Khóa luận tốt nghiệp: Examining difficulties strategies for improving legal English vocabulary of legal English major students at Hanoi Law University

MINISTRY OF JUSTICE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAININGHANOI LAW UNIVERSITY NGUYEN THI KIM DUNG 453255 EXAMINING DIFFICULTIES STRATEGIES FOR IMPROVING LEGAL ENGLISH VOCABULARY OF LEGAL EN

MINISTRY OF JUSTICE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HANOI LAW UNIVERSITY

NGUYEN THI KIM DUNG

453255

EXAMINING DIFFICULTIES STRATEGIES FOR

IMPROVING LEGAL ENGLISH VOCABULARY OF LEGAL ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT HANOI

LAW UNIVERSITY

GRADUATION THESIS

Hanoi — 2023

MINISTRY OF JUSTICE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HANOI LAW UNIVERSITY

NGUYEN THI KIM DUNG

453255

EXAMINING DIFFICULTIES STRATEGIES FOR

IMPROVING LEGAL ENGLISH VOCABULARY OF LEGAL ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT HANOI

LAW UNIVERSITY

KHẢO SÁT NHUNG KHO KHAN VA CHIEN LƯỢC CẢI THIEN TU VUNG TIENG ANH PHAP LY CUA SINH VIEN CHUYEN NGÀNH TIENG ANH PHAP LY TẠI TRUONG

ĐẠI HỌC LUAT HA NOI

Major: Legal English

GRADUATION THESIS

Supervisor

Vu Van Tuan, Ph.D.

Hanoi — 2023

STUDENT DECLARATION

Thereby state that I: Nguyen Thì Kim Dung — ID 453255, being a candidate for

the degree of Bachelor of Arts accept the reqrarements of the University relating

to the retention and use of Bachelor ’s Graduation Paper deposited in the library

In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in thelibrary should be accessible for the purposes of study and research in accordancewith the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan orreproduction of the paper

Hanoi, December 26", 2023

Supervisor’s confirmation Researcher's signature

ACKNOWLEDGMENTDuring the process of doing this graduation thesis, I have received much

necessary assistance, valuable opinions, and encouragement from teachers, family,

and friends This thesis might not have been come up to my expectations withoutthe encouragement and support of those who deserve my sincere gratitude andappreciation

First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor

-Dr Vu Van Tuan, for his valuable guidance on my graduation thesis, patience,enthusiasm, and immense knowledge He is always enthusiastic and dedicated toguiding me in all the stages of completing the thesis

Secondly, I would love to send my sincere thanks to all the staff and

lecturers of the Faculty of Legal Foreign Languages at Hanoi Law University,

where I have had the honor of studying for the past four years and provided with

valuable language knowledge for this research process

I would also like to thank the members of the thesis defence committee forspending their valuable time and extensive professional knowledge to offerconstructive comments and suggestions for the thesis Their favourable remarkshave been integrated in the bookbinding of this thesis

I would also like to sincerely thank the students K45 and K46 for theirenthusiastic participation in the research Their kind-hearted contribution played

an essential part in the completion of this study

Last but not least, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my bigfamily and friends, who supply me with emotional support, encouragement, greattolerance and unconditional love not only in the success of this research, but alsoall walks of life

In the context of a global economy and integration, the need for legalpractitioners who can participate in consulting, negotiating and drafting legaldocuments is increasing Many law institutions have begun to focus on providingknowledge of legal English to train human resources to serve this demand Inlearning legal English, one of the utmost issues to pay attention to is vocabularybecause it has many unique features that are different from other types of ESP.This study investigates the difficulties that legal English major students encounter

in the process of acquiring vocabulary as well as proposes some strategies to helpstudents improve their legal English vocabulary knowledge The research was

conducted on 166 legal English students who were in courses 45 and 46 at Hanoi

Law University, using mixed methods The findings indicate that the prominent

difficulties faced by students are the use of Archaic and foreigwborrowed words,

the use of reciprocal words, the use of synonymy in legal terminology, and the

non-equivalence in Vietnamese legal terminology The results on vocabulary

learning strategies show that social strateges were used with the highest

frequency, while memory strategies were used the least frequently Through the

results, some implications and recommendations about ESP vocabulary learningstrategies are suggested for references More specifically, these findings wouldbenefit the school administrators to consult for the promulgation of the renovativelegal English policies, teachers who are directlyin charge of teachinglegal Englishsubjects, students who are major in this legal field, and those who are interested inimproving legal vocabulary

1 Rationale for study

2 Aims and Objectives of the Study

2.1 Aims of the study

2.2 Objectives of the study

3 Research Questions

4 Scope of the Study

5 Significance of the Study

6 Methodology

7 Structure of the Study

PART II DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 1 LITERATURE REVIEW

1.1 The overview of vocabulary

111 Definition

1.1.2 Types of vocabulary

1.1.3 The aspects of vocabulary

1.2 The overview of legal English

1.2.1 Legal English vocabulary and its characteristic

1.2.2 The importance of legal English vocabulary

1.3 The overview of vocabulary learning strategies

1.3.1 Vocabulary learning strategy

1.3.2 Clarifying Schmitt's vocabulary learning strategies

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1.3.3 The importance of vocabulary learning strategies

1.4 Previous studies on difficulties and strategies in learning legal

CHAPTER 3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

3.1 Demographic information of the respondents

3.2 The analysis of the difficulties in learning legal English

vocabulary

3.3 The analysis of the students’ vocabulary learning strategies for

learning legal English

3.3.6 Vocabulary learning strategies most employed by legal

English major students

3.4 The summative analysis of students’ semi-structured interviews

guide on legal English vocabulary learning strategies

4.1 Summary of the main findings

41.1 Learners’ difficulties in learning legal English

41.2 Legal English major students‘ vocabulary learring strategies

Appendix B THE SEMI-STRUCTURED INTERVIEW GUIDE ON

LEGAL ENGLISH VOCABULARY LEARNING STRATEGIES

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LIST OF TABLES

PageTable 1 Profiles of the respondents involving in the study 28

Table 2 Learners’ difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary 31

Table 3 The descriptive statistics of VLS used by participants 32Table 4 The analysis of determination strategies 34

