Applying metacognitive strategies in learning vocabulary for in-service students at Hanoi University of Language and International studies, Vietnam National University - An action research

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES LÊ THỊ LÂN APPLYING METACOGNITIVE STRATEGIES IN LEARNING VOCABULA

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

LÊ THỊ LÂN

APPLYING METACOGNITIVE STRATEGIES IN

LEARNING VOCABULARY FOR IN-SERVICE STUDENTS

AT HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND

INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, VIETNAM NATIONAL

UNIVERSITY: AN ACTION RESEARCH

(Một nghiên cứu cải tiến về việc áp dụng các thủ thuật siêu nhận thức trong việc học từ vựng của sinh viên Tại chức trường

Đại học Ngoại Ngữ - Đại học Quốc gia Hà Nội)

M.A Minor Programme Thesis

Field: English Teaching Methodology

Code: 60 14 10 Cohort: MA 16

HANOI, 2010

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

LÊ THỊ LÂN

APPLYING METACOGNITIVE STRATEGIES IN

LEARNING VOCABULARY FOR IN-SERVICE STUDENTS

AT HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND

INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, VIETNAM NATIONAL

UNIVERSITY: AN ACTION RESEARCH

(Một nghiên cứu cải tiến về việc áp dụng các thủ thuật siêu nhận thức trong việc học từ vựng của sinh viên Tại chức trường

Đại học Ngoại Ngữ - Đại học Quốc gia Hà Nội)

M.A Minor Programme Thesis

Field: English Teaching Methodology

Code: 60 14 10 Cohort: MA 16

Supervisor: Phan Thị Vân Quyên, MA

HANOI, 2010

TABLE OF CONTENTS

RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS ……… i

ACKNOWLEDMENTS ……… ii

ABSTRACT ……… iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS ……… iv

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ……… vii

PART I: INTRODUCTION ……… 1

I.1 Background to the study……… ……… 1

I.2 Aims of the study ……….…… 2

I.3 Scope of the study ……… 2

I.4 Methods of the study ……… 3

I.5 Organization of the study ……… 4

PART II: DEVELOPMENT ……… 5

Chapter 1: Literature Review ……… 5

1.1 Vocabulary learning……… 5

1.1.1 Definition of vocabulary ……… 5

1.1.2 Vocabulary classifications……… ……… ……… 5

1.1.2.1 Semantics……… ……… ……… ……… ……… ……… …… 5

1.1.2.2 Grammar……… ……… …

1.1.2.3 Methodology……… ………

6 6 1.1.3 The role of vocabulary learning……… 6

1.1.4 Factors affecting vocabulary learning ……… 8

1.1.4.1 Intralexical factors……… 8

1.1.4.2 Individual and social factors……… 9

1.2 Vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) ……… 10

1.2.1 Vocabulary knowledge……… 10

1.2.2 Vocabulary learning strategies ……… ……… 10

1.2.2.1 Definition………

1.2.2.2 Classification………

1.3 Metacognitive learning strategies………

10

11

13

1.3.1 Definitions………

1.3.2 Classifications………

1.4 Application of Metacognitive learning strategies in learning vocabulary ………

1.4.1 Typical benefits of Metacognitive learning strategies application ……

1.4.2 Metacognitive learning strategies in practice ………

13 14 15 15 16 Chapter 2: Methodology ……… 18

2.1 Research questions ……… 18

2.2 Action research……… 18

2.3 Subjects of the study ……… 20

2.4 VLS training procedure……… 20

2.5 Data collection instruments……… 21

2.5.1 Questionnaires……… 22

2.5.2 Tests……… 22

2.6 Data collection procedure………

2.7 Data analysis 23 25 Chapter 3: Data analysis and discussion of major findings……… 26

3.1 Questionnaire data analysis………

3.1.1 The pre-training questionnaire results ………

3.1.2 The post-training questionnaire results ………

3.1.3 Pre-training and post-training questionnaire results ………

3.1.4 Discussion of the pre-training and post-training questionnaire results

26

29

29

30

34

3.2 Pre- and Post- test data analysis……… 35

3.2.1 The pre-test and post-test results ……… 35

3.2.2 Discussion of the pre-test and post-test results ……… 37

PART III: CONCLUSION ……… 38

III.1 Conclusions ……… 38

III.2 Implications for English teachers ……… 39

III.3 Recommendations for further study ……… 40

REFERENCES ……… 42

APPENDIX 1: PRE-TRAINING QUESTIONNAIRE ……… I APPENDIX 2: PRE-TRAINING QUESTIONNAIRE ……… IV APPENDIX 3: PRE-TEST VOCABULARY ……… VII APPENDIX 4: POST-TEST VOCABULARY ……… … XI APPENDIX 5: PRE-TEST VOCABULARY ANSWERS KEY………

APPENDIX 6: POST-TEST VOCABULARY ANSWERS KEY…………

XV XVI

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES

Table

Table 1.1 Intralexical factors that affect VL……… 8 Table 2.1 Organization of the questionnaires ……… Table 3.1 Pre-training and post-training questionnaire results……… Table 3.2 Frequency of use of planning, monitoring and evaluating strategies

Table 3.3 The changes in some metacognitive strategies before and after VLS training

Table 3.4 The pre-test and post-test results………

PART I: INTRODUCTION

This part helps to provide the background as well as the context for the study Background

to the study, aims, scope, methods, and organization of the study will be discussed in details in this section

