THE EFFECT OF USING SEMANTIC MAPPING TO IMPROVE

VOCABULARY OF FRESHMEN OF FACULTY OF ENGLISH IN HPU2

CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 Rationale of the study
In recent years, the demand for learning English has spread nationwide. Due to
social needs, English is taught in almost universities. Most Faculty offer English
courses during the first years. Hanoi Pedagogical University 2(HPU2) is a typical
example of a training institution that combines English with teaching in other
majors such as: English Language Teaching, English-Math Teaching, English-
Physics Teaching, etc. One of the concerns at HPU2 is how to help students learn
English vocabulary better. This is critical given the role of vocabulary in second
language learning. Many scholars have considered vocabulary as being a
fundamental and crucial component of any foreign language learner. Wilkins
(1972) stresses the importance of vocabulary as "without grammar, very little can
be conveyed, without vocabulary, nothing can be conveyed". Ellis(1997) debates
that vocabulary knowledge is a precondition for learners’ discourse
comprehension, which allows grammatical rules to be patterned in the learners’
minds. Additionally, Hudson (2007) says that language is formed of words and
learners’ vocabulary is key to language and its acquisition
At HPU2, despite being students in the Faculty of English, they still have serious
difficulties in memorizing, recalling, and using vocabulary. The desire to help
students address these difficulties motivated me to conduct this study, which is
aimed at exploring the possibility of using the semantic mapping strategy to teach
and learn vocabulary.
1.2 Aim and objective of the study
The aim of the present study is to explore and evaluate the effects of using
semantic mapping in English learning and teaching freshmen in HPU2 learning.
More specifically, the research attempts to:
1) Compare the achievement score of freshmen in HPU2
2) Analyze the influence of semantic mapping in developing vocabulary.
1.3 Research question
To achieve the required objectives, the following research questions were
formulated:

1) Is there exist any significant difference between the achievement score of the
overall pretest and posttest.
2) What are participants’ attitudes towards semantic mapping in teaching and
learning vocabulary?
1.4 Significant of the study
It is useful to find influential ways to develop knowledge of vocabulary. One of
these ways is using semantic mapping. The study will contribute to enhancing the
vocabulary learning of students at all levels. Moreover, it can help students to
identify, understand and recall the meaning of the word asrelated to the concept
they encounter
1.5 Structure of the thesis
Chapter 1: Introduction- this chapter introduce the rationale of the study, aim and
objective, research question and the significance of the study.
Chapter 2: Literature review
Chapter 3: Methodology
Chapter 4: Conclusion
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Definition of vocabulary