Table 5 The analysts of social strategies 36

Table 6 The analysis of memory strategies 39Table 7 The analysis of cognitive strategies 41

Table 8 The analysis of metacognitive strategies 43

Table 9 The ten most frequent VLS 46

Table 10 Stonmarized analysis of shidents* semi-structured interviews ` 4T

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

coG : Cognitive strategies

DET : Determination strategies

EFL English as a Foreign Language

ELP : English for Legal Purposes

ESL : English as a Second L anguage

ESP : English for Specific Purposes

HLU : Hanoi Law University

L1 : Mother Language/Mother TongueL2 : Second Language

LE : Legal English

MEM : Memory strategies

MET : Metacognitive strategies

soc : Social strategies

ULAW : Ho Chi Minh City University of Law

VLS : Vocabulary learning strategies

PART I.INTRODUCTIONThis part provides the context of the research by explaining the rationale,

aims of the study, research questions, significance, and scope of the study, along

with the structure of the paper

1 Rationale for study

In the process of teaching and learning a foreign language, the development

of a student’s vocabulary is seen as being of utmost importance (Susanto, 2017)

According to Algahtam (2015), developing a strong vocabulary is crucial for

effectively using a second language (L2) and is crucial for producing coherent

spoken and written forms Learning vocabulary is essential for improving all

language abilities, including hearing speaking reading, and writing in English as

a Second Language (ESL) and English as a Foreign L anguage (EFL) As reported

by Vafaee and Suzuki (2020), vocabulary knowledge considerably influences

students’ listening ability To be more specific, when conducting research, they

obtained results that vocabulary knowledge was tice as influential as syntactic

knowledge in L2 listening ability In other words, apart from syntactic knowledge,

vocabulary knowledge plays a central role in helping learners succeed in listening

comprehension (Bloomfield et al., 2010) Regarding speaking ability, Dalimunthe

and Haryadi (2022) assert that students’ lexical mastery directly impacts speaking

skills It means that the speaking skills of a student with a nich or insufficient

vocabulary are different Students’ vocabulary includes active and passivevocabulary, while active vocabulary is used frequently in speaking For L2learners, active vocabulary is usually less than passive vocabulary, so L2 learners

are often in need of being given assistance in expressing speaking ability in case

of lacking active vocabulary Regardingreading skills, many studies (e.g, Manyak

& Bauer, 2009, Martin-Chang & Gould, 2008; Ricketts et al., 2007) indicate thatvocabulary knowledge facilitates students to develop better readingcomprehension Vocabulary knowledge directly impacts on readingcomprehension skills and is considered as the foundational knowledge of reading

comprehension (Martin-Chang & Gould, 2008) Poor vocabulary command and

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lack of knowledge about the lexical meanings make it impossible for readers tocomprehend thoroughly what a text is about A deep understanding of vocabularywill help improve reading comprehension results Martin-C hang and G ould (2008)affirm that vocabulary is an indispensable part of reading comprehension, assisting

learners in decoding and profoundly grasping the text Murphy and Unthieh (2015)

posit that a lack of vocabulary knowledge affects the success of learners’ reading

comprehension skills Vocabulary is central to reading, learners will have

difficulty understanding text if they lack frequently used vocabulary (Coxhead et

al, 2010) Besides speaking skills, writing is also a visual form of expressinglanguage Vocabulary knowledge impacts learners’ writing ability and quality(e.g, Milton, 2013; Park, 2012, Stehr, 2008) In writing, learners must use precisevocabulary to express ideas or opinions and follow an appropriate structure Inaccordance with Fareed et al (2016), learners are influenced by many factors indeveloping writing skills, especially grammar, syntax, and vocabulary Researchconducted by Anistasya (2022) once again confirms which vocabulary is the factorthat causes the most difficulty and affects learners’ writing ability Itis obvious torecognize the vital role of vocabulary in language learning, along with phonetics,and grammar, those are factors promoting the ability to improve four basic

language skills —listening speaking reading, and writing —in general and English

in particular

In the field of language education, especially English for Specific Purposes

(ESP), Northcott (2009) postulates that legal English is considered to greatlydifferent from other ESP fields Notably, he asserts that no other academic subject

requires as thorough acquisition of language and thinking as legal English Legal

English is only used in some English native-speaking countries such as England,America, Canada, and in other countries English is used as a second languagelike India, Philippines, or Singapore However, even students (in England) are notequipped with the amount of knowledge and vocabulary for studying law becauseitis different in all aspects from studying other subjects (Strong 2018)

1 The system of legal terminology differs in each country’s legal system;for example, laws belonging to Common Law traditions have distinctcharacteristics from Civil Law traditions;

2 Discourses in legal seminars and legal documents are needed to explainand teach the vocabulary used in specialized legal documents by people withintensive expertise in the legal field,

3 Legal English also borrows from general English a large number ofvocabulary words with unfamiliar meanings, causing difficulties in teaching andlearning, such as action, which has the meaning of litigation and proceedings;

4 The use of Archaic and foreign words/Maxims borrowing from Frenchand Latin originis commonin legal writing, making them a feature of legal Englishvocabulary

Moreover, prepositional phrases, phrasal verbs in a quasi-technical sense,and synonyms are also important features to pay attention to when teaching andlearning legal English

Legal English is known as legalese the English language used by lawyers,judges, and in legal documents that is difficult for ordinary people to understand(Mellinkoff, 2004) In the era of globalisation, legal Englishis an area emphasising

the important necessity when Vietnam participates in global economic integration

There are many studies in the field of teaching and learning concerning the deep

insight into legal English Shkurat and Gartsunova (2021) research the legal

English difficulties and ways to overcome the obstacles They conclude that thepoor lexical ability can cause many difficulties in comprehending legal documents.Breeze (2015) researches vocabulary teaching in legal documents, particularly acorpus-driven approach, and confirms that vocabulary used in legal documents isgrammatically complex and contains many archaic words Vocabulary could bemore technical, causing difficulties for the laymen In Vietnam, research on thechallenges of learning legal English is still quite new There have been a number

of studies on the challenges faced by students majoring in legal English such asthe study done by Nhac (2022) She points out the common difficultiesencountered by legal English major students and a study on difficulties in legal

