CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1 1 Rationale When people first begin to learn a language, they often get frustrated with the introduction of several terms that can be substituted for the same word As you beco[.]
CHAPTER - INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale When people first begin to learn a language, they often get frustrated with the introduction of several terms that can be substituted for the same word As you become more fluent, however, you realize that the slight difference in meaning between these words can make all the difference in the world in your sentences If you want to use more nuance or be more precise in your language choices, you need synonyms and antonyms Synonyms are words with the same or similar meanings. According to James Champlin Fernald (2009): “Synonym is a suggestion which they would not gain from any precision of separate definitions in a dictionary.” For example: 'joyful' is a synonym for 'happy' Words with opposite meanings are called antonyms For example: 'miserable' is an antonym of 'happy' Context clues are hints that an author gives to help define a difficult or unusual word within a book The clue may appear within the same sentence as the word to which it refers or it may follow in the next sentence Because most of our vocabulary is gained through reading, it is important that we are able to recognize and take advantage of context clues Most learners therefore expect to speak the language fast when they join a course or hire a teacher As teachers, however, we know that, being a productive skill, speaking will have to come after listening in the process of the students’ linguistic development The same goes for writing: it needs to follow reading Receptive skills (listening and reading) precede productive skills (speaking and writing) This is an absolute law that emulates the acquisition of the native language ontext clues are hints of information that help us figure out the meaning of unfamiliar words Context clues are the words and sentences that surround a word and help explain the word’s meaning Context clues are hugely important because their comprehension and effective usage leads to academic success They can increase the child’s vocabulary, reading comprehension, and make children better readers I am always looking for more materials to teach children how to interpret context clues which is why I was very excited when i got the opportunity to review Carrie’s of Carrie’s Speech Corner: “Out of This World! Context Clues“ This alien skkn themed 21 page packet was created by Carrie to help students learn to use context clues by figuring out the meaning of nonsense words Sometimes you won’t understand every word in a reading passage One thing you can to figure out new words is to use context clues Good readers use context clues to help them understand the meaning of an unfamiliar and/or challenging word So often, students are told to figure out what a word means based on its word parts or on surrounding context clues, but if they don’t have the understanding of what a context clue is, that is a difficult task We have been exploring strategies to help us use context clues When students can effectively use context clues strategies to navigate a text, they will increase their vocabulary, activate prior knowledge, and improve reading comprehension and fluency There are four common types of context clues strategies we are investigating The first is definition/explanation clues In this strategy, the unknown word is defined The word’s meaning is explained in the sentence A second strategy is using restatement or a synonym to give a clue as to the meaning of the unknown word A word or phrase is used in the sentence that has similar meaning Often, authors use antonyms as clues to a word’s meaning The meaning of the work is clarified by a work or phrase with opposite meaning Finally, students can use their schema and inference skills to understand the meaning of the word By labeling the context clues according to their specific type, rather than simply saying they are “clues,” students who are confused by generalities have a more concrete method and can look more easily for restatements, contrasts, inferences, and so on 1.2 Aims and Objectives The paper aims at investigating features of the topic based games in English 12 textbook and their usefulnesses in teaching English as the second language in order to have a good insight into the given basic topics and from which to develop students’ language skills and acedemic knowledge To reach the aim, the objectives of the writing are as follows: - To describe the importance and features of Context Clue in English learning