Effects of anki application on teenagers english vocabulary retention a mixed methods investigation

Trang 1 --- ∞0∞--- VAN LE UYEN VY EFFECTS OF ANKI APPLICATION ON TEENAGERS’ ENGLISH VOCABULARY RETENTION: A MIXED- METHODS INVESTIGATION MASTER OF ARTS IN TESOL Trang 2 MINISTRY OF EDU

MASTER OF ARTS IN TESOL

HO CHI MINH CITY, 2023

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY

MASTER OF ARTS IN TESOL

Supervisor: Dr NGUYEN HUY CUONG

HO CHI MINH CITY, 2023

GIẤY XÁC NHẬN

Tôi tên là: VĂN LÊ UYÊN VY

Ngày sinh: 24/12/1995 Nơi sinh: Tp Hồ Chí Minh

Chuyên ngành: LL&PPGDTA Mã học viên: 1981401111036

Tôi đồng ý cung cấp toàn văn thông tin luận án/ luận văn tốt nghiệp hợp lệ về bản quyền cho Thư viện trường đại học Mở Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh Thư viện trường đại học Mở Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh sẽ kết nối toàn văn thông tin luận án/ luận văn tốt nghiệp vào hệ thống thông tin khoa học của Sở Khoa học và Công nghệ Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh

(Ghi rõ họ và tên)

………

Ý KIẾN CHO PHÉP BẢO VỆ LUẬN VĂN THẠC sĩ

CỦA GIẢNG VIÊN HƯỚNG DẪN

Giảng viên hướng dẫn: Tiến sĩ Nguyễn Huy Cường

Học viên thực hiện: Văn Lê Uyên Vy Lớp: MTESOLOÍ9A

Ngày sinh:24/12/1995 Nơi sinh: Tp Hồ Chí Minh

Tên đề tài: Effects of Anki Application on Teenagers’ English Vocabulary Retention: A

Mixed-Methods Investigation.

Ý kiến của giáo viên hướng dẫn về việc cho phép học viên Văn Lê Uyên Vy

được bảo vệ luận văn trước Hội đồng:

Thành phố Hồ Chỉ Minh, ngày Mì tháng b năm 20'ÍÒ

Người nhận xét

STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY

I attest that to the best of my knowledge, this master thesis “EFFECTS OF ANKI APPLICATION ON TEENAGERS’ ENGLISH VOCABULARY RETENTION: A MIXED-METHODS INVESTIGATION” is my own personal research for the Master in TESOL program at the Ho Chi Minh City Open University and has not been submitted for any degree or to any other purposes

Each and every source used to support this research has been listed in REFERENCES No work has been used without acknowledgement

Secondly, I would like to give my thanks to my fellow classmates for their great help and support, their sharing and reminding me of the school guidelines, the long discussions and debates, and all the fun we had during the course

Thirdly, I would love to thank my father, step-mother and brothers for being my main motivation to work through the course to this moment They were not only encouraging

me to take the class but were also ready to support me financially when I needed

My thanks also go to the administration board of Dong Do English Center and all the students of my classes for participating in my study and giving me the best condition possible to conduct my research

Last but not least, my thanks are also sent to all the professors and teachers who have taught and support me in this course and to Ho Chi Minh city Open University itself for providing me with an unforgettable learning experience

Trong môi trường giảng dạy thực tế của người nghiên cứu, ghi nhớ từ vựng là một vấn đề khó khắn đối với người học, và luyện tập từ vựng là một việc vừa buồn chán vừa tốn thời gian cho cả người học lẫn người dạy Dựa trên những nghiên cứu về Lặp Lại Ngắt Quãng (Spacing effects) và Hiệu Ứng Kiểm Tra (Testing Effects), ứng dụng thẻ từ vựng Anki có vẻ như là một hướng giải quyết tốt Nghiên cứu này được thực hiện để xem xét xem mức độ ảnh hưởng của ứng dụng này lên trí nhớ ngắn hạn, trí nhớ dài hạn, cũng như suy nghĩ của người học sau hai tháng thực nghiệm

Được thực hiện dưới hình thức nghiên cứu hỗ hợp, bao gồm một thực nghiệm

và một phỏng vấn bán cấu trúc, dữ liệu thu thập từ nghiên cứu này đưa ra các bằng chứng ủng hộ hiệu quả của ứng dụng trong việc cải thiện khả năng ghi nhớ

từ vựng ngắn hạn và dài hạn của người học so với cách thức thông thường mà người nghiên cứu áp dụng trước đó Trong thí nghiệm kéo dài 2 tháng, 32 học viên tuổi vị thành niên được chia thành hai nhóm, dùng và không dùng Anki

Dù sự khác biệt giữ hai nhóm về trí nhớ ngắn hạn là không rõ ràng, kết quả khác biệt của trí nhớ dài hạn sau khi sử dụng Anki đã cho thấy sự hiệu quả của ứng dụng 6 học viên, được chia thành 3 nhóm, đã tham gia vào buổi phỏng vấn bán cấu trúc sau thời gian thực nghiệm cũng đã chia sẻ thái độ tích cực về quá trình

sử dụng ứng dụng Điều này mở ra tiềm năng sử dụng Anki trong môi trường lớp học thực tiễn

ABSTRACT

In the researcher’s current teaching context, memorizing vocabulary can be a daunting task for most learners and, practicing vocabulary is a time-consuming and boring process for both students and teachers Based on Spaced-repetition and Testing effect research findings, Anki flashcard application appears to be a promising solution This paper was conducted to investigate to what extent the application can affect learners’ long-term and short-term memory, as well as their perspective on using Anki after 2 months using it

