Exploring English majors’ vocabulary development and attitudes through extensive listening to TED talks

Abstract

Engaging English majors in extensive listening to TED Talks (ELTED) could enhance their vocabulary and language competence as well as provide diverse insights for academic growth. However, most previous research focused only on the relationship between Extensive Listening (EL) on Receptive Vocabulary Knowledge (ReVK) and lacked a thorough investigation into the influences of EL on learners’ Productive Vocabulary Knowledge (ProVK) over the years. Hence, this research initiates on enhancing English majors’ vocabulary knowledge through ELTED, in terms of both ReVK and ProVK. In addition, this study also examines the effects of ELTED on learners’ attitudes towards ELTED. Using a mixed-methods approach, 88 English majors from 02 intact classes are divided into experimental and control groups. Pre- and post-tests measure aural ReVK through the Listening Vocabulary Levels Test (LVLT), and only the post-test measures oral ProVK by evaluating the participants’ Speaking Unit Assignments. Additionally, a survey and an interview were conducted to gather quantitative and qualitative data on their practicing experience, along with attitudes toward ELTED. The results reveal that ELTED improves ReVK and ProVK significantly, and most learners generally had positive attitudes toward ELTED, strongly suggesting ELTED’s potential for inspiring future research in this field.