A Study On Breadth Of English Vocabulary Of Senior Middle School Students In Urumqi

Language acquisition and application will never exist without vocabulary. AsWilkins pointed that nothing can be conveyed without grammar, but nothing can beexpressed without vocabulary. The scholars in China hold the same opinion, andexpressed that the significance of vocabulary in second language acquisition (SLA).Only can Second language learners reach a certain level of vocabulary knowledge,they will achieve the correct understanding and usage of a second language,meanwhile they will acquire the usage of some second language learning strategiesand communication strategies (Ma Guanghui,2006). The level of vocabulary breadthlimits the second language students’ ability. Due to the low level of vocabulary, thestudents increase the burden of second language learning and decrease the interestingof English learning.In this study, students’ English vocabulary breadth levels, who are in highschools in Urumqi, has been investigated. This study selected two key high schools inUrumqi (experimental middle school,23middle) and two ordinary high schools’students (31middle,10middle) as samples, randomly selected two classes from eachgrade, each class about55to65people, about1,400students participated in thesurvey of English vocabulary proficiency test table. Then five experienced Englishteachers and ten high school students was selected randomly to take part in “Theinterview of high school English teaching and learning”.According to the level of high school students vocabulary breadth in this region,showed that the total vocabulary breadth of students in each grade respectively were788,1589,1923, which significantly lower than the requirement for vocabulary sizefrom the curriculum standards. Investigation showed the presence of high schoolstudents vocabulary growth imbalance, grade two students’ vocabulary growth ratewas significantly higher than grade two students’, nearly twice as much. Girls’vocabulary breadth level obviously is higher than boys’. Key middle school students’vocabulary breadth on average are higher than normal levels of secondary schoolstudents, this result is consistent with previous relevant studies. Thirty low recurrencerate of words are generally difficult for students to memorize, such as ankle, hydrogen,biscuit.In this paper, the author focuses on the investigation and analysis of the currentsituation of high school students English vocabulary breadth in Urumqi, trying toexplore the trend of high school students vocabulary breadth, trying to find out oflearning problems of high school students vocabulary in Urumqi, so that in the laterteaching practice, language teaching practitioners can take corresponding measures.