Exploration of Incidental Vocabulary Learning Strategies from Different Modes to Acquire Vocabulary

Abstract

Due to the factors such as time pressure, workload and teachers' perception of incidental learning, most of the teachers prefer to teach vocabulary intentionally for short-term efficiency. They are struggling to help learners to acquire vocabulary effectively and underestimate incidental vocabulary learning, relying on natural instincts favoring rote learning. The efficacy of incidental vocabulary learning is neglected by teachers who do not have sufficient knowledge of this approach. The current study aims to explore what incidental vocabulary learning strategies teachers can use to help the student expand their range of vocabulary in a more effective and motivational way and enrich learners' vocabulary knowledge. The issues are addressed by reviewing recent studies integrating author's teaching context. As conclusion, incidental vocabulary learning is considered to be a good one to improve students' vocabulary in a long-term period. Three strategies which are providing different modes of comprehensible input, increasing the frequency of exposure through different types of repetition and facilitating learners with strategies to become an autonomous learner are proposed.

Headnote

Abstract

Due to the factors such as time pressure, workload and teachers' perception of incidental learning, most of the teachers prefer to teach vocabulary intentionally for short-term efficiency. They are struggling to help learners to acquire vocabulary effectively and underestimate incidental vocabulary learning, relying on natural instincts favoring rote learning. The efficacy of incidental vocabulary learning is neglected by teachers who do not have sufficient knowledge of this approach. The current study aims to explore what incidental vocabulary learning strategies teachers can use to help the student expand their range of vocabulary in a more effective and motivational way and enrich learners' vocabulary knowledge. The issues are addressed by reviewing recent studies integrating author's teaching context. As conclusion, incidental vocabulary learning is considered to be a good one to improve students' vocabulary in a long-term period. Three strategies which are providing different modes of comprehensible input, increasing the frequency of exposure through different types of repetition and facilitating learners with strategies to become an autonomous learner are proposed.

Keywords

Incidental vocabulary learning, input, EFL learners, strategies

1. Introduction

When we are asked what linguistic knowledge we will learn in a foreign language, vocabulary may be the first emergent thought. Vocabulary has gradually become central in linguistic theory. As Wilkins said (1972, p. Ill), "Without grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed".

Nowadays, in primary school education, many young EFL learners make great effort to acquire vocabulary which is referred to as the building blocks of language learning by Webb and Nation (2017).

In developing a wide and deep lexical knowledge, two approaches; intentional and incidental vocabulary learning are applied widely in language learning. Due to factors such as time pressure, workload, and teachers' perception of incidental learning, most of the teachers prefer to teach vocabulary intentionally for short-tenn efficiency which is indicated by the study of Webb, Yanagisawa and Uchihara (2020). However, lexical development is a very long and complicated process. According to Webb, Yanagisawa and Uchihara (2020), the efficacy of intentional vocabulary learning in long-tenn study is not as obvious as expected. Thus, the large amount of vocabulary cannot be reached by merely depending on explicitly vocabulary explanation by teachers (Schmitt, 2000).

In my opinion, incidental vocabulary learning seems to be a good way for EFL learners to master lexical items especially in primary school. By reviewing previous relevant research and analysis of my teaching context, I will attempt to explore what incidental vocabulary learning strategies teachers can use to help the students expand their range of vocabulary in a more effective and motivational way and enrich learners' vocabulary knowledge.

2. My context and issue

The school I am working at is a well-known private school whose core philosophy is that cultivating students to be autonomous learners is the goal of education. My school sets a higher requirement for students in English. Apart from attending domestic examinations, they are required to attend the exams organized by Cambridge examination. The assessment criteria for these exams are rigorous, requiring students to not only comprehend the large amount of words but use them appropriately. That is what students are lacking from current intentional teaching.

Working as an English teacher for more than five years, I find that the students are suffering from rote learning (memorize L1-L2 word lists). Even though they can remember the spoken and written form, they are unable to form meaningful connections between words, specifically they struggle with collocations and using words in the correct grammatical form.

Thus, how to help learners acquire words in effective and motivational ways and how the optional learning approach-incidental vocabulary can benefit learners are the main issues in my context. Knowing about incidental vocabulary learning in depth will raise teachers' awareness to create the opportunities for learners to learn lexical items broadly and deeply.

3. Literature review

3.1 The process of learning vocabulary

Understanding the psychological conditions of learners processing vocabulary is the starting point for teachers designing activities to achieve the goal of learning (Nation, 2001). Nation (2001) elaborated three steps of the process in detail. Noticing is the first step where learners start to remember a word. It is involved with two conditions which are interest, and decontextualization. In the first condition when learners have high motivation and interest in the language content, they are more likely to notice the lexical items which increase the chances of learning.

