Volume 7-5 October 2011.

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Title
The Effect of Verbal and Visual Techniques on Vocabulary Achievement of Iranian EFL Students

Author
         Zahra Fakher Ajabshir
Pyame Noor University, Tehran, Iran

Bio Data
Zahra Fakher Ajabshir is a Ph.D. candidate at the Payme Noor University, Tehran, Iran. She is a lecturer at the Payame Noor University of Bonab. She has presented several papers at conferences and translated a book. Her area of interest is language syllabus design and SL /FL teaching methodology.

Abstract

The presents study investigated the effect of verbal, visual and a combination of verbal-visual techniques on vocabulary achievement of Iranian EFL students. The participants were eighty-five female native speakers of Azari in intermediate level of L2 proficiency ranging in age from 16 to 28. On the basis of a Cambridge Placement Test of Vocabulary, they were selected from among seven classes and divided into three groups of fifteen, namely group 1,2 and3. The lexical items were taught to experimental groups by verbal (synonymy and exemplification), visual (pictures, flashcards, blackboard drawings and photographs) and verbal-visual techniques respectively. Results of One way ANOVA and Scheffe test showed that when verbal or visual techniques were used alone, verbal techniques manifested more vocabulary acquisition than visual modality and among three techniques employed in this study, complementary use of verbal-visual techniques was the most effective. It may be concluded that in directing the learners toward the ability of vocabulary skill, teachers should not solely rely on verbal cues and can benefit to a large extent from non-verbal aids. Results obtained from this study may have pedagogical implications in the areas of syllabus design and teaching methodology.

Key words: Vocabulary achievement, Verbal techniques, Visual techniques, EFL