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English reading comprehension of English-majored at Hanoi Law University(ALU) Besides, she does another research on challenges in learning legal Englishfrom students’ perspectives at HLU (Nhac, 2021) These studies indicate that theobstacles that students confront are differences in the characteristics of legal

English and a lack of knowledge about legal systems, Most difficulties are

possibly due to insufficient vocabulary in specialized English with many differentfeatures, such as the difference in meaning of vocabulary between specialized

English and general English, Nevertheless, it is hard to find research addressing

the difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary

Recognizing the difficulty when learning ESP, especially the importance ofmastering legal English vocabulary, the researcher decided to conduct this studywith K45 and K46 legal English major students at Faculty of Legal ForeignLanguages at the HLU The study aims to help students understand the difficultywhen learning legal English, and propose vocabulary learning strategies so thatstudents can prepare appropriate fundamental knowledge and a rational orientationfor learning legal English Furthermore, this study can contribute to improving thefield of English vocabulary teaching and learning especially the enhancement ofstudents’ legal English vocabulary

2 Aims and objectives of the study

2.1 Aims of the stndy

The study examining the difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary

and proposed strategies to improve learning legal English vocabulary is carried out

with the following aims:

- To discover the difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary of legalEnglish major students at Hanoi Law University

- To propose strategies for improving legal English vocabulary, particularly

in increasing legal English major students’ vocabulary at Hanoi Law University

2.2 Objectives of the stndy

- To conduct a survey using questionnaires and semi-structured interviews

to determine the difficulties and strategies in learning legal English vocabulary for

most English major students

- To analyse primary data to compare which difficulties impact on students’learning of legal English vocabulary, thereby proposing effective vocabularylearning strategies for legal English major students

3 Research questions

Overall, the study sought to identify the challenges faced by legal English

major students at Hanoi Law University when studying legal English in order toprovide a foundation for suggesting some efficient leaming strategies for legalEnglish vocabulary

Specifically, it sought to answer the following questions:

1 What are the difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary that legal

English major students at Hanoi Law University face?

2 What are the strategies for legal English students to use to improve intheir legal English vocabulary?

4 Scope of the study

The study surveyed 166 legal English students at K45 and K46 to find out

the difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary and propose some strategies

to improve the legal English vocabulary of legal English major students

5 Significance of the study

The findings would provide some implications and useful references forlanguage teachers, researchers, students, and anyone interested in legal English

language learning and teaching to increase the effectiveness of acquiring legal

English vocabulary The research outcomes would be served as resourceful

reference for school administrators to modify their curricula to fit the needs of the

existing legal English issues with school leavers to come up with the high demand

of current working requirements

6 Methodology

To investigate the difficulties faced by legal English students in learninglegal English vocabulary, the study used a mixed-methods approach Theresearcher created a questionnaire to elicit information about respondents’attitudes toward challenges they might face while learning legal Englishvocabulary, and semi-structured interviews to survey the vocabulary learningstrategies that students use, to be able to suggest effective strategies for learninglegal English vocabulary These methods were used to exploit the data In order to

draw responsible conclusions and present some suggestions for more successful

legal English teaching and learning particularly learning legal English vocabulary,the data would be properly collected and analysed

7 Structure of the study

The study includes 3 Parts mainly orgamze as follows:

The first part, Introduction, consists of research’s rationale, aims, research

questions, scope, methodology, and the importance of the study are put forward

The second part, Development, is subdivided into the following categories:

Chapter 1 Literature Review specifies the theoretical background, as well

as related research concerning difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary andproposed strategies for improving legal English vocabulary of legal English major

students at HLU

Chapter 2 Methodology provides details of the data collection instruments,

data collection procedures, and data analysis procedures — conducted at HLU

Chapter 3 Results and Discussion illustrate the detailed results of the

survey, specifically analysing students’ difficulties when leaming legal English

vocabulary and examining some strategies to improve legal English major

students’ learning of legal English vocabulary at HLU

The last part, Conclusion, summarizes the study’s result and identifieslimitations to the research

PART II DEVELOPMENTCHAPTER 1 LITERATURE REVIEWThis chapter reviews the theory related to the area of difficulties in learninglegal English vocabulary and provides vocabulary leaming strategies sharedworldwide The knowledge accumulated would be used to formulate thetheoretical framework for the research

1.1 The overview of vocabulary

11.1 Definition

Vocabulary is an inseparable part when learning a new language, it is

essential for both teaching and studying a foreign language It means that when

people learn a new language, it is very important for them to understand thevocabulary of its language V ocabulary is, thus, defined in many different ways

According to the Cambridge Dictionary definition), the term “vocabulary”

refers to all the words in a specific language or being used by a particular person

Vocabulary as defined by Oxford Dictionary” is what an individual knows or

frequently uses or the vocabulary range of a specific author, group, book,

Ur 2012) asserts that vocabulary can be defined as the words we are taught

when learning a foreign language Furthermore, she also asserts that vocabulary is

not just a single word, for example, we have the words ‘post office” and

"mother-in-law,” which are made up of many different items, with "post office’ being two

items and “mother-in-law” being three items, but it still only expresses one

meaning As a result, we must follow the convention in a way these vocabulary

terms are generated using items rather than words

The words we need to know to communicate successfully are our

vocabulary (Neuman & Dwyer, 2009) In other terms, vocabulary is the totalmumber of words which compose a language and their meanings in a particularlanguage, vocabulary plays an essential role in the communication process In theopinion of Richards and Schmidt (2013), the lowest meaning- carrying unit in the

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linguistic system is called a vocabulary, and it is distinguished from otherequivalent units A vocabulary is an abstract unit appearing in many differentforms in spoken and written language; all its variations are considered one word —derivative.

