The Effects of Using L1 Translation on Young Learners’ Foreign Language Vocabulary Learning

ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 109 Aïda Codina Camó & Elisabe Plade all Balles e DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 Es udios de lingüís ica inglesa aplicada THE EFFECTS OF USING L1 TRANSLATION ON YOUNG LEARNERS’ FOREIGN LANGUAGE VOCABULARY LEARNING1 Aïda Codina Camó Uni e sidad Au ónoma de Ba celona, Spain [email p o ec ed] Elisabe Plade all Balles e Uni e sidad Au ónoma de Ba celona, Spain [email p o ec ed] DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 In he ield o o eign language (FL) ocabula y acquisi ion, he e seems o be a g owing awa eness o he ac ha he mo he ongue (L1) migh ha e a acili a ing ole o language lea ne s. Resea ch has ound e idence o suppo he posi i e e ec s o using he L1 as an ins uc ional ool, pa icula ly a he ini ial s ages o FL lea ning. The p esen s udy explo es he ole ha he L1 plays in young lea ne s’ e en ion o and access o English ocabula y. An expe imen al g oup and he co esponding con ol g oup o 10-11 yea -old child en in an EFL Ca alan school con ex we e ec ui ed o he s udy. The expe imen al g oup was exposed o bo h he English inpu and he L1 ansla ion o he a ge i ems, whe eas he con ol g oup ecei ed jus he English inpu . Di e ences be ween he g oups in e ms o lexical e en ion and lexical access we e analysed. Resul s o he p esen s udy sugges ha p o iding s uden s wi h he L1 equi alen s o he ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 110 The e ec s o using L1 ansla ion on young lea ne s’ o eign ... DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 lexical i ems esul s in lea ne s e aining mo e lexical i ems, accessing hem wi h g ea e ease and ecalling hem o longe pe iods o ime. Key wo ds: Young lea ne s, o eign language lea ning, English ocabula y lea ning, L1 use. En el campo del ap endizaje del ocabula io de una lengua ex anje a, pa ece habe cada ez más conciencia del hecho que la lengua ma e na (L1) pod ía ene un papel acili ado pa a los ap endices de una lengua ex anje a. La in es igación ha e idenciado los e ec os posi i os del uso de la L1 como una he amien a de ins ucción, sob e odo en las e apas iniciales del ap endizaje de la lengua ex anje a. És e es udio explo a el papel que desempeña la L1 en la e ención y el acceso del ocabula io inglés en es udian es jó enes. Pa a el p esen e es udio, se eclu a on un g upo expe imen al y el co espondien e g upo con ol de niños de 10-11 años escola izados en un con ex o en el que, siendo el ca alán la lengua ma e na de los es udian es, el inglés se enseña como lengua ex anje a. El g upo expe imen al ue expues o al inpu en inglés y a la aducción del ocabula io y, en con a pa ida, el g upo con ol solo ecibió el inpu en inglés. Los esul ados de és e es udio mues an que p o ee a los es udian es con la aducción del ocabula io hace que los alumnos e engan más elemen os léxicos, accedan a ellos con mayo acilidad y los ecue den po pe íodos más la gos de iempo. Palab as cla e: Ap endices jó enes, ap endizaje de lenguas ex anje as, ap endizaje del ocabula io inglés, uso de la L1. 1. In oduc ion Vocabula y is conside ed o be a key componen o o eign language (FL) lea ning as commanding an ex ensi e ange o wo ds is a cen al equi emen o communica e e ec i ely in any language (Huls jin, 2001; Ki , 2003; Na ion, 1990). A wide and g owing ange o echniques ha e been p oposed o p omo e o eign language ocabula y de elopmen . Ins ances o di e en app oaches include he use o mnemonic de ices, he p ac ice o guessing ocabula y om con ex , he employmen o isual aids, he applica ion o pai ed associa es and he use o dic iona ies, among many o he s. These a ious app oaches a e e y o en linked and embedded in o di e en b oad eaching me hods as, o ins ance, he na u alis ic app oach, which a ou s mo e implici echniques o ocabula y de elopmen (Lau e , 2005; Ox o d, 1990; Read, 2004). ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 111 Aïda Codina Camó & Elisabe Plade all Balles e DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 P o iding he mo he ongue (L1) ansla ion o he i ems being augh is e y o en ega ded as a con o e sial p ac ice when used o deal wi h ocabula y in o eign language con ex s. Resou cing o he L1 in FL ocabula y eaching migh be seen as a nega i e and un ashionable exe cise. Ne e heless, esea ch has ound clea ad an ages in linking FL wo ds o hei L1 equi alen s, mo e signi ican ly a he ini ial s ages o he lea ning p ocess when he ini ial o m-meaning connec ion has o be es ablished (Cook, 2003; Jiang, 2002; Liu, 2009; Schmi , 2008). The p esen s udy seeks o con ibu e new da a o he analysis o he ole he L1 plays in young lea ne s’ e en ion o and access o English ocabula y, as hese lea ne s ep esen he ini ial s ages o he FL lea ning p ocess in he con ex analysed. Two g oups o Ca alan s uden s aged be ween 10 and 11 pa icipa ed in his s udy. One g oup was exposed o bo h he FL o ms o a se o lexical i ems and hei L1 equi alen s whe eas he o he g oup was only p o ided wi h he English inpu . This con as i e ins uc ional p ac ice is analysed in ela ion o lexical e en ion, memo y e ec s and lexical access. Mo e speci ically, he main esea ch ques ions add essed in he p esen s udy a e he ollowing (1) Does he use o L1 ansla ion p omo e sho and long- e m ocabula y e en ion? and (2) Does he L1 ac as a acili a o in e ms o lexical access? In line wi h o he s udies ca ied ou explo ing he e ec s o using L1 ansla ion in o eign o second language ocabula y lea ning (G ace, 1998; Huls ijn, Hollande and G eidanus, 1996; Lau e and Shmueli, 1997; Liu, 2009; Lo o and de G oo , 1998; Maca o and Lee, 2013; P ince, 1996; Sieh, 2008; Van Hell and Candia Mahn, 1997), ou hypo hesis is ha using he L1 when eaching ocabula y will be bene icial o young lea ne s’ ocabula y lea ning. Pa icipan s p o ided wi h he L1 equi alen ansla ions a e p edic ed o e ain mo e wo ds and access hem wi h g ea e ease. The p esen pape is di ided in 6 sec ions and i is o ganized as ollows: sec ion 2 p esen s he heo e ical amewo k o he s udy, which includes h ee di e en subsec ions: The i s subsec ion highligh s he main di e ences be ween lea ning and acqui ing ocabula y, he second one explo es s a egies used in ocabula y lea ning and inally, he hi d subsec ion e iews he ole o he L1 in FL ocabula y eaching. The me hodology o he s udy is p esen ed in Sec ion 3. Sec ions 4 and 5 ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 112 The e ec s o using L1 ansla ion on young lea ne s’ o eign ... DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 in oduce, analyse and discuss he esul s ob ained om he s udy and inally some conclusions a e d awn. 2. Li e a u e e iew 2.1. L1 ocabula y acquisi ion s. FL ocabula y lea ning Child en lea ning hei L1 ecei e a conside able s eam o u e ances and a e capable o inducing, wi h li le supe ision, he wo ds om his s eam (Ki , 2003). Such a p ocess is used by child en o acqui e a la ge numbe o wo ds and hey do so a an ex ao dina y pace. In con as , lea ning FL ocabula y p esen s a e y di e en scena io. The ac ha FL lea ne s a e al eady equipped wi h an L1 and, hence, ha e de eloped concep ual and seman ic sys ems linked o he L1, implies ha FL ocabula y lea ning will in ol e, a leas in i s ini ial s ages, a mapping o he new lexical o ms on o al eady exis ing concep ual meanings o ansla ional equi alen s in he L1 (Takač, 2008). In o he wo ds, when being exposed o a second language, child en ha e al eady lea ned how o ca ego ise he wo ld om hei L1 expe ience and such ca ego isa ion is no likely o be e aced. Ins ead, he FL lexical i ems a e p one o be associa ed o L1 ep esen a ions. Models o bilingual lexical p ocessing like he Re ised