I.1 Background to the study

The wide use of English as an international language in different fields of life makes the teaching and learning of English gain great momentum However, educational achievements are still far from being satisfactory even though teaching approach has been improved significantly One main cause is that the teaching and learning are both so far from the learner-centered approach In order to meet the economic and social demands of modern society, English teachers need to pay attention to the development of learners‟ competence and focus on an effective learning method As a learner, setting up a schedule for learning something new every day in addition to class assignments is really necessary This is particularly true of vocabulary

The quotation of Wilkins (1974) „Without grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed‟ emphasized that vocabulary plays an extremely important role in language and the important role of vocabulary learning in capturing a language as well The importance of vocabulary was also mentioned by Vermeer (1992, p.147) „Knowing words is the key to understanding and being understood The bulk of learning a new language consists of learning new words Grammatical knowledge does not make for great proficiency in a language‟ In short, the teaching and learning of vocabulary is obviously a very significant aspect in foreign language methodology and English methodology

Moreover, most work in the area of vocabulary so far has been concerned not with lexical meaning as such, but with management of vocabulary learning: how to reduce the vocabulary load, how to handle specific difficulties or how to teach specific learners To be successful in language learning, a learner needs to control the way they learn by paying attention to procedure and strategies that work best for them in different language learning situations However, there still exist some problems in teaching and learning English in Vietnam educational settings It is the inadequate teaching of vocabulary Firstly,

grammatical knowledge is often firstly focused In other words, little attention has been given to vocabulary teaching so far In Vietnam, „handicapped‟ vocabulary is the term that should be used to describe current situation of learning Students are just provided with words‟ meanings rather than be explained the usage or be trained how to learn effectively

It is a fact that in spite of the efforts in learning new vocabulary items such as using flash cards, notebook, referring to bilingual and monolingual dictionaries, giving some synonyms and antonyms to decipher the meaning of words, vocabulary is by far the most sizable and unmanageable component for language learners

The answer to the problem of vocabulary is applying vocabulary learning strategies

in their learning process to make them become independent and gain active positions in learning the vocabulary knowledge The purpose of this study is to shed light on the issue

of vocabulary strategy learning by applying metacognitive strategies It aims at exploring what lies behind this phenomenon and examines the effectiveness of application

I.2 Aims of the study

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of metacognitive strategies on

by students‟ vocabulary acquisition, then help them to save the time and effort in their vocabulary learning process The study aims at finding answers to the two questions:

 What are the most and least frequently used metacognitive vocabulary learning strategies by in-service English students?

 How do metacognitive strategies help students make progress in their vocabulary acquisition?

I.3 Scope of the study

To investigate the vocabulary learning strategies employed to learn new words, the study focuses on in-service English students who do not have much time invested in learning and find out ways that could help improve their vocabulary learning

This study aims at training metacognitive learning strategies in vocabulary learning for in-service English students at Hanoi University of Languages and International studies, Vietnam National University in Vinh Yen province All learners have finished three years studying at college with English as a major Currently, they are teachers-learners who are

working as teachers of English at different high schools in Vinh Yen and spending their weekend pursuing higher qualification

The course book is NEW HEADWAY Intermediate level which is supposed to be completed after ten weeks The focuses are on Vocabulary, Grammar and other skills are mostly studied at home by students

The concept of metacognitive assessment is relatively new and complicated to approach although in recent decades there have been efforts to develop suitable measuring instruments The repertoire of metacognitive skills has been shown to be among the factors explaining the differences between good and poor readers Metacognitive assessment is not

an addition to teaching and learning, but it is integrated in the two, informing and guiding them Metacognitive knowledge is frequently refined into person, task, and strategy variables, or declarative, procedural, and conditional knowledge (Brown, 1980) However, metacognitive self-regulation which is the focus of this study is regarded as the implementation of planning, monitoring and evaluating

I.4 Methods of the study

An action research was applied to this current study with the teacher as a researcher With an aim to support the research with varied and valid data, the quantitative approach was used with two questionnaires and two written tests before and after doing the action research

The first questionnaire was done before the training to identify the students‟ employment of metacognitive strategies in their vocabulary learning The second one was distributed immediately after the training to see how students changed their VLS application The effect of the metacognitive strategy instruction on students‟ language acquisition was accessed by the results of the pre- and post-vocabulary tests The tests were designed with the purpose of exploring the effects of metacognitive strategies on students‟ progress in vocabulary-learning after training Therefore, the data collected from the test results was computed, analyzed, and reported

I.5 Organization of the study

The minor study will be divided into three parts namely Introduction, Development and Conclusion Part two includes 3 chapters: Literature Review, Methodology, Data analysis and major findings

In the first part, the reasons that trigger for the study together with the aims which could be taken into consideration regarding the significance of this study are presented

To set the background to the study, in chapter 1, a review of the literature of vocabulary learning strategies is conducted and a subset of strategies is identified for the focus of the study Moreover, vocabulary and metacognitive strategies in vocabulary learning will be discussed in details that would help identify the problems and give inspirations for carrying out the research

Chapter two is the main section which deals with the process of this action research

on Metacognitive vocabulary learning strategies It presents the methodology for the study and the procedure to carry out the research

In the next chapter, the results of the analysis are presented and discussed

Part three takes a closer look at what the previous chapters discuss before and to

my limited knowledge and experience, recommendations for some applications that in some way be useful for further future study or research on the same problem will be presented

