Enhancing vocabulary acquisition by encouraging extensive reading

Current　situation　of　vocabulary　teaching

The　importance　of　vocabulary　in　learning　a　second　or　foreign　language　has　been　widely　acknowledged　and　the　findings　of　a　sea　of　research　studies　have　convinced　us　to　regard　vocabulary　knowledge　as　a　predictor　of　verbal　knowledge　and　reading　comprehension　（Sternberg，　1987）.　For　most　of　us，　this　means　the　more　vocabulary　learners　acquire，　the　more　communicative　they　are.　With　this　belief，　most　L2　instructors　in　China　attach　great　importance　to　teaching　vocabulary.　Taking　the　teaching　practice　of　my　school　which　is　a　public　high　in　Jiangsu　Province　as　an　example，　most　teachers　spend　2　classes（　90　minutes）　teaching　the　vocabulary　in　each　unit.　The　explicit　instruction　covers　pronunciation，　meaning，　spelling，　derivative　words，　and　collocation.　However，　with　the　implement　of　various　teaching　approaches，　from　grammar　translation　to　communicative　language，　between　which　the　former　approach　is　still　playing　the　dominating　role　in　vocabulary　teaching，　few　ESL　learners　confirm　they　have　mastered　adequate　vocabulary　and　use　it　freely.　Students　complain　about　the　dullness　of　vocabulary　class.　They　assert　it　is　the　dullest　task　to　memorize　new　words.　They　feel　discouraged　even　though　they　remember　some.　It　is　most　likely　they　will　fail　to　recall　these　words　over　time.

The　reasons　are　complicated.　Firstly，　as　Min　（2008）　has　said，　direct　vocabulary　instruction　in　EFL　classrooms　is　far　from　enough　to　help　students　achieve　the　basic　vocabulary　size.　Secondly，　the　limited　chances　for　students　to　use　the　vocabulary　diminish　their　familiarity　with　the　words，　which　hampers　students　form　retaining　them　in　later　cases.　Furthermore，　most　of　the　EFL　learners　learn　vocabulary　passively　from　the　teacher-centered　nature　of　most　vocabulary　classes，　during　which　they　have　nothing　to　do　but　listen　and　try　to　memorize　（Soltani，　2011）.　Due　to　the　limitation　of　the　classroom　explicit　instruction　and　intentional　vocabulary　learning，　the　necessity　to　encourage　incidental　learning　attracts　many　researchers’　attention.　Incidental　learning，　means　acquiring　word　incidentally　and　this　acquisition　is　just　a　byproduct　of　their　other　main　learning　activities　both　inside　and　outside　the　classroom　（Read，　2004）.　According　to　Read，　incidental　learning　does　occur　in　input-rich　environments　and　it　is　most　elicited　by　reading　extensively.

Vocabulary　acquisition　and　extensive　reading

According　to　Grabe　and　Stoller　（2002），　extensive　reading　provides　learners　with　access　to　a　world　of　material　which　is　within　their　linguistic　competence.　Besides，　it　is　bring　about　pleasure　to　learners.

Schmit　（2000）　argued　that　intensive　reading　alone　was　not　adequate.　Extensive　reading　is　of　help　for　learners　to　acquire　language.　Learners　reading　freely　and　voluntarily　achieve　more　progress　in　both　reading　and　vocabulary　（Krashen，　2004）.　It　is　also　suggested　that　compared　to　the　common　method　of　teaching，　vocabulary　used　in　school　by　offering　definitions　directly，　reading　contextually　was　a　more　effective　approach　to　acquiring　word　meanings.　Besides　these　researchers’　strong　recommendation，　the　limitations　of　classroom　direct　instruction　which　has　been　mentioned　and　the　insufficient　class　time　for　vocabulary　growth　and　insufficient　knowledge　of　vocabulary　for　reading　comprehension　（Grade　2001；　Hinkel，　2004；　Laufer，　2003，　cited　in　Tran，　2007）　all　call　for　the　involvement　of　extensive　reading　in　vocabulary　development.