In the form of a mixed-method study with data collected from a quasi-experiment and a semi-structured interview, this research provided evidence that the application did enhance learners’ long-term memory comparing to the teacher’s current teaching method 32 students were divided into two groups – with and without Anki application for a two-month experiment Despite the lack of significant outcomes when compared with the control group in terms of short-term memory, Anki proved itself to be an effective tool to practice vocabulary in the classroom, especially after months of using A semi-structured interview with 6 participants in three groups was also used to collect information regarding learners’ perspective when using the app Positive attitudes of interviewees demonstrated good potential of using Anki in the real classroom contexts for teenagers

Keywords: Anki, spaced repetition, testing effect, teenagers, application

LIST OF CONTENTS STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ABSTRACT

LIST OF CONTENTS 1

LIST OF TABLES AND GRAPHS 5

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 6

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION 7

Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 12

2.1 Vocabulary 12

2.1.1 Definition of vocabulary 12

2.1.2 Aspect of Knowing a Word 12

2.2 Teaching and Reviewing Vocabulary 13

2.2.1 Teaching Vocabulary 13

2.2.2 Reviewing Vocabulary 15

2.3 Vocabulary Retention 16

2.3.1 Definition of Retention 16

2.3.2 Process of Vocabulary Retention 17

2.4 Paper and Digital Flashcards 17

2.4.1 Paper Flashcards 18

2.4.2 Digital Flashcards 18

2.4.3 Anki 19

i

ii

iv

2.5 Learners’ Perception of Technology Application 20

2.6 Previous Research 21

2.7 Chapter Summary 23

Chapter 3: METHODOLOGY 25

3.1 Research Design 25

3.1.1 Study Design 25

3.1.2 Research site and Participants 27

3.1.3 Materials 29

3.2 Data collection 35

3.2.1 Pre-test, Post-test, and Delayed Post-test 35

3.2.2 The interview questions 39

3.3 Procedure: 40

3.3.1 The trial experiment 40

3.3.2 The Actual Research Design: 41

3.4 Data Analysis 45

3.4.1 The test scores 45

3.4.2 The interview 46

3.5 Reliability and Validity 46

3.5.1 Reliability 46

3.5.2 Validity 47

Chapter 4: FINDINGS and DISCUSSION 49

4.1 Test Score Analysis 49

4.1.1 Comparing Post-test Results 49

4.1.2 Comparing the Two Groups’ Performance in the test and delayed post-test 50 4.2 Interview Analysis 53

4.2.1 Usefulness 53

4.2.2 Usability 54

4.2.3 Enjoyment 55

4.3 Discussion 56

4.3.1 Research question 1 56

4.3.2 Research question 2 56

4.3.3 Research question 3 57

4.3.4 In Relation to Theoretical Framework: 57

Spaced-Repetition (S.R) 57

Testing Effects (T.E) 58

Digital Flashcards 58

4.3.5In Relation to Previous Studies: 58

Retention 58 Perceptions 59

Chapter 5: CONCLUSION 60

5.1 Summary of Findings: 60

5.2 Limitation 60

5.3 Implication 61

5.3.1 For teachers: 61

5.3.2 For students: 62

5.3.3 For administrator: 62

5.3.4 For program developers: 63

5.4 Recommendation 63

5.4.1 Application-related research 63

5.4.2 Experiment-improvement research 64

REFERENCE 65

APPENDICES 73

Anki Algorithm 73

Students’ Consent Form English 75

Pretest 77

Wordlist 94

Posttest: 95

Delayed Posttest: 102

Interview Questionnaire in English and Vietnamese 109

LIST OF TABLES AND GRAPHS

Graph 2.1 Theoretical framework of this study 27

Graph 3.1 Research questions and Research designs 30

Graph 3.2 Word selection criteria 40

Graph 3.3 The procedure of this study 50

Picture 3.1 Anki’s suggested card designs 34

Picture 3.2 The four options of AnkiDroid 36

Picture 3.3 Anki’s settings with ‘Hard’ option 38

Table 3.1 The format of the questions in the tests 42

Table 3.2 The score of the questions in the pre-test 43

Table 3.3 The distribution of the questions in the two post-tests 44

Table 4.1 Descriptive statistics of the post-test of EG and CG 59

Table 4.2 Independent sample test of the posttest of EG and CG 59

Table 4.3 Descriptive analysis of the CG in the posttest and delayed posttest 60

Table 4.4 Paired samples test of the CG for the posttest and delayed posttest 61

Table 4.5 Descriptive analysis of the EG in the posttest and delayed posttest 61

Table 4.6 Paired samples test of the EG for the posttest and delayed posttest 61

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

C.G Control Group

E.G Experimental Group

S.R Spaced Repetition

S.R.S Spaced Repetition system

T.E Testing Effects

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the Study

English has long been recognized as an important subject in the Vietnamese educational system, with a tremendous number of regulations having been issued to improve the students' English proficiency (Van, 2010; Duong and Nguyen, 2020) However, regardless

of these efforts, Vietnamese English Proficiency index is still considered to be low in the English Proficiency Index (EF EPI 2021 – EF English Proficiency Index, 2021) Consequently, the need to conduct research to find a solution to this problem has arisen

