INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON

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THE SIGNIFICANCE OF REALIA IN TEACHING VOCABULARY
1. Khusanova Sharofatkhon Isroilovna
2. Kosimova Inobatkhon Kadirjanovna
1. Working place: Academic lyceum under Andijan Institute of Agriculture and
Agrotechnology
Telephone number: 934443570
sharofatxonxusanova@gmail.com
2. Academic lyceum under Andijan Institute of Agriculture and Agrotechnology
Telephone number: 914801620

Annotation : The article deals with the significance of using realia in teaching vocabulary. In
the beginning of the theme is given the aim and significance of chosen theme. The article
shows a number of evidences pointing to the importance of using realia in teaching vocabulary.
The actuality of this work is the investigation of realia activities in teaching vocabulary in the
way of development of the vocabulary skills to enrich the word-stock of learners and making
EFL classroom more effective teaching environment.
Key words: language acquisition, real-world materials, to open curiosity and maintain,
promotes creativity and the acknowledgment of the object, encourage conversation,
instructional use of existing materials, multisensory view of language.
Introduction. Most language teachers face many problems related to the lack of tools and
materials which would make their work in the classroom an efficient activity, and at the same
time, an enjoyable experience for learners. Thus, considering the topic of this research, it is
relevant to begin by defining what realia is. To explain this word some people can say that
realia’s meaning is implicit in the same word, and they are right indeed.
In English as Foreign Language settings, the word realia refers to the use of real objects as a
means to teach English. However, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary (2007) realia
are “objects or activities used to relate classroom teaching to the real life especially of peoples
studied” and the dictionary also provides the origin of the word REALIA which comes from Late
Latin, “neuter” plural of “realis” which means “real” and can be used in general pedagogy. In
order to demonstrate and to teach a language in the classroom, there are some real objects or
materials that teachers can use. This is what teachers call realia. It is a supporting tool to make
language acquisition and production possible. What realia does is to provide learners with
concrete vocabulary that permits them to have a direct contact through the senses of seeing,
hearing, smelling and touching the objects. As Richards and Rodgers (2003, p.111) say, real-
world materials are brought to class by the students in the form of newspapers, signs, handbills,
storybooks, and in the case of adults printed materials from their workplace are also another
resource. Students also produce their own materials. Besides, realia does not have to be limited
to food or drink. Calendars, coupons, magazines, and fashion may all be recycled to help open
life into lessons, and help deal interest. As we can see there are many objects around us which
can be used as material for teaching. Those materials can be brought to the class by the teacher
and also by the students but the teacher can use the objects that are already in the classroom.
Moreover, during the class the students can make their own supplies.The uses of realia in
language teaching.
Some reasons for using real objects in the classroom to illustrate and teach vocabulary are: The
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BUSINESS MANAGEMENT AND HUMANITIES
Hosted from Delhi, India
real aids such as realia are helpful tools to attract student's attention because they offer
imagination and variety to the class and to the students too. It is useful to open curiosity and
maintain the interest in the real objects the teacher shows (Yilmaz, 2011,p.13).
The usage of realia is only narrowed by your imagination and possibly practicality too. Using
realia motivates the mind, and makes vocabulary more unforgettable than an image would.
Students can touch, smell, and with a food article, taste it. Realia saves time, as appreciation of
an object is often instantaneous, elicitation of vocabulary becomes easier since it is simply
holding up the object and showing it to the students.
As it was explained above, realia is a good aid to make students remember the new vocabulary
because they experience vocabulary through the senses. All objects can be used in a foreigner
English class. So, it is feasible to employ realia to teach concrete vocabulary. Moreover, as it
involves the senses, it promotes creativity and the acknowledgment of the object as direct
(Richards and Rodgers 2003).Realia can be used as an icebreaker, and it serves as a valuable
tool to encourage conversation. It also makes the students’ minds concentrate on the object.
When teaching English vocabulary to children, realia is a good option. For example, children
love toys, so they can be used in a lesson. Realia can be used also to construct a dialogue, to tell
a story, and to explain concepts such as traditions; realia is practical in teaching prepositions
of place such as: on, in, under, next to, and in front of over. The teacher can take an object and
put it on a box, in a box, under a box and so on. Finally, some of the ways we can help students
to understand the meanings of new languages are illustrated by means of the use of realia
(Yilmaz, 2011).
According to Harmer, the following example shows how realia helps to learn vocabulary
with beginners.Example 1: „It’s a pen!
“This is perhaps the easiest level at which to explain meaning. The teachers want students to
understand the form „pen’ so she holds up a pen and says „pen’. The meaning will be clear. She
can do the same with words like „pencil', „table', „chair’ etc. (....) some of the ways of helping
students to understand, then - especially when dealing with fairly simple concepts - are: objects,
pictures, drawings, gesture and expression” . Therefore, realia is useful with children because
it is a helpful instrument in making the abstract world, concrete.Realia opens life into new
vocabulary, and the opportunities of the students to remember the new words the teacher has
taught them. For example, take the word, “sweet”. The possibility of calling to mind the word
develops much higher after feeling the taste, touch and smell of an object. Taking into account
the previous information, realia is a material used in second language acquisition. Richards and
Rodgers, (2003) say that realia can be used in different approaches and methods. They explain
that some methods require the instructional use of existing materials, found materials, and
realia (p.29). So, it explains that most of the methods to teach English as a second language need
