Vocabulary Mapping Determinants Definition of Terms

18 incorporated into the lexicon. In this stage learners continually construct and adjust the vocabulary mapping or network of associations in the mental lexicon. The third stage is the use of the lexicon by the L2 learners. According to Melka 1997, there are two natures of word use: 1. Receptive and productive. In the L2 acquisition context, the use of lexicon or words may serve two functions: to express one self and to understand others in communication. 2. To learn more properties of L2 words or vocabulary.

5. Vocabulary Mapping Determinants

a. From Input to Intake: Quality Determinants The quality of vocabulary intake is subject to the following determinants or factors: 1 Context of L2 Learning Brown 1986: 34 classifies the context of L2 learning into two major categories: second language learning and foreign language learning. L2 learning may take place in two different contexts: within the culture of L2 language e.g. an Indonesian learning English in the US UK and within its own native culture where the L2 is an accepted lingua franca in education, business etc. learners learn L2 in their native culture would have less opportunities to use the language e.g. Indonesian learn English in their country. Sources of language input and the chances to use the language in communication are limited. Thus, the limited chances and exposure to use the language would likely be detrimental to vocabulary mapping. Without enough exposure, learners would have a limited 19 number of contexts resulting the limited identification and acquisition of limited language features. 2 Intrinsic Difficulties of Second Language Vocabulary. Intrinsic difficulties of L2 vocabulary may cause problems for learners in mapping the L2 words. Features such as familiar phonemes, consistency of sounds script relation, regularity, transparency, register neutrality, and one form to one meaning correspondence help learners in vocabulary mapping and also acquisition. On the other hand features like unfamiliar morphemes, inconsistency of sound script relation, irregularity, lexical complexity, synformity Similarity among L2 lexical forms, register restriction and one form to multiple meaning correspondences, hinder vocabulary acquisition as vocabulary mapping become much more complicated. 3 Learner’s First Language It is undeniable that L1 has a considerable influence on how L2 is learned. Swan’s view 1997 says that mapping L2 words into L1 is a basic and indispensable strategy in vocabulary learning, but also inevitably leads to error. Ijaz suggests that L2 learners transfer the concepts in the L1 to L2 words without regarding the differences in the semantics boundaries of corresponding words Ijaz, 1986: 405 and this may lead the students to the error in the L2 production. Very rarely do L2 words have one to one correspondence with L1 words Mukarto, 1999: 28. Poedjosoedarmo 1989: 66­70 cited in Mukarto, 1999: 28 suggests that most L2 words are polysemous; they have more than one meaning and different meaning may require different linguistics context. 4 Vocabulary Teaching Strategy 20 Vocabulary teaching generally focuses primarily on two aspects: form and meaning. The meaning taught is usually the core meanings of the words and the other possible meanings are often neglected because they are considered irrelevant at the moment. The learners learn the L2 words from the L1 translation and the problem here there is no exact translation from L2 to L1. 5 Learner’s Strategies for Discovering Meaning There are three ways that are most helpful for discovering meaning according to Schmitt’s survey on vocabulary learning strategies used by Japanese learners of English 1997: 221­223: 1 checking the meaning of unknown words in bilingual dictionaries, 2 asking teachers for paraphrases, synonyms, or gestures and 3 guessing meaning from contexts. However, Meara 1997 claims that L2 word is only partially taught and learned, but when different aspects of words are touched as the same word is encountered later, the mapping would be adjusted. In terms of vocabulary mapping, intake is the first step in the mapping process and is temporary and partial in nature. b. From Intake to Lexicon: Consolidation Strategy Some of the intake is stored in long­term memory Ellis, 1997: 35, so that the maximizing the portion of intake in long­term memory as part of the lexicon and L2 knowledge should be the concern of both language educators and the learners. The consolidation strategies that may be used by the learners are repetition, mnemonic devices, loci, key words, cognitive depth and games. The 21 most commonly used strategy is repetition in its various form, one of them called “structured repetition” technique. This technique requires the students to memorize a list of vocabulary items. Weekly tests, consisting 40 new vocabulary items and 60 “old” vocabulary items which have been tested before, are given as a means to encourage learners to memorize the vocabulary items. In an experimental study, Purba 1990 found out that this structured repetition technique proved to be effective to increase the learners’ mastery of English vocabulary. This technique allows the students to reach their threshold where they could start to learn from context. However, this technique must not be the sole technique of vocabulary learning as only core meanings are given. Consolidation strategies allow the learners better map the newly acquired vocabulary into the existing lexicon by making as many connections as possible between the newly learned words with the existing lexicon and strengthening the link through repeated encounter of the words in various linguistic contexts. c. From Lexicon to Output: Language Use and Feedback At the early stage of language acquisition, learners likely think in L1 and then seek the suitable L2 words before using them. At a later stage or more advanced level, learners may activate their L2 lexicon without reference to L1 lexicon. In the use of lexicon in communication, learners may receive feedback. If the learners get proper feedback, they would be able to adjust their mapping or network in the lexicon and therefore have a better­mapped lexicon. On the other side, if there is no proper feedback on learners’ language, the learners’ language would be fossilized at an earlier stage. In order to avoid the fossilization occur in 22 the L2 lexical development, it would be better for the teachers or lecturers to give negative­feedback when the students inaccurately map the words. 6. Componential Analysis of Meaning a. Types of Meaning Relation According to Nida 1975: 15, there are four principal ways in which the meanings of different semantic units may be related to one another: inclusion, overlapping, complementation, and contiguity. 