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.