With　regard　to　the　benefits　of　extensive　reading　in　enhancing　vocabulary　acquisition，　many　studies　have　been　done　to　investigate　it.　Huckin　and　Coady　（1999）　claim　that　this　approach　is　pedagogically　efficient　because　it　involves　two　activities--vocabulary　acquisition　and　reading.　This　advantage　is　quite　dominant　considering　the　equal　importance　of　vocabulary　and　reading　in　EFL　learning　and　the　time　limit　on　language　teaching.　Besides，　extensive　reading　makes　the　learning　procedure　more　autonomous，　pleasant　and　motivating.　What’s　more，　by　reading　extensively　and　freely，　not　only　do　learners　have　access　to　large　sight　vocabulary　but　also　they　are　provided　with　more　opportunities　to　various　contexts　of　using　these　words　（Thornbury，　2002，　cited　in　Pigada　and　Schmitt，　2006）.　All　these　advantages　make　it　possible　to　achieve　substantial　vocabulary　development.　However，　this　kind　of　development　is　unlikely　to　occur　during　the　language　classroom　where　vocabulary　acquisition　mainly　depends　on　explicit　teaching　in　the　relatively　short　class　time.　Considering　the　benefits　of　extensive　reading，　Nation　（2001）　argues　that　for　EFL　learners，　the　use　of　reading　and　other　sources　providing　plenty　of　input　might　be　the　only　alternatives　for　language　development　out　of　class.

Despite　the　consensus　that　extensive　reading　does　facilitate　incidental　L2　vocabulary　acquisition，　controversy　still　exists　as　to　to　what　extent　it　can　enhance　vocabulary　development　and　to　what　extent　the　new　words　are　retainable.　While　many　studies　have　found　evidence　to　confirm　the　vocabulary　growth　（e.g.，　Huckin　&　Bloch，　1993；　Hulstijn，　1992），　contradictory　study　results　provoke　different　opinions　whether　the　retention　rate　is　low　（Hulstijn，　1992）　or　high　（Krashen，　1989，　cited　in　Tran，　2007））.　In　spite　of　various　disagreement，　the　finding　of　many　studies　still　suggests　that　it　is　undoubted　that　learners　do　incidentally　acquire　small　amount　of　vocabulary　knowledge　through　this　meaning-focused　reading　activity.　And　this　kind　of　vocabulary　learning　is　a　gradual　process　of　running　across　a　word　thus　adding　to　or　consolidating　the　original　knowledge　gained　from　previous　meetings　（Nation，　2001）.　Whether　the　expected　acquisition　can　be　achieved　greatly　depends　on　whether　the　small　amount　of　learning　of　vocabulary　is　soon　reinforced　by　another　meeting.　Otherwise，　that　learning　is　soon　lost.　That　implies　the　importance　of　repetition　of　the　vocabulary.　Though　the　benefits　of　extensive　reading　do　not　become　apparent　in　a　short　term，　the　long-term　benefits　including　improving　vocabulary　acquisition　as　well　we　reading　proficiency　and　other　associated　skills　justify　the　implement　of　this　approach　in　teaching　vocabulary.

Teaching　implication

As　teachers，　we　must　acknowledge　that　presenting　and　teaching　new　vocabulary　units　once　only　in　class　is　far　from　enough.　We　need　to　expose　them　to　the　new　information　repeatedly.　Hence，　it　is　necessary　to　build　recycling　into　their　learning　such　as　regular　rehearsal，　rote　learning，　and　so　on.　It　is　unwise　to　quit　these　activities　just　because　of　their　obsolescence.　However，　some　strategies　can　be　taught　to　learners　to　help　them　retain　vocabulary.

Apart　from　direct　teaching　and　explicit　instruction　in　class，　teachers　have　the　responsibility　to　encourage　extensive　reading.　In　class，　the　most　common　and　practical　practice　of　implementing　reading　is　sustained　silent　reading.　Considering　the　time　limit　in　Chinese　high　school　English　class，　a　practice　of　daily　silent　reading　lasting　five　to　ten　minutes　seems　more　suitable.　The　observation　on　SSR　classes　in　a　middle　school　made　by　Von　Sprecken　and　Krashen　（1998，　cited　in　Krashen，　2004）　found　that　90　percent　of　the　students　were　immersed　in　reading　and　this　result　was　also　reinforced　by　later　observations　（Cohen，　1999；　Herda　and　Ramos，　2001）.　This　kind　of　daily　exposure　to　new　word　information　provides　students　with　an　input-rich　environment　and　can　be　quite　interest-raising，　which　may　lead　to　students’　desire　to　read　out　of　class.

In　addition　to　the　classroom　practice　of　reading，　it　is　more　crucial　for　teachers　to　save　precious　class　time　and　encourage　students　to　take　charge　of　their　own　learning　of　vocabulary　（Tran，　2007）.　For　example，　we　teachers　can　encourage　incidental　learning　out　of　class　by　encouraging　use　of　various　multimedia　resources　such　as　penfriends，　chat　rooms，　email，　films，　songs，　dictionaries　and　so　on.　What’s　more，　teachers　can　set　‘out-of-class’　tasks　aiming　to　increase　vocabulary　such　as　presenting　weekly　acquisition　of　vocabulary　to　classmates.