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Abstract

This study aims to find out the frequency of the use of foreign language vocabulary learning strategies employed by Turkish EFL students at Karabuk University. The second aim of the study is to investigate the connection between the frequency of vocabulary learning strategies and field of study, achievement and student status i.e. regular or evening students. In the article, a Vocabulary Learning Strategy (VLS) questionnaire, which is an adapted version proposed by Gu & Johnson (1996), was administered to 158 Turkish EFL students. The data were analyzed through SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). Descriptive, correlation and regression analyses were implemented in order to answer the research questions. The results indicated that the participants had a moderate level of vocabulary learning strategies. Statistically significant differences were observed among the participants from different fields in terms of top-down strategies, note taking strategies, repetition strategies, activation strategies, and anxiety level. The results indicated that regular and evening students differed in terms of topdown strategies, dictionary strategies, memory/ repetition strategies, and activation strategies. Finally, selective attention, using linguistic clues, and anxiety were found to be important predictors of academic success

Keywords

• vocabulary, learning strategies, Turkish EFL students, learning a foreign language, vocabulary learning

Karabük Üniversitesi’ndeki Türk EFL Öğrencilerin Kelime Öğrenme Stratejileri

Öz

Bu çalışmanın amacı Karabük’te eğitim gören İngilizce öğrenen Türk öğrencilerin Kelime Öğrenme Stratejileri kullanım sıklığını belirlemektir. Çalışmanın ikinci amacı, kelime öğrenme stratejileri ile bölüm, başarı ve öğrenci statüsünün ilişkisini araştırmaktır. Makalede, Gu ve Johnson’un (1996) öne sürdüğü Kelime Öğrenme Stratejileri anketi 158 İngilizce öğrenen Türk öğrenciye uygulanmıştır. Elde edilen veriler SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) program kullanılarak analiz edilmiştir. Araştırma sorularına cevap verebilmek için betimleyici, korelasyon ve regresyon analizleri uygulanmıştır. Çalışma, öğrencilerin orta seviyede kelime öğrenme stratejisi kullandıklarını tespit etmiştir. Farklı bölümlerden katılımcılar arasında tümevarım stratejileri, not alma stratejileri, tekrar etme stratejileri, harekete geçirme stratejileri ve endişe seviyeleri açısından farklılıklar görülmüştür. Çalışmanın sonuçları, gündüz ve akşam grubu öğrencilerinin tümevarım stratejileri, sözlük stratejileri, tekrar etme stratejileri ve harekete geçirme stratejileri açısından farklılık gösterdiklerini belirtmektedir. Sonuç olarak, seçici dikkat, dilsel ipuçlarının kullanımı ve endişe seviyesi değişkenlerinin başarının önemli belirleyicileri olduğu bulunmuştur.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Kelime öğrenme stratejileri, İngilizce öğrenen Türk öğrenciler, yabancı dil öğrenmek, kelime öğrenme

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