Two other supplementary parts are the appendices consisting of the first and second questionnaires, the pre- and post- tests in vocabulary and the table results of them

PART II: DEVELOPMENT Chapter 1: Literature Review

As what has been mentioned in Introduction part, this chapter is to set the background to the study, and discuss in details the metacognitive strategies that would be a focus in

learners‟ vocabulary learning

1.1 Vocabulary learning

1.1.1 Definition of vocabulary

Linguists propose different definitions for vocabulary depending on the criteria that

they consider the most important in terms of linguistics, semantics, lexicology, etc

Penny Ur in his book „A Course in Language Teaching‟ defined vocabulary roughly as „the words we teach in the foreign language‟ To be more specific, Pyles and Algeo (1970) said „it is true that vocabulary is the focus of language with its sound and meaning, which interlock to allow us to communicate with one another‟

Intuitively, vocabulary could be defined as a dictionary or a set of words In my own viewpoint, it is logical to say that vocabulary of a language is all its words, compounds and idioms used to convey and receive information in oral and written communications In other words, acquiring vocabulary is the process of transferring words from passive to active or in other words When we talk about vocabulary, we mean the words we know and the ability to use them

1.1.2 Classifications of vocabulary

Vocabulary can be classified in different ways:

1.1.2.1 Semantics: In terms of meaning, vocabulary can be divided into:

 Notional words: Their meanings are lexical, form a great mass of the speaker‟s vocabulary Those words name objects, actions, qualities and have meanings themselves In terms of part of speech, they can be nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and so on

 Functional words: They are grammatical words, which only have their meanings in relation to other words with which they are used They can be particles, articles, prepositions, etc

1.1.2.2 Grammar: In terms of structure, vocabulary is divided into different parts of

speech such as nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, etc

1.1.2.3 Methodology: In terms of the way to obtain, vocabulary can be divided into:

 Active words: Active vocabulary includes all words which can be understood, pronounced correctly, and can be used effectively in speaking and writing

 Passive words: Passive vocabulary includes all words which the learners can recognize and understand when they occur in a context, but which learners cannot produce or use correctly themselves even when they attempt to

In addition, some other methodologists follow communicative Language Approach divide vocabulary into productive and receptive The productive words can be used effectively to produce information in speaking and writing while the receptive ones are used to receive and understand information in listening and reading

These classifications should be known by the teachers and learners, then, they would know what aspects of the words should be learnt to widen their vocabulary knowledge

1.1.3 The role of vocabulary learning

Rivers (1981) emphasizes the important position of vocabulary in a language:

„Language is not dry bones It is a living growing entity, clothed in the flesh of words‟ (cited in Hoang, 1985 p.23) The extreme significance of vocabulary in a language is also stressed by Saville and Troike (1976, p.87) by saying:

„Vocabulary is most important for understanding and knowing names for things, actions and concepts We can appeal to our common sense and experience in making this decision about priorities Many of us have gotten along in foreign countries, even shopping, getting directions, etc if we just knew the names of what

we wanted although we had no idea how to structure grammatical utterances‟ From what have been discussed above, it can be concluded that with non-native speakers, vocabulary is needed as first in order to survive If a learner has a wide vocabulary, he can get himself understood and understand others easily; on the contrary, if

it is limited, he will surely have difficulty in doing so Therefore, vocabulary is a „must‟ for all English learners to acquire by all means

The importance of vocabulary raises question of how can learners increase their vocabulary knowledge Prator and Murcia (1979, p.3) pointed out that „Vocabulary is expanded as fast as possible, since the acquisition of vocabulary is considered more important than grammatical skill‟ Consequently, it goes without saying that teaching and learning vocabulary is a very crucial aspect in foreign language methodology

It is always thought that learning vocabulary seems to be one of the easiest things about learning a language However; it is also one of the hardest things to do, especially when you have reached a certain level Vocabulary learning or acquisition (in this study, learning and acquisition could be interchanged) is significant in learning a language, as cited in Le, Pham H.H (2002, p.4) „„Zimmerman [….] points out that meaning is the heart

of language and nothing is more fundamental to meaning than vocabulary.‟ She continues

by mentioning learning vocabulary as a process requiring time and effort investment She states that in vocabulary teaching, teachers are advised to organize various learning activities to create motivation for learners To this point, learning process is synonymous

with changing input into intake After provided with new information drawn from an input

such as words‟ meaning and examples, learners are probably required to rewrite or retell the whole message of the text When students can make sense of a new word that is the process of changing a new input becoming intake In other words, that is the process toward meaning and usages of that new word Learning vocabulary should focus on remembering words and using them automatically in the right contexts (McCarthy, 1984) Faerch, Hasstrup and Phillipson (1984) as cited in Waring (2002) also considers vocabulary knowledge as a link between being able to know meaning and usage of a word and know how to use it in appropriate situations with suitable manners

However, forgetting vocabulary that has been 'learned' earlier is one of the biggest problems in vocabulary learning The problem here is the burden or the big number of new words to remember that would make learners easy to forget the old ones Nation (2005) recommends the term „learning burden of a word‟ and then clarifies it by listing typical questions pertaining to meaning, form and use of a word That burden is different from word to word due to its connection with learners‟ existing language knowledge Evaluating the vocabulary learning is recommended to help learners to deal with this fact

