TEACHING VOCABULARY THROUGH READING By Duygu KÖKLÜ& Ceylan ÇAKIR – Many successful learners find that reading is an excellent way of extending vocabulary and learning new phrases. Small amounts of incidental vocabulary learning can become big if learners read large quantities of comprehensible texts. Usually, a distinction is made between intensive reading and extensive reading. Reading is one of the four basic skills in language learning and teaching. It helps us broaden our perspectives, learn new facts and come to a better understanding of the world. However, there is another important benefit that reading provides: it increases our vocabulary knowledge. Texts introduce us new words, and in many cases, we can deduce their meanings from a written context. That is, we remember some of these new meaning associations, especially if we continue to read and meet the new items in context again( Nation, 2001). Research Questions 1)What kind of vocabulary exercises used with reading texts? 2)How much vocabulary is learned form context? 3)What is the role of intensive and extensive reading in teaching vocabulary? 4)How can teachers help learners improve learning vocabulary from context? Introduction Learning Vocabulary Through Reading Types of reading Learning goals% vocabulary coverage Intensive reading Developing language Developing strategy use knowledge Less than % 95 coverage Extensive reading for language growth Incidental vocabulary learning Reading skills 95-98% coverage Extensive reading for fluency development Reading quickly99-100% coverage Intensive reading involves the close deliberate study of short texts, sometimes less than a hundred words long, but usually around words long. Extensive reading involves reading with the focus on the meaning of the text. In extensive reading learners have the opportunity to keep words that they have met before. Types of reading and vocabulary coverage is seen in the table above( Nation, 1994). Vocabulary Exercises With Reading Texts 1) Matching definitions to words in the texts This activity involves finding words in the text whic match definitons given after the texts. Often the definitions are listed in the same order as the aords occur in the text. The activity has a meaning goal: linking form and meaning. The activity is suited to individual work, and can easily be adapted to learners with a wide range of proficiency levels. 2) Collocational matching Learners have two lists of words which they must match to result in a set of collocations. The goal of the activity is collocational use. This activity, when done as group work, makes good use of learners with different first languages, because they can use a variety of first language parallels to predict English collocations. 3) Answering questions After reading the text, learners answer comprehension questions which encourage use of the target vocabulary. The learning goal is strengthening the meaning-form conneciton. If the answers requires the learners to use the information from the text in a creative way, then the learning condition becomes productive. If the answers are shared, this makes good use of learners at different levels of proficiency in the same class( Artley, 1943). The Role of Teachers in Improving Learning from Context Teachers can help learners improve learning form context in different ways: helping them to find and choose reading and listening materials encouraging them to read a lot and to gain a lot of comprehensible spoken input improving their reading skills so that they read fluently and with comprehension providng training in guessing from context( Grains, 1986). REFERENCES * Nation, P. (1994). New Ways in Teaching Vocabulary,Pantagraph Printing, * Nation, I., S., P. (2001). Learning Vocabulary in Another Lnaguage, Cambridge University Press, * Gairns, R., Redman, S. (1986). Working With Words, Cambridge University, * Artley, A., S. (1943). Teaching Word-Meaning Through Context, Elemantry English Review, It can be clearly understood that instead of using traditional vocabulary teaching methods( memorizing, listing, etc.), teachers should make use of the new activities which would be more beneficial. At this point, the importance of learning from context through reading becomes more necessary and essential. Conclusion