85
Chapter Four
Research Methodology and Procedures
Introduction .............................................................................................................. 86
4.1. Participants ........................................................................................................ 86
4.2. Research Design ................................................................................................ 87
4.3. Instruments and Data Collection Methods ........................................................ 91
4.3.1. Reading tests from the TOEFL PBT .......................................................... 91
4.3.2. Vocabulary tests ......................................................................................... 95
4.3.3. Tests Validity ............................................................................................. 96
4.3.4. Dictionaries ................................................................................................ 96
4.3.5. Monitoring Software ................................................................................ 100
4.3.6. Lookup History-List in CD-ROM Dictionary .......................................... 106
4.4. Research Procedures ....................................................................................... 110
4.4.1. Research site ............................................................................................. 110
4.4.2. Instructions and training ........................................................................... 110
4.4.3. Procedure in Reading Comprehension ..................................................... 111
4.4.4. Procedure to Test Vocabulary Retention .................................................. 114
4.5. Method of Data Analysis ................................................................................ 115
Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 118
86
Chapter Four
Research Methodology and Procedures
Introduction
An essential part of this study is the detailed description of the research design
and methodological procedures used to answer the proposed research questions
.
Such
description not only allows for an objective evaluation of the appropriateness of the
selected methods to the objectives of this study, but also helps in checking the validity
and reliability of the research results
.
Thus, this chapter presents detailed information
related to the selection of participants, research design chosen for the study, research
instruments and procedures followed, as well as the statistics used to analyze the
obtained data
.
4
.
1
.
Participants
The population from which the sample of this study was drawn consists of
sophomore-level students enrolled in the Department of English at Constantine
University 1
.
The main reason for the choice of the population is that students, at this
level, with more English learning experience than freshmen students, are expected,
and at times required to do some outside readings by themselves
.
To fill this need,
students very often find themselves under situations where they have to cope with
87
longer texts and entirely new vocabulary items during reading
.
So, to ease this
burden, they would feel it necessary to use dictionaries to facilitate their
understanding
.
The sample of this study consists of 44 students from two classes, 14 males
and 30 females (age average = 20
.
25, age range
:
18-30 years)
.
They were chosen to
be the sample due to my easy access and familiarity with them since they were
regularly taking classes in ‘Oral Expression’ with me
.
The subjects were all sharing
similar educational and linguistic backgrounds, and had at least seven years of EFL
instruction
.
However, they seemed to differ in their proficiency in that most of the
students in Group A were less motivated and did not actively participate in the
classroom, whereas those in Group B were so energetic and they enthusiastically
participated in classroom activities
.
4
.
2
.
Research Design
Previous studies on dictionary use have used various investigative procedures,
such as written questionnaires, interviews, observations, think-aloud protocols, tests
and experiments, and log files
.
In the following, I will briefly state the objective as
well as the shortcomings of each method in the context of dictionary use
.
Questionnaire surveys seek to understand the relationship between the users
and their dictionaries through gathering information about their habits, attitudes, and
88
knowledge in using dictionaries
.
Yet, one major problem with this method is the
inability to check the truth value of the informants’ responses unless combined with
other methods
.
In this respect, interviews are more efficient in that the informants cannot
cheat if asked about their dictionaries
.
However, using such a method could be time-
consuming, especially with large groups of informants, and the analysis of data may
be difficult and tiring in the case of open questions which entail thorough examination
to extract and sort relevant information (Welker, 2010)
.
Observation-based studies are concerned with “setting subjects observable
tasks and collecting data either during the task itself or immediately … [afterwards]”
(Nesi, 2000b, p
.
33)
.
Unlike questionnaires and interviews, real-time observation of
the users’ consultation process reveals their actual dictionary use
.
Still, this method is
not without shortcomings, as subjects would probably not feel comfortable being
observed while doing a task, which makes them feel inhibited and not behaving
normally
.
In protocols, the dictionary users describe orally how they proceed in their
lookups the first moment they encounter an unknown word or when they need to
know more about one they already know
.
The dictionary user should report whatever
thoughts might occur during the consultation process
.
A major limitation that could be
Dostları ilə paylaş: |