As a learner of English, our teachers have to face with the same difficulty as their students that there are too many words to learn but they do not have enough time to learn them in Thus, the teacher needs to decide which words worth learning, and learn how to organize his or her vocabulary learning It is very important for most learners to have an idea of whether they are making progress or not Finding that they are actually making progress can be a big help to their confidence

1.1.4 Factors affecting vocabulary learning

There is a range of factors that affect choices in learning strategies, including vocabulary learning strategies According to Ellis (1994, pp.540:545), there are two broad categories of such factors:

 Individual learner differences: age, learning style, personality type, and

motivation

 Situational and social factors: learning setting, type of task, and gender

It is extremely difficult to list all the significant factors and the ways in which they influence vocabulary learning because of the differences exist among different researches Following are some factors considered by researchers having strong impact on vocabulary learning process:

1.1.4.1 Intralexical factors

There are some features inherent in the word itself which might affect the ease or difficulty with which it is learned These were: pronounceability, orthography, length, morphology, synformy, part of speech, abstractness and register restrictions, idiomaticity and multiplicity of meaning Those factors will be shown in the below table:

Table 1.1 Intralexical factors that affect VL (Laufer, 1997, p.154 cited)

Facilitating factors Difficulty-inducing factors Factors with no clear effect

Familiar phonemes Presence of foreign

phonemes Phonotactic regularity Phonotactic irregularity

Fixed stress Variable stress and vowel

change Consistency of sound-script

relationship

Incongruency in sound-script relationship

Word length Inflexional regularity Inflexional complexity

Derivational regularity Derivational complexity

Morphological transparency Deceptive morphological

transparency Synformy

Part of speech

Concreteness/abstractness

Register neutrality Register restrictions

Idiomaticity One form for one meaning One form with several

meanings

1.1.4.2 Individual and social factors

There are discussions about individual and social factors affecting students‟ vocabulary learning as following:

 The influence of first and other language:

The learners tend to find the equivalent hypothesis in their own language However, due to Swan (1997), this may fail and lead to erroneous conclusions because there are not exact or

no equivalents in two language at all

 The role of memory:

The role of memory is crucial in any kind of learning and vocabulary learning captures no exception Learning of lexical items is not linear process The learning and teaching of vocabulary needs to be planned following principles if it is to be efficient

 The source of vocabulary (exposure to linguistic input)

Carter (1992) asserts that a significant amount of vocabulary can be successfully learnt through the often criticized rote learning An important source of vocabulary in second language (L2) learning is a wide range of contexts

 Individual learner differences

Other factors such as motivation, attitudes towards vocabulary learning, fear of failure, etc also account for individual learner differences should be paid attention in making conscious efforts to notice new lexical items, selective attending, context-based inferencing and storing into long-term memory

 Role of teacher and teaching strategies

One has to admit that achieving the goals of L2 vocabulary instructions is no easy matter There are some additional factors also discussed regarding the effects of learning strategies including time frame for classroom learning, individual lexical needs whether they are professional or academic particularities, and modern technology applications such as the

form of the Internet cable and satellite TV, film and television programs on digital video, etc

In conclusion, it is argued that vocabulary is an important ingredient of language and vocabulary learning is an essential part of second or foreign language learning Learning new vocabulary is a challenge to foreign language students but they can overcome by having access to a variety of vocabulary learning strategies One way to help learners to enhance their knowledge of L2 vocabulary is through equipping learners with a variety of vocabulary learning strategies

1.2 Vocabulary learning strategies (VLS)

1.2.1 Vocabulary knowledge

In their book, when giving comments on Nation and Waring‟s ideas, N Schmitt &

M McCarthy (Eds.) present three dimensions needed for an adequate description of a person‟s word knowledge including: the number of words known (vocabulary size or breadth), the amount of knowledge presented for each word (depth of knowledge), and the speed of utilizing that knowledge (automaticity)

Many researchers assert that knowing a word requires more than just being familiar with its meaning and form In their book, Nation (1990) and Richards (1976) claimed that

to know and master a word entirely, it is required that learners could grasp its orthographical and phonological form, meanings, grammatical behavior, associations, collocations, frequency and register There is a distinction between language learning strategies and language use strategies, the former being strategies for learning tasks such as remembering, and the latter being strategies for language use, such as communicating in L2 In order to have good vocabulary knowledge and improve their vocabulary proficiency, vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) play a key role and should be employed

in students‟ vocabulary learning process

1.2.2 Vocabulary learning strategies

1.2.2.1 Definition

Schmitt (1997, p.203) asserts that learning is „the process by which information is obtained, stored, retrieved, and used‟ Therefore, vocabulary learning strategies could be any which affect this broadly defined process According to Nation (2001, p.217), VLS are defined by the following important features:

(1) they involve choice; that is, there are several strategies to choose from

(2) they are complex, i.e consisting of several steps;

(3) they require knowledge and benefit from training; and

(4) they increase the efficiency of vocabulary learning and use

Rivers (1981, p.463) has also commented:

„Vocabulary cannot be taught It can be presented, explained, included in all kinds

of activities, but it must be learned by the individual The vocabulary we understand and the vocabulary we can use varies in nature and in quantity from one person to another even in our native language‟

In short, VLS may include some such as guessing a word‟s meaning from the context, identifying the grammatical category of a word, looking up words or recognizing cognates They are steps of learning vocabulary chosen by the individual learner to get information on words and learn how to use them correctly in contexts

