Let’s Vocab @ STEM helps enhance pupils’ command of English vocabulary

By: SITI SARAH SUKOR, GRADUATE RESEARCH ASSISTANT 
       FOR FUNDAMENTAL RESEARCH GRANT CHEME (FRGS) PROJECT ID RDU190188 

The Centre for Modern Languages & Human Science (CMLHS) at Universiti Malaysia Pahang (UMP) recently coordinated a field trip for 100 primary school pupils from around Pekan to the university to participate in a programme called “Let’s Vocab @ STEM”.

Organized in collaboration with the Industry & Community Network Centre (ICON), the Centre held the half-day programme at its premise on August 29, 2019.

In preparation for the programme, the Centre for Modern Languages (CML) Director, Associate Professor Dr. Zuraina Ali, collaborated with CML members Rosnani Ismail, Nurul Nadia Muhammad and Nabila Abdul Malek, to produce a learning module on how to assist the primary schoolers enhance their English vocabulary in the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) subject matters.

“The half-day program aimed to assist the Primary Year 4 pupils in enhancing their English vocabulary in STEM. Various fun activities to learn the target vocabulary size were packed into the learning module,” said Associate Professor Dr. Zuraina. 

“The learning module consisted of vocabulary games, such as puzzle, word maze, word search and pictorials, which has proved beneficial in enhancing the pupils’ command of vocabulary,” she highlighted, adding that the survey conducted at the end of the programme showed that “Let’s Vocab @ STEM” was an engaging, interesting and fun-filled in-class activities. 

CML believes, as young learners of English, vocabulary expansion is a crucial component of the prerequisite four skills of learning English – listening, speaking, reading and writing. 

“By conducting a programme like “Let’s Vocab @ STEM”, the young learners stand to gain confidence in learning English, especially vocabulary of STEM, allowing them to comprehend  learning techniques presented in the module,’ she said.