The effects of using music to teach vocabulary to beginning students of english as a foreign language

Abstract

Vocabulary learning is considered the basis for the acquisition of a language; therefore, this aspect needs to be given emphasis in English lessons by implementing new strategies, like music, to teach vocabulary. This research synthesis intended to describe the reported effects of music in the ambit of education, specifically on vocabulary learning. For this study, 17 empirical studies published since 2014 were analyzed in different categories that were selected on the basis of the research design and the research questions. Findings of this research revealed that the incorporation of music as a strategy to teach vocabulary generates positive effects on students (1) the enhancement of receptive and productive vocabulary, (2) development of long-term retention of new words, and (3) increase of motivation towards learning English. In addition, analyzed studies showed that the perceptions of both teachers and students tended to be positive towards the use of music in vocabulary lessons.