Vocabulary is the most essential component of language proficiency, it

provides people with basic information about how language learners listen, speak,read, and write With a deep command of vocabulary, learners will achieve

language coraprehenson and proficiency in language use Hence, it can be

understood that learners need an in-depth understanding of vocabulary to achievethe desired results when taking up a language Actually, the purpose of vocabulary

is to serve the process of communicating and acquiring knowledge from manydifferent sources around the world

Vocabulary is at the center of second language (L2) acquisition with thefunction of expressing lexical meanings More specifically, communication in L2can fully take place only if making a meaningful conversation In simple words,vocabulary contains many different elements of knowledge, which require learnerstouse different aspects of vocabulary such as word meaning, the forms of spokenand written language, grammar of words, collocations, phrases of words, wordcombinations, and frequency of use of words Therefore, lexical enrichment/is aprocess that takes time for students to accumulate, learn through derivations and

utilize lexical items in the appropriate context because it is the key to students’

grasp of what learners hear, read, write, and how learners interact with others(Sukrina, 2013)

Inferring from such claims, it is briefly commented that vocabulary is a

collection of the fundamental language components which has a form orexpression through other aspects such as the meaning of words, the use of words,and the form of wards

a Productive vocabulary

Productive vocabulary is a list of vocabulary a person can use in speakingand writing That is, they are words that with high frequency and popularity of

usage.

b Receptive or recognition vocabulary

Receptive or recognition vocabulary is a list of words that individuals can

understand when listening and reading, however, these words are less commonly

used When encountering these vocabulary words, individuals can understand andrecognize only some aspects of the meanings of the words

Another way of classifying vocabulary is from Harmer (2007), whoclassifies vocabulary into two types as follows:

a Active vocabulary

Active vocabulary is thought to be frequently used in speech and writing

In simple terms, learners prioritize active vocabulary to produce sentences andcommunicate with others by that vocabulary

b Passive vocabulary

Passive vocabulary includes the words stored in verbal memory thatstudents can understand in a text or in speech, and these are words that learners

use less often in speaking and writing forms

Normally, passive vocabulary is a more massive quantity than active

vocabulary in any language, even in English native speakers

1.1.3 The aspects of vocabulary

There are several aspects related to vocabulary that we must pay attention

to when teaching and learning vocabulary As clamed by Grain and Redman(1986), they believe that it is necessary to concentrate on the following aspects:boundaries between conceptual meaning polysemy, homonymy, synonymy,affective meaning differentiating between the attitudinal and emotional aspects(denotation and connotation), style, register, dialect, translation, grammar ofvocabulary and pronunciation Ur (2012) asserts that some components needteaching and learning carefully are form (pronunciation and spelling), grammar,

collocation, aspect of meaning (denotation, connotation, appropriateness), aspect

of meaning (meaning relationship), and word formation

Nation (1990) developed a theoretical framework for vocabularyknowledge In particular, Nation recognizes the necessity to determine vocabulary

enrichment from many aspects: receptive and productive vocabulary knowledge

It means that when teaching vocabulary, we need to pay attention to form

(pronunciation and spelling), meaning of words (structure or meaning of words,

ideas and preferences, combination of words), and usage (syntax, collocation,

constraints in use).

As stated in Vu (2022), there are three crucial aspects that teachers shouldfocus on when teaching vocabulary, ¡.e the form of words, the meaning of words,and word usage Among them, the word structure is expressed through thecombination of form (pronunciation and spelling of the word) and any partsappended to a root word (prefixes and suffixes), the meaning of the word iscontained in the form of a word, usage (grammar function of word, phrases, andphrases accompanying the root word) Understanding three aspects helps not onlyteachers improve pedagogical practices but also students quickly pick up andimprove their vocabulary

In this case, the researcher merely concentrates on discussing aspectsdirectly related to the scope of research mentioned previously

a Form of vocabulary

1) Spoken and written form

In spoken and written language, learners are expected to take into account

of what the word sounds and how it is pronounced, That means it concentrates onstudents’ ability to recognize and reproduce vocabulary in speech Learners mustknow the sound of the word or its pronunciation and what it looks like or how it isspelled because these are the understandable characteristics influencing learners’perception of learning a new word

2) Word parts

In this part, learners focalize the process of analysing root words Inparticular, learners try to realize which parts are recognizable in a word and which

parts are needed to express the word’s meaning Besides, as claimed by Ur (2012),this process is somehow called word formation, referring the stituation of the rootword asthe center and deriving different prefixes or suffixes to create anew word.

b Meaning of the word

1) Form and meaning

In this issue, learners need to concentrate on what meaning the word's form

represents and what the word’s form is used to express meaning Grain and

Redman (1986) address that when teaching vocabulary, there are many barriers to

a word's meaning, such as synonyms and polysemy words, Understanding themeaning of words is denoted through form and context, one of the most effectiveways to learn and teach vocabulary

2) Concepts and references

Learners need to answer the question IWhat is included in the concepts?What items can the concept of this word refer to? Learners may encounterboundaries between conceptual meanings in English when learning a new word.That means knowing not only what the meaning of this vocabulary word refers to,

‘but also knowing where the boundaries distinguish that word from related wards,such as cup, mug bowl

3) Associations

Understanding association components mean cognizing that other words

canreplace this word and the association with different words Thus, by absorbing

associations, learners can enrich their vocabulary by using synonyms, avoidingrepetition or lack of vocabulary in speaking and writing However, it is advisable

for teachers to distinguish between different shapes of meaning so that learners

can use those connotations in the appropriate contexts.

c Use of word

1) Grammer of vocabulary

The grammar of a new item will be essential in learning vocabulary if thistule is not learned in the general grammar rules because some items may bechanged in form in a specific grammatical context For instance, when learning anew verb, we need to have knowledge of the form of the word in different tenses,

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such as the past form of the tense, knowing if it does not follow the irregularity(teach taught) In the vein of learning a noun, it is essential for learners to knowwhether the form of the word is singular or plural, and if it is plural, it can beirregular (foot feet).

