citation AsiaCALL Online Journal Received: 19/10/2021 ISSN 1936-9859; https://asiacall.info/acoj Revision: 05/12/2021 Vol. 13, No.1, 2022 Accepted: 12/12/2021 pp. 150-165 Online: 17/12/2021 CITATION | Nguyen, T. T., Nguyen, D. T., Nguyen, D. L. Q. K., Mai, H. H., Le, T. T. X., & Dao, N. A. D. (2020). Quizlet as a Tool for Enhancing Autonomous Learning of English Vocabulary. AsiaCALL Online Journal, 13(1), 150-165. DOI: https://doi.org/10.54855/acoj221319 Quizlet as a Tool for Enhancing Autonomous Learning of English Vocabulary Nguyen Thanh Thuy1*, Nguyen Dinh Tri1, Nguyen Dang Le Quoc Khanh1, Mai Huy Hoang1, Le Thi Thanh Xuan1, Dao Nguyen Anh Duc1 1 Banking University Ho Chi Minh City, Faculty of Foreign Languages, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam *Correspondence: Nguyen Thanh Thuy, Banking University Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. E-mail: nguyenthanhthuy120501@gmail.com DOI: https://doi.org/10.54855/acoj221319 ABSTRACT L2 vocabulary learning seems to be one of the biggest challenges for many language major students as lexical knowledge involves productive understanding of its many components, including the form, meaning, and application of the terms (Nation, 2001). It is, therefore, necessary to find appropriate language education tactics and instruments for the successful and efficient acquisition of this aspect of the L2. Among advancements in the field of educational technology, Quizlet was invented with the hope that learners could effectively acquire L2 vocabulary in the absence of the teacher. In this study, the researchers want to figure out if Quizlet is helpful in assisting students in learning English vocabulary. They would also like to identify the difficulties that learners may encounter when using the application for their self-study. A quantitative survey was conducted on 100 English major freshmen and sophomores at a university in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Results reveal that Quizlet plays an active role in facilitating self-study of English vocabulary. A remarkable finding is that an application seems to provide an entertaining learning environment, which in turn enhances learning motivation. Besides, a couple of limitations of the app, namely distracting ads and limited mobile learning functionality, have also been identified. Keywords: Quizlet, autonomous learning, English vocabulary 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the study Nowadays, students are referred to as "Digital Natives" since they are comfortable with technology, computers, and the Internet, as well as video games (Prensky, 2001). That has resulted in the necessity of applying information technology (IT) to teach and learn. In addition, technology has played an essential role in English teaching and learning for many countries in the world (Eady & Lockyer, 2013). It has been used to help teachers adjust to activities in class. Also, learners enhance the language learning process and improve their skills in a short time by utilizing technology and its services. The learning of vocabulary is a critical element in enhancing knowledge and reading https://doi.org/10.54855/acoj221319 https://doi.org/10.54855/acoj221319 ACOJ- ISSN 1936-9859 AsiaCALL Online Journal Vol. 13; No. 1; 2022 151 comprehension of a second language (L2). Yet, this is perhaps the biggest challenge for many linguistic students because vocabulary knowledge involves a productive understanding of its many components, including the form, meaning, and application of the term (Nation, 2001). Thanks to the help of Quizlet, students may efficiently self-study vocabulary, resulting in significant vocabulary improvements (Thi & Satomi, 2021). Recently, to keep up with the trends and encourage students to approach IT, Vietnamese teachers have also recommended that students use Quizlet to acquire English vocabulary as a better way to learn English. According to Rohmatillah research (2014), students faced a lot of difficulties when they learned vocabulary. It is hard to approach quickly in a short time because they have never discovered the drive and excitement to face the challenge of acquiring new English knowledge. Finding the most appropriate language education tactics and instruments for effective learning vocabulary is necessary. Van et al. (2021) identified that technology could help students learn English productively. Besides, knowledge also could learn from technology more easily if they took advantage of its usability. For these reasons, this paper would give students the advantages of utilizing Quizlet in developing vocabulary acquisition, especially BUH Language freshmen and sophomores. It is necessary to give them insights into adopting the Quizlet trending learning method. 