Abstract
Paraphrasing is an essential skill that helps learners develop their communicative ability. Learners can express the same idea in many different ways. Also, learners can be able to choose the right way to express themselves. The object of this paper is not simply the research on paraphrasing in general, but also how to use paraphrasing in boosting the lexicon in English language. The research questions of this paper are: Which skills are improved through paraphrasing; which are some challenges learners face when paraphrasing different contexts. This research applied qualitative data, which involved 8 high school learners in informal group discussion. All the results showed that even though paraphrasing is difficult in some contexts, it helps learners expand vocabulary and improve their English level. Moreover, it was find out that one of the benefits paraphrasing brings is the comprehension of texts. Further research focusing on learners’ perspectives about using paraphrasing was suggested to enrich the literature of paraphrasing usage.
Key words: paraphrasing, strategies,
challenges
Introduction
Many students today face difficulties when decoding texts and are unable to answer questions regarding the text. The difficulties, in general, occur due to the limited vocabulary or content knowledge, especially for students who learn English as a second language. According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (1995, p.840) the word paraphrase is defined as an account or expression of the meaning of something written or said, using different words, especially in order to make it easier to understand. Fisk and Hurst (2003, pp.182-185) explored paraphrasing as a technique that students can use to better comprehend fiction and non‐fiction text by bringing the use of what they already know to what they are reading. They discuss the need for students to use their own vocabulary and phrasing when paraphrasing which was a key component of helping students to better understand text. Kleitzen (2009, pp.73-77) investigated the use of paraphrasing as a strategy to improve the comprehension of texts. She suggests that paraphrasing requires students to engage with the content of what they are reading and be able to translate this content into words they know to demonstrate their understanding. In order to demonstrate their understanding, readers are required to use their previous knowledge to make connections and retell what was read in their words. There has always been a discussion about the difference between paraphrasing and summarizing. Summarizing is a practice of restating a piece of content in a short form by conveying the main idea in a concise way. A summary contains the key point of the text given. On the other hand, paraphrasing means rewriting a text in your own words while preserving the same meaning and message. It provides an original content that conveys the main ideas of the original text.
1.1. Techniques for
paraphrasing
There are many techniques used for
paraphrasing. One of them is Using
synonyms. We need to understand that these techniques are used when you
fully understand the text. In cases when you do not understand it completely,
do not use them. One example is: The need for investors to earn a commercial
return may put upward pressure on prices (source text). The
paraphrasing of this sentence is: The need for profit is likely to push
up prices (Future learn, 2022). Another technique is changing from
Active to Passive.
Example:
The real estate developers invested over $40 million USD into the development
of a new senior living company.
Paraphrased
Example: $40 million USD was invested in the
development of a new senior living community (British Council, 2023).
Changing the form of the word or part
of speech is another technique that teachers use when paraphrasing. Let us say:
The boy runs quickly (original
text).In this case we change the adverb into an adjective and a verb into a
noun: The boy is a quick runner.
It is very
advisable to have a combination of such techniques in order to have a dramatic
effect on students’ paraphrasing skills. Teachers try to combine such
techniques by providing a good feedback at the end of the class.
1.2. Paraphrasing enhances writing skills
Students need to
process their ideas before they paraphrase. In fact, paraphrasing is an active
thought process in which your brain is engaging. It is a valuable skill in
writing and especially when it comes to academic or research papers. The study
done by Hasanah and Fatimah (2020) concludes that undergraduates’ who do
paraphrase will avoid plagiarism practice, and the undergraduates who do not
paraphrase will turn into plagiarism. Practicing paraphrasing skill plays a
crucial role in developing writing skill. This idea is also reported by Choy
and Lee (2012) who stated that paraphrasing strategy instruction improves
student’s academic writing. Also all students perceived that with more practice
of the skill, they would improve in their writing. Further to this, students
perceived that they needed to enhance not only their writing skills but also to
improve their vocabulary.
