CC BY
10
Samatova Sh.R. teacher
Department of Practical aspects of the English Language
Faculty of English Philology Uzbekistan State World Languages University
Uzbekistan, Tashkent
TEACHING VOCABULARY THROUGH EFFECTIVE METHODS FOR
A1 AND A2 LEARNERS
Abstract. Currently the English language is a universal language and significant steps are being taken by the education system of Uzbekistan to develop the system of teaching English as a foreign language. The Presidential Decree №1875- "On measures of improvement of learning foreign languages " contributes a noteworthy progress of teaching English as a foreign language in the educational institutions of Uzbekistan. One of the aim of the Presidential Decree is to teach foreign language from the first form. Therefore EFL teachers should know how to teach language proficiency (reading, listening, speaking and writing), and its sub skills (vocabulary, grammar and phonetics). In this article readers can be acquainted with the importance of teaching vocabulary, choosing appropriate topics for teaching vocabulary for A1 pupils and making the teaching process interesting and effective through games.
Key words. Vocabulary, interaction, group-work, working individually, method, technology.
Vocabulary is the knowledge of words and word meanings. As Steven Stahl (2005) puts it, "Vocabulary knowledge is knowledge; the knowledge of a word not only implies a definition, but also implies how that word fits into the world." Vocabulary knowledge is not something that can ever be fully mastered; it is something that expands and deepens over the course of a lifetime. Instruction in vocabulary involves far more than looking up words in a dictionary and using the words in a sentence. Vocabulary is acquired incidentally through indirect exposure to words and intentionally through explicit instruction in specific words and word-learning strategies. According to Michael Graves (2000), there are four components of an effective vocabulary program:
• wide or extensive independent reading to expand word knowledge
• instruction in specific words to enhance comprehension of texts containing those words
• instruction in independent word-learning strategies, and
• word consciousness and word-play activities to motivate and enhance learning
Teaching vocabulary is a significant objective in the curriculum. According to psychologists (M. Vohidov. "Children's psychology" 1982), human beings learn life experiences by words, because thoughts are made by words. Without a sufficient vocabulary, learners cannot communicate and express ideas effectively. Teaching new words for pupils at primary schools is very fruitful and is considered the basic foundation of teaching English, as for communicating, constructing sentences and understanding oral and written speech, young learners should know English words.
Some EFL teachers at primary education come across some difficulties with choosing an appropriate topic for teaching vocabulary. There is a standard that is all requirements and content of teaching vocabulary are given. The content of teaching vocabulary is dedicated to A1 learners. A1 learners are the pupils of primary school. According to the standard of teaching foreign languages in Uzbekistan A1 learners should learn some words of simple topics such as family, fruits, vegetables, animals and etc. They should be aware of some concepts about word-formation and borrowings.
Jalolov states that children (ages 5-12) are very much orientated in their minds around the "here and now" and directly visible or perceivable environment. If EFL teacher only explains the words and he or she does not give examples, this teaching process does not show any results. Therefore, English teachers should use different visual materials and interesting activities that capture young learner's attention. Moreover, young learners remember the new words when they see and touch. That is why, it is pointed that different games and activities help the learners to understand the meaning of the new word and using it in communication.
Word-learning strategies include dictionary use, morphemic analysis, and contextual analysis. For ELLs whose language shares cognates with English, cognate awareness is also an important strategy. Dictionary use teaches students about multiple word meanings, as well as the importance of choosing the appropriate definition to fit the particular context. Morphemic analysis is the process of deriving a word's meaning by analyzing its meaningful parts, or morphemes. Such word parts include root words, prefixes, and suffixes. Contextual analysis involves inferring the meaning of an unfamiliar word by scrutinizing the text surrounding it. Instruction in contextual analysis generally involves teaching students to employ both generic and specific types of context clues.
It is often assumed that when students do not learn new vocabulary words, they simply need to practice the words some more. Research has shown, however, that it is often the case that students simply do not understand the instructional task involved (National Reading Panel, 2000). Rather than focus only on the words themselves, teachers should be certain that students fully understand the instructional tasks (Schwartz and Raphael, 1985). The restructuring of learning materials or strategies in various ways often can lead to
increased vocabulary acquisition, especially for low-achieving or at-risk students (National Reading Panel, 2000). According to Kamil (2004), "once students know what is expected of them in a vocabulary task, they often learn rapidly."
A more general way to help students develop vocabulary is by fostering word consciousness, an awareness of and interest in words. Word consciousness is not an isolated component of vocabulary instruction; it needs to be taken into account each and every day (Scott and Nagy, 2004). It can be developed at all times and in several ways: through encouraging adept diction, through word play, and through research on word origins or histories. According to Graves (2000), "If we can get students interested in playing with words and language, then we are at least halfway to the goal of creating the sort of word-conscious students who will make words a lifetime interest."
Recently, I have observed the English lessons at primary school. The lesson was full of enjoyable games and demonstrating materials for introducing new topic. I witnessed different games that give essential benefits. The first game is called "The stork came". Actually, this game is our national game, however, the teacher made it suitable for teaching vocabulary. This game is very profitable for the learners of the first form. If the pupils are learning the names of weekdays or numbers, this game is appropriate. For doing this activity, pupils work in groups (maximum 6 participants). One of the participants should tell the number or the name of weekday. Then they clap each other's hand by telling the numbers or days in order. When mentioned number or day comes with clapping, the participant loses the game. Through this game learners remember the numbers and days easily.
The next game is named "Family tree". After the first presentation stage, this activity is fruitful for strengthening the topic. For this game pupils are divided into 2 groups. Women family tree is for the first group, and men family tree is for another group. The members of each group write the names of family members according to their gender on the family tree that is on the blackboard. This game does not only make young learners remember the names of family members, but also it lets students work in the group with responsibility.
The third game that I observed is called "Find it". I mentioned above that most young learners are visual and tactile learners. This game is very helpful for working with realia. The pupils that I observed learned how to call wild and domestic animals in English in the first stage. Then in the second stage, they played this activity. This game is dedicated for working individually. For this game, one pupil comes on the blackboard and closes eyes with strap. Then teacher puts different animal toys on the desk. The pupil chooses one of them and defines the animal and tells the name of it by touching it. This game is also considered very useful activity for teaching vocabulary for young learners.
Taking all the things into consideration, we can conclude that for teaching foreign language for the elementary level learners, we should pay our most attention to teach its vocabulary. As vocabulary is considered an important part
of the foreign languages for communicating and comprehending. In the past choosing appropriate topics for teaching vocabulary for young learners was difficult. However, nowadays we have our national standard for teaching foreign languages. Therefore teachers easily can choose suitable topics for young pupils. Moreover, there are different games and activities for making the process of teaching vocabulary, interesting, effective and enjoyable. Nowadays EFL teachers are using these games and, they are witnessing positive results.
References:
1. The Presidential Decree №1875of Uzbekistan, on 10 December 2012.
2. M. Vohidov. "Children's psychology" 1982.
3. J.Jalolov "Teaching English methodology" 2012.
4. L. Diamond, L. Gutholn "Vocabulary Handbook" 2006