1.2 Research objectives In this study, specific aspects of using Quizlet in vocabulary acquisition will be explored. Next, the study would figure out if the Quizlet application is helpful in assisting students in learning L2. Furthermore, we want to identify the difficulties which students can have when they use Quizlet. 1.3 Significance of the study From the helpfulness and difficulties of using Quizlet in acquiring vocabulary and some data collected, we will assess the level of effectiveness when students apply Quizlet to learning. To sum up, all of the results in this research might help students, who major in the English language at Banking University, make the best of the benefits from Quizlet in boosting students’ L2 learning motivation and autonomy. 1.4 Research question To fulfill the purpose of the study, the survey sought to answer the following research questions: How do the learners use Quizlet for vocabulary? How effectively does Quizlet help learners with vocabulary? What are the difficulties when learners use Quizlet? https://asiacall.info/acoj Nguyen, T. T. et al. Vol. 13; No. 1; 2022 152 2. LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 General overview of Quizlet According to Wright (2016), Quizlet is a digital flashcards platform that allows users to construct their flashcards and study them through various learning modes. It is one of the most popular flashcards programs, with over fifty million monthly users as well as over four hundred users--generated study sets (Matthew, 2019). Currently, with different types of learning modes, Quizlet gives the student interest in trying out various modes and provides them with 'richer ways' to study (Ravipati, 2017). Table 1. Features of Quizlet Features Description Mobile App Learn There are three types of tasks: Flashcard, multiple-choice item, and typing the required answer. Users can personalize this activity by selecting one of the three options. Available Flashcards Users can create their flashcards. It could optionally be added self- explanation, audio,... Digital flashcards can be flipped by mouse clicks or tabs on screens to show definitions or visuals that illustrate the term. Available Spell After listening to the audio prompts, learners are required to type the words correctly. If the word is spelled incorrectly, the correct answer will be read letter by letter while appearing on the scene. Not available Write Users are given some space to write the definition or meaning of a word learned in ‘flashcards’ functions. Available Test Four types of tests are included: true/false, multiple-choice, matching, and typing the answer. Learners can customize this activity. Available Match Learners will join in a game that needs to match keywords to their definitions (or accompanying visuals) as rapidly as possible. When learners complete each question, the app will show the score and rank among other learners. Available Gravity Another game in which the terms emerge on approaching asteroids. Before the falling asteroid hits the planet, students must type the corresponding definition of the term. Not Available Live This is a feature that needs four or more people. Students will need to connect to http://quizlet.com/live and input the code provided by the teachers. Participating in the teacher's activity, students will have to team up to compete with the other group. Not Available http://quizlet.com/live ACOJ- ISSN 1936-9859 AsiaCALL Online Journal Vol. 13; No. 1; 2022 153 2.2 The effectiveness of Quizlet in the acquisition of vocabulary To begin with, motivation may be defined as combining both the desire for language acquisition and the desire to learn the language (Gardner, 1985, cited by Alizadeh, 2016). Many previous studies proved that Quizlet could create a motivation to arouse interest in learning from within students' consciousness. According to Rezaei et al. (2014), the mode of Quizlet activity method was an ideal medium for making students enjoy learning the words. It was indicated that students were motivated to acquire vocabulary when they applied it. Some of the interview's findings (Anjaniputra & Salsabila, 2018) have proved that Quizlet provided a new, enjoyable way of vocabulary learning for students due to various features of the application. Those aspects provided a fun experience for students to sense a new method of learning. In Skattenborg’s research (2020), teachers thought Quizlet was effective when they utilized it appropriately. It was good for repetition, motivating pupils, and varying the lessons. Students also believed Quizlet was motivating and added variety to their learning process. Besides motivation, another