The use of cartoons as materials for teaching vocabulary to A1 level students

Background studies
Nowadays, teaching English as a foreign language is easier than before. In the past,
the teaching approaches didn’t have the proper material to reinforce grammar and
vocabulary skills. For this reason, many researchers wanted to find a new way to
present grammar and vocabulary, after doing their investigations they concluded that
the use of cartoons could work. As indicated by Taher Barani and Rahmatollah
Soltani (2011), cartoons on language learning showed that learners who had had
exposure to cartoons could produce correct answers without any problem and make
their learning process more enjoyable.
Cartoons are visual aids that can make the learning process more fun for diverse
reasons. Prior studies have confirmed that cartoons can enhance young learners'
English proficiency and increment their lexicon or vocabulary. One main reason is
that this type of authentic material can create interactive activities to encourage
students to practice their language skills and increase their confidence in using the
language. According to the International Journal of Pure and Applied Mathematics
(2023), watching cartoons is the best and most entertaining way to enrich learners
speaking and vocabulary. In addition, these audio-visual resources make the
students entertained and energetic.
Another reason is that it includes the facilitation of learning and practicing the foreign
language without fearing failure through watching your favorite show. And finally,
according to the International Conference on Social Science (2019), teaching the
English language using animated cartoons can make the students feel more happy,
relaxed and arouse their spirit in their learning a new language.
The use of cartoons in teaching has been studied in depth in the classroom at
various times. For example, in the study by Alaba (2014), the use of interactive
cartoons was studied in primary schools in Osun State, Nigeria. The study showed
that the use of adaptive interactive cartoon animation is very effective in teaching
English in primary education schools. The performance of selected samples used in
the study improved significantly after exposure to Interactive cartoon animation,
which also significantly improved student performance attitude towards English.

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These results led us to conclude that we can also use cartoons to teach vocabulary
and make the students have effective learning.
In addition, the study by Neysa (2012) concluded that most students want to learn
English by watching TV series and cartoons rather than learning it the traditional
way. It can be said that visual aids give a better understanding of foreign language
teaching. Therefore, it could be incorporated into the English classroom
development, taking advantage of students' different learning styles by adapting the
cartoons and creating activities that can fit into everyone’s learning style.
When we saw the population of the Colegio de Ciencias y Humanidades Naucalpan
we realized that many students that are beginning the process of learning a second
language have motivation problems due to the material presented, so they are not
taking advantage of the material and activities given to them, which causes them to
lose motivation so their journey of learning a second language stars to being difficult
and many of them just give up with learning a second language and ended hating
English.

Relevance of the research

This research offers a solution to the mentioned issue by using cartoons in English
classes to offer a fun and engaging way to help students improve their language
skills.
By incorporating cartoons into the classroom, teachers can create a simple learning
environment that captures students' interest and make the learning process more
enjoyable. The colorful illustrations and dialogues provide meaningful vocabulary
and context for students to understand and practice the English language.
Moreover, it offers teachers new ideas to practice the language such as role-play
and dialogue-creation activities. And last but not least, using cartoons can enhance
students' ability to become more familiar with colloquial expressions and idioms.
Therefore, this research on using cartoons as materials for teaching vocabulary to
A1 students is important because it offers a new way and effective method to help
students learn new vocabulary. Ultimately, enhance students' language learning
experience and help them with the necessary vocabulary to communicate effectively
in the target language. The research will be focused on the field of second language
acquisition, which is described by Norbert M. (2011). Second language learning

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involves exploring and understanding how individuals go about acquiring a second
language (L2).
In addition, the author highlights that vocabulary research in applied linguistics
examines how second language learners acquire and use new words, as well as
how vocabulary knowledge impacts language proficiency and communication.
Therefore, the primary purpose of this investigation project is to show that
vocabulary teaching is essential for successful language learning.
According to the authors Zarfsaz, Elham, and Parisa Yeganehpour (2021), there are
diverse reasons why the field of second language acquisition is important for
vocabulary teaching:
- It provides insights into how learners acquire and use new words in a second
language.
- Research and understand the cognitive and linguistic processes involved in
vocabulary acquisition.
- Investigate effective vocabulary teaching and learning strategies.
Considering the solid reason why this area of applied linguistics is important, second
language acquisition will be useful for the investigation since it provides a framework
for understanding how students acquire vocabulary and what factors influence
vocabulary acquisition. Moreover, the field of second language acquisition has the
purpose of finding how second language studying materials can be adapted to
support effective learning. Overall, this area of applied linguistics is essential for
successful language learning and intercultural communication.
In addition, the author highlights that vocabulary research in applied linguistics
examines how second language learners acquire and use new words, as well as
how vocabulary knowledge impacts language proficiency and communication.
Therefore, the primary purpose of this investigation project is to show that
vocabulary teaching is essential for successful language learning.
According to the authors Zarfsaz, Elham, and Parisa Yeganehpour (2021), there are
diverse reasons why the field of second language acquisition is important for
vocabulary teaching:
- It provides insights into how learners acquire and use new words in a second
language.
- Research and understand the cognitive and linguistic processes involved in
vocabulary acquisition.

