UNIVERSITY OF GJAKOVA

FACULTY OF PHILOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE

DIPLOMA THESIS

TECHNIQUES OF TEACHING NEW VOCABULARY IN ESL

MENTOR: CANDIDATE:

Prof. Nazli Tyfekqi, PhD Arbnore Berisha

GJAKOVË 2019

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Contents

Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... 5

Introduction ................................................................................................................................... 6

CHAPTER

1. Literature review ......................................................................................................................7

1.1The History of Teaching Language Skill ............................................................................7

1.2 Vocabulary as a language learning skills ...........................................................................8

1.3 Learning vocabulary as a specific language skills………………………………………..9

1.3.1 Vocabulary acquisition in listening skills………………………………………9

1.3.2 Vocabulary acquisition in speaking skills…………………………………..10

1.3.3 Vocabulary acquisition in reading skills…………………………………...10

1.3.4 Vocabulary acquisition in writing skills…………………………………..11

1.4 Types of vocabulary……………………………………………………………………11

1.4.1 Receptive vocabulary…………………………………………………………..12

1.4.2 Productive vocabulary…………………………………………………………12

1.5 Methods and Approaches of teaching vocabulary…………………….………………..13

1.5.1 Grammar Translation method………………………………………………14

1.5.2 The Oral Approach ……………………………………………………….14

1.5.3 Audiolingualism………………………..…………………………………14

1.5.4 Structuralism………………………………………………………………14

1.5.5 Communicative Approach……………………………………………….14

1.5.6 Silent way………………………………………………………………...14

1.6 Principles of teaching vocabulary15

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1..7 Techniques of teaching vocabulary ................................................................................ 17

1.7.1 Decontextualizing techniques………………………………………………17

1.7.2 Fully- contextualizing techniques…………………………………………18

1.7.3 Semi- contextualizing techniques…………………………………………19

CHAPTER II

2. The methodology of the study ................................................................................................ 20

2.1 Questions of the study ...................................................................................................... 21

2.2. Research Hypothesis........................................................................................................ 21

2.3 Population………………………………………………………………………………22

CHAPTER III

3. Analysis and results ................................................................................................................ 22

3.1Professors'response……………………………………………………………………..……23

3.2 Students'response………………………………………………………………………26

CHAPTER IV

Conclusion and recommendations ............................................................................................. 32

REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................ 34

APPENDIX 1 ................................................................................................................................ 35

APPENDIX 2……………………………………………………………………………….……39

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Abstract

It is a well-known fact that vocabulary learning in a second or foreign language can be hard at

times, but one must overcome these difficulties and learn new words, in order to master the

language.The teaching of new words and terms should be at the top of the agenda for teachers

that teach ESL or EFL. Therefore, the aim of this paperwork is to show the best techniques for

vocabulary teaching,and vocabulary learning, which are suggested by professors and preferred

by students at University of Gjakova, who were investigated about the importance of vocabulary

learning and the techniques that could help students and other teachers in the future. The

investigation process included two questionnaires where the first one was delivered to7

professors of University of Gjakova, English Language and Literature department and the second

one was delivered to 20 students of University of Gjakova. These data were analyzed and

classified into categories and the findings show that these professors mostly use the Fully-

contextualizing techniques and these students mostly use the decontextualizing- dictionary

technique to enhance their learning vocabulary.

Key words: Vocabulary; teaching methods; teaching techniques for EFL students.

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INTRODUCTION

Language is the art of communication. It surrounds us everywhere, from the very first moment

that we come into this world. It is the way we express ourselves at home, at school and

university, and at work. Everyone can speak his/her mother-tongue but to speak another

language is like having a second soul. In the modern world that we live, we encounter many

foreign languages, both in written and spoken form. Our modern world gives us much more

possibilities if we know more than just one language.So, learning a new language is like making

a new home for yourself anywhere in the world. One can ask himself how difficult can it be to

start learning e new language and how long could it take. Some are more preoccupied to find the

right techniques and they want to find the best teachers.Having in mind the fact that English is a

very used language and it is spoken all over the world, teaching its vocabulary is a very

important issue. We need to learn new vocabulary in order to understand different things, to read

in English, to listen to the music, to succeed on our exams that test our vocabulary skills, to be

able to communicate with foreign people and to understand them, to understand TV programs

and so on. Teachers around the world use different techniques and methods to teach new

vocabulary to their students. They may use translation in the mother tongue, they may give

different examples, different pictures, or they may give definitions. Some others prefer using a

dictionary and some others may use all of the above!

This paperwork consists some of the most useful techniques of teaching new vocabulary, which

have been used by teachers in Kosova, more precisely by the professors at the University of

Gjakova “Fehmi Agani”, who teach ESL and EFL with different levels of students ,Also it

includes the decontextualizing techniques of learning new vocabulary ,which students prefer to

use during their classes or self study.Therefore, this study was done with the purpose of helping

learners and new teachers to use the best techniques that are recommended by professors, in

order to learn and teach new vocabulary more easily.The acquisition of new words in a foreign

or second language can be hard at times, having in mind that there exist different types of

learners with different learning styles and not all of them have the same level of memorizing

words. Therefore this research will highlight some of the most used techniques in vocabulary

teaching, that teachers and professors have used while teaching the English language.

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CHAPTER I

1. Literature review

1.1The history of teaching language skills

Language teaching has been changed for many centuries, and it has been affected by different

influences. Goals for learning a language were different through periods. In some epochs,

languages were taught for the purpose of being able to read, in others ,were learned by people

who needed to use it orally.

