The Motives of Pre-Service English Language Teachers for Utilizing a Jargon Book in a Methodology Course

Abstract

In an attempt to enhance learners' autonomy and create awareness of their own learning process, keeping a vocabulary notebook can be regarded as one of the most commonly used cognitive strategies. A jargon book, a kind of vocabulary notebook, consists of specialized terms that are used for conveying hidden meanings accepted and understood in a specific field. Researchers draw attention to the need for carrying out some studies on vocabulary notebooks to examine their effectiveness more closely. Therefore, the present study investigates the practices and perceptions of pre-service English language teachers on the strategy of keeping a jargon book. Data were collected through a semi-structured interview, an open-ended questionnaire and focus-group interviews. The findings indicate that most of the participants exhibit positive attitudes towards the strategy of keeping a jargon book. The present study implies that the strategy of keeping a vocabulary notebook can be incorporated to the classes of pre-service English language teachers in order to make them familiar with the specialized terms found in the field of English language teacher education.