and language knowledge acquisition - To find out the kinds of Context Clues that are used to find out the meaning of the words before deciding to choose their closest or opposite meaning - To identify common difficulties the students encounter in experiencing Context Clue application for English language improvement and acedemic Vocabulary enrichment skkn 1.3 The research question The paper aims at finding the answers to the following research questions: - How Context Clues related to the exercise given in GCSE English Tests affect students’ tutoring engagement and desire to gain the result? - What can learners get from those interesting application? - What difficulties learners have in experiencing Context Clue application? 1.4 Significance of the study Theoretically, this writing can help the language researchers and learners understand more the use of Context clues in solving the exercise of finding the closest or opposite meaning in GCSE English Tests The result of the study could partly lay the foundation for the next creations relating to other topic based activities relating to teaching orientations made by language teaching performers Practically, the result of the study could be used in the teaching and learning of English language at high schools As for teachers, this study will be a good reference of the use and importance of Context clues in solving the exercise of finding the closest or opposite meaning in GCSE English Tests, especially in teaching language process As for students, they will have greater insights into the exercise with a greater deal of vocabulary and related knowledge in the situations suggested Moreover, the paper’s goal is also designed to help students improve academic competence; develop language skill and imagination through concrete situations designed 1.5 The methodology To provide theoretical foundation for the innovative approach on Context clue acquisition and applying it to solving the exercise of finding the closest or opposite meaning in GCSE English Tests This section focuses on research in areas: Theoritical basis on topic based language learning and description of Context clues in solving the exercise of finding the closest or opposite meaning in GCSE English Tests skkn CHAPTER II – LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 The theoretical basis 2.1.1 Context Clue Definition Context clues are hints to help readers understand unfamiliar words The hints may be within the sentence, paragraph, or passage By utilizing context clues, students gain a better understanding of the writing Context clues are basically the hints for specific content – to understand the meaning of the content that is hidden in the plain yet twisted text Context clues can be used to explain a passage, paragraph, or individual statements With the help of context clues, we can essential information about the phrases or words that are used in the content This directly or indirectly helps the reader to understand the meaning of the paragraph Moreover, the context clues provide insights into the specific portion of the text that is generally difficult to understand Sometimes even the title of a piece or the illustrations that come with it offers context clues, as well These clues are really beneficial in learning the meaning of unfamiliar words in a unique way 2.1.2 Vocabulary in Context Understanding why and how to teach vocabulary in context has been a skill I’m still learning to master One of the main challenges of teaching reading is knowing whether your students are comprehending the text Often times, we sit as students read effortlessly and fluently a reading passage We smile as they decode multisyllabic words with little hesitation Then we look up from our clipboards and ask, “Ok, now tell me what that was about.” Comprehension and fluency need to be looked at with completely different lenses In fact, a student’s reading level may significantly drop when linked directly with comprehension So what is the problem when students are decoding with ease but not comprehending? Vocabulary instruction needs to be explicitly taught at all grade levels We want to teach the decoding and we want students to read effortlessly But if they are not understanding the words they are reading, what is the true point of our instruction? Being an ESL teacher, I have made it a point to be sure I am incorporating vocabulary instruction into my daily lessons What I have found over the years is these five things work to help build vocabulary no matter what grade level, or level of instruction skkn CHAPTER III – DESCRIPTION OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF CONTEXT CLUES TO HELP STUDENTS ADDRESS THE EXERCISE OF FINDING