Form-Focused Instruction: A Comparative Study of General and Academic Vocabulary Learning in EFL Contexts

Abstract

While the benefits of form-focused instruction (FFI) for grammar and general vocabulary are well-documented, research on its impact on L2 academic vocabulary acquisition remains limited. This study examines the effects of focus-on-form (FonF) and focus-on-forms (FonFs) activities on learning both general and academic vocabulary in Korean EFL college contexts. One hundred twenty-eight participants, comprising 70 in the general vocabulary group and 58 in the academic vocabulary group, took part in the study. The FonF tasks involved fill-in-the-blank exercises using word lists with either L1 or L2 glosses while reading a passage. In contrast, the non-contrastive FonFs group focused on recognizing word meanings and completing sentences using L2 glosses, whereas the contrastive FonFs group engaged in translation tasks between L2 and L1. Results showed that the FonF group with L1 glosses achieved the highest gains in general vocabulary, while the contrastive FonFs group demonstrated the greatest improvement in academic vocabulary acquisition. Across all methods, L1 played a crucial role, aiding vocabulary retention in both FonF and FonFs tasks. These findings have important theoretical and pedagogical implications, offering insights into optimizing FFI methods for different types of vocabulary in L2 learning contexts.