Educational Pathways in Vocabulary Learning: What Individual Strategies Reveal about Learners

Résumé fourni par la source

Vocabulary Learning Strategies (VLSs) support vocabulary development and learner autonomy in second and foreign language learning. Although previous studies have examined a range of learner-related variables associated with VLS use, educational factors have received comparatively less attention. This study explored the VLSs employed by 668 Bruneian university students learning English and seven foreign languages and investigated whether strategy use differed according to degree year, field of study, and years studying the target language. Data were collected using an adapted version of Schmitt’s (1997) Vocabulary Learning Strategies Questionnaire, comprising 24 individual VLSs. Descriptive statistics identified the most frequently used strategies, while Kruskal–Wallis and Spearman’s rank-order correlation analyses examined relationships between the three educational factors and individual VLSs. Participants reported moderate to high use across all strategies. Pronunciation practice, repetition, note-taking, dictionary consultation, contextual analysis, and digital lexical resources were the most frequently used strategies, whereas interaction with native speakers, self-testing, and collaborative vocabulary learning were reported less often. Among the educational variables examined, years studying the target language showed the strongest association with individual VLSs, followed by degree year. Field of study accounted for comparatively little variation. The findings indicate that educational experiences are associated with specific strategic behaviours rather than learners’ overall strategic repertoires. Examining individual VLSs also provides a more detailed understanding of how educational pathways relate to vocabulary learning and offers practical guidance for vocabulary instruction that responds to learners’ accumulated language-learning experience.

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