Exploring EFL Learners Vocabulary Learning Strategies At Darussalam Islamic Institute

Abstract

The capability to master vocabulary constitutes the crucial spot in the acquisition of the English language besides four basic skills. In the process of learning the English language, the students of English as Second Language (ESL) or English as a foreign language (EFL) have difficulties achieving the English vocabulry. One of the basic skills that should be mastered by students of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) is vocabulary mastery as the basic unit to support the understanding of the English learning process. This study is focused on several aims Those are to figure out the features of vocabulary learning strategies made by the EFL students of Darussalam Islamic institute, to find the most strategy used by EFL students of Darussalam Islamic institute, the last is to know the least common vocabulary learning strategy made by EFL learners at Darussalam Islamic Institute.The study was carried out to 61 students as samples to collect the data. The majority of the respondent is female which is about 53 respondents and the rest is 8 male respondents from two classes in which each class consist of 30 students.The data collection involved several instruments, namely observation, questionnaire, and interview. The observation was done in the process of teaching and learning activities in the first semester intensively and attentionally to know the language learning activities of the target respondents. Afterward, a set of questionnaires was adapted based on Schmitt‘s (1997) taxonomy which is determination strategy (DET), social strategy (SOC), memory strategy (MEM), cognitive strategy (COG), and metacognitive strategy (MET). The 33 questions from 58 questions are adapted. To achieve the three purposes of the present study, the data were analyzed by using all data in this study. The researcher took and moved the results of the questionnaire from spreadsheet to Microsoft excel 2010, then analyzed the data to explore EFL vocabulary learning strategies by using Microsoft excel 2010 with the =average formula. the overall implication of vocabulary learning strategies indicated that the most strategy applied is a cognitive strategy which is preferably used strategy by EFL learners with the highest total average score among others 3.27. And the least vocabulary learning strategy used is social strategies with the average lowest total average score of 2.49.And the features shown by the respondebt are they tend to use a mechanical means. In which, those ways are taking a note in class for finding the new word in the teaching-learning process, writing word lists can facilitate the learners in vocabulary learning by sorting the vocabulary alphabetically. They also give characteristics like analyzing any available pictures and gestures and sometimes analyzing part of speech.