Last semester the driving question that I ended up deciding upon was “A Comparison of the Effectiveness of the Quizlet Application versus Traditional Teaching Methods in the Learning of New Foreign Language Vocabulary”. I felt that when I did the study I really only scraped the tip of the iceberg, in that the amount of data I was able to collect was so small, that really it was hard to prove anything one way or the other. This semester, I would like continue upon the same tact, but maybe approach things in a slightly different way. Last semester I taught students two lots of vocabulary, one set using traditional teaching methods, and a second set using traditional teaching methods plus Quizlet in class. My research questions were as follows:
1) Does the Quizlet application help students learn new foreign language vocabulary more effectively? 2) Does the Quizlet application engage students more in the classroom? 3) How do students perceive the Quizlet application? The issue I felt was that there were too many variables to really be able to get a concrete answer to all of these questions. For example, I taught students the first set of vocabulary without using Quizlet, but there was nothing to stop them using at home. When Quizlet was used, there was also no way of knowing how long students actually used it for. This semester I would like to try and control this variable a little more. When students are informed that there is a test, I propose to ask them to record how long they actually spent using Quizlet in the days running up to the test, and compare the results, in the hope that I would get something a little more accurate. It is also difficult to get a fast turnaround as each new set of vocabulary takes at least a couple of weeks to teach. In the study that I did, I did indeed find that Quizlet engaged students more in the classroom and when surveyed about the application, they were on the whole, very positive about it. This evidence was also corroborated by other studies that were part of my literature review. This seems to be the most researched area regarding Quizlet’s influence on the ability for students to learn new vocabulary more effectively. Other studies were also inconclusive when test scores were compared. I think my research could be continued with other language applications that are available for students; there are many that are starting to emerge - Duolingo, Busuu, Babbel – but I think studies needs to be done with specific parameters as it is hard to compare data when there are so many variables – ie the amount of time spent using the app, how the time was spent etc. This could be invaluable where the learning of languages is concerned; in our hectic lives often instructors do not meet with their students every day, but with these applications, students still get a chance to practice their language skills every day if they want to.
1 Comment
Catalina Goldstein
2/5/2019 07:26:53 am
Hey Tasha, I remember taking language in high school. It started out as something to meet the requirements to go to college and it ended up being one of the harder classes I had to take. I agree there are so many variables when it comes to learning language like time spent practicing. Learning a new language is a lot like trying to lose weight. It's really cool and healthy for you but it won't happen unless you put the work in.
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AuthorI am a French & Spanish teacher at Justin-Siena High School wanting to get new ideas to motivate my students. Archives
March 2019
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