Proto-Speech Roots Hypothesis in English Vocabulary Teaching in Second Language Acquisition

Abstract

Vocabulary acquisition is the core and foundation of second language acquisition. This article puts forward a new method of English vocabulary teaching -- Proto-speech Root Hypothesis Method, which is based on the motivation of language -- the iconicity of sound and meaning. The main objective of the article is to discover the effect and learners’ attitudes on two vocabulary methods -- Proto-speech Root Hypothesis Method and Roots-affixes Method-- on learning the meaning of new English words by English majors in private universities in Henan Province, China. The research was conducted at two first-year classes of English majors in Shengda University, a famous private university in Henan. Two classes learned 100 new English words in two vocabulary methods within two weeks by Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) and then received an online vocabulary test. The result shows that the Proto-speech Root Hypothesis Method is better for remembering new words, and students tend to learn more of it in class.