Teaching vocabulary
teaching vocabulary:
1. Form: pr
the CONTENT of pronunciation and spelling
2. Grammar
3. Collocation
4. Aspects of meaning: (1) denotation, connotation, appropriateness
5. Aspects of meaning (2): meaning relationships
6. Word formation
Teaching vocabulary for Perceptive Skills, implies correlation of auditive or visual perception with the semantic meaning of the word:
ability to recognize the word spontaneously, while auding or reading;
able to differentiate synonyms and;
making out form, meaning of the word, and correlate it with other words
For Productive Skills - choosing right words, combine notional and structural words in sentences.
One of the main problems is the choice of vocabulary to be taught. Pupils are to learn two groups of words: Passive which includes 1000- 1200 words and Active vocabulary – is about 800 words. if the person knows 1000 words it insures understanding of 80%; 2000 – 85 – 96%; 3000 – 99%.
Passive Vocabulary for comprehending the information;
Active vocabulary – for productive work. The boarder between the passive and active voc. is not distinct. Sometimes words of active voc. are larger than of passive.
The choice depends on some PRINCIPLES:
- the words selected should be frequently used
new words should be easily combined with each other
teach words which are unlimited from the point of view of style (belong to oral and written style)
words should be valuable from the point of view of word building
words should be included in the topics (sets)
5 Stages in developing vocabulary skills:
1 - presenting new words
2 – assimilating words
3 – retention of vocabulary
4 – vocabulary building or expansion
5. – use of new words in productive speech
Every word has a form, meaning and usage and all these three should be presented to pupils.
The form of the word implies:
phonic form
graphic form
structural form (stem + ending)
grammatical form
In terms of meaning we distinguish words which may have 1, 2 or more meanings. Words with more than 2 meanings – are polysemantic words. Usage of a word implies combinability of the word in other sentences, transition and knowing of the rules of reading are important:
First the word is presented orally → in a written form →used in sentences for reading → then for writing.
Ways of presenting the meaning of new items:
concise definition (as in a dictionary; often a superordinate with qualifications: eg. a cat is an animal which…)
detailed description (of appearance, qualities…)
examples (hyponyms)
illustration (picture, object)
demonstration (acting, mime)
context (story or sentence in which the item occurs)
synonyms
opposite (s) (antonyms)
translation
associated ideas, collocations
Ways of explaining meaning of new words:
1- the direct method
2- the translation method
trough the direct method direct associations are established between the word and the concept it denotes. Mother tongue doesn’t come in between.
2 groups of Direct Method: visual + verbal
Visual DM is based on using visual aids and materials – pictures, objects, materials, sizes, quality, quantity, gestures, movements, miming, etc. It is used for younger pupils.
Verbal Direct Technique implies the use of synonyms, antonyms, definitions, contexts, situations, word-building elements. The teacher describes words. It requires much experience oт the part of a teacher, used with well-prepared students, has good-developing potential as it develops pupil’ guessing and thinking abilities. It takes much more time – it’s time consuming; sometimes it may not be expected, may need many accessories, it takes a proficient teacher to use this technique.
POSITIVE features:
develops pupil’s thinking abilities
fosters remembrance
is more motivating for pupils
technique is Translation that is subdivided into:
translation – interpretation + proper translation.
Translation technique is used for rendering the meaning of abstract words, when the teacher can not use direct technique.
TI is used for presenting the words which have some building elements “super-, omni-, semi-, extra-, over-, il-, re-, im-… teacher comments on the meaning of these elements. Used for presenting international words when the volume of meaning of these words do not coincide with the volume of words in mother tongue.
e.g. sympathy; technology; figure.
GOOD features of T.T.:
more economical in time
ensures the exact comprehension of the meaning
can be used both in small and big groups
The CHOICE OF TECHNIQUES for presenting the meaning of a word is based on 3 factors:
psychological
pedagogical
linguistic
Psychological factor
The teacher should take into consideration the age of pupils, intelligence, guessing abilities, attention, and motivation
Pedagogical factor includes the stage of teaching, the size of the class, the time allotted to teaching the subject, the qualification of a teacher
Linguistic factor nature of the object or notion correlated with the word, whether it is concrete or abstract.; depends on the extent of the coincidence in volumes of meanings in international words. If the meanings coincide – use translation. If the volume of meaning is different – use translation-interpretation method.
Elucidation is the process of finding out whether the word is understood and a teacher may goon, proceeding with the practice stage. PRESENTATION – INPUT – LEAD-IN-PERIOD
Often used synonymically. The stage of elucidation it is important not only with the terms of vocabulary, but implies other notions in methodology – teaching grammar; phonetics; developing 4 skills. During the elucidation the teacher gets some information about pupil’s comprehension.
[Harmer – “The technique for explaining the words”]
EXPLANATION Technique which comprises 5 elements:
normal model
isolation
distortion
isolated element
normal model
e.g. Flight 3.10 goes to Paris
Flight
To fly and flight (noun)
Flight (n) – pupils should guess the meaning
Flight 3.10 goes to Paris
ACCURATE REPRODUCTION OF THE WORD.
The purpose of accurate reproduction is to give students control practice in the form of the new word. 3 stages:
choral repetition
individual repetition
cue-response drill
CHORAL repetition implies repeating the word all together after the teacher, whoi controls the speech, intonation. The teacher should say when the pupils start. The t. decides how many times the word is repeated.
INDIVIDUAl repetition – 3 stages:
1 – the teacher nominates a student
2. the student responds
3 – the teacher gives feedback ( how well it was done ) зворотній зв”язок
Nomination may be either by calling the students name, or by pointing.
Individual repetition may take sometimes even more time than chorus work.
CUE-RESPONSE DRILLS
The teacher gives only some pattern of the sentence with the new word and than gives only some cue and pupils give their responses with other new words.
Eg. It’s a book, ( pen, pencil…)
Studying suffixes – ful, -ly..
TYPES of EXERCISES for developing automatic skill:
recognition - and – finding out exercises ( recognise and choose the proper word for ..)
drill exercises – reproductive – imitative ( after the teacher)
transformation exercises
completion ex or filing-in / fill-in the blanks exercise
transformation exercises (noun- adj- adv)
constructive exercises (blue eye – blue-eyed; well, know – well-know)
matching (match the words which can be logically used together)
translation
answering the questions
PRODUCTIVE EXERCISES:
Practice is: guided by the teacher
semi guided
free practice
Teacher uses: games, crosswords, pictures, competitive activities, role-plays, simulations, dramatization of a text or situation for practicing the words
PROBLEM OF CORRECTING PUPIL’S MISTAKES:
showing incorrection
using correction techniques
SHOWING incorrection:
repeating – the teacher asks the student to repeat that sth’s wrong
echoing – t. repeats what student has said with ↑ intonation
denial – t. says it’ s wrong
questioning – “Is that correct?”
expressing – t. shows expression by gesture, miming..
HOW TO CORRECT MISTAKES:
the student corrects himself
other students correct the student
the teacher corrects the student.
Stages of correction:
It can occur immediately after the mistake – when the emphasis is accuracy.
When the emphasis is on the fluency no immediate correction occurs – but the teacher notes typical mistakes and speaks about them after the activity. After practice the teacher ensures good remembrance of words. It is achieved by many-fold use of the word in different situations. [ in familiar situations – in new situations]
To assess student’s vocabulary skill the teacher uses