Teacher's Column
Hi! Douglas
Learning Vocabulary in a Specific Topic Area
For most students, it is enough to learn general English, basic words
and phrases that can be sued in a large variety of circumstances. If a
student learns verbs, nouns, and grammar patterns, they can probably get
by in most circumstances they will face while traveling, studying, or on
the job.
But sometimes, a student needs to learn words and grammar specific to a
certain topic or field of study. And this can be true for native
speakers studying some fields. For example, I know a good amount about
computer English, though if I read technical journals or articles, I
might have a lot of trouble understanding exactly what the author is
talking about.
Were I to start studying the law or medicine, on the other hand, I would
have to learn a great deal about the words and grammar used in that
field of study. Right now, I cannot read technical journals in either
field, even if they are written in English.
So, how to study these kinds of things.
One way is to look for a vocabulary book in the field, which are pretty
easy to find in most bookstores, like Maruzen in Sakae. If you get one
of these, then you can learn the basic meanings of the words quickly.
Then a good way to move on is to start reading what experts say. Find a
blog or a discussion board on the Internet that covers the topic you
wish to learn about. These boards can be quite useful for reading how
the people talk in this field. Even better, many of the boards are
friendly enough to allow a newcomer to ask questions about the topic.
Ask politely, and you will probably get a good answer.