Page 117 - English - Teaching Academic Esl Writing

NOUNS ANDTHE NOUN PHRASE
103
style
sum summary supplement surplus survey switch symbol symptom synthetic tangent tape
task
team technique technology telescope tense terminology territory terror
text
texture
theft
theorem
theory
tissue tone topic trace tractor tradition traffic trait transition treaty
trend triangle usage vein velocity version vertical
vocabulary volt volume
x-ray
Given that lists of the most common nouns employed in academic texts are accessible to most interested teachers, finding lexical alternatives is rela- tively easy in various contexts—for example:
affect—feeling, emotion, sentiment competence—ability, skill, capability fragment—-particle, piece, bit, shard
sphere—(1) circle, realm, domain, province, field, arena (2) ball, globe, balloon, bubble
However, unlike the words easily learned in the course of daily interac- tions, expanding the range of academic vocabulary requires a great deal of work and persistence. The crucial factors in the success of academic vocabu- lary learning are contextualization (and thematic organization), exposure to appropriate-level academic texts with conscious noticing of how various words are used, and sequencing of easier words to be followed by more diffi- cultones.Forexample,suchnounsastriangle,traffic, tradition,andtopiccanbe accessible even to beginners. Similarly, if intermediate learners already know the nounfeeling, they can be in a good position to learn affect and emotion.
Learning academic vocabulary, like many other aspects of learning, can become productive through repeated exposure and contextualized repetition. If vocabulary dealing with planet, policy, pollution, release, re- search, and residue is worked on during the second week of classes, these nouns need to be reviewed and practiced in context later in the course. On occasion, when teaching a large number of words in a limited amount of time, combining new items with the review of those covered in previ- ous units can lead to a snowball effect. In vocabulary work, it is important to set realistic goals. For example, contextualized exposure to 700 to 1,000 words during one 10-to 12-weekterm maybe reasonable assuming that students are assigned homework or projects outside the class (see following Teaching Suggestions).
TLFeBOOK