The Impact of Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) on High School Learners’ Lexical Knowledge

In the past, lexical knowledge was often given little priority in second language programs but recently there has been a growing interest in the nature of vocabulary, lexical knowledge, and it s role in learning and teaching. Although most teachers might be aware of the importance of technology, and computer, rarely do teachers use it for teaching vocabulary. Thus, the current study aimed at exploring the effects of CALL on lexical knowledge of Iranian EFL learners. In this study, 42 intermediate EFL learners were chosen randomly from two high schools, in Zanjan. They were divided into two twenty-one groups. The experimental group was given the CALL (computer-assisted language learning for teaching vocabularies), and P.P.P (power point presentation) that were provided by the researcher. The control group received no special software and vocabularies were taught using the traditional methods with the help of second grade high school book. A vocabulary pre-test based on the standard provincial and traditional high school questions were given to both groups. The aim of this test was to make sure that the learners were not familiar with the words in advance. By pre-test/ post-test comparison researcher found learners exposed to CALL application received higher scores in comparison to the control group. Both high-stake and low-stake holders can benefit from the findings of the study.