Theory of Vocabulary Learning
25 focused on some other feature, usually the message that is conveyed by a speaker
or writer. Therefore, Nation 1990 adds three points to consider in vocabulary
learning: vocabulary learners need to learn, how learners will learn the vocabulary and how the teachers test to see what the learners need to know and what they
now know p. 4. In the first point, the teachers need to decide the words that their learners need or in the other words the goals of vocabulary learning. This is
important because it will affect the way the words are selected. Next, there are several strategies that learners can use to cope with the new vocabulary namely
guessing from context, paraphrasing, using words parts, dictionary use and mnemonic techniques Nation, 1990, p. 6. Nevertheless, the most important
strategy is guessing from context. The last point is how to test what the learners need to know and what they now know. Nation 1990 explains that there are 6
reasons for testing, they are to find learners‟ total vocabulary size, to compare vocabulary knowledge before and after the course, to keep a continuing check on
progress, to encourage learning by setting short-term goals, to see the effectiveness of your teaching and to investigate learning p. 8.
Considering three points above, the researcher chooses direct vocabulary learning as the techniques of vocabulary learning in designing the materials. It
includes word-building exercises, guessing words from context, learning words in lists, and vocabulary games. Part of speech becomes one of the main focuses in
vocabulary learning to enrich the students‟ vocabulary list through reading texts given. This is also supported by Pabis and Hamer 2004 who suggest, “…it is
26 sometimes possible to guess the meaning of a word you don‟t know before you
look up or ask its meaning. Decide first what part of speech the word is and then look for clues in i
ts context or form” p. 3. Moreover, having rich vocabulary will help the students have better comprehension of the reading texts.