benefit of Quizlet is to promote active learning. Active learning consists of short course-related individual or small-group activities that all students in a class were called upon to do, alternating with instructor-led intervals (Felder & Brent, 2009). Thus, to learn vocabulary, only using a motivation to boost up oneself perhaps is not enough. According to many studies, more learners are interested in autonomous learning. These researches indicated that the Quizlet application gave learners the freedom to learn on their computers and cellphones (Vargas, 2011; Barr, 2016; Kálecký, 2016); students took advantage of benefit from the "spell section" to enhance their word spelling (Vargas, 2011; Kálecký, 2016) and students may focus their progress and discover where parts of their vocabulary were lacking (Kálecký, 2016). Furthermore, Korlu & Mede (2018) stated that Quizlet effectively helped the students' performance and made them more self-governing in learning vocabulary since the design of Quizlet was appropriate for autonomous learners. Setiawan & Wiedarti (2020) also demonstrated that students felt more enthusiastic, did not get bored, and showed a high level of interest when they could self-study vocabulary using the Quizlet application. Next, Quizlet is effective in allowing the students to improve their achievement. Among various study modes available in Quizlet, Franciosi (2017) stated that game-based learning on Quizlet could significantly promote English vocabulary acquisition. The research outcome showed that many students held more optimistic views about using Quizlet game-based learning platform to build up their TOEIC vocabulary and exhibited considerably greater confidence in their TOEIC satisfactory test marks. On the other hand, Lees and Mcnee (2015) also indicated that students who utilized the Quizlet application were more motivated than those who did not. The overall score earned by the user of the application was much greater than that of the non-user. According to Chien (2015), students found online vocabulary websites, particularly Quizlet, stimulating and useful for vocabulary acquisition. Participants in his study also thought that utilizing Quizlet boosted their language knowledge. According to Korkealehto and Siklander (2018), who based their findings on students' diary entries and questionnaire replies, students thought Quizlet improved their writing and oral language skills. Similarly, Nguyen and Vo's https://asiacall.info/acoj Nguyen, T. T. et al. Vol. 13; No. 1; 2022 154 (2021) research participants also improved their language abilities by utilizing English learning applications like Quizlet. Quizlet may greatly improve academic vocabulary acquisition. Students could find the learning experience to be more pleasant and beneficial, which motivated them to spend time studying on their own with Quizlet (Gilbert, 2016). In addition, Sanosi (2018) discovered that by using the Quizlet application via a smartphone, students might learn new words themself. In doing the assignments provided in Quizlet, both of the study's examinations showed that most students prefer to work independently and confidently with assignments given in the application on their own. 2.3 The challenges in using Quizlet Although Quizlet was a highly rated vocabulary learning platform, at the same time, there were limitations in the user experience. Some of its features were only available on the website rather than in mobile apps (Dizon, 2016). Like Wikipedia, Quizlet permitted everyone to make and share a study set, so there was no assurance the data was exact. One grammatical mistake in another person's cards could lead them to consider some wrong data, miss inquiries on a test, and get a poor quality they did not anticipate getting (Bri, 2019). Furthermore, some students appeared distracted while learning vocabulary and were occupied with different applications like Instagram and Facebook (Setiawan & Wiedarti, 2020). Besides, if students used Quizlet's free version, ads would be displayed on each website page (Bri, 2019). A few advertisements were barely noticeable; however, they could be oppressive. Thus, if students need the best taking-in experience from Quizlet, they should pay for extra administrations. In short, this section helped to find out the interplay between Quizlet and autonomous student learning and some aspects that have not been clarified in previous research. The researchers explored that Quizlet created an attractive environment for students in the acquisition of vocabulary. It provided many functions for students to get hold of vocabulary and boost them to improve their motivation. Moreover, students were more interested in using