It is believed by many researchers that vocabulary plays a prominent role in learning a language (Alzeer, 2015) Learners need about 2,500 words to be able to communicate effectively in daily conversations (Schmitt, 2008) Moreover, vocabulary is stated to be one

of the easiest aspects of the English language that can be practiced alone at home (Nikoopour & Kazemi, 2014) For these reasons, it is strategic to help students improve their English vocabulary since this can upgrade their overall English proficiency

In vocabulary learning, intentional learning is often considered by some scholars to be less favorable than incidental learning (Nation, 2001) However, more recent studies have shown many advantages of intentional learning as it can promote learners’ long-term memory and help them process the knowledge in a deeper and more thorough manner (Martinez, 2010) Among intentional learning techniques, testing and spacing effects have

proved to be effective in enhancing learners’ vocabulary retention (Hung, 2015) Testing effects (T.E) refers to the positive learning effects that doing a test can have comparing to relearning the information Meanwhile, the spacing effects, which occurs thanks to Spaced

Repetition (S.R), refers the advantages of distributing schedule over cramming These two techniques, either being used alone or together, especially in flashcard forms, have been proved to have great potential in the classroom contexts (Byrd, 2016)

Furthermore, thanks to the rise and ubiquity of technology, mobile-assisted language

learning (MALL) applications in educational context have been invested and studied by scholars and program developers all over the world (Byrd, 2016) These language learning programs are claimed to improve all the skills and aspects of language, especially vocabulary In fact, spacing and testing effects are frequently used in many vocabulary learning applications on mobile phones, such as Duolingo, Memrise, Flashcard Deluxe, or Anki, just to name a few

Anki has long been recognized as an effective, user-friendly flashcard application that uses spaced repetition and testing effects as its main theoretical background (Anki Manual) The developers of this application wanted to create a program that makes memorizing words easier This software/ application allows user to create, practice, store and synchronize their flashcards across devices and operation systems Providing a vast array

of convenient add-ons as well as multi-media supports, Anki is a potential teaching and learning aids, especially for those with budgetary constraints

1.2 Problem Statements:

In the researcher’s actual teaching context, practicing vocabulary is both time-consuming and challenging for the teachers and students Learners in her class easily get bored by repeating exercises and are not always ready for games or physical activities Despite trying

to use many different techniques, such as route-copying, vocabulary exercises, role-playing, etc., the teacher/ researcher is still not satisfied with learners’ results The learned vocabulary

is random, which makes it impossible for the teacher to be aware of which vocabulary has been learnt and which has not in order to adopt more appropriate strategies Since vocabulary

is an important aspect of language, without solving this problem, the attempt to practice other language skills will be affected This can lead to under-expected learning and teaching progress

After reading about Anki and users’ feedbacks, the teacher/ researcher finds great potential

of the application However, the research related to Anki in a real classroom context is relatively new and sparse (Altiner, 2011) Anki in the previous articles appeared to be significantly effective in terms of improving retention scores but gained mixed attitudes from students, who albeit acknowledging the application’s usefulness, showed reluctance in using

it One reason is that although Anki is a relatively complicating application, these studies usually do not describe how it is applied and monitor in the actual contexts, which can lead

to the possibility of misusing, confusions and demotivation in users (Hung, 2015) Besides, Anki-related topics have only been discussed recently by Vietnamese researchers in a small number of studies (Nguyen, 2021; Duong & Nguyen, 2020), most of which aim at university students or older participants (Duong and Nguyen, 2020) For these reasons, there is still much to explore about Anki, especially when it is applied among other age groups such teenagers

1.3 Statement of Purpose:

The aim of this study is to determine how effective Anki is in improving learners’ vocabulary retention as well as their perception towards it A quasi-experiment followed by a semi-structured interview were chosen to measure to what extent Anki can enhance learners’ long-term and short-term memory, and their attitudes toward using the application in class

Teenager learners were selected for this study because they are believed to have many special characteristics which differentiate them from adult learners, not only in language learning, but also in using technological tools for learning (Richards & Burns, 2012), especially in the context of the classroom

1.4 Research Questions:

As a result, this study was conducted at Dong Do English Center with around 30 participants aged 12 to 14 years old in order to study the potential of the application The

students were learning in two different English classes three times per week They were at the beginning of the course for teens in this center This study is conducted to answer one

big question: How effective is Anki in improving teenager learners’ English vocabulary retention? This question, then, was divided into three sub-questions:

1.5 Scope of the Study:

This study limited itself in evaluating the impact of Anki on 32 teenager learners’ vocabulary retention in the classroom context, as well as their perceptions towards this application after two months of using it The main focus of this research was the short-term and long-term retention of the selected students reflected through the number of new words they could recall with and without treatment, right after the intervention and two months later Therefore, ensuring little to no previous exposure to the chosen wordlist was of utmost importance since knowing the words in advance could contaminate the results of their memorizing process

1.6 The study also focused on the ability to recall and remember the information on the designed flashcards Therefore, all the tests of the study were written to test one aspect in each side of the card. Contribution of the Study

The findings of this study are expected to contribute insights into the implementation of Anki flashcards in the English classroom context at Dong Do English Center and, probably, similar institution This study is also hopeful to be able to contribute and provide empirical evidence to support the effects of using Anki application in the process of teaching and learning vocabulary to teenagers