CLOSEST AND OPPOSITE MEANING OF WORDS IN GCSE ENGLISH TESTS “Words in Context” subscore measures the understanding of the meaning and use of words and phrases in the context of a sentence in GCSE English Tests 3.1 Participants There were a total of 36 students taking part in the survey in order to find out the result Of those 36 students, it is often observed that the attrition is more or less impacted by low achieved students who generally have low motivation in completing the exercise This bias often affects the results of the study as well—higher post (or delayed) test scores in one condition might be simply due to the exclusion of lower motivated students who dropped from the study This could be troublesome in our analysis, because the number of students who took the delayed test was different between the two conditions In our study, however, there were no notable condition differences on scores among those 19 students who did not take the delayed-test, suggesting that we can safely eliminate the potential threat of the motivation bias as a cause of the condition difference in delayed-test scores (if any) The expected rating after getting the test result is also delivered to students When receiving the exercise, students will classify the types of the exercise related to the theory and properly apply in different contexts Math has different formulas to solve equations Additionally, there are often multiple ways to complete a science experiment Similarly, there are numerous types of context clues to understand an unfamiliar term Thankfully, this means that students can apply different techniques to improve their understanding 3.2 Context Definition To better understand the meaning of the word context, let’s look at the meaning of its parts: “con-” and “text.” Con- This prefix means “with” or “together” Text means reading material When combined with each other, con and text make a pretty important and powerful word that could be defined like this: Context means the surrounding circumstances, ideas and words woven together to form the setting or background for an event, statement, or idea skkn Context is the connection of the words or ideas expressed before and after It provides readers with the information they need to fully understand, evaluate or interpret the ideas in the passage 3.3 Context Clues Context clues are hints that an author gives to help define a difficult or unusual word within a book The clue may appear within the same sentence as the word to which it refers or it may follow in the next sentence Because most of our vocabulary is gained through reading, it is important that we are able to recognize and take advantage of context clues In reading and listening, a context clue is a form of information (such as a definition, synonym, antonym, or example) that appears near a word or phrase and offers direct or indirect suggestions about its meaning Context clues are more commonly found in nonfiction texts than in fiction, although they are sometimes found in children's literature, often with the goal of building readers' vocabulary Words can have multiple meanings, so being able to infer the correct definition from context is a valuable reading comprehension skill 3.3.1 Different Types of Context Clues Questions in the Words in Context category ask you to consider both the meanings and roles of words and phrases as they are used in particular passages You’ll also be asked to think about how to make language use more effective These questions focus on the following skills: 3.3.2.1 Definition The author provides a direct (explicit) definition of an unknown word in the sentence The signal words are “Is, are Is /are called Is / are known as Is defined as Means, Refers to” ‐ Martha is a curator, a person who is responsible for looking after a museum’s collection. Entomology is the study of insects. ‐ Archeology is the scientific study of prehistoric cultures by excavation of their remains. 3.3.2.2 Synonym or Restatement skkn The author uses a word having the same or nearly the same meaning as another word or other words in a sentence. The signal words are “Commas , Semicolon ; Dashes - Parenthesis ( ) Sometimes signal words or, that is, or in other words are used For example: - Carnivores, that is, meat eaters, are the top of the food chain. - My best friend squandered all his money; his drinking and gambling wasted all his earnings. - After seeing the picture of the starving children, we all felt compassion or pity for their suffering - After a time, glaciers, or slowly moving rivers of ice, formed over many parts of the Earth 3.3.2.3 Antonym or Contrast The author uses another word or phrase that means the opposite of an unfamiliar