A Core Vocabulary for Elementary School Pupils

Abstract

IntroductionEnglish enjoys a special position amongst the world languages today. In order to interact and come closer in 21st century, it is widely being used by the people of global village. For achieving success in their academic and professional careers, individuals of world nations require to be equipped with strong literacy skills in (Grabe & Stoller, 2002).Their cultural, political and economic needs are met by learning language (Nawaz, Amin & Tatla, 2015).In the context of usage of English, different value is attached to in different nations. is taken as a foreign language for non-native speakers in countries where use of is limited; whereas has the status of second language for non-native speakers in nations where is frequently spoken (Lyytinen, 2003). In the context of developing countries, Coleman (2011) analyzed the role of for development, and contribution of has been highlighted for increase in employment, facilitation in international mobility, provision of development opportunities, and serving as an impartial language in complex language context.Pakistan is one of the countries where is an official language, and it is taught and learnt as a second language (Akram & Mahmood, 2007; Warsi, 2004). In Pakistani society, there is a significant use of in trade, courts, military, academia, media etc. Students study language as a compulsory subject at school and college levels from grade I to graduation. Rahman (2003) observes that for Pakistani students language is associated with authority, respect and success. There are several reasons that motivate Pakistani students to learn English. They may include English as an official language, the respect and status associated with the language, the importance of for the Pakistani general public and professionals, globalization, international language, the language of international organizations, the media, and science and technology (Nawaz, Amin & Tatla, 2015. p.111).Though is taught as a mandatory component of school curriculum in Pakistan, its outcomes are not considered satisfactory by the academicians and researchers. Students are generally unable to demonstrate proficiency in use of language skills. Especially listening and speaking are the skills which are ignored by the teachers. This pathetic situation is attributed generally to the approach employed for teaching at schools. Methodology for language teaching has gone a long way from being based on dogmatic thinking about simply good means of teaching to being based on insights into procedure of second language learning and dynamics of the language classroom itself (Aveni, 2005). However, teachers in Pakistan are more inclined towards traditional practices of second language teaching. The old and outdated grammar translation method is popular among teachers at most of Pakistani schools (Akram & Mahmood, 2007; Bukhari, Cheng & Khan, 2015; Warsi, 2004). Other reasons for low quality language teaching in Pakistan may include imparting language skills through literature, untrained language teachers, obsolete books, endorsement of rote learning, dearth of language aids, short period of class in the week, and overcrowded classrooms (Kazi & Iqbal, 2011, p.558). For these and other contextual reasons, Pakistani students as second language learners face a lot of difficulties in acquisition of English.Language teaching practices frequently assume that most of problems that learners encounter during the study of are a result of the degree to which their local language differs from (Valerie, 2000). Various students may have extremely different cultural perceptions in the classroom as far as learning a second language is concerned. Cultural differences in communication styles and preferences are important (Lyytinen, 2003), and have effect on students' attitude and ability to leam the second language. …