Yabancı Diller Yüksekokulu'nda İngilizceyi yabancı dil olarak öğrenen Türk öğrencilerinin kelime öğrenme stratejileri: Necmettin Erbakan Üniversitesi örneği

The purpose of this study is to explore the vocabulary learning strategies used by Turkish EFL learners in the School of Foreign Languages at Necmettin Erbakan University. The aim is to find out the most and the least frequently used strategies and to identify the differences in strategy use between gender, high school graduation, academic major, compulsory or selective English courses and vocabulary learning strategies. The study was conducted at Necmettin Erbakan University School of Foreign Languages with the participation of 169 students. The Vocabulary Learning Strategies (VLS) questionnaire used in this study was designed by Gu and Johnson (1996) and Gu (2005), and was a modified version by Kulikova (2015). The VLS questionnaire was adapted and translated into Turkish by the researcher. According to the results, the most frequently used category of vocabulary learning strategies is cognitive strategies. The great majority of participants reported using dictionary strategies most frequently whereas the least frequently used category of vocabulary learning strategies is rehearsal strategies. The statistical analyses of the results through SPSS indicated no statistically significant relationship between Turkish EFL learners' gender, high school graduation, academic major, compulsory or selective English courses and their vocabulary learning strategies. However, there was a difference between the strategies preferred by Turkish EFL learners according to the variables. The results are discussed and theoretical, and pedagogical implications are offered. Keywords: Vocabulary Learning Strategies, gender, academic major