word. Words used are: But, however, although, otherwise, unless, instead of, on the contrary, on the other hand, while, unlike For example: - Mike’s parrot was loquacious, but Maria’s said very little. - The gentleman was portly, but his wife was thin. - While Luis is hardworking, his indolent brother spends most of the time watching TV or sitting around with friends 3.3.2.4 Comparison In comparison clues, the author uses words and phrases that have the same or similar meaning as an unfamiliar word Words used are: like, as, similar to, in the same way, likewise, resembling, too, also For example: - My brother is enthralled by birds similar to the way that I am fascinated by insects - The stench of the old shoes was like the smell of garbage 3.3.2.5 Example/ Explanation The author provides examples or additional explanations or summaries to help you understand an unfamiliar word The word is cleared up by giving an example For example / For instance/ Including/ Such as/ Specifically/ To illustrate skkn For example: - The archeologist found different amulets, such as a rabbit’s foot and bags of herb - Paula was suspended from school because of several infractions of the rules, including smoking in the bathroom and dressing improperly - Celestial bodies, such as the sun, moon, and stars, are governed by predictable laws 3.3.2.6 Cause and Effect The meaning of an unknown word depends on the cause/effect relationship with other words in the text As a result/ Accordingly/ Because, Since/ Consequently / For this reason/ Hence, if … then For example: - Since no one came to the first meeting, attendance for the second one is mandatory for all staff - Because the conflagration was aided by wind, it was so destructive that every building in the area 3.3.2.7 List or Series The unfamiliar word is included in a series of related words that give an idea of the word’s meaning Look for a list of words For example: - North American predators include grizzly bears, pumas, wolves, and foxes - The debris in the stadium stands included numerous paper cups, ticket stubs, sandwich wrappings, and cigarette butts 3.3.2.8 Inference or General Context The meaning of an unfamiliar word can be inferred (guessed) from the description of a situation The author provides non‐specific clues, often spread over the sentence or number of sentences Look for clues over several words or sentences For example: - The monkey’s vociferous chatter made me wish I had earplugs - Katie’s belligerence surprised everyone She threw her book across the room, skkn 3.4 The exercise used Context clue analysis Question The children were full of beans today, looking forward to their field trip A eating a lot B hyperactive C melancholy D lively and in high spirits Question When the protestor entered the meeting clad only in a beach tower, the audience was dumbfounded A speechless B excited C content D applauding Question She is always diplomatic when she deals with angry students A strict B outspoken C tactful D firm Question We had to list the chronology of events in World War II on our test A time sequence B discrepancy C catastrophe D disaster Question The team wasn’t playing well, so the coach took the bull by the horns and sacked severalsenior players A made the right decision B made the wrong decision C made a bold decision D made a final decision Question It is such a prestigious university that only excellent students are entitled to a full scholarship each year A have the right to refuse B are given the right to C are refused the right to D have the obligation to Question The way the care-taker treated those little children was deplorable She must be punished for what she did A respectable B unacceptable C mischievous D satisfactory Question Talking about your feeling can help you get clear about what you feel A control B banish C get rid of D figure out Question The government has launched a new road safety campaign in an attempt to reduce the number of road accidents A to try to B to aim to C to intend to D to plan to Question 10 A number of programs have been initiated to provide food and shelter for the underprivileged in the remote areas of the country A rich citizens B active members C poor inhabitants D enthusiastic people Question 11 I can't believe what a narrow escape it was when the car went off the road and passed within a few feet of us A lost cause B first-rate C close call D takeaway Question 12 Because she was a few minutes late, she walked quietly into class and sat in the back of the room skkn A rambled B tiptoed C stumbled D crawled Question 13 TV commercials that sell household products have often been accused of reinforcing stereotypes of societal roles A strengthening