luckily
___________________________________
21.
hurt
___________________________________
22.
however
___________________________________
23.
servants
___________________________________
24.
believed
___________________________________
25.
bad luck
___________________________________
26.
bride
___________________________________
27.
arrive
___________________________________
28.
besides
___________________________________
29.
impolite
___________________________________
30.
on time
___________________________________
31.
continue
___________________________________
32.
journey
___________________________________
33.
really
___________________________________
34.
laughed
___________________________________
35.
Beijing
___________________________________
36.
plane
___________________________________
37.
captain
___________________________________
38.
ladies
___________________________________
39.
gentlemen
___________________________________
40.
engines
___________________________________
41.
worry
___________________________________
42.
danger
___________________________________
43.
still
___________________________________
44.
delay
___________________________________
45.
arrival
___________________________________
46.
another
___________________________________
47.
passengers
___________________________________
48.
heard
___________________________________
49.
regret
___________________________________
50.
immediate
___________________________________
51.
break down
___________________________________
52.
otherwise
___________________________________
53.
forever
___________________________________
54.
calmly
___________________________________
55.
a quick landing
___________________________________
Appendix 2 (a)
Condition One: Explanations of target words
1.
--------------------> Your hands up.
If a mother raises a child, she will look after him until he is grown up.
2.
---> There is a seat and you can dance.
A sedan chair is an enclosed chair for one person with horizontal poles
at either side, designed to be lifted and carried by two people.
3.
Exp ---------------> ex + pe + ri + ence
An experience is something that happens to you, especially something
important that affects you.
4.
on the way to school
----------------------------------------->
If you are on your way, you have started your journey somewhere.
5.
wedding ----------> wed + ding
----------> woman + man
A wedding is a marriage ceremony and the party that often takes place
after the ceremony.
6.
--------------> the bottom of a car
The bottom of something is the lowest part of it.
7.
$500
The book is expensive.
However, it is interesting.
You use however when you are adding a comment which contrasts with
what has just been said.
8.
She is a servant.
A servant is someone who is employed to work at another person’s
home.
9.
beautiful + ride -------> bride
A man and a beautiful woman ride
a horse.
A bride is a woman who is getting married.
10.
The house is too big. Besides, I like
living in a small flat.
Besides is used to emphasize an additional point that you are making,
especially one that you consider to be important.
11.
--------> cap + tain -------> captain
moun + tain -------> mountain
The captain of an aeroplane is the pilot in charge of it.
12.
---------> engine
The engine of an aeroplane is the part that produces the power which
makes the aeroplane move.
13.
Hong Kong International Airport
Flight No.
From
To
CX802
Taiwan
HK
Arrival Time
10:00am )
10:30am
(Bad weather)
Because of the bad weather, the plane is delayed.
If you delay doing something, you do not do it at the planned time, but
you leave it until later.
14.
The man regrets having spent
all his money.
If you regret something that you have done, you wish that you had not
done it.
15.
--------------------------->
The hot water has an immediate effect on the eggs.
An immediate action happens at once.
16.
The car breaks down.
If a machine breaks down, it stops working.
17.
I am interested in school work.
Otherwise, I will be unhappy.
You use otherwise after stating a fact, in order to say what the result
would be if this fact was not the case.
18.
The cat is calmly sitting on a man’s leg.
You can use calmly to emphasize that someone is behaving in a very
controlled way in an unusual situation.
19.
The plane made a safe landing.
A landing is an act of bringing an aeroplane down to the ground.
Appendix 2 (b)
Condition two: Explanations of target words and target
word translation
1.
--------------------> Your hands up.
If a mother raises a child, she will look after him while he is grown up.
養育
2.
---> There is a seat and you can dance.
A sedan chair is an enclosed chair for one person with horizontal poles at
轎 子
either side, designed to be lifted and carried by two people.
3.
Exp ---------------> ex + pe + ri + ence
An experience is something that happens to you, especially something
經歷
important that affects you.
4.
on the way to school
----------------------------->
If you are on your way, you have started your journey somewhere.
途
中
5.
wedding ----------> wed + ding
----------> woman + man
A wedding is a marriage ceremony and the party that often takes place
婚禮
after the ceremony.
6.
--------------> the bottom of a car
The bottom of something is the lowest part of it.
底部
7.
$500
The book is expensive.
However, it is interesting.
You use however when you are adding a comment which contrasts with
但是
what has just been said.
8.
She is a servant.
A servant is someone who is employed to work at another person’s home.
僕人
9.
beautiful + ride -------> bride
A man and a beautiful woman ride a horse.
A bride is a woman who is getting married.
新娘
10.
The house is too big. Besides, I like
living in a small flat.
Besides is used to emphasize an additional point that you are making,
此外
especially one that you consider to be important.
11.
--------> cap + tain -------> captain
moun + tain -------> mountain
The captain of an aeroplane is the pilot in charge of it.
機長
12.
---------> engine
The engine of an aeroplane is the part that produces the power which
引擎
makes the aeroplane move.
13.
Hong Kong International Airport
Flight No.
From
To
CX802
Taiwan
HK
Arrival Time
10:00am )
10:30am
(Bad weather)
Because of the bad weather, the plane is delayed.
If you delay doing something, you do not do it at the planned time, but
延誤
you leave it until later.
14.
The man regrets having spent
all his money.
If you regret something that you have done, you wish that you had not done it.
後悔
15.
----------------------------------->
The hot water has an immediate effect on the eggs.
