The effects of Lextutor in dealing with vocabulary in intensive reading at Dong Thap Community College

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MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY

--------------------------

The effects of Lextutor in dealing with

vocabulary in intensive reading at Dong Thap

Community College

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

Master of Arts (TESOL)

Submitted by: TRAM THI NGOC HUONG

Supervisor

Assoc. Prof. Dr. NGUYEN THANH TUNG

Ho Chi Minh City, August, 2017

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STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

I certify that this thesis entitled “The effects of Lextutor in dealing with

vocabulary in intensive reading at Dong Thap Community College” is my own work.

Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this thesis does not

contain material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part from a thesis by

which I have qualified for or been awarded another degree or diploma.

No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the text

of the thesis.

This thesis has not been submitted for any degree in any other tertiary institution.

Ho Chi Minh City, 2017

TRAM THI NGOC HUONG

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I wish to express my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisor,

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thanh Tung, for his devotion, patient instruction,

encouragement and enthusiastic guidance throughout the current research. I am deeply

indebted to him for his invaluable advice and comments from which I have learned

many important things while doing the research. I also wish to express my appreciation

for his applied linguistics lectures which are very useful and inspiring me to do the

research.

Next, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the instructional staffs

for the MTESOL course of the Graduate School at the Open University in Ho Chi Minh

City. They gave me profound knowledge and valuable advice from which I could

develop theoretical and practical knowledge in the sphere of language teaching and

learning.

Then, I would like to give my special thanks to teachers and students at Dong

Thap Community College, all of whom were very willing and enthusiastic to participate

in the research.

I am also very thankful to my close friends, who enthusiastically encouraged me

to finish the research.

Last but not least, I would like to express my deep gratefulness to my family,

who were always by my side and gave me love and mental support to help me overcome

difficulties to accomplish the research work.

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ABSTRACT

The most difficulty the students at Dong Thap Community College (DTCC)

encounter in reading is their struggle to deal with English vocabulary. The study thus

investigates the feasibility and educational value of applying the Compleat Lexical

Tutor (Cobb, 1997) into dealing with vocabulary in intensive reading at DTCC. Seventy

students from two classes at DTCC were selected as the control and experimental

groups to participate in the research. The data of the study were collected through the

two instruments of a questionnaire and tests. Test and questionnaire data were analyzed

using an independent samples t-test and means respectively.

Considering the research questions in the light of findings, the research indicates

the positive benefits of the activities in dealing with vocabulary in intensive reading

with the help of Lextutor. The findings of the research indicate that the students made

better improvement in vocabulary and reading comprehension. They also expressed a

positive attitude towards the activities with Lextutor.

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CONTENTS

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP ..........................................................................................i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.....................................................................................................ii

ABSTRACT............................................................................................................................iii

CONTENTS............................................................................................................................iv

LIST OF TABLES.................................................................................................................vii

LIST OF FIGURES ................................................................................................................ix

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS.................................................................................................. x

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION............................................................................................ 1

1.1. Background to the study............................................................................................. 1

1.2. Statement of the problem ........................................................................................... 3

1.3. Aim of the study, research questions and hypotheses................................................ 4

1.4. Research significance ................................................................................................. 5

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................. 6

2.1. Introduction of Lextutor............................................................................................. 6

2.2. Introduction of the Web VP ....................................................................................... 8

2.3. The benefits of Lextutor............................................................................................. 9

2.4. Procedure for applying the Web VP......................................................................... 12

2.5. Studies on the related topic ...................................................................................... 20

2.6. Chapter summary ..................................................................................................... 22

CHAPTER 3 : METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................ 23

3.1. Research Site ............................................................................................................ 23

3.2. Research participants................................................................................................ 23

3.2.1. Population................................................................................................................. 23

3.2.2. Sample ...................................................................................................................... 23

3.3. Research design and method of investigation .......................................................... 25

3.3.1. Research design........................................................................................................ 25