Hie a chical Model (K oll and S ewa , 1994) sugges ha “L1 wo d o ms a e di ec ly linked o meaning a he concep ual le el, bu ha FL meaning is accessed ia L1 wo d o ms” (K oll and Sunde man, 2003: 401). Resou cing o a ange o e idence om c oss-language p iming, K oll (1993) also a gues o a model o lexical and concep ual links be ween he L1 and he FL in which he s eng h o such connec ions di e s depending on ac o s like p o iciency and age o acquisi ion. Rega ding hese men ioned ac o s, i ollows ha du ing he ea ly lea ning p ocess, he FL men al lexicon seems o be mos likely o ganised in subo dina ion o he L1 han in mo e ad anced s ages. Fo eign language ocabula y lea ning di e ges om L1 acquisi ion no only on accoun o he di e en men al o ganiza ion bu also wi h espec o exposu e o he a ge language. Lea ning wo ds bo h in he L1 and in he FL is a cyclical p ocess which in ol es mee ing hese new wo ds epea edly (Came on, 2001). As sugges ed by Lau e (2005), in o de o lexical i ems o en e in o he long- e m memo y sys em, he lea ne needs ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 113 Aïda Codina Camó & Elisabe Plade all Balles e DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 o ha e epe i i e encoun e s wi h hem. Such a cyclical p ocess is mo e likely o occu in imme sion con ex s in which language ends o be lea ned wi hou paying special a en ion o ocabula y since massi e exposu e o language gua an ees inciden al ocabula y acquisi ion (Ke s en, 2010). Con e sely, he ype o inpu exposu e s uden s lea ning a FL ecei e is o en limi ed o he class oom en i onmen . This condi ion does no a ou child en lea ning a la ge amoun o ocabula y nei he simply om exposu e no in a sho pe iod o ime. In FL lea ning con ex s, a ema kable amoun o explici ocabula y ins uc ion is needed in o de o s uden s o lea n ocabula y in a ela i ely sho pe iod o ime (Campbell, Campbell & Dickinson, 2004). 2.2. S a egies o o eign language ocabula y eaching A wide a ie y o app oaches ha e been p oposed o deal wi h ocabula y in FL lea ning con ex s, which do no seem o os e he acquisi ion o ocabula y in an inciden al way, as he FL lea ne is no likely o encoun e a wo d nume ous imes so as o i o be na u ally acqui ed (Folse, 2004; Lau e , 2005; Takač, 2008). In addi ion, a lea ne mus ha e a la ge FL ocabula y o be able o guess he meaning o unknown wo ds om su ounding con ex clues success ully. Such a p econdi ion en ails ha less p o icien and/o younge lea ne s a e a a disad an age as hey a e likely o ace conside able di icul ies in inc easing hei FL lexicon by in e ing unknown wo d meanings om unclea con ex s. Explici ins uc ion o ocabula y, which is he p ac ice used in he p esen s udy, is seen as pa icula ly essen ial o FL lea ne s, pa icula ly beginne s and young lea ne s, whose lack o ocabula y limi s hei eading o unde s anding abili ies (Folse 2004; Anu hama, 2010). I is commonly belie ed ha s a egies ha ake o m as he p incipal pa h o meaning a e mo e e icien o FL lea ne s since hey enhance memo isa ion. Once lea ne s ha e me and paid special a en ion o he o m o a new wo d, hei ocabula y lea ning p ocess has begun. The wo d being augh explici ly en e s he lea ne ’s sho e m memo y and h ough epe i i e ocabula y eaching s o ed i ems become a ailable o use in he longe e m. Speci ically o young language lea ne s, exposu e o e y conc e e language ha connec s wi h objec s young lea ne s can handle o see is c ucial in o de o de elop hei men al in en o y o lexical ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 114 The e ec s o using L1 ansla ion on young lea ne s’ o eign ... DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 i ems (Came on, 2001). Techniques used o inc ease young lea ne s’ ocabula y include p esen ing ealia ha s uden s can expe imen wi h, making use o mime, p esen ing illus a i e si ua ions in which ocabula y is in oduced and using isual aids (Pin e , 2006). The use o pic u es has been especially highligh ed in memo y esea ch since i has been asse ed ha pic u es a e ecalled mo e e icien ly han wo ds (Ca pen e and Olson, 2012). 