The second condition is decontextualization which means the learners tend to pay more attention when a language item is separated from the original passage. The second process is retrieval which can strengthen the memory of the new word. As the frequency of meeting a new word increase, the length of memory will be longer. Gass (1999) stated that vocabulary acquisition is a lengthy and recursive process. The first-time learners encounter a word they may notice the form of the item. As the frequency of encounters increase, learners will have more information related to the semantic and syntactic knowledge of the word.

The third process is generative use which means every time the same word is met or used, and it should be in different contexts. Webb and Nation (2017) further divide this into two categories which are varied encounters and varied use emphasizing on receptive and productive aspects respectively. All aspects of word knowledge can be gained through varied and frequent encounters in different contexts (Webb, 2020).

Based on Nation (2001) and other relevant research, two key factors "repetition" and "the quality of each encounter" were deducted by Webb and Nation (2017).

As teachers, when we decide to intentionally teach the target words or incidentally expose the target words to the learners, we may consider whether the three steps of processing are realized in the teaching.

3.2 A model of Vocabulary knowledge

Breadth and depth are two dimensions of mastering vocabulary. For teaching practitioners, the major issue is to understand what knowledge of a lexical item should be taught so that the learners are able to apply it an authentic manner. It will lead educators to consider what approaches can be applied for achieving the goals. Nation (2020, p. 16) listed a table of description of what facets involving knowing a word from nine aspects. Figure 1 is shown as below.

3.3 Two approaches of vocabulary learning

3.3.1 Intentional vocabulary learning

Intentional vocabulary learning refers to the activities focusing on learning of lexical items (Hulstijn, 2001). It is a designed or intended learning process involved with different conscious vocabulary activities such as flashcards, word lists, writing and fill-in-the-blanks and methods of word memorization. The highly efficient efficacy of this approach to learn words has been advocated by many researchers. Webb (2020) emphasized the effectiveness of intentional learning in helping learners to remember the target lexical items in the short period of time is obvious. Furthermore. Schmitt (2008) argued that learners gain words quicker with better retention through conscious vocabulary learning rather than incidental vocabulary learning. However, Webb and Nation (2017) opposed this view. Though learners can rapidly enlarge their vocabulary size through intentional vocabulary learning, this knowledge is only partial.

3.3.2 Incidental vocabulary learning (IVA)

Another alternative learning approach to intentional vocabulary learning is incidental vocabulary learning which plays a crucial role in lexical development (Webb. 2020). Many researchers agree on the idea that the majority of vocabulary in both LI and L2 is acquired incidentally as a by-product of four-skill activities (Ellis. 2009; Webb. 2009). For instance, vocabulary can be incidentally gained receptively through extensive reading and listening activities receptively. speaking and writing focus on the product side and on comprehensive meaning.

Nation (2001) claimed that incidental vocabulary learning is an approach allowing learners to subconsciously meet new words when receptively processing linguistic resources without focusing on learning vocabulary. While Hulstijn (2001) distinguished incidental learning from intentional learning if the learners are aware of a later test on the target vocabulary.

A wide range of studies have suggested that learners naturally acquiring vocabulary through different modes of input utilize deeper mental processes which benefits the development of lexical knowledge.

3.3.3 Different modes of input versus incidental vocabulary learning

(1) Incidental vocabulary learning through extensive reading

Extensive reading has been reported by numerous empirical studies. It provides natural and authentic contexts for learners to encounter and process unknown words. The noted linguistic Krashen (1989) even claimed that through reading extensively learners can learn all the words required for L2. Every aspect of vocabulary knowledge can be comprehensively acquired from rich contexts of reading, as "Texts provide readers with meaning-bearing, semantically, syntactically, and pragmatically rich input." (Rott. 2007, p. 165).

Under the condition of incidental vocabulary learning, besides mastering meaning and form of words, the usage of words is more likely to be gained. Mina and Fatemeh (2020) revealed that it is significant to gain grammatical collocation knowledge from story reading.

(2) Incidental vocabulary learning through multimedia (viewing and listening)

At the early stage of acquiring language, the main learning channel is listening to large amount of spoken input since the children lack literacy ability. Green (2021) claimed that the vocabulary acquired through extensive viewing provide support for the lexical development during early reading because, it contains a lot of words needed for starting to read. Spoken form texts are more likely to contain high frequency words than written form texts (Webb & Nation. 2017). The study of Pavia and Webb (2019) explored a different aspect of vocabulary knowledge; collocation recognition; which is positively gained from listening to the songs. In addition to listening, viewing is also a mode for providing input for vocabulary learning. Perez et al. (2014) highlighted the benefits of watching videos in language learning especially incidental vocabulary learning. While watching L2 videos, both nonverbal and verbal encoding processes simultaneously take place which enhance vocabulary learning. Due to full captioning of videos providing more context clues with semantic and syntactic information where learners can guess meaning more easily (Teng, 2018).

4. Pedagogical implication

Tlris section is concerned with the pedagogical implication of the previous insights from relevant literature and my context presented in the last two sections.

