A University Level Linguistics Course Classroom Research: Vocabulary Retention and the Use of L2 and L1

This study is a classroom research carried out in the Linguistics course at university level. The present study aims at finding out to what degree the technical vocabulary of the course is retained by the individuals, while also investigating the effect of using L2 and L1 in the classroom during the lectures. Participants were second grade (N=70) and fourth grade (N=30) university students in the English Language Teaching Department. The data were conducted through a vocabulary and knowledge retention test, and the visa and final exams of the linguistics course. Students’ opinions about the Linguistics course were also collected by the help of an interview. The findings suggest that the technical vocabulary as well as the knowledge of the course is forgotten at a significant rate within a certain time. Considering the grades of the students as an indicator of success, the study also revealed that the use of L1 contributed positively to the comprehension of the subject.