A Study on a Working Model for a Vocabulary List Based on Working Memory: Using Episodes From American TV Series

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to suggest a working model to use vocabulary lists (VL). When college students’ VLs were analyzed, it was found that they had made their lists simply for memorization. They were then given instruction about the relationship between working memory (WM) and a VL. In particular, the role of WM in language learning was explained, the relationship between WM and long-term memory (LTM) was emphasized and an explanation was given about how a VL can reduce the burden of WM. Nine participants were put into 3 groups (advanced, intermediate, and low-intermediate) with the task to make a VL and hand it in every week. Their VLs were analyzed and evaluated in terms of recall. First, all the groups learned the so called ‘connection’ between WM and LTM. Second, the participants realized that language knowledge or world knowledge could be retrieved from LTM. Third, they realized that non-linguistic or linguistic information is necessary for better memorization and recall. Consequently, their VLs were full of contents-related information, compared with their previous VLs. Even though each group showed different abilities in collecting relevant information, every group changed their approach to making a VL by improving it to support language development.