game-based learning than the non-game approach. Furthermore, although they were distracted by other platforms, there was no denying the fact that Quizlet played a vital role in enhancing learners' autonomy. However, almost all of the studies only focused on one specific group of students, and non-comparison have been made among the different groups. Thus, the purpose of this study is to conduct the filling gaps by comparing the result between freshmen and sophomores. In addition, this research is to establish if Quizlet can increase the effectiveness of L2 vocabulary learning and assess the experiences of two groups. ACOJ- ISSN 1936-9859 AsiaCALL Online Journal Vol. 13; No. 1; 2022 155 3. METHODS 3.1 Pedagogical Setting & Participants The research subjects included 100 Business English-major students in Banking University Ho Chi Minh City. The sample of this study was collected from 50 freshmen and 50 sophomores. All of the participants have experienced the English environment of the university. Most of the freshmen and sophomores were introduced to Quizlet by teachers. However, freshmen were new to it, while sophomores used it for a while. This difference helped the study assess how they apply Quizlet in learning vocabulary. Thus, the results collected from this sample can show the difference between freshmen and sophomores. 3.2 Design of the Study This study employed the quantitative research method through the mixture of non-experimental and cross-sectional study designs. Due to the nature of the research, the questionnaire was posted on Facebook groups and collected answers from participants once. The frequency of usage and attitudes in utilizing the Quizlet application were investigated and performed a retrospective based on students’ experiences. The data collection tools were a questionnaire in Google Forms combining a 5-point Likert scale. The content of the questionnaire was based on the research questions in this study and some ideas from the questionnaire of Gilbert’s research (2016). We modified and supplemented it to suit the reality of this study. The scale included 11 items related to the motivation and active learning factors affecting freshmen and sophomores’ vocabulary learning habits. On a 5-point Likert scale, response options were presented: ranging from strongly disagree, disagree, not sure, agree, and strongly agree. According to the characteristics of this study, quota sampling was applied because of the limited time for primary data collection. The procedure of collecting primary data lasted two weeks. It consisted of finding the general situation of students using Quizlet, creating a questionnaire, modifying it in line with the real situation, posting the official questionnaire on the Facebook forum to all of the participants, and receiving their responses in a week. https://asiacall.info/acoj Nguyen, T. T. et al. Vol. 13; No. 1; 2022 156 4. FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 4.1. Research question 1: How do the learners use Quizlet for vocabulary? 4.1.1 time Table 2. The percentage of the Quizlet time usage in Freshmen and Sophomore year (%) Freshmen Sophomores Under 20 minutes each week From 20 to 40 minutes each week From 40 to 60 minutes each week Above 60 minutes each week 37.50 33.33 12.5 16.67 58.18 27.27 9.09 5.46 Table 2 illustrates how much time students spent studying vocabulary on Quizlet outside of class. The majority of freshmen and sophomores did not use a considerable amount of time for Quizlet. Based on Figure 1, 37.5% of the freshmen and 58.2% of the sophomores spent less than 20 minutes each week. The percentage of sophomores increases by 20.7% percent more than freshmen. Notably, in the "20 to 40 minutes per week" and "40 to 60 minutes per week" average segments, the percentage of first-year students is also 6% higher than second-year students by 6% and 3.4%. In addition, a few of the students used more than one hour a week to study vocabulary, especially the sophomore (Freshman =16.7% and Sophomore= 5.5%). These findings show that most of the students in this study used Quizlet as a support mechanism for vocabulary development in addition to traditional learning methods, which is similar to the results found by Burston (2014). To explain why first-year students spend more time than second-year students, Nakata (2006) demonstrated that freshmen want to increase their motivation to learn and achieve. Thus, they improved their learning experience and the extent to which they remember what they have learned. However, the percentage shows that students have not yet chosen Quizlet as a habit to learn every day. Besides, they may spend their time on other works outside class. The evidence is the