1.7 Overview of the Thesis Chapters

This study consists of 5 chapter: Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology, Result Finding and Discussion, Conclusion The introduction presents the background

information, purpose, scope, and research questions of the study The literature review chapter provides relevant literature to build a systematic theoretical framework and

explains the gap in the literature body that this study is trying to fill The methodology chapter explains where and how the study were conducted and how the data were

collected and coded The results and discussion chapter presents the results and discuss the findings in comparison to previous studies and the research questions Conclusion chapter provides summary of the findings and the recommendations as well as limitation

of this thesis

Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

This section outlines two theories explaining the effectiveness of Anki that is based on T.E and S.R in form of a digital flashcard Moreover, theories relating to vocabulary, vocabulary testing, vocabulary retention and learners’ perceptions of technology application are reviewed to build the framework for this study

2.1 Vocabulary

2.1.1 Definition of vocabulary

Vocabulary has long been acknowledged as the most important aspect of any language learning curriculum For instance, McCarthy (1990) deemed vocabulary “the single, biggest component” of all the language courses (p.8) The author further explained that, despite how much the learners have mastered their pronunciation and grammar, without a good range of vocabulary, “communication in an L2 just cannot happen in a meaningful way” (McCarthy, 1990, p 8)

The definition of “vocabulary” can vary depending on different perspectives Ur (1996) simply defined it as words that were taught in second or other languages A more complicating definition can be found in Schmitt’s (2000) as the smallest lexical item that contains a single meaning unit, regardless of the number of words

In terms of measuring the vocabulary repertoire, Nation & Meara (2013) suggested using different counting units, i.e., word types, word family, or lemma (words that stem from the same form, have different inflected forms and share the same part of speech.) Since this study pays attention to learners’ retention of a word in forms of both productive and

receptive questions, “lemma” is selected as the word counting unit For example, record, records, recording, recorded (all verbs) are all deemed one lemma; however, record (verb) and record (noun) are considered two lemmas

2.1.2 Aspect of Knowing a Word

What aspects of a word that learners need to know to be considered as knowing it also plays

a vital role in measuring learners’ vocabulary According to Webb (2013) there are two dimensions that should be taken into consideration, i.e., “Breadth of knowledge” – which refers to how many words whose meanings the learners can understand; and “Depth of knowledge” – which deals with to what extent the learner understands a word (Webb, 2013) Nation (1990) extended the concept by stating two important dimensions that students should master in a word: receptive way and productive way This means a word can be seen as learned not only when the user can recognize it but also when they can recall

to accurately use it Nation (2001) continued to add a deeper explanation by outlining three vital layers of vocabulary knowledge: word form (i.e.: pronunciation, spelling, and constituent parts); word meaning (meanings in different contexts) and word use (grammatical functions, collocation, and constraints on use)

Because the vocabulary teaching method chosen in this study depends c l o s e l y on the context in which the words are introduced, vocabulary measuring tests, albeit dealing with both productive and receptive knowledge, may not include all three layers of the words In other words, a word is considered learned in this study when students can recognize and recall at least one random aspect of it which have been taught and practiced in class, be it form, use, or meaning productively or receptively Taking “record” as an example, it can

be considered as learned if learners can answer correctly one question about it in the

Visuals technique includes using visual aids to teach vocabulary such as realia, available,

real objects that can be found in the classroom or brought in by the teacher (Doff, 1988); pictures; flashcards; blackboard drawings to teach concrete items, and specific parts of vocabulary such as places, people descriptions, activities and actions (Gairns and

Redman, 1986) Teacher’s body language and gestures are also counted as a visual way

to explain the concept of a word

Verbal techniques include using illustrative situation; synonyms and antonyms,

definitions, and examples

Illustrative situation: is especially helpful in introducing abstract items To

illustrate the meaning, teacher can use an oral or written example

For example: to explain the meaning of “I don’t mind”, teacher can use the following context “Do you want tea or coffee?” to elicit “Tea, please” or “Coffee, please” or “I don’t mind”

Giving synonyms and antonyms: in addition to the chosen vocabulary, teachers can incorporate their synonyms and antonyms which students may know already or are nearly the same to help students not only enlarge their vocabulary size but also review their previous vocabulary knowledge Thornbury (2002) claims that “antonyms have a useful defining function and are therefore a convenient teaching resource” (p.9)

Giving definition: to teach abstract words, giving definition is a quick and accurate way and it helps teachers to save time

Giving examples: when using this technique, teachers give as many examples as possible with the intended word and ask students until they can guess the right meaning

of the word

Translation method: students are given lists of meaning explanations and expected to

learn new lexical items in their first language Although translation does not encourage learners to think about word meaning (Cameron, 2001) or overreliance on translation may result in failure in L2 development (Thornbury, 2002), this technique is suitable for incidental vocabulary that learners come across in the lesson (Thornbury, 2002)

2.2.2 Reviewing Vocabulary

Spaced repetition

Starting from a psychological notion called “Spacing Effect”, S.R is considered "one of the most well-established findings in experimental psychology" (Pyc & Rawson, 2007, p.1917) Having stemmed from the experiment of Ebbinghaus, in which he tried to learn a list of made-up words in 1913, the ideas of spacing out review days came to life In this experiment, the Forgetting Curves, i.e., the learned information will gradually be forgotten and cannot be retrieved after a number of days, is discovered However, if reviews are carried out before such information is forgotten, then our memory can remember it longer and retrieve it more easily Therefore, in educational context, S.R is generally defined as the act of practicing the information that you want to store in long- term memory in regularly spaced intervals (Javorcik, 2021)

