Theory And Practical Implementation Of Teaching Vocabulary In The Efl Classroom

Seminar paper from the year 2011 in the subject Didactics - English - Pedagogy, Literature Studies, grade: 1,7, University of Frankfurt (Main), language: English, abstract: Conventionally, the teaching of vocabulary in the EFL classroom was mostly incidental and limited to presenting new words as they appeared in reading or sometimes listening texts. This indirect teaching method assumes that vocabulary expansion takes place through the practice of other language skills like reading or listening, but in fact this does not ensure vocabulary expansion. Nowadays it is widely accepted that vocabulary teaching should form a part of the syllabus and that it should be taught well-planned and on a regular basis. Some authors, led by Lewis (1993) even state that vocabulary should be the main focus of language teaching, because ‘language consists of grammaticalised lexis, not lexicalised grammar’. This underlines the importance of vocabulary as being basic to communication. From my point of view learners will be unable to participate in a conversation, if they do not recognise the meaning of keywords even though they know the morphology and syntax. On the other hand, I think that grammar is equally important in the EFL classroom and therefore vocabulary should not be substituted for grammar teaching. Consequentially, both should be part of teaching English as a foreign language and what is even more important they should be presented as being connected with each other. This can be seen when we have a look at what we need to use words properly in a communicative situation. The three language properties are form, meaning and context that are interrelated. The pupils do not only have to memorize the new word itself, but they also have to keep in mind morphology and syntax, the cultural meaning and they have to know the context in which you can use the word in an appropriate way. As this is a difficult job for both, pupils and teachers, I would like to go into different teaching methods that should be considered when teaching vocabularies in the EFL classroom. Therefore I am going to look at the mental lexicon that helps us to understand how words are stored in our brains. Consequentially, I would like to dwell on the three major phases in the teaching of vocabulary, before I am going to deal with further helpful hints and examples for us as future teachers as well as for pupils in greater detail. Finally I would like to examine the whole topic again to state my ultimate opinion in my conclusion.

Seminar paper from the year 2008 in the subject Didactics for the subject English - Pedagogy, Literature Studies, grade: 2,0, University of Kassel, course: Teaching Grammar and Vocabulary, language: English, abstract: This paper is going to deal with the question how vocabulary can be introduced in the EFL classroom and why it is essential for students to learn new vocabulary and know how to use it in context. Furthermore, it deals with the points that are involved in presenting and demonstrating vocabulary and it also focuses on the teachers and learners and which roles they play in the whole process of vocabulary acquisition in the EFL classroom. It is important to see that the teacher needs to work actively with the students on the process of acquiring new vocabulary and the students need to be involved in the learning process. The teacher needs to show the students the necessity of learning vocabulary since this is the most important part of foreign language learning because without vocabulary they will not be able to communicate and understand text that are written in a foreign language. In order to be able to speak a foreign language properly, the students need to learn vocabulary because otherwise they will not be able to express and articulate themselves in a way that other students or native speakers of English can understand them. It is the teacher’s task to support the learning process of the students and to show them ways of learning vocabulary through different teaching approaches and different methods. There are many different ways of presenting and teaching vocabulary in the EFL classroom but which of them are most efficient? That is a question that has been discussed for many years now and one could come to the conclusion that there is not only one right way of teaching vocabulary but a variety of different approaches that can help the teacher in presenting and teaching new vocabulary. A mixture of many different ways is always more effective than using only one way of teaching which is also very boring for the students. In earlier times, the teacher centred teaching was used in classes in general but times have changed and this term paper will show what kind of different types of teaching vocabulary in the EFL classroom there are nowadays and how the students are actively involved in every step.

Blended learning has recently been gaining popularity within educational fields. Examining the impact that computer-assisted techniques have on foreign language education will provide more effective ways to enhance learning techniques for educators and students alike. Applications of CALL Theory in ESL and EFL Environments is a pivotal reference source that discusses recent advances relating to online teaching and learning of foreign languages. Highlighting relevant topics such as electronic portfolio assessments, corpus linguists, flipped learning models, and student engagement, this scholarly resource is ideal for educators, academicians, students, and researchers that are interested in staying current on the latest technologies and methodologies in foreign language learning.

This volume addresses the complex issues surrounding language teacher education, especially in EFL, and the development of professionalism in this field. By applying such concepts as Shulman's "pedagogical content knowledge", the development of teachers' knowledge base is investigated in a variety of settings, thus underpinning the contextual nature of teacher learning. The vital role of critical reflection at all stages of teacher development is shown to be an integral part of language teachers' knowledge constructions in areas such as pedagogical grammar, assessment and testing. The contributions shed light also on the perception and development of teacher expertise. This volume sets out to bridge the gap between theory and practice, and in so doing shows that these constructs are far from monolithic. Rather, both theory and practice are created and developed dynamically in close interrelation.

This volume brings together articles written by experts in the thriving field of language teacher education from a variety of geographical and institutional contexts, with a particular focus on EFL.

This book presents an overview of revisiting the assessment of language abilities. It also showcases how the measurement of such constructs can result in negative or positive washback and how outcomes might be conducive to repercussions that decide on the future of many stakeholders. The 23 chapters were selected among tens of chapters received from different contexts that addressed the issue of revisiting the assessment of language abilities, such as Tunisia, Ukraine, Algeria, Russia, KSA, Sudan, Egypt, Canada, Kurdistan, UK, USA, Iran, Turkey, etc. These contexts have highlighted the necessity to revisit the different constructs which should be assessed with a clear and straightforward foundation on students’ learning objectives and their actual language ability. To do so, most of the chapters present hands-on use of relevant statistical tests that might serve in revisiting the construct definition both theoretically and operationally. Perhaps the sole and intricate question that the authors of these contributions ask is what it means to revisit the assessment of the construct of individualized language ability and how. In addition, the book accentuates the momentousness and significance of reflecting on test fairness and validation as the mainspring and backbone for democratization of assessment. This book appeals to a broad readership, such as English Language Teaching (ELT) practitioners, language teachers, students, testing organizations, policy-makers, test designers, writers of test specifications, testing experts, researchers, program evaluators, especially in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) as well as other international contexts.

This book brings together current perspectives and up-to-date research on vocabulary teaching and the learning of a foreign or second language. It will serve as a basis for academic studies and can be used as a supplementary source for vocabulary courses in English language teacher training programs. Featuring contributors from Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Spain and Turkey, who detail their experiences of language teaching in different cultural contexts, this collection is valuable as it reflects theory and practice at work in different settings on vocabulary acquisition, teaching vocabulary to young learner, and vocabulary teaching and learning strategies. The volume also provides insights into the use of technology in vocabulary teaching, and details various forms of vocabulary testing.

English Language Teaching Today: Linking Theory and Practice provides an up-to-date account of current principles and practices for teaching English in the world today. The chapters, written by internationally recognized language teacher educators and TESOL specialists, introduce the reader to key language skill areas (i.e., listening, speaking, reading, writing, pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary) and explain how each skill area can be taught in a principled manner in diverse language learning contexts. Throughout the book, the link between theory and practice is explicitly highlighted and exemplified. This reader-friendly book is suitable for undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in TESOL and other second language education programmes as well as for TESOL professionals who wish to stay current with recent developments in ELT.