1.2.2.2 Classification

VLS constitute a subclass of language learning strategies which are applicable to a wide variety of language learning tasks, ranging from the more isolated (vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar) to integrative tasks like oral communication and reading comprehension One of the first attempts at providing a comprehensive overview of language learning strategies can be found in Oxford (1990) She identified two distinct

approaches to language learning, direct (memory/cognitive/compensation) and indirect

(metacognitive/social/affective) strategies Oxford defined direct approach as a way of learning in which the focus is pointed at learning words, wordlists and doing excises only

In a broader view, indirect approach expands the focus on vocabulary performance through other learning skill spoken or written messages

In the area of VLS taxonomy development, the most notable efforts in terms of classifying range of strategies considered are Stoffer (1995) and Schmitt (1997) Schmitt‟s goal was to develop a comprehensive inventory of individual VLS, and classify them along two dimensions The first classification dimension was adopted from Oxford (1990), who grouped learning strategies into four categories (social (SOC), memory (MEM), cognitive (COG), and metacognitive (MET) In order to account for the case where meanings of new words are discovered without recourse to other people‟s expertise, Schmitt introduced a

fifth category, determination (DET) strategies These seem to be roughly equivalent to the

“guessing intelligently in listening and reading” part of Oxford‟s compensation strategies

The second classification dimension was proposed by Nation (1990) and reflects the

distinction of initial discovery of word meanings (discovery strategies - DISCOV) and remembering (consolidation strategies - CONS)

To discuss the results of our study, the strategy system by Oxford (1990) which consists of both direct and indirect was adopted by the researcher:

Direct strategies require mental processing of the target language There are three

main groups of direct strategies Each group processes the language differently and for different purposes

a Memory strategies Sometimes called mnemonics, these involve mental processes used

in arranging information in order, making associations, and reviewing

b Cognitive strategies - These involve processing the target language so that meaning

becomes clear through processes such as reasoning and analyzing

c Compensation strategies - These enable learners to make up for gaps in their knowledge

and skills, by, for example, guessing meanings and using gestures

Indirect strategies, on the other hand, support and manage language learning often

without involving the target language directly There are three groups of indirect strategies:

a Metacognitive strategies - These enable learners to plan, coordinate, evaluate, and direct

their own learning as well as to monitor errors

b Affective strategies - These help learners gain control over their emotions, attitudes, and

motivation through anxiety reduction, self-encouragement, and self-reward

c Social strategies - These are ways of involving other people in enhancing learning

through questions, cooperation and increased cultural awareness

Creating mental linkages, repetition and memorization, and translating from first language (L1) to L2 which are direct strategies in Oxford‟s book (1990) are unconsciously

or consciously used sometimes by students However, in comparison with the use of direct strategies, indirect strategies are easily neglected for they are not directly involved in both teaching and learning process To build up the confidence and autonomy in learning a word, in teaching new vocabulary items, the teacher should make students aware of the importance of using metacognitive strategies in combination with vocabulary learning strategies For this reason, indirect strategies, which may change and strengthen learning process, will be emphasized in this study

1.3 Metacognitive learning strategies

1.3.1 Definitions

Metacognition refers to higher order thinking which involves active control over the cognitive process engaged in learning More specifically, Taylor (1999) defines metacognition as „an appreciation of what one already knows, together with a correct apprehension of the learning task and what knowledge and skills it requires, combined with the ability to make correct inferences about how to apply one‟s strategic knowledge to a particular situation, and to do so efficiently and reliably‟ Activities such as planning how

to approach a given learning task, monitoring comprehension, and evaluating progress

toward the completion of a task are metacognitive in nature

So far, metacognition has been used to refer to knowledge about cognition or the regulation of cognition Knowledge about cognition may include applying thoughts about the cognitive operations of oneself or others, while regulation of cognition includes planning, monitoring, and evaluating a learning or problem-solving activity (Brown and

Palincsar 1982; Brown et al 1983) It seems that metacognitive strategies, that allow

students to plan, control, and evaluate their learning, have the most central role to play in this respect, rather than those that merely maximize interaction and input Thus, the ability

to choose and evaluate one's strategies is of central importance (Graham, 1997, pp 42:43)

Another definition was that metacognitive are higher order executive skills that may entail planning for, monitoring, or evaluating the success of a learning activity

(Brown et al 1983) For example, when learning vocabulary, you may notice that

pronouncing words out loud helped you remember them better than reading them silently Determine which excises seem to help you most and for which kind of tasks: translations, mechanical drills, answering questions, compositions, and so forth Ask other students how they got the right answers or how they successfully learned something, and then see if their strategies will also work for you Sometimes, it is helpful to look at how others organize their notes, rules, and vocabulary lists as well

In short, metacognitive strategies are sequential processes that one uses to control cognitive activities, and to ensure that a cognitive goal has been met These processes help

to regulate and oversee learning, and consist of planning and monitoring cognitive activities, as well as checking the outcomes of those activities In the next part, the ideas offered by Oxford (1990) and O‟Malley (1997) will be chosen to present on the

classifications of metacognitive strategies

1.3.2 Classifications

Metacognitive strategies (MS) are named in terms of their function and are applicable to various kinds of learning tasks Wenden (1991) describes three kinds of metacognitive knowledge: personal knowledge (knowledge about learning or learners themselves as learners), task knowledge (refers to what learners need to know about procedures involved in the task in order to complete it successfully) and strategic knowledge (knowledge about strategies, i.e what learners works best and knowledge about general approaches to language learning (LL) that can guide their selection of strategies) Concerning importance of metacognitive knowledge, Oxford emphasizes that MS is to help learners not to lose focus of their LL and to control their own learning process and progress

