Research Questions

English paraphrase in this paper refers to using simple, familiar andfrequently used words to explain complex, unknown and obscure wordsso as to achieve better understanding. In this case, students canunderstand the meaning of new words according to their existedknowledge, which ensures students acquire comprehensible input. At thesame time, by comparing the usage of different synonyms, students canhave a clearer schema about one specific word. Therefore, based on theschema theory and input hypothesis, this study attempts to explore theeffect of English paraphrase-based method on students’ vocabularyacquisition in senior high school English synonym teaching. Morespecifically, the research questions are as follows:

1) What is the effect of English paraphrase-based method onstudents’ acquisition of receptive vocabulary in senior high schoolEnglish synonym teaching?

2) What is the effect of English paraphrase-based method onstudents’ acquisition of productive vocabulary in senior high schoolEnglish synonym teaching?

80 students from two parallel classes in Senior Grade Two of asenior high school in Changsha, Hunan Province participated in thisexperimental study. The research subjects were divided into two groups,class1 was chosen as the experimental class, class 2 was selected as thecontrol class. There are 40 students in the experimental class, 20 boys and20 girls. There are also 40 students in the control class, 20 boys and 20girls. Therefore, the number of students in the experimental class is thesame as that in the control class, and the proportion of male and femalestudents is the same. In addition, the students in the experimental classand control class are all taught by the same English teacher in their firstyear of senior high school, and they haven’t exposed to English paraphrase-based method before the experiment.

he students mentioned above are chosen as theresearch subjects for the following reasons: firstly, the students in SeniorGrade One often have a period of adaptation, their cognitive structure isnot mature enough, and they are in the exploratory stage for all kinds ofthings. Therefore, the data validity and reliability of the experimentcannot be ensured. Additionally, it is difficult to carry out such anexperiment in students of Senior Grade Three who are busy withpreparation for the college entrance examination. Therefore, it is asuitable choice to select students in Senior Grade Two as the research。ubjects. Moreover, the adoption of English paraphrase-based method inEnglish synonym teaching has certain requirements for students’vocabulary size. Students in Senior Grade Two have mastered certainEnglish words and phrases, which lays a good foundation forimplementation of English paraphrase-based method in English synonymteaching.