Vocabulary Teaching of College English

張藝玲

【Abstract】Vocabulary learning are headache for many college students. This paper will analyze the current conditions and some problems in English vocabulary among college students， focus on the main causes and point out the most effective way of acquiring vocabulary.

【Key words】vocabulary teaching； college English； culture teaching

Vocabulary is the fundamental unit of language. It conveys information and plays a decisive role in language communication. Except for rare occasions， we cannot communicate without vocabulary. Therefore， both teachers and students have attached great importance to vocabulary teaching and learning for a long time.

However， it is a fact that though for a short period the students might achieve a rapid growth， the words are “easy come easy go”. Many students often complain that they spend enormous amounts of time and energy in learning vocabulary item， but the reward is very little. Students realize that the words can neither be long retained nor correctly used. And， in reality， although many colleges are proud of the high passing rate of CET 4 or CET 6， some students have great trouble in understanding and answering the employees questions during the interview， even those who have got certificates with high score， let alone communicating with foreigners in English and using it as a tool to deal with their job. Obviously， vocabulary learning becomes a headache for most language learners and hinders the improvement of other language skills.

So， what on earth is the sensible way of teaching vocabulary， or we say， a language？

As is known， language is a human activity and a social activity as well. So language system cannot exit in vacuum. Any language is a part of a culture and any culture is a part of a language， the two are closely and intricately related. In the broadest sense， language is the symbolic representation of a people and it comprises their historical and cultural backgrounds as well as their approach to life and their ways of living and thinking. So the close relationship between language and culture requires the learner to learn a language as well as the culture.

According to Kramsch， the aims of a language teaching courses are very often defined with reference to the four “language skills” of listening， reading， speaking and writing. Vocabulary is only one part of them. Since vocabulary-centered teaching hasnt achieved what it was expected， now it is time that we changed the above-mentioned guidelines into one in which language teaching consists of teaching the four skills plus culture. There is no question that to teach cultures as well as language is the unique and correct choice in language teaching.endprint

Both teachers and students should keep in mind that language has at least two rule systems：one is the structural system which consists of phonology， morphology and syntax； the other is the use system which is closely bound up with social behavior and social situation and determines whether language is used appropriately or inappropriately. Therefore， a language course demands that the teacher should not only give the student knowledge about the language but also extend beyond linguistic knowledge such as pronunciation， grammar， and even an extensive knowledge of vocabulary. In other words， a language course should help the learner come to the “background studies” such as the study of the history， geography， and institutions of the country， and to the “people studies” such as who use the language， where they live， what they do， think， and dream. As a result， students grasp not only the linguistic skills or the linguistic competence but also the communicative abilities， or the communicative competence. In other words， owing to vocabulary teaching plus culture teaching， teachers make students know more lexical items （quantity）， and what is more important， retain and use them correctly （quality）.

In short， the word is only really acquired if the learner can use it actively and correctly， or has efficient recall of it in a variety of contexts. Since language and culture are closely related， the combination of the language teaching and the culture teaching should be the most sensible way to guide students to learn a language.

References：

[1]Brown，H.Douglas.Principles of Language Learning and Teaching.New Jersey：Prentice-Hall，Inc.，1980.

[2]Deng，Yongzhong.“On the Language Input and Output in the College English Teaching” Forums of China College English Teaching.Ed.Academic Committee of National College English Teaching Association.Beijing：Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press，2000.632-39.

[3]Kramsch，Claire.Context and Culture in Language Teaching.London：Oxford University Press，1993.

[4]Widdowson，H.G..Teaching Language as Communication.London：Oxford University Press，1978.

【基金項目】遼寧省國際教育“十三五”科研規劃課題（16LNGJ035）。endprint