Greeks were the first, who were interested in what they may be able to learn through language

learning, but the first ones to study a foreign language were Romans, who studied Greek. Latin

language was taught by priests in the 16th century, whereas in the 17th century French language

was used for speaking to foreigners, which was needed for traders and travelers. During this

period the status of Latin has changed from a living language to a dead language, which is used

in specific context , but not by any native speaker. Classical Latin became a model for language

teaching, where a special importance was given on learning grammar and vocabulary rules

through translation and practice in writing sentences. This method has been known as the

Grammar Translation Method, which was used as a model about modern languages. Which were

taught by using the same method as Latin. After so many years of being neglected and received

little importance , teaching and learning a second language (L2), vocabulary has greatly became

one of the most important tool for many language teachers. In the previous years, it was thought

that vocabulary was something that can effortlessly be learned, and it received just incidental

attention in some text books and different language programs. This low status of vocabulary

teaching in previous years can mostly be attributed to the language teaching through methods

and techniques used to improve a foreign language.

Four skills of language learning are abilities, which help a person to develop his/her ability of

communication. As it is known that language learning skills are : listening ,speaking, reading

,and writing. Listening is the first language skill that everybody acquires during learning a

language .This language skill is known as a passive skill because it requires a person to use

his/her ears to understand the language being spoken to. The second language skill is speaking,

which is known as an active skill ,as it orders you to produce the language orally, using your

voice. The third language skill that you recognize in learning a language is reading, which is

known as a passive skill as it orders you to use your eyes and brains to understand what you are

reading for. The last language skill, as it requires you to use your hands and brains, and the

written symbols that show your spoken language

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1.2 Vocabulary as a language learning skills

It can be said that the power of words is indisputable, they have changed and still continue to

change the world’s history course. The greatest tools that learners of a foreign language can

possess in order to succeed in mastering the second language, is a large and rich vocabulary and

also the skills for using those specific words. To know a word means to know many things about

it: its literal meaning, its connotations, its morphological and phonological form, its relation to

other words, synonyms and antonyms.

The term vocabulary has a range of meanings, but in general, includes all the words a person

knows. Firstly, “vocabulary refers to words we use to communicate in oral and print

language”(Hanson & Padua, 2011, p.5).Susan and Jennifer (2011) noted that “in order to

communicate in an effective way whether in a spoken or written form, we must be able to use

words we recognize and understand”(p.5). According to them, there exist two types of

vocabulary, receptive and productive vocabulary. Receptive vocabulary alludes to the words that

we learn through reading and listening. Whereas, productive vocabulary refers to the words we

use to communicate with others, both in writing and speaking (Lehr, Osborn, & Hiebert, 2004; as

cited in Hanson & Padua 2011). Secondly, the study done by National Reading Panel (2000)

identified vocabulary as an essential students’ skill to improve reading achievement. Four types

of vocabulary were identified by NRP: listening vocabulary, speaking vocabulary, reading

vocabulary and writing vocabulary. Word meaning or vocabulary is a key to achieve a

comprehension and also a good production of language. On the other hand, Jim Scrivener (1994)

in his book “Learning Teaching” claimed that the focus of English language teaching is divided

into two main groups: Language Systems (grammar, function, phonology) and Language Skills

(Productive: speaking; Receptive: reading and listening). The term Lexis is used as a synonym

for the term Vocabulary, which includes all the words in a particular language.

Thus, he claimed that when teachers teach vocabulary (lexis), they are in fact teaching grammar

(how words are used in context), function (when it is proper to use them) and phonology (how

they sound and how they should be pronounced). In other words, teaching vocabulary is of great

importance because teachers are not teaching some new words but the language as a whole.

Teaching English vocabulary to students is an important issue and worthy of the effort. Recently,

many scientists and linguists, from different places, have highlighted and recommended teaching

vocabulary because of its importance in teaching language. Harmer (2002) explained that

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vocabulary is the fundamental part of a language. He compared language to the body of humans

and vocabulary to its “vital organs” and “flesh”(p.30). Therefore, teaching vocabulary correctly

is a crucial element in mastering a new language.

1.3 Learning vocabulary as a specific language skills

Vocabulary acquisition is seen as an essential tool for second language learners, because poor

vocabulary in a second language prevents a successful communication. According to Notion

(2001) knowledge of vocabulary enables us to use a language, on the other hand ,language use

guides to an increase in vocabulary knowledge. In English as a second language (ESL), Or

English as a Foreign language (EFL), vocabulary plays an important role in all language skills

such as : listening, speaking, reading and writing. (Notion.2001). The acquisition of an adequate

vocabulary is considered as an essential part for a successful second language use ,because

without that sort of extensive vocabulary ,it is considered so hard or almost impossible to use the

structures and the function of it. Vocabulary is considered of a great importance, when we have

something to express or say. So we need a store of words in our brain in order to express our

thoughts or feelings through vocabulary because to carry a dictionary with yourself is not always

an easy thing , especially in a meeting or through travelling.

1.3.1 Vocabulary acquisition in listening skills

Listening is an important language skill compared to speaking, reading, and writing skills,

because it plays a vital role in communication. Vocabulary learning is the main factor in

listening, it is what makes possible to be understood what we listen or what we want to share

with others. Merchant (2008), noted that “ grammatical knowledge and vocabulary, as well

as word recognition skills may result in ineffective listening comprehension in L2”

.(p.11).Whereas according to Kelly as it is cited in Feng Teny’s book “ Vocabulary

acquisition in the main obstacle to competence in listening comprehension for SL2 (second

language learners”.p.12. So listening is the ability to receive and interpret messages in the

communication, it can be broken as a result of a poor vocabulary learning. With the aim of

being able to understand what you hear, or what you listen, you should master your

vocabulary.