Another classification was provided by O'Malley et al when he identified 26

learning strategies The metacognitive strategies were to use advance organizers, directed attention, selective attention, self-management, advance preparation, self-monitoring, delayed production, self-evaluation and self-reinforcement

Metacognitive strategies are said to include: using English-language media (songs,

movies, newspapers, etc.); testing oneself with word tests; using spaced word practice; skipping or passing new word; and continuing to study word over time Compared to other classification schemes, Oxford‟s taxonomy is probably the most extensive, and has the advantage of being organized around an established scheme of language learning strategies

Oxford (1990) subdivided metacognitive strategies into eleven subcategories

including: „overviewing and linking with already known material’, ‘paying attention’,

‘delay speech production to focus on listening’, ‘ finding out about language learning’, ‘ organizing’, ‘ setting goals and objectives’, ‘identifying the purpose of a language task’,

‘planning for a language task’, ‘seeking practice opportunities’, monitoring’, evaluating’ However, only eight out of eleven subcategories are chosen for consulting in

‘self-the study and concluded in ‘self-the detailed procedure of training

Paying attention strategy assists learners in deciding what aspects of the language

or situational details to be paid attention to and what to be ignored

Finding out about language learning strategy: learners make efforts to find out

how language learning work by reading books and talking with other people , and then using this information to help improve their own language learning

Organizing strategy: to understand and use conditions related to optimal learning

of the language, to organize one‟s schedule, physical environment and language –learning notebook

The skill of setting goals and objectives- setting aims for language learning

Learners are able to set long-term goals such as learning by heart 500 units of vocabulary

by the end of the semester or to accomplish short-term objectives i.e finishing the vocabulary exercises by Saturday or completing a particular language task involving vocabulary acquisition

Seeking practice opportunities: Learners seek out or create opportunities to

practice the new language, such as watching a foreign language firm, or joining a foreign language speaking club

Self-monitoring: the ability to identify errors in understanding or producing the

new language, to determine which ones are serious, to point out the source of important error and try to eliminate such errors

The last metacognitive component mentioned is self-evaluating skill This skill

allows learners to evaluate their own progress in the new language either general language progress

The detailed procedure for metacognitive strategy training would be illustrated, based on the three components of metacognitive strategies (planning, monitoring, evaluating)

1.4 Application of Metacognitive learning strategies in learning vocabulary

1.4.1 Typical benefits of Metacognitive learning strategies application

It has been shown that most forgetting occurs soon after the end of a learning session A learner can maximize the effectiveness of his or her practice time if it is scheduled and organized rather than random Metacognitive strategies involve both knowledge about learning (metacognitive knowledge) and control or regulation over learning (metacognitive strategies) To make it short, Metacognitive Strategies involve a conscious overview of the learning process and making decisions about planning, monitoring, or evaluating the best ways to study In other words, Metacognitive strategies

are to planning, monitoring, and evaluating the best way to study As a result, using metacognitive strategies make a true learning process Once metacognitive strategies are grasped, students will transfer use of these skills from their school lives to their personal lives and will continue to apply them as they mature The use of metacognitive strategies ignites one's thinking and can lead to more profound learning and improved performance, especially among learners who are struggling

In regards to metacognitive benefits, many researches show that an explicit focus

on metacognitive knowledge about learning processes- in other words, „learning how to learn‟- is necessary if learners are to be able to transfer use of the strategy in question in learning tasks The more students are aware of their thinking processes as they learn, the more they can control such matters as goals, dispositions, and attention Self-awareness

promotes self-regulation

1.4.2 Metacognitive learning strategies in practice

Jurkovic (2006, p.27) states that there are two approaches toward language and vocabulary learning strategy training Learners are provided with benefits and learning situations of strategy applied in direct approach, but are not supplied the same information

in indirect approach

In practice, a number of significant research studies have investigated how learners use vocabulary learning strategies Research on training second language learners to use learning strategies has been limited almost exclusively to applications with vocabulary tasks Dramatic improvements in vocabulary learning tasks presented in one-on-one training have been reported in these studies Teachers should realize this and help their students by teaching vocabulary strategies and set priorities about vocabulary learning

Strategy training has included such aspects as teaching ways of learning vocabulary (e.g using mnemonics, keywords and word chains), teaching techniques for listing, teaching strategies for reading such as semantic mapping, and teaching a variety of metacognitive strategies and self-awareness It also appears that attempts to characterize good and poor language learners according to the strategies they use are oversimplistic A number of studies indicate that unsuccessful learners actually employ the same strategies

as those used by successful learners Various model for teaching of language learning strategies has been proposed

However, it is a fact that the teacher-centered approach still has a dominating position in many Vietnamese schools Students are really passive in this process and they just commit the new words into memory by rote though the past decade saw a host of studies on vocabulary strategies (Gu, 1996; Schmitt, 2002; Fan, 2003) To better the job, a teacher needs the same training in vocabulary teaching, especially in terms of metacognitive strategies application Our in-service English students or high school English teachers would be trained in regard to metacognitive strategy application and then carrying them out in their own working with the learners

