AN INVESTIGATION INTO ENGLISH VOCABULARY LEARNING STRATEGIES USED BY ENGLISH MAJOR FRESHMEN AT A SCHOOL OF THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY

Abstract

This study was conducted as a descriptive research with the purposes of exploring the vocabulary learning strategies of English major freshmen at a School of Thai Nguyen University and the relationship between their vocabulary learning strategies and their vocabulary size in order to help students to develop suitable vocabulary learning strategies in the process of improving their lexical competence. The subjects of the study were 158 students at the School. To collect the data, a vocabulary learning strategies questionnaire and a vocabulary size test were used. The results suggested that most students use a variety of vocabulary acquisition tactics. However, the majority of them appear to lack an average vocabulary size for comprehending university-level materials. Furthermore, the researchers discovered a link between vocabulary size and the learners' vocabulary learning strategies. It can be concluded that in the teaching and learning process, students should be informed about the effective exploration of their strategies in addition to being aware of the many approaches to manage their vocabulary studies and it is also critical for teachers to assist learners in becoming aware of their own styles, preferences, habits, as well as to get them to practice effective strategies and take charge of their own learning.