chapter 6 improving your vocabulary
DESCRIPTION
TRANSCRIPT
HOW TO STUDY IN COLLEGE
Chapter 6 – Improving your vocabulary
Improving your vocabulary
Trouble/struggles in a class can sometimes be traced to poor comprehension of terms essential to subject matter
Some first year courses can introduce almost as many new words as a first year FL course Chemistry: kinetic, isomer, etc.
Some courses introduce new meanings for terms you already know; should be learned as if new words
Improving your vocabulary
A large wide-ranging vocabulary is necessary for grasping important ideas and facts (mechanic and tool kit analogy)
Using a dictionary
According to text, using a dictionary is the best way to improve vocabulary when your encounter a new word
Context clues: can be useful, but have limitations Provides only the meaning fitting the situation You often end up with a synonym (not quite
the same) Your guesswork can be slightly or greatly
mistaken
Using a dictionary
Pocket dictionary suggested . . . Abridged vs. unabridged Be aware that NO WORD IS EVER FULLY
DEFINED EVEN BY A GOOD DICTIONARY! Words have multiple shades of meaning –
these become apparent when using words in a variety of context.
DETERIORATION (pollution, corruption, recession, atrophy, loss) The deterioration of: honesty in government,
economy, atmosphere, muscles . . ..
Recognizing word roots and prefixes Get to know the most common English roots
and prefixes to help learn more than one word at a time
Root = the core of the word; it holds the basic meaning
Prefix = a word beginning that modifies the root
Estimated 60% of common use English are made partly or entirely of prefixes or roots – once learned, they can help you understand many words with no dictionary
Recognizing word roots and prefixes
video
Recognizing word roots and prefixes Table 6.1 (129) – Common word roots
(bio, cardio, geo, hydro, pyro) Table 6.2 (130) – common prefixes (anti,
de, multi, non, pre) Knowing meanings of prefixes/roots can
unlock meanings of unfamiliar words, but it should not replace a good ol’ dictionary
Mastering difficult words
No quick/easy way to a powerful vocabulary Book suggests writing new words down on
notecards record words encountered in the classroom or in
textbooks In textbook readings, pay special attention
to the definitions of words (defined after first used or in glossary)
Learn words that intrigue you; more effective than memorizing from a given list
The frontier vocabulary system Based on natural learning processes
The four characteristics of all learning processes: Skills progress from the simple to the complex Each skill is developed in an orderly sequence of steps Each step is at a different level of difficulty No significant step may be skipped. Each step seems
to develop the muscle or brain pattern that makes the next step possible.
Same with learning words – progress from simple to complex
Difficulty in learning a word depends on the complexity of the idea it stands for
The frontier vocabulary system The basis of the frontier vocabulary system:1. Easiest words learned first2. At the forward edge of the mass of all the words
that have been mastered is an individual’s frontier; very few words beyond frontier have been mastered
3. Greatest learning takes place in the frontier area 4. Words in the frontier area are similar; here,
almost-known words need only a “slight straightening out”
5. Learning becomes inefficient when a learner skips beyond the frontier
The frontier vocabulary system Frontier words: you might know how to
pronounce it; you may know one of its meanings.
You can master these words with minimal effort, rapid progress
Vocabulary development
Words are difficult to remember out of context; it helps to have a body of information with which to associate a word
Learn words by concept/illustration – this makes them especially memorable