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9THE WAYS OF TEACHING VOCABULARY TO THE CADETS IN THE MILITARY INSTITUTE
Mammadova M.,
Military Institute named after Haydar Aliyev, Baku, Azerbaijan
Ph.doctor, associate professor Axundova T.,
Azerbaijan National Air Academy, teacher Baku, Azerbaijan Huseynova A.
Military Institute named after Haydar Aliyev, teacher
Baku, Azerbaijan DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7560340
ABSTRACT
This article focuses in teaching vocabulary to the cadets of Military institute. The article is meant to help classroom teachers find their way more easily in the teaching vocabulary. At the same time the article provides a survey and research relating to the learning and teaching of English as a foreign language which will be valuable source of reference for teachers of foreign languages. Here were given four approaches to teaching vocabulary in order to learn a little vocabulary and using vocabulary to teach how to learn vocabulary.
Keywords: Teaching, attitude, idioms, ability, verb forms, pick up.
Traditionally, the teaching of vocabulary above elementary levels was mostly incidental, limited to presenting new items as they appeared in reading or sometimes listening texts. This indirect teaching of vocabulary assumes that vocabulary expansion will happen though the practice of other language skills, which has been proved not enough to ensure vocabulary expansion.
Nowadays it is widely accepted that vocabulary teaching should be part of the syllabus, and taught in a well-planned and regular basis. Some authors, led by Lewwis (1993) argue that vocabulary should be at the centre of language teaching, because' language consists of grammaticalised lexis, not lexicalised grammar'
There are several aspects of lexis that need to be taken into account when teaching vocabulary. The list below is based on the work of Games and Redman (1986):
• Boundaries between conceptual meaning: konowing not only what lexis refers to, but also where the boundaries are that separate it from words of related meaning (e.g. cup, mug, bowl).
• Polysemy: distinguishing between the various meaning of a single word from with several but closely related meanings (head: of a person, of a pin, of an organisation).
• Homonymy: distinguishing between the various meaning of a single word from which has several meanings which are NOT closely related (e.g. a file: used to put papers in or a tool).
• Homophyny: understanding words that have the same pronunciation but different spellings and meanings (e.g. flour, flower).
• Synonymy: distinguishing between the different shades of meaning that synonymous words have (e.g. extend, increase , expand).
• Affective meaning: distinguishing between the attitudinal and emotional factors (denotation and connotation), which depend on the speakers attitude or the situation. Socio-cultural associations of lexical items is another important factor.
• Style , register, dialect: Being able to distinguish between different levels of formality, the effect of different contexts and topics, as well as differences in geographical variation.
• Translation: awareness of certain differences and similarities betwee the native and the foreign language (e.g. false cognates).
• Chunks of language: multi-word verbs, idioms, strong and weak collocations, lexical phrases.
• Grammar of vocabulary: learning the rules that enable students to build up different forms of the word or even different words from that word (e.g. sleep, slept, sleeping; able, unable; disability).
• Pronunciation: ability to recognise and reproduce items in speech.
The implication of the aspects just mentioned in teaching is that the goals of vocabulary teaching must be more than simply covering a certain number of words on a word list. We must use teaching techniques that can help realize this global concept of what it means to know a lexical item. And we must also go beyond that, giving learner opportunities to use the items [1, p. 319] learnt and also helping them to use effective written storage systems.
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:
1. wide or extensive independent reading to expand word knowledge
2. instruction in specific words to enhance comprehension of texts containing those words
3. instruction in independent word-learning strategies, and
4. word consciousness and word-play activities to motivate and enhance learning
Memory and Storage systems
Understanding how our memory works might help us create more effective ways to teach vocabulary. Research in the area, cited by Gairns (1986) offers us some insight into this process.
It seems that learning new items involve storing them first in our short-term memory, and afterwards in long-term memory. We do not control this process consciously but there seems to be some important clues to consider. First, retention in short-term memory is not effective if the number of chunks of information exceeds seven. Therefore, this suggests that in a given class we should not aim at teaching more than this number. However, our long-term memory can hold any amount of information.