2) Collocations

The arrangement and combination of items constitute one of the factors

learners have to remember to use in specific cases For example, make a

decision not do adecision, ot do the shopping not make the shopping eventhough

the words do and make are two similar words’ meanings Collocations are oftennoted in dictionaries to provide teachers and learners with inform ation in the form

of notes

3) Constraints on use

In terms of vocabulary, learners need to pay attention to the style of use, theregistration of words, dialect, and frequency of use of words That is, learners candistinguish between the different levels of formality of words, the effects ofdifferences bebveen contexts and topics, and use differences in geographicaldiversity to understand and use words most properly for different cases of word

usage

1.2 The overview of legal English

1.2.1 Legal English vocabulary and its characteristic

Legal English is considered a subsystem of the English language used by

lawyers and other legal professionals (Supardi, 2013) Language is the means ofcommunication for people working in the legal field, and legal terms are expressed

through legal language (V eretina, 2012) As mentioned by Veretina (2012), forthose who work in the legal field or have an interest in this field, understanding

the characteristics of legal English is a step in the process of enhancing learningefficiency Yet, legal English differs from general English because it containsmany unusual features related to terminology, linguistic conventions, andpunctuation (Mykhailova, 2014)

In compliance with the research purpose mentioned earlier, the researcherwill present characteristics directly related to legal English vocabulary

a Using foreign words/Maxims borrowed from Latin or French roots

Throughout the history of formation and development, legal English hasbeen strongly influenced by Latin and French Norman-French was adopted asEngland’s officiel language following the Norman invasion in 1066

Consequently, it became the language of legal procedure; there are many legal

English terms of Anglo-Norman origin, item such as property, estate, lease,executor, tenant goods, will, murder, right, witness, What is more, the influence

of French can also be shown through the use of adjectives behind nouns - anunusual usage in general English such as plaintiff, cont material solicitorgeneral, plea These words are still widely used today in legal writing and legal

docum ents.

From 1066, Latin was also used in records and statutes Nevertheless, itisnot used in proceedings and debates Hence, French continues to be used in mostlegal proceedings Despite this, the influence of Latin in legal documents can still

be described through the number of words and phrases such as ultra vires, bonaSide, vice versa negligent inferior, legal, and subscribe Until now, some Latinphrases are still used to replace words/phrases in English, such as inter alia instead

of among other things

b Use of Archaic expression

Archaic words are understood as expressions or uses of old words, and these

words are used in English to avoid repeating words in the style of legal writing

We can see a list of words in the legal English language like herein, hereby,hereafter, thereto, thereon therefor, therein thereafter whereby, wherein.whereof, These words are used to replace something that has appeared before.For instance, thereto means “to that place or to that matter or document”, so wecan use it like this: The article is attached thereto (to this contract/ document)

c Circumlocution

Circumlocution is a word combination originating from the Latin circianand logua in order to denote the meaning of taking around a way of speaking Inother words, the legal English vocabulary will use many words to describe onlyone or afew words in ordinary English It uses words with equivalent meanings to

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express one or several ideas in modern English, namely adequate manber ofinstead of enough, during such time as instead of while, in close proximity toinstead of near,

d Use of unfamiliar pro-forms

Legal English uses many modifiers such as the same, the said the

aforementioned the aforesaid they often use adjectives to determine nouns

without replacing them, e.g., the said Robert Young

e Use of reciprocal words

Legal English contains much vocabulary that has a title meaning It has a

reciprocal and oppositional relationship and is indicated by endings: -er,-ee, -or,for example, in the labor relationship employer-employee, or in the civilrelationship grantor-grantee,

f Use of phrasal verbs in a technical sense

Vocabulary in legal language is tricky because it uses several technicalphrases that the average individual needs to familiarize themselves with Theselexical items are often ordinary wards but have special meanings in legal English.Take the following words for example, the English term consideration usuallydesctibes the practice of keeping atopic in mind carefid thought, reflection and

meditation (Oxford English Dictionary) Nonetheless, in legal English,

specifically contract law, it is defined as the legal term tised when something is

legally sufficient and makes a contract binding (Black Law Dictionary*) Some

other examples of legal English phrases are put down deposit, go into liquidation,write off debts, pursuant to,

g Use of synonymy in legal term

Since French and Latin have a strong influence, the number of synonyms

in the legal English vocabulary is affluent It truly indicates that much vocabularywill coexist to refer to a legal term, for descriptive purposes: assign - transfer,

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“https: /Ahelavrdictionary ong

breach - violation contract - agreement statute - provision, default - failre,

convict - sentence

h_ Use of technical terms

Use specific jargon to present ideas among those studying, researching and

working in the legal field rather than using other ordinary vocabulary to explain

i.e., case at instance, cause of action, asstanption of irmocence

i The use of doublets and triplets conveys a legal concept

Because of the impact of French and Latin-most vocabulary in legal

English combines pairs of words from different languages: breaking and enteringCnglish/French), fit and proper (English/French), will and testament

English/Latin), and some English-only doublets such as let and hindrance, have

and hold some triplets such as "judge jury and executioner," and "give, desireand bequeath",

1.2.2 The importance of legal Euglish vocabulary

Legal English vocabulary is crucial in economic exchange and globalintegration Legal vocabulary is used to draft documents related to law, such ascontracts, licenses, indictments, judgments, laws of the National Assembly,decrees, regulations, and international treaties Legal English vocabulary is vital

in a country where the official language is English (V eretina, 2012) because its

laws, codes, and regulations are written in English Therefore, it has important

implications when applying and enforcing laws in legal documents and drafting

written documents

Legal English vocabulary is essential to individuals interested in and

working in the legal field Legal English vocabulary is ex act and specific, allowing

people who use or work in the legal field to communicate clearly and correctly.Legal terminology helps convey legal concepts, rights, obligations, and proceduresaccurately, which ensures no ambiguity or misunderstanding in legal documents,contracts, or discussions

In modem life, there are many cases where we can encounter legalproblems For example, signing labor contracts, house lease contracts, resolvingcivil disputes, and court decisions, these documents often contain complex legal

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vocabulary Mastering legal English vocabulary allows people to process legalinformation effectively.

Furthermore, legal English vocabulary facilitates effective communicationbetween legal professionals and clients in the legal field Especially in

international cooperation, due to the current increase in the need for international

integration, many businesses, especially international businesses and multinationalcompanies need to employ workers with proficiency in legal English Legalprofessionals must possess:a solid legal English vocabulary to communicate andcollaborate with colleagues, clients, or partners from different languagebackgrounds

In short, legal English vocabulary is essential for effective communication,accurate understanding of legal documents, and conducting legal studies andresearch Mastering legal terminology allows legal English learners to understandthe complexity of legal terms, improve career opportunities, and cooperate with

international partners.

