STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS ENGLISH VOCABULARY LEARNING AT AN UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL IN THE CENTRAL HIGHLANDS OF VIETNAM
Main Article Content
Abstract
The study aimed to examine students’ attitudes towards vocabulary learning at an upper secondary school in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. Participants of this research were 83 students from two different classes, namely 11A3 and 11C4. All participants were selected using a convenience sampling method. The research followed a quantitative approach. Quantitative data were collected through a five-point Likert-scale questionnaire adapted from prior research. Descriptive analysis of the questionnaire data was conducted using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS 22). The results indicated that most students have positive attitudes towards vocabulary learning in terms of form, meaning, and use. Based on the results, some recommendations for teachers and students were suggested to improve vocabulary learning.
Keywords
an upper secondary school, students’ attitudes, the Central Highlands of Vietnam, vocabulary learning
Article Details
References
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Ta, T. M. P. & Tran, D. (2022). Attitudes change during an integration of modeling course in year 10 – The application of the ABC model. Vietnam Journal of Educational Sciences, 18(1), 32-39. https://doi.org/10.15625/2615-8957/22210104
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Tran, Q. T. (2020). EFL students’ attitudes towards learner autonomy in English vocabulary learning. English Language Teaching Educational Journal, 3(2), 86-94.
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Vu, V. D. & Peters, E. (2020). Learning vocabulary from reading-only, reading-while-listening, and reading with textual input enhancement: Insights from Vietnamese EFL learners. RELC Journal, 53(1), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688220911485
Vu, V. D. & Peters, E. (2021). Vocabulary in English language learning, teaching, and testing in Vietnam: A review. Education Sciences, 11(9), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11090563
Alias, N., Al-Rahmi, W. M., Saad, A. A., Shapii, A. & Yaacob, A. (2018). Vocabulary learning strategies (VLSS) through secondary students at Saudi school in Malaysia (SSM): A pilot study. International Education & Research Journal (IERJ), 4(2), 48-53.
Amiryousefi, M. (2015). Iranian EFL learners’ and teachers’ beliefs about the usefulness of vocabulary learning strategies. Sage Open, 5(2), 1-10. 10.1177/2158244015581382
Chung, E. & Fung, D. (2023). ‘I realised I only knew the word partly’: student beliefs about vocabulary knowledge and learning in different grades and proficiency levels. The Language Learning Journal, 51(3), 279-297. https://doi.org/10.1080/09571736.2021.2023204
Chung, E., Wan, A. & Fung, D. (2024). Understanding academic vocabulary learning in higher education: Perspectives from first-year undergraduates in Hong Kong. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 34(4), 1368-1384. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijal.12576
Chung, E., Fung, D. & Wan, A. (2025). Learner beliefs about vocabulary teaching in secondary ESL classrooms: a proficiency and grade-level analysis. International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, 1-27.
https://doi.org/10.1515/iral-2024-0186
Do, M. H. & Nguyen, T. P. T. (2014). Vietnamese EFL learners’ reading comprehension affected via metacognitive strategy instruction. International Journal for Research in Education, 3(5), 11-24.
Eagly, A. & Chaiken, S. (1998). Attitude structure and function. In D. T. Gilbert, S. T. Fiske & G. Lindzey (Eds.), The handbook of social psychology (4th ed., Vol. 1, pp. 269-322). McGraw-Hill Companies.
Getie, A. S. (2020). Factors affecting the attitudes of students towards learning English as a foreign language. Cogent Education, 7(1), 1-37. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2020.1738184
Hadi, H. U. R. & Guo, X. (2020). A survey of beliefs and vocabulary learning strategies adopted by EFL learners at Shaikh Zayed university. Cogent Education, 7(1), 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2020.1829803
Harmer, J. (2007). How to teach English. Pearson.
Hoang, Y. P. & Tran, T. T. Q. (2022). English teaching reform in Vietnam: Responses of non-English majored students towards the target English level of the CEFR-V. Journal of Language and Linguistics Studies, 17(2), 1189-1204.
Kaphle, K. R. (2024). Challenges of learning English vocabulary. Janaprakash Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 2, 31-43. https://doi.org/10.3126/jjmr.v2i1.75170
Laufer, B. & Goldstein, Z. (2004). Testing vocabulary knowledge: Size, strength, and computer adaptiveness. Language Learning, 54(3), 399-436. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.0023-8333.2004.00260.x
Le, H. T. (2013). ELT in Vietnam general and tertiary education from second language education perspectives. VNU Journal of Foreign Studies, 29(1), 65-71.
https://jfs.ulis.vnu.edu.vn/index.php/fs/article/view/1081
Le, X. M. & Le, T. T. (2022). Factors affecting students’ attitudes towards learning English as a foreign language in a tertiary institution of Vietnam. International Journal of TESOL & Education, 2(2), 168-185. https://doi.org/10.54855/ijte.22229
Ministry of Education and Training. (2018). Chương trình giáo dục phổ thông – Chương trình môn tiếng Anh [General educational curriculum – English curriculum].
Melani, B. Z. (2018). Learning conditions for incidental vocabulary acquisition in L1 and L2. The Asian EFL Journal, 20(4), 151-163.
Mozaffari, S. H. (2023). The effects of EFL learners’ attitudes on participation and learning during collaborative writing. The Electronic Journal for English as a Second Language, 27(2), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.55593/ej.26106a5
Nation, I. S. P. (2001). Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge University Press.
Nguyen, H. T. M. & Duong, M. T. (2022). Vietnamese EFL students’ attitudes towards a task-based reading comprehension class at a secondary school. TNU Journal of Science and Technology, 227(13), 9-16. https://doi.org/10.34238/tnu-jst.6206
Nguyen, T. M. H. & Webb, S. (2016). Examining second language receptive knowledge of collocation and factors that affect learning. Language Teaching Research, 21(3), 1-23.
10.1177/1362168816639619
Pham, D. T. T. & Nguyen, T. H. (2020). A study on attitude towards English language learning among non-English majored students at Tra Vinh university. Vietnam Journal of Education, 4(2), 47-54. https://doi.org/10.52296/vje.2020.19
Rahmani, S. (2023). Vocabulary learning beliefs and strategies of Afghan EFL undergraduate learners. Cogent Education, 10(1), 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2023.2194227
Schiffman, L. G. & Kanuk, L. L. (2004). Consumer behavior (8th ed). Prentice Hall.
Tanaka, M. (2017). Examining EFL vocabulary learning motivation in a demotivating learning environment. System, 65, 130-138. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2017.01.010
Ta, T. M. P. & Tran, D. (2022). Attitudes change during an integration of modeling course in year 10 – The application of the ABC model. Vietnam Journal of Educational Sciences, 18(1), 32-39. https://doi.org/10.15625/2615-8957/22210104
Tseng, W. T. & Schmitt, N. (2008). Toward a model of motivated vocabulary learning: A structural equation modeling approach. Language Learning, 58(2), 357-400.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9922.2008.00444.x
Tran, Q. T. (2020). EFL students’ attitudes towards learner autonomy in English vocabulary learning. English Language Teaching Educational Journal, 3(2), 86-94.
10.12928/eltej.v3i2.2361
Vu, V. D. & Peters, E. (2020). Learning vocabulary from reading-only, reading-while-listening, and reading with textual input enhancement: Insights from Vietnamese EFL learners. RELC Journal, 53(1), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688220911485
Vu, V. D. & Peters, E. (2021). Vocabulary in English language learning, teaching, and testing in Vietnam: A review. Education Sciences, 11(9), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11090563