1 Inclusion In many instances the meaning of one word may be said to be included within the meaning of one another. All poodles, for example, are dogs, and all dogs are animals. Thus the meaning of poodle could be said to be included in the meaning of dog, and the meaning of dog included in the meaning of animal. Such inclusions of meaning, one within another, are extremely important in determining the significant features of meaning, since each “included” meaning has all the features of the “including” meaning, that is, the immediately larger area of meaning, plus at least one or more feature which serves to distinguish the more restricted area. 2 Overlapping One of the most obvious features of the relatedness of meanings is the tendency for meanings to overlap, e.g. givebestow, illsick, possesown, answerreply. The words in each pair, normally called synonyms, are almost never substitutable one for the other in any and all contexts. That is to say, they are not identical in meaning, but they could be substituted one for the other in at least 23 certain contexts without significant changes in the conceptual content of an utterance. Initial learners should be aware of the English synonyms because they could lead the learners into the misuse of words. 3 Complementation Meanings complementary to each other involve a number of shared features of meaning, but show certain marked contrasts, and often opposite meanings. Generally, there are three types of complementary relations: 1 opposites, 2 reversives, and 3 conversives. Opposites are often spoken of as polar contrasts, since they involve distinct antithesis of qualities e.g. goodbad, highlow,, quantities e.g. muchlittle, manyfew, states e.g. deadalive, openshut, time e.g. nowthen, space e.g. herethere, and movement e.g. gocome. Certain complementary meanings involve reversives of events, e.g. tieuntie, alienatereconcile; or may be better described as conversives, e.g. buysell, lendborrow. 4 Contiguity The relation of contiguity is the most important for the analysis of distinctive features or components of meanings since it represents the relation between closely related meanings occupying a well­defined, restricted semantic domain, and exhibiting certain well­marked contrasts. That is to say, each meaning is distinctly set off from other related meanings by at least one important feature. The related meanings of walk, run, hop, skip, and crawl constitute such a cluster of contiguous meaning. They all share the features of movement by animate an animate being, using the limbs; but the number of limbs, the order of 24 movement, and the relation of the limbs to the supporting surface involve clearly definable contrasts. The relation of contiguity does not apply to the words walk, hop, run, skip, and crawl, but only to the meanings of those words which are related, in the sense that they share certain common features, and hence constitute a single semantic domain. b. Procedures for the Componential Analysis of Meaning A meaning is not a thing in itself, but only a set of contrastive relations. In some instances the crucial contrasts involve a few related meanings, but there is no way to determine a meaning apart from comparisons and contrasts with other meanings within the same semantic area Nida, 1975: 151. 1 Analyzing a Meaning of a Lexical Unit in One’s Mother Tongue The procedures for determining a single referential meaning of a lexical unit in one’s mother tongue involve comparison with related meanings of other units, that is, with other meanings in the same semantic domain. Where the meaning of a lexical unit occurs in a semantically contiguous set, especially if this set is part of a more or less systematic hierarchical structure, the procedures are relatively simple, and the results could be determined with little difficulty. Since they are varieties in between comparable meanings it is important to recognize two distinct types of procedure. One may be called the “vertical­horizontal procedures”, the other, the “overlapping procedures”. a The Vertical­horizontal Procedures The vertical­horizontal procedure for analyzing meaning involves 1 a vertical dimension, in which more inclusive meanings are compared with less 25 inclusive meanings, that is, meanings on different hierarchical levels, and 2 a horizontal dimension in which meanings on the same hierarchal level are compared, whether contiguous, overlapping, or complementary. b Overlapping Procedures In general it is preferable to employ the vertical­horizontal procedures in determining the meaning of a semantic unit. However, in many instances it is impossible to do so, since the relevant contrasts could be stated only in terms of overlapping meanings. 2 Determining the Meaning of a Lexical Unit in a Foreign Language In analyzing the meaning of a lexical unit in a foreign unit in a foreign language, two principal types of resources are usually available: 1 items in context, either existing texts or material provided by informants, spontaneously or by elicitation, and 2 dictionaries monolingual or bilingual and vocabulary lists with glosses. a Analysis of Meaning on the Basis of Context The analysis of word meaning on the basis of context could be done by a series sentence of sentences containing different context on the use of the word. b Determining a Meaning of a Lexical Unit with The Help of Informants In working with a language informant, it is essential to avoid asking, “What does the term mean?” A sophisticated informant may sometimes provide a helpful definition, but in most instances it is better to ask, “What is it like?” “How is it used?” “When do you say this word?” 26 If the lexical unit seems to refer to some entity or object, one of the first question may be, “what does it look like?” It may be necessary to ask questions as, “What does it sound like?” “What does it feel like?” other types of question could be developed to elicit description of words. c The Use of Dictionaries in the Analysis of Meaning Key syntactic and semantic features of a word could be generally found in dictionary definitions Mukarto, 2005: 156. Finer semantic features of words could be identified by contrasting them with other words sharing the common meaning sense of the words. By contrasting them, one could identify the features that constitute the meaning of those words. In general, dictionaries cover the semantic areas involved, list typical contrast, provide illustrative contexts, indicate different syntactic uses, give historical data suggestive of relation between meanings, frequently list idiomatic and figurative uses, and may note such temporal features as “obsolescent”, “archaic”, “neologism”, etc Nida, 1975: 172. Dictionaries may also be very useful in providing terms for setting up contiguous and overlapping series, since they often list under generic terms those synonyms which are structurally included.

B. Theoretical framework