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1.3.2 Vocabulary acquisition in speaking skills

In a foreign language, speaking is manifested as a challenging aspect of language learning,

where vocabulary plays a vital role in oral communication.. Cook noted that “ Many

researchers indicated that the ability of communication is a result of suitable and adequate

vocabulary learning as compared with learning grammar rules only”.(Cook.2001.p.407).

Some student claim that during lectures ,they understand the new vocabulary but after a short

time they forget what they have learned and this happens because they lack the opportunity

to use those words in their speaking. Agust, Carlo, and Snow (2005) noted that “foreign

language learners who have limited vocabulary take more time to learn new vocabulary items

and are less able to involve in comprehending text and lack involvement in oral

communication”.(p.407). It is considered that these learners are more likely to get lower

achievement in a language.

1.3.3 Vocabulary acquisition in reading skills

Seyed Mohammad and Nasrollah Bayat ,noted that “ Vocabulary acquisition is considered as

an important element and plays a huge function in the process of language”(p.6). Therefore,

Notion declares in his book and it is cited by Mohammad and Bayat that “ numerous

researchers consider that vocabulary learning is a very important chief feature of a second

language learning “.(p.6). In order to be able to process a text or to understand its meaning,

you must learn new words, you should be able to recognize the meaning of words and you

should make a lot of attempts to improve your vocabulary.

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1.3.4 Vocabulary acquisition in writing skills

Writing is a complicated process, which means to express an idea or an opinion that requires

condition of different metacognitive skills. In order to be able to produce a narrative writing, the

writer should be prepared to organize and develop plans for his/her ideas.A person should be

aware of what he/she has written, so writing serves to describe an event in an understandable

form by using letters and words. Rosni (2009) states that “ writing skills is an expression that

describes the learners ability in language use”.(p.265). In order to enhance writing skills, learners

must master listening skills to get the language, furthermore, learners should gain the reading

skills to recognize the letters and writing. After improving these skills ,it is considered that

learners can write well. Notion (2001) noted that ; “writing skills are not skills acquired

naturally, but involves coordination of other senses to stimulate metacognitive”. (P.265). An

important skill to master the writing skill is vocabulary, which it is considered the key factor to

make the written production understandable and meaningful, so if you do not use an appropriate

vocabulary the text will not be understood. The improvement of the recognition of the words

can be acquired through direct teaching, which increases words memory and ability to use the

words, especially in writing.

1.4 Types of vocabulary

Based on some experts vocabulary is divided into :active and passive. An active vocabulary is

that kind of vocabulary students have learned and they have been preparing to be able to use it,

so students can use and produce it orally. A passive vocabulary is that kind of vocabulary that

students recognize but they will not be able to pronounce, so a passive vocabulary of words in

known by students but it can not be used through writing or speaking. According to them, there

are two types of vocabulary :receptive vocabulary and productive vocabulary.

1.4.1 Receptive vocabulary

Stwart Webb (2009) noted that “ Receptive vocabulary are words that ,learners recognize and

understand when they are used in context, but which they can not produce”.(p.25) It is the type

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of vocabulary that learners know the meaning of words which help them to understand the text

they have read but they do not use them in their writing or speaking.

1.4.2 Productive vocabulary

Stwart Webb (2005) noted that “Productive vocabulary are words that learners understand and

can pronounce correctly and use constructively in speaking and writing”.(p.25).. So it can be

defined as an active process, learners have the ability to speak, write and can produce the words

to express their opinions to others.

Notion (2001) has defined the structure of vocabulary acquisition in a wider aspect by

combination of form, meaning, and the use of words. Also he points out all aspects of vocabulary

learning which can be seen in the form of receptive and productive as it is shown:

Form

Spoken R What does the word sound like?

P How is the word pronounced?

Written R What does the word look like?

P How is the word written and spelled?

Word part R What parts are recognizable in this word?

P What words part are needed to express meaning?

Meaning

Form and meaning R What meaning does this word form signal?

P What word form can be used to express this meaning?

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Concepts and R What is included in the concept ?

referents P What items can the concept refer to?

Associations R What other words does this word make us think of?

P What other words could we use instead of this one?

Use

Gammatical functions R In what patterns does the word occur?

P In what patterns must we use this word?

Collocations R What words or types of word occur with this one?

P What words or types of words must we use with this one?

Constraints on P Where , when and how often would we meet this word?

use P Where ,when and how often can we use this word?

(Notion.2001.p.27)

Based on these research, the productive vocabulary can be useful in creating adequate learning

strategies and methods of learning vocabulary in classroom.

1.5. Methods and Approaches of teaching vocabulary

An approach is a set of correlative dealing with the nature of language teaching and learning,

which describes the nature of the subject matter to be taught. Method is a plan for the correct

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presentation of language material. An approach is axiomatic ,a method is procedural. Within one

approach can be many methods.(Duboc,A.P.p.8).

In his book “ A History of English Language Teaching”, Howat (1984) mentioned some of the

methods and approaches listed in the following paragraphs:

Grammar Translation method - as the name suggests, its main focus are grammatical rules

which are applied by translating sentences between the native language and the target language.

Reading and writing are the most important components. Little attention is given to listening or

speaking. Students are passive, while the teacher is in the center of the classroom.

The Oral Approach - was based on the Direct Method and upheld by Palmer and Hornsby. It

relies on the speech and structure of language. The learning material is taught orally and then it is

presented in written form. The teacher plays a role of a controller, checking pronunciation,

grammar, and structural errors.

Audiolingualism - was developed by Leonard Bloomsfield at Yale University. It was a

combination of several existing methods. Students mainly memorize material, repeat it,

manipulate it and transform it in order to meet minimal communicative needs.