In addition, even if the importance of vocabulary in a language is realized, there still exist some problems in teaching and learning English in Vietnam educational settings

It is the inadequate teaching of vocabulary, the focus is made on grammar, and little attention has been given to vocabulary teaching so far The importance of vocabulary in language acquisition raised question of how to teach and learn vocabulary in the most effective way The above discussion discussed the definitions, characteristics and subcategories of metacognitive strategies The training of them will help students and teachers to reach the high vocabulary proficiency

Chapter 2: Methodology

Action research was employed as the research design of this study In this chapter, the research design with its characteristics, a model of action research steps, research procedure and data collection and analysis instruments are offered with detailed descriptions

The hypotheses coming from the second research question can be addressed as follows:

- Null hypothesis: There is no effect of metacognitive strategy instruction on

students‟ language acquisition

- Alternative hypothesis: There is an effect of metacognitive strategy instruction on

students‟ language acquisition

The study was carried out under the assumption that the null hypothesis is true

2.2 Research method

Action research is the suitable research method for the study because the core purpose of the study is to “evaluate” the application of metacognitive strategies in vocabulary learning Secondly, it is the way the teachers respond to the changing demands

of a teaching situation- in this case is the constant call for an effective vocabulary learning methodology Thirdly, it involves “small-scale intervention” when a specific problem is identified; specific actions are implemented to bring about the changes and solutions to solve the problems (Nunan, 2005) Specifically, in the current research, all the interesting and problematic area of vocabulary learning strategies are stored and viewed in a structured way for “small group professional practice” (Wallace, M 1998, p 18) Finally, the context of the research can satisfy the multi-source requirement of doing an action

research when teachers and students can collaborate with each other to carry out research instruments to evaluate the effective of metacognitive strategy training In brief, action research approach is carefully chosen for and applied in the study with a hope to bring out

a picture of metacognitive strategy training in vocabulary learning activities

When using the action research approach, the current researches follow the five phases proposed by Susman:

Adapted from Susman 1983, cited in Wallace, 2001

Figure 2.1 Five phases of an action research

In this light, the study starts when the lack of the awareness of metacognitive strategies application in vocabulary acquisition is identified and data is collected for a more detailed diagnosis This is followed by designing a course with characteristics coming up to the expectations of the teaching staff After that, a single plan of action emerges and is implemented when the course takes place Data on the results of the intervention are collected and analyzed, and the findings are interpreted in light of how successful the course has been

2.3 Subjects of the study

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of metacognitive strategies application in vocabulary acquisition Consequently, participants of the research must be the people involving and experiencing the metacognitive training in vocabulary acquisition

The participants of the study were 41 in-service English students at Hanoi University of Languages and International studies, Vietnam National University in Vinh Yen province Those students are teachers at different high schools and their major is English The assumption was that they might be free from the anxiety of students and pressure of the examination so they would not be reinforced in term of scores The students participating in the study are from 24 to 28 years old They are at intermediate level, which means that they have the basic structures of English, but have a relatively narrow vocabulary range The textbook, teacher and conditions under which the students study English were the same The teacher is the researcher and is in charge of teaching the course

2.4 VLS training procedure

The training was based on Cognitive Academic Language Learning Approach (CALLA) model of teaching learning strategy which includes five steps:

Preparation: In this step the teacher explained the importance of metacognitive learning

strategies and a handout including different metacognitive strategies was distributed to the students In relation to vocabulary learning, which was the subject of this study, students with the help and guidance of the teacher set specific goals for mastering the vocabulary from certain chapters in the textbook within a certain time frame, and they planned their time in order to accomplish the task (time-management)

Presentation: The teacher talked about the characteristics, usefulness, and applications of

the metacognitive strategies explicitly and through examples and illustrated use through a task in relation to unknown vocabularies Learners were explicitly taught about the variety

of strategies to use when they do not know a word they encounter in a text (guessing meaning from context) and they judge the word to be important to the overall meaning of the text (if the words are not important, ignore them to keep the flow of comprehension)

But more importantly, students received explicit instruction on how to use these strategies The preparation and planning, the selection of vocabulary learning strategies, monitoring

of strategy selection and use, orchestrated use of several strategies, and evaluation of effectiveness of metacognitive strategies for vocabulary learning were illustrated through several examples

Practice: In this phase, students had the opportunity of practicing the learning strategies

with an authentic learning task Students make conscious effort using the metacognitive strategies in combination with other vocabulary learning strategies The students, with the teacher‟s assistance practiced monitoring their learning by choosing suitable strategy among multiple strategies available to them They know how to use both word analysis and contextual clues to determine the meaning of an unfamiliar word Students were shown how to recognize when one strategy is not working and how to move on to another For example, when using word cognate to determine the meaning of the word does not work, the students need to be able to turn to other strategies like using contextual clues to help them understand the meaning of the word

Evaluation: The main purpose of this phase was to provide students with opportunities to

evaluate their own success in using learning strategies Activities used to develop students self-evaluation insights included self-questioning, debriefing discussions after strategies practice

Expansion: In this final phase students were encouraged to: a) use the strategies that they

found most effective, b) apply these strategies to new contexts, and c) devise their own individual combinations and interpretations of metacognitive learning strategies They were asked to consider not only vocabulary learning but also other domains of language learning

