The Effects of Lyrics Training on Listening Achievement and Vocabulary Acquisition in a University EFL Classroom

• Main Authors: YA-CHEN HUANG, 黃雅楨
• Other Authors: Tzu-Ching Chen
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2017
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/32789122293498483809

碩士 === 朝陽科技大學 === 應用英語系 === 105 === It has been proven that music can create a pleasant, relaxing and motivating atmosphere that allows English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners feel less stressful and consequently, learn more effectively. Learning EFL through lyrics helps expand vocabulary, advance listening ability, break culture barriers, reduce difficulty in understanding foreign-sounding accents, and acquire essential conversational English phrases. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of lyrics training as an alternative learning tool for EFL listening. This study was conducted with 34 freshmen students from one university in central Taiwan as participants. A mixed research method was used to collect data from multiple sources: scores of pre- and post-course listening tests and vocabulary tests, analysis of students’ lyrics training tasks, classroom observations by the researchers, and an end-of-semester course evaluation survey. The quantitative data from the end-of-semester survey, and the pre-test and post-test provided the evidence for students’ significant improvement in their English listening and vocabulary acquisition skills. The qualitative data from researchers’ observations and the end-of-semester survey showed that students’ overall perceptions toward the use of “Lyrics Tap” mobile application were significantly positive. According to the results, this type of lyrics training was an effective medium for positively influencing students’ EFL listening and vocabulary acquisition skills.