Structuralism - considered language as a system of interrelated elements (phonemes,

morphemes, words, structures ) that convey a meaning, according to grammar as a starting

point. Students learn how to join the parts of the language together into a more complete

understanding of the language.

Communicative approach - was developed in England in 1970s and 1980s. It is focused on

activities such as group work, role play, teamwork. The teacher plays the role of a facilitator,

while students are concentrated in meaning rather than in form.

Silent way - has been around since the 70s. The name itself indicates the meaning of this

approach. The teacher is silent while the students have to produce as much language as they can.

The rods and the charts are the most used materials.

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1.6 Principles of teaching vocabulary

Norbert Schmitt, who is a professor of Applied Linguistics in the University of Nottingham,has

published many books on vocabulary acquisition and its use. In one of the articles published by

Pearson Education in 2008, he suggested that teachers should consider the principles listed

below:

1. How many words and which words to teach?

Some researchers suggest that learners should know approximately 98% of the words in written

or spoken form in order to understand the language well. According to these researchers

,“reaching this percentage of coverage in written texts takes about 8,000– 9,000-word families

;the spoken mode requires slightly fewer word families, about 5,000–7,000”.

Which vocabulary to teach is another important question. Teachers usually use their intuition to

choose the vocabulary, but the best way is to refer to frequency lists.

2. The importance of learning the pronunciation and spelling of a word

A crucial aspect in vocabulary acquisition is to teach the form of the words not just their

meaning. Words which have similar form are very confusing for L2 learners, for instance, adopt-

adapt. Misanalyzing words can also lead to misinterpretations, for example, the word outline

means like out of line.

3. Taking advantage of the first language

At the beginning stage of learning it is suggested that L1 should be used to establish initial

meaning and after this, just L2 in context is recommended.

4. Engagement with vocabulary

Learners should engage themselves with the new words in order to maintain the learning

acquisition active. Here a great role is played by the importance of the word, the frequency of

exposure, the requirement to know the word and so on.

5. Phrasal vocabulary

Teachers focus should be phrasal vocabulary not only the word individually so that the

production of language would become more fluent.

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6. Combining explicit teaching with incidental learning

When dealing with beginners, it is essential to teach them all words in an explicit way until

students know all the forms and usages of these words so they can start using “unknown” words

that they find in context.

7. Explicit teaching

According to Beck, McKeown, & Kucan (2002, as cited in Susan&Jennifer, 2011) there exist

three steps and four strategies for teaching individual words explicitly and they are listed as

follows:

1. Identify the potential list of words that should be taught

2. Determine which of these words to teach.

3. Plan how to teach the words using the following strategies:

a) Provide a student-friendly definition.

b) Use the word in context and give contextual information.

c) Provide multiple exposures.

d) Offer opportunities for active involvement.(Susan & Jenniffer, 2011, p.13)

8. Incidental learning from exposure

Incidental learning refers to learning new words without being conscious. The best way of

encouraging this is by making students read as much as they can. It is said that those who learn a

second language would have to read more than eight million words of text, or about 420 novels,

to increase their vocabulary size by 2,000 words.

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1.7 Techniques of teaching vocabulary

Vocabulary is not a list of words that teachers require from their learners to memorize or learn by

heart. Memorizing is good and useful for a temporary case, for example for exams, but not for

learning a foreign language as a lifelong process. According to Reutzel and Cooter (2010),

“vocabulary can be learned indirectly, although some vocabulary must be taught directly”.

Student Indirect vocabulary learning happens when they hear words and see pictures or actions

related to that word. It also occurs through conversations with others, especially with native

speakers. Another indirect way is when students read in L2 or are being read to.

Direct vocabulary learning occurs directly when learners get useful instruction about that word.

It starts with decoding of individual words to understand its meaning and to be able to use it in

everyday conversation and in writing too.

In 1990, Rebecca and David wrote an article for TESL Canada Journal, which describes a

number of techniques by which vocabulary instruction has been given or avoided almost entirely

by L2 teachers. These techniques are classified into four groups: 1)decontextualizing, 2)semi-

contextualizing, 3)fully-contextualizing, and 4) adaptable techniques.

1.Decontextualizing techniques are those that ask the student to memorize words which are

removed from communicative context and the teacher offers very little instruction needed.

This technique consists of word lists, mostly with little direct instruction by the teacher. These

lists are usually removed from the communicative context. In most of the cases they consist of

equivalent words of L1, such lists are called paired lists, yet sometimes they may be offered

alone,just L2 words without L1 equivalents. These lists are called unpaired lists. The minimal

degree of context given by these techniques makes students unable to use a paired-or unpaired

list in an effective communication because they have just learned them by heart without relating

them to adequate examples.

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Flashcards are among the most popular techniques used to teach and learn vocabulary. In the

back of the card is written the L1 word, whereas in the top the L2 word. Students use these card

to become familiar with the words written down and their meaning. This technique is not that

useful unless some contextualizing is added. For instance adding visual context, or writing the

whole sentence on the card, not just a word.

Dictionary Use is another technique which consists of using the dictionary for unfamiliar words.

Dictionaries can be of two types: Bilingual dictionary used by beginning and intermediate

learners. Words from L1 are translated into L2 with a lot of information about that word

including the type of speech, verb type, gender etc. Monolingual L2-L2 dictionaries offer a great

degree of context and are adequate for different levels of learners.

Word listing- is considered a technique by which teachers try to implant vocabulary in students.

A paired list is received by students in a traditional L2 textbook at the beginning or at the end of

each chapter, and this list appears after a paragraph ,which is L2-L1 in most cases.

