The Impact of Podcasts on Students’ English Vocabulary Knowledge and Satisfaction: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Using podcasts has long been the source of benefit in education. Podcasts are now used for learning and teaching; however, some aspects are still uncovered. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the effect of using podcasts as instructional tools on English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners’ vocabulary knowledge and satisfaction towards listening to podcasts.
In this quasi-experimental study, a vocabulary pretest was given to 60 males intermediate EFL learners from Iran Language Institute (ILI) in Gonbad-e Kavus city, Iran, from October to November, 2017, to check their homogenity regarding their vocabulary knowledge. Then, they were divided into two experimental and control groups, each with 30 participants. The experimental group was instructed by the use of podcasts, but the control group continued with routine instruction. They were given a post-test to examine their knowledge of vocabulary. Also, to find out the students’ satisfactions towards podcasting, a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire with 8 items was given to the participants in the podcasting group. In addition to the Likert-scale questionnaire on their satisfaction, face-to-face interviews using probing questions were conducted with 8 participants. The collected data were analyzed through Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) version 20 using t-test. The p-value was considered at 0.05 level of significance.
The results revealed that the podcast group outperformed the control group in the post-test. The mean±SD for the control and experimental groups were 14.10±1.29 and 16.66±0.92, respectively (P=0.001). Then, the thematic analysis revealed four themes: (1) vocabulary achievement, (2) learning by listening, (3) learner choice and flexibility, and (4) podcasts as useful instructional tools.
The findings suggest that podcasts enhance learners’ vocabulary learning, thus emphasizing the pedagogical merits of podcasts in the enrichment of EFL classes. The results may provide implications for curriculum development and second language vocabulary teaching and learning.