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The Lexical Approach: Prioritizing Lexis over Grammar in Language Instruction

The Lexical Approach

According to Michael Lewis (1993), the lexical approach emphasizes the importance of vocabulary in language learning. Lexis, or vocabulary, is considered the foundation of language. Effective communication can occur with a stock of chunks (units of vocabulary). Grammar is considered secondary. As such, a meaning-centered syllabus should be organized around lexis rather than grammar.

Vocabulary learning
The Lexical Approach To Language Teaching

Introduction

Since the publication of the “Lexical Approach” by Michael Lewis in 1993, Language teaching practices have been widely reviewed and discussed.

So what are the features of the  Lexical Approach? Is it a revolution in the profession of language teaching or just an evolution? What are its claims?  How can it be implemented in the classroom?

The lexical approach theory of language

Chomsky’s notion of a native speaker’s output consisting of an infinite number of “creative” utterances is at best a half-truth. In fact, prefabricated items represent a significant portion of a native speaker’s spoken and written output. Native speakers have a vast stock of these lexical prefabricated items or chunks which are vital for fluent production.

Fluency does not depend so much on having a set of generative grammar rules and a separate stock of words as on having rapid access to a stock of lexical chunks. It would seem, then, that speakers need both a prefabricated, automated element to draw on as well as a creative, generative one.

Once the importance of prefabricated language is acknowledged, The grammar/vocabulary dichotomy becomes obviously false.

In fact, language has long been analyzed as consisting of grammatical structures and a set of usually single vocabulary items. Grammar has been given priority over vocabulary. The latter has been seen as secondary in importance, merely serving to illustrate the meaning and scope of the grammar.

In the lexical Approach to language teaching, this dichotomy is irrealistic and considered to be based on false assumptions about language. Language is basically its lexicon.

The key principle of a lexical approach is that “language consists of grammaticalized lexis, not lexicalized grammar.” In other words, lexis is central to creating meaning, grammar plays a secondary role in managing meaning.

When this principle is accepted, the logical implication for teachers is that we should spend more time helping learners develop their stock of phrases and less time on grammatical structures.

Nature of the lexis

There is a distinction between vocabulary, traditionally thought to be constituted of single items, and lexis, which includes not only the single words but also the word combinations that we store in our mental lexicons.

The Lexical Approach advocates that language consists of meaningful chunks that, when combined, produce continuous coherent text, and only a minority of spoken sentences are entirely novel creations.

Michael Lewis presents this taxonomy of Lexical items:

  • Words (e.g., book, pen)
  • Polywords (e.g., by the way, upside down)
  • Collocations, or word partnerships (e.g., community service, absolutely convinced)
  • Institutionalized utterances (e.g., I’ll get it; We’ll see; That’ll do; If I were you . . .; Would you like a cup of coffee?)
  • Sentence frames and heads (e.g., That is not as . . . as you think; The fact/suggestion/problem/danger was . . .) and even text frames (e.g., In this paper we explore . . .; Firstly . . .; Secondly . . .; Finally . . .)

The Lexical Approach to language teaching pays attention not only to single words but also (and more importantly) to collocations and institutionalized utterances and sentence frames.

Michael Lewis states that

“instead of words, we consciously try to think of collocations, and to present these in expressions. Rather than trying to break things into ever smaller pieces, there is a conscious effort to see things in larger, more holistic, ways”

Michael Lewis 1997a, p. 204

Collocations

A large portion of lexis consists of collocations. But what is a collocation?

A collocation is a readily observable phenomenon whereby certain words co-occur in natural text with greater than random frequency and is not determined by logic or frequency, but is arbitrary, decided only by linguistic convention.

Some collocations are fully fixed, such as:

  • To catch a cold
  • Rancid butter
  • Drug addict

Other Collocations are more or less fixed and can be completed in a relatively small number of ways, as in the following examples:

  • blood / close / distant / near(est) relative
  • learn by doing / by heart / by observation / by rote / from experience
  • badly / bitterly / deeply / seriously / severely hurt

Theory of learning

As mentioned before, the lexical approach to language teaching emphasizes the importance of learning collocations or lexical chunks as whole units instead of individual words.

Schmitt (2000) supports this approach. He suggests that our brain stores and processes these chunks as individual units. This allows us to recall and produce language more efficiently.

According to Schmitt, our short-term memory is limited. So, it’s more effective for our brain to retrieve a chunk of language as one piece of information instead of separate words.

What does this mean?

Let us take an example.

You will agree with me that it is much more difficult to recall the chunk “to make matters worse” as four separate words than to remember it as one unit.

That is precisely why the lexical approach theorists interestingly suggest that we should enable learners to store and retrieve chunks or collocations rather than just individual words.

If we do so, they argue, we enable them to store large amounts of language knowledge in long-term memory. This results in more fluent and natural language production.

Now, let’s look at how this may apply to the classroom!

Lexis in the classroom

Lexical syllabus

The lexical approach considers lexical items as the unit of analysis and content for syllabus design.
It focuses on students’ developing the lexicon and argues that language learning is first and foremost linked to the ability to understand and produce lexical items.