B modifying C contrasting D exposing Question 14 Her style of dress accentuated her extreme slenderness A betrayed B emphasized C revealed D disfigured Question 15 He was attentive as Betsy and I talked about our charity concert to help the victims of the recent floods A perceptive B indifferent C interested D negligent Question 16 My father hit the roof when he found out that I’d damaged the car A was over the moon B burst with anger C went with the flow D kept his shirt on Question 17 Many organizations have been involved in drawing up the report on environmental campaigns A concerned about B confined in C enquired about D engaged in Question 18 His girlfriend’s behavior at the party was unacceptable, which made everyone there shocked A out of practice B out of line C out of the habit D out of sight Question 19 Please stop making that noise! It really gets on my nerves A cheers me up B wakes me up C amuses me D annoys me Question 20 Denise has been burning the midnight oil trying to finish this report, so I reckon she is exhausted now A making every attempt possible B exercising regularly to keep fit C staying up working late at night D having lots of food late at night Explanation: Question D Giải thích: full of beans: hăng hái, sơi nổi, đầy lượng eating a lot: ăn nhiều hyperactive: mức hiếu động (trẻ em) melancholy: u sầu, đau buồn lively and in high spirits: nổ đầy lượng => full of beans = lively and in high spirits Tạm dịch: Hôm lũ trẻ hăng hái, vô mong đợi chuyến thực địa Đáp án: D Question A 10 skkn Giải thích: dumbfounded (a): im lặng, câm lặng speechless (a): câm lặng excited (a): thích thú contented (a): lịng applauding (a): tán dương => dumbfounded = speechless Tạm dịch: Khi kẻ chống đối bước vào họp với khăn tắm, khán giả câm lặng điếng người Đáp án: A Question C Giải thích: diplomatic (a): quảng giao, hịa nhã strict (a): nghiêm khắc outspoken (a): thẳng thắn tactful (a): lịch thiệp firm (a): chắn => diplomatic = tactful Tạm dịch: Cơ ln hịa nhã xử lý học sinh nóng Đáp án: C Question A Giải thích: chronology (n): niên đại time sequence (n): chuỗi thời gian discrepancy (n): tương phản catastrophe (n): thảm họa disaster (n): tai họa => chronology = time sequence Tạm dịch: Chúng phải liệt kê chuỗi thời gian kiện chiến tranh Thế giới thứ kiểm tra Đáp án: A Question C Giải thích: take the bull by the horns: dũng cảm giải điều make the right decision: đưa định make the wrong decision: đưa định sai make a bold decision : dũng cảm đưa định make a final decision: đưa định cuối => took the bull by the horns = made a bold decision Tạm dịch: Đội chơi khơng tốt, huấn luyện viên dũng cảm đưa định loại bỏ số cầu thủ cao cấp Đáp án: C Question B Giải thích: are entitled to: có quyền với… have the right to refuse: có quyền từ chối are given the right to: cho quyền với… are refused the right to: bị từ chối quyền với… have the obligation to: có nghĩa vụ 11 skkn => are entitled to = are given the right to Tạm dịch: Đây trường đại học có uy tín mà có sinh viên xuất sắc hưởng học bổng toàn phần năm Đáp án: B Question B Giải thích: deplorable (adj): tồi tệ, khơng thể chấp nhận respectable (adj): đáng kính trọng unacceptable (adj): khơng thể chấp nhận mischievous (adj): tinh nghịch satisfactory (adj): thỏa mãn, đạt yêu cầu => unacceptable = deplorable Tạm dịch: Cách mà người bảo mẫu đối xử với đứa trẻ khơng thể chấp nhận Cơ phải bị trừng phạt làm Đáp án: B Question D Giải thích: get clear: hiểu rõ ràng control (v): điều khiển banish (v): trục xuất get rid of: thoát khỏi figure out: hiểu => figure out = get clear Tạm dịch: Nói cảm giác bạn giúp bạn hiểu rõ bạn cảm thấy Đáp án: D Question A Giải thích: attempt (n): nỗ lực try (v): cố gắng aim (v): với mục đích intend (v): dự định plan (v): lên kế hoạch => try = in an attempt Tạm dịch: Chính phủ khởi động chiến dịch an toàn đường nhằm giảm số vụ tai nạn đường Đáp án: A Question 10 C the underprivileged: người thiệt thòi quyền lợi rich citizens: cơng dân giàu có active members: thành viên động poor inhabitants: cư dân nghèo enthusiastic people: người nhiệt tình => the underprivileged = poor inhabitants 12 skkn => đáp án C Tạm dịch: Một số chương trình khởi xướng để cung cấp thức ăn chỗ cho người thiệt thòi vùng sâu vùng xa đất nước Question 11 C Giải thích: narrow escape: mém chết, chết lost cause: bó tay, hết hy vọng first-rate: hạng nhất, loại close call: thoát chết takeaway: cửa hàng bán thức ăn mang => narrow escape = close call Tạm dịch: Tôi tin thật chết xe chạy đường vượt chúng tơi cách có vài feet Đáp án: C Question 12 B Giải thích: walk quietly (v): nhẹ nhàng ramble (v): dạo chơi, ngao du tiptoe (v): nhón chân stumble (v): vấp ngã crawl (v): bò, trườn => walk quietly = tiptoe Tạm dịch: Bởi