2.5 Data collection instruments

Data were collected through both questionnaire survey and pre- and post-tests The survey questionnaires will give answer to research question 1 with 25 strategies of metacognitive strategies synthesized and divided into three subcategories (planning, monitoring, evaluating) The real tests scores were computed into percentage for analysis

purpose to give the answer to question 2 whether or not the metacognitive strategies training improves the learners‟ vocabulary proficiency

of a statement to which subjects would indicate one of the three responses ranging from 1 ("never or almost never ") to 3 ("always or almost always")

The first questionnaire was administrated to the class pre-training with the purpose

of examining their current employment of metacognitive strategies In addition, it also has the function of raising the students‟ awareness of metacognitive strategies After the metacognitive strategy training, the same questionnaire was distributed again to see if there was any improvement in applying those strategies The organization of the questionnaire can be shown as in the table below:

Metacognitive strategies Descriptive items Total items in the survey

and post-tests were administered to all participants The pre-test was done prior to the experiment mainly to check if any of them have previous knowledge and how frequently

do students use metacognitive strategies in vocabulary learning The vocabulary post-test,

on the other hand, aimed to measure the learners‟ word knowledge incidentally acquired during the training process The tests measured learners‟ receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge, mainly involving form-meaning connection

The tests are written ones with time allotted 30 minutes The pre-test comprises of

50 vocabulary items The post-test is also a 50 item multiple-choice test of vocabulary and

it is used as the measurement of the training outcome It was given immediately after the metacognitive strategy training

2.6 Data collection procedure

At first, the research participants were selected as following:

Firstly, students‟ characteristics are roughly similar to one another (like their age, their

English proficiency, or such)

Secondly, the students experience the course from the beginning to the end so they could

have a good view of the training program Should there be any case that any of them is absent from class, the total time of absence cannot exceed 10 percent of the course time

Thirdly, the teacher should let students know that they are encouraged to express their true

actions during the training Factors that may prevent students from revealing what they truly think (like the score, the biased opinions or such) will be got rid of

Finally and most notably, students are all interested in Pedagogy, since they are trained to

be teachers of English It is expected that deriving from their interest; the students should have some knowledge about the phenomena of the English teaching and learning activities This will certify their later judgment of the training instruction The teacher group had frequent meetings to discuss and give to keep the right track of what they were doing

The sample class with 41 students enrolled in an English course which lasted for 10 weeks (four hours a day, three days a week) The textbook used for this course was New Headway intermediate The authors have emphasized the role of lexical knowledge in learning the English language and have put some sections on vocabulary learning strategies

in the book The students received the usual training based on the procedures suggested in

the New Headway Teacher‟s book The vocabulary strategies which were covered in the book were summarized and taught in the first session The instruction and use of vocabulary learning strategies continued throughout the course for the subjects

At first, the subject sample consisting of 41 students under the instruction of the same teacher do the questionnaire Then, after analyzing the results, the level of students‟ metacognitive awareness is identified

The course provides students with many chances to learn different metacognitive strategies and sub skills are also weekly introduced to students, together with various exercises that help them practice During the on-going process of the course, students also have chances to revise the strategies and sub skills to be sure that they have thoroughly understood what they have studied before moving to the new ones Moreover, the carefully-planned assignments, including group assignment and the individual one, assure that students can use the modern facilities to choose reading texts to widen their background knowledge and vocabulary

- Planning: The items in the plan include how many words to remember during a specific

time frame, how to accomplish the plan and the detailed time allocation of the vocabulary learning The teacher should let students know that the planning help them to have a focus

on learning and also the time for evaluating their progress The planning also helps students to be more independent in their language learning

- Monitoring: Teachers assist students in controlling their learning process Learners are

also taught how to find difficulties to tackle or find mistake and errors to eliminate

- Evaluating: The teachers guide learners in doing word tests and create chances to

practice new words having been learnt

The second part of the training concerned with metacognitive strategy training During the treatment phase, students were familiarized with different strategies and when and how to use them in different learning tasks After 9 weeks‟ time, the students were given a vocabulary learning post- test and the second questionnaire was administered The aim was to assess the impact of vocabulary strategy training inserted in the textbook on the awareness and the frequency of strategy use and to evaluate if there was any change in the use of vocabulary strategies before and after the intervention

2.7 Data analysis

Quantitative data analyses were applied in this study The data was collected through questionnaires entered into Microsoft Excel to compute descriptive statistics Then, the percentile is computed for data analysis They are treated as statistics, i.e the number of students is counted, percentage for each kind of answer is identified, and from that ranking and interpretation are made

To reach the answer for the second question, the pre- and post- raw scores of the vocabulary pretest and posttest were calculated into percentages for analyses To find out whether the students in the group has made any progress as a result of the metacognitive strategies application instruction in vocabulary learning, the results were also computed using the pre and posttest mean scores Accordingly, they are read and interpreted thoughtfully

In this chapter, the problems were identified; details of the participants, data collection instruments, procedure of the experiment and analysis approach to find out the answers to two research questions were described

Chapter 3: Data analysis and discussion of major findings

In this chapter, the analysis of data collected is presented The results of the study are reported on each purpose of the study: the students‟ employment of metacognitive strategies in vocabulary learning through two questionnaires and the improvement of students‟ proficiency of vocabulary verified through the pre-and-post vocabulary tests

3.1 Questionnaire data analysis

The results of the Pre-training and post-training questionnaires can be consulted in the below table 3.1 below: