Teaching Vocabulary Through Music
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MASARYK UNIVERSITY IN BRNO FACULTY OF EDUCATION TeachingVocabularythrough Music Diploma Thesis Brno 2008 Dagmar Šišková MASARYK UNIVERSITY IN BRNO FACULTY OF EDUCATION THEDEPARTMENT OFENGLISHLANGUAGE AND LITERATURE TeachingVocabularythrough Music Diploma Thesis Brno 2008 Supervisor: Written by: Mgr. Jaroslav Suchý Dagmar Šišková 2 Prohlášení Prohlašuji, že jsemdiplomovoupráci zpracoval/a samostatně apoužil/a jenprameny uvedenév seznamuliteratury. Souhlasím, aby prácebylauloženanaMasarykověuniverzitěv Brněv knihovně Pedagogické fakultyazpřístupněnake studijním účelům Brnědne5.prosince2008 DagmarŠišková 3 Acknowledgements Iwouldlike tothankmythesis advisor,Mgr.JaroslavSuchý,forhissupervision, helpfuladviceandrecommendingliterature. 4 CONTENTS INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................7 1. THEORETICALPART 7 1.1. TheRoleandtheImportanceofMusic .............................................9 1.2. HistoryofMusic ..............................................................................11 1.3. ThePsychologicalEffectsofMusic ................................................12 1.4. MusicandLanguageLearning ........................................................14 1.5. Whyshouldthismethodwork? .......................................................24 1.6. Memory ............................................................................................29 1.7. Summary ..........................................................................................32 2. PRACTICALPART 33 2.1. Informationaboutthe students ........................................................33 2.2. TheQuestionnaire ............................................................................35 2.3. TheEvaluationoftheQuestionnaire ...............................................36 2.3.1. TheSeventhGrade ................................................................36 2.3.2. TheEighthGrade ..................................................................37 2.3.3. The NinthGrade ...................................................................38 2.3.4. Overall results .......................................................................39 2.3.5. TheSelectionofSongs .........................................................40 2.4. Practical exercisesforthesongs ......................................................41 2.4.1. Rihanna–"Don‘tStoptheMusic" .......................................42 2.4.2. Shakira–"Don’tBother" ......................................................45 2.4.3. Fergie–"Clumsy" .................................................................48 2.4.4. OzzyOsbourne–"MamaI’mComingHome" .....................49 2.4.5. Eminem–"Mockingbird" .....................................................51 5 2.4.6. Blink182–"IMissYou" .....................................................55 2.4.7. Jamiroquai–"Cosmic Girl" ..................................................57 2.4.8. RedHotChilyPeppers–"Underthe Bridge" ......................60 2.4.9. Student’s reactionstotheexercises ......................................61 2.5. Students’TestResults ......................................................................63 2.6. EvaluationoftheTestResults .........................................................65 CONCLUSION 69 RÉSUMÉ 70 WORKSCITED 71 LISTOFAPPENDICES 74 APPENDIX 6 Introduction The Objective and the Content of the Diploma Thesis This work is concerns using popular songs to teach English, especially vocabularysince learningvocabularyis one of the keyelements inlearninga foreign language and has always caused students difficulties. Thornbury quotes the linguist DavidWilkins tostress the importance of learningvocabulary: "Without grammar very little canbe conveyed,without vocabulary nothing canbe conveyed“ (2002:13).He also quotes several students whocomplainabout their lack of vocabularyandpoints out that "vocabularyteachinghas not always beenveryresponsive tosuchproblems“ (2002:13). The objective of this work is to measure the effectiveness of using popular songs to teachvocabulary. The workis dividedintotwoparts: theoretical andpractical.The theoretical part discusses manyaspects of music andlanguage learning themselves,suchas the role and the importance of music inpeople’s lives.A brief account onhistoryof music is also included. This is followed by an analysis of the psychological effects of music. The benefits and the effects of music onlanguage learningare coveredin the followingpart. The last chapter of the theoretical part focuses onthe general process of learning and memory and those are implied on the tested method of using popular songs to teach English. All the knowledge gainedinthe theoretical part is appliedinthe practical