2.3. The use o he L1 in o eign language ocabula y lea ning P e ious esea ch on using L1 equi alen o ms as a way o eaching, accessing and/o memo ising FL lexical i ems has mainly ocused on analysing adul in e media e- o-ad anced s uden s and sugges s ha a bilingual eaching /p esen a ion me hod acili a es he lea ning and e en ion o ocabula y (Huls ijn e al.,1996; Lau e and Shmueli, 1997; Van Hell and Candia Mahn,1997; Lo o and de G oo , 1998; Liu, 2009) As a as beginne s a e conce ned, in a s udy ca ied ou wi h English speake s lea ning F ench, P ince (1996) ound e idence o suppo he claim ha less p o icien s uden s a e also able o ecall mo e i ems when hey lea n he wo ds in he ansla ion condi ion. Simila ly, G ace (1998) also ga e suppo o ansla ion esul ing in lea ne s e aining mo e wo ds. In his s udy, ansla ion was conside ed he p e e ed op ion o he FL beginne s since i p o ided an oppo uni y o lea ne s o double check he meanings o wo ds. Conside ing young beginne s, Sieh (2008) conduc ed a s udy aiming a in es iga ing he way child en p ocess and s o e English ocabula y in ini ial s ages o FL lea ning. Mo e speci ically, he s a us o he L1 in FL ocabula y lea ning was explo ed by measu ing he s uden s’ accu acy and hei eac ion imes in ela ion o isual and audi o y s imuli. Six y- ou 9-yea -old s uden s om a subu ban elemen a y school in sou he n Taiwan ook pa a s o y- elling p og amme ocused on explici ocabula y eaching. The expe imen al and he con ol g oup we e disc imina ed by a pedagogical di e ence: The o me was ins uc ed only in English whe eas he la e was p o ided wi h he Chinese ansla ion equi alen s o he selec ed English ocabula y. Resul s o he s udy showed ha lea ne s who we e exposed o L1 ansla ions no only gained mo e new wo ds bu hey we e also quicke in wo d e ie al. The au ho ’s conclusion is ha he ac ha he wo languages we e connec ed ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 115 Aïda Codina Camó & Elisabe Plade all Balles e DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 made no only e en ion o bu also he access o English ocabula y much mo e e ec i e. Finally, aking in o conside a ion age, Maca o and Lee (2013) explo ed whe he English only ins uc ion o using he L1 was di e en ially bene icial o young and adul lea ne s ega ding ocabula y lea ning and e en ion. Elemen a y school child en who had been s udying English o a ew yea s and adul s a uni e si y wi h demons ably highe le els o p o iciency we e selec ed o examine whe he he e ec s o using L1 as a ocabula y lea ning p ac ice a ied ac oss con as i e age g oups. Findings o his s udy sugges ha al hough he use o he L1 was shown o be mo e help ul o young lea ne s han o olde ones, bo h age g oups bene i ed mo e om linking lexical i ems o hei L1 ansla ion han om being p o ided wi h de ini ions o pa aph ases. All in all, esea ch seems o gi e e idence o conside he L1 o be a use ul ool when app oaching ocabula y lea ning, bo h o young and adul lea ne s, al hough p e ious s udies on he use o L1 ansla ion wi h young lea ne s a e pa icula ly sca ce. This s udy aims o con ibu e new young lea ne s’ da a o he ield by analysing sho and long- e m e en ion o and access o FL lexical i ems wi h and wi hou he use o he lea ne s’ L1. 