USING COMMUNICATIVE APPROACH TO TEACH VOCABULARY
Keywords:
lexical skills, methodological literature, significant variation, educational games, semantization, structural information.Abstract
The purpose of this thesis is to explore and evaluate the using communicative approach to teach vocabulary in the English language teaching.This thesis is about playing techniques as a way of increasing lexical skills in the primary stages of teaching English. The information given in this thesis will be of value to anyone occupied in teaching English language; to anyone interested in methods of teaching foreign language; to anyone interested in playing techniques and how to use them during the lessons correctly; to anyone who has problems with memorizing new words, group of words and phrases.
References
Обучающие игры на уроке английского языка (из опыта работы). / Stronin M.F. – М.: Prosvyaschenie, 1984.-112p. 2. A course of modern English lexicology. /R.Z. Ginzbourgh, S.S. Khidekel, G.J. Knyazyeva and A.A. Sankin. — second edition. Revised and enlarged —М.: Vysshaya shkola, 1979. — 269 p. 3. English across the curriculum: Theme-based learning in the primary classroom. In New Tendencies in Curriculum Development. / Kohn J. & Wolff, Hughes A. D. – Szombathely: Commission of the European Communities,1993. – 315p. Lexicology is a branch of linguistics, the science of language. The term lexicology is composed of two Greek morphemes: lexis meaning ‘word, phrase’ and logos which denotes ‘learning, a department of knowledge’. Thus, the literal meaning of the term lexiсolоgу is ‘the science of the word’. Lexicology as a branch of linguistics has its own aims and methods of scientific course work, its basic task being a study and systematic description of vocabulary in respect to its origin, development and current use.
Lexicology is concerned with words, variable word-groups, phraseological units, and with morphemes which make up words. We proceed from the assumption that the word is the basic unit of language system, the largest on the morphologic and the smallest on the syntactic plane of linguistic analysis. The word is a structural and semantic entity within the language system. The purpose of learning vocabulary – the formation of lexical skills, the ability to combine the word according to the lexical rules. The formation of lexical skills involves not only taking into account the formal structural information, but also knowledge of situational, social and contextual rules.
A number of issues related to work on vocabulary were revealed in methodological literature. However, there are problems in the formation of lexical skills which are necessary for speaking. There is no significant variation of vocabulary in students’ statements that is why usually their speech seems to be poor. Working on vocabulary is traditionally divided into three main stages:
Introduction
Initial consolidation
Developing the ability to use skills in different kinds of speech activity.
The first two stages are often combined into one – the presentation of the vocabulary. The stage of presentation has an important role in learning vocabulary. All subsequent work on vocabulary depends on the effectiveness and appropriateness of this step.Discovering the meaning of the word (semantization) can be carried out in various ways, which are usually combined into two groups:
a) non-translatable and
b) transling methods semantization.
Non-translatable semantization methods include:
Demonstration of objects, gestures, actions, images, pictures and etc.
Discovery of the meanings of words in English language, which can be used:
A) Definition – the description of the word, eg:
A cinema - theatre where films are shown.
B) enumeration, for example:
dogs, cats, pigs, cows are animals.
B) semantization using synonyms or antonyms, such as:
cold - warm, quick - slow;
D) determination of slvoa based contextual guessing, knowledge of the facts, for example:
Colombus discovered America in 1492.
Translatable methods include:
Replacing the word (phrase or word groups) with a corresponding equivalent of the native language;
Translation - interpretation, in which in addition to the equivalent in the native language students are told about the coincidence (or divergence) in the meaning, for example:
Big – katta (means value, size)
Great - katta (the famous, great (karomat))
These methods of semantization have advantages and disadvantages. Non-translatable methods are good for developing logic, increase the practice of language, create a support for memory, associative ties strengthen. However, non-translatable methods require more time and do not always provide accurate understanding.
Translational methods are economical in terms of time, universally applicable, but increase the possibility of interlingual interference.[2; p.298-299]
Teacher’s role is to choose the most efficient way of presentation and semantization according to the training stage, students’ level of knowledge, qualitative characteristic of word and its affiliation to active and passive minimum.
Getting different types of speech activity in the English language by the younger students is a process of gradual and systematic formation of speech skills. During the English language classes, students develop the ability to use vocabulary skills in various types of speech activity: listening, speaking, reading and writing.
However, working with the new vocabulary does not end in one lesson. It goes on all following lessons. Students will meet many times with the same words in the reading texts and homework exercises. Teacher needs to be familiar with how students have learned a new vocabulary which lexical items should still be repeated, until reaching their strong comprehension (i.e. as they have formed the practical lexical skills). But we should not think that whole exercises should be based only on forming lexical skills. In accordance with the recommendations of the authors of textbooks, during the lesson teacher and students are working both on the formation of skills, as on the development of them.