Doubtfully, we come to the idea of having difficulties in paraphrasing due to the lack of English proficiency and lack of vocabulary as well. In his study, Azkar (2021, p.38) showed that the difficulties students face when paraphrasing was their lack of English proficiency, poor reading comprehension, lack of vocabulary and also referencing abilities. Some students stated in their interviews that those specific difficulties are poor grammar skills, a lack of ability to change the sentence structures, and composing grammatical sentence skills. So, in other words, there is always a need to practice more paraphrasing strategies in order to boost student’s ability in writing skill.
1.3. The role of paraphrasing tools in education
Paraphrasing tools, through their vast lexical databases and
AI algorithms, offer alternative vocabulary choices (Edmonger, 2022). They
encourage students familiarize themselves with synonyms or other phases. In
such a way they boost lexical richness and versatility. Through boosting
vocabulary items, students avoid plagiarism and create a unique work from the
original content. Somebody who uses paraphrasing can also improve sentence
structure and improve their writing skill. Paraphrasing tools are used to understand complex texts, enhance
vocabulary but not to change students’ critical thinking.
2. Methodology
2.1. Research Design
This paper uses a
qualitative research design by using open-ended questions to help the subjects
express their opinions clearly. It aims
at finding out about the challenges students’ face when paraphrasing different
context and the skills that are improved through paraphrasing.
2.2. Participants and Instruments
The subjects used in
this study were 8 high school leaners at Andon Zako Çajupi high school. The
research conducted a focus group interview in which all of them were aware that
the reason of such interview was because of a conduction research. All the
learners were coded as S1, S2, and S3 up to S8.
According to Doody,
Slevin and Taggart (2013, 266-269) focus group interview are considered as a
qualitative study whereby the perspectives of the respondents are transcribed
so that how a group thinks about an issue is assessed.
2.3. Data collection procedure
Al the data were
collected during the study period in March 2024. The research used primary data
approach through a direct interaction with the participants. The techniques was
that of a focus group. The process took 4 days, including the activities
teachers employed in the class.
2.4. Data analysis procedure
All
the data gathered from the focus group interview used a thematic data analyses
including certain themes and concepts. It used a manual data processing with a
pen and a paper. All this process followed some steps: familiarization, coding,
generating themes, reviewing themes, naming them and then writing them up.
2.5. Results
The students answered
2 questions to collect data on paraphrasing strategies not only as a way to
boost vocabulary but also to improve other skills.
Q1. Which skills are improved through paraphrasing?
|
Participants |
Word
encoding |
Codes |
Themes |
|
S1 |
I
find easier to write when paraphrasing. |
Writing paraphrasing |
Boost
writing when paraphrasing |
|
S2 |
Personally, it helped me enhance
language skills. |
Language skills |
Language skill is improved through
paraphrasing |
|
S3 |
Paraphrasing
has helped me in my reading process. I try to paraphrase when I don’t know the
meaning of a word. |
Reading Meaning word |
Paraphrasing
is a way to find the meaning of a word in other words |
|
S4 |
Firstly, I found it difficult to
practice paraphrasing but then I realized that it helped me in communication. |
Difficult Practice reading |
Through practicing paraphrasing,
reading became easier |
|
S5 |
Paraphrasing
helped me in enriching vocabulary, especially synonyms. |
Paraphrasing Synonyms vocabulary |
Enhancing
vocabulary section, especially synonyms, when practicing paraphrasing |
|
S6 |
In many cases we had to deal with
grammar points, which needed to change the part of speech. We used
paraphrasing as a technique. |
Grammar Change Part of speech |
Need to use paraphrasing when dealing
with grammar |
|
S7 |
I
am better at writing only through paraphrasing, especially academic writing. |
Writing Paraphrasing academic |
Academic
writing is boosted through paraphrasing |
|
S8 |
Paraphrasing helped me to understand
better the text and find the right meaning of the unknown words. |
Paraphrasing Text Unknown words |
Finding the meaning of unknown words
through paraphrasing the text. |
Table 1: Themes and
codes of 1st question
Q2. Which are some challenges learners face when
paraphrasing different contexts?