3. Me hodology 3.1. Pa icipan s A o al o 34 s uden s om wo i h g ade g oups o a Ca alan p ima y school ook pa in he p esen s udy. The pupils we e all aged be ween 10 and 11 a he ime o he s udy. The wo g oups we e dis inguished by a di e en ins uc ional p ac ice in ela ion o explici ocabula y eaching. Du ing he s udy, he con ol g oup was ins uc ed in English only whe eas he expe imen al g oup was p o ided wi h he L1 ansla ion o he chosen lexical i ems. The con ol g oup was composed o 16 s uden s (7 male and 9 emale) and he expe imen al g oup consis ed o 18 pa icipan s (8 male and 10 emale). All he child en pa icipa ing in he s udy had Ca alan as hei L1and English was a o eign language o all o hem. All he subjec s s a ed cu icula English ins uc ion when hey we e i e yea s old and om ha age on hey had been exposed o h ee hou s o English as a Fo eign Language (EFL) a week. Apa om hese ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 116 The e ec s o using L1 ansla ion on young lea ne s’ o eign ... DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 cu icula hou s o English, some o he pa icipan s epo ed ha hey we e o had been a ending ex a English lessons. In he con ol g oup, he e we e 10 s uden s a ending ex a classes and 6 who had ne e a ended hem. As o he expe imen al g oup, 11 s uden s had a ended hem and 7 had no . Hence, he pe cen age o s uden s a ending and no a ending p i a e lessons is balanced be ween he wo g oups. Among he pa icipan s who epo ed a ending ex a-cu icula lessons, a g ea a iabili y in he numbe o hou s pe week as well as in he numbe o mon hs/yea s ha child en had been exposed o hese lessons was obse ed. As o he numbe o hou s pe week, ex a exposu e o English ep esen ed, in he as majo i y o cases, as li le as 1 hou o , a he mos , wo hou s a week. Wi h ega ds o he leng h o ime, o child en who had been a ending ex a lessons, alues anged om 5 mon hs o 4 yea s, al hough many o he ones who had been in ol ed in hese lessons o yea s epo ed ha hei a endance had been i egula . 3.2. Ma e ials, design and p ocedu e Explici ocabula y eaching h ough s o y elling was he p ac ice employed in o de o in es iga e whe he he use o he mo he ongue in ocabula y eaching helps lea ne s e ain and access new wo ds in a mo e e ec i e way. The chosen s o y o he s udy was The Tale o Pe e Rabbi (Po e , 1902), om which a o al o 20 lexical i ems we e selec ed o be explici ly augh . The chosen lexical i ems we e p esen ed h ough a s o y as s o ies o e meaning ul and ich inpu while hey also help inc ease he lea ne s’ le el o mo i a ion, in e es , enjoymen and pleasu e owa ds ocabula y lea ning. The Tale o Pe e Rabbi was conside ed sui able o he pu pose o he s udy o wo easons. Fi s , i p esen s a simple plo which would enable s uden s o ocus no only on he s o y line bu also on he selec ed ocabula y. Secondly, he ac ha he s o y de elops in a u al se ing helped inding many speci ic ocabula y i ems ha we e mos ce ainly no p e iously known by he subjec s. Such a ac was u he assu ed wi h he adminis a ion o a p e- es (see Appendix B and u he explana ion in his sec ion). Ini ially, s o y elling was supposed o be ca ied ou using only some lashca ds wi h images o di e en scenes o he s o y. The exe cise ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 117 Aïda Codina Camó & Elisabe Plade all Balles e DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 o elling he s o y was pilo ed wi h a di e en g oup o 10 yea -olds. The use o lashca ds made he lesson no e y dynamic and “ a he bo ing”, as epo ed by some o he child en. I was e y di icul o g asp hei a en ion, as hey would s op lis ening and would e en s a alking among hemsel es. The pilo s udy indica ed ha he s o y migh ha e been oo simple in e ms o plo o hold he in e es o 10 yea -olds o else ha he non-dynamic na u e o lashca ds was seen as ex emely un ashionable o kids who ha e g own up su ounded by echnology. Ha ing hese conside a ions in mind, a second pilo expe imen was conduc ed, his ime using a ideo o he ale o p esen he s o y and lashca ds o some i ems ha would be used no o explain he s o y bu o emphasize he selec ed ocabula y. A lashca d con aining an image and i s spelling coun e pa was designed o each o he 20 i ems o be es ed (see Appendix A). This second pilo esul ed in all he s uden s ca e ully