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 - Investigate effective vocabulary teaching and learning strategies.
Considering the solid reason why this area of applied linguistics is important, second
language acquisition will be useful for the investigation since it provides a framework
for understanding how students acquire vocabulary and what factors influence
vocabulary acquisition. Moreover, the field of second language acquisition has the
purpose of finding how second language studying materials can be adapted to
support effective learning. Overall, this area of applied linguistics is essential for
successful language learning and intercultural communication.

General Objective

To evaluate the influence of cartoons as authentic material for vocabulary

development in students of Level A1 English as L2 from Colegio de Ciencias y
Humanidades Naucalpan of the first semester.

Particular objectives

a. Examine how using cartoons as authentic materials can help students

learn vocabulary more easily and effectively.
b. Investigate how cartoons influence the vocabulary development of A1
level English students.
c. Explore the role of cartoons in encouraging interactive learning for A1
level students.
Hypothesis

The use of cartoons as authentic materials strengthens the vocabulary skills and
improves language learning outcomes of A1 English level students.
In this hypothesis, the dependent variable would be the vocabulary skills, which are
influenced by the independent variable which is the use of cartoons as authentic
materials. Overall, the hypothesis indicates that using cartoons as authentic
materials can make a difference in vocabulary skills and how well you learn a
language. In other words, the use of cartoons has an impact on the dependent
variables.

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Theoretical framework
Many times, we assume that authentic materials are only articles, literary texts, still
images, or voice recordings, as they are the most commonly used teaching
resources for foreign language instruction due to their ease of implementation in
classroom activities. Institutions have taught us that these are the only materials, and
this is reflected in the lack of authentic material, which significantly affects language
instruction and impacts the communicative skills that students need to use the
foreign language.
Thus, this research will address the topic of cartoons as authentic materials to
reinforce communicative skills. For this research, the term "cartoon" is defined as
graphic media containing interpretative pictures using symbols to create a brief
message and quickly change an attitude towards people, situations, or specific
events (Amarizal 2015). It has been identified as an artistic technique for television
or screens that seeks to showcase the social and linguistic characteristics of a
society or context.
It is important to highlight that, according to Sandamali Gamage (2019) Cartoons can
be used as a teaching tool to improve the language skills of students and transfer
human emotions, values, and ethics to influence the thinking pattern of the masses.
In other words, cartoons are audiovisual products that are part of the learning
process, as individuals can learn concepts, attitudes, vocabulary, expressions, and
behaviors through an entertaining source. Therefore, it is important to use them as
authentic materials in foreign language instruction. As mentioned by author Clark
(2002), various studies have shown that students exposed to extensive cartoon
exposure increase their confidence in using the language and their academic
performance. In this sense, cartoons can be effective authentic materials to increase
students' vocabulary and knowledge of the target language.
Thakur (2015) characterizes cartoons as drawings that overstate a few physical
include, activity, or quality of an individual or thing depicted. Cartoons are capable of
conducting social and political research on problems of today's society and they are
rich enough to reveal discrepancies between perception and reality-identified or
exaggerated problems. (Ziegler, 1998). Emphasizing that the cartoon owns the
ability to engage students through the presentation of information in a stress-free

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atmosphere. These kinds of backgrounds created by cartoons have the potential to
activate thinking and promote argumentation skills in students.
On the other hand, in Dohring's research (2002) in a study of the effects of cartoons
on student learning, students who were liberally exposed to cartoons responded
effectively in various discussions.
This study is guided by the theory of Multimedia learning of Mayer (2001) and
meaningful learning by Smith and Regan (1999). The multimedia Learning theory.
explores how learners create mental representations when exposed to multimedia
materials, combining visual and verbal information. The integration process is what
Mayer termed the cognitive loading process. This school of thought also believes
that there are extraneous loads of instruction that must be kept as low as possible to
allow learners to use his/her mental resource for the actual learning process.
Watching cartoons allows students to apply the vocabulary they have learned in
various situations, as it expands their vocabulary and provides the stimulation they
need to use language in its many forms. Students can unconsciously use the
vocabulary learned from cartoons in various situations when language lessons
involve teachers reinforcing these forms.
Rule (2008) emphasizes that the use of cartoons is an effective technique for sharing
cultural perspectives. Using computer-animated images just got easier. Teachers
and students alike will have the peace of mind that many media tools are available.
In the field of second language acquisition, cartoons are instructional materials
because instructional materials make learning more interesting, practical, realistic,
and engaging. It also helps teachers and students to participate actively and
effectively in the class. They provide a space to acquire skills, knowledge and self-
confidence development, and self-actualization.

