Teaching Techniques and Strategies

(TTS)

Session 6

Teaching Vocabulary

Objectives

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

• provide your own definition of the term vocabulary;

• describe the strands of a well-balanced course and learning techniques and strategies across the four learning strands in a language course;

• apply the principles to the teaching of new vocabulary items in our context.

Procedures

A. Checking reading

B. Observing

C. Performing

A. Checking reading

Questions:

1. What do we mean by ‘vocabulary’?

2. What is the core meaning of a vocabulary item?

3. Can you give your own examples of multiword units?

4. Can you give your own examples of a word family?

Core meaninge.g.: Neutral (I. S. P. Nation, in Nunan 2003:132): • a country that does not officially support either

side in a war• a position not supporting either side in an argu

ment• not showing emotions or preference• a neutral voice does show emotions • not causing change because it’s equal on both

sides• a position between the gears of a car• …CM: Not taking a particular side or position

Multiword units & word family

• Multiword units/lexical phrases/chunks/ 词块、词汇短语 groups of words like absolutely fantastic, at once, in a minute, portab

le TV, the United States of America, etc.

• Word family: – different forms of the same word belong to on

e word family: walk, walks, walking, walked

Background to the teaching of vocabulary

• What are the four strands of a language course, the broader framework of which vocabulary teaching and learning should fit into?

• What do you think the key words are for each strand?

The four strands of a language course

• Learning from meaning-focused input

• Deliberate language-focused learning

• Learning from meaning-based output

• Developing fluency

Learning from meaning-focused input

1. What language skills does the strand involve? (listening and reading)

2. How many percent of the running words do learners need to know? (98%)

3. How can a learner learn a new word? (through guessing from context. The new word should not stop comprehension of the text.)

4. What kind of source should be provided for learners to learn? (Simple written and spoken texts. Graded readers.)

Learning from meaning-focused input

1. What language skills does the strand involve? (listening and reading)

2. How many percent of the running words do learners need to know? (98%)

3. How can a learner learn a new word? (through guessing from context. The new word should not stop comprehension of the text.)

4. What kind of source should be provided for learners to learn? (Simple written and spoken texts. Graded readers.)

Deliberate language-focused learning

1. Any other terms for this? (form-focused instruction, language focused learning, or language study)

2. What does deliberate learning involve? (It involves paying deliberate attention to language features such as sounds, spelling, vocabulary, grammar.)

3. How much time should be given to this strand? (no more than 25% of the course time)

Deliberate language-focused learning

1. Any other terms for this? (form-focused instruction, language focused learning, or language study)

2. What does deliberate learning involve? (It involves paying deliberate attention to language features such as sounds, spelling, vocabulary, grammar.)

3. How much time should be given to this strand? (no more than 25% of the course time)

Learning from meaning-based output

1. What language skills does the strand involve? (speaking and writing)

2. What is the learners’ main attention on? (communicating messages)

3. Why should learners learn vocabulary through using vocabulary productively according to Swain (1985)? (Using vocabulary productively can strengthen learning and can push learners to focus on aspects of vocabulary knowledge that they did not need to attend to when listening and reading. )

Learning from meaning-based output

1. What language skills does the strand involve? (speaking and writing)

2. What is the learners’ main attention on? (communicating messages)

3. Why should learners learn vocabulary through using vocabulary productively according to Swain (1985)? (Using vocabulary productively can strengthen learning and can push learners to focus on aspects of vocabulary knowledge that they did not need to attend to when listening and reading. )

Fluency development

1. What does this strand aim at? (It aims at helping learners make the best use of what they already know. )

2. What language skills should it be related to? (It should be related to each of the four skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing.)

3. What should fluency development activities involve? (should involve only known language items, should be message-focused, should involve substantial quantities of input and output, and should involve some pressure to perform faster than usual.)

Fluency development

1. What does this strand aim at? (It aims at helping learners make the best use of what they already know. )

2. What language skills should it be related to? (It should be related to each of the four skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing.)

3. What should fluency development activities involve? (should involve only known language items, should be message-focused, should involve substantial quantities of input and output, and should involve some pressure to perform faster than usual.)

Principles for teaching vocabulary(I. S. P. Nation, in Nunan 2003: 135-41)

1. Focus on the most useful vocabulary first.

2. Focus on the vocabulary in the most appropriate way.

3. Give attention to the high frequency words across the four strands of a course.

4. Encourage learners to reflect on and take responsibility for learning.

B. Observing

Task 1

Observe Extract 1 and 2(p. 145), and then brainstorm:

• What difference(s) can you see?

Task 2

Observe Extract 3 (p. 146), and then brainstorm:

• What do you learn from the extract?

Task 3Watch the clip (0-11:40) of 深圳外国语学校梁洁文

老师示范课 (The old man and death):http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMjYzODg3NzM2.html

(Pw: scnusfs)and think:

1. What vocabulary items did the students learn?2. How did the teacher get the students to learn th

ese words?3. What was the nature of the input? Did the teac

her present the new words in an isolated way, or did she provide any context?

C. Performing

• Look at the following example, and

• practice your own teaching in your microteaching:

例子：高中英语模块六第五单元的词汇教学

单元教学中的生词教学：分散教学，语境教学。

1. Presentation （呈现阶段）2. Consolidation （巩固阶段）3. Extension （扩展阶段）

Presentation

Stage 1:

• Ice-breaker (Cold today, isn’t it?)

• Warming up (Could you name some natural calamities?)

• Prediction (What will happen if a volcano erupts?)

• Listening/Reading for the main idea. (What is Christine talking about?)

Words that could be handledat this stage

• volcano, earthquake, hurricane, tornado, cyclone, typhoon, thunderstorm, snowstorm, tsunami, fire, flood,

• erupt, tremble, swallow …

• eruption, peak, lava, ash, bungalow, wave, fog, rainbow,

• molten, spectacular,

Presentation

Stage 2:

• Listening/Reading for specific messages

Words that could be learned:

Those that hinder the students from getting/understanding the messages

e.g.:

An example

Trapped by the Flood (p. 72)

T: What did Sara see when she looked at the back door?

… She looked at the back door. Water was flowing in underneath. Turning round she saw dirty brown water fountaining out of the drain and filling the sink. …

Presentation

Stage 3:

• Listening/Reading for language focus

Words that could be handled:

All the new words and expressions occurring in the material could be listed together for the students to have a deeper impression.

Consolidation

• The listed vocabulary items could be drilled.

• Related exercises could be done.

• Categorization could be used for the words already learned.

• The form should be focused based on the understanding of the meaning.

Extension

• small contexts: Single sentences could be used. • Association

– Synonyms: absolutely, definitely, certainly, completely; spaceman, astronaut; …

– Antonyms: precious, valueless, worthless, …– Derivatives: volcano, volcanic, volcanology, volcanolo

gist; ash, ashy; evaluate, value, evaluation– multiword units/lexical phrases/chunks, – word family: erupt, erupts, erupted, erupting– word network:

Word network

volcano

eruption

?

lava?

ash

ashy, like a fog/cloud, swallow

molten, hot, scorching, blazing; burning

burn down to the ground?

?

Reading assignments

1. Read Chapter 4 of Success in English Teaching by P. Davies and E. Pearse (2000)

2. Read Chapter 8 Grammar by D. Nunan (2003)

Next issue: Grammar