13 The overview of vocabulary learning strategies

13.1 Vocabulary learning strategy

Vocabulary learning strategies (VLS) include any activities, strategies,

concepts, or processes that learners use to support their understanding memory,and use of language (O’Malley & Chamot, 1990) In other words, activities and

processes that help improve the vocabulary of a language and use vocabulary

correctly are called vocabulary learning strategies

As opined by Catalan (2003), VLS are developed from language learningstrategies She believes that the processes and the strategies students use to learnnew words or the processes they take to research a word's definition beforerecording it in memory to be called upon when necessary and applied to speaking

or writing Cameron (2001) defines VLS as actions that students use to aid inunderstanding and memory of language Thus, vocabulary achievement requiresthe application of strategies from language teachers to learners Gadighi &Zarafshan, 2006) Learners will use VLS to improve language learning and usenew words learned easily and quickly (Thu, 2022)

Gu (1994) and Schmitt (1997) apply the knowledge of language learningstrategies to VLS, and they argue that language learners need to understand VLS

to be able to improve the amount of vocabulary they learn as well as theirvocabulary comprehension Knowledge about VLS should be designed in theeducational curriculum and syllabus to help learners enrich their vocabulary Asspecified by Nation (1990), the most effective way to learn vocabulary is forlearners to have a separate vocabulary leaming strategy VLS must be proposed aspart of a vocabulary development educational program:

Additionally, Sener (2003) asserts that vocabulary is central to languageand has a crucial position for language learners Language learners know theimportance of vocabulary but may not be avare of VLS whichwill encourage themfully to acquire it Along with the meaning of vocabulary, learners are advised torecognize pronunciation, spelling part of speech, and other aspects of vocabulary

In summary, vocabulary learning strategy is the entire process of acquiringand comprehending vocabulary, remembering and using vocabulary effectively inthe communication process It includes any activity that involves learning andmemorizing different aspects of vocabulary

13.2 Clarifying Schmitt's vocabulary learning strategies

Many researchers have made classifications of vocabulary learning

strategies Typically, Gu and Johnson (1996), Hedge (2000) are based on the

classification created by Oxford (1990), and N ation (1990)

Schmitt’s (1997) classification system is considered the mostcomprehensive system, covering the majority of vocabulary learning (Al-

Shuweirekh, 2001) In this study, the researcher presents the system of VLS

classified by Schmitt (1997) which is used as a theoretical framework forproposing V LS for English major students

Schmitt's (1997) taxonomy system of VLS is divided into discovery andconsolidation strategies Discovery strategies are strategies used to learn about themeanings of vocabulary thet learners see for the first time, while consolidationStrategies are applied to help learners better understand the meanings ofvocabulary and use them when they face later

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In particular, discovery strategies have consisted of two types:determination strategies and social strategies.

a Determination strategies

The determination strategies work based on identifying information aboutvarious constituents related to the vocabulary, namely part of speech, derivations,clues about prefixes, suffixes, and lists of related words (Behforouz & Al-Ghaiti,2022) The determination strategies are often applied when students can

independently figure out-a new word without the -teacher’s assistance The

determination strategy enables learners to understand the context of the word andthe dictionary meaning of that word

b Social strategies

Social strategies are used in exploring vocabulary by asking for help fromother individuals within the learner’s society Vocabulary inL2 is given so that theteacher can provide the meaning of words in the learner’s mother tongue (L1) toenhance learners’ understanding of its meaning The teacher explains the word andcreates sentences with the new word These things help learners guess the meaning

of words and remember that new word

A popular form is guessing words based on context it happens when

learners use known words in a sentence to guess the meaning of words they do not

know Despite that, this strategy requires learners to have a certain amount of

vocabulary to guess meaning through context

In this strategy, teachers and classmates take part in explaining and usingnew words so that students can comprehend the words’ meanings

The second type of vocabulary learning strategy is consolidation strategies,which comprises of memory strategies, cognitive strategies, and metacognitive

strategies.

a Memory strategies

Memory strategies are an approach related to recalling and memorizingvocabulary by using materials available to the learner, such as images New wordsare combined with images representing the word’s meaning to aid students in

learning new words with images instead of definitions and tie the new words tospecific personal experiences.

As such, these new words can be linked to other words, such as synonyms,antonyms, phrases, keywords, and formal features, derivatives, parts of speech thatstudents already know Alternatively, the learners can use the form of groupingwords for convenience in memorization These words can be grouped into theirtopic or function

Studying a word's affixes, roots, and word-types is also helpful in

remembering the word's meaning Leaming words in a collocation or idiom is alsoaway to remember

c Metacognitive strategies

This strategy is used to either evaluate and test vocabulary learning or be

applied in any stage of vocabulary learning Students can use English multimedia

such as books, radio, postcards, and movies to test the new words they learn

1.3.3 The importance of vocabulary learning strategies

Many studies (e.g, Abdulmalik, 2020, Ahmed 2017; Rafkovna, 2021)have been conducted to increase learners’ understanding of vocabulary learningstrategies and their impact on the vocabulary comprehension process since it isvital to have a strategy for learning new words In the opinion of Oxford (1990),vocabulary learners should be encouraged to employ vocabulary learningtechniques while picking up new language skills This author articulates thatknowing more about VLS enables language learners to be more proactive in theirlearning activities and inspire them to take responsibility for their learning work.Benson (2007) points out that teaching strategies vocabulary can develop learners’abilities in EFL/ESL Nation (1990) believes that applying vocabulary learning

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strategies is critical to develope language competence Similarly, Schmitt andSchmitt (2008) affirm that VLS are essential for language teaching and learning.Thus, understanding and applying VLS is one of the most effective ways to enrichvocabulary VLS promote learners to optimize their learning process by providing

adequate skills to continue acquiring new words and retaining them in long-term

memory, making their learning more effective

14, Previous studies on difficulties and proposed strategies in learning legal

English vocabulary

Aforementioned, many studies have been done to discover the difficulty in

learning vocabulary and suggest some common strategies Typically, the study of

Rohnmatilah (2014) was conducted on students of the Department of EnglishEducation at Institut Agama Islam Negeri (IAIN) Research shows that thedifficulties students encounter when leaming vocabulary are quite diverse, Themost common difficulties that learners face are (1) most students have difficultywith pronunciation, (2) spelling and pronunciation (3) the different grammaticalforms of each word are one of the causes of difficulty, (4) choosing the appropriatemeaning of the word, (5) using words must apply to the context, (6) students faceconsiderable challenges when learning about idiomatic This study also shows that

several factors create barriers when learning vocabulary are: (1) the difference

between the written and spoken forms of words, (2) the amount of vocabulary to

‘be learned is enormous, (3) the constraints on the source of word information, (4)

complexity of vocabulary knowledge, causing (5) lack of understanding ofvocabulary grammar, (6) mispronunciation due to lack of similarity between LÍandL2

Another study happening to students of BA English majors at UniversityLevel of Education when learning vocabulary by Afzal (2019) reveals how topronounce new words, understand the meaning of vocabulary, remember and usenew words correctly, and how to spell new words are problems that studentsencounter Research by Susanto (2021) indicates similar problems in students’vocabulary comprehension, especially in pronunciation, using the correct form ofwords in speaking and writing and variants of a word cause difficulty in

identifying vocabulary, and challenges in choosing vocabulary appropriate to the

context.

