Closing in on Vocabulary Acquisition: Testing the Use of iPods and Flashcard Software to Eliminate Performance Gaps

Abstract

Vocabulary acquisition is one of the critical building blocks in acquiring foreign language fluency. Instructors typically expect students to learn vocabulary through study separate from the study of grammar or syntax, as well as through drilling and implicit contextual techniques. In some cases, however, faculty shy away from suggesting specific strategies for vocabulary acquisition, instead trusting students to discover methods that work best for themselves. In March through June of 2009, faculty and information technology experts at Carleton College pilot-tested the use of mobile technology as a supplementary tool to classroom learning of French as a second language. Specifically, iPods with digital flashcards, equipped with Mental Class flashcard software, were distributed to students to assist with vocabulary acquisition. Through this initiative, the researchers tested a premise that technological intervention may address the need to help students study vocabulary more effectively and do so in practical, sustainable ways that do not increase workloads for faculty, students, or academic technical support staff.

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