materials. All those materials help teachers to enhance English learning in the classes.
Result. The materials including realia should accomplish the following features: Materials will
focus on the communicative abilities of interpretation, expression, and negotiation. Materials
will focus on understandable, relevant, and interesting exchange of information, rather than on
the presentation of a grammatical form. Materials will involve different kinds of texts and
different media, which the learners can use to develop their competence through a variety of
different activities and tasks (Richards and Rodgers, 2003 p.29).
Realia is also considered great material to teach English. It is because realia uses the senses to
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Hosted from Delhi, India
understand the meaning; this example is explicit in Multiple Intelligences. It explains that since
the intelligence can be broken in other intelligences, some of them can help humans in the
purpose of language. It means communication. This is attributed to the fact that language has
its ties to life through the senses. The senses provide the accompaniment and context for the
linguistic messages that give it meaning and purpose. It is necessary to have a multisensory
view of language, it means, to build an adequate frame of language as well as effective
development of skills for language learning .
One approach that considers the use of realia as a good helper to make students understand
the meaning of an item is Multiple Intelligences. In this approach it is mentioned that “Through
multisensory experiences- touching, smelling, tasting, seeing and so on - learners can be
sensitized to the many-faceted properties of objects and events in the world that surrounds
them”. Moreover, “students strengthen and improve the intelligences by volunteering objects
and events of their own choosing and defining with others the properties and context of
experience of these objects and events” (Richards and Rogers, 2003, p. 117-118).
Another way is to amplify the intelligence. Students are asked to bring objects to class or to use
something in their possession. Teams of students describe each object attending to the five
physical senses. They complete a worksheet including the information they have observed and
discussed (p. 118). It means that when the students bring a personal object to the class, they
have a real context to describe. So, it makes the students pay attention to the given and gotten
information.
Another method that considers realia as a material to bring in classes is Communicative
Language Teaching. It says that there are many proponents who have supported the use of
“authentic,” “from-life” materials in the classroom. These materials might include language-
based realia, such as signs, magazines, advertisements, and newspapers, or graphic and visual
sources around which communicative activities can be built, such as maps, pictures, symbols,
graphs, and charts. It means that different kinds of materials can be used as realia to support
communicative exercises and to provide a good environment for the learning process
(Richards and Rodgers, 2003, p.170).
Additionally, to the coherence in the fundamentals of the research, some considerations about
vocabulary need to be made, given that the focal point of this research is the application of
Realia for learning vocabulary.
Conclusion. Vocabulary teaching has evolved through the time and old approaches and
techniques have given way to new ones. Firstly, the teaching of grammar has proved ineffective
at the moment of communicating with other people. Secondly, the use of new techniques for
the improvement of learning of vocabulary has put the emphasis on dynamism and the use of
as many senses as possible in the learning process. Concerning techniques, there is one, which
through the findings of this study, has proved to be a reliable and effective one. That is the case
of realia, which can make use of different real objects to present vocabulary. Besides, it not
only makes use of visual reinforcement, but also it can include more senses, such as smell or
taste depending upon the object that is being presented.
It is relevant to say that in the light of the facts mentioned above, realia has not been given the
importance it should have as an effective technique. Indeed, realia cannot simply be regarded
as one more technique, but it should be recognized as a valid and efficacious means for the
students to store the words easily in their minds. In addition to that, the relevance of realia lies
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 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT AND HUMANITIES
Hosted from Delhi, India
also on the motivation that a real object can produce on students in comparison with other
techniques such as, pictures or translation. Furthermore, it can be said that realia can be of
great use when teaching
a language, however, when teaching a foreign language it is far more advantageous due to the
fact that by using realia it is not necessary to make use of translation or the students’ mother
tongue to make them understand the words being taught.
Needless to say, realia gives a context by itself owing to the fact that the teacher uses real
objects which makes the experience be more worth remembering for the students thereby
easier to be recalled from their memories.
Realia and pictures are the techniques that are often left aside by teachers when presenting
new vocabulary. The reason of this is that the collection and creation of these resources are
regarded as drawbacks, due to the lack of time, financial support and large classes, who are
taught by teachers.
After analyzing the results and findings from my micro-teaching, it is important to state the
effect that the teacher’s preference has over a particular technique could influence at the
moment of learning new vocabulary as well as the results obtained on the tests. Furthermore,
it has a great importance the concordance that must exist between the way the students learn
and how the teacher could use the different teaching methodologies in order to achieve better
results.
References:
1. Coombe, C. (2011). Assessing Vocabulary in the language classroom. Dubai:
Retrieved from: www.christinecoombe.com Dubin & Olshtain,
2. Mckarten, J. (2007). Teaching Vocabulary. New York, NY: Cambridge university
3. Richards & Rodgers, (2003). Approaches and methods in language teaching. New York,
NY: Cambridge University Press.
4.Yilmaz, S. (2011). Material Development Realia.
5. http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/realia
6. http://www.cambridge.org/us/esl/touchstone/images/pdf/McCarten_booklet.pdf
7. http://www.ieev.uma.es/edutec97/edu97_c3/2-3-16.htm

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