<p> Dealing with vocabulary in the Japanese classroom</p><p>Rob Waring</p><p>Notre Dame Seishin University</p><p> [email protected]</p><p> http://www1.harenet.ne.jp/~waring/vocabindex.html</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -1 Some opening questions</p><p>1. How do you teach vocabulary?</p><p>2. What kinds of words do Japanese students need?</p><p>3. What is the best way to deal with vocabulary for Japanese learners?</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -2 Typical vocabulary teaching</p><p> Most vocab teaching is from context  Haphazard selection of materials  Too many words at once  Rare words are favoured over common words  Learning is focused on single words  All students learn the same words  Word teaching = definition and spelling  Teachers give meanings  Low recycling of vocab in coursebooks  Low recycling of vocab by teachers  Teachers leave vocab learning to learners  Vocab learning strategies are rarely taught  Vocab learning techniques are rarely taught  Vocabulary learning goals are rarely set  Dictionary skills are rarely taught  Vocab notebooks not encouraged  Words are kept in lists  Vocab exercises test not teach Teachers trust the coursebook to deal with vocab</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -3 Common sense stuff we know about vocabulary learning</p><p> Because we teach a word does not mean they learned it (teaching does not cause learning)  Because they finished the textbook does not mean they know all the words in the book  There are many things to learn about a word *spelling *pronunciation *meaning *affixes *register *collocation *frequency *topic area etc.  There are 2 stages in word learning 1. the initial ‘form – meaning’ relationship (spelling and sound) 2. deepening the knowledge of the word (collocations, register, multiple meanings etc)  Initial word knowledge is very fragile as memories of new words that are not met again soon, are lost  8-50 meetings (or more) to ‘learn’ a word  They cannot guess new meaning from context if the surrounding text is too difficult  Not all words are equally frequent, or useful  Students only need to learn the most frequent and useful words first, later they can specialize  Some words are more difficult to learn than others  Words live with other words, not in isolation (collocations)  Written and spoken vocabulary are different  Fewer words are needed for speaking than writing</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -4 Stages in word learning and how to develop word knowledge</p><p>Initial stage Deepening stage To develop a ‘sight’ To get a sense of how vocabulary the word lives with Aim? other words and grammar</p><p>Spelling Collocation, meaning colligation, register, What? pronunciation usefulness, topic area</p><p>Word cards / Lots of extensive memorization reading and listening How? to develop automaticity and fluency</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -5 What does this mean for vocabulary learning and teaching?</p><p> We should teach words the students need (the 2000 most useful words come first)  We don’t need to teach every word in the book  There is not enough class time to teach everything about a word  Because time is limited, we have to teach students how to deal with new words (independent learning)  They need extensive practice with words so they can meet them often to work out word relationships to build recognition automaticity  Students need to learn word relationships  They need chances  to observe new things about words  to hypothesize about their knowledge  to experiment with their vocabulary</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -6 How should we teach vocabulary?</p><p> Focus on units larger than a single word awful day high season clear conscience traffic jam blonde hair beautiful woman</p><p> Focus on basic concepts fork branch</p><p> Demonstrate collocational differences </p><p> light vs. light suitcase vs. heavy suitcase light green vs. dark green light rain vs. heavy rain</p><p> rough rough / calm sea rough / smooth sandpaper big surprise large area great success big smile large family great importance big problem large population great pleasure big difference large volume great artist</p><p> Concentrate on word grammar give vs. give someone something give something give something to someone borrow vs. borrow s/thg from s/one</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -7 What do they need?</p><p> Direct word learning activities focused on word grammar (e.g. word cards) to get an initial ‘form – meaning’ relationship  Teach vocab learning strategies and memory techniques  Learners try many methods to find ones they like  Direct vocab exercises to broaden the collocational knowledge / depth  Recycle, recycle, recycle  Extensive reading / extensive listening to build recognition speed, fluency in understanding / depth  Active use in speech and writing for experimenting / testing hypotheses / confirming and rejecting their own use</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -8 Main principles</p><p>Work against the forgetting curve Let them do the work Give them only what they can take in Expect a lot of them Set goals Select words wisely Teach dictionary skills Work above the single word level Perform a needs analysis Teach something they are going to meet again soon Words found in a wide range of texts (range) before specialized vocab Words with a wide meaning before sub-meanings (e.g. teach go before travel) Words that will be easy to learn (e.g. loanwords) to build the start-up vocab and empower the learner Teach culture-specific vocabulary Teach the classroom vocabulary Teach ‘instructions’ vocabulary Teach the base meaning first Work hard on common words with many meanings</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -9 When looking at vocabulary activities</p><p> Look for what the activity is trying to do  Single words or phrases?  Working with collocation?  Natural context?  Is the meaning given with the correct part of speech?  Is the meaning clear and unambiguous?  Do the opposites interfere with learning?  Are the words too similar? (Interference)  Are pictures clear and unambiguous?  Is the vocabulary relevant for the learners?  Is the exercise just a test?  What new connections can learners make?  Do definitions fit smoothly into the context?</p><p>If in doubt, try it out</p><p>ETJ Vocab 2007 -10</p>