lis ening o he s o y. They e en asked o he s o y o be played again. Hence, using a ideo2 o p esen he s o y was selec ed as he p ac ice o be used in he ac ual s udy. Ha ing all he ma e ials eady o he s udy, a ocabula y es was adminis e ed as an achie emen es o ensu e ha he wo ini ially selec ed g oups we e compa able. The es was designed adap ing some exe cises om he ex book he pa icipan s used in hei p e ious school yea : Inc edible English 3 (Phillips and Mo gan, 2007). S uden s we e gi en di e en se s o 5 o 8 hema ically ela ed images wi h a o al o 32 which hey had o ma ch wi h hei co esponding spelling. The esul s o he ocabula y es in each g oup we e compa ed by means o an independen samples - es . Al hough he expe imen al g oup sco ed sligh ly highe (M= 17.84, SD= 2.62) han he con ol g oup (M= 16.99, SD= 2.40), he di e ence was no s a is ically signi ican : (34)=.985, p=.332. Once he wo g oups we e shown o be compa able in e ms o hei capaci y o e ain ocabula y, a bioda a ques ionnai e aiming a ga he ing in o ma ion on he age, gende , educa ional backg ounds and linguis ic habi s o he pa icipan s was gi en o all he subjec s (see sec ion 3.1 o he esul s). In addi ion, a p e- es was ca ied ou o make su e he pa icipan s we e no amilia wi h he selec ed lexical i ems p io o ins uc ion (see Appendix B and sec ion 4 o he esul s). The p e- es included he 20 key i ems om he s o y which we e di ided in o h ee pa s so as o he young lea ne s o be able o quickly make hei choice among six o eigh pic u es. S uden s had o lis en o a eco ding and numbe a se o lexical ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 124 The e ec s o using L1 ansla ion on young lea ne s’ o eign ... DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 could ins ead make use o he L1-FL connec ion wi h which hey we e p o ided du ing ins uc ion, managed no only o main ain he numbe o igh answe s o pos - es I bu o inc ease i . On he o he hand, he con ol g oup ailed o make such connec ion and hus, hey wen h ough a memo y dec ease. Conside ing he las pos - es , al hough om pos - es II o pos - es III he expe imen al g oup also unde wen a wo d dec ease, his was s a is ically di e en om he mo e conside able dec ease demons a ed by he con ol g oup. In ac , conside ing he o e all g oup e olu ion, no s a is ically signi ican di e ences we e ound be ween pos - es I and pos - es III o he expe imen al g oup whe eas he wo d dec ease om hese wo es s was signi ican o he g oup ha was no p o ided wi h he L1 equi alen s o he a ge lexical i ems. In connec ion o he i s esea ch ques ion, such a ac implies ha p o iding young lea ne s wi h bo h he L1 and he FL o ms o lexical i ems does ha e an impac on hei ocabula y gain since he connec ion o he wo languages a he lexical le el seems o make e en ion o English ocabula y easie . Resea ch has ound ha since lea ne s exposed o a o eign language possess a well-es ablished L1 concep ual and lexical sys em, FL wo ds a e likely o be linked o he al eady exis ing L1 concep ual ep esen a ions. The ac ha his s udy was ca ied ou wi h young lea ne s gi es u he suppo o p edic he pa icipan s’ eliance on he L1 ansla ions since i has been a es ed ha s ong links be ween a concep and i s L1 lexical ep esen a ion exis a ini ial s ages o o eign language lea ning (K oll, 1993; K oll and S ewa , 1994; K oll and Sunde man, 2003; Ke s en, 2010; Maca o and Lee, 2013). Consequen ly, and as i has been shown in he p esen s udy, L1 ansla ion eaching p ac ice enhances he connec ion be ween he FL and he L1 wo d o ms and ul ima ely acili a es young lea ne s’ e en ion o new ocabula y. The in e iews ca ied ou in he p esen s udy lend u he suppo o he claim ha pa icipan s p o ided wi h he L1 ansla ion accessed he FL wo ds h ough hei L1. The lea ne s’ limi ed p o iciency in English s eng hened hei eliance on he L1 and hey we e able o e ain mo e wo ds p ecisely