It also suggests that teaching should focus on formulaic language as unanalyzed units or chunks, and that “these chunks become the raw data by which learners perceive patterns of language traditionally thought of as grammar” (Michael Lewis, 1993, p. 95).

According to Lewis:

“Language consists of grammaticalized lexis, not lexicalized grammar”

Michael Lewis

The lexical approach in this sense is seen as an alternative to grammar-based syllabuses.

Authentic language

Central to the lexical approach is:

  • The focus on teaching real authentic English
  • A shift away from the artificial language found in ELT textbooks and which is drawn from the textbook designers’ intuition.

In fact, the approach contends that the language course books teach is “not what people really use.”  That is why it is crucial to avoid distorting the language in textbooks by using the writer’s intuition.

Instead, textbook designers should have access to authentic language via corpora which is a large amount of written and sometimes spoken material collected to show the state of a language.

Intuition often fails to accurately reflect the real use of language. Corpora, however, can instantly provide us with the relative frequencies, collocations, and prevalent grammatical patterns of the lexis in question across a range of genres.

In addition, light is shed on lexical variation. This leads to the collection of thousands of vocabulary items that cannot be taught in the traditional PPP (Present-Practice-Produce) framework.

Implementing the lexical approach to teaching

So how does the Lexical Approach deal with the teaching part? Even if the approach doesn’t present a clear theory of learning there are some hints about how the teaching looks like within the approach.

  • Successful language is a wider concept than accurate language. Emphasis is on successful communication, not grammatical mastery.
  • Language is not learned by learning individual sounds and structures and then combining them, but by an increasing ability to break down wholes into parts. We can also use whole phrases without understanding their constituent parts.
  • Encouraging activities where learners practice noticing and recording language patterns and collocations.
  • Grammar is acquired by a process of observation, hypothesis, and experiment. That is, the Observe-Hypothesise-Experiment cycle replaces the Present-Practise-Produce Paradigm.
  • Teachers should adopt grammar exploration instead of grammar explanation.
  • Intensive and extensive listening and reading in the target language are encouraged.
  • First and second language comparisons and translation—carried out chunk-for-chunk, rather than word-for-word—aimed at raising language awareness.
  • Repetition and recycling of activities to foster acquisition are favored.
  • Guessing the meaning of vocabulary items from context is encouraged.
  • The language activities consistent with a lexical approach must be directed toward naturally occurring language and toward raising learners’ awareness of the lexical nature of language.
  • Working with dictionaries and other reference tools.
  • Various word association games and activities are suggested.

Advantages and disadvantages of the lexical approach

Let’s dive into the perplexing yet exciting realm of the lexical approach and explore its advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages:

The lexical approach immerses learners in the authenticity of the language. It teaches language that is used in real-life situations, providing a burst of exposure to practical communication skills.

It ignites the flame of fluency in learners. The focus on vocabulary and phrases helps learners develop their fluency much faster, granting them the confidence to communicate effectively.

It promotes learners’ autonomy and encourages them to take charge of their own learning. By reading extensively, listening to authentic materials, and using dictionaries, learners develop their language skills independently, leading to language exploration and discovery.

It supports learner-centered teaching, empowering teachers to guide and facilitate rather than just lecture. This approach motivates learners to take an active role in their own learning, sparking a flame of engagement.

Disadvantages:

The lexical approach may neglect grammar, creating a perplexing gap in learners’ knowledge. While grammar is not entirely ignored, it may not receive the attention it deserves.

It may have limited application in academic settings, as learners require more formal and structured language skills. This limitation may hinder the approach’s effectiveness.

It demands extensive vocabulary knowledge, which can be a daunting challenge for learners who struggle with memorization and retention of new words.

It may not suit all learners, as some may prefer a more structured and rule-based approach to language learning. Additionally, learners with learning difficulties may find it hard to acquire and use new vocabulary in context.

Conclusion

The Lexical approach is not really a revolution but an evolution as it tries to develop principles already known by communicative language teachers. The aim of ELT is still the teaching of communicative abilities by focusing on successful language rather than accurate language. The originality of the approach lies in its claims about the nature of language. The distinction between grammar and vocabulary has become less valid and a more realistic view about language, based on the supremacy of lexis over grammar is advocated. The challenge that the approach is facing is how to convince teachers to change their mindset in favor of this new vision about language.

References

Lewis, M. (1993). The lexical approach: The state of ELT and the way forward. Hove, England: Language Teaching Publications.

Lewis, M. (1997a). Implementing the lexical approach: Putting theory into practice. Hove, England: Language Teaching Publications.

Lewis, M. (1997b). Pedagogical implications of the lexical approach. In J. Coady & T. Huckin (Eds.), Second language vocabulary acquisition: A rationale for pedagogy (pp. 255-270). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Schmitt, N. (2000) Key concepts in ElT: lexical Chunks. ELT Journal 54 (4), 400-401.

Other sources:

Wikipedia: Lexical Approach

Scott Thornbury: L is for (Michael) Lewis


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