The Effect of Using "Dual Coding" on Developing EFL Preparatory Stage Students' Vocabulary Use

Abstract

The study aimed to design a dual coding based program to develop EFL preparatory stage students' vocabulary use. The design of the present study was based on the one-group design. Participants of the study were a class of 2 nd year, preparatory stage students (n=30) in Dar Al-Eloum preparatory school, Al-Salam administration, in the academic year 2017/2018. The study started with a review of literature and previous studies related to dual coding, animation as well as vocabulary use. The study utilized the following three instruments: a list of vocabulary use components, a pre/post vocabulary use test, and an analytic vocabulary use rubric. Then, the researcher designed the study program based on dual coding. In this study, the researcher used animated short stories as an audiovisual material to expose participants to use language in various contexts. They received training on vocabulary use through the proposed program based on dual coding. The participants' scores on the pre and posttest were statistically analyzed, using t-test and effect size. A qualitative analysis of the participants' performance was also conducted. Results revealed that using dual coding was effective in developing the second-year preparatory stage students' vocabulary use.