Metalinguistic Vocabulary Initiative: A Padlet-Powered Solution for Revolutionizing Language Skills

Abstract

Vocabulary is an important part of a person’s language knowledge and mastery of the language. Traditional approaches fail to address such needs in the context of language education where proficiency is not simply a matter of memorizing forms and rules, but also of metalinguistic consciousness. This metalinguistic awareness in vocabulary benefits the student to think and analyze language as an abstract system. It makes them to understand and interpret the deeper meaning of words which aids in comprehension. Thus making them an excellent critical thinker and writers. Extant language instruction practices may be deemed ineffective, as they do not address metalinguistic awareness, which is part of language proficiency. This paper aims at provide knowledge on how integration of technology (Padlet) can transform language skills by creating an online learning space for language skills that is engaging, constructive, and discoverable. Through a quasi-experimental approach, the effectiveness of Padlet in comparison to traditional methods is examined, specifically focusing on its impact on metalinguistic vocabulary. 80 students were selected from a private college studying English as a compulsory subject Learners’ views on the incorporation of Padlet in collaborative learning is also examined. Findings show a significant improvement in the participant’s metalinguistic awareness, which supports Padlet’s proposed effectiveness for language instruction. This study provides important findings to educators who are looking for exciting strategies to promote Metalinguistic vocabulary awareness through technology-assisted learning environments such as Padlet.