Impact Of Nursery Rhymes on Vocabulary Enhancement: An Experimental Study of Primary Level Siraeki-Speaking English Language Learners

Abstract

Early English language acquisition is becoming a significant issue in multilingual societies in which English is used as a global language of education, technology and communication. Young Pakistani learners of Saraiki-speaking groups tend to have problems with learning English vocabulary as they have less exposure to it, the languages are phonologically different, and they depend on traditional rote learning. There is need therefore to use interactive and child-centred strategies to promote vocabulary development at the primary level. Nursery rhymes, having rhythmic and repetitive qualities that are characterized by music can play a significant role in providing meaningful linguistic material that adds to retention and pronunciation. The aim of the study was to study the effectiveness of instruction based on nursery rhyme in enhancing English vocabulary among primary-level learners speaking Saraiki as their first language. In particular, the study compared vocabulary learning of students learning in nursery rhymes and students learning with traditional teaching methods. The research design was quantitative experimental control and experimental groups with pre-test and post-test. The participants were learners of Saraiki in primary schools. Experimental group was to be taught structured English including the choice of nursery rhymes, and the control group was to be taught in the traditional methods of teaching vocabulary. Assessment was carried out with vocabulary recognition and recall tasks, and the data were analysed with the help of descriptive statistics and t-tests to identify in-group and inter-group differences. The results showed that the learners who were exposed to instruction based on nursery rhyme recorded higher enhancement in vocabulary acquisition as compared to their counterparts who were taught by use of conventional teaching techniques. The learning of rhymes seemed to be assisted by the repetitive and rhymic quality of the rhymes, memory, pronunciation and learner engagement. Early language teaching curriculum could be enhanced by incorporating rhyme-based activities into the teaching plans helping promote a more interesting, culturally flexible, and developmentally sensitive learning of the English language.