S. B. Neuman & J. Drawyer (2009) argued that vocabulary can be defined as the
words that someone must know to communicate effectively: these are spoken
words (expressive language) and words used when listening (receptive language).
(Hornby, 1995) stated vocabulary is all the words that a person knows or uses
when they talk about a referent in a specific language. Cambridge Dictionary
considers vocabulary as all the words that exist in a particular language.
From all above definition, vocabulary is understood as the total number of all the
word that a language possesses. This also the reason why vocabulary is important
to learn a language, especially with English learners.
2.2 The role of vocabulary
It is commonly expected that vocabulary is one of the essential elements of a
language. According to E. Hatch & C. Brown (1995), vocabulary is the core of
language and has great significance for language learners. Words are the building
blocks of a language because they represent objects, actions, qualities, and ideas
that people cannot convey and want to say without them. Vocabulary is just one
part of language, but it is the most important part. The prominent role of lexical
knowledge in a second language has recently been of interest to linguists and
researchers. Laufer (1998) stated “the most striking difference between foreigner
learners and native learners is the quantity of word each group possess”.
McCarthy (1990) stressed that “No matter how well the students learn grammar, no
matter how successfully sounds of L2 are mastered, without words to express the
wider range of meanings, communication L2 just cannot happen in any meaningful
way”. It can be inferred that if the learners have a wide range of vocabulary with
little grammar, they can not only make themselves understood but also understand
the language easily. In contrast, if learners’ vocabulary is limited with grammar
knowledge, they can find it difficult to understand the language.
Vocabulary link with four macro skills so if it has good knowledge vocabulary,
learners not only comprehend the text they are listening or reading, but also
speaking influently and write professionally.
1.3 Semantic mapping as a vocabulary instruction strategy
1.3.1 What is semantic mapping?
Semantic mapping defined “a graphic arrangement showing the major ideas and
relationships in text or among word meanings” (Sinatra, 1984) or “a visual
representation of knowledge, a picture of conceptual relationship” (Antonnacci,
1991). According to Oxford (1990), semantic mapping is a strategy that involves
arranging concepts and relationships on a paper to create a semantic map, a
diagram in which main concepts are highlighted and linked to concepts other
through arrows or lines. Semantic mapping strategy is valuable for improving both
memory and understanding of vocabulary. In general, semantic mapping is a type
of map or diagram representing categories of information and their relationships
with each other. When building a semantic mapping, students can deepen their
understanding of terms and memorize vocabulary in long term-memory.
1.3.2 Procedure to build a semantic mapping
There are many ways to build a semantic mapping. Johnson and Pearson (1984)
stated that the procedure to build a semantic mapping as follow:
1. Introducing the topic: Write a keyword, term, concept, or topic related to
classroom activity on a piece of paper, blackboard, or slide.
2. Brainstorming activities: Encourage students to think of as many words as
they can which related to the selected keyword or topic
3. Presenting target word: Present unknown target words to students
4. Categorization: Guide students to list the words by categories and name
them.
5. Personalization: Make students to add words or categories to the diagram
6. Review of target words: Examine and ensure students understand the
meanings of target words and can use them.
As mentioned above, process of building a semantic mapping for teaching
vocabulary incorporates activities as brainstorming, presenting target words,
categorication, personalization and reviewing words.
1.3.3 Applying semantic mapping in teaching and learning vocabulary
Rubin (1990) believed that many students find the illustrations of documents help
them remember information that they memorized. Moreover, semantic mapping is
an interactive process that allows all students to participate in the process. When
applying this strategy, the author asked students to develop the keyword to the
board. Most of the participating students raised their hands to write the words
related to the keyword. These students feel secure because they can use their prior
knowledge, so they are willing to participate in the teaching and learning process.
Allen (1983) said that teaching vocabulary will be very meaningful if teachers can
conduct the teaching process by combining semantic mapping with other
vocabulary teaching techniques. Therefore, teaching vocabulary will be more
interesting and encourage students to participate more actively in learning.
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY
3.1Research design
Since the purpose of the study is to test the influence of semantic mapping on
students’ vocabulary, an experimental research design is appropriate. The research
is experimental in two ways. Firstly, no intact group of students were used, instead
using randomized sample. Secondly, the research used pre-post test design to
evaluate students’ results. Besides, a student questionaire was also employed.
3.2Participants
The study will be conducted with freshmen in Faculty of English in HPU2. Most of
the students’ studied English in high school focus on grammar. The remaining
learned English in university emphasize macro skills. Students will be divided into
two group randomly: Experimental Group and Control Group. Each group include
about 20 students.
3.3Data instrument
3.3.1 Questionaire
The aim of the questionnaire was to gain information about students' attitudes
toward semantic mapping, i.e., the use of semantic mapping for improving
vocabulary. The questionnaire was developed with reference to the benefits of
semantic mapping that were reported in the literature. The questionnaire was
conducted after the post-test. There are three items in the questionnaire, under
which the respondents were expected to answer by choosing either 'agree',
'disagree', or 'no idea'. As participants were students in Faculty of English,
questionnaire was designed in English.
3.3.2 Tests
Test includes pre-test and post-test. The pre-test consists of 10 multiple-choice
questions that are related to vocabulary questions that appear in the KET and PET.
The post-test consists of 2 parts. Part 1 is a multiple-choice format consisting of 20
questions, of which 10 have appeared in the pre-test. Part 2 is matching words with
appropriate definitions consisting of 5 sentences.
3.4 Treatment procedure
The participants were randomly assigned to two groups i.e., experimental group
(semantic mapping group) and control group (direct translation group). After that,
all the participants took an English vocabulary test as a pre-test. The test was
aimed at evaluating the participants' vocabulary knowledge. Both groups were
taught 100 words from Skillful Book in four weeks.
Teaching control group, each vocabulary was presented on the blackboard. Then,
teacher provided students pronunciation, part of speech, Vietnamese meanings.
This approach was conducted in every lecture for four weeks which the learners
were not offered any vocabulary learning strategy. However, the experimental
group was totally different. Before the lesson, the participants were familiarized
with the strategy, then they were provided with some practical examples of
applying semantic mapping. To teach experimental group, the participants were
offered to think as many involved words as possibility about the topic (eg:
Pressure, etc). Then, teacher introduced some related vocabularies and arranged the
concepts, their relationships on the board to build a semantic mapping. After that,
the participants can apply this strategy in the follow-up lesson. After four weeks, a
post-test was administered to two groups to measure the effects of semantic
mapping and compare its effect with the direct translation method. Besides, a
survey was done to know the learners’ attitudes.