Woodland- shtigjet

Swam- mjellme

Brimming water - pelg

2.Fully-contextualizing techniques offer a high degree of context. Students link new words with

something that is meaningful to them and are able to use language skills ( reading, writing,

listening, speaking).

Reading and Listening Practice - Critics believe that by reading different materials

(newspaper, books, magazines, letters, articles, etc ) L2 learners can absorb a lot of new words.

Students based their learning on the context surrounding that word. The disadvantage of this

technique is that it does not guarantee the production of that specific new word, despite the fact

that the word is already comprehended.

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Speaking and Writing Practice - L2 can expand their vocabulary while speaking and writing.

Conversations or interactions are considered one of the best techniques to become fluent in

speaking a foreign language.

3.Semi contextualizing techniques are mostly involved in group work. Students are able to make

a connection to the previous information and are free to pick up on clues.

Word grouping - Words are grouped according to practical function (words related to cars

parts), dissimilarity or opposition(beautiful- ugly), topic( words about clothes), grammatical

form (irregular, regular etc), type of word (nouns,verbs, adjectives etc). The disadvantage of this

technique is that it does not show any relation of words within the same group.

Word or Concept Association - This involves making associations between the new word and

the word or concept they already know, in this way creating some context for the student of L2.

As long as L2 learners find these associations meaningful to them, memorizing words can be

more accessible. Associations can be simple and complex and are about synonyms, antonyms,

superordinates, personal experiences, sound similarities and a lot more.

Aural imagery - It is the association of words and sounds. In some cases, words of L1 and L2

can have the same meaning and the same sounds, yet are cases when they sound the same but

have a different meaning. Using rhyme, accent marks or spelling,learners remember the target

word easily.

Visual imagery - This is the association between a word and a picture, in this way it makes the

learning process more efficient. Even the abstract phenomenon can be remembered through this

technique.

Key word - is a technique that combines visual and aural imagery. New words are associated

with a familiar word that the learner knows through sound and visual image.

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Physical Response - New words can best be learned when they are linked with physical

movement done by the teacher, firstly without producing L2 and then adding language to that

movement.

Semantic Mapping - is the most practical of semi-contextualizing techniques. It functions by

grouping words together according to their meaning and creating graphical models.

4.Adaptable techniquereinforces techniques mentioned above. Students repeat words until the

process of learning becomes automatic or in other words, overlearned.

(Rebeca & David, 1990)

CHAPTER II

2. The methodology of the study

The study starts with general information about vocabulary teaching and its history, then it

focuses on learning vocabulary as a specific language learning skills and the methods and

techniques of teaching vocabulary. The methodology used in this work are quantitative and

qualitative methods .The practical part of the study consists of the collected data, where the

subjects were professors that teach English as a second language and students who learn English

as a second language at University of Gjakova. The instruments which were used to collect the

data were two questionnaires ,which were distributed to these professors and students. The first

questionnaire was delivered to 7 professors, ,among them 6 females and 1 male, whereas the

other questionnaire was delivered to 20 students among them 17 females and 3 males.. At the top

of the first questionnaire paper is given a short paragraph explaining the aim of the survey.

Moving on with the first question: “How important is vocabulary teaching for you as a teacher?”.

Then professors’ duty was to answer optional questions, meaning which one they usually

use.The last part of the questionnaire consists of two open questions, which require the

professors to write shortly about the way they apply the methods chosen above.Later the coding

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of the content analysis will be used in order to classify the results in categories that show the

frequency of their usage, aiming to come out with the combination of the collected data.

Moreover ,at the top of the second questionnaire paper is given a short paragraph explaining the

aim of the survey. Continuing with an open question such as “Why it is important to learn

vocabulary for you as a student? .Then , students’ opinions , if vocabulary should be learned

using specific techniques. Moving on ,with two optional questions, where students’ duty was to

answer optional question, to show which of the decontextualizing techniques do they use to

improve their vocabulary and how often they use these techniques. The last part of the

questionnaire consists of one open question, which requires students to write, if they prefer to

use dictionary during classes or self-study and to point out the reasons why they prefer so.

2.1 Questions of the study

1. Why teach vocabulary?

2. Which are the used techniques for vocabulary teaching by University professors?

3. Why do these professors use such techniques and how?

4. Why teaching vocabulary is important for students?

5. Which of decontextualizing techniques of learning vocabulary students prefer the most

and why?

2.2. Research Hypothesis

2.2.a University lecturers prefer the Fully-contextualizing techniques to enhance

vocabulary acquisition.

2.2.b Students mainly use the decontextualizing- dictionary technique to improve their

vocabulary learning.

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2.3 Population

The population of this study is represented by ESL professors and students from the University

of Gjakova ,Fehmi Agani. The professors were only 7, 6 females and a male, with different years

of experience from six to twenty eight years. Whereas ,in the second questionnaire twenty

students from the last year of bachelor degree participated in completing the questions. They

were 17 girls and 3 males.

To support the hypothesis of this paper, the professor’ s questionnaire was formulated in order to

find out the importance of teaching vocabulary, techniques that they mostly use, and the

frequency of using these techniques.. In addition , the second questionnaire attempts to find out

why it is important for students to learn vocabulary and which of the decontextualizing

techniques do they use the most. Also they were supposed to tell if there should be specific

techniques for learning vocabulary and why, and to point out how often do they use the

technique or techniques they have circled. I briefly explained the reasons for this study and than I

gave the instructions and I told them that the questionnaire was anonymous.

CHAPTER III

3.Analysis and results

This chapter includes the analysis of the two questionnaires conducted at the University of

Gjakova, Fehmi Agani.

