Direct and Indirect Technical Vocabulary Teaching Strategies used by Subject Teachers in a Saudi Industrial College

Abstract

This paper Investigates the beliefs and practices of the subject area teachers about using direct and/or indirect teaching of English Technical Vocabulary (ETV) items in a Saudi Arabian Industrial college called Yanbu Industrial College (YIC). It also aims to explore the specific vocabulary teaching strategies VTS they use to achieve their teaching goals Methodologically, a qualitative study under the case study tradition was conducted. Six Content Area Teachers (CATs) were interviewed to understand their beliefs regarding the directness and/or indirectness of ETV items instruction and to list the strategies they employ towards this endeavor. The study found that CATs stated that they directly and frequently use the following strategies: definitions, exemplifications and pictures. These three strategies, according to all the CATs interviewed, are used jointly most of the time to present the meaning of novel ETV items directly. Secondly, the data also shows that CATs use most of the strategies to teach directly. Thirdly, some strategies were also reported to be used jointly. The study suggested some educational implications and recommended experts in the area to carry out future scrutiny to understand this topic from different dimensions.