An immediate action happens at once.
立刻的
16.
The car breaks down.
If a machine breaks down, it stops working.
發生故障
17.
I am interested in school work.
Otherwise, I will be unhappy.
You use otherwise after stating a fact, in order to say what the result
否則
would be if this fact was not the case.
18.
The cat is calmly sitting on a man’s leg.
You can use calmly to emphasize that someone is behaving in a very
冷靜地
controlled way in an unusual situation.
19.
The plane made a safe landing.
A landing is an act of bringing an aeroplane down to the ground.
降落
Appendix 3
Vocabulary Usage Test in Post-test and Delayed Post-test
(Suggested Answers)
A. Complete the passage with the given words.
however
bride
wedding
hurt
servants
besides
on the way
experience
because
bottom
raised
sedan chair
My grandmother (1)_______raised________ many pigs in her farm when she
was young. She had an unforgettable wedding many years ago. In her
(2)_______wedding__________ , she had a bad (3)____experience___________
sitting on a (4)____sedan chair_____________ . When she was (5)___on the
way_______________ to my grandfather’s home, the (6)____bottom_____________
of the chair was broken. She was very unhappy at that time.
(7)____However______________, she did not cry. Her
(8)___servants_____________ and she kept walking to my grandfather’s home. She
believed that she should have good luck because she was a beautiful
(9)___bride___________ at that moment. (10)__Besides_____________, my
grandfather gave her support and walked with her.
B. Complete the passage with the given words.
delayed
otherwise
worry
captain
regretted
landing
immediate
danger
engines
broken down
Last summer, I went to Taiwan. When I was on the aeroplane, the
(11)___captain___________ of the aeroplane said that one of the
(12)___engines____________ was (13)__broken down_____________ . But he said
there was no (14)__immediate_____________ danger. So the arrival time in Taiwan
would be (15)__delayed________________ for 1 hour. I was very afraid. I
(16)___regretted____________ that I was sitting on the aeroplane. But my father was
sitting (17)___calmly______________ . He told me that we should have a safe
(18)___landing___________ in Taiwan. In the end, I was happy to have been to
Taiwan. (19)____Otherwise__________, I could not eat so much yummy food in
Taiwan.
calmly
Appendix 4
Reading Text One
One day Betty went to visit her grandma who lived in the New Territories.
‘Last week we had a lesson about life in old Hong Kong. I found it very
interesting. Was life hard when you were young, Granny?’ asked Betty.
‘Yes, very hard. We had to work in the fields every day. We grew rice in spring
and different kinds of vegetables all year round. We also raised chickens, ducks and
pigs on our small farm,’ said Grandma.
‘Did you ever travel in a sedan chair?’ Betty asked.
‘Yes, but my experience with a sedan chair was very bad,’ said Grandma.
‘What happened?’ asked Betty.
‘I was on the way to your grandpa’s house for my wedding when the bottom of
the sedan chair broke. I fell into the ground, but luckily I was not hurt. However, the
servants said that they had no time to go and get a new chair. People believed that it
was bad luck for a bride to arrive late at her wedding. Besides, it was impolite not to
get to the wedding on time.’
‘Oh dear! What did you do, Granny?’ Betty asked.
‘I told the servants to continue the journey and I walked inside the chair,’ said
Grandma.
‘Great! That was really clever of you, Granny,’ laughed Betty.
Appendix 4 (continued)
Reading Text Two
Mrs Smith was on her way to Beijing by plane. About thirty minutes after the
plane took off, the captain came on the air. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, I’m sorry to say
that one of our engines is not working. But please don’t worry. We’re not in any
danger because the other engines are still working well. However, we’ll have to delay
our arrival in Beijing by thirty minutes.’
A few minutes later, the captain spoke again. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, I’m sorry to
say that another of our engines is not working. But there is still no danger. The other
engines are still working well. However, our arrival in Beijing will be delayed by
another thirty minutes.’
Half an hour later the passengers heard the captain again. ‘I regret to say, ladies
and gentlemen, that another of our engines is not working. There is no immediate
danger. But, as our plane is flying on only one engine, I’m afraid our arrival will be
delayed by another half an hour.’
‘I hope the last engine doesn’t break down. Otherwise we’ll be up here forever,’
said Mrs Smith to another passenger.
‘Don’t worry, madam,’ said her neighbour calmly. ‘If it breaks down, we’ll have
a quick landing.’
Appendix 5
Survey
Class: 5__Class No.:__Name: ___________(
)Date:_____________
(c)
(b) on the way to school
---------------------------->
(a) If you are on your way, you have started your journey somewhere.
(d) 途
中
(a)英文解釋 (Explanations of words in English)
(b)英文關鍵字 (Keyword method)
(c)圖像 (Pictorial clue)
(d)中文解釋 (L1 translation)
你喜歡哪種方法學習英文字／詞彙？ 圈
Which learning strategy do you like most? Circle.
非常喜歡 喜歡
不喜歡
(Love)
(Dislike) (Hate)
(Like)
極不喜歡
喜歡(a)方法 [method (a)]
1
2
3
4
喜歡(b)方法 [method (b)]
1
2
3
4
喜歡(c)方法 [method (c)]
1
2
3
4
喜歡(d)方法 [method (d)]
1
2
3
4
1
2
3
4
1
2
3
4
喜歡(a)+(b)+(c)方法
[method (a)+(b)+(c)]
喜歡(a)+(b)+(c)+(d)方法
[method (a)+(b)+(c)+(d)]