ly a skill, or a series of skills less attention will be paid to extent of vocabulary, and progress will be measured instead by the degree of fluency attained by the pupils. The conflicting views possibly arise from different interpretations of the function of memorizing in the learning process. This question has implications which warrant discussion.
That learning by the heart ought not to be lightly dismissed as a deplorable feature of obsolete methods may be gathered from the opinions of leading authorities.
Thus Handschin, a leading American Specialist, writes:
"One of the best exercises of the will is memorizing. We know there is a tendency in some quarters to make school tasks easy by omitting memory work in former periods. But, of course, there must be memory work, ... although to overdo it is just as bad ... For instance oftentimes a course in elementary language is so conducted as to acquire nothing but memory work. "- Methods of teaching modern languages, p.77.Word Book Company, New York, 1923,
Harold Palmer, one of the most stimulating of modern authorities, asserts that 'the study of language is in its essence a series of acts of memorizing; whether we are concerned with isolated words, with word-groups, with meaning or with the phenomena of grammar, the fact remains that successful memorizing is the basic of all progress. '- The Oral Method of Teaching Languages, p.20.Heffer, 1023. p> Elsewhere he elaborates his interpretation of the teaching process by analyzing language psychologically as comprising what he call (a) Primary matter and (b) Secondary matter. p> He explains primary matter is an appreciable part of language may be seen from the list of categories it comprises. Summed up they are
1. All vocabulary (Simple, compound and derived). p> 2. (A) All word-group used like single words, e.g.
of course, would rather, in spite of, had better.
(b) Verb phrases, eg go out, come back, get up.
(c) The association of prepositions with nouns, adjectives and verbs, e.g . on Sunday, made of, averse to or from.
3. Idiomatic sentences. p> 4. A large number of regular sentences for use as model in substitution tables.
It must be admitted in the light of Palmer's formidable list of categories that there is a considerable amount of language is virtually an act of recall, for all constructed sentences conform to conventional patters. Indeed one of the chief causes of error may be (as Palmer points out) the attempt of pupils to construct secondary matter freely before they have absorbed and mastered sufficient primary matter. Memorising therefore is undoubtedly an essential part of the learning process.
Nevertheless it would be incorrect to interpret Palmer's assertion that 'the study of language is in its essence a series of acts of memorizing 'as implying that the process is necessarily that of rote learning.
The essential characteristics of language in use are the speed and facility with which the language is received and produced. To be effective there should be little conscious effort but rather the spontaneous use of familiar words and forms. Fluent speech and rapid reading are not simply the application of knowledge; they imply the possession of specific habits; they are in effect a series of unconscious acts of memory. The inculcation of correct language habits is therefore the teacher's chief concern. For this purpose extent of vocabulary and grammatical knowledge are not the most vital factors. Fluency is a quality attainable within any range of vocabulary and may be absent despite the knowledge of all the words and forms in the language. It would be right therefore to conclude that foreign-language learning is essentially a skills, or a series of skills, calling for the assimilation of a considerable amount of language matter for reproduction and adaptation without conscious effort.
Vocabulary teaching techniques
There are numerous techniques concerned with vocabulary presentation. However, there are a few things that have to be remembered irrespective of the way new lexical items are presented. If teachers want students to remember new vocabulary, it needs to be learnt in context, practiced, and then revised to prevent students from forgetting. We can tell the same about grammar. Teachers must make sure students have understood the new words, which will be remembered better if introduced in a "memorable way".
Bearing all this in mind, teachers have to remember to employ a variety of techniques for new vocabulary presentation and revision.
Gairns and Redman (1986) suggest the following types of vocabulary presentation techniques:
1. Visual techniques. These pertain to visual memory, which is considered especially helpful ...
