Language Learning Apps and Vocabulary Enhancement: Perceptions of Intermediate Level Students at Mianwali

Abstract

This study explores the perceptions of intermediate-level English Language Learners (ELLs) in Mianwali, Pakistan, regarding the use of Mobile-Assisted Language Learning (MALL) applications for vocabulary enhancement. Grounded in the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), the research employed a sequential explanatory mixed-methods design. Data was collected through a quantitative survey of 114 male students, followed by qualitative semi-structured interviews with 18 participants. While students found MALL moderately useful and relatively easy to use, their acceptance was heavily conditional. Participants demonstrated a strong preference for practical, content-rich features such as Urdu (L1) translations, contextualized example sentences, and offline accessibility. They overwhelmingly rejected gamification, viewing it as an inefficient use of limited time and mobile data. App adoption was constrained by infrastructural and economic barriers, primarily high data costs, frequent power outages, and poor internet connectivity. Furthermore, a critical “exam-system misalignment dilemma” emerged; students recognized that apps improved their general communicative competence but felt they were ineffective for passing traditional, grammar-heavy intermediate board examinations. The study concludes that in resource-constrained environments like Mianwali, MALL acceptance is driven less by technical novelty and more by socio-economic viability, teacher mediation, and assessment alignment. These insights advocate for the de-Westernization of TAM and suggest that developers and educators must prioritize offline functionality, L1 scaffolding, and syllabus aligned curation.