Vocabulary Recollection through Games

ISSN 1799-2591
Theory and Practice in Language Studies, Vol. 2, No. 2, pp. 257-264, February 2012
© 2012 ACADEMY PUBLISHER Manufactured in Finland. doi:10.4304/tpls.2.2.257-264 Vocabulary Recollection through Games
Luu Trong Tuan
National University of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Email: [e-mail]
Abstract—This research sought to examine whether games influence young learners’ vocabulary recollection in Way Ahead classes at Ngoi Nha Thong Thai Elementary School (The House of Wisdom Elementary School),
Vietnam. Two classes were randomly selected as experimental group and control group. The experimental group was exposed to games in recollecting vocabularywhereas the control group involved in exercises without games. The independent samples t-test was implemented to compare the mean scores of the pretest and two posttests. The results of the pretest and two posttests indicate that the experimental group surpassed the control one in recollecting vocabulary during the immediate retention stage and the delayed retention stage.
Index Terms—vocabulary recollection, vocabulary teaching, games, EFL

I. INTRODUCTION
“If language structure makes up the skeleton of language, then it is vocabulary that provides the vital organs and flesh,” (Hammer, 1991, p. 153). Thus, the magnitude of vocabulary teaching and learning is never too far to be highlighted. For young learners, perhaps it is less difficult to learn vocabulary items for the first time than to consolidate and remember them. We often hear young learners complain that they keep learning and forgetting. When English language young learners are acquiring new vocabulary, they need concrete methods to collect, store, and retrieve words for retention and future use. Therefore, it is necessary to find out effective methods to help young learners retain new words in long-term memory. The aim of this research is to examine if implementation of games can be an effective method to reinforce

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