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Windows and Doors - Lexical Architecture |
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Written by Andrew Sadler
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Struggling with your English? Been studying for years but seems like you've reached a plateau? Need that extra grade point to pass that important exam? Then let me tell you about a new learning method that will help you to jump start your English learning.
The Lexical Approach
Most people are familiar with ‘the grammar translation method' and ‘the communicative method' of language learning. However, few have heard of or fully understand what is called ‘the lexical approach'. This approach is little understood by many teachers and researchers and unheard of for many students and language enthusiasts. In this article I attempt to make things a little clearer for everybody and show you how you can apply the ‘the lexical approach' to your everyday learning.
Bricks and mortar
‘Grammar translation' is commonly known as the brick and mortar method of learning and often focuses on learning single items of vocabulary (the bricks) usually by means of word for word translation of the mother language and the learning of grammar rules (the mortar) with which to use those words. Using this method to build your house is going to be a long and tiresome project. It's like building whilst reading from the instruction manual at the same time - you are liable to drop your bricks, and get covered in cement, and it'll take so long that you'll end up forgetting what type of building it was you were trying to construct in the first place.
‘The communicative method' is more a process of trial and error; you are encouraged to go ahead and build the house, then see where you are going wrong.
‘The lexical approach' is more like getting a construction kit with various sections of the house ready made. It will provide you with the building materials and then show you how to build a doorway, or a window, or how to construct a roof. This allows you to build your sentences quickly using prefabricated parts. Now I'll tell you exactly what that means in terms of language.
The Science Bit
Take a look at the following paragraph:
Most people are familiar with / the grammar translation method and the communicative method of language learning. It seems that / over the years these two approaches have become diametrically opposed, representing two very different / schools of thought. However, few have heard of or fully understand / what is called ‘the lexical approach'.
The phrases in bold are fixed phrases, the doors, windows and roofs that will help you to build your sentences, paragraphs, letters and reports. Ok, so you are thinking ‘This is nothing new. We have learnt phrases before.', but why and how you learn the phrases is really important.
The lexical approach focuses on learning fixed phrases and collocations. Collocations are words that commonly appear together. Try a quick test. Fill in the blanks with suitable words:
Crystal _________ red in the __________
Middle _________ without a care in __________
Motor _________ green with __________
Most native speakers will choose clear, man or age, bike or car, face, the world and envy. No matter how many native speakers you ask, you will always get the same set of answers, this is because these are words that commonly appear together or are part of an idiom or set phrase. The lexical approach teaches the students these larger parts of language. The focus here is on lexis - the sequences of words - not the grammar. We create meaning using lexical chunks, not by slotting words into a grammar skeleton. So therefore, the focus in language learning should be on building our lexis, not on individual words or grammar rules.
"One student found only in a few weeks of using the lexical approach her report writing had improved a great deal and more importantly her confidence had grown."
From Theory to Practice
I write English training materials which provide the learner with the individual vocabulary, set phrases and lexical chunks needed in order to build their language. Each unit of my training material begins with vocabulary and getting started sections. This new language is then put to use in the activity and role play sections. Our materials then go on to focus on even larger parts of language - for example, how to write a letter of enquiry or how to express your good will, how to signpost your presentation or how to control a meeting.
Rather than searching for the right words to express your meaning, you will have a stock of set phrases that you can use at will, just as native speakers do. So how can you take advantage of this?
The best way to use this approach to improve your English is to keep your own lexical dictionary. Write down the new phrases, collocations and structures you learn, not just the individual words. That way you will fast track your progress to native English level in half the time. When you read or watch movies, focus on the larger parts of language, copying whole sentences and common collocations. You can even use translation, comparing whole sentences and idioms with similar phrases and collocations in your mother tongue. This is much more effective and fun than trying to translate word for word, which more often than not, results in Chinglish.
What you stand to gain.
Students who have used this technique have reported that their English shoots up to a whole new level. For example, recently I was training a manager from a large international logistics company. She was preparing for her BULATS exam and was worried about her report writing. I taught her phrases and structures she could use to write any report and focussed on specific phrases she could use for different topics. She found that only in a few weeks her report writing had improved a great deal and more importantly her confidence had grown. Now she is looking forward to the exam rather than dreading it.
So now you know what to do, get working hard. Build up your lexis. Try to learn at least one new phrase everyday. Maybe it will be something you read or heard on TV or radio, something your boss said to you or something you learnt from your trainer. Wherever you learnt it, write it down, remember it and use it. The improvement you make to your fluency, grammar and vocabulary with this one simple approach I think will astound you.
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