DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED BY ENGLISH TEACHERS IN TEACHING VOCABULARIES
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33603/rill.v2i3.1301Keywords:
English teaching, vocabulary, difficulties, techniquesAbstract
This study aims at identifying some difficulties encountered by English teachers in teaching vocabulary and finding out the solutions. The design used was qualitative descriptive using a semi-structured interview as the instrument. The study showed that common difficulties encountered in teaching vocabulary are students’ and teachers’ limited knowledge of the words, techniques, time constraint, and word selection. To overcome those difficulties, teachers may employ some techniques in teaching vocabulary such as using translation in L1, picture, real objects, gestures, guessing from the context, drilling, repetition, and using dictionary. Thus, it can be concluded that difficulties in teaching vocabulary lead English teachers to some ways they can take to overcome them. For future studies, it is suggested to employ observation to see the practice of vocabulary teaching and find out what the actual difficulties are encountered. Moreover, interview to students might be carried out to see their own difficulties in learning vocabulary.
Keywords: English teaching, vocabulary, difficulties, techniques
References
Allen, V. F. (1983). Techniques in teaching vocabulary. New York: Oxford University Press.
Alqahtani, M. (2015). The importance of vocabulary in language learning and how to be taught. International Journal of Teaching and Education, 3(3), 21–34. DOI: DOI: 10.20472/TE.2015.3.3.002
Astika, G. (2015). Profiling the Vocabulary of News Texts As Capacity Building for Language Teachers. Indonesian Journal of Applied Linguistics, 4(2), 123. DOI: https://doi.org/10.17509/ijal.v4i2.689
Beltrán, M. L. C. (2001). The challenge of effective vocabulary teaching. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 2(1), 48–56. Retrieved [November 8, 2016] from: https://revistas.unal.edu.co/index.php/profile/article/view/11351
Brown, H. D. (2000). Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy. New York: Pearson Education.
Buckland, J. (2008). Teaching effective vocabulary: What can teachers do to increase the vocabulary of children who start education with a limited vocabulary? Department for Children, Schools and Families. Retrieved [September 30, 2016] from: http://www.education.gov.uk/publications/eOrderingDownload/TEV_A4.pdf
Dastjerdi, H. V., & Amiryousefi, M. (2010). Vocabulary : Challenges and debates, 3(3), 89–94. Retrieved [November 8, 2017] from: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1081835.pdf
Harmer, J. (2007). The Practice of English Language Teaching 4th Edition. Harlow: Pearson Longman.
Harrell, M. C. & Bradley, M. A. (2009). Data collection methods semi-structured interviews and focus groups. RAND National Defense Research Institute. Retrieved [November 12, 2016] from: www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/technical_reports/2009/RAND_TR718.pdf
Hiebert, E. H., & Kamil, M. L. (2005). Teaching and learning vocabulary: Perspectives and persistent issues. In E. H. Hiebert & M. L. Kamil (Eds.), Teaching and learning vocabulary: Bringing research to practice. New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
Mehta, N. K. (2009). Vocabulary teaching: Effective methodologies. The Internet TESL Journal, 15(3). Retrieved [October 3, 2016] from: http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Mehta-Vocabulary.html
Mendez-Shannon, E. C. (2010). " We will always be in the shadows " - a qualitative descriptive study of undocumented Latino immigrants surviving in the United States. PhD Dissertation. Retrieved [November 12, 2016] from: http://ezp-prod1.hul.harvard.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=psyh&AN=2011-99010-525&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Miles, M. B., & Huberman, M. (1984). Qualitative data analysis: A sourcebook of new methods. Sage. California: SAGE Publications Inc.
Nation, I. S. P. (1974). Techniques for teaching vocabulary. English Teaching Forum, 3(12), 18–21. Retrieved [October 15, 2016] from: https://www.victoria.ac.nz/lals/about/staff/publications/paul-nation/1974-Vocab-techniques.pdf
Nation, I. S. P. (2005). Teaching vocabulary. Asian EFL Journal, 7(3), 47–54. Retrieved [October 15, 2016] from: http://www.asian-efl-journal.com/sept_05_pn.pdf
Raphael, T. E. (2009). Vocabulary teaching and learning. McGraw Hill Wright Group.
Sedita, J. (2005). Effective vocabulary instruction - keys to literacy. Insights on Learning Disabilities, 2(1), 33–45. Retrieved [November 12, 2016] from: https://keystoliteracy.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/effective-vocabulary-instruction.pdf
Shen, W. (2003). Current trends of vocabulary teaching and learning strategies for EFL settings. Feng Chia Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences, (7), 187–224. Retrieved [November 13, 2016] from: http://www.fcu.edu.tw/wSite/public/Attachment/f1378105968860.pdf
Zacharias, N. T. (2012). Qualitative research methods for second language education. New Castle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
Citation Check
License
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License that allows others to share and adapt the work with an acknowledgement of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal’s published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Upon receiving the proofs, the Author/Editor agrees to promptly check the proofs carefully, correct any errors, and authorize the publication of the corrected proofs.