one. The practical partdescribesauthor’sownresearch,theindividualstepsofthe procedure, and,of course,the results of this research.The practical part alsoincludes exercises that can be created for any song. The whole author’s research and practical part are describedindetail beginningonpage33. The conclusionsummarises thecontent of this work,reflectsonthe results of the researchandevaluatesthetestedmethod. Reasons Why I Have Chosen this Topic There are twomainreasons as towhyI have chosenthis topic.The first reason is a personal one dealing,withmyownexperience withthis method.This is how I had taught myself Englishbefore I startedattending anEnglishcourse.I wouldlookup the 7 lyrics of my favourite songs ina dictionary,andlisteningtomyfavourite songs made me never forget these words, even though I have hardly ever used some of them. I wantedtofindoutifthis methodwouldbeassuccessfulwithmyownstudents. Andthe secondreasonis that there are manystudents at our school wholove andlistento music most of the time ontheir mobile phones andMP3players.There are problems withthem ona daily basis listening totheir favourite music onheadphones evenduringlessons. That is whyI thought that I couldmake use of their habit andlisten to their music in the lessons - studying the lyrics of those songs making the lessons moreenjoyableand,hopefully,moreeffective. Information about the Students The students are pupils of anelementaryschool inKroměříž.This methodwill be tested on three groups of students – the seventh, the eighth andthe ninth graders. There are fiftytwo children altogether in those three groups out of which eighteen pupils are in the eighth,the same nimber inthe ninthgrade,while thereare onlysixteen students intheseventhgrade. Their levels range from beginner topre-intermediate. However,twoof the three groups consist of rather weakstudents with disciplinaryproblems andlittle interest in English. On the other hand, one group, the seventh grade, consists of hardworking studentswholike tostudyandareactiveduringthelessons. Thestudents’agesarefromtwelvetofifteen. Moreinformationaboutthestudentsis providedinthe practical partonpage33. Hypothesis The hypothesis for this workis that students whoare interestedinthe subject, which in this case is going to be their favourite music, learn more easily and more effectively. This method also includes repetitiveness, which is so important for the process of studying because it is almost certain that the students will encounter the material,their favourite songs,outside the classroom.Students at this age identifywith their favourite stars andare interestedinwhat theyare singingabout andinterest is also fundamentalforlearning. 8 1. Theoretical Part 1.1. The Role and the Importance of Music Whyshould music be suitable for teachingvocabulary? The answer is simple. Music has always playeda bigpart of humans’ lives, beginningwith child’s birth and mothers singinglullabies totheir children.It is usedduringall important occasions of human lives beginning with child’s christening, through weddings, to funerals. Each countryhas itsownanthem.Musichas beenimportantduringmanyrevolutionsandwas eventhe cause of some of them.John Lennon,Bob Dylan,Karel Kryl canbe mentioned as some of the revolutionarymusicians.The flower generationalso connected through music. Pilka believes that everypiece of art is a gift since it deals withbigideas and social ideals as well as the most inwardmatters of eachandeveryone of us.It speaks a language intelligible toeveryone. Music brings emotions tolife andit also serves as a testimony of people from any land or time. It fills the gap between nations, crosses thousands of miles and reveals more about its people than a scientific elaboration. It may also help people to get into their own hearts. It speaks for us where words fail (1959:275277).Just as all different kinds of art,it serves manypurposes. People create andlistento it for the same reason- theyall want totouchothers withmusic or tobe touchedbyit. Murpheymadethefollowinglist aboutwhat peopleusuallydowithsongs.We: - "listen - sing,hum,whistle,tap,andsnapfingerswhilewelisten - singwithoutlisteningtoanyrecording - talkaboutthemusic - talkaboutthelyrics - talkaboutthesinger/group - talkaboutvideoclips - usesongsandmusictosetorchangeanatmosphereormood[…] - use songs and music to create a social environment, form a feeling of community,dance,makefriendsandlovers 9 - readabout the production,performance,effect,authors,producers,audiences of musicandsong - usemusicindreams - use music andsongto make internal associations between the people, places, and times in our lives, so they become the personal soundtrack of our lives“(1992:9). Eventhe ancient Greeks knew of the importance of music.Holzknechassumes that poets suchas Homer andHeinmust have beendrawing