Computer-Based Concordancing Courseware for Developing Vocabulary Skills in the ESL Class
The analysis of natural texts provides the basis in which words used in different contexts can be studied. A computer-based concordancing courseware makes the task of analysing natural texts not only viable but also fast. Texts taken from primary sources such as the newspapers, magazines, books,...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English English |
| Published: |
1994
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/8897/1/FPP_1994_5_A.pdf |
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| Summary: | The analysis of natural texts provides the basis in which words used in
different contexts can be studied. A computer-based concordancing courseware
makes the task of analysing natural texts not only viable but also fast. Texts taken
from primary sources such as the newspapers, magazines, books, and letters, can
be scanned into computer storage devices for analysis later. The study of such a
corpus has the advantage of not only providing the student with authentic, natural
occurring texts, but also coming out with a list of possible contexts in which the
particular word may occur.
Forty eight TESL matriculation students in a first semester ESL class
studying at Universiti Pertanian Malaysia, Serdang, were randomly assigned to two
groups - the experimental group and the control group. Treatment consisted of two
stages. In the first stage, the experimental group received the computer
concordancing courseware treatment while the control group was taught vocabulary
the conventional classroom way. In the second stage, the groups were switched,
with the experimental becoming the control group and vice versa. During the
treatment period, a set of instructional objectives were adhered to and the learning
outcomes pertaining to vocabulary development ensured. The data collected revealed a significant difference in the performance
between the control and the experimental groups at the end of stage I. All subjects
indicated a positive attitude towards the computer concordancing courseware.
Much infonnation was also gleaned on appropriate instructional strategies for
integrating computer concordancing into vocabulary teaching. |
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