Enhancing vocabulary acquisition by encouraging extensive reading.docVIP

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　in