Understanding the difficulties and challenges of learning vocabulary,Nagodavithana and Premarathne (2022) use Schmitt's tasonomy vocabulary

learning strategies Research results disclose that students initiate language

learning by converting meanings in their mother tongue (L1), which influences theeffectiveness of learning reading skills and the goal of language proficiency Noorand Amir (2009) affirm that VLS such as using a dictionary, recognizing themeaning of words through reading and memory strategies are commonly used bystudents in learning ESL In addition, students seek additional information throughlinguistics to improve their vocabulary The least used vocabulary learningstrategy is note-taking strategies

In the teaching and learning area, legal Englishis considered a part of ESP,

it has the same characteristics as other types of ESP (Surpardi, 2013) All the same,legal English as a language used by lawyers, judges, and people studying andresearching in the legal field, still has its unique characteristics (Gibbons, 2014)

Many studies have been organized on legal English teaching in countries

where Englishisnot the official language As research on the Sheltered InstructionObservation Protocol (SIOP) teaching model shows, this model is adequate for

non-native leamers of legal English (Kareva & Bytyqi, 2022) A study on the

importence of four English competencies: speaking reading writing, andlistening

to design English for legal purposes curriculum at Tikrit College ofLaw/University was conducted by Hamid and Sultan (2022), this investigationpoints out four influential skills for learning legal English Northcott and Brown(2006) state that there are some obstacles in teaching and learning legal English(LB), thatis, (1) LE hasits own unique characteristics, deeply influenced by ethics,philosophy, history, religion, and even the cultural nation, (2) lack of equivalencebetween legal system, (3) the difference between LE and plain English, (4) lack

of LE teaching materials or resources, (5) lack of teaching guides for LE teachers,making students who do not have a background in law and legal terminology facedifficulties in researching this field

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InVietnam, the study of legal English :s a relatively new field because legalEnglish is only introduced as a supplementary course at the Judicial Academy forpeople who already have legal knowledge In Vietnam, two professional legalEnglish training units, HLU and ULAW, have several research seminars onstudents’ obstacles when leaming legal English.

Vu and Tran (2023) research factors that reduce motivation to leam legalEnglish at HLU, pointing out infrastructure-related factors and university/faculty-related factors directly affecting dem otivating students’ learning The research ondifficulties in learning legal English at HLU by Nhac (2021) highlights that theunique features of LE, differences between legal systems, and lack of backgroundknowledge about law are the main reasons learning legal English becomesdifficult Thus, with its unique features, learning legal English or learning legalEnglish vocabulary is an obstacle for students

It is obvious that there are some studies ơn the situation of learning legalEnglish of Vietnamese learners However, the difficulties in learning legal Englishvocabulary, especially for legal English major students, still need more studies tofill in the research gap in comparison with other fields of language acquisition

15 Summary

This chapter reviews previous studies on students’ difficulties in learning

legal English vocabulary and research on effective vocabulary leaming strategies

The vast amount of knowledge researched helps researchers identify a theoretical

framework that significantly contributes to accurately forming the basis forconducting research In the first part of the chapter, an overview of views onEnglish vocabulary, its classification, characteristics, and other aspects of

vocabulary have been discussed in depth to grasp the general ideas about the

causes of barriers in students’ learning af LE vocabulary The second part of thechapter deals with various definitions of legal English, along with an in-depthinvestigation of its nature The third part deals with various theories related tocommon VLS The fourth part is an overview of previous studies discussing thedifficulties in learning legal English and VLS for enhancing students’ legal English

vocabulary.

Following this chapter, the researcher clarifies these focal issues that need

to be discussed by presenting a method of researching difficulties in acquiring legalEnglish vocabulary to propose vocabulary learning strategies appropriately

CHAPTER 2.METHODOLOGYThis chapter presents the research methods and techniques used for the data

collection The chapter begins with research design which served as the roadmap

of the research, following a restatement of research questions, which are used toguide the process of data collection, and next information about the participants isalso presented This is followed by the discussion of the instrument used for datacollection, the data collection procedures and data analysis are clarified to get theresults of the research

2.1 Research design

A cross-sectional examination of 166 representative legal English studentsenrolled in K45 and K46 courses at Hanoi Law University was the main goal ofthe mixed-methods research Although the study population consisted of roughly

242 legal English students at Hanoi Law University, due to time and resourcelimitations, the researcher was unable to interview every student, so a sample of

151 respondents using a simple sampling formula (Slovin’s formula) was chosen.The active Google form link was used to implement the questionnaire, which wasemailed to the participants’ addresses over the course of three weeks The semi-structured interviews with the 15 student participants were performed over thephone with their consent being recorded to only transcribe the responses for thisstudy Then, two data sources were addressed using the IBM SPSS v.25application for the questionnaire and the NVivo v.12 IT application for the

interview recordings The validity of the research findings was strengthened by the

researcher's use of the results from two sources

2.2 Research Question Restated

To orient the study, the following questions should be clarified in order to

specify the difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary and proposed

vocabulary learning strategies

1 ‘What are the difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary

that legal English majors at Hanoi Law University face?

2 ‘What are the strategies for legal English major students to usetoimprove difficulties their legal English vocabulary?