|
Participants |
Word
encoding |
Codes |
Themes |
|
S1 |
Sometimes
I find it difficult to paraphrase because I lack many vocabulary words. |
Difficult Paraphrase vocabulary |
Difficulties
in paraphrasing due to vocabulary missing words. |
|
S2 |
It is not easy to catch the content
of the original text. |
Catch Content Original text |
Finding difficulties in understanding
the text. |
|
S3 |
I
find it difficult to paraphrase since my English level is not that good, so
it takes me some time to paraphrase. |
Difficult Paraphrase Level English |
English
level matters when it comes to paraphrasing. |
|
S4 |
English as a second language needs
more practice from use in order to come to paraphrasing. |
Second language Practice paraphrasing |
Through practice we may learn second
language paraphrasing. |
|
S5 |
My
reading is so poor so I need to practice reading firstly then switch to
paraphrasing. |
Reading Poor Switch paraphrasing |
Poor
reading leads to misleading paraphrasing. |
|
S6 |
We need to memorize better vocabulary
in order to find the right synonyms of the words. |
Memorize Vocabulary synonyms |
Through memorizing words we boost our
vocabulary synonyms. |
|
S7 |
My
weakness has always been grammar for me. So, when it comes to change the part
of speech I am in a tight spot. |
Weakness Grammar Part
of speech |
Paraphrasing
need more grammar practice. |
|
S8 |
My only challenge is that I need to
find the keywords in the text and then try to paraphrase. |
Challenge Keywords paraphrase |
Finding the keywords of a text makes
paraphrasing easier. |
Table 2: Themes and codes of 2nd question
3. Discussion
The article aimed at
finding the answer of the two research questions mentioned above. All the
results of the first question showed that through paraphrasing students become
better at language skills, in writing, reading and also in grammar points.
Also, the data suggests that through paraphrasing students boost their
vocabulary level. The results of the paper documented that despite the skills
improved, students find it difficult to paraphrase due to their lack of
practice in reading or because they lack many vocabulary words. Furthermore,
the results of the second question indicate that students need to work more
with the meaning of the content in order to paraphrase well or they need to
find the keywords within a text so to make it easier.
The results of this
study are consistent with Kleitzen (2009), who suggests that paraphrasing
requires students to engage with the content of what they are reading and be
able to translate this content into words they know to demonstrate their
understanding. Furthermore, the study supports Choy and Lee (2012), who stated that
paraphrasing strategy instruction improves student’s academic writing. All the
results should be taken into account when considering g how to use paraphrasing
in order to enrich lexicon.
The outcomes of the paper have provided an insight into the students’ challenges they face when paraphrasing so s to improve their skills. However, due to the limited number of students who were part of this study, the generalizability of the outcomes is limited. There is a need for further studies to better understand what is paraphrasing and the ways it boosts the lexicon.
4. Conclusion
All the study paved the way for using some
paraphrasing strategies in order to enhance the lexicon. It is very important
for teacher to implement such strategies because paraphrasing is becoming an
important part of language, especially in writing. There is a clear evidence
that teacher try to engage students in different activities so as to improve
their paraphrasing skills. Despite this, all the students face challenges until
they come to a better understanding what paraphrasing is. These findings should
be interpreted given the limitation of the study, but they encourage further
studies about the strategies used in class to enrich not only to enrich lexicon
but also for a good writing task.
Acknowledgments
This work would not have been possible without the extraordinary support of my supervisor, Prof. Klodeta Dibra. Her enthusiasm and attention to detail have been an inspiration and have kept my work on track since I drafted this paper. I would also like to thank all the research participants who agreed to fill out the questionnaire, my colleagues who contributed their ideas and opinions about my topic. Finally, I want to thank my family for their patience and encouragement.
References
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