The purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of training vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) for learning Sino-based Korean vocabulary. The Sino-based vocabulary consists a large portion of the whole Korean vocabulary and most of them a...
The purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of training vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) for learning Sino-based Korean vocabulary. The Sino-based vocabulary consists a large portion of the whole Korean vocabulary and most of them are low-frequency and advanced level words, which make Korean language learners with non-Sino based L1s become poor learners, compared to learners with the Sino-based L1s. This study sought to answer the following research question: How effective the VLS functions for guessing unknown words based on understanding linguistic roots and word part of Chinese characters from Sino-based vocabulary.
The study consisted three folds: (a) to develop the VLS training program for Sino-based Korean vocabulary including all the needed training materials, and develop word test and interview instruments, (b) to conduct the training program and collect data through 5-time word tests and interviews, and (c) to analyze the collected data by employing a mixed method approach of qualitative and quantities research. In order to explore the effectiveness of the VLS training, 7 advanced-level participants whose L1s were either English or Russian were selected to take one training course a week for 5 consecutive weeks. In time-sampling designs, the word test and the interview in a stimulated recall method were conducted for 5 times over 10 weeks. The results were triangulated for in-depth understanding of cognitive processes when using strategies.
As expected, the training of cognizing and understanding word parts of Sino-based vocabulary was effective to all participants for guessing meaning of unknown Sino-based vocabulary. Some participants with large vocabulary size showed strong results of the training. Furthermore, a highly significant difference was found between the test scores and interviews of the good and poor learners among the participants in case of using interpreting strategies in accordance with word structures of the Sino-based vocabulary. The findings of this study supported the theory that VLS could be trained, and also that the effect of the VLS compensated specific learners’ difficulties in learning foreign languages. Further research suggestions for the VLS trainings of various purposes for targeting poor learners and the implications have been provided.