Using Constructivism to Explore Students’ Perspectives on Learning Mandarin Lexical

  • Lee Hui Ling Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan
  • Jamilah Shaari Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan
  • Atirah Izzah Che Abas Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, University Malaysia Kelantan
  • Kamarulzaman Abdul Ghani Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan
Keywords: Constructivist Learning Theory; Lexical; Mandarin; Foreign Language; Teaching Methods

Abstract

Teaching lexical items plays an important role in second or foreign language classroom. There has been a dramatic increase in studies done on the importance of adopting the right methods to introduce the students with lexical items considering the central role that lexis plays in any languages. The purpose of this study is to investigate the students’ perspective on the Constructivist Learning Theory in learning Mandarin lexical more effectively. Nine types of teaching methods introduced in this study are: (1) compare and contrast, (2) word wall, (3) note taking and summarising, (4) recitation, (5) cues, question and activating prior knowledge, (6) role play, (7) non-linguistic representation, (8) homework and practice, and (9) analysis of students' work and discussion. Descriptive survey method which involves questionnaires was employed and 35 participants were selected for this study. The findings revealed that the students perceived note taking and summarising as well as homework and practice as the most helpful methods for learners to minimize the negative transfer of their mother tongue in Mandarin lexis learning. They also mentioned that note taking and summarising were the most interesting methods as compared to other methods whereas homework and practice was most effective for them. It is recommended that foreign language instructors in Malaysian higher education institution to keep updated on the current approach in introducing lexical items in an effective and interesting manner.

Author Biographies

Lee Hui Ling, Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan

Lee Hui Ling is a Mandarin language lecturer at the Department of Third Languages, Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan (UMK).  She received her bachelor degree in Tionghoa Studies from Universiti Malaya (UM) and master degree in Art from the same university.

Jamilah Shaari, Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan

Jamilah Shaari is an English language lecturer at the Department of English Language, Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, University Malaysia Kelantan (UMK). She received her bachelor degree in TESL from Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) and her master degree in Applied Linguistics from Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM).

Atirah Izzah Che Abas, Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, University Malaysia Kelantan

Atirah Izzah Che Abas is an English language lecturer at the Department Of English Language, Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, University Malaysia Kelantan (UMK). She received her bachelor degree in TESL from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and her master degree in TESL from the same university.

Kamarulzaman Abdul Ghani, Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan

Kamarulzaman Abdul Ghani is an Associate Professor of Arabic language and Deputy Director (Academic and Internationalisation) at the Centre for Language Studies and Generic Development, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan (UMK). He received his bachelor degree in Arabic Language from Al-Azhar University, master degree in Linguistics (Arabic) from Cairo University and PhD in Arabic Language Education from Universiti Malaya (UM).

Published
2019-07-03
How to Cite
Ling, L. H., Shaari, J., Che Abas, A. I., & Abdul Ghani, K. (2019). Using Constructivism to Explore Students’ Perspectives on Learning Mandarin Lexical. International Online Journal of Language, Communication, and Humanities, 2(1), 58-73. Retrieved from http://insaniah.umk.edu.my/journal/index.php/insaniah/article/view/44
Issue
Vol 2 No 1 (2019): INSANIAH
Section
Articles

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