because hey could ma ch he FL o ms di ec ly o hei al eady exis ing L1 men al ep esen a ions. S uden s in he con ol g oup we e no p o ided wi h he L1 du ing ins uc ion and his made wo d access and e en ion slowe and mo e di icul . This was shown by hei subs an ial dec ease in ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 125 Aïda Codina Camó & Elisabe Plade all Balles e DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 lexical e en ion om pos - es I o pos - es II and e en mo e ega ding pos - es III. As a as lexical access is conce ned and in ela ion o esea ch ques ion (2), he ac ha he con ol g oup would ma ch wo ds di ec ly o hei co esponding pic u es and he expe imen al g oup had o p ocess one mo e s ep accessing he L1 ansla ion equi alen s could well lead o he p edic ion ha he con ol g oup would p oduce sho e eac ion imes. Ne e heless, and in line wi h p e ious esea ch (Sieh, 2008) esul s o he compu e ised es s showed ha using he L1 in conjunc ion wi h he FL in eaching FL ocabula y was also bene icial in e ms o lexical access since pa icipan s in he expe imen al g oup had sho e eac ion imes. Again, he s onge connec ion o he FL wo d o ms o L1 ep esen a ions in he expe imen al g oup made hem ou pe o m he con ol g oup also in e ms o speed o lexical access. As poin ed ou by Snodg ass (1993), connec ing a FL wo d o i s ansla ed equi alen yields a eac ion ime ad an age o FL–L1 ansla ion. Since FL wo d o ms a e connec ed o L1 ep esen a ions in ea ly o eign language lea ning, he wo g oups had o loca e he phonological cues o he L1 ansla ion equi alen s be o e he pic u e-decision was made. As sugges ed by Sieh (2008), he ac ha he con ol g oup p oduced longe eac ion imes is linked o hem ha ing o unde go a u he p ocess: si ua ing he L1 ep esen a ions o he FL wo ds. On he o he hand, he expe imen al g oup managed o espond as e because o hei eadily- ma ched connec ion o English phonological o ms o hei L1 ansla ion equi alen s. Thus, ins uc ion ha p o ides s uden s wi h he connec ion o FL wo ds in o L1 o ms seems o ha e a posi i e ole o young o eign language lea ne s in e ms o bo h e en ion and access. A numbe o limi a ions a e acknowledged in he p esen s udy. Fi s , al hough he ime spen in each o he ins uc ion sessions was he same o bo h g oups, he expe imen al g oup ine i ably ecei ed mo e exposu e o he a ge lexical i ems as hey we e exposed o bo h he L1 and FL wo d o ms o each i em. Secondly, he ac ha s uden s we e adminis e ed ou es s ha ing he same o ma (p e- es , pos - es I, pos - es II and pos - es III) could be conside ed a ac o a ec ing hei es - aking abili ies in ha al hough hey we e no gi en eedback on hei pe o mance, hey acqui ed p ac ice in illing in his kind o es . Mo eo e , he lexical i ems ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 126 The e ec s o using L1 ansla ion on young lea ne s’ o eign ... DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 we e andomly a anged in he di e en es s ca ied ou h oughou he s udy, which mean ha ine i ably some lexical combina ions could ha e been easie o pa icipan s o ma ch. Also, he usage o pic u es o p esen ocabula y as well as he w i en inpu included in he lashca ds could ha e played a ole in young lea ne s’ ocabula y e en ion ha may ha e diminished he L1-yes e sus L1-no ac o . As o he compu e ised es , pa icipan s had o make hei choice among wo pic u es, which mean ha hey possibly had o access he wo d- o m o bo h lexical i ems o be able o decide which one ma ched he audi o y s imulus hey had been gi en. Such a ac mean ha he RTs did no accu a ely show whe he he ime used o ma ch he audi o y and he pic o ial s imuli included he access o one o wo lexical i ems. Finally, i would ha e been in e es ing o adminis e a w i en es in which s uden s had o p o ide he L1 ansla ion o he lexical i ems o see whe he he pa icipan s no p o ided wi h he ansla ion du ing ins