3.3.2. Method of investigation............................................................................................ 26

3.4. Analytical Framework.............................................................................................. 33

3.4.1. Tests.......................................................................................................................... 34

3.4.2. Questionnaire............................................................................................................ 35

3.5. Reliability and validity of the instruments............................................................... 36

3.5.2. Questionnaire............................................................................................................ 37

3.6. Chapter Summary..................................................................................................... 37

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CHAPTER 4: DATA ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION............................................ 38

4.1. Tests.......................................................................................................................... 38

4.1.1 Resemblance in the pre-test...................................................................................... 38

4.1.2. Disparity in the post-test........................................................................................... 42

4.1.3. The correlation between vocabulary and reading comprehension ........................... 49

4.1.4. Summary of the results from the pre-tests and post-tests......................................... 50

4.2. Questionnaire............................................................................................................ 51

4.3. Chapter summary ..................................................................................................... 59

CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS....................................................................... 60

5.1. Finding on the students’ improvement..................................................................... 60

5.1.1. Vocabulary ............................................................................................................... 60

5.1.2. Reading comprehension ........................................................................................... 61

5.1.3. The correlation between vocabulary and reading comprehension ........................... 62

5.2. Finding on students’ attitude towards the activities................................................. 63

5.3. Chapter summary ..................................................................................................... 65

CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................... 66

6.1. Main conclusions...................................................................................................... 66

6.2. Evaluation of the methodology ................................................................................ 67

6.2.1. Strengths................................................................................................................... 67

6.2.2. Weaknesses .............................................................................................................. 68

6.3. Recommendations for teachers and students............................................................ 68

6.3.1. For teachers .............................................................................................................. 68

6.3.2. For students .............................................................................................................. 69

6.4. Suggestions for further research............................................................................... 70

6.5. Chapter summary ..................................................................................................... 70

REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................... 71

APPENDIX 1: The vocabulary size test................................................................................ 76

APPENDIX 2: The pre-reading test ...................................................................................... 77

APPENDIX 3: The post-reading test..................................................................................... 87

APPENDIX 4: The post-vocabulary test ............................................................................... 95

APPENDIX 5: The questionnaire.......................................................................................... 99

APPENDIX 6: Text analysis by the Web VP in Lextutor................................................... 106

APPENDIX 7: Activities in dealing with vocabulary in intensive reading......................... 118

APPENDIX 8: Lesson plan for the control group ............................................................... 120

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APPENDIX 9: Lesson plan for the experimental group...................................................... 122

APPENDIX 10: Reading comprehension pre-test and post-test scores............................... 125

APPENDIX 11: Vocabulary post-test scores ...................................................................... 126

APPENDIX 12: Item total statistics of the reading comprehension pre-test....................... 127

APPENDIX 13: Item total statistics of the reading comprehension post-test ..................... 128

APPENDIX 14: Item total statistics of the vocabulary post-test......................................... 129

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 2.1: What is involved in knowing a word ............................................. 15

Table 2.2: Reasons for choosing a particular activity ..................................... 19

Table 2.3: Explanation of reasons................................................................... 20

Table 3.1: Personal information of the students.............................................. 24

Table 3.2: List of reading texts........................................................................ 26

Table 3.3: Activities in dealing with vocabulary in intensive reading............ 28

Table 3.4: Test score interpretation................................................................. 31

Table 3.5: The questionnaire clusters.............................................................. 33

Table 4.1: Mean scores in the pre-test............................................................. 39

Table 4.2: Independent-samples t-test in the pre-test...................................... 40

Table 4.3: Reliability statistics of the pre-test................................................. 40

Table 4.4: Test of normality in the pre-test scores.......................................... 41

Table 4.5: Mean scores in the vocabulary achievement test........................... 43

Table 4.6: Independent-sample t-test in the vocabulary achievement test...... 43

Table 4.7: Reliability statistics of the vocabulary achievement test ............... 44

