Despite the rapid development of technology and artificial intelligence, dictionaries remain among the most important tools for learning foreign languages and solving various language problems. They serve as a reliable source to check the correctness of a particular choice of word, which online machine translators cannot always do due to a lack of context. However, to be able to use dictionaries effectively, several skills need to be developed first. Dictionary use is an integral part of the Slovenian EFL (English as a Foreign Language) syllabus from the second triad of primary school onwards. As there is little research on dictionary use in the first years of primary school English teaching in Slovenia, this master’s thesis aims to fill in the gaps by providing more insight into this issue.
As part of our research, we conducted a survey among 124 Slovenian teachers who teach English in the second triad of primary school and interviewed four English teachers who often include dictionaries in English lessons aimed at this age group. Our findings have shown that in most English classes in the second triad, dictionaries are only used occasionally, and that only a small percentage of teachers teach dictionary skills systematically. Electronic dictionaries are used more often than print dictionaries, and pupils in this age group mostly use bilingual dictionaries. However, traditional dictionaries without pictures are more common than picture dictionaries. We have also found that dictionaries are primarily used for decoding purposes, i.e. to find out or check the meaning of a word. The majority of teachers believe that dictionaries promote learners' independence and autonomy in language learning. However, it is evident that they are not sure whether learners actually like using dictionaries. The main reasons that prevent teachers from integrating dictionary use into English lessons more often are limited access to dictionaries in classrooms, pupils' inability to use dictionaries efficiently and time constraints. It is encouraging to note that 96.7% of teachers who responded to our survey consider themselves competent to use dictionaries quickly and efficiently, though they are slightly less confident when teaching dictionary skills to their pupils. The results of our survey have further shown that dictionaries were used more frequently in the distance learning period during the COVID-19 pandemic than in regular lessons, but pupils also encountered many difficulties while using them. The four interviewed teachers shared their experiences and ideas that can serve as an encouragement for effective integration of dictionary use in English lessons aimed at this age group.
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