Abstract
The study aimed to explore the mediating effect of vocabulary knowledge on the language awareness and reading comprehension of English education students in a local college. This study engaged a quantitative method design, utilizing a mediation analysis approach. The participants of the study were the English education students from all year levels. There were 214 students who were randomly selected for quantitative. The data was collected through a survey questionnaire. Based on the results of the study, it was determined that the level of language awareness is moderate, the level of vocabulary knowledge is low, and reading comprehension is low. Furthermore, the mediation analysis of this study revealed that vocabulary knowledge partially mediates the relationship between language awareness and reading comprehension as perceived by English major students. The perceived level of vocabulary knowledge has a positive relationship with the perceived level of reading comprehension. Moreover, in the manner of partial mediation, this stipulates that even without the presence of vocabulary knowledge, there is still a significant relationship between language awareness and reading comprehension as perceived by English major students. The findings of this study highlight the critical role of vocabulary knowledge in mediating the relationship between language awareness and reading comprehension among English education students. The low levels of vocabulary knowledge and reading comprehension observed in the sample suggest that targeted interventions are necessary to address these deficiencies and enhance the overall language proficiency of the students.