In a more detailed description, Nur (2017) acknowledged that using S.R in learning means learners can review the knowledge when it is on the brink of being forgotten, viz choosing the optimal time to review based on the life cycle of memory This way of review helps learners achieve the memorizing goals in lesser time and ensure adequate resting time of the newly learned knowledge (Nur, 2017)

The better question in relation to spacing schedules is whether the interval should be the same for both easy and difficult information Pyc & Rawson’s (2007) set out to answer that

inquiry A proposition of a dropout schedule, which terminates the review sessions of easy

information and uses those for more difficult ones, is more efficient, in both memory and

time, when compared to conventional schedule (Pyc & Rawson, 2007) In other words,

compared to a fixed schedule for every piece of knowledge, a flexible scheme based on the difficult levels of the information can yield better results

In short, the S.R has long been acknowledged as a promising technique to enhance learners’ retention while reducing efforts and time invested In order to get the best out of the S.R, the review session should occur right before the edge of forgotten and should be different based on the words’ difficulty

Testing Effects

Defined by Roediger and Butler (2011), the testing effects are the effects of retrieval practices on learner’s memory The two biggest benefits of using tests in review sessions are enhancing long-term retention and diagnosing whether that piece of knowledge needs any adjustment to be memorized (Storm et al., 2010) In other words, not only the test is used to help learners to assess their memory, but also to assess their way of learning

in order to adjust it (Cull, 2000)

The optimal scenario for the best use of testing effects is adding a restudy phase right after

a failed answer (Cull, 2000, Pyc & Rawson, 2007) This technique provides preventive maintenances and ensures corrective maintenances in the learning process (Cull, 2000) Giving learners with immediate feedback and a chance to relearn not only counteracts the forgetting process but also promotes their motivation to restudy (Cull, 2000; Karpicke and Roediger, 2007)

Having discussed the importance of S.R and T.E in achieve learners’ long-term retention ability, the question remained is which form of flashcards to be used in other to attain their fullest potential

2.3 Vocabulary Retention

2.3.1 Definition of Retention

Retention and memory are two largely overlapping subjects of educational psychology Although both terms are concerned with how information is stored in human brain, their biggest distinction is that retention requires appropriate prompts, which are usually found

in an educational context (Bennett & Rebello, 2012) In order to measure learners’ retention, the test should share the same features of the tasks in acquisition phase and should be after a specific retention interval (Prim, 1972)

2.3.2 Process of Vocabulary Retention

In an attempt to explain how information is remembered, Thornbury (2002) proposed a system of two boxes: short-term memory and long-term memory Short-term memory refers

to the ability to remember a piece of information for a short period of time (a few seconds); while the long-term memory, on the other hand, is where knowledge is stored for longer time (Thornbury, 2002)

The goal of learning is to transfer the newly learned information from short-term to term memory and make sure it can be readily retrieved To achieve this goal, Stevick (1996) emphasized the role of repetition in converting new knowledge This repetition should be both recognizing and reusing the target information (Stevick, 1996) Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) also pointed out that complicating exposure which includes images, gestures, sounds, etc when teaching and practicing the word can increase the chance of correct recall

long-in future occasions

To sum up, retention is the ability of retrieving a word from long-term memory in response

to an educational prompt after a retention interval (Bennett & Rebello, 2012) To ensure the successful conversion from short-term to long-term memory, repetition is a must In addition, a wide range of cues can aid the retrieving process

2.4 Paper and Digital Flashcards

In language learning contexts, flashcards are used widely in practicing structures, word orders, vocabulary learning, and drilling activities (Utami & Rahmawati, 2019) It can range from a simple self-made paper slip to a more technology-driven complex application Regardless of forms, a basic flashcard comprises of two important parts: a to-be-learned information on one side and an explanation or definition on the other side

Flashcards have become a perfect tool for providing immediate feedback, which, in turn,

provide the prerequisite of the perfect T.E Simultaneously, its ability to be created en mass

allows for better use of S.R These two features, T.E and S.R, are the requirements for achieving long-term memory (Monastyrska & Rekonvald, 2020)

2.4.1 Paper Flashcards

Being one of the first tools to put S.R in practice, paper flashcards have been used and become a popular tool in the language educational settings, particularly, in teaching and learning vocabulary (Haycraft, 1986) Easy to be created, used, and accessed, paper flashcards have been applied for students in various levels, not only in introducing the new words, but also in practicing memorizing such words, both in and outside of the classroom (Hussaini et al., 2016)

However, many serious disadvantages were encountered when applying paper flashcards for S.R system in classroom context Paper flashcards allow great room for customization and personalization, which caters to every learner’s needs and pace However, its best feature is its own demise Trying to apply such technique in a real classroom with many students seems to be impossible for the teacher to control and keep track (Nur, 2017) Moreover, although being cheap and simple to produce, making paper flashcards, still, is a tedious and time-consuming process as the sheer number of words accumulating over time would be insurmountable

2.4.2 Digital Flashcards

In the wake of growing modern technology, many websites and applications have been created to integrate the potential of S.R and T.E, in an attempt to enhance language learning effectiveness, with most of those S.R-T.E-based digital flashcards available now using the algorithm of either the Leitner’s box or the SuperMemo code (Tabibian et al., 2019; Bryson, 2012)