3.1 Professors’ response

In the first questionnaire participated 7 professors, 6 females and 1 male, starting from 6 to 28

years of teaching experience. The main purpose of the survey is to highlight the techniques used

by these professors. The first requirement given in the questionnaire contains an open-ended

question, related to the vocabulary teaching. Afterward, the participants were asked to chose one

of the options, from the less used to the most used, meaning to circle Never for the less used and

Always for the most used technique. The categories selected are The Decontextualizing

23

techniques (flashcards, dictionary, word listing), Fully-contextualizing techniques (reading and

listening practice; speaking and writing practice), and Semi-contextualizing techniques (word

grouping, word or concept association; aural imagery; visual imagery; key word; physical

response; semantic mapping). The last requirements were two other open-ended questions, which

ask for different examples of the usage of these techniques. The results indicated that the most

used techniques are the ones that fall under the fully-contextualizing techniques, following with

those under semi-contextualizing techniques as the second one, continuing with

decontextualizing techniques as the last one.

Additionally, referring to the open questions, it turns out that vocabulary teaching is crucial to

the highest point for successful EFL use. Without extensive vocabulary language, learners would

not be able to use the structure and the functions of the language as an immediate need for

comprehensible communication. Knowing the fact that people study a language for sole and

ultimate fact to be able to communicate, mastering vocabulary is no another than key in this path.

When the professors were asked why do they consider the selected technique as the best one, one

of them answered: “Reading/Listening/Writing/Speaking techniques! Using this form of

language teaching gives students the opportunity to use various materials not being stuck with

the book. Changing material going from the novel, to a story from a newspaper to a magazine

breaks the monotony”. Moreover, the professor added that “Only reading and memorizing the

word would not be of any use if we do not put our knowledge into practice. Accordingly, if we

put some effort in creating new sentences with the new vocabulary this will carve the word even

deeper in our memory and raise questions (if any) in the usage of the particular word”. Most of

them apply these techniques by bringing various materials into the classroom, making students

read or listen to them, selecting unknown words and finding their meaning.

As for the optional questions, below you can find the results presented in tables:

24

Chart1: Decontextualizing techniques:

The chart 1 above indicates that these techniques are not very used in vocabulary teaching.

However, among them,the dictionary is more used than flashcards.

Chart 2: Fully-contextualizing techniques:

0.00%

10.00%

20.00%

30.00%

40.00%

50.00%

60.00%

70.00%

80.00%

Flashcards Dictionary

Never

Rarely

Sometimes

Often

Always

Never

Rarely

SometimesOften

Always

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

Readingand

Listening

Speakingand

Writing

Never

Rarely

Sometimes

Often

Always

25

The Chart 2 illustrates a high frequency of the usage of these techniques. According to the data

collected most of the professors always prefer reading and listening as ways of teaching new

words to the students. This way students will learn them properly, and then they can practice

these words in writing and speaking.

Chart3 : Semi-contextualizing techniques

The third chart shows that these techniques are the second most used techniques. All of them are

used at particular times. Among them, semantic mapping is the most used. Even though

Semantic Mapping technique has the same frequency of use as Reading and Listening, the

overall use of the Semi-contextualizing techniques is lower than that of Fully-contextualizing

techniques. The chart below summarizes these data by clarifying the frequency after the average

point was calculated:

Never

Sometimes

Always

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

0.4

0.5

0.6

0.7

0.8

Never

Rarely

Sometimes

Often

Always

26

Chart 4: Summarized data (after the calculation of the average point)

These results show that professors (some of which are doctors of the field) at University of

Gjakova consider fully-contextualizing techniques as the best ones to teach vocabulary to the

students. According to them, reading and listening practices are key elements in learning new

words. In order to memorize the words that were read and heard, students have to write them

down in different sentences and use them daily, this way implementing writing and speaking

practices. Other techniques that do not belong to these three techniques were mentioned as well.

Professors mentioned games as a good way to memorize new words, engagement of all the

students, and the diversity of activities.

3.2 Students’ response

The participants of the second questionnaire were 20 students, 17 females and 3 males, on the

forth grade of Bachelor degree . The main purpose of the survey is to emphasize the

decontextualizing techniques used and preferred by these students. The first requirement contains

one open-ended questions, related to the importance of vocabulary and the second question asks

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

Decontextualizingtechniques

Fully-contextualizingtechniques

Semi-contextualizingtechniques

27

to point out if there should be specific techniques for vocabulary learning. Afterward, the

participant were asked to choose a technique or techniques which they use to improve their

learning skills and to highlight how often they use these techniques. The categories which

students were asked to choose are the Decontextualizing techniques : flashcards, dictionary, and

word listing.. The last requirement was an open-ended question, which points out the students’

preference to use dictionary during classes or self-study and to tell the reason why they prefer so.

1 Why it is important learning vocabulary for you as a student?

The first question turns out that learning vocabulary is very important for English students

because through learning new words they learn a language easier. The importance of vocabulary

lies in the fact that they use it daily in their communication, and it helps them in understanding of

different materials or in every aspect where the expression of their ideas is required. They are not

able to communicate or express their thoughts and experiences properly, if they do not have a

wide range of words that they use while communication. So the better the vocabulary the better

the way of their communication. Vocabulary learning is related to language learning skills,

which would not be improved without the acquisition of vocabulary because if these skills are

not increased then students will not be able to understand what they listen, what they speak and

what they read or write. So if someone is to learn a foreign language, it would not be possible to

move on without having at least a basic vocabulary knowledge of that language. Vocabulary

acquisition is the key factor of learning a language ,which helps them to know the meaning of the

words, without knowing the meaning of words, they do not know how to use the words ,and it

can lead them to misunderstanding and unproductive vocabulary.