decreasing number of freshmen and sophomores studying from 20 to 40 minutes, 40 to 60 minutes, and above 60 minutes per week. The reason for this was explained logically by Jogja English Teachers Association (2018). They also found some activities that make students have no time to learn outside class, such as doing assignments, part-time jobs, and doing house chores. ACOJ- ISSN 1936-9859 AsiaCALL Online Journal Vol. 13; No. 1; 2022 157 4.1.2 Function Table 3. The percentage of the Quizlet functions usage of Freshmen and Sophomores (%) Freshmen Sophomores Flashcards Learn Test Spell Match Live 33.33 20 20 14.67 9.33 2.67 37.08 16.85 20.22 8.43 14.5 3.37 First, based on the data, the Flashcard rate is over 30%, but the Live rate is below 4%. In particular, the rate of Flashcard usage in the freshmen year is 33.33% and in the sophomore year is 37.1%, which is the highest percentage of Quizlet functions mentioned in the survey. In contrast, Live is the least chosen, with 2.7% in the freshman year and 3.4% in the sophomore year. Besides, there is a difference between the two research subjects in Match and Spell. First- year students like using Spell, but second-year students are interested in Match. According to the survey, students are interested in Flashcards more than other functions. Flashcard allows students to create a new study set every time they like easily. Thus, the figures show freshman and sophomore students tend to set up flashcards to learn vocabulary because of their essential capability. In addition, the customization of Flashcards helps students learn vocabulary that is not only requested by teachers but also requested by themselves. That is true with Agung Ginanjar Anjaniputra & Vina Aini Salsabila analysis (2018) about the benefits of Flashcard. For the Live function, the reason why the lowest percentage in both years is that students must pay money to use it. Most of the time, students only use Live in the classroom when their teacher creates Live game-based and gives the code to participants. However, the specific explanation for this has not been discovered in previous studies yet. Finally, there is a difference between the percentage of students who use Match and Spell. Spell function is used more among freshmen students because they do not have specialized vocabulary background, even if they don't know those words before. When using Spell, Quizlet helps them practice pronunciation and memorize vocabulary quickly. Students only touch the screen and match possible words and meanings together regarding the Match function. This function is both easy to use and saves time in line with the point of view that Hougham (2019) demonstrated. Thus Match is more suitable for students with a vocabulary background as sophomore students. Hence, from these findings, Quizlet functions can all help students acquire vocabulary effectively. Based on the results, most freshmen and sophomores tend to use Flashcards more than other functions because of the ease and convenience it brings. https://asiacall.info/acoj Nguyen, T. T. et al. Vol. 13; No. 1; 2022 158 4.2. Research question 2: How effectively does Quizlet help learners with vocabulary? 4.2.1 Motivation Figure 1. The mean value of students motivation in using Quizlet Based on the survey, it is found that the lowest mean score of both groups was the same item (Quizlet motivates me to spend more time learning vocabulary). In detail, the mean value is quite the same (M1=3.68, M2=3.48), which is at a moderate level. It indicates that most of the freshmen and sophomores did not spend much time using Quizlet to learn vocabulary. However, it is found that the motivation which Quizlet has brought back can not be denied, which is shown through the other items. The statement "Quizlet enhances my competence through group work activities in class" has the highest mean score from both groups (M1=4.06, M2=4.08). This can be considered that Quizlet is helpful in learning vocabulary and helps enhance students' learning performance and competitiveness, especially the Live function on the Quizlet application. Normal lessons in class will become more exciting with Quizlet digital games. In Forsythe's study (2016), he had applied Quizlet Live to his lessons and asked for the students' feedback. As expected, his students commented that they really enjoyed the game, and above all, Quizlet Live certainly helped them with vocabulary acquisition. Moreover, Quizlet Live can motivate students to consider autonomous study as a way to prepare for the game and, through that, increase the effectiveness of their classroom participation (Sophia, 2016). In general, the mean score of the survey is at a moderate to high level of approval. (3