Table 4.8: Test of normality in the vocabulary achievement test scores ........ 45

Table 4.9: Mean scores in the reading comprehension test............................. 47

Table 4.10: Independent-sample t-test in the post-reading comprehension

test...................... .......................................................................... 47

Table 4.11: Reliability statistics of the post-reading comprehension test....... 48

Table 4.12: Test of normality in the post-reading comprehension test

scores................. .......................................................................... 49

Table 4.13: The correlation between vocabulary and reading comprehension in

the control group .......................................................................... 50

Table 4.14: The correlation between vocabulary and reading comprehension in

the experimental group................................................................. 50

Table 4.15: Frequency, percentages and mean of students’ responses to the

questionnaire ................................................................................ 52

Table 4.16: Reliability statistics of the questionnaire ..................................... 53

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Table 4.17: Students’ attitude towards the usefulness of activities in dealing

with vocabulary. .......................................................................... 56

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1: The entry page of Lextutor .........................................................................6

Figure 2.2: The input of the text...................................................................................12

Figure 2.3: Text analysis 1 ...........................................................................................13

Figure 2.4: Text analysis 2 ...........................................................................................13

Figure 4.1: Pre-reading test score distribution ............................................................38

Figure 4.2: Comparison of vocabulary achievement test scores..................................42

Figure 4.3: Post-reading comprehension test score distribution ..................................46

Figure 4.4: Students’ interests in activities in dealing with vocabulary.......................54

Figure 4.5: Students’ preference in activities in dealing with vocabulary ...................54

Figure 4.6: Students’ pressure from activities in dealing with vocabulary..................55

Figure 4.7: Students’ perceived competence from the activities..................................57

Figure 4.8: Students’ attitude towards the relationship between vocabulary and

reading comprehension...............................................................................57

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

DTCC Dong Thap Community College

Lextutor The Compleat Lexical Tutor

EFL English as a foreign language

ESL English as a second language

L1 First language

L2 Second language

LTP Lexical Frequency Profile

VP Vocabulary Profile

VST Vocabulary size test

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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

This chapter introduces the background to the study, the statement of the

problem, the research aim, the research questions, the research significance and the

structure of the study.

1.1. Background to the study

Reading is a “crucial building block” (Hedgcock & Ferris, 2009) and “one of the

few avenues” (Grabe, 2009) which help learners be successful in an academic setting.

In fact, of the four language skills – Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing – reading

comprehension plays the most significant role which helps learners to achieve a fluent

command of English as a foreign language (EFL). According to Carrel (1984), “for

many students, reading is by far the most important of the four macro skills, particularly

in English as a second or a foreign language” (p. 441). In specific, reading

comprehension can be considered to be the most useful means that provides EFL

learners with an appropriate input to improve their writing style and enhance their

vocabulary, grammatical structures and language expressions which bring them

opportunities to access all aspects of the target language.

In EFL situations, reading plays such a significant role that it becomes essential

for teachers of English to find an effective way to help their students learn English

better. Consequently, it becomes one of the most important language learning goals for

many EFL students and thus it is given particular attention in almost all the EFL

situations (Grabe, 1991, as cited in Kazemi, Hosseini, & Kohandani, 2013). For

university students in Vietnam, reading English texts is the groundwork that helps them

be proficient in the target language and facilitates their study at higher education and

their life-long learning (Do & Vo, 2015). Therefore, reading skill tends to be the priority

among all the four skills in an English curriculum in Vietnam (Luu, 2011).

Despite its importance, reading is found to be a complex process in an English

as a second language (ESL) as well as EFL context and thus students find it challenging

to develop their fluent reading abilities in the target language (Carrel & Grabe, 2002).