SuperMemo was the first S.R-T.E based algorithm that integrate the concept of E- factor, i.e the number that makes differentiating between items of different difficulty a possibility (SuperMemo.com, n.d.) Apart from this, SuperMemo comprises of many beneficial features for users, e.g manual customizations for all the settings to fit every learner's purpose, or the ability to be applied and monitored for big class-size of many users of different levels (Wozniak, 2007) Ultimately, as a prime representative of a SuperMemo-algorithm-based application, Anki was born to make the best use of all SuperMemo features

In conclusion, using digital flashcards built on the theories of S.R and TE is a promising solution for the research problems that are concerned with enhancing learners’ vocabulary retention Among many similar digital flashcards, Anki is chosen for this study mainly because of its compatibility, financial advantages and simplicity Further discussion and description of Anki can be found in the next section

2.4.3 Anki

Written based on the premise of SuperMemo, Anki inherits many good qualities of its father (Introduction - Anki Manual, 2021) As a digital flashcard application using a complex algorithm, not only can Anki learn and adjust itself to learners' learning speed, but

it also aids in improving the learners’ memorization process via multimedia card options

By asking learners to judge their own performance on the scale of “Again-Hard- Easy”, Anki forces learners to assess their memory, thus, giving learners the sense of control, which promotes self-learning motivation

Good-In addition, Anki possesses its own signature feature, making it even superior to the original ideas, from which it originates First and foremost, being an open-source design, Anki lets developers to freely contribute their add-ons, i.e extend-application, only for Anki These special features push the degree of customization even higher Furthermore, Anki’s wide range of versions make it compatible with most computer- based, web-based,

and mobile-based operational system, namely LINUX, macOS, Windows, Android, iOS, etc Last but not least, while the S.R-T.E function on other applications is usually part of the paid service, on Anki, this function is free on most of the mentioned platforms (Introduction - Anki Manual, 2021) With all these advantages in mind, Anki has undoubtedly become one of the most downloaded flashcard applications on both Google Play and Appstore

Despite its various advantages, there are, still, some shortcomings in this application Since

it is an open source with intricate algorithm, using Anki could be a daunting task for first time users (Nguyen, 2021) Another problem lies in its simple design which focuses on the S.R-T.E feature instead of the appearance and practice modes (Altiner, 2011) This could be deemed as boring and demotivating, especially to learners who are unaware of Anki's potential (Hung, 2015) The lack of the reminding feature is another problem of such a design Without warning or reminding, accumulating words each time the learners miss the practice could be uncountable (Nguyen, 2021) In order to ensure good use of the application, Nguyen (2021) suggested initial help from teacher for the first period of using Anki, in order to explain, train and monitor learners' uses In doing so, it will make sure that they are using Anki at the right time, in the right way and can feel first-hand the potential

of the application (Hung, 2015, Nguyen, 2021)

2.5 Learners’ Perception of Technology Application

While it can be easy to measure the learners’ retention, analyzing users’ perceptions and attitudes can be more challenging The Technology Acceptance Model (T.A.M.), firstly introduced by Davis et al (1989) then adapted by Duong and Nguyen (2020), is selected

to analyze learners’ opinion in this study

In the original model, Davis et al (1989) proposed two important factors that determine whether learners may want to continue using the technological aids after the trial period

are Perceived Ease of Use and Perceived Usefulness While Perceived Ease of Use focuses

on how user- friendly the technology is, Perceived Usefulness deals with whether learners find it useful

With the rapid growth of modern technology, the numbers of new technology serving the same purposes have been growing fast, enjoyment of the applications is added as another important factor that drives learners’ perceptions (Duong & Nguyen, 2020) Therefore, the

three new factors include: usefulness, usability and enjoyment (Duong and Nguyen, 2020) Usefulness relates to the extent that learners think how the application can help them improve their test scores Usability is about whether learners find Anki easy to use or difficult And Enjoyment is how learners enjoy using the application

2.6 Previous Research

Understanding the great potential of Anki in an actual educational context, many studies, which set out to test its applicability in the last decades, focus mainly on two aspects of Anki – its effectiveness in improving learners’ test scores and the learners’ perceptions after using Anki (Bailey and Davey, 2011; Altiner, 2011; Hanson and Brown, 2019; Duong and Nguyen, 2020) For the empirical results on learners’ scores, between the treatment and non-treatment groups, all of the studies agreed that this application did enhance the learners’ long-term retention ability, which, consequently, improved the learners’ performances in the tests (Hanson and Brown, 2019) As for the learners’ perception after using Anki, studies reported that Anki was viewed as “boring, not interesting, and demotivating, even though its usefulness was acknowledged (Altiner, 2011) Moreover, while some believed the application was simple and straightforward, others thought it was too complicated with many hidden functions (Bailey and Davey, 2011; Altiner, 2011) An explanation of “differences in motivation” was proposed by Hanson and Brown (2020) to explain the differences in attitudes among Anki users

In the context of Vietnam, Duong and Nguyen’s (2020) study was the first to scrutinize the effectiveness of Anki on learners’ performances, both in terms of retention ability and their

perceptions With a similar design to the previous studies, this article compared learners’ retention rate before and after the treatment period in a quasi- experiment at a Vietnamese university Results from previous studies echoed throughout Duong and Nguyen’s study, as the Anki-using group showed superior performances over the control group With regards

to the opinions of the learners, the authors used three parameters, i.e., enjoyment, usefulness, and usability, to report their findings As with the previous studies, Anki was reported to be beneficial and useful for the learners, albeit with boring learning modes and non-user-friendly settings (Duong and Nguyen, 2020)

