Assoc. Prof. Jonathan Newton

KEYNOTE

Why Words Matter: On Teaching and Learning English Vocabulary in the 21st Century

As far back as 1976 David Wilkins noted that "without grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed‟. Indeed, vocabulary could be described as the rocket fuel of language learning. Without it, students will have great difficulty achieving success in English across the curriculum. And yet vocabulary is often treated as the poor cousin to carefully constructed grammatical syllabi or as a necessary hurdle to jump over in order to read a set text. But this need not be so. Teachers (and language learners) can now draw on findings from 30 years of intensive research on how best to learn and teach vocabulary. They can also draw on various powerful digital technologies for assisting vocabulary learning and teaching. Drawing on findings from this large body of research, in this session I'll provide answers to ten burning questions on vocabulary such as, How can I measure my (learners) vocabulary size? How many words do my learners need to know? What are the best technologies available for helping with vocabulary learning? What is the most effective way to expand vocabulary? Which words matter and which ones don't?