trễ vài phút, cô lặng lẽ bước vào lớp ngồi phía sau phịng Đáp án: B Question 13 A Giải thích: reinforce (v): tăng cường; củng cố strengthen (v): củng cố; tăng cường modify (v): thay đổi, sửa đổi contrast (v): tương phản expose (v): phơi bày ra, để lộ => reinforce = strengthen Tạm dịch: Các quảng cáo truyền hình bán sản phẩm gia dụng thường bị buộc tội làm tăng thêm khuôn mẫu vai trò xã hội Đáp án: A Question 14 B Giải thích: accentuate (v): nhấn mạnh, làm bật, nêu bật betray (v): tiết lộ, để lộ emphasize (v): nhấn mạnh, làm bật reveal (v): để lộ, bộc lộ, tiết lộ disfigure (v): làm biến dạng, làm xấu xí => accentuate = emphasize Tạm dịch: Phong cách ăn mặc cô làm bật dáng mảnh mai cô Đáp án: B Question 15 C 13 skkn Giải thích: attentive (a): chăm chú, ân cần perceptive (a): sâu sắc; sáng suốt indifferent (a): thờ ơ; lãnh đạm interested (a): lộ vẻ quan tâm (chú ý, thích thú) negligent (a): cẩu thả, chểnh mảng => attentive = interested Tạm dịch: Anh ý đến việc Betsy tơi nói chuyện buổi hịa nhạc từ thiện để giúp đỡ nạn nhân lũ lụt gần Đáp án: C Question 16 B Giải thích: hit the roof: tức giận over the moon: sung sướng, hạnh phúc burst with anger: tức giận go with the flow: thuận theo ý kiến, hành động người keep one's shirt on: không bình tĩnh, đừng hấp tấp => hit the roof = burst with anger Tạm dịch: Cha tức giận phát làm hỏng xe Đáp án: B Question 17 D Giải thích: involve in (v): tham gia vào, liên quan tới concern about (v): quan tâm, lo lắng confine in (v): giới hạn enquire about (v): hỏi engage in (v): tham gia vào => involve in = engage in Tạm dịch: Nhiều tổ chức tham gia vào việc soạn thảo báo cáo chiến dịch môi trường Đáp án: D Question 18 B Giải thích: unacceptable (a): khơng thể chấp nhận out of practice: vô lý, cách xa thực tế out of line: hành xử cách chấp nhận out of the habit: thói quen làm out of sight: xa mặt cách lịng => unacceptable = out of line Tạm dịch: Hành vi bạn gái anh bữa tiệc chấp nhận được, khiến người bị sốc Đáp án: B Question 19 D Giải thích: gets on someone nerves : chọc tức, làm phát cáu A cheers me up : cổ vũ B wakes me up : đánh thức dậy C amuses me : gây cười D annoys me : gây bực bội 14 skkn => gets on my nerves = annoys me : gây bực bội Tạm dịch : Đừng gây tiếng ồn nữa! Nó thực làm tơi bực mình! Đáp án D Question 20 C Giải thích: burning the midnight oil: học làm việc muộn vào ban đêm making every attempt possible: thực nỗ lực exercising regularly to keep fit: tập thể dục thường xuyên để giữ dáng staying up working late at night: thức khuya làm việc having lots of food late at night: ăn nhiều đồ vào tối muộn => burning the midnight oil = staying up working late at night Tạm dịch: Denise thức đêm để hoàn thành báo cáo, tơi đốn cô kiệt sức Đáp án: C 15 skkn CONCLUSION We found that introducing different types of Context clues to help students tackle with the exercise of finding Closest and Opposite meaning of words in GCSE English Tests is urgent activities in which students are supplied with proper orientation so that they can have better and faster way to make the best choice for the answers of the GCSE questions, resulting in an overall better English score in the tests As a major technological contribution of the current study, we have demonstrated that students can be used as a teachable agent with which students can learn procedural skills by being taught We also demonstrated that using a teachable agent allows the researcher to collect detailed process data that, when combined with outcome data, can help us understand better cognitive theories of learning by teaching We also identified issues of the exercise related to the topic and urgently find out the best ways of solving it The exercise relating to knowledge of finding closest and opposite meaning of words has been solved basing on using six main types of context clues Such studies can be run in real schools and these approaches have the potential to provide effective interventions The transformative theory of learning by teaching has yet to be thoroughly investigated, but we find great potential and opportunity in future work in this area 16 skkn 17 skkn ... TYPES OF CONTEXT CLUES TO HELP STUDENTS ADDRESS THE EXERCISE OF FINDING CLOSEST AND OPPOSITE MEANING OF WORDS IN GCSE ENGLISH TESTS ? ?Words in Context? ?? subscore measures the understanding of the. .. researchers and learners understand more the use of Context clues in solving the exercise of finding the closest or opposite meaning in GCSE English Tests The result of the study could partly lay the. .. the meaning and use of words and phrases in the context of a sentence in GCSE English Tests 3.1 Participants There were a total of 36 students taking part in the survey in order to find out the