The effects of vocabulary-oriented warm-up tasks on student vocabulary acquisition and task value beliefs

Abstract

This thesis explores the possible interactions between vocabulary-oriented warm-up tasks and students’ vocabulary acquisition, and how these tasks can foster motivated students. A quasi-experiment was conducted in a Norwegian lower secondary school. It examined the effects of using a vocabulary-oriented, word guessing style game inspired by the board game Alias, through a receptive vocabulary test and a task value beliefs questionnaire. The teaching procedure in the experiment group consisted of using Alias as a warm-up task followed by reading and related comprehension tasks, and the control group’s treatment consisted of reading and related comprehension tasks. The data obtained during this quasi-experiment was analyzed using independent means t- tests, Mann Whitney U tests and Wilcoxon Signed-Ranks tests. The results indicate that the teaching procedure in the experiment group led to a higher degree of acquisition of the target vocabulary items compared to the teaching procedure in the control group. These findings are supported by previous research. Additionally, it was found that the students in the experiment group expressed more positive task value beliefs toward warm-up tasks after playing Alias, suggesting a positive relationship between playing Alias as a warm-up task and motivated students. On the basis of these findings, I make a strong case for the use of warm-up tasks such as Alias to help students acquire new vocabulary while at the same time supporting an interesting and enjoyable learning environment for students.