In fact, despite its priority in the English curriculum in Vietnam, students usually face

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difficulties in reading English (Luu, 2011). Vietnamese students believe that reading is

one of the most difficulties they face in the English curriculum (Tran, 2016). Moreover,

with his classroom observation and informal interviews with the teachers who teach

reading at upper secondary schools, Hoang (2015) found that Vietnamese students were

often afraid of dealing with a difficult reading task or reading text. Similarly, with her

informal interviews with the students at Dong Thap Community College (DTCC), the

specific context of the current research, the researcher recognizes that they often feel

scared of reading English because of its difficulties although reading is given special

attention.

One of the main reading comprehension problems Vietnamese students

encounter is the struggle to deal with English vocabulary. In fact, it is very difficult for

them to read fluently because they cannot recognize almost every word in a text

automatically as native English-speaking students. Luu (2011) indicated that one of the

main reasons for freshmen’s poor reading skill is their insufficient vocabulary.

Moreover, with the results of his survey related to the problems the students faced in

reading lessons, Ho (2013) indicated that the most serious problem preventing

Vietnamese students from comprehending what they read is their lack of vocabulary.

DTCC students have the same problem in dealing with reading texts. With the

researcher’s experience in teaching reading comprehension to 18-22 year old students

she believes that lack of vocabulary is a main reason for their poor reading performance.

Due to their limited vocabulary size, they cannot deal with vocabulary while reading

and thus they usually stop reading at once whenever they see an unknown word.

Therefore, only when they are provided with an adequate vocabulary size to recognize

the running words in the text quickly and correctly, will they read better (Carrel &

Grabe, 2002). In other words, vocabulary instruction should be emphasized in the

reading lessons.

Vocabulary learning is paid a careful attention in the Four Corners Pre￾intermediate course book by Richards and Bohlke (2011) which is used in the English

curriculum at DTCC. In each unit of the book, there are two lessons focusing on useful

vocabulary for the topic of the unit. However, the vocabulary instruction is separated

from the reading lessons; therefore, it is not significantly helpful to students’ reading

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comprehension. Moreover, the students cannot memorize the vocabulary well because

of the same activities including labelling and categorization which take turns to appear

continuously in each vocabulary lesson. As a result, the researcher had to apply such

techniques to pre-teach vocabulary to her students as using visual aids and tactile ways

in dealing with words’ forms, demonstrating or explaining the target words before

conducting the reading lesson. However, these practices are not a long-term solution to

help her students widen their vocabulary to improve their reading comprehension.

In order to promote their vocabulary learning, Nguyen (2014) highly appreciated

teachers’ orientation in text selection and the application of a variety of activities in

dealing with vocabulary in intensive reading. For the former consideration, the teachers

should decide how reading texts are adapted or sequenced by analyzing the texts in

terms of lexical frequency. This way enables them to find out which words in a text the

learners are not likely to know. It means that they could decide which words in the text

they could accept, which words need modifying or rejecting so as to be suitable for their

students’ vocabulary size. As a result, they could identify their target word lists and

begin to profile the vocabulary for comprehensibility for their learners by this kind of

text analysis.

The Compleat Lexical Tutor (Lextutor) (Cobb, 1997) is considered to be the

most appropriate to meet this requirement. Therefore, Dang (2011) recommended using

Lextutor as a very essential tool for teaching and learning vocabulary to improve

reading comprehension. For the second consideration, Nation’s (2004) activities in

dealing with vocabulary in intensive reading, kinds of deliberate vocabulary learning,

should be highly appreciated. Studies have suggested that direct vocabulary learning is

more effective than incidental vocabulary learning. One of the reasons for this is that

deliberate learning is more focused and goal-directed than incidental learning (Nation

& Meara, 2013).

1.2. Statement of the problem

The situation of vocabulary and reading teaching at DTCC as mentioned above

causes some constraints which impede students from accomplishment of expected

vocabulary and reading ability. They find it difficult to read because they lack

vocabulary; however, vocabulary instruction is not emphasized in the reading lessons.