Research also suggests that our 'mental lexicon' is highly organised and efficient, and that semantic related items are stored together. Word frequency is another factor that affects storage , as the most frequently used items are easier to retrieve. We can use this information to attempt to facilitate the learning process, by grouping items of vocabulary in semantic fields, such as topics (e.g. types of fruit).
Oxford (1990) suggests memory strategies to aid learning , and these can be divided into:
• creating mental linkages: grouping, associating, placing new words into a context;
• applying images and sounds: using imagery, semantic mapping, using keywords and representing sounds in memory;
• reviewing well, in a structured way;
• employing action: physical response or sensation, using mechanical techniques.
The techniques just mentioned can be used to greater advantage if we can diagnose learning style preferences (visual, aural, kinesthetic, tactile) and make students aware of different memory strategies.[2, p89-96]
Meaningful tasks however seem to offer the best answer to vocabulary learning, as they rely on students' experiences and reality to facilitate learning. More meaningful tasks also require learners to analyse and process language more deeply, which should help them retain information in long-term memory.
Forgetting seems to be an inevitable process, unless learners regularly use items they have learnt. Therefore, recycling is vital, and ideally it should happen one or two days after the initial input. After that, weekly on monthly tests can check on previously taught items.
The way students store the items learned can also contribute to their sucess or failture in retrieving them when needed. Most learners simply list the items learnt in chronological order, indicating meaning with trans-
lation. This system is far from helpful, as are de-con-textualised, encouraging students to over generalise usage of them. It does not allow for additions and refinements nor indicates pronunciation.
Teachers can encourage learners to use other methods , using topics and categories to organise a notebook , binder or index cards . Meaning should be stored using English as much as possible , and also giving indication for pronunciation. Diagrams and word trees can also be used within this topic/categories organisation. The class as a whole can keep a vocabulary box with cards, which can be used for revision/recycling regularly.
Organizing this kind of storage system is time-consuming and might not appeal to every learner. Therefore adapting their chronological lists to include headings for topics and a more complete definition of meaning would already be a step forward.
Dealing with Meaning
In our opinion the most important aspect of vocabulary teaching for students is to foster independence so that learners will be able to deal with new lexis and expand their vocabulary beyond the end of the course. Therefore guided discovery, contextual guesswork and using dictionaries should be the main ways to deal with discoverning meaning.
Guided discovery involve asking questions or offering examples that guide students to guess meanings correctly. In this way learners get involved in a process of semantic processing that helps learning and retention.
Contextual guesswork means making use of the context in which the word appears to derive an idea of its meaning, or in some cases, guess from the word itself, as in words of Latin origin. Knowledge of word formation , e.g. prefixes and suffixes, can also help guide students to discover meaning. Teachers can help students with specific techniques and practice in contextual guesswork, for example , the understanding of discourse markers and identifying teh fuction of the word in the sentence (e.g. verb, adjective, noun). The latter is also very useful when using dictionaries.
Students should start using EFL dictionaries as early as possible, from Intermediate upwards. With adequate training, dictionaries are an invaluable tool for learners, giving them independence from the teacher. As well as understanding meaning, students are able to check pronunciation, the grammar of the word (e.g. verb patterns, verb forms, plurality, comparatives, etc.), different spelling (American versus British), style and register, as well as examples that illustrate usage.[3, p.79]
Using Language
Another strategy for advanced learners is to turn their receptive vocabulary items into productive ones. In order to do that, we need to refine their understanding of the item, exploring boundaries between conceptual meaning, polysemy, synonymy, style, register, possible collocations, etc., so that students are able to use the item accurately.