Since applying S.R-T.E application, Anki in particular, is relatively new in MALL context, more research is needed to broaden our understanding (Hung, 2015; Nguyen, 2021) Looking back to these papers, one of their biggest common things is the subject of the studies They all focus on young adults, university students in particular (Bailey and Davey, 2011; Altiner, 2011; Hanson and Brown, 2019; Duong and Nguyen, 2020) New studies focusing on any other subjects are undeniably necessary (Nguyen, 2021) The second important similarity of these studies is the lack of the Anki using description The mentioned article failed to address how they applied the app and to what extent the learners understood its usage The algorithm of SP and TE applications is usually intricate One tiny change in its setting can lead to a completely different learning schedule (Introduction - Anki Manual, 2021) As noted by Nguyen (2021), it is of utmost importance to have initial help from experienced users to assure an effective usage Lacking detailed description of how it was applied, monitored and controlled makes it a weak case as to why it was boring and demotivating The last important gap in the literature is room for more empirical studies related to this topic in the Vietnamese context due to the limited numbers of previous articles (Duong and Nguyen, 2020) More studies conducted in Vietnam with other subjects can enrich the body of literature of applying these types of applications, providing more evidence to consider their potentialon a larger scale Having reviewed the related literature, one could realize the significance of a study which researches into applying Anki in,

namely, teenager learners

Therefore, this study sets out to solve the main research question: Is Anki improving teenager learners’ English vocabulary retention?

This question is, then, further divided into three sub-questions

- Is Anki more effective than the teacher's current practicing method in term vocabulary retention?

short Is Anki more effective than the teacher’s current practicing method in long-term vocabulary retention?

- What are the learners’ perceptions of Anki in terms of usefulness, usability and

enjoyment?

2.7 Chapter Summary

This chapter explained the relevant literature and how the theories were used to justify the choices of this application as well as how its effectiveness will be tested The graph below demonstrates the relationships of all the theories in this section and how they

define this study S.R and T.E theories serve as the justification of why Anki can

theoretically improve learners’ retention Vocabulary and Vocabulary Retention theories

as well as the Technology Acceptance Model (Davis et al., 1989; adapted by Duong and Nguyen, 2020) outline the theoretical framework on which this study is based and designed

in order to answer the three research questions

Graph 2.1 Theoretical framework of this study

Mixed-methods design is the research method that uses the combination of qualitative and quantitative design to solve a research problem (Creswell & Plano Clark, 2011, as cited in Creswell, 2011) This design is recommended when there is more than one research project

to be conducted because this method has advantages over other methods (Martha et al., 2007)

By combining suitable methods, the researcher can address and evaluate the complex, multi-faceted problems in a research setting (Martha et al., 2007; Cronbach & Meehl, 1955)

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of Anki application in two aspects: learners’ vocabulary retention scores and their perceptions Therefore, the mixed-methods design was chosen not only to triangulate but also to use the results of each method to complement the final results Data of the experiment, whether significant or not, was not enough to conclude the effectiveness of the application; learners’ opinions and attitudes gained from the focus group interview also played an equally important role in deciding if the application is useful By doing so, the researcher believes that, the results of the study, then, could answer the complex, multidimensional research problem

In order to answer the first two questions related to the learners’ retention test scores, the researcher used the quasi-experimental design with pretest-intervention-posttest and delayed posttest design in two non-equivalent groups Due to having limited control over the general composition of the students in the classes, the researcher decided to choose a quasi-experiment This type of experimental design, despite also concerned with the causal

relationship among variables like a true experiment, does not rely on random participant assignment (Creswell, 2011) Therefore, it is used when randomized sampling is logistically or ethnically impossible In this study’s actual setting, the teacher/ researcher could not choose their classes, therefore, quasi-experimental design was selected

The interview in this study was applied to find the qualitative results of the perceptions of learners The face-to-face semi-structured interview was chosen to collect as much verbal and non-verbalresponses as well as to create and administrate comfortable environment for the young learners (Kakilla, 2021) The interviewees were joining the interview in three groups of two to prevent misunderstanding or shyness interfering the results Students for this interview were selected based on their scores in the delayed posttest: two of the highest, two of the average and two of the lowest scores

The graph below depicts the research questions and the designs used in this research to yield the answers:

Graph 3.1 Research questions and Research designs

3.1.2 Research site and Participants

Dong Do English center is a relatively new English center in the rural area of Ho Chi Minh city There are five campuses in Binh Tan district with roughly 1000 students from

number of learners and teachers

This English center’s curriculum for teenagers, which is called Young Leaders, is designed

based on the “More!” book of Cambridge along with their own digital teaching aids Students joining this program are mainly from 12 to 17 years old Most of them have

finished the center’s young learners’ program Superkids before this course, which means

they have learned in this school for more than a year

A teenage course of the school is divided into 4 smaller courses corresponding to the four More! Coursebook selected The main objectives of these courses are to prepare learners with the language knowledge for the Cambridge English Exams, i.e., KET, PET, etc

After a long time working with the language center, the researcher notices that placement tests are quite effective, and the learners are also reasonably screened and re-placed on the basis of their end-of-course test scores The average number of students in each class is fifteen but there are usually more than 4 classes of the same level at the same time for teenagers Their courses normally last for 20 to 24 weeks depending on the level of the class Teenagers 1 classes, which were selected for this study, lasts for 20 weeks, including

a mid-term test and a final test Before each test day, the teacher is required to have a review session in which she needs to review and summarize some most important points of the course to prepare the learners for the test