2.Do you agree that Vocabulary should be learned using specific learning techniques and

why?

The second question aims to show students’ perception about the using specific techniques for

learning vocabulary .

28

Chart 5. Vocabulary should be learned by using specific techniques, which helps them to

memorize many new words while using these techniques.

The chart 5 shows that 86.7% of students think that there should be specific techniques of

learning vocabulary, most of them agree that it might be useful and attractive for students, it is

clear that using specific techniques help students to learn easier,so through using the specific

techniques ,learning becomes more effective. Some student prefer and learn more quickly if the

new words are illustrated through images, some of them might find helpful the using of new

words in a sentence to remember better and others may prefer using dictionary. However based

on the students’ needs vocabulary should be learned using specific techniques. Among 13.3% of

them think that there should not be a specific way because not everyone can learn in the same

way and it should be taught in accordance with how students find it easier to be learned.

3.Which of the following technique or techniques do you use in vocabulary

learning?

The third question aims to show the most used decontextualzing techniques by students to

enhance their learning vocabulary.

86.7%

13.3%,

I agree

I disagree

29

Chart 6. The Decontextualzing- dictionary technique is mostly used by students.

These results show that students at university of Gjakova consider the usage of dictionary

as the best way to learn new vocabulary.

Why do you prefer the technique or techniques you have circled?

In the chart 6 is shown that 78.5% of students prefer the decontextualizing- dictionary

technique to enhance their learning vocabulary. According to them the usage of

dictionary helps them to remember the meaning of words easier, they have the

opportunity to gain a better explanation from dictionary. It is helpful to understand what

they are reading and to find out the meaning of unknown words. They claim that the

usage of dictionary is more attractive to search words, when they encounter new ones,

and it gives them a possibility to find many options, synonyms and antonyms of the

word. It is considered as the best technique, through it they learn how words are

pronounced and how they are used in a sentence.

Furthermore, 7.3% of them prefer the decontextualizing –flashcards technique, as they

claim that using flashcards is very useful on learning new words and it is an attractive

technique. Almost, 10.1% of them prefer using word listing because for them it is useful

to read a paragraph and then to check for unknown words, for them it is the easiest

technique as well as they do not have to check the dictionary when the meaning of

unknown words is written after the text.

10.1%

78.5%

7.3%

Using flashcards

Using dictionary

Using word lists

30

4.How often do you use the technique or techniques you have answered in question 3

The diagram below indicates the frequency of using these techniques, used in vocabulary

learning.

Chart 7. The chart above shows that decontextualizing techniques are used in at particular

times. Dictionary is used mostly by students to improve their vocabulary learning and the usage

of flashcards and word listing are less performed than the usage of dictionary.

0.00%

5.00%

10.00%

15.00%

20.00%

25.00%

30.00%

35.00%

40.00%

45.00%

Using Flashcards Using Dictionary Using Word Lists

Never

Rarely

Sometimes

Often

Always

31

5. Would you prefer to use dictionary during classes or during self study and why?

The aim of this question is to highlight when students prefer to use the dictionary and to point

out why they do so.

Chart8 .These results show that students prefer to use the dictionary during classes and self-

study because it is helpful when dealing with more advanced level and therefore helps students

in general while dealing with a foreign language. However the usage of it should be done in a

certain level, since sometimes the students can get the meaning from the content. Using

dictionary during both of them help students to understand things better and the lesson you are

studying is better when they know what they are dealing with, furthermore it provides them an

opportunity to learn many options of that word, so if students do not understand words, they can

go through dictionary and see the meaning, pronunciation, synonyms and the translation of that

word. Among some of them find the usage of dictionary more useful only during self-study,

because ,there is the professor who helps them to find the meaning of words that they do not

understand, So they would prefer to use it during self –study, which help them to find what they

are looking for.

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

During Classes During Self-study During classes and self-study

32

CHAPTER IV

Conclusion and recommendations

As one of the major parts of language learning, the teaching of vocabulary is of extreme

importance in the foreign language classroom. It is the basis for the development of reading

comprehension, listening comprehension, speaking, writing, spelling, and pronunciation. For a

long period of time, a second language teaching has been dominated by an emphasis on

communication, but fluent communication depends on an extensive knowledge of vocabulary. A

good curriculum should be based on student needs, and vocabulary knowledge will be

immediately ranked high on student priority lists. Students’ability to understand and speak a

language depends on the words they know, consequently without vocabulary nothing can be

conveyed. The teachers’ strategies for teaching new vocabulary are crucial for students’

acquisition of a new language.

They have to be sure that their students have gained the ability to define a word, the ability to

recognize when to use that word, to have knowledge of its multiple meanings, and the ability to

decode and spell that word.

The purpose of this research was to investigate the types of vocabulary teaching techniques for

ESL students, in order to facilitate the increment of their English vocabulary.

I can conclude that , although there are many vocabulary learning techniques which can be found

in books, “Fehmi Agani” professors use Fully-contextualizing techniques the most, on the other

hand students mostly use the decontextualizing –dictionary technique. Teaching vocabulary

must always be a priority in a English language learning classroom and last but not least, other

activities and techniques that enhance vocabulary learning are welcomed in a classroom. Almost

, I can gather that learning vocabulary is the key factor to learn a language and students see it as

the most strongest tool furthermore they agree that vocabulary should be taught and learned by

using specific techniques.