Methodology
Since this research is aiming to test if the use of cartoons as authentic materials can
enhance vocabulary skills and boost language learning results for beginners at the
A1 English level, it will be necessary to do a quantitative type of research. This
approach is valuable for the present investigation since it can help to gain a
complete picture of the positive effects that cartoons have as didactic tools. As
explained by Olasile Barbatunde Adedoyin (2020), The research method studies
something by collecting numbers and using statistics to analyze the data. It

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emphasizes statistical analysis and it uses techniques such as hypothesis testing,
experiments, and questionnaires with restricted answers.
According to Mark Vince Agacite (2021), this approach has plenty of positive
characteristics that reinforce the idea of how useful this tool is to analyze how
cartoons can be an effective and inexplicable learning experience where students
can significantly increase their vocabulary. The most important ones are:
- Quantitative research design is the most accurate and valid method for
drawing conclusions, introducing a new hypothesis, or refuting an existing
one.
- The results or generalizations are more trustworthy and valid.
- Quantitative research removes outside influences, allowing the results to be
viewed as accurate and objective.
- Quantitative experiments help validate the results of a series of qualitative
experiments.
Because of these reasons, a quantitative study will be employed. The method
involves the collection and analysis of numerical data to draw meaningful
conclusions about using cartoons as authentic materials for the vocabulary
development of A1 English level students. By analyzing the data, the study aims to
determine if there is a statistically significant difference in the vocabulary skills in the
group that will be used for this research project. Also, to refine our research project,
we select our sample population using random sampling. To put it simply, we choose
the participants for our study in a fair and unbiased manner. This way, the results of
the study can be more reliable and applicable to everyone.
In order to gather information and insights about the effectiveness and implications
of using cartoons as materials for teaching vocabulary to A1 level students, first-
semester students from the CCH Naucalpan were identified for the research study.
The sampling consists of 21 students, who speak Spanish as a first language. These
participants follow English as a mandatory subject during their school year.
First, a survey will be conducted among the students as a means of assessing their
confidence regarding their English vocabulary skills and, as a result, we will collect
the necessary data and analyze it using statistical methods such as descriptive
statistics to find how the group feels with their current knowledge. This survey
consists of a series of five questions to collect important information from students:
1. How would you rate your current level of English vocabulary knowledge?

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 2. Do you think you need to improve your English vocabulary?
3. On a scale of 1-10, how confident do you feel using English vocabulary in
everyday conversations?
4. How often do you engage in activities to expand your English vocabulary?
5. Have you ever used cartoons as a learning resource to improve your English
vocabulary?
It is intended that these questions will evaluate their current level of comprehension
of English vocabulary, how they perceive their need for improvement, how confident
they are in using English vocabulary in various contexts, and how engaged they are
in activities that will expand their vocabulary.
Before the post-test, there will be a brainstorming session, where we asked the
students to work in groups of 4 people and share their thoughts and opinions about
the cartoon episode and define the unfamiliar words or phrases from the cartoon
show. After that, they will be provided with a questionnaire to gather feedback and
insights from the students. The questionnaire consists of a series of questions for
students to reflect on their experience with vocabulary tasks using cartoons. The
main goal of the questionnaire is to evaluate the effectiveness of the learning
method, review students' perspectives and provide valuable information to analyze.
1. Can you recall any new words or phrases that you learned from the Bluey
episode?
2. Did you find the use of the Bluey cartoon helpful in improving your English
vocabulary?
3. In what ways did the cartoon activity enhance your understanding and
retention of English vocabulary?
4. Did the cartoon activity make the learning process more enjoyable for you?
5. Do you want to have more activities with cartoons in the future?

Results
After applying the data collection method, we foresee obtaining valuable information
from the students that are going to participate in this research. In the first instrument,
which is the survey, it is foreseen that the participants will not have assurance in
their English vocabulary, so it will be presented to them as an activity of vocabulary
using the cartoon Bluey.

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The final instrument will help us to understand how helpful using cartoons is for
learning vocabulary by asking a series of questions. It is assumed to obtain positive
results using this learning method from the students of the A1 level. Also, it is
anticipated to receive specific feedback from students about their experience with
the cartoon task. Their responses will provide information about the effectiveness of
this learning method and their overall enjoyment of the process and how to improve
future activities with cartoons as authentic materials.
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