Having learned with the researcher for around 2 months, the chosen 12-to-14- year-old participants are in Teenager 1 Course They had good rapport with the researcher and were comfortable with the researcher’s teaching style The students selected in this study had past the English Center’s final test with, at least, fair grade Although having gained good grades in the test, they still could not communicate comfortably in English and strongly rely on L1 The teacher also needed to use much L1 in class to check students’ understanding or explaining abstract concepts

It was 32 students divided into two classes, with most of them having Android phones However, they had never used the app before The class with more phones was chosen to

be the experimental group The students with no phones could either use Android tablets,

computers, Anki website version, or teacher’s phone instead

The participants were asked to strictly follow 3 important points:

- Only use Anki in class under the teacher’s supervision

- Always choose either Hard or Good options for known cards

- Always be honest with their choices

These three criteria could be controlled by the teacher as she could access every student’s Anki account Moreover, learners were asked to use it at the beginning of the class, and Anki setting only allowed a limit number of cards per day

3.1.3 Materials

Anki card designs

The Anki version 2021 was available at the time of the experiement, however, it was not equally accessible in every Android device As a result, this study utilized the Anki 2020

in form of Anki web, AnkiDroid and Anki for computer This version of Anki makes no big differences from the newly released one, except for some bug-fixing and software policy updates Anki 2020 is described as a promising memory-practice tool which schedules learning sessions right before we forget the information It is developed for wide range of platforms with rich forms of media and great numbers of add-ons in their already flourishing library Users can synchronize their data, adjust their review timing or the card layout, and many other actions anywhere across their devices

Anki for computer were used by the teacher to create, distribute and control Anki cards, while Anki web was used to share the cards and AnkiDroid or Anki on computer is used to practice Learners using iOS devices used the web version to practice

The card types As stated by Anki’s Manual (Introduction - Anki Manual, 2021), there are

3 basic card types in any Anki version: basic; basic and reverse, and cloze The Basic card

design allows user to create a card with the information to learn on one side and its description

on the other When using this design for vocabulary learning purpose, user can choose to learn the meaning or the form of the word based on which information is set to be on the front card This card setting is good for specific learning purposes, such as receptive learning or

pronunciation practicing Similar to the Basic design, the Basic and Reverse design also aims

at creating simple flashcards with the word on one side and the definitions, translations, or media on the other However, in this design, the card creator doesn’t need to worry about

which information to put on the front The application will automatically generate two cards with both sides This setting is ideal to learn new words when learners want to practice it both receptively (memorizing the meaning) and productively (recall its use based on the context)

Cloze card setting takes the form of gap-filling exercise Therefore, this design gives user

chances to focus on the spelling of the vocabulary For the purpose of this study, basic and reverse card types were chosen

The card content In every card type, Anki provides a series of functions so that users can

customize their notes Available functions that can be used for language learning include: adding sounds, videos, images, or recording sounds As recommended by previous research (Schuetze and Weimer-Stuckmann, 2010; Schuetze, 2014; Duong & Nguyen, 2020), the card created for each word needs to include: definition, example, audio, and picture in other

to meet different learners’ learning styles and to enhance enjoyment

After considering learners’ age and English proficiency, the researcher decided to use simple English description to ensure learners’ understanding Examples included in the cards if needed, despite not being tested, served as extra context to aid learners’ understanding The cards were only given to the learners after they have learned and practiced the words in class and teachers needed to ensure not many words were given after each lesson

In summary, each word had 2 cards in Anki Card 1 included the spelling of the word and its audio on one side, meaning and picture on the other Card 2 was the reversed version of card 1

The pictures below show the card design of the word “driver” on AnkiDroid:

Card 1:

Card 2:

Picture 3.1 Anki’s suggested card designs

Anki Algorithm and Word Selection

Since one of the aims of this study was to test Anki’s effectiveness, understanding Anki’s algorithm is valuable, especially for understanding what Anki can do in different

conditions A test or experiment design that cannot provide good condition to reflect what Anki can do can be biased, and therefore, unreliable Because of that, a chart was designed

to illustrate Anki’s algorithm and therefore, explained carefully each decision made during the experiment The detailed research schedule based on Anki algorithm is attached in the Appendix

Anki is an open-source based on testing effects and, more importantly, expanding interval system Anki tests learners by showing one side of the card, answering on the other side and asking them to judge their performance in 4 options: Again (10 minutes); Hard; Good; and Easy Each option has its own different interval Again (10 minutes) option will not be discussed in the algorithm since choosing this option means learners need to learn that word from the beginning like a brand-new word When choosing the other three, the algorithm

of the app is activated and the length of interval will increase after each time

Picture 3.2 The four options of AnkiDroid

The chart was designed based on four important assumptions: (1) Learners learn 10 new flashcards in each class; (2) Learners only use Anki in class under teacher supervision; (3) Learners always choose the “Hard” option; and (4) The interval considered to be long-term

is 2 weeks since the last encounter

(1) Learners learn 10 new flashcards in each class The maximum new cards learners are suggested to learn based on Anki’s algorithm is 20 However, introducing 20 new flashcards for each class can lead to the fact that it can be very time-consuming for the long review session Due to the need of the lesson in practical class, the number of cards distributed could be different but wasn’t less than 10

(2) Learners only use Anki in class under teacher supervision This assumption was chosen