Etymological Elaboration As A Pedagogical Approach: Insights From Applied Linguistics

Abstract

Idioms are regarded as problematic to teach and, a fortiori, difficult for second language learners to comprehend due to the arbitrariness of their meanings and forms. Thus, the objective of this study is to test the efficacy of etymological elaboration and the teacher descriptive approach to the teaching and learning of English idioms in second language contexts. To achieve this objective, 30 purposively sampled English idioms were gathered from the Macmillan English Dictionary (2007 edition) and the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2010 edition). The study was conducted using a pretest / posttest paradigm. Two Form three classes were sampled for this study. A pretest on the 30 English idioms was administered, marked and results recorded. Learners in the experimental class were taught using etymological elaboration approach while those in the control class were taught using the teacher descriptive approach. A posttest was given to the participants in the same format as the pretest. The scores recorded in both tests were analyzed quantitatively using the Levene's Test for Equality of Variances. The study noted that the teaching of English idioms using etymological elaboration approach facilitates learners’ retention and comprehension of idioms. The study concludes that the etymological elaboration approach is an effective strategy of teaching English idioms. The paper proposes recommendations for pedagogy of English idioms for learners of English as the second language in Kenya and beyond