In the light of these findings the following recommendations may be made:

Professors should encourage learners to use their own ideas in finding the meaning of new words

,and they may adapt the techniques of Listening, Reading, Writing and Speaking and the using of

33

dictionary because according to this research it is preferred by both teachers and learners.

Professors can suggest students to use the new words that they learned in context. Also ,they

have to provide understandable definitions of words for their students and should help students

to link new vocabulary to everyday situations and with things that they are familiar with.

Research Limitations

As every research may have limitations, mine had some too. First of all, the number of

participants who were asked to accomplish the first questionnaire was small. We had only 7

professors with which I could conduct the questionnaire .For the second questionnaire ,the

number of participants was small and some student did not write the answer that they were asked

for. A bigger number of them would for sure enhance the reliability of this research. Second,

lack of prior researches made it difficult for me to put it together and finish it easier.. However, I

did the best I could despite these limitations.

Research Benefits

This research holds on some benefits that could serve in the future. Teachers who teach English

as a foreign or second language can base the organization of the class in these useful techniques.

They can freely use these techniques with different levels of students because they will be

effective. On the other hand, students themselves can base their learning process in this research.

They can practice listening, reading, writing and speaking while they learn new words, and for

sure the results will be excellent. Also teachers can provide students to use dictionary during

classes when they are looking for synonyms or different options of the words.

34

REFERENCES

Hanson, J., Padua, J. F. M. (2011). Teaching vocabulary explicitly. Retrieved from

http://prel.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/vocabulary_lo_res.pdf

Harmer, J. (2002). How to teach vocabulary. New York: Pearson Education.

Howatt, A.P.R. (1984). A history of English Language teaching. United Kingdom: Oxford

University Press.

Kamps, B.S. (2015). The word brain: A short guide to fast language learning. Retrieved from

http://www.amedeo.net/wb/TheWordBrain2015.pdf

Kamal,A.(2015).Effective Strategies for Learning Receptive Vocabulary into Productive.

University of Sulaimani.Iraq. Retrieved from:

https://files.eric.ed.gov

National Reading Panel (2000). Teaching children to read. Retrieved from

https://www1.nichd.nih.gov/publications/pubs/nrp/Documents/report.pdf

Oxford, R., & Crookall, D. (1990). Vocabulary learning: A critical analysis of techniques. TESL

CANADA JOURNAL, VOL. 7, NO.2. Retrieved from

https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ407134.pdf

Pearson Education Editors. (2008). Teaching vocabulary by Norbert Schmitt. Retrieved from

https://longmanhomeusa.com/content/FINAL-HIGH%20RES-Schmitt-

Vocabulary%20Monograph%20.pdf

Reutzel, D.R., & Cooter, R.B. (2010, Jul 20). What research tells us about teaching vocabulary.

Retrieved from https://www.education.com/reference/article/research-teaching-vocabulary/

Scrivener, J. (1994). Learning teaching: The essential guide to English Language teaching (3rd

ed.). Retrieved from https://www.scribd.com/document/354265077/Learning-Teaching-J-

Scrivener-text-pdf

Vocabulary and its Importance in Language Learning. What is Vocabulary Retrieved from

https://www.tesal.org

35

APPENDIX

APPENDIX 1

QUESTIONNAIRE

A Questionnaire on Vocabulary Teaching in ESL

Dear professors, this questionnaire is an essential component of a study on the vocabulary

teaching in ESL classes in the University of Gjakova “Fehmi Agani”. It is greatly appreciated if

you can spare your valuable time to complete this questionnaire and help us know the best

strategies and techniques of the vocabulary teaching and thereby improve it. Please answer all

questions as truthfully and accurately as possible. All answers are confidential and complete

anonymity is assured.

Personal information:

Gender:______.

Academic title:_______________

Years of ESL teaching experience:_____________________

Instruction: Circle the appropriate answer for each question or write down the answer one the

lines provided.

1.How important is vocabulary teaching for you as a teacher?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

36

2. Which of the following techniques do you use in vocabulary teaching?

Decontextualizing techniques:

1.Using flashcards

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

2. Using dictionary

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

Fully-contextualizing techniques:

1.Reading and Listening Practice

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

2. Spaking and Writing Practice

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

Semi-contextualizing techniques:

1.Word grouping

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

2.Word or concept association

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

37

3.Aural imagery

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

4.Visual imagery

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

5.Key word

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

6.Physical response

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

7.Semantic mapping

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

3. Which of the techniques do you consider as best and why?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

38

4. How do you apply these techniques while teaching vocabulary?

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________

Thank you for your cooperation!

39

APPENDIX 2

QUESTIONNAIRE

A Questionnaire on Vocabulary Learning in ESL

Dear students, this questionnaire is an important element of a study on the vocabulary learning in

ESL classes in the University of Gjakova “Fehmi Agani’. I would be thankful if you can spare

your time to complete this questionnaire and help me know the best techniques of the vocabulary

learning.

Please answer all questions as truthfully as possible. All answers are confidential and complete

anonymity is assure.

Personal information:

Gender: ____________

Academic Year: _____________

Write your answers and circle the right option for each question.

1.Why it is important to learn vocabulary for you as a student?

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

40

2.Do you agree that vocabulary should be taught using specific learning techniques and

why?

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

3.Which of the following technique or techniques do you use in vocabulary learning:

1.Using flashcards

2.Using dictionary

3.Using word list

Why do you prefer the technique or techniques you have circled in question 3?

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

41

4. How often do you use the technique or techniques you have answered in question 3?

1.Using flashcards

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

2.Using dictionary

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

3.Using Word list

a) Never b) Rarely c) Sometimes d) Often e) Always

5.Would you prefer to use dictionary during classes or during self study and why?

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

Thank you for your cooperation!