The role of cognate English–Kurdish words in teaching English

Abstract

Cognate words are considered to be one of the influential teaching tools in applied linguistics and the benefits of using them have been proved by several pieces of research so far. However, in literature, we can see nearly no studies related to the cognate words between English language and Kurdish language. In this study, in order to show the effect of cognate structures in teaching a foreign language, we applied an English vocabulary test including 25 Kurdish–English cognate words and 25 non-cognate words. The study group consisting of two control groups (one Turkish monolingual and one Turkish-Kurdish bilingual group) and one experimental group made up of Kurdish-Turkish bilinguals. The meanings of the words were given to all three groups via slides on smart boards on classroom before the test. However, the study group was given instruction with regards to the cognate structures between English and Kurdish. After application of the test, the results showed that the study group could remember the most of the cognate words, in contrast to the control groups. Accordingly, the results suggest that there is a positive correlation between being aware of cognates and recalling words; thereby confirming the idea that teaching through cognate Kurdish–English cognate words facilitates teaching vocabulary.

Keywords: Foreign Language, vocabulary acquisition, teaching language through cognate words.

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