Analyzing Teacher Strategies in Vocabulary Learning in Elementary Schools

Abstract

This study aims to analyze various teaching strategies used by teachers in facilitating vocabulary learning in elementary school students. Strong vocabulary mastery is a crucial foundation for students' academic success and communication skills. However, students often face challenges in enriching their vocabulary. This study explored the vocabulary teaching strategies most frequently implemented by teachers, evaluate their impact on students' vocabulary acquisition, and identify factors that influence the success or failure of these strategies. [ADDED/REVISED] The study employed a descriptive qualitative case study at SD Negeri 3 Senganan, Tabanan, Bali, involving one Grade V English teacher and 25 Grade V students. Data were collected through classroom observations, semi-structured interviews, and questionnaires. The findings show that the teacher employed a combination of visual media, educational games, songs, drilling, and translation in teaching vocabulary. Visual media, particularly pictures and flashcards, were frequently used, followed by games and songs. Student questionnaire responses indicated that 92% of students liked English lessons, 88% found vocabulary easier to remember when accompanied by pictures, and 84% enjoyed learning through songs. However, 64% of students reported hesitation when pronouncing English words in front of the class. The findings also revealed challenges related to limited instructional time, differences in students’ learning abilities, pronunciation difficulties, and limited access to professional training. [ADDED/REVISED] The study contributes an empirically grounded description of how multimodal and interactive vocabulary teaching strategies are implemented in an Indonesian elementary school and highlights the need to adapt such strategies to students’ developmental characteristics, classroom conditions, and available resources