uc ion could eally come up wi h he equi alen s, and hence, o explo e whe he hey elied jus on he image o whe he hey eally unde s ood he meaning o he concep s. Fu he esea ch on his opic could include compa ing he p ac ice o using L1 equi alen s e sus English-only ins uc ion in child en o di e en ages, o ins ance p e and pos c i ical pe iod child en, in o de o see whe he he use o he L1 is equally bene icial in di e en young age g oups. I would also be in e es ing o look a mo e ad anced le els since i seems clea ha he FL is connec ed o he L1 a he ini ial s ages o he lea ning p ocess, bu i seems ha as he lea ne becomes mo e ad anced, eliance on he L1 dec eases. 6. Conclusion The p esen s udy aimed a explo ing he ole he L1 plays in young lea ne s’ e en ion o and access o English ocabula y. Mo e speci ically, he s udy has a emp ed o de e mine (1) whe he he use o L1 ansla ion aids sho and long- e m ocabula y e en ion and (2) whe he he L1 ac s as a acili a o in e ms o lexical access. Da a we e ob ained om a p e- es and h ee pos - es s o explo e di e ences be ween and wi hin he g oups in ela ion o ocabula y gain and memo y e ec s. A compu e ised es was conduc ed o measu e ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 127 Aïda Codina Camó & Elisabe Plade all Balles e DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 possible di e ences be ween he g oups in ela ion o lexical access. In line wi h p e ious esea ch ca ied ou in o eign language ocabula y lea ning, esul s o he p esen s udy showed s a is ically signi ican di e ences in he ou comes o he wo con as i e ins uc ional p ac ices, bene i ing he g oup who had been ins uc ed using he L1 ansla ion equi alen s. Da a collec ed om eco ded in e iews ca ied ou wi h he pa icipan s also de e mined om a mo e quali a i e poin o iew he s ong endency o s uden s o eso o he L1 when accessing he FL lexical i ems. Resul s a e accoun ed o by he ac ha du ing he ea ly s ages o o eign language lea ning he FL lexis seems o be mos likely o ganised in subo dina ion o he L1 men al lexicon. To conclude, al hough he use o he L1 is o en neglec ed in he o eign language class oom, he p esen s udy sugges s ha he mo he ongue can be used as a bene icial a he han a de imen al ool o p omo e o eign language ocabula y lea ning. No es 1 A p e ious e sion o his a icle was submi ed as a BA disse a ion in he Depa amen de Filologia Anglesa i de Ge manís ica a Uni e si a Au ònoma de Ba celona, Spain in June 2014 and is a ailable a h ps://ddd.uab.ca /pub/ g/2014/123365/TFG_aidacodina.pd 2 h ps://www.you ube.com/wa ch? =Mis UJX3QGU 3 h p://www.wo ken.com.b 4 The le el o signi icance will be p < 0.05 all h oughou he analysis. Re e ences Anu hama, B. (2010). S a egies o Teaching Vocabula y. Jou nal o NELTA, 15(1-2): 10-15. Came on, L. (2001). Teaching Languages o Young Lea ne s. Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess. h p://dx.doi.o g/10.1017/CBO9780511733109 Campbell, L., Campbell B., and Dickinson, D. (2004). Teaching and lea ning h ough mul iple in elligences. 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Language Lea ning, 47(3): 507-546. h p:// dx.doi.o g/10.1111/0023-8333.00018 ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 131 Aïda Codina Camó & Elisabe Plade all Balles e DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 Appendices Appendix A: Flashca ds ROOT BASKET BLACKBERRIES UMBRELLA WOOD FIRE BAKERY NET RAKE PARSLEY LETTUCE CUCUMBER ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 132 The e ec s o using L1 ansla ion on young lea ne s’ o eign ... DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 GATE TOOLSHED TEARS SCARECROW FLOWERPOT WATERING CAN BEANS BUSH ELIA 15, 2015, pp. 109-134 133 Aïda Codina Camó & Elisabe Plade all Balles e DOI: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.12795/elia.2015.i15.06 Appendix B: P e- es Appendix C: Pos - es I