An Application Of The Situational Method To English Vocabulary Teaching In Junior High School

Vocabulary plays a part in language knowledge,and the acquisition of vocabulary knowledge is an important prerequisite for improving language skills.However,students have difficulties in acquiring vocabulary knowledge,this problem is also a challenge for teachers’ vocabulary teaching.In the teaching tips for teachers in the English Curriculum Standards for Compulsory Education(2022 edition),it is stated that,in terms of vocabulary knowledge,students should realize that vocabulary learning is not just vocabulary memorization and mechanical drills,but they should learn to use words to understand and express meanings in situations.At the same time,it also mentions the requirement in the section of learning strategies for junior high school students that they need to reduce their anxiety about learning English.Based on this,this paper combines the situational method with English vocabulary teaching in junior high school,and based on situational cognitive theory and constructivist theory,this study will answer the following two questions:(1)How can the situational method effect student’s vocabulary learning anxiety?(2)How can the situational method effect student’s vocabulary scores?In order to answer these two questions,this study selected two classes of junior high school students with comparable English proficiency for a semester-long teaching experiment in a middle school in Yan’an,The tools used in the experiment were questionnaires,tests,and interviews.After one semester of experiment,this study found that: after adopting the situational method,students in the experimental class had lower anxiety in the foreign language class than before the experiment,and the situational method reduced students’ English vocabulary learning anxiety;meanwhile,the vocabulary scores in the experimental class improved compared with the control class,and the situational teaching method improved students’ ability to answer situational-related vocabulary questions.Finally,based on the experiments,the author makes reasonable suggestions on how teachers can better apply the situational teaching method.