2.3 Participants

The participants were chosen from two courses; namely K45 with 114 legalEnglish major students, and K46 with 128 In order to select the samples from thelarge population, the researcher utilized the random sampling technique formula

to estimate sampling size by adopting Slovin’s formula with e = 5% to choose theequivalent samples from each course

eel

_ 1+Ne?

nì =ramber of samplesN= total population

@ = error tolerance

The outcomes yielded that 71 legal English major students out of 114 were

selected for the K45 and K46 with 80 learners out of 128 In total, 151 individuals

consented to complete the survey questionnaire and another batch including 15

students accepted to take part in the semi-structured interviews Thus, the studyinvolved 166 legal English major students at HLU

2.4 Research instruments

The researcher devioped the survey questionnaire by adopting difficulties

in leaming LE of the study of Nhac (2022) and VLS taxonomy classified by

Schmitt (1997), the survey questionnaire based on a closed five-point Likert scale.The survey questionnaire includes two questions asking about difficulties inlearning legal English vocabulary of legal English major students and the students”strategies for learning legal English vocabulary The first survey questionnairesincluded 13 statements on a five-point Likert scale The participants were expected

to point out (1) strongly disagree, (2) disagree, (3) neutral, (4) agree, and (5)

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strongly agree For the second survey questionnaire, they have five groups with 40statements equally divided into these strategies: determination, social, memory,cognitive, and metacognitive strategies Participants were anticipated to provide(1) almost never used strategy, (2) rarely used strategy, (3) sometimes used

strategy, (4) frequently used strategy, and (5) always used strategy For the

semi-structured interviews, they consisted of 10 questions for student interviews.Internally created questionnaires were then sent out for content confirmation toprofessionals in legal English language instruction and legal practitioners Afterthat, the questionnaire implemented a dry min among 2Ï students, and thequestionnaires were properly adjusted to ensure the survey's validity Theresearcher retained the statements according to the confidence level range (a =0.77 — 0.96; Cronbach, 1951) The final survey included two \surveyquestionnaires The first questionnaire consists of 13 items, the secondquestionnaire includes 8 determination strategies, 8 social strategies, 8 memorystrategies, 8 cognitive strategies, and § metacognitive strategies For semi-structured interviews with students, 5 interview questions for students werechosen Finally, the final versions were once more handed back to the experts forreview and liability validation

2.5 Procedures of data collection

The researcher created an email with an active link to a Google Form and

sent it to the participant’s email addresses after gathering the necessary research

instruments and obtaining permission to carry out the study The questionnaire also

contained the researcher’s instructions, defined the study’s goals and significance,guaranteed participants’ anonymity, and provided a withdrawal option Therespondents were requested to return the questionnaire within three weeks ofreceiving the researcher's email A phone number was also offered concurrently

in case a respondent had any questions On the phone for roughly 15 minutes, thosewho agreed to participate in the semi-structured interviews expressed theiravailability The researcher jointly implemented the data screening procedure toachieve the target sample size after choosing two sources for the study instrument

using a snowball sampling technique within the time frame The required data wasthen processed by the applications NVivo v.12 for the interview recordings andIBM SPSS v.25 for the questionnaire

2.6 Data analysis

Descriptive statistics were used to gather, tabulate, analyze, and interpret

the data Frequency count and percentage were employed particularly to address

the responder profile The means and standard deviations of each term can be

interpreted as follows strongly disagree/almost never used strategy (1.0 - 1.80),

disagree/seldom used strategy (1.81 - 2.60), neutral/sometimes used strategy (2.61

- 3.40), agree/frequently used strategy (3.41 - 4.20), and strongly agree/always

used strategy (4.21 - 5.0) were determined based on Likert scale The frequency ofthe respondents’ perspectives in the semi-structured interviews was examinedusing the NVivo v.12 tool to assess the reliability of the qualitative data

2.7 Summary

The research design, research questions, data collection instrument,

participants’ profiles, data collection procedures, and data analysis are alldescribed in this chapter It is obvious that a questionnaire is a suitable tool forgathering data for a quantitative investigation For the purpose of treatment, datagathered exploiting the IBM SPSS application V 25 and NVivo 12 can be used instatistical tools

CHAPTER 3 RESULTS AND ĐISCUSSION

In this chapter, the data collected through data analysis procedures of the

questionnaire survey are demonstrated and discussed Simultaneously, the findings

were examined thoroughly and compared with the previous studies to have rich,complicated, multi- dimensional ideas

3.1 Demograp hic information of the respondents

Table 1 presents demographic information about the participants whoresponded to the research questions Regarding gender, most participants arefemale students, with 127 students, equivalent to 76.5%, the remaining 39 are malestudents, accounting for 23.5% Regarding the residence, a majority of participants

come from urban areas with 117 students, equivalent to 70.5%, next is the rural

area with 45 students, same as 27.1%; finally, 4 students are from the mountainousareas, equivalent to 2.4% Interms of the ability to lea legal English, 101 studentssupposed that their ability to learn legal English was at an average level with60.8%, the number of students studying legal English at a good level is 41,constituting 24.7%; with two levels: very good and poor, the rates are (2= 9, same

as 5.4%) and (n = 6, equivalent to 3.6%), respectively Regarding the period oflearning English 101 students have been learning English for under 15 years (just

as 60.8%), 50 students have been studying English for fewer than 10 years(equivalent to 30.1%), and 15 students have been learning English for fewer than

20 years

Table 1 Profiles of the respondents involving in the study

Demographic information N Frequency Percent

Rural areas 45 271

Mountainous areas 4 24

Very good 9 34

The level of abilityto Good 4I 247

leam legal English 166

3.2 The analysis of the difficulties in learning legal English vocabulary

Table 2 indicates legal English major students’ difficulties when learninglegal English vocabulary Respondents strongly agree that learning archaic words

in legal texts causes challenges in memorizing and using that vocabulary, with amean value of 4.56 and SD of 584% Participants gemuinely rate that non-equivalent terms in the Vietnamese legal system significantly impactunderstanding and learning vocabulary with the descriptive value as M= 4.49, SD

= 501% Not surprisingly, when learning legal English vocabulary, the use ofwords borrowed from foreign languages, especially French and Latin, possiblyleads to a high level of influence (M= 4.47; SD= 514%) The following tvo rankswith relatively high agreement among students that cause difficulty when learningvocabulary are the use of synonyms in legal terminology (M = 4.39, SD = 622%)and using reciprocal words (M = 4.31; SD = 518%), these two items altogether

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