4.1 Provide different modes of comprehensible input

Sufficient comprehensive input is crucial for learners to acquire second language in the foreign language context. Hence, inside or outside the classroom the teachers should find ways to expose learners to L2 input. In order to create opportunities for learners to achieve the goal of expanding vocabulary size and having profound vocabulary knowledge through extensive exposure, different modes including aural and textual input should be provided which was also suggested by Nation (2001) in the guidelines for teachers.

On one hand, as Webb (2020) suggested that when the learners have more opportunities to be exposed to different types of input, they will be more likely to find a source that can interest and motivate them to learn independently outside of the classroom. Aside from tlris. interesting materials easily catch learners' attention as the notion of "notice" targets lexical items occurring with great interest and high motivation of linguistic resources may lead to incidental vocabulary learning (Nation, 2001). For instance, video and songs are a good resource to stimulate learners' interest and notice to new words which I usually adopt in my lesson.

On the other hand, different modes of input may have varied level of enhancement. Compared with reading, dual coding processes containing both nonverbal and verbal encoding process simultaneously take place while watching L2 videos which have deeper enhancement for vocabulary learning (Perez et al.. 2014). For my learners. Peppa Pig is a good series of cartoon that I will recommend them to watch inside or outside the school. When they get older, another TV program will be selected to suit for the psychological and linguistic level.

In my opinions, for the foreign language context, providing sufficient linguistic input would be the optimal method. For instance, graded reader, TV program, video, story book, YouTube, songs can be applied in class so that incidental vocabulary learning is more likely to occur with abundant L2 input. Learners should be encouraged and provided with suitable authentic materials to read and watch outside the classroom.

4.2 Increase the frequency of exposure through different types of repetition

The process of gaining vocabulary is influenced by exposure frequency in two ways which are increasing the possibilities that learners can notice and process the words, strengthening the cognitive processing of target words. "The greater the number of encounters, the more likely learning is to occur; and the deeper the quality of the encounters, the more likely learning is to occur" (Webb & Nation. 2017, p. 44). Tlris implies the importance of variety of repetition in vocabulary learning. General speaking, it has been found that incidental vocabulary learning tends to be conducted while processing a new lexical item in one or more texts repeatedly (Waring & Takaki, 2003).

So as to make repetition happen, teacher could utilize the same themes and vocabulary in different modes. For the first encounter, the vocabulary can be presented in the textbook then the second time they can be presented in the song, then short story, long story, TV program. As long as the number of encounters increase in varied contexts, the target words are more likely to be learnt. In addition, teachers can intentionally give different materials containing the equivalent target words such as graded reader and educational songs which are designed by educationalists for the purpose of making learner encounter the vocabulary in varied contexts.

4.3 Facilitate learners with strategies to become an autonomous learner

To maximize the opportunity for incidental vocabulary learning, it would be better for learners to be equipped with strategies that can help them become an autonomous learner inside or outside the classroom. In my teaching context. learners have their autonomy to choose what they want to read in the school. As a teacher, I could recommend graded reader to them and based off a survey of their interests and tell them why they should read more. Furthermore, I could recommend them to use L2 as much as possible outside the classroom to strengthen the vocabulary knowledge such as writing journals and writing micro blogs and guide them to find out what they are interested in. In addition, guessing the meaning from context, using dictionary, and guessing word meaning through word parts are essential strategies for the learners. Once they master the techniques, it is possible that they would no longer rely on teachers' deliberate teaching of vocabulary. In order to teach them those techniques, I could do a workshop where students get a sample reading and work with them on finding context and using a dictionary to help them understand key words which could help them understand the meaning of the text.

5. Conclusion

In EFL teaching context, teachers are struggling to help learners to acquire vocabulary effectively. Incidental vocabulary learning as one of the vocabulary approaches, is supposed to be an effective and motivational way for learners to gain vocabulary knowledge comprehensively and largely. Incidental vocabulary learning is the main issue that I explore in the current paper in order to find out how teachers could do to help learners acquire lexical items in a motivational way.

We should maximize the opportunities exposing learners to L2 through different ways such as level appropriated reading material graded reader or a viewing program. And try different ways to increase frequency that vocabulary occurs. Equipping learners with self-study techniques to deal with unknown word is also important. It would be ideal to combine both incidental learning and intentional learning in the teaching practice in order to make good use of each of them. In the long and complicated vocabulary learning process, "we leam what we focus on, and we should focus on what we need" (Nation, 2020, p. 16).

Sidebar

How to cite this paper: Shumin He. (2023). Exploration of Incidental Vocabulary Learning Strategies from Different Modes to Acquire Vocabulary. The Educational Review, USA, 7(7), 927-932.

DOI: 10.26855/er.2023.07.014

Received: June 29, 2023

Accepted: July 27, 2023

Published: August 25, 2023

Corresponding author: Shumin He, Country Garden Experimental School, Foshan, Guangdong, China.

References

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