We introduce four approaches to teaching vocabulary:
1. Really learn a little vocabulary
This is perhaps what is most typically seen as good practice in ELT (English Language Teaching) - picking what language you want the students to learn (or letting them pick it themselves from word lists, the textbooks, authentic texts ete and revising it various fun ways until know it thoroughly and are likely to remember it for quite some time to come. Learning it thoroughly nowadays means not just remembering the meaning but also common collocations, pronunciation, different parts of speech, level of formality etc. Ways of practising it until they are ready to remember it include sticking to one topic for a few lessons in the hope that the same vocabulary comes up again and again, giving discussion questions with the vocabulary in the questions or designing them so that it is likely to come up in the answers, card games like pelmanism, speaking games like Taboo, regular revision tests, and having a Word Bag of vocabulary that the class is still working on. This approach is suitable for most EFL classes at least some of the time, but teacher will need to choose the vocabulary carefully (or give the students guidance on what vocabulary they choose) so that they are not expending a lot of effort on words that they don't really need (yet) while more important vocabulary is still waiting to be seen for the first time. If teacher isn't careful, this approach can also lead to ignoring the difference between words that students will need a passive knowledge of and words they will want to be able to use. As with grammar, sometimes when students have "noticed" the vocabulary what they most need is some time and space to subconsciously absorb it and lots of examples of it in use in reading and listening texts before they consciously study it again and try to produce it. It might be that students would be more likely to see and hear that vocabulary by moving up to the next level or into authentic materials, and so need a lot of vocabulary to get them to that point as quickly as possible rather than trying to get mastery of "the basics" as suggested by this approach. There is also the potential problem of the whole class being held back while one student still struggles with a word they have a mental block on. The same is true of one student quickly learning a word (perhaps because of a similarity to L1 or because they formed a personal connection to it) and having to wait for the rest of the class to catch up. The teacher will also have to be careful to ensure that vocabulary practice activities include other skills and language rather than using up the class time that would otherwise be used for grammar, listening, etc. There is also the chance that seeing a word they are having difficulty with for the tenth time will make them hate it and so less likely to learn it, or that finally learning something they are having problems with use ep time they could have learnt ten other items of vocabulary in. Even with students who never ue English outside class, they are also likely to need different vocabulary from each other to read about and talk about their hobbies, describe their different kinds of homes and families, etc.
Below are some alternatives that can help tackle potential problems above (perhaps in conjunction with this approach rather than replacingit).
2. Touch on as much vocabulary as you can
This is one way of taking the opposite approach to the one above-accepting that students will learn different vocabulary (and, like grammar, not necessarly the things the teacher has decided the lesson is about) and will see and hear totally different language in their reading, listening etc outside of class. The teacher aims to make students get a basic understanding of and "notice" as much new language as possible in tne class and for homework. The teacher will then move onto the next language point, confident that at least some of the language will have been particularly memorable to each student and that there will be a high chance of at least some of that language coming up in the next week or month in each student's reading, listening etc outside class. The teacher can therefore predict that each student will learn more language this way and with more ease than the approach above. This approach is most suitable for classes where students are getting a lot of exposure to English outside class but aren't noticing most of that language and so are not progressing as quickly as they could , especially if those students have exposure to and use very different English from each other outside class. This is often true of students who are living in English-speaking countries and have reached a comfortable intermediate level (or sometimes lower) , can survire in their daily life, and so are not really pushing themselves. The same can be true of students who watch lots of English language TV and read in English but do so without a dictionary and so don't seem to be rapidly expanding their vocabulary through just reading and listening. Even with students who you are sure can gain most from this approach, you might want to explain your philosophy to them so that they don't get the impression that they are "doing" lost of vocabulary but learning hardly any of it. They might also need advice on choosing vocabulary from that vast selection to learn, so that the more conscientious ones don't feel overwhelmed. This approach could also lead to a neglect of the methods for learning vocabulary that are dealt with below.
This approach is obviously totally unsuitable for students who are getting no exposure to English outside the classroom, so if that is the case with your classes (often true children and teenagers in EFL seetings), you will need to work on giving them that exposure or switch to an approach more like the one described in Really Learn a Little Vocabulary above. It is possible to combine the two approaches by the teacher covering a large amount of language and each student choosing language they find memorable, interesting, useful for talking about their own lives and hobbies etc, and then using their own personal selection of vocabulary when the class do vocabulary practice exercises and games. This obviously takes a lot of organization, but could be easier if you do someting like have a Word Bag for each table in the class (if they always sit in the same places) rather than one for the whole class. Students could also test each other on the vocabulary in their partner's personal dictionary or list of words to learn.
3. Use vocabulary to teach how to learn vocabulary
This is another way of tacking the problem that students will learn and need different language from each other. With this approach, teacher takes each vocabulary point that comes up not primarily as a chance to each the target language but as a way of teaching something about vocabulary and how to learn it that they can take away and use with the language they come across ,look up in their dictionaries etc outside class. The best way to organise and think about this is by adding another syllabus to the textbook vocabulary one so that your new vocabulary syllabus says "Compound nouns-using dictionaries", "Phrasal verbs-guessing meaning from context", "Antonyms-using English in your vocabulary lists rather than L1" etc.[4, p. 115]
This has become a more standard way of tacking vocabulary in textbooks etc. over the last few years and has been tried with most kinds of classes. The main potential problems are that it can take up a lot of classroom time without adding any extra actual language, and those students who already feel like they are suc-cesful language learners might think that it is patronizing. It is often ignored that teaching study skills is at least as difficult as teaching language and takes the same individualized approach to classes, revision, efforts to make it interesting etc. If teacher are sure his students will not actually use the skills you introduce them to, teacher might want to use your class time mainly to give them the actual language with other approaches mentioned here.
4. Help them pick it up
Some teachers and researchers think that extensive reading (reading for pleasure) in English is such a good way of picking up vocabulary and other parts of the language that it is by far the most useful use of classroom time. This is also said to fit in with the concept of having a "silent period" at the beginning of language learning, similar to that of a baby learning L1. Not many classes have spent lots of classroom time with students silently reading, however, and now because many researchers believe that helping students "notice" the language is a shortcut to learning and because of practical issues such as trying to monitor what an unmotivated student is getting out of sitting there silently with a book there is generally a more pragmatic response to such ideas. Nonetheless, even adult language learners will have plenty of stories of finding themselves able to
understand of sometimes use language that they had never consciously studied or even noticed, and this is an aspect of language learning that we can sometimes use in class. An obvious use of this is using picture books and action songs with very young learners, but the most important thing to think about with both kids and adults is guiding our students towards useful reading and listening outside the classroom and motivating them to access it. One way is to use graded readers in class and then offer them to the students to take home, perhaps talking about the books in future classes to keep them motivated and to recycle the language. A similar thing can be done with a "book club", with all students reading the same book at the same time and using that for discussions, role-plays etc in class. Other sources of English outside class that students can hardly avoid include English language notices in the subway, English used in computing, the internet, and local English language listings magazines and newspapers. They might also be interested in books that have recently been adapted into films.
Conclusion. So,we must take into account that a lexical item is most likely to be learned when a learner feels a personal need to know it, or when there is a need to express something to accomplish the learner's own purposes. Therefore, it means that the decision to incorporate a word in ones productive vocabulary is entirely personal and varies according to each student's motivation and needs.
Logically, production will depend on motivation , and this is what teachers should aim at promoting, based on their awareness of students needs and preferences. Task-based learning should help teachers to provide authentic , meaningful tasks in which students engage to achieve a concrete output, using appropriate language for the context.
References
1. Dilara A. Ismailova "Teaching English as a foreign language" textbook, Baku-2011, page 319
2. Johnson, K.1988 Mistake correction. ELT journal, 42, p 89-96
3. White R.V. 1988. The ELT Curriculum; Design, Innovation and Management. Oxford; Basil Blackwell. P.79
4. Brumfit, C.J